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The TV Thread: More for Less

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    MichaelLCMichaelLC In what furnace was thy brain? ChicagoRegistered User regular
    A couple of new Roku things came out, including a rechargeable remote and new soundbars:
    https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2021/04/new-roku-express-4k-plus-voice-remote-pro-announced/

    Remote sounds cool if you don't have a voice one. It's micro USB though.

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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    Re darkness okay cool thats what I thought but wasnt entirely sure since nothing ever really defines how dark dark is hahaha.

    Now I just need to decide which one to actually get (waffling between 77" C1 and 65" A90J). I'm going to try and swing by Best Buy this weekend to take a look, but realistically I'm not buying/taking delivery of anything until end of May anyway so I still have a bit of time.

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    KiTAKiTA Registered User regular
    So I lost a wall of outlets temporarily, so I've rearranged my living room to compensate.

    Odd question. Is it safe for a TV to be ~3 feet from a window mounted Air Conditioning unit? I'm worried about humidity.

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    ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    Should be fine. Unless you've jerry rigged a swamp cooler or something.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
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    BouwsTBouwsT Wanna come to a super soft birthday party? Registered User regular
    Generally speaking the cold end of the A/C unit decreases relative humidity, no?

    Between you and me, Peggy, I smoked this Juul and it did UNTHINKABLE things to my mind and body...
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    Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    emp123 wrote: »
    Re darkness okay cool thats what I thought but wasnt entirely sure since nothing ever really defines how dark dark is hahaha.

    Now I just need to decide which one to actually get (waffling between 77" C1 and 65" A90J). I'm going to try and swing by Best Buy this weekend to take a look, but realistically I'm not buying/taking delivery of anything until end of May anyway so I still have a bit of time.

    If you can fit 77", bigger is usually better.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    Trajan45 wrote: »
    emp123 wrote: »
    Re darkness okay cool thats what I thought but wasnt entirely sure since nothing ever really defines how dark dark is hahaha.

    Now I just need to decide which one to actually get (waffling between 77" C1 and 65" A90J). I'm going to try and swing by Best Buy this weekend to take a look, but realistically I'm not buying/taking delivery of anything until end of May anyway so I still have a bit of time.

    If you can fit 77", bigger is usually better.

    I know my room can fit it but I live in an apartment and who knows how long I'll live here (although I have no plans to move) and moving a 65" is easier than a 77" and A 65" fits in more rooms...

    Plus the picture quality and brightness are supposed to be better on the Sony. And all I have is personal speculation, but I wonder if the A90J's heatsink will help with burn in (or maybe that's counteracted by the increased brightness).

    I know the LG has the advantage of having 4 HDMI ports to the Sony's 2, but 1) I think they're only 40Gb/s while the Sony has the full 48Gb/s, and 2) I'll only have 2 things that will possibly need 2.1 ports (pc and one console, probably a PS5), and 3) if I need more ports eventually I should be able to get a AV receiver that supports multiple 2.1 inputs (I know there's nothing currently available, but I don't even have a current need).

    The LG does have VRR right now though and who knows when the Sony will. It's promised for this year, but they told last years buyers that their HDMI 2.1 tvs would have VRR and they still don't and from what I've read the 2020 and 2021 use the same HDMI SoC sooo that's not a great look

    Basically price is near enough to be a wash, Sony wins when it comes to picture quality, brightness and shadow detail, and possibly motion. LG wins out when it comes to size, cost, and gaming.

    I definitely don't game as much as I used to even though with the pandemic I've had ample time to do so, and when I do it's typically on my gaming pc (I can't think of a single console game I beat last year, young me would be wondering where I went wrong) so I'm not sure how important to me the gaming features even are at this point.

    Dont get me wrong, I think it's crazy that Sony is only offering 2 HDMI 2.1 ports when it's competition has been offering 4 for years and it still doesn't have VRR despite promising customers last year that they'd have VRR functionality and they still have no ETA on when it'll release (I think Panasonic is close to releasing its VRR solution and he Panasonic OLEDs use the same HDMI SoC as the Sony's so maybe it'll be out in 3-6 months).


    Well that was a lengthy ramble, but these thoughts have been bouncing around in my head for a while now.

    And who knows, maybe the 77" G1 will end up back on the list if it's not outrageously expensive*!


    *all of these are stupid expensive

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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    edited April 2021
    Went to Best Buy and it was 0% helpful, the C1 they had wasn't anywhere near the Sony or the CX so that made direct comparisons difficult. They had a 77" GX right by the 65" A90J, but the GX was playing LGs demo and the A90J was playing a 4k movie off a 9 hdmi splitter and the picture looked (poorly) upscaled 1080p.

    I asked about switching feeds and they said they couldn't so that was kind of a waste of time.

    77" didn't look too big, but I'll have to remeasure my room to see how far I actually am from the TV (I think it's about 10') to see whether it's too big.

    emp123 on
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    Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    We sit 9.5 feet away and 65" is pretty much perfect. Any bigger and I couldn't take in the whole screen at one time. When we move, we'll be more in the 11-13 foot range and that's when I may look into a 75-77" model.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    That's good to know, the rtings viewing distance charts make it seem like 77" is about where I should be for 10' 4k viewing.

    Just found out HBO Max doesn't have a native WebOS app, are there any other apps that are present on Google TV but not WebOS and vice versa? I didn't know that was still a thing...

    It might be the only app that impacts me as most (all) of my streaming is through Netflix/Amazon/Hulu/Disney+/HBO Max. I might subscribe to Paramount or whatever if I'm in the mood for some Star Trek, but either way it's not like this is a $1000 problem, I'll just run them off my PS4.

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    MichaelLCMichaelLC In what furnace was thy brain? ChicagoRegistered User regular
    Trajan45 wrote: »
    We sit 9.5 feet away and 65" is pretty much perfect. Any bigger and I couldn't take in the whole screen at one time. When we move, we'll be more in the 11-13 foot range and that's when I may look into a 75-77" model.

    Same distance for us, with a 55". And it's fine, but a 60 or 65" would probably be the perfect balance of size and usability. Near-zero bezel helps it looks larger.

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    Ed GrubermanEd Gruberman Registered User regular
    oh knowers of the TVs, I just walked in on my kids watching The Empire Strikes Back on Disney+ and I noticed something weird.
    ean6gp4qk165.png
    Those weird dark spots (bottom-left corner and extending from the right edge) would show up for a couple seconds, then disappear for a couple seconds. They were showing up in more varied lighting scenarios too. Any idea what could be causing it? I've never noticed it before so I'm wondering if it's just the source (Vizio Disney+ app) or if something is wrong with the TV.

    steam_sig.png

    SteamID: edgruberman GOG Galaxy: EdGruberman
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    Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    You'll have to do some testing. Do you have a PS4 or Xbox you could plug in and load ESB via Disney+ and see if it's doing the same thing? Also I'd swap cables if possible and see as well.

    It looks like a backlight issue, but I'd double check before calling Vizio.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
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    TarantioTarantio Registered User regular
    Anybody have experience with the European TCL models?

    I'm considering upgrading from a 1080p TV, so I figured (before research) that even a budget 4k screen would be an easy upgrade. The Wirecutter suggests such-and-such TCL, here's a TCL on sale, easy!

    Not so much, apparently. I'm not seeing any recommendations for a budget TV in the EU. And then there are panel lottery horror stories here.

    So, looking at this set of sales: https://www.webhallen.com/se/campaign/7411-Spring-Weekend-TV

    I'm considering going for the Samsung Q90t instead? We can afford it, but I need a sanity check on buying a TV of the same size and resolution for more than twice the price.

    It can be a fairly bright room in the summer, so the higher peak brightness is appealing. Our use case is almost entirely shows and movies, the Switch I have now is my first console since the PS2.

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    Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    Anyone put their AV equipment in another room from their TV? Just batting ideas around in my head. While running speaker wire and HDMI to an upstairs closet or downstairs garage, and an IR transmitter back up seems pretty doable, I'm worried about a PS5 or Nintendo Switch.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
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    ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    I've done setups like that for AV stuff, but never game systems. Not that it wouldn't work, but I would worry about the range for the controllers more than anything. Probably better to run an HDMI or two to the location you'll be playing from.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
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    Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    I think I may be making this more complicated than it needs to be. The more I thought of it, the idea of a 50ft stretch of either Optical HDMI or Ethernet converted HDMI doesn't seem that appealing given the changes in technology and the adding of more components that could fail. Conduit down to the garage would be ok length wise, but would screw gaming systems. Where as the back of the room would allow bluetooth to work, but would require massive in wall runs that I'm not sure I'd want to re-do or troubleshoot down the road.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
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    ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    I've always preferred the thought of a cabinet in the room itself, even if something is built into the wall. Even with a projector I'd prefer everything be in the same room just for, as you mentioned, ease of troubleshooting.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
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    Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    Any suggestions for high end media cabinets? I was looking at the Salamander Chameleon's or the BDI corridor models. But it's been close to a decade since I was last looking.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
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    ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    No idea, honestly. I have a cheap shitty cabinet that does the job. Most of the time I'm wiring into a custom built cabinet for those jobs. I've also seen people who set up their home theater in the basement use the opposite wall from the TV as their equipment room, which at least would limit the distance factor.

    You could look into a local carpenter for some ideas, too.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
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    CarpyCarpy Registered User regular
    edited April 2021
    Get yourself a custom rack to hold it all.


    Swift is a Infosec/Tech persona.


    Rack update: I still haven't shipped my consoles to @middleatlantic I was hoping one of their employees would volunteer theirs for measuring since I'm lazy. 🥴

    I have ordered matte black PS5 plates from @dbrand I'm waiting to arrive.

    Got charge docks for most of the controllers https://t.co/7GA2ggDNVO

    Carpy on
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    RaynagaRaynaga Registered User regular
    Well, took advantage of the new OLEDs releasing and grabbed a 65" CX for $1700 to replace my aging B6.

    Can't beat price drops. And no more Dolby Vision issues!

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    ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    I like server racks for home theater equipment, a lot of high end equipment is designed to mount into those racks and most of the racks have cable management built right in. It's a great way to do it.

    But they're also ugly, so if it's going in the same room as the TV it might be the wrong choice.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
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    CarpyCarpy Registered User regular
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    I like server racks for home theater equipment, a lot of high end equipment is designed to mount into those racks and most of the racks have cable management built right in. It's a great way to do it.

    But they're also ugly, so if it's going in the same room as the TV it might be the wrong choice.

    Oh yeah, there's no way I could swing a rack with my household but I do admire their dedication to getting absolutely everything into one.

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    RaynagaRaynaga Registered User regular
    I did not think there would be such a big picture improvement going from the B6 to the CX.

    Turns out TVs have advanced in the last 5 years, who knew?

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    Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    Raynaga wrote: »
    I did not think there would be such a big picture improvement going from the B6 to the CX.

    Turns out TVs have advanced in the last 5 years, who knew?

    I'm weirdly nervous to lose my 3D. Still have some games like Trine I wanted to play in 3D.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
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    Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    I like server racks for home theater equipment, a lot of high end equipment is designed to mount into those racks and most of the racks have cable management built right in. It's a great way to do it.

    But they're also ugly, so if it's going in the same room as the TV it might be the wrong choice.

    Yeah I'd for sure do that if I could put it in the garage or something. Consoles screwing that idea with no way to use wireless controllers from that distance.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
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    syndalissyndalis Getting Classy On the WallRegistered User, Loves Apple Products regular
    Carpy wrote: »
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    I like server racks for home theater equipment, a lot of high end equipment is designed to mount into those racks and most of the racks have cable management built right in. It's a great way to do it.

    But they're also ugly, so if it's going in the same room as the TV it might be the wrong choice.

    Oh yeah, there's no way I could swing a rack with my household but I do admire their dedication to getting absolutely everything into one.

    The best I have seen is a rack on a floating track that can slide out from the closet it is in for back access, but otherwise is recessed into the wall.

    Not cheap, but honestly fkn amazing and clean, and capable of being hidden.

    Here's a small example of what I am referring to.

    tqnnjd0trgj0.jpg

    SW-4158-3990-6116
    Let's play Mario Kart or something...
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    ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    Oh yeah I've seen a few of those. They're beautiful and $$$$$.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
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    RaynagaRaynaga Registered User regular
    edited May 2021
    Edit: Figured it out.

    Raynaga on
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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    Sony dropped the price of the 77" A80J to below the price of the 65" A90J so I'm getting a 77" tv delivered on Wednesday. Pretty stoked, but I'm afraid this is going to suck me down the home theater rabbit hole - at some point I'm going to need to get a proper sound system going, but for now my trusty Logitech Z-5500s will have to do.

    I am rearranging my speakers so the rear speakers are actually in the rear of the room which means I need longer speaker wire. Do I need anything special to cut 12awg wire? Kinda hoping I can do it with a box cutter and scissors. Proper wire cutters arent hard to come by, but it kinda seems like a waste to buy them to only use them the one time.

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    ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    emp123 wrote: »
    Sony dropped the price of the 77" A80J to below the price of the 65" A90J so I'm getting a 77" tv delivered on Wednesday. Pretty stoked, but I'm afraid this is going to suck me down the home theater rabbit hole - at some point I'm going to need to get a proper sound system going, but for now my trusty Logitech Z-5500s will have to do.

    Oh honey no...
    I am rearranging my speakers so the rear speakers are actually in the rear of the room which means I need longer speaker wire. Do I need anything special to cut 12awg wire? Kinda hoping I can do it with a box cutter and scissors. Proper wire cutters arent hard to come by, but it kinda seems like a waste to buy them to only use them the one time.

    You shouldn't need anything else to cut them, just make sure your box cutter is sharp enough to strip the wires without risking cutting yourself. A sharp knife is a safe knife.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    emp123 wrote: »
    Sony dropped the price of the 77" A80J to below the price of the 65" A90J so I'm getting a 77" tv delivered on Wednesday. Pretty stoked, but I'm afraid this is going to suck me down the home theater rabbit hole - at some point I'm going to need to get a proper sound system going, but for now my trusty Logitech Z-5500s will have to do.

    Oh honey no...

    I know! I'm thinking I'll grab an AV receiver when they have multiple HDMI 2.1 ports and are able to pass through things properly.

    I don't need much, will probably start with a 3.1 system...

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    MegaMan001MegaMan001 CRNA Rochester, MNRegistered User regular
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    emp123 wrote: »
    Sony dropped the price of the 77" A80J to below the price of the 65" A90J so I'm getting a 77" tv delivered on Wednesday. Pretty stoked, but I'm afraid this is going to suck me down the home theater rabbit hole - at some point I'm going to need to get a proper sound system going, but for now my trusty Logitech Z-5500s will have to do.

    Oh honey no...
    I am rearranging my speakers so the rear speakers are actually in the rear of the room which means I need longer speaker wire. Do I need anything special to cut 12awg wire? Kinda hoping I can do it with a box cutter and scissors. Proper wire cutters arent hard to come by, but it kinda seems like a waste to buy them to only use them the one time.

    You shouldn't need anything else to cut them, just make sure your box cutter is sharp enough to strip the wires without risking cutting yourself. A sharp knife is a safe knife.

    Buy a universal wire cutter / stripper / crimper and you'll be surprised at the stuff you can easily repair.

    I ripped the garage door sensor off of the side of the door with my truck and the repair guy wanted 80 bucks just for the repair visit.

    My wire cutter and an electrical nut later it's fixed.

    I am in the business of saving lives.
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    ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    emp123 wrote: »
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    emp123 wrote: »
    Sony dropped the price of the 77" A80J to below the price of the 65" A90J so I'm getting a 77" tv delivered on Wednesday. Pretty stoked, but I'm afraid this is going to suck me down the home theater rabbit hole - at some point I'm going to need to get a proper sound system going, but for now my trusty Logitech Z-5500s will have to do.

    Oh honey no...

    I know! I'm thinking I'll grab an AV receiver when they have multiple HDMI 2.1 ports and are able to pass through things properly.

    I don't need much, will probably start with a 3.1 system...

    You could start small with two good speakers and a sub, and use the A90J's built in Center Speaker Mode to fill out that 3.1. Save some money now and get some good surrounds and a center later. The Sony OLED center mode is surprisingly good.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    emp123 wrote: »
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    emp123 wrote: »
    Sony dropped the price of the 77" A80J to below the price of the 65" A90J so I'm getting a 77" tv delivered on Wednesday. Pretty stoked, but I'm afraid this is going to suck me down the home theater rabbit hole - at some point I'm going to need to get a proper sound system going, but for now my trusty Logitech Z-5500s will have to do.

    Oh honey no...

    I know! I'm thinking I'll grab an AV receiver when they have multiple HDMI 2.1 ports and are able to pass through things properly.

    I don't need much, will probably start with a 3.1 system...

    You could start small with two good speakers and a sub, and use the A90J's built in Center Speaker Mode to fill out that 3.1. Save some money now and get some good surrounds and a center later. The Sony OLED center mode is surprisingly good.

    I went with the A80j which doesn't have the same center out capability. Apparently it can be used as one, using a S-Center input but Sony hasn't been able to explain what exactly that means.

    Even a 2.1 system would require an AV receiver though right? I'd like to put that off until the HDMI 2.1 problems (hopefully) work themselves out since the Sonys only have 2 2.1 ports.

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    ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    Oooh I didn't realize that was only on the A90. Oops. :\

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    Yeah its unfortunate because its a cool feature, I'd love to try it on the A80, but like what the hell is a S-Center input?

    Anyway, grabbed a wire stripper/cutter just in case so thanks for the advice. I'll let you know if I burn my place down.

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    ButtersButters A glass of some milks Registered User regular
    emp123 wrote: »
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    emp123 wrote: »
    Sony dropped the price of the 77" A80J to below the price of the 65" A90J so I'm getting a 77" tv delivered on Wednesday. Pretty stoked, but I'm afraid this is going to suck me down the home theater rabbit hole - at some point I'm going to need to get a proper sound system going, but for now my trusty Logitech Z-5500s will have to do.

    Oh honey no...

    I know! I'm thinking I'll grab an AV receiver when they have multiple HDMI 2.1 ports and are able to pass through things properly.

    I don't need much, will probably start with a 3.1 system...

    With eARC does it really matter all that much?

    PSN: idontworkhere582 | CFN: idontworkhere | Steam: lordbutters | Amazon Wishlist
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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    Butters wrote: »
    emp123 wrote: »
    Shadowfire wrote: »
    emp123 wrote: »
    Sony dropped the price of the 77" A80J to below the price of the 65" A90J so I'm getting a 77" tv delivered on Wednesday. Pretty stoked, but I'm afraid this is going to suck me down the home theater rabbit hole - at some point I'm going to need to get a proper sound system going, but for now my trusty Logitech Z-5500s will have to do.

    Oh honey no...

    I know! I'm thinking I'll grab an AV receiver when they have multiple HDMI 2.1 ports and are able to pass through things properly.

    I don't need much, will probably start with a 3.1 system...

    With eARC does it really matter all that much?

    For the tv? No not really, since yeah everything should be handled by the 2.1 port with eArc. That would leave 1 2.1 port on the tv and then however many 2.1 ports on the receiver (usually 1? I havent spent a lot of time looking since the current gen have issues with some devices and I'm in no real rush).

    Now, I dont think I need more than 2 2.1 ports now but who knows what I'll need in 5 years and I'd rather buy once.

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