As was foretold, we've added advertisements to the forums! If you have questions, or if you encounter any bugs, please visit this thread: https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/240191/forum-advertisement-faq-and-reports-thread/

The TV Thread: More for Less

1606163656698

Posts

  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    TVs almost all sound terrible. They have tiny speakers that are facing straight down. A soundbar is kind of necessary unless you're going with a surround system.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • Ed GrubermanEd Gruberman Registered User regular
    I have an old Yamaha 5.1 system that was pretty decent. I just never set it up because the Mrs. doesn't like it when the sound is coming from behind her. Still, I think I'm going to test it out

    steam_sig.png

    SteamID: edgruberman GOG Galaxy: EdGruberman
  • a5ehrena5ehren AtlantaRegistered User regular
    Even setting it up as a 3.1 system without the rear surrounds would be a massive quality improvement.

  • m!ttensm!ttens he/himRegistered User regular
    So around Black Friday I had picked up one of the cheap 4K TCL tvs from Costco (55S423) and a few weeks ago bought a Vizio soundbar (SB3651-E6). Unfortunately though, the TV and soundbar do not play well together. If I plug in the soundbar via HDMI ARC, the video is a good 200+ ms ahead of the audio feed. The TV does not have an option to delay the video display so everything is way off sync. I tried plugging in the soundbar via the optical port and now the audio is ahead of the video feed. Unfortunately this means I can't control audio with the TV remote anymore and I have to use two remotes to control everything. It does however mean I can get the A/V feeds "close" by setting an audio delay on the soundbar but it jumps in 100 ms increments so sometimes it's not quite on, and requires finagling depending on what I'm streaming.

    I have had conversations with TCL, Roku, and Vizio regarding this issue and everyone keeps pointing the finger at the other parties. I think the problem exists somewhere in the Roku TV processing the audio and this processing time isn't being accounted for. If I configure the audio output on the TV to stereo (PCM) the delay is significantly minimized but I lose 5.1 surround sound. Mrs Mittens does not want me to return the TV (which is maybe <1 week away from the 90 day return window) and didn't want the soundbar to begin with but I just can't go back to crappy TV speakers. Anyone run into an issue like this and have any other ideas I can pursue?

  • CauldCauld Registered User regular
    edited February 2019
    I've had issues with HDMI arc and my TCL also. I switched to using digital audio and it's much better. I don't have the issue with audio being ahead of video, but my soundbar has an option to delay the audio. Edit: The delay option I found on the vizio phone app (Side note to say the app is very unstable in my experience, but I've found the app easier to access).

    On a separate note, is there a good guide for wall mounting a tv + soundbar? I'm wondering about whether or not I should mount both and also placement relative to sofa, etc.

    Cauld on
  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    ARC is terrible. It is known. Most audio systems aren't getting anything beyond 5.1 anyway so you might as well run optical. At least then you have the rock solid connection. Yes, you won't be able to control the audio with your TV remote (unless you have a Samsung TV which is the one good thing I'll say about them), but the audio just works.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • m!ttensm!ttens he/himRegistered User regular
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    ARC is terrible. It is known. Most audio systems aren't getting anything beyond 5.1 anyway so you might as well run optical. At least then you have the rock solid connection. Yes, you won't be able to control the audio with your TV remote (unless you have a Samsung TV which is the one good thing I'll say about them), but the audio just works.

    I wish it was rock solid, but I'm having sync issues still :(

    May need to poke around at settings a bit more

  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    Cauld wrote: »
    I've had issues with HDMI arc and my TCL also. I switched to using digital audio and it's much better. I don't have the issue with audio being ahead of video, but my soundbar has an option to delay the audio. Edit: The delay option I found on the vizio phone app (Side note to say the app is very unstable in my experience, but I've found the app easier to access).

    On a separate note, is there a good guide for wall mounting a tv + soundbar? I'm wondering about whether or not I should mount both and also placement relative to sofa, etc.

    I like to mount both but it depends on your soundbar and whether you care about hiding wires. You'll see some guides online that say you should have your TV at a certain height depending on the size of the TV, but these almost universally ignore the height of your couch. My general rule of thumb is you want eye level to be somewhere around 1/3 to 1/2 of the way up the TV screen. You might have to go higher depending on your furniture. Then wherever your TV goes, the soundbar just punches right below that.

    Or if you're on an arm mount you can get one of those sound bar brackets that attaches to the mount. You still have to worry about height though.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    m!ttens wrote: »
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    ARC is terrible. It is known. Most audio systems aren't getting anything beyond 5.1 anyway so you might as well run optical. At least then you have the rock solid connection. Yes, you won't be able to control the audio with your TV remote (unless you have a Samsung TV which is the one good thing I'll say about them), but the audio just works.

    I wish it was rock solid, but I'm having sync issues still :(

    May need to poke around at settings a bit more

    Looking around a bit, it looks like the Roku OS8 update did some funky shit with their audio processing to the point that external audio may not be syncing right across the board. It's not just Vizio, I'm seeing this on the Sonos support forums as well. I'll poke around the internal forums and our bulletins when I'm on the clock tomorrow and see if I can find anything.

    The cynic in me wonders if they're trying to get you to buy those Roku soundbars but I hope this is just "we fucked up."

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • ApostateApostate Prince SpaceRegistered User regular
    So I'm going to be buying a new TV. I've decided on an OLED but I wanted to check myself before going ahead with one.

    My normal intuition is to buy premium. My last big TV was a Pioneer Kuro. At the time there was a significant difference between that and any lower end TVs, plasma or LCD. It was obvious just seeing them side by side. It was very much worth it to buy the higher end.

    With OLED though I'm not seeing much difference between the lower and higher end products. The reviews I've read have many of them rated basically the same (usually noting the low end one's are a better deal money wise). The ones I've looked at in the store don't appear really any better or worse to my eye. I know some have better processors or the like but it's not clear what advantage those provide.

    This was the one I was planning to buy. Is there any strong reason to buy a higher end OLED instead?
    https://www.amazon.com/LG-inches-Smart-OLED-OLED55B8PUA/dp/B07DRRYS1W/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=oled&qid=1552596875&s=electronics&sr=1-6

  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    I don't think so? They're both going to look fantastic, and the processor on the new model so far doesn't get you so much that I find it worth the cost.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    My understanding is that they're basically all the same panel (manufactured by LG) just with different processors. Newest Sony processor supports 8k which sounds super useful on a 4k TV and is clearly twice as good as the half the price last year's model...

  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    emp123 wrote: »
    My understanding is that they're basically all the same panel (manufactured by LG) just with different processors. Newest Sony processor supports 8k which sounds super useful on a 4k TV and is clearly twice as good as the half the price last year's model...

    Pretty sure that's just so those TVs can use the same processor as the Z9G. Economies of scale and all that.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • McFodderMcFodder Registered User regular
    edited March 2019
    I did some research last year on the outgoing (at the time) 2017 models and it seemed like it came down to what you were mostly going to be doing with it.

    As an example, apparently the Sony's motion processing was better than the LG TV which would have been a big factor if I was watching a lot of sport, but I do not watch sport at all.
    RTINGS have a handy thing where you can put it what you will be viewing (games, sport, movies, TV etc) and it spits out a recommendation for you.

    McFodder on
    Switch Friend Code: SW-3944-9431-0318
    PSN / Xbox / NNID: Fodder185
  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    Sony's motion processor is better, but the TV is considerably more expensive as well. I only got one because I got a killer deal from work.

    And don't buy the A1E, it has a stupid stand. A8F is the same TV with a normal stand.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • IncindiumIncindium Registered User regular
    That RTINGS site is dangerous... makes me wanna go buy a new TV.

    steam_sig.png
    Nintendo ID: Incindium
    PSN: IncindiumX
  • ApostateApostate Prince SpaceRegistered User regular
    Ended up grabbing this. Bundle included an X box One S which helps with the fact that I didn't have anything that could deliver 4k stuff.

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07L8NB8WM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

  • -Loki--Loki- Don't pee in my mouth and tell me it's raining. Registered User regular
    I’m in the market for a new TV, since my humble old plasma kicked the bucket after about 10 years of service. It’s not the greatest time, so I can’t go all out like I was planning to later, but I’ve found a couple of well priced 4K HDR TVs in my price range. Unfortunately reviews for both are hard to find.

    Currently looking at a Samsung NU7100 75”, and a Bravia X70F 65”. My gut is telling me to go with the Samsung, the reviews I’ve managed to find are better. I’ve always wanted a Bravia though, so seeing that available at a price point I can go for was great, but I’m seeing lots of people with dead pixel and light bleeding in the reviews I found for that model.

    Any advice?

  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    I normally wouldn't suggest Samsung over Sony, but between those two... Yeah, Samsung.

    Curious though, there's a wide price range between those two TVs, is there a reason you choose them? Do you have a budget in mind?

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • -Loki--Loki- Don't pee in my mouth and tell me it's raining. Registered User regular
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    I normally wouldn't suggest Samsung over Sony, but between those two... Yeah, Samsung.

    Curious though, there's a wide price range between those two TVs, is there a reason you choose them? Do you have a budget in mind?

    Both are around the $1500-$1800 range in Australia.

  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    Oh ok. I didn't realize this was Australia we were talking about.

    I would probably go with the Samsung. If you don't already have an audio solution, I'd even suggest stepping down to the 65" just to give you some wiggle room to do something for audio, but that's all your call.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • -Loki--Loki- Don't pee in my mouth and tell me it's raining. Registered User regular
    I’m not an audiophile. I’ve made do with TV speakers forever. Though the wall mounting will make room for a sound bar, but that’s not a concern right now.

  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    I'm not either. But TVs have gotten tiny and so speakers are tiny, plus they're pointed straight down. They sound like crap.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    Personally I prioritize size over sound quality as I'd rather have a larger screen and save up for a sound bar/speakers than a smaller screen and immediately get a sound bar/speakers. Cant upgrade your way to more screen space without buying a whole new screen.

  • -Loki--Loki- Don't pee in my mouth and tell me it's raining. Registered User regular
    edited March 2019
    Measured where it’s going to be mounted and I actually can’t fit bigger than a 65”, so I started looking at that size.

    There’s a sale on 65” Bravia X8500Fs that puts them in my price range and I’ve always liked their picture quality when I’ve seen them playing.

    -Loki- on
  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    The 8500F is decent, pretty sure that's the same as the 850E here.

    Some people don't like the Android interface. I enjoy it, but know that going into it.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • McFodderMcFodder Registered User regular
    edited March 2019
    @-Loki-

    Not sure where in Australia you are, but just got a notification you can pick up the LG B8 65" OLED for $2396 right now if you can stretch the budget a bit. Looks like they only deliver to NSW though.

    https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/New-LG-OLED65B8STB-65-B8-OLED-TV/153296813777?hash=item23b133bed1:g:UrkAAOSw9xJcDUVZ:rk:4:pf:1&frcectupt=true

    McFodder on
    Switch Friend Code: SW-3944-9431-0318
    PSN / Xbox / NNID: Fodder185
  • -Loki--Loki- Don't pee in my mouth and tell me it's raining. Registered User regular
    McFodder wrote: »
    @-Loki-

    Not sure when in Australia you are, but just got a notification you can pick up the LG B8 65" OLED for $2396 right now if you can stretch the budget a bit. Looks like they only deliver to NSW though.

    https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/New-LG-OLED65B8STB-65-B8-OLED-TV/153296813777?hash=item23b133bed1:g:UrkAAOSw9xJcDUVZ:rk:4:pf:1&frcectupt=true

    A bit out of my price range, trying to stay below $2,000.

  • McFodderMcFodder Registered User regular
    Fair enough, after going back and looking at what you were planning to spend I did think it might be a bit high still but thought it was worth mentioning, they're a beautiful TV.

    Switch Friend Code: SW-3944-9431-0318
    PSN / Xbox / NNID: Fodder185
  • -Loki--Loki- Don't pee in my mouth and tell me it's raining. Registered User regular
    We’ll be dropping in to Bing Lee on our travels looking at TVs anyway. The missus likes Samsung stuff so she might be swayed to spend a bit more.

  • -Loki--Loki- Don't pee in my mouth and tell me it's raining. Registered User regular
    Ended up with the 65" X8500F. First thing I did was boot up Planet Earth 2 and drool over the picture quality. Now I'm installing Horizon Zero Dawn because I never stop hearing about how pretty it is on a Pro in HDR.

  • SynthesisSynthesis Honda Today! Registered User regular
    I really should get Planet Earth on UHD, no reason not to expand my small UHD collection with it.

  • MorranMorran Registered User regular
    Looking for buying a 4k 55 inch TV, and have (almost) decided on a LG C8.

    I will use it mostly for Netflix and gaming (Nintendo switch).

    Reviews and price point (in Sweden) all look great - is there anything else i should be aware of? E.g. compatibility issues with switch, known fault or bugs or such?

  • McFodderMcFodder Registered User regular
    The only issue I've seen come up with the OLEDs is burn in is possible - not from a single long session like the plasmas could have happen, but over time. Really only an issue with watermarks that don't fade or news tickers and if the TV is used for just that.

    Even that issue has been getting better with each year model as they increase the size of the (I believe) red sub-pixel which is most likely to cause the issue, I think it was mostly sorted in the '7s and '8s should be better again.

    Switch Friend Code: SW-3944-9431-0318
    PSN / Xbox / NNID: Fodder185
  • SynthesisSynthesis Honda Today! Registered User regular
    OLED panels have a few "disadvantages" (and a few "advantages") versus, for example, QLED panels (like the ones heavily promoted by Samsung).

    OLED panels are typically thought of has having better black levels, but worse overall brightness capability than QLED (especially QLED with full array local dimming). OLED panels, generally, have worse input lag (by a tiny amount) than QLED panels, but that has something to do with Samsung promoting extremely low input lag panels and variable refresh (I've yet to see an OLED panel with FreeSync, for example, but I bet it's coming). OLED panels typically have better viewing angles, but do still risk burn in over the very long term--not such a big deal, but QLED manufacturers have gotten so confident that companies like Samsung include an "ambient" mode intended to run your television 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in a dimmed mode (for something like a landscape painting that includes notifications)....they're a lot more confident than OLED manufacturers are, and their warranties reflect that fact (though I've yet to actually meet someone who uses that feature). OLED panels are more expensive, which means potentially you might get a better quality QLED panel at the same price.

    Really, none of these are good reasons not to get an OLED. As I've said with desktop monitors, a lot of it comes down to you own satisfaction with the panel (for my most recent TV, a Samsung QLED 65", I made a point of looking at examples in person compared to Bravias and LG OLEDs at the same price point, and have been very satisfied since). Just avoid leaving it on, or don't completely max out all the brightness and contrast settings, and you should probably be fine.

  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    If you're debating between them, it comes down to two questions for me.

    1) do you watch a lot of news?

    2) does the room get a shitload of sun during the day?

    If the answer to these questions is no, go OLED. If yes to either one... Maybe still don't go QLED and jump on a high quality LED panel like the 900f, but I'm pretty anti-Samsung anyway.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • MorranMorran Registered User regular
    Hmmm.... burn-in does not seem like something I should worry about - as I said we're mostly watching netflix, youtube and play games on it. And never longer than like 2-3 hours at most at the time.

    However, the room is quite bright - maybe I should look more into LED options. Hmmm....

  • SynthesisSynthesis Honda Today! Registered User regular
    edited April 2019
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    If you're debating between them, it comes down to two questions for me.

    1) do you watch a lot of news?

    2) does the room get a shitload of sun during the day?

    If the answer to these questions is no, go OLED. If yes to either one... Maybe still don't go QLED and jump on a high quality LED panel like the 900f, but I'm pretty anti-Samsung anyway.

    I'm a firm no to both of those, and still decided against OLED. :lol:

    And on top of that, as you said, you could be a yes to one or the other, and OLED might still be the route to take. So these are not the two questions to be asking. :lol:
    Morran wrote: »
    Hmmm.... burn-in does not seem like something I should worry about - as I said we're mostly watching netflix, youtube and play games on it. And never longer than like 2-3 hours at most at the time.

    However, the room is quite bright - maybe I should look more into LED options. Hmmm....

    Game HUD elements, or for that matter YouTube navigation elements, could be just as much a culprit as watching news (where you have a stock ticker on financial channels, or more likely, a reoccurring emblem in the same general part of a screen--huh, now what video games might feature that?).

    Of course, there are measures you can take that mitigate the serious risk of burn-in to the point where it's practically a non-issue. It just happens with QLED, it is a nonexistent issue, to the point where manufacturers are bragging about leaving your TVs on for hundreds of hours at a time for increasingly dumb reasons. :tell_me_more:

    I would definitely keep OLED as a choice. I just didn't go with it because the OLED's available at my price point (remember, I was shopping Black Friday and got +25% off my purchase for a 2018 model) were markedly inferior to the QLED option I went with (notably, the OLED sets were all worse for gaming in really small, esoteric ways that you might not notice if you didn't own an Xbox One X, like variable refresh rates and latency). Just like QLED and the Plasma displays of old, not all OLED sets are equal--there inferior OLED panels and superior ones (though the inferior ones tend to be called something else, I think). They tend to run at a consistently higher on the price range for the same size, but that's come down a lot.

    EDIT: Also, while "QLED" does smack of the sort of dumb proprietary branding Sony was famous for in the 1990s and onwards, but from Samsung, "quantum LED" TVs are now being manufactured by other companies, most obvious TCL (though the branding is different for various reasons). It's the same thing with how LG promoted other companies to manufacture sets using OLED panels, who in turn wouldn't necessarily use the same language. Welcome to the television panel arms race.

    Synthesis on
  • SynthesisSynthesis Honda Today! Registered User regular
    Oh, and if you're completely insane, there's a $3,000 discount on a 8K 82" Samsung Q900.

    That's a 30% discount. Only 8 (of 10) are left! I wonder who buys these things, but then I remind myself, "Well, Nvidia did put out a GTX 2080 Ti for an ungodly amount of money and someone did buy them."

  • emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    I could see them being used in conference rooms and stuff, but I'm sure their primary market are the people where that kind of cost is a rounding error on their annual financial statement.

Sign In or Register to comment.