TV & Home Theater

[kuckbook]

Hi!  I'm looking for a TV to replace one that just bit the dust!  I am pretty sure I want LED with a fast refresh rate... other than that I'm not sure what to look for.  Need at least 45-46"; easy to use!!!! (senior moment); good clear picture and sound; and dependable!  Would appreciate any feedback/advice.  Thank you.

[Entropy]

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kuckbook wrote:

Hi!  I'm looking for a TV to replace one that just bit the dust!  I am pretty sure I want LED with a fast refresh rate... other than that I'm not sure what to look for.  Need at least 45-46"; easy to use!!!! (senior moment); good clear picture and sound; and dependable!  Would appreciate any feedback/advice.  Thank you.

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Anything beyond 60 Hz refresh is pointless except for marketing (Sole exception: 3D-ready TVs) due to the lack of any content (except for the new 3D systems such as 3D Blu-Ray) with refresh rates beyond 60 Hz.  Any higher refresh involves the TV attempting to create something from nothing, look at other specs like brightness, viewing angle, and contrast ratio.

The other thing to focus on is build quality - I'd avoid generic brands (Dynex, Insignia, Westinghouse, RCA, etc. - while the latter two USED to be well known brands, now those companies solely exist for the purpose of licensing their name to noname companies.) and look for well established manufacturers.  Currently I would focus on:  LG, Samsung, Sony, Sharp.

I have a 46" Sharp AQUOS and love it.  Can't really comment on the sound quality as I have always had a surround system installed in that room.  (One of the Yamaha HTIB kits Best Buy sells.)

[SlimJim77]

I wouldn't call 120hz pointless, although I do agree it should have no bearing on the buying decision. 120hz has trickled down to even the cheapest TV sets nowadays anyway.

[NoNoBadDog]

The human eye cannot see refresh rates much past 25 fps.  This hoopla about 120Hz, 240Hz, 600Hz, is all marketing.  It *DOES NOT* make motion smoother to your eyes.  Every 3 to 4 years, the TV manufacturers need a new  gimmick to sell TVs.  For a while, it was faster refresh rates.  Then it was LED backlit models.  Now it is 3D.

All broadcast signals in the US are 60Hz.  ALl recorded media (VHS/Beta, DVD, BLu-ray), are encoded and reorded at 60Hz.  If a TV adbvertises a higher refresh rate, it is doing so by using some arbitrary algoritym to create intermediate frames that do not exist in the original, thus it creates an artificial reproductionof the original equipment. 

Refresh rates beyond 60Hz. *DO NOT* smooth a picture.  The phenomenon depends on the psychological aspect of the consumer believing that he sees a smoother picture.  It is in the same category of hype as the $200 HDMI cable....pure B*llsh*t. 

So, if a model in your proice range, has 60 Hz, then go for it.  It should not influence your buying decision at all.  Simply find a unit in your price range that has a good picture to your eyes, and go for it. 

[Entropy]

Part of this is that some humans COULD subconsciously perceive rapid flickering at 60 Hz if the duty cycle (on time) was low, which would cause discomfort.

However, LCD pixels have much higher persistence (and hence duty cycle), so don't flicker like CRT displays did.  So there's no real need for anything beyond 60 Hz unless you're doing 3D (shutter-style 3D halves the effective refresh rate of the monitor, and 30 Hz on/off flicker is HIGHLY annoying to most people.)