Info and forum posts by 'Turtles'

RE: Recordable DVD or Not Recordable DVD - That is the Question.....

They both sound perfect although the 5100 appears to be steered towards the home editer more. 3100 tech sounds the better option. I am not too fussed about backups as it`s a dedicated recorder for TV only. Will use the PC DVD burners for any backups ;)

Thanks for the advice

RE: Recordable DVD or Not Recordable DVD - That is the Question.....

I am now in the market for a DVD recorder, I have held off but my VCR picture quality is making me cringe!!

I have read lots of reviews on the net and Pioneer / Panasonic are being rated quite high. I am a bit of a techie but would prefer to hear from first hand experience from anyone who can recommend a good model and the one`s to avoid (I won`t touch Philips as a mate has one and it has stopped reading pre recorded DVD`s and that appears to be a common fault).

Am looking for one up to £500.00

Thanks guys

RE: Plasma or LCD

the new Yamaha PDM4210 is very good at £4000

Yupe it looks nice and the specs are also good but I would recommend anyone new who wanted to by a plasma, and if they could push the extra £££, to go for the P 504 as the won`t regret it. There are alot more competitive screens at 42 size to choose from so I would say (apart from the P 42) that it`s a bit more of a tough decision than a 50.

Jay Windly is not about as he would tell you that plasmas were the invention of Zionist Jews to control the FBI and us blind sheep

"I am the man, and I am on to you.

Read in to that what you will" Familiar?
;)

RE: Plasma or LCD

True - I kinda take back what I said about Currys but the general staff attitude in there is poor but as you said I ain`t going to get into and argument either.

The 504 looks gr8 on a glass cabinet (depends which one one buys)

Taken your comments on board about the games on a plasma but will beg to differ on that too after 2 years playing on them and it`s fine - Static burn perhaps from a long winded RPG but not from playing URT2004 and mario kart.

I mentioned the Hitachi as a step down from the Pioneer (don`t take the word "step down" as harsh!) :) but I would recommend the 504 anyday but obviously one needs to have the cash to buy it as it isn`t cheap at all.

The problem with them pushing out some package deals is that they are not for the serious home cinema lover - if your buying a very good plasma screen then it is wasted if one doesn`t purchase the same level (without going overboard obviously) equipement to lounge in the sound and vision that one treats for. Buying a pioneer (either model) at the price they are and buying a £40.00 DVD player would not do it justice AT ALL. Don`t take my word for that go to any independant HiFi / visual specialist and speak with them. But then again Jimbo from the information that you have typed you would know this already :)

Don`t take offence from my comments, buy a washing machine, dishwasher, cooker, hoover from Comet (and others) buy Plasma`s and high end DVD players (which I don`t think Comet sell but let me know if I am wrong at this) should be left to specialist retailers. I have not seen a comet/currys sell a 504 Pioneer (they sell sony`s but they r not as highly recommended).

P.S. Here`s a good pointer for Comet - They were selling the Fellowship Of The Ring 4 disc edition sealed for £7.95 and Two Towers Gollum box set`s for £29.99 - Don`t think I have seen a supermarket do that.....

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I did post a large amount of information on what I have learnt from running a plasma for the past 2 years + so I was sharing that with the person who started the thread.

I do respect your comments Jimbo.

By the way - any spelling mistakes then tough pants as I am tierd & it`s midnight (nearly!)

This item was edited on Tuesday, 30th March 2004, 23:59

RE: Plasma or LCD

Are you serious? Currys? They are good for buying DVD movies in sales (but if you ask them what a dvd is they would produce a blank expression!) but apart from that............. plz!!

Perhaps you work for them and want a plug......

RE: Plasma or LCD

Buying a plasma is like upgrading your car from a Ford Fiesta to an Aston Martin V12 Vanquish (no offence to people who have a Fiesta!).
I would recommend buying the Pioneer PDP434HDE or if you can stretch go for the 504 model (won't bore you on the tech side as you can read the websites, and looking at previous posts (esp Jimbo) he has given some techie info, but the picture resolution is excellent). The 434 (as Punjabi-A4 said) has rave reviews and the 504 blows away the competition. The Hitachi 42" model is also a good buy but I would still recommend the Pioneer. Don't buy cheap high street plasmas as you will see just why they are cheap!
Don`t rush into buying a plasma as if you purchase the wrong one you will have made an expensive mistake and won't have a crystal clear picture. Obviously make sure you have the room for it and this includes space for the depth of a plasma stand, the wall strength for the bracket option or the correct width/depth of a glass plasma table. What DVD player do you have as a £39.99 Argos jobbie won`t do the plasma any justice?
The speakers, that you can get with the plasma (some come as optional extra), are good and the little plasma table stand is a def if your placing it on a glass plasma table (disagree with you on this one Jimbo as the stand fit`s nicely). I wouldn`t scrimp on anything when your running a plasma, make sure your cables are high quality from your unit`s to the plasma tuner.
If you want to run games through the plasma then make sure your Xbox and gamecube have superior leads for high definition. The standard visual connectors with the consoles are pants (unless you're plugging them into a 14" TV!)
Note - I left out the PS2 as they are not worthy of running on plasmas! (Might start a war on here now! lol)
If you want to watch DVD's then you would need a quality player - Denon high range (A11, 2900) fair well when I have tested them on 3 plasma's 434, 504 and the older 503 plasma. That's not to say other brand DVD players won't do the job. Do a search online or browse through the high street and look for the two magic words "progressive scan."
You may also want to consider building a PC (make sure it's silent otherwise it will sound like a hovercraft in the room) which produces a lush picture when watching DVD's through the DVD drive (obviously). You can then browse the internet and play Unreal 2004 which on a 50" plasma IS AMAZING!!!! You need to have a good graphics card for games otherwise if you have a PC just for DVD's then a £40.00 64meg card is fine. (Intel CPU's run better/quieter in a silent PC case!). Make sure if you do run a PC that it blends in well with the rest of your equipment - Nice champagne gold silent pc case looks nice.
I wouldn't bother watching video through a plasma - that's for your old telly!!
Not that I have tried but be careful when viewing satellite channels as their logos (that stay on the screen) can (I have heard) burn an imprint but I personally haven't tried it and wouldn't even try! It wasn't easy to burn on the older Pioneer 503 so the 504 would possibly be no!
I would definitely get an extended warranty for the plasma - They can be expensive but it's worth it. Bear in mind that John Lewis (if your in the UK) do a 5 year warranty included with the plasma and they will match anyone else's price in the UK! They sell the 50" for around £5999 but you could knock them down to £5400 or cheaper but it must be a shop, not mail order. Also, make sure your house insurance covers the plasma value as a lot of house contents, although a max up to £30,000 only covers a single item up to £2,000 so you will have to pay a bit extra.
You may also see a slight increase in your electricity bill but then again if your buying a plasma you can afford the little extra on the electric...