Hi all sifus,

I'm a newbie in LCD and am looking to get one soon. I spend 90% time watching Astro so I would like to know the best LCD TV for Astro in town. I've gone through a bit of the previous topics and I know that Astro doesn't look good on LCD but can I know which is the best? I've also spent some time shopping around but the more i shop (with different salesmen suggestions), the more I get confused....

I NEED HELP!!!

Thanks to all sifus...

In my opinion, Astro's picture quality is not that good, so, any LCD will be good enuf. Its up to your budget and also depends wat other purpose u plan to use the LCD with. If u wanna game PS3 or Xbox, then better get some with at least 720p.

Anyway, enjoy your new gadget

first of all, what's your budget? Frankly speaking, for Astro viewing, most brands are as good such as Sony, Sharp, Toshiba, Panasonic and Samsung.

Maybe try sony...ready hd wan la...

Astro still have lots of artifacts, normal LCD will do

I'll buy HDTV if they support HD transmission,

hi all sifus,

About the budget, of course i guess the cheaper the better but i'm trying to strike for the balance on quality and price. I'm trying to get 40 inch LCD TV so i think it will cost me RM5k at least. Since all brands have similar quality on Astro, I guess the cheapest "branded" LCD TV around is LG? Corrrect me if I'm wrong please.

Yes, cheapest would be LG to date. Sony and Sharp are rather 'premium' priced. In the middle, you have Samsung and Toshiba.

All LCD TV is HD ready. It is only whether it could only accept 720p and 1080i signals or Full HD (1080p). However, having said that, 1920x1080 native rez panel is still expensive.

Astro's picture quality seems to be acceptable....It's depends on which types of cables you're using....diffrent cable performs diffrent picture quality and preety significant improvement...

My criteria for a good lcd tv for astro would be one that lets you fiddle around with aspect ratios since everything is being broadcast in 4:3 anyway (There are some exceptions though). So something that lets you stretch to 16:9(10?), crop or show the picture in it's original aspect ratio would be great.

The image quality is going to be low res anyway so it's not going to be the prettiest picture anyway. It'll only shine once you get to DVD picture quality level.

I have the LG 37LC2R and it has many different Aspect Ratios for TV dispaly to play with. It can even automatically detect the black borders of widescreen programmes shown on TV and enlarge them to fit the whole screen.

Hmmm ... there are some LCD TV's that comes with the AEM @ Astro Enhancement Mode .. such as Sony.. but when I take a look with my own eyes at Best Denki and Senq .. it seems like nothing much difference compare to other LCD TV's from other manufacturers .. IMHO ..

Astro does not go very well with LCD TVs. Plasma TVs make Astro acceptable, sometimes, some channels look really good I have to say.

Indeed. Astro on LCD is not so good; in fact, bad. It happens even with very good S-Video cable, there are slightly better in contrast, color and brightness but not really help in sharpness.

This post has been edited by Quenox: Jun 27 2007, 10:23 PM

Concusion : Plasma TV looks better with astro.
HD ready are crap, better go for full HD like psp boy.

One of the reasons why Astro look bad on LCD is because the LCD panel is HD but Astro is low resolution. The scaling of the low res pic to fit the HD screen is what makes the pic look bad.

What to do ... ? Coz there is still CRT TV users around .. therefore they have to concern about them as well I guess ... When we are viewing it in a larger resolution .. the picture quality goes worse .. not to mention wide screen option as well ...

If u spend 90% on astro...might as well get a Plasma TV.

Some sort of mktg gimmick, I wld say. If source is bad, no matter what you do with ur LCD TV (unless u r talking hi-end external video scaler) PQ wont improve much.

yeah. every LCD come with same astro quality, even the enhancer wont do the job well, i would jz dl it 24hours and play on LCD, this is the best choices rather than astro.

all sifus,

which one will you pick considering the three models below? i can only find these 3 models so far which are under my budget (not over RM6k) and with 40" - 42" screen.

1. Sony 40V200
2. LG 42LC2R
3. Phillips 42TA2800

Appreciate any comments and feedback or any better suggestion.

Thanks a lot!!!

Ya .. agreed with you guys. No matter how good is the LCD TV .. it will always have downgraded picture quality when screening Astro programs.
Hmm .. IMHO .. i will not vote for LG ..

Any bad expirienced with LG? Care to share?

As has been mentioned here, Astro on LCD TVs suck big time. You're better off with a good quality CRT.

If you REALLY want to watch Astro on LCD, lower down your size and target the 32 inchers...I've seen good results with Sony and Philips.

Why discriminate against LG? LG-Philips is one of the biggest plasma and LCD panels supplier to the world market. Sony doesn't even make their LCD panel (I think they are currently using Samsung's)

LG products are not bad.

This post has been edited by karyeowl: Jun 28 2007, 08:46 PM

Hi ! Actually what makes me think that LG doesn't look good is the color saturation that I saw during my visit at the electrical stores. No offense
Just my humble opinion.

* Out of topic question here :-
Currently I am using LG CRT TV and I wonder why the color pallet always not stable .. sometimes it will be very bright till it hurts your eyes but sometimes it wouldn't ..

Well I am using the LG 37LC2R and for TV programs, I am using the normal Terrestrial antenna and not Astro. Astro is only used downstairs with a CRT.

My experience with my LG using normal Terrestrial antenna (the signal is strong in my area) is the clarity is really good. The colors for me is perfect. They are rich and natrual. I am really happy with it.

For DVD, I have it paired with the Sony 76H HDMI model using one of it's enhanced modes with the LG's XD mode. The clarity and colours are fabulous. I have watched *ahem* Casino Royale , I, Robot, LOTR, Matrix etc. and also all sorts of cartoons like Open Season. And I wouldn't trade the LG for even Sony.

The Sony Bravias look Sharper of course, but to my eyes they have that oversharpnesss that make them a bit 2-dimensional. To me it's like taking a normal photo and using photoshop to make the image over sharp until they somehow look a bit unnatrual. (Please don't flame me ). To lots of people they prefer it this way, but not me.

The colours in Casino Royale DVD, esp. the facial colours, are so stunning that it makes the Casino Royale trailer that Sony uses for their LCD-TV demo look dull.

The same for I-Robot , LOTR , Matrix, Open Season. I prefer the colours on the LG than those I have seen demo on Samsung and Sony models.

However, one big complaint with the LG is that the XD engine can be a bit too much sometimes, causing some movies to have to much contrast.

Without the XD engine however, the LG doesn't look nice in some scenes especially the facial colours.Dark scenes look a bit too dark.

For PC, connected via VGA, I am more than happy with this LG. Perfect pixel mapping 1368x768.

That's the good and bad that I have experienced with the LG.

Well, just for FYI, LG Philips are using their own S-IPS panels and if offers a wider viewing angles at equal sharpness and colour saturation but of course, this panel is only available for LG's LC7R series. I've seen it in action and no doubt, it's impressive. Other than that, Panasonic is using IPS-Alpha in its recently launched 32' 700 series LCD tv, it's also the same technology as LG Philips. All these panels originated from Hitachi, it was licensed to LG Philips, they named theirs as S-IPS panels, mostly made in Korea. The other panel called IPS-Alpha is used by Hitachi, Panasonic and Toshiba. The specs should be the same, just the naming is different. Dell and Apple monitors are using S-IPS panels because it produces the best colours with the widest viewing angles whereas the S-PVA panels used by Sony and Samsung might have better constrast and better blacks but looses out of some minor ghosting and smearing issues. They're using the overdrive mode to achieve decent refresh times but honestly, for your HD gaming, their flaws are quite evident on a 60 fps game like Ridge Racer. I guess that's all I've found out so far.

Was told by couple of salesmen in the past weeks that Astro will be beaming digital signlas next year. I have not read it anywhere in the local papers. Is there any truth in it?

they have always been in Digital. however the crappy digital signal where analogue terestrial RTM 1 signals 10x better.

TS, it is wasting money if the bought LCD TV to watch Astroj( a standard 300MB AVI picture quality is way much better); IMHO, better spend the money on other stuffs. If your condition due to space and to protect kids eye, go get china made one.

Interesting to see an old topic where I posted surface again.

So I would like to take this opportunity to give an update about the very flattering comment I posted on the LG 37LC2R dated June 2007.

It's now been more than half a year since I first bought the LG. When it was brand new and ultra bright, everything looked stunning. But now when things have settled down, and the brightness has lessened somewhat, colours look less natrual and need some calibration. What was white previously, now have a slight reddish tinge. Picture quality is no longer as sharp as before.

The XD engine, especially the XD contrast has become too dark in a lot of DVD movies. There is a loss of details in the black areas. So I have turned it off for most of my movies.

Hope this feedback will be helpful for some people

Why don't you call the technical folks from LG to check on your set? Probably something wrong with the backlight. A nearby coffee shop in my area has been using this model for more than a year, the colour is still spot on and good like a brand new set. No harm giving them a call since your set is still under warranty.

That was too radical changed for your LG lcd. Its scarry me...$$$


Yeap, I fully agreed with your opinion. He should call the technician to fix the problems...Hope the tv is under warranty...


From my spec of view, my bro were just bought a brand new 40' SAMSUNG LCD Series 6. When turned on Astro, the picture looks damn blurred and expended. Some channels such as TV3 looks better compared to Astro's channels; RIA, PRIMA etc.. It is much better when using Terrestrial antenna even some channels are not clear enough. At this moment, I just convenience watched Astro with CRT TV. Waiting for any enchancement from Astro for HD broadcasting.

Rgrds,
Amin - Penang

~Happy Aidilfitri & Have A Good Holidays Lowyatsters~

The only way to improve your Astro picture quality on your LCD/Plasma is a good build quality cable like monster s-video cable.



http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/742712

Sold more than 60 cables with excellent feedbacks.

You don't have to pay through your nose for a monster cable now.

This post has been edited by DigitalTech: Oct 3 2008, 02:35 PM

I concur! Just bought the Monster's S-Video cable and true enough, it does improve the picture! Thanks Digitaltech!
Go for it guys..

Buy SONY..got 1 model suit to Astro Enchancement..very very clear and nice...~~

No worries, mate! Glad that you are satisfied.

If you want Monster Component or HDMI cable, give me a buzz!

Cheers!

the best LCD TV for astro would be...

Plasma TV + Monster cable = EXCELLENT Astro PQ

90% usage for Astro? Get plasma. I was searching for 32" plasma before Raya but unable to find one except Haier which is not suitable for PC since the resolution is too low. So I end up with 32" LCD Panasonic LX800. So far I'm satisfied with Astro PQ. That is just with cap ayam s-video cable. My Monster s-video coming tomoro. We'll see...

Make sure you do your review on this moster cable thingy. I am sure many would like you to comment...........

I would have to agree.
LCD wise don't go over 32".

Bro, I was pondering whether to get 32" Panasonic LX80 or LX800, any huge difference between those 2? Tried looking at the specs but can't tell much difference except for the 100Hz and sd card slot. Suggestions please? I mainly use it for astro.

The price difference is not that much bro. I would rather have the extra features the LX800 has to offer especially 100Hz and 24p playback support. 100Hz will be very useful for my PC gaming...less flicker so easy on the eyes. Plus I got it for less than what LX80 is selling outside so why not

...and not to mention LX800 looks better than LX80

Thanks man, how much did you get it for?

The difference is that one is full HD and the one is HD ready. Again if you're just solely using it for ASTRO only , then there is no use to jump into Full HD , plus with 32" Full HD there is no big deal about it. If you really want to experience full HD , then go for a bigger screen - otherwise it would be just waste of money. Unless you plan to use a PC with HDMI and you want to get 1:1 pixel ratio without overscanning.

I am using a 37" Panny LCD TV (HD Ready). Serves me very well. Although its not 1080p , but it does a pretty good job for my needs. I do watch lot of ASTRO , compared to HD Movies , so full HD isn't worth it for me and plus ASTRO isn't HD in the first place. It would be a different story if astro supports 1080i. Then by getting full HD , you'll notice the whole difference , in this case they are using 576i (and not progressive scan). Since you're mainly using it for ASTRO , I would recommend you to go for the 80 *unless you really want 1080p then go for the 800 series* , since you're mainly watching ASTRO. Save the money and use it for something else in the near future ! (or buy one of those good quality S-video cable to improve the PQ of ASTRO)

Ok just installed Monster S-Video 2 I got from Digitaltech. Before I could see any difference, my wife walk into the room and...."eh apa dedi dah buat astro cantik...kaler terang...gambar sharp dah tak kelabu sangat..."

I guess no need comment from me...the wife has spoken

For u who didn't know, previously I use cap ayam s-video cable so this is a very valid comparison. Monster s-video very much improve Astro PQ over normal cap ayam s-video

less than rm2.2k cash....u might want to pm iamsobloodysick for latest price.

but lx80 is rm 1699 now wow ~ in BM ~

Thanks for the info everyone, very ummm.... informative. But seriously, appreciate the help.

I heard about the seller looking through the forum, anyone has experience trading with the person? BM no problem for me.

got shop 1 ...should be no problem gua ~ just call them just now, a girl answer, point how to go their shop, thinking to pick up a samsung LCD, now c alot review, some say samsung alot dead pix .... aisk ~~ confusing now ~~~ lol ~

That's cheap. Go for it. LX80 also got good IPS-Alpha panel.

using lx70 b4 .... feel so so, and i feel quite annoying when the dynamic contrast is on, u can see the white suddenly become bright, suddenly become dim 1 ... other brand also same ?

if watch ASTRO, better buy plasma tv..........lcd not suitable...

plasma consume 350W above for 42", LCD 32" consume around 150-180 only ... this is 1 of my concern ...
now dunno wan buy 3.7K plasma or 2.0K punya LCD ~~ argh ~~~

I was recommended by shop to get samsung series 4 instead of panasonic, this coming from a panashop. lol.
Now I'm

vex, did you get the name of the shop in BM?

Sammy 4 series? Bad idea...trust me that one on my list and I finally ditch it. A big no no with Astro...

LOL...Pana staff recommends Samsung? May be he has a big fight with the boss.

damn..cheap price u got there..my dad bought the old tx-32le8m for 1899 here in kuching

only get the 6 series if for Samsung...

saw 4 and 5 series PQ, can't beat Panny....if thus, go for Panny better, 42 inch, RM3799 only

Get Plasma PV8 RM3.8k for 42"
Good for astro

PANASONIC 42" Plasma TH-42PV8 = RM 3390
this 1 okay ah ? not pv80 better meh ?
both use 1024x768 panel only .... the full hd 1080p panel cost a bomb ~

i use panasonic plasma tv 42 too. The picture ok especially when coupled with max. Sony plasma tv sux when u want to use astro. blurry.

Sony Got Plasma?

Sony Got Plasma? Wat kind of question is that? My office got one.

Sony where got plasma TV? All LCD...

Rear projection TV kuah?

Sony used to produce plasma tv. but they stopped production late 2005 if I'm not mistaken. So the one in the office must be an old model.

There's nothing much you can do with the bad Astro PQ on your LCD/Plasma.

The only thing you can improve the PQ is using a good built cable like Monster S-Video Cable.

Previously, monster cables are not affordable at all. Only the rich one can buy it as premium stuff.

I have brought in the monster cables from a wholesaler from the US in bulk.
So, now you don't have to worry that a monster cable will cost you a bomb.

Now everybody can afford a Monster cable for your AV devices.

Imagine enjoying every minute on your astro channels with improved PQ without paying premium price for the improvement.
If you do the math, is more than worth it.



http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/742712

Sold more than 70 cables with excellent feedback. Arremie is one of them.

This post has been edited by DigitalTech: Oct 6 2008, 11:10 PM

toshiba !!

any PV80 user here ?? confirm this TV got 100hz refresh rate ???
becos some say got, some say dun have ~ i dunno which to belive.

Confirm got.

please comment on this dealers' popular comment :

"panasonic plasma yes... LCD no good... go for other brand..."

I believe the appropriate question should be:

"What will you be using your flat-panel TV for, sir? Astro, DVD, Blu-Ray, PS3 or PC?

And then the answer:

Astro, DVD - HD-Ready Plasma
Blu-Ray - Full HD Plasma
PS3 or PC - Full HD LCD

and then proceed to sell you the most expensive TV you can afford.

This post has been edited by 99below0: Oct 8 2008, 03:46 PM

....if he that smart, he won't be a salesman

I go for Sony X series LCD TV

saw my bro in law X series ... also so so nia , when watch their cable TV ~ no different from normal LCD pun ~

If Sony X not good for u then go for Pioneer KUDO

Kudo? new model? kuro ade la

Sony X series very cun with BD. How can watch normal TV and say X series not good. U need HD material to take full advantage.

Title of this thread is "Best LCD TV for Astro?" mah... so the TVs discussed here are going to be used for Astro big-time... so sorrylah, man... that cheapo Tosh AV500 is going to look better than the X-Series... with Astro... hahaha

This post has been edited by 99below0: Oct 9 2008, 04:02 PM

Haha no prob....who cares about astro crappy picture. Just get any LCD and use good s-video cable and you are done. X series too high class for astro

I would venture to say... LCD TV too high class for Astro... go find a cheap second-hand 34" CRT for excellent PQ...

Even a back projection TV is good.

So, what 99<0's comment is LCD TV now is ONLY good for Gaming console and PC connection. Astro & movies should hook-up with Plasma TV. In other words,
all HDMI players, Blu-ray players, HDMI Receivers and Hardcore Speakers to produce all HD pictures and audios are BEST pair with Plasma TV.

So, beware all LDC potential buyer, and luckily I am a plasma owner, In other words, Plasma is more relevant to Home Theatre and this implies its limitless potential in the future movie generation. BTW, most of the advanced talk about hardware like BDP, HD AVRS, HD Surround are associated with Movies, indirectly Plasma......I rest my case.

Not really la. Full HD LCD also got excellent PQ for HD movies.

Dont agree so..

from my point of view, go for Full HD LCD for astro...and some my friend said astro using analog signal that is the reason lcd using digital signal can't accept well....

getting a Full HD LCD just for viewing astro only is not a good idea.. since astro is not broadcasted at 1080p

Wrong... and wrong. Please double check your facts to avoid confusing other forum members.

Astro is regular PAL interlaced signal (576i), so HD Ready sets don't have to upscale so much and will look better. Full HD sets will have to upscaled to 1080p, and you can't just add information that isn't there, therefore you'll get more blocking and colour runs.

Poor picture on LCDs have nothing to do with the analog signals. A good analog component 480p signal from a good DVD player can frequently look better than a poor HDMI set. The reason Astro looks bad is because of the amount of compression that Astro applies to its channels in order to cram them all into that limited bandwidth. Because the LCD has to upscale, compression blocks and artifacts look far more obvious, depending on the quality of the upscaler in the LCD TV.

But u have mentioned before, HD Ready tv also upscaled everything to 1080p before downscale to 720p such as Panny Plasma correct ??

That's the Panasonic method. And, you are watching 768p finally, not 1080p, which means the poor quality picture does not have to be stretched so much. You will notice that Astro looks very good on those old 42" EDTV 832x480 plasmas too (like the LG42PC3), cause there's very little interpolation going on.

Copy that. U are a real technician behind those technologies. Keep it up.

But if there are die hard fans still wanna to use LCD to watch astro, take 2 notes. Choose only HD ready and smaller size like 32inch. I found Sharp Aquos 32inch very good in handling astro....

another way is to sit far far away from your LCD TV and you will not notice the bad PQ in Astro.

Or get a monster s-video cable.....



http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/742712

This post has been edited by DigitalTech: Jun 5 2009, 11:38 AM

guys.. i just wanna use my tv to watch astro & play dvd movie once in a while..

Among the cheapest i can get now is 32' inch sharp aquos.. so basically i just get tis LCD TV + Monster cable and that would be around 2k.

Is that rite? OR is there any 32 Plasma TV? Sould I just get 32' LCD TV + Monster cable or just 32' Plasma for the best picture quality on Astro..

Are you referring to 32A33 or 32A53?

i heard SONY T Series LCD is good with astro & no need to get other S-video cable just used that come with astro..dunno la kan...

I am considering getting a flat screen for astro watching. Since the sentiment is plasma is better, I am considering 2 models:

Panasonic 42PV8 or Hitachi P42A01A.

What really interest me is the Hitachi's ALiS panel which has 1080i and the fact that ALiS panel supposed to use less power because pixels are lit one row after the other.

What do you guys think? Anyone got experience with these (esp the Hitachi?)