Gaming in a small room -- recommendations?

[Ground Zero]

I'm looking to purchase an HDTV in the new year (probably January). I'm an avid game fan, so it will be used primarily for that purpose (I have an XBox 360 on order, for example).

I currently have a 32' Wega which I love. Given the size of my living room I don't see me getting a HUGE TV and have instead been looking at TV's in the 40-52inch range. There's also a fair amount of light in the living room.

I've been debating DLP vs LCD for some time as well and working with a budget of around $2500 Canadian.

Any recommendations?

 

[NickAz]

I'm interested in the same info. I'm ready to buy soon and I'm also into game play systems, with 3 kids I can't seem to help it.

Looking for at least 50 inches to replace my 54" rear projection TV bought back in 1997.

I thick I was told that LCD's are not good for fast action. Not crazy about DLP cause I can see the small squares at times, and Plasma seem ok, well so does LCD's so I'm not sure which type to get.........

I got at least 8 good years out of my 54" with one under warrantee Blue Tube replacement at 5 yrs but now it seems to be washed out again. I do have an extra Blue Tube ( shipped by mistake after repair ) so maybe that will fix the picture again.

My price range is 1,800 - 2,500.00 and like to get something that will last. More than likely will buy an extened warrantee for 5 years.

Be great to hear some opinions.

Thanks,
Nick

 

[shamus]

im no expert but i would still get a rear projection tv..you cant beat the price!!! as long as you are not looking at it at a big angle you will be fine. dont forget obviously to make it a wide screen and to have a hdmi input to future proof it for at least a while.(unlike what i did)

 

[Cosmo Kramer]

Xbox 360 eh? I'm in the exact same situation as you. I'm looking at a HDTV simply for watching sports and playing 360. Remember that the 360 is natively displayed at 720p, not 1080i, but it will upconvert it.

Personally, I'm in the range of a 26"-37" TV. I'm looking at LCD TV's mainly because in the "official" Xbox 360 gamers guide, which I have, it has an entire article about every kind of HDTV. Here are the grades they give, with a "10" being the best.

LCD- "Don't let the listed cost fool you; LCD is expensive. The bottom end thousand-dollar units are probably only around a mere 23-inch size. A true living room LCD display (37 inches plus) will run you over four grand, easily. Cost, however, is the only factor holding LCD back from a higher rating. If you can afford it, this is the way to go. LCD is thin, lightweight, incredibly bright and vivid, beautiful, and unlike plasma, it won't suffer burn-in. For the ultimate in 360 gaming- and the quickest way to a second mortgage- go for an LCD HDTV." RATING: 8

DLP- "Essentially the succesor to those big boxy projection TVs of the previous decade, DLPs are relatively small (usually weighing less than 100 pounds with a depth of around a foot) and offer excellent picture quality. Most natively display 720p, making them a perfect match for the 360, and they have excellent viewing angles. They range from around 42 inches to 60 inches in screen size, and are probably the best bang for your buck. Make sure you get one of the latest-generation models (they seem to be advancing at a rate of about a generation every year or so) - the newer the technology, the better the picture quality. The only downside comes from the fact that a small percentage of people see a rainbow effect on the screen simply as a result of natural differences in their eyesight. Be sure to look at one in a store to see if you're among those with rainbow-detecting vision." RATING: 9

Plasma- "The first time you saw a wall-mounted, flat-panel widescreen HD display in a storefront somewhere, it was probably a plasma TV. A forerunner in thin, lightweight HDTV, plasma technology definitely has the size factor going for it; you can easily hang these guys up on a wall. And boy are they pretty. Unfortunately, they're not the best choice for Xbox 360 gaming for a couple of key reasons. First and foremost is the fact that plasma is prone to burn-in - more so than any of the other HDTV technologies. That means walking away from a paused game for an extended amount of time, or even an anchored part of a game's interface during a long play session, can cause "burn in" to the screen, leaving a permanent artifact. The other prohibiting factor is cost. Plasma is very, very expensive, and when combined with the burn-in factor, it's simply not the best choice for the 360." RATING: 6

CRT- "CRT is the fancy name for the good ol'-fashioned heavy TVs you've had in your home your entire life. They're now available in 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio and in HD, but the overwhelming majority do not natively support the Xbox 360's preferred 720p resolution, instead upconverting it to 1080i (or simply displaying 1080i natively, which all 360 games will offer). The good news is that CRT HDTVs are very affordable; a desk-worthy 26-inch widescreen set can be had for as little as $600. A decent-sized 34-inch widescreen falls in the $1500 range. The bad news is that widescreen CRTs don't get any bigger than that. The reason may very well have to do with the fact that a 34-incher weighs in excess of 200 pounds." RATING: 7

 

[BMXTRIX]

That's an interesting post, but misses out on SEVERAL technologies...

LCD REAR PROJECTION: This is one of the three slim fit rear projection technologies and should not be confused with LCD flat panels which you hang on your wall like a plasma. The other slim fit rear projection technologies include DLP and LCoS. This technology has increased picture quality levels that put it nearly on the exact same level as DLP, but without any possibility of rainbows, and due to the actual LCD panels used, it doesn't suffer the same image quality issues that LCD flat panels sometimes have. No burn-in, excellent colors, great resolution. Perhaps a bit of screen door. Very cost competitive to DLP, but with a bit of a screen door effect on some models. RATING: 9

LCoS REAR PROJECTION: This is one of the three slim fit rear projection technologies. The other slim fit rear projection technologies include DLP and LCD. By a close margin LCoS may produce the best image of all of the new rear projection technologies. It has a fine image with no rainbows and a lower interpixel gap level than any of the competition (less screen door). Colors are excellent on these units and resolution includes the standards and goes up to a native 1080p resolution which no other technology currently matches. DLP, while claiming 1080p, is actually using 960x1080 panels, LCoS uses true 1920x1080 panels. LCoS is manufactured by several companies under different names including (JVC) DILA and (Sony) SXRD. The biggest downfall seems to be that it is a difficult technology to reliably manufacture which drives prices on these units higher than competing models from the DLP and LCD camps. Sony boasts the first front 1080p front projector using 1080p technology to beat the $10,000 price point. RATING: 9

Yes, for video gaming specifically these numbers are pretty darn on. But, you have to consider how much gaming is going on, what fits your price point, and what works best for you. There is no question in my mind, the absolute best bang for the buck comes from FRONT projection where you can have a 100"+ screen with true HD quality for under $2,000.00. Yet, it doesn't work in a bright room - ever. Any light hurts front projection quality. Rear projection using DLP, LCD, and LCoS is some of the best image you can get for your money. But, it's still a box in your room. Only LCD and Plasma flat panels give you the capability of wall hanging (really) and having a display you can use in a bright room. The added price and slight drop in performance may make flat panels seem silly, but it fits the lifestyle of a lot of people - especially when used above a fireplace or to clean up clutter on the floor.

Have a large room and don't mind losing some floor space? Rear projection CRT is a hard value to beat. HD quality and a big screen and a price that is basically untouched by the competition yet.

 

[DigitalDreamer]

I am also looking for something similar -- leaning towards Sony SXRD (LCos) but waiting for the price point to drop a bit (I'm hopeful for summer next year but I know that's hopeful thinking).

Background on what I'm looking for:
Size: Approx 50"
Cost: $2500 - 3000 (the more I can save, the more I can spend on audio...)
Usage: HD TV direct from Computer, Computer Gaming & eventually PS/3

Point for Consideration - Video Lag
One thing that I've been reading about that could be a problem and not discussed above is video lag (because the TV needs to upscale/downscale to the right resolution, there maybe a lag between audio and video). I read in many forums that Samsung DLP devices have this, and many LCD/LCD projection isn't fast enough in general for video gaming. ~ Any one have any practical experience or knowlege about this?! I don't want to spend $3000 on a TV and find that I get lag and can't play games on it.

That's why I've decided to wait until I can afford a 1080p system. I know that the SXRD isn't true 1080p but I'm guessing (pure guess, nothing to back me up on it) that its going to be better than othe RPTVs with 720p native res. Am I on drugs or is this a good assumption?

 

[MAX661]

That's why I've decided to wait until I can afford a 1080p system. I know that the SXRD isn't true 1080p but I'm guessing (pure guess, nothing to back me up on it) that its going to be better than othe RPTVs with 720p native res. Am I on drugs or is this a good assumption?

I would say the SXRD are the best RP sets available. And with a response time of 2ms Video games should be perfect on them.

Also about the true 1080p, Only PS3 and HTPC are worries. Even if Blu-Ray or HD-DVD come out with 1080p movies, they are only 1080p/24fps. 1080i/60fps should be able to deinterlace the signal to the point where it is almost not noticeable to the naked eye. Providing the scaler in the Sony sets are good.

Also there are rumors of an upgrade kit from Sony to allow the set to except 1080p through HDMI which would then definitly make it the best RP set on the market today.

 

[Ground Zero]

Point for Consideration - Video Lag
One thing that I've been reading about that could be a problem and not discussed above is video lag (because the TV needs to upscale/downscale to the right resolution, there maybe a lag between audio and video). I read in many forums that Samsung DLP devices have this, and many LCD/LCD projection isn't fast enough in general for video gaming. ~ Any one have any practical experience or knowlege about this?! I don't want to spend $3000 on a TV and find that I get lag and can't play games on it.

This is the same point that had me seriously reconsidering my original plan to go DLP. Despite the nice colors and blacks, the video lag problem really worried me. I wouldn't mind knowing more about this problem and if a similar problem applies to LCD.

Like you, I don't want to spend $3000 on a TV and find that I get too much lag to enjoy my games on it. I'm hoping that the XBox 360 launch tomorrow will drive many more reviews and much more informaiton on HDTVs on sites like IGN -- it will help me because I'm not buying one until February, but I know a lot of people are looking to make their entry into HD as soon as they get their consoles.

Another concern of mine is upscaling of low definition video -- TV signals, input from older game consoles etc. and how badly those images look on an HDTV. I was looking at a 42 inch Wega LCD last week. It had looked beautiful when I had first seen it, but over the weekend it looked horrid. They had a DVD player playing Star Wars through it and there was what looked like a lot of artifacting and color bleed. I'm hoping that this was just a result of a terrible hookup job.

 

[Cosmo Kramer]

Hmm...I do have a ginormous basement that is pretty dark. It has dark walls with dark carpet and only two windows. I think rear projection might be the best for me. Flat Panel LCD would be sweet and look awesome, but I just can't afford a 40" LCD. A 40" rear projection on the other hand is much more affordable.

For example, at Ultimate Electronics:

New Sony 40" Bravia LCD HDTV- $3,499.95

CableCARD
Component Inputs- 3
Composite Inputs- 3
Native Resolution- 720p
S-Video Inputs- 3
Computer Monitor- Yes
HDMI Inputs- 1

New Sony 42" LCD Rear Projection HDTV- $1,999.95

CableCARD
Component Inputs- 3
Computer Monitor- Yes
Composite Inputs- 3
Native Resolution- 720p
S-Video Inputs- 1
HDMI Inputs- 1

So for me, I sacrifice a viewing angle and slightly not as bright of a picture for $1500, which is worth it to me. All I need to figure out is whether I can see the "screen door effect" while playing Xbox 360.

 

[abboudc]

I'm looking to purchase an HDTV in the new year (probably January). I'm an avid game fan, so it will be used primarily for that purpose (I have an XBox 360 on order, for example).

I currently have a 32' Wega which I love. Given the size of my living room I don't see me getting a HUGE TV and have instead been looking at TV's in the 40-52inch range. There's also a fair amount of light in the living room.

I've been debating DLP vs LCD for some time as well and working with a budget of around $2500 Canadian.

Any recommendations?

I was in the same boat -- about a month ago. Had a 32" Wega. Small room (13x10). Play a lot of games.

I ended up with a 50" Sony KDF50EA10 LCD RPTV. I had various constraints, size and budget being two big ones. If i had more space, i probably would have chose the LCD RPTV Hitachi (which has the speakers on the sides as opposed to the bottom, making it wider).

The first week i had the tv, it took some adjustment (i sit about 7-8 ft from the tv). Once my eyes got used to the screen size (the only way i can describe it is they had to focus in front of the tv instead of directly on the screen), it was great.

Your old games are going to look like garbage. I don't see any motion blur with my LCD at all, just blocky graphics. It makes my PS2 look like a PS1.

Regular TV, including digital cable, looks like garbage. Honestly, analog looks better on most channels to me, or perhaps its what Comcast is doing. I don't have the HDTV cable package, but i opted for an antenna instead. I get 8 or 9 HD channels. They look beautiful. As does watching DVDs. One annoying thing is the speed of the built in tuner as well as changing video sources. Changing the channels takes about a second for picture to show up, and changing video sources about 2. My 32" Wega was nearly instantaneous.

Overall, i'd give the tv a 7.5. In the US, it's about $2499 at most stores.

 

[Alt+F4]

I would say that home theater LCDs are the WORST thing that you can get to play games on, especially fast action (Halo is going to have faster action than any movie that I can think of). LCD's are just now becoming acceptable to game on in the computer world, as the 19" LCDs are getting pretty good refresh rates of 8-12 ms. If you're looking for a big gaming screen, your best bet price wise and "non blurryness" is going to be DLP. LCOS looks really awesome, but compared to DLP the price is still prohibitive. The DLP I decided on for my HTPC is the Toshiba 56" (56HM195) because it supports 1080p and got it for about $2300. Find prices HERE. Good luck!

 

[BMXTRIX]

There is a good bit of mis-information on LCD.

LCD comes in two flavors and they should not be confused.

LCD flat panels typically have slower refresh rates as the individual pixels are fairly large and they have difficultly darkening/lightening quickly. This can produce an effect called motion smear or blur which is visible on fast moving things such as video games and sports.

LCD projection uses three very small LCD panels. The smaller panels are much, MUCH faster than their larger counterparts. This basically eliminates motion smear on all sources.

Making the arguement for plasma over LCD flat panel makes sense for motion handling. Making the arguement for DLP over LCD for rear projection doesn't make any sense at all because of the two points I listed above.