Registered: Jan 2004
Location: Buras, LA
Posts: 23

I am strongly considering buying this tv after seeing great reviews and very few problems reported. Anyone who is using this TV with a HD-Tivo give me some feedback. Thanks a bunch....

Derick

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Registered: Mar 2003
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Posts: 52

Well, I have this TV but HD Tivo is on the way.. should be here Monday. I can report back then. TV is awsome btw. I use it with Sony HD200 and Bravo D1 DVD player through DVI. One word - stunning. Zero problems - have the set since last Sept.

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Panasonic 50LC13 RPLCD TV
HD10-250 HDTivo
Sony HD200
Krell Showcase Processor
ATI 1506 Amp
Atlantic Technology System 350THX

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Registered: Jun 2001
Location: Pasadena, Texas
Posts: 485

I would suggest a DLP TV instead. Not to say LCD is a terrible set. It's not. I look at TV's down the road where problems will start to develop. DLP TV's tend to be cheaper to fix and it takes very little time to repair thus you will be out a TV for much less time.

Also, the blue color tends to have a problem with LCD sets. Of coarse, during the tests that were done between LCD and DLP, these sets were run continuously and the blue colors on ALL the LCD sets were bad. If you do buy a LCD set, I tend to lean towards the side that you may never see this problem, but if you do, that is just one of the natures of LCD sets.

Keep in mind, I am not saying DLP TV's are perfect. They are not. Such as the rainbow effect. Also a DMD chip failure. Even so, a DMD chip is easier to fix than to replace 3 screens, one screen being red, blue and green.

Still, all in all, I'd say LCD and DLP TV's are very comparable to one another in quality and price.

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Registered: Dec 2003
Location: Bothell, WA
Posts: 31

I have this set and the difference between the price of the dlp and the pt50lc13 taking into consideration the quality of the picture was minimal. The panny is the best tv for the money imho. The HD Tivo looks even better than I imagined over dvi on this set. I had a e86 bfore using the component inputs and the HD Tivo definatly looks better. Let me know if you have any specific questions I can answer...

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Registered: Jan 2002
Location:
Posts: 984

I have one and LOVE it and exactly agree with mammut- the price difference was a BIG factor for me. I could have afforded a DLP but i figured that since none of this is really totally mature yet, i will want a new better set in a few years so why not save a pile since it basically looks the same to my 'ignorant' eye.

I never notice the 'rainbox effect' yet but it petrified me that one day i would see it and then i would never not see it again.

finally- as far as reapirs- although i NEVER buy extended warranties I did with this purchase- like i said above none of this is mature enough for me for the price so i bit the bullet and got the insurance of an extended warrently. Myself i wouldnt buy a DLP, LCD, or PLasma without it (but of course to each his own). And about how long it takes to repair- not sure why one would take any longer than the other- from what i gather pretty much everything that breaks just gets swapped weather it be a board or the entire projection unit. A couple of posts at AVS related stories that basically the whole projection unit just gets swapped.

BAsically go read up at AVS if you want TONS of info- probably Too much :-)

Myself I am waiting for a 3 panel DLP (so i dont have to sweat the rainbow possibility) with a native resolution of 2160p (so it can easily convert 720p or 1080i or even 1080p easily without estimating anything- just plan multiplication by 2 or by 3 to scale the picture) - that I think is the ultimate toy and when it comes out I'm all over it!

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Registered: Jun 2004
Location:
Posts: 6

I have my HR 10-250 hooked up to my PT-50LC13 using the HDMI/DVI cable provided with the HR 10-250. HD programming looks great. I also have the Bravo D1 hooked up through a DVI switch. It also looks great. However, I have a problem with SD. Perhaps you've dealt with this.

The PT-50LC13 has different stretch modes for SD programming. I was using the mode that stretches the edges more than the center, which doesn't make people/object in the middle of the picture look ridiculously fat. However, now that I've hooked up the HR 10-250, I can't use that mode any longer. Any suggestions?

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Registered: Mar 2003
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Posts: 52

I think the reason is the DVI connection: I think you can only apply any changes to screen modes when using analog (component, S-Video etc) connection. I think when you use DVI, it is "fixed" in the native mode of the source (4:3 or 16:9... ) Somebody correct me if I'm wrong...

__________________
Panasonic 50LC13 RPLCD TV
HD10-250 HDTivo
Sony HD200
Krell Showcase Processor
ATI 1506 Amp
Atlantic Technology System 350THX

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Registered: Jun 2004
Location: ft lauderdale, fl
Posts: 88

i have the pt50lc 13 and LOVE it. although i dont have a hd tivo yet...i have a samsun hd receiver hooked up thru dvi and the hd content is great. i did alot of research before i purchased this product...and also went to the stores and looked at the pq compared to other tv's. this tv is just as good as any other more expensive tv in its class. i got a great deal for it at brandsm+rt in florida. 2198.00 for the tv....stand for it thrown in for free and 298 for the 5yr extended warranty. so that on top of the quality of the tv sealed the deal for me. i've had it for one month now with no problems at all and the tv pic looked great....even thru my sd directivo with s video.

greg

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Registered: May 2004
Location: West Michigan
Posts: 57

I have the PT50-LC13 and I am VERY happy with it.
I love the picture quality both HD and SD.
I love the connectivity of this set and currently I have the following connected:

DVI - HR10-250 configured at 1080i
VGA1 - HTPC running 1280X720 at 60hz. Great for DVD and Windows Media
VGA2 - Zenith SAT520HD configured at 720p
Component1 - Sony 400 DVD changer
Component2 - Voom HDTV configured at 720p
Component3 - Not connected
Component4 - Not connected
Composite1 - Sony SD Tivo
Composite2 - External video Camera

I got this TV last August. No problems.

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Registered: May 2004
Location: West Michigan
Posts: 57

quote:

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Originally posted by rokstar66
The PT-50LC13 has different stretch modes for SD programming. I was using the mode that stretches the edges more than the center, which doesn't make people/object in the middle of the picture look ridiculously fat. However, now that I've hooked up the HR 10-250, I can't use that mode any longer. Any suggestions?

---

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Registered: Jun 2004
Location:
Posts: 6

Thanks, gr8reb8. You are right. Unfortunately, the PQ is crap at 480i. I used to get pretty good PQ with my SD Dish Network receiver and composite cables, but SD looks bad through my HR 10-250 at the 480i seeting. So I'm staying with the 1080i setting, which looks okay. I guess I'll just get used to looking at fat people. (Makes me feel good about myself )

BTW, it's interesting that all of the modes (full, zoom, just, normal) work at 480i, but only full, zoom, and normal work at 480p.

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