This is somewhat off-topic, but I’m curious if anyone reading has experience with this television, especially with regard to how it handles anime. I know it’s not 1080p, but at 32″, the extra resolution is kind of useless. Plus, I’ll be watching SD content for many years to come.
Any thoughts? I don’t know if I’m in the market or not, but I’m giving it serious consideration.
Big TV for little anime? Sounds good! I wish I had big TV to watch my mecha battles. Also useful for the healing-type shows, in creating ambience.
We bought my grandma KDL32SL130 a couple months back. She watches only SD material (namely foreign programming from satellite TV) and the occasional poorly-mastered DVD or VCD to get her Asian drama fix. It’s a pretty decent TV, although for the same price you can get a slightly-crappy 42″ TV…
I think when you are shopping for that kind of TV (small size, not 1080p) what dictates the most is price. That is, if you can get a crappy HDTV for hundreds less as you would with even our non-XBR Bravia, you’re walking away with a good deal. Yea yea you are paying for a better signal processor, really, but if you have the mentality of “it’s small so I can’t tell the difference” then I would suggest for a few hundred dollars you can live with the difference of a lesser video processor.
BTW, I used avsforum to do my HDTV homework back when we bought our Sony KDS-60A2000 last summer. And for the record we do not have a Sony bias, although for some unknown reason we always get good deals with ‘em…
Last thing: I don’t know what you watch and how you watch them, as those are a huuuuuge factor in determine which TV you should get. Do you hook it up to your computer? A VHS player? CATV/Sat? OTA?
Once you cross that line, you can never return :-)
At the smaller sizes, I’d go to a store and physically look at the sets. It’s probably not worth paying extra for the brand name of Sony, and last time I stared closely I was rather impressed with the SHARP models (like that Sharp Aquos LC32D62U 32″ 1080p LCD HDTV)
I personally have an older 27″ Toshiba (in a small room) at 720p, and absolutely love it for anime. SD stuff looks fine on it, and it’s nice to connect to a computer as well. However I must admit once you buy a set, you start only wanting to watch widescreen hi-res versions to take advantage of the TV.
Well, I should mention that 32″ is as big as I really want to go. A 37″ or 40″ set could work in the room, but it’d be pretty overwhelming. And when it comes to 32″ sets, 1080p is rare. And, like I said, at that size, the extra resolution is kind of pointless unless you sit half a foot away from the screen. I’ll be sitting 9 feet away.
Also, I’m more interested in quality than I am size; that’s why I’m willing to pay the XBR premium over the existing Sony premium. Comparing my choices at the store, my eyes kept drifting toward the Sony models. They weren’t worlds better or anything, but the difference was noticeable. And there was also a noticeable difference between the XBR model and the non-XBR models. I’ve made a point of visiting several different stores, and in each case the XBR model stood out from the crowd. Of course, given its specs, one would expect as much.
Anyway, I watch DVDs and fansubs. And I do a small amount of old generation console gaming. At the moment, the computer is connected via S-Video; this is going to change, however, as I’ll be buying a newer dedicated fansub machine before long (current box can’t handle h264 content all that well), at which point I’ll probably just connect via HDMI. I don’t watch broadcast TV. I don’t even have cable, so it’s not a factor to consider.
I’ll admit to a slight Sony bias, if simply because my current CRT TV is a Sony (which I’ve been happy with), my current desktop LCD is a Sony (which I’ve been happy with), and my previous desktop CRT was a Sony (which I was happy with for many years). I’ve never gone wrong with Sony displays. But, I recognize I might be able to save some money by going with a Samsung or, say, this Panasonic, which apparently gives the XBR4 a run for its money.
Oh, and the main reason I’m even considering doing this is because my CRT didn’t weather the move all that well back in May (it developed a localized flicker that’s noticeable in bright scenes). That, and I can cover the cost with my annual bonus.
Well, the Sony is a serious TV, but most of the advantage over others may be the 120Hz refresh and 1600:1 contrast (8000:1 dynamic). The only downside may be that it isn’t 1080p, but like you said, there aren’t many 32″ 1080p (I’ve only seen a couple Sharp AQUOS that looked nice).
If you have the money, its hard to go wrong with Sony.
Oh, also, I recommend an upscale player (if you go HD). I have an older Toshiba DVD upscaler (720p), and anime gets crisp. Unfortunately, pictures weren’t as crisp on a 61″ DLP, but that could be from sitting too close ^^
I don’t really have any comments regarding the TV, but I have to second Ryans comments about getting a decent upscaling player, as it can make a surprisingly large difference in the visual appearance of the show.
If you are mostly going to be watching anime on it I’d check out AoDs HT forums for player suggestions rather than the normal HT review places, as good LA upscaling performance is very, very different to being good for anime.
The Sony your looking at is a really great TV my brother has a very similar sized Sony in his living room and the picture looks absolutely stunning when it’s feed a HD cable signal or a feed from a up-scaling DVD player.
I have a Samsung 55” in my living room and now that there are some HD anime downloads available I’m going to upgrade my computer’s video card to one that can feed a HMHI signal to that TV.
One small word of warning, once you go HD you’ll become spoiled, after I got my HD TV, I can’t stand to watch SD programming on that TV, it looks too crappy compared to a 720P or 1080I programming, Or best of all a full 1080P signal from my Blu-ray player.
Well good luck with your TV purchase, once you get it I know you’ll be very happy.
Oh by the way Ryan A, the recommended minimum viewing distance for a 61” TV is around 6-7 feet if your watching a full 1080p signal, and around 8 feet if your watching 720P, or a up-scaled SD signal.
I have a non-XBR 40″ Bravia (720p, not 1080i)–first paired with an Oppo upscaling DVD player, now paired with a PS3. I’m quite happy with my setup–any issues I have watching anime are issues with the source material (e.g. compression artifacts)…. SD shows look good, and anamorphic widescreen discs *really* shine.
I don’t know that I’d rave about my Bravia’s SD cable TV picture (though perhaps that’s an issue with all HDTVs), but that doesn’t sound like an issue for you. For everything else, it’s quite pretty.
Why not pick this 1080p 42″ Panny up? If you apply for the Sears card, Sears will knock an additional $150 off. In fact, I helped my friend installed this unit over last weekend, and the picture quality is amazing. 32″ widescreen is fine and all, but you do realize there will be black bars on the left and right size of the screen if you want to keep the contain aspect ratio right? Meaning less viewing area on 4:3 stuff.
Well, I’m looking for an LCD, not a Plasma. And 42″ is too big for the room, really.
My current CRT is only 25″, so even with the pillarboxing, 4:3 content is going to be about the same size on a 32″ widescreen set. Of course, 16:9 content will be a fair bit larger. Don’t get me wrong; I wouldn’t mind a 42″ set, but it won’t fit the room. That, and I’m more interested in picture quality than I am size. That’s why I’m willing to pay so much for the XBR4, even given its small size.
Right now, however, I think I’m going to wait… I could use the money for other, more important things.
Waiting is always a good idea when it comes to electronics. But the holidays are coming up and it’s a good time to buy.
If you are getting an XBR do not get an upscale DVD player unless you want to splurge for it–odds are your TV does a better job upscaling the signal than any sub $100 upscaling DVD player.
That said we don’t have an XBR, so the $100 Toshiba HDDVD player does a good job of upscaling DVD material in comparison.
And you should make a post about HTPCs, too, because that’s worthy in of itself. Although something like Apple TV would do the job for 90% of the people out there.