DLP or LCD

[MrVeedo]

all right guys, its time. i need to replace my trusty 25 inch crt tv sitting in my living room.

it is about 20 feet from the couch to the tv in the living room, so i would like to go with a fairly large screen. what should i go with?

i would like to hook my pc up to it, and maybe play some games, even check out the web once in a while if the picture was decent enough. would a dlp tv handle this sort of usage, or will the lcd be much better on the eyes?

i was eying up a 60 inch samsung 1080p dlp tv for about 1100, but i never pulled the trigger. theres also been a few lcd 46 inch range lcds going for about the same price.

i would like to stay around the 1000 dollar mark. what size screen would you use in my situation? dlp, lcd, or plasma? any model recommendations? i am a tv noob, so any help would be great.

EDIT:
ok, i broke out the tape measure. my guesstimates were a bit off .
distance from the middle of the couch to the middle of my entertainment center is about 19-20 feet. this is where we will do most of our movie watching from.

we have two other lazy boys, one on each side of the room, one at 9 feet, and the other 12 feet away from where the tv is. the room is 12.5 feet wide, so the viewing angles will not be very drastic from these chairs, at least i dont think.

so you think the dlp would do pretty well displaying text and stuff on the net? would a 60 inch be too big for the closer viewing positions? not sure how much i will be using the screen for computing, but it would be nice to know i could browse some forums without going down to my pc.

im wondering how crappy the picture will look while sitting at the closer viewing positions, while watching something in standard def? will a 60 inch be too big? how about when we are playing the wii, will the picture look all right while standing a bit closer, say about 8-10 feet? i have no experience with such a large tv so i really do not know these things. thanks for all the help!

pic of living room

Pic 1
Pic 2
Pic 3

 

[spidey07]

At that distance look at the 67" or the 73" from mitsubishi

 

[sdifox]

how is the lighting condition? Can you block out all nights? Your room dimensions scream for projector.

 

[MrVeedo]

well there is one big 5 pane window one one side of the room, but there is vertical shades that can block out almost all light if needed. not a whole lot of bright lighting, we could actually use a couple of lamps. i should snap a pic of the room for you guys to see.

 

[MrVeedo]

added some pics. in the middle of doing the xmas tree thing

 

[squirrel dog]

Look at the LED dlp 67" from samsung . Anything smaller than 50" from 20' is gonna strain my eyes,in the dark for sure . The 67 is anywhere from 1400+ to 2k now they also make a 61" for cheaper,same technology . The led based light source is the bomb.No light bulb or light wheel to mees with .

 

[s44]

Originally posted by: squirrel dog
Look at the LED dlp 67" from samsung

:thumbsup:

 

[MrVeedo]

i think the 67 led dlp will be a bit out of my price range. the 61 inch with led tech may be the ticket. anyone know a good place to order one from? im guessing the led will save me some cash in the long run eh?

 

[DaveSimmons]

Hard to say, Samsung DLPs usually are not bulb-eaters, you shouldn't need to buy more than 1 x $150 bulb every 2-3 years. So if the difference is more than $300 the bulb version will probably be cheaper over its lifetime.

I've had a 50" Samsung (bulb version) for a little over 2 years and am happy with it, and my brother has had a 61" for a bit over 3 years. He just replaced the bulb a couple of months ago and I'm still on my first.

 

[s44]

The LED advantage isn't just bulb replacement, it's the lack of rainbow effect.

Amazon has the HL61A750 for ~$1500.

 

[Pacfanweb]

I have an almost 5 year old Sammy DLP with the original bulb still in it. Still looks fine. Has about 12,000 hours on it. (yes, 12 THOUSAND)

I'd say they last pretty well.

 

[cheesehead]

Front projection, anyone?

 

[cubby1223]

Any LCD at the size you'd be looking at, will be hella expensive. Samsung's LED DLP is the way to go. I've got one, wouldn't have it any other way. Expect a silk-screen effect. They have very good horizontal viewing angles (that's the trade-off with the silk-screen effect, better angles), but poor vertical viewing angles (but you don't notice this unless you watch while standing up 5 feet from the screen).

And the large LCD screens become a big energy hog, while the led dlps stay relatively low-energy.


If you plan to use it for internet, I'd suggest outputting 720p from the pc to improve legibility. DLPs do not make good computer monitors.

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: Cheesehead
Front projection, anyone?

I suggested pj... but I guess op is not interested

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
Hard to say, Samsung DLPs usually are not bulb-eaters, you shouldn't need to buy more than 1 x $150 bulb every 2-3 years.

Honestly, DLPs were never really bulb eaters. A couple flawed models gave the entire technology a bad reputation.

 

[Genx87]

I picked up the Samsung 67" LED DLP last week from amazon. 1880 bucks shipped.

That is a bit out of price range but the tv is uber nice and would probably do you better than something in the 40-50" range.

 

[MrVeedo]

front projector would be cool and all, but where would i put it? i would have to mount it on the ceiling otherwise it would be in the way. also not sure about the big window hurting the picture quality. it just sounds easier for me to plop a tv down and be done lol.

im really really leaning towards the 61 inch samsung led dlp right now. i just wish i knew what prices were going to do in the next couple of weeks. they predicted price drops this month on dlp tv's, but are the prices dropped already? will they go much lower?

someone posted this in my thread over at . Price Cuts

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: MrVeedo
front projector would be cool and all, but where would i put it? i would have to mount it on the ceiling otherwise it would be in the way. also not sure about the big window hurting the picture quality. it just sounds easier for me to plop a tv down and be done lol.

im really really leaning towards the 61 inch samsung led dlp right now. i just wish i knew what prices were going to do in the next couple of weeks. they predicted price drops this month on dlp tv's, but are the prices dropped already? will they go much lower?

someone posted this in my thread over at <<<. Price Cuts

What is the direction the window is facing? Do you do a lot of daytime watching? Ceiling mount would be great for your application. DLP RPTV are nice, projectors are nicer

Took 2 hours for my brother and I to put my pj on the ceiling, and that is because I have textured ceiling thus making finding the studs challenging. And then the levelling took some time too.

 

[MrVeedo]

i guess i wouldnt be doing a whole lot of daytime watching, but in the summer its light out late. window is facing west

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: MrVeedo
i guess i wouldnt be doing a whole lot of daytime watching, but in the summer its light out late. window is facing west

So you get the setting sunlight directly on the window or at an offset. My main question is, does the sun set towards the rear of the room? That is the main question. Also, are you willing to install curtains?

 

[MrVeedo]

not sure if you seen the pics i have posted above. yea the sun blasts that side of the house in the evening. the vertical blinds block most light out, and no im not willing to change them out.

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: MrVeedo
not sure if you seen the pics i have posted above. yea the sun blasts that side of the house in the evening. the vertical blinds block most light out, and no im not willing to change them out.

Are you at least willing to change the direction of the blinds? Me think you can get away with projector. I am assuming there is no room behind couch?

 

[MrVeedo]

direction of the blinds?

another reason i do not think projector will work: when we are playing the wii closer to the screen, wont we be in the way of the picture?

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: MrVeedo
direction of the blinds?

another reason i do not think projector will work: when we are playing the wii closer to the screen, wont we be in the way of the picture?

Currently your vertical blinds' are rotated towards the front of the room. Rotate them to the back of the room to minimise light leakage.

Also, where are you standing when playing wii? your projector will be ceiling mount and probably 10-12' from the screen. As long as you are not in the 9' range from the front, you should be fine. Mind you you will have to relocate/ replace that entertainment centre if you go projector. Relocate to back or side wall.

 

[MrVeedo]

entertainment center is going bye bye. i hated that ugly thing since the day we got it. (gift). the blinds can be flipped easily i think. and yes, we would prolly be in the center of the room to play video games, which is about 9-10 feet.