TV Upgrade

[Malakei]

Hey guys, first home theatre here. Basically, i bought some solid components and some upgradable ones.

Monitor 3s - cc370 - energy xl15s - signet rear centre - 27inch Panasonic TAU - Yamaha htr-5740s - Phillips dvr642 [the divx model] .

Wondering what should be my first upgrade, im looking for a big screen but everything seems to be pretty pricey, i got my TAU for 279 i shoulda bought the 32 for 479 cuz i think it was High def ready but i figured if i bought a 27 to start i would afford a big screen earlier. of course i was wrong and just spent the money i saved elsewhere. when i fully upgrade i will likely move the monitors and the centre to the back and get bigger speakers up front but i think i would be happier upgrading the TV first because it sounds big but just doesnt look the part. size of TV is not an issue so i was hoping to go with a rear projection to save some money or even a projector if its cheaper but i would want to get at least 480p if not 720p quality because its only a matter of months before blueray will make its debut and my new tv will be outdated which my TAU already is. [no progressive : /]

Any suggestions? i was hoping to spend about a grand before tax on a TV or if privately a grand clear. Used would be fine as long as im not buying a 10 year old tv. HD capability is a must. Am i expecting too much to find this? or should i wait and just save some more cash, the problem is justifying the money spent

 

[BMXTRIX]

Samsung & Sony both have CRT televisions, similar to what you currently have, for under 1000 bucks for sure. They will produce about the best image you can hope for with full HD compatibility and 16:9 aspect ratio.

The least expensive rear projection televisions are still a little more expensive, at least on bestbuy.com - but you can likely pick up a rear projection CRT from Mitsubishi for about a grand I would think. If you have the room for rear projection CRT, it is an excellent way to go.

Front projection is good, but you really need a screen, and a DARK room to get the full impact of it. I wouldn't recommend it for daily viewing and at the price you are at, you aren't likely to be more satisfied with front projection. I think front projection is great for non-daily viewing or as a special, true-theater environment.

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

Malakei,

Can you go $1300-$1400 and can you put an LCD on a wall? If so, LCD's are coming down in price by leaps and bounds this year. The Olevia 32" LCD has beautiful resolution and is highly rated for under $1400. Olevia was just purchased by LG, and will be one of the largest LCD players in the market this year. It's flat, has all your DVI and HDMI inputs, and rivals the projection screens in picture quality. I'm a huge fan of LCD and think they will totally take over the Plasma market within the next two years. If you are interested, here's a good site to get some basic info on LCD's and how they compare to DLP and Plasma. I've already talked my parents out of buying a sub $1000 projection tv by taking them shopping and comparing the picture quality to flat screens and even CRT's. Good luck with your hunt!

www.lcd-tv-reviews.com

 

[BMXTRIX]

I agree that smaller LCDs are really taking off, but the best bang for the buck with unrivaled image quality still goes to CRT, which it sounds like you have room for. LCD still does not get the image quality reviews that plasma does, which is saying a lot since plasma doesn't even come close on image quality compared to CRT.

So, you could spend 1300 bucks on a 32" LCD, or you could spend less and get higher quality from a 32" CRT - if you have the room for the CRT.