Bad news....Tosh 51HX93 out of stock!!

[Alibaba]

I just received some grim news that I will not be able to get the Tosh 51HX93
:( :x

I was waiting for shipment...already paid for the tv! My sales rep told me that he received bad news from his Tosh rep that the tv is out of stock in Canada and that the model is now discontinued. :evil:

I need to review my options....so want a 51" rptv badly. They told me that I can get an HX83 model with no problems right now. I haven't looked into that model...does anyone have anything to say about the HX83 model?

I'll have to check out other rptv's ie. perhaps an Hitachi s500 model??

Any feedback on the these two models I stated?

Thanks in advance for any response. :)

Cheers,

Al

[Bam!]

Sorry to hear that duder!

I`ll try and get Bing and Trev! here....they are Toshiba Pro`s !

:T

[Bing Fung]

Bammer Tosh pro? Hardly, but thanks :T


Sorry to hear Al.... :cry: I'm surprised Toshiba has discontinued it so suddenly, yet still offer the HX83 :roll: What was the reasoning given buy your sales guy?

It's no surprise that Toshiba is leaving the CRT game as is probably most manufactuers. LCD, DLP is the future even if I think they are more flawed than CRTs in a few crititcal aspects.

Still I suppose you need a TV.. The HX83 is basically a HX93 with out the built in OTA HDTV tuner, Gemstar interactive Program Guide, SD card reader, manual 56 point convergence, IEEE 1394 ports and the Niltava Lens of the HX93, that would be about it. The HX83 is still a good looking set. During one trip to Future shop with my buddy (before I even knew of the HX TVs) The HX 83 was the better looking TV on the floor over the other CRT, LCD & DLP TV's.

I hear the Hitachi makes a good TV. My Bother inlaw has a G500, however I did not like it's stretch modes for 4:3 material as it really softened the sides of the image... If this is not a factor for you I would say it's DVD image is excellent. The Ultra vision Hitachi looks very nice from what I have seen on the showroom floors.

One RPTV that keeps impressing the hell out of me every time I see it is the Pansonic PT-53TW. I haven't read up much on this set, however when ever I see it at my local dealer, it's image always catches my eye for some reason or another.

Maybe you could look at the Sony Wega LCD's? This TV would have probably been my second choice had I not found the HX93 for such a great price. It's black level is poor, and it has a lot of scaling artifacts on NTSC (but then so does most TVs it seems) however it looks beautiful with HDTV feeds.

I hear good things about the Mitsubitsi's as well, however I have not looked at them in depth.

Sorry, I may not really be helping, but if it's a question of the HX83 or the HX93, I would still be inclinded to get a HX83 if the price was right), however I would look at the Panisonic to see if it was in fact a tv I would want to own, then it would be the LCD wega.

[docted]

I was initially told the same thing before I bought mine 2 weeks ago, but I had the dealer call the warehouse and there were a few available there at that time.
Ted.

[aud19]

If you're a major tweaker and/or you plan on getting the set ISF'd personally I'd get the Hitachi. If you plan on watching primarily 4:3 programming, your just a minor tweaker and price is a big consideration, get the Toshiba.

Jason

[Trevor Schell]

If you can't get the HX93,
Then I would go with the Hitachi S series..:yesnod:

[Alibaba]

Sorry to hear Al.... :cry: I'm surprised Toshiba has discontinued it so suddenly, yet still offer the HX83 :roll: What was the reasoning given buy your sales guy?
Bing, the sales guy advised me that Toshiba discontinued it to concentrate their efforts in the DLP display.

There may be a possibility of bringing in an HX93 from the States...I should know in a couple of days. If this fall thru, I will start looking at the HX83, Hitachi s-series and maybe the Panasonic models.

Al

[aud19]

Hey I just noticed you're from White Rock! :later: My girlfriend and I are heading out there later this afternoon :) It's be nice if it was a little sunnier though :confused:

I don't want to "bad mouth" other companies, but in Canada I'd pretty much look at Hitachi/Toshiba (add Mitsubishi for all you Americans). There's some other decent sets out there like the Panasonics but IMO they're just not quite in the same league. If you're looking for an inexpensive solution to tide you over for a year or two, then I might look at the other companies. Otherwise, if you plan on keeping it for 3+ years I'd stick with Hitachi/Toshiba.

Jason

[Alibaba]

Hey Jason :D

How was your visit to sunny White Rock? Well, not that sunny today though :(

Still waiting to find out if they can bring a Tosh from south of the border. I am seriously thinking on getting the 51 s500 Hitachi if they cannot bring in the Tosh.

Al

[aud19]

It was a little cool and windy but the rain mostly stayed away :) The most important part was that it may the GF happy, when she's happy, it makes my life easier :B

Let us know how the US Tosh vs Hitachi S500 works out ;)

Jason

[Green Lantern]

:roll: Ali, Try One Call. Got my 57hx93 there a few weeks ago. Lokks great and I see they still have 51's available. They are reputable and prompt.

The Lantern

[Shane Martin]

They may not ship to Canada though...

[Alibaba]

Well...I couldn't get a Tosh from the States, so I decided on a Hitachi 51 S500 and should have it by early next week. :D

I wanted to like the LCD and DLP RPTV, but felt that the technology wasn't quite there yet. I just can't get by that screen door effect on the LCD's and the poor black levels.

I am happy to stay with the tried and true technology of CRT for now.

Al

[aud19]

Congrats on the Hitachi :T The best choice IMO :) You have a copy of V.E. or Avia? Do you plan to get it ISF'd?

Jason

[Alibaba]

Hey Jason,

I don't have a copy of VE or Avia....where can I find one? I tried a Future Shop downtown....no luck! : cry:

As far as ISF'd? Well, I contacted Hitachi Canada, and they advised me that I could get the set all calibrated under the Hitachi warranty program. I was told that I should contact I.T. Electronics here locally and they will send a tech to my home and do some calibrations and tweaking to the set.

I was advised that I.T. Electronics was Hitachi's authorized techs to provide warranty service to their tv's. As far as to what all measures they will take when calibrating my Hitachi...don't know for sure. I will be contacting them on Monday and to set an appt. I will be asking them about their procedures and what level of calibration do they perform? I'll soon find out.

Jason, if you know anything more about this....please advise....much appreciated. :T

Al

[aud19]

As for the discs, try an A&B Sound or the internet. I know Home Theater Magazine had a special deal a while back for ordering Video Essentials... not sure if they still do..?

That sounds interesting I had no idea they did anything like that?! I'm a little suspicious that it won't be an ISF calibration though....

Check out This Thread (http://www.htguide.com/forum/showthread.php4?t=7567) for what's involved in an ISF calibration. Also check out www.imagingscience.com I checked for I.T. Electronics in their "ISF-trained dealers" and "ISF-trained dealers with calibration equipment" and did not see them so I'd be contacting them to see exactly what they might think they're going to do to your set. Otherwise I'll bet it's mostly stuff you can do with a copy of AVIA or Video Essentials.

But man, If we can figure out a way to get our set's properly calibrated under warranty! 8O :B I'd just be a little suspicious that I.T. Electronics won't do what a full ISF calibration entails. Plus I wouldn't be surprised if the desk-jockey you spoke to at Hitachi has no clue what an ISF calibration is and has probably never heard of them.

Let us know what you find out! :T

Jason

[Alibaba]

Thanks for the link :T

I'll advise as soon as I talk to I.T. with respect to their calibration techniques.

Cheers,

Al

[Paul Wu]

I'd agree with Jason. I doubt you'd get a full ISF calibration. I recall there was only one shop back east that actually did a good calibration before each set was shipped.

If you need to borrow a copy of Avia or VE, drop me a line. I've got both.

[Alibaba]

Thanks for your kind offer Paul :D

I may take up that offer...just curious of where you picked up your dvd's? If I was to just get one...which one do you suggest?

Getting back to the calibration issue....I did speak to I.T. Electronics today and they advised me that they can calibrate to original factory specs, and do any repairs if required. They do not have color testing equipment like the ones the ISF techs would use.

Interesting that many people in the audio/video industry do not know about ISF?? Strange....I spoke to the service guy at Commercial Electronics and he did not know what ISF was? and the funny thing is that they were listed as one of the dealers that perform ISF calibrations...weird! :confused:

Question for you Jason.....did you have your Hitachi ISF'd? if so...who did it and how much did it cost you?

Al

[aud19]

Unfortunately the GF has not approved and ISF calibration... :confused: Apparently I have to buy her a ring first :roll:

Check out the link I posted above but for a basic to intense calibration you're looking anywhere from probably about $350-$800. But go to the ISF page and call any local ISF companies in Vancouver, Richmond etc and see what they charge and for what. Use the above mentioned link as a checklist of what's available.

Jason

[Alibaba]

Well, I finally received my Hitachi 51S500....and boy am I really pleased with it!! :B

I tweaked it out as much as I could with DVE...and will soon get a techie to come calibrate it further for me.

Excellent picture quality with deep deep blacks. Has some interlacing artifacts with NTSC programing on Sat. however, overall I am pleased. Waiting now for the HDTV upgrade on our dish....can't wait!

The picture was okay out of the box...had to fix the red push I noticed right away. I could not get the colors down right with DVE....need more practice perhaps :confused: I just get it close enough by eye balling it now. My gray scale is set properly and sharpness as well..which starts things off. After that I set my colors without DVE. So far I am happy with it.

Getting more used to the remote...I really like the center toggle for moving around the menu quickly and selecting.

Al

[aud19]

For the red push you'll have to get in to the service menu. If you don't feel comfortable, just let the ISF tech do it ;)

Jason

[Alibaba]

Yah, thanks Jason...I think I'll leave that for the experts :wink:

Al

[aud19]

Did you turn off Scan Velocity, Sharpness, any Noise reduction etc as well?

Jason

[Alibaba]

Okay, yes I turned off noise reduction and sharpness is set to zero...where do I find the scan velocity settings?? :confused:

Al

[aud19]

My F500 has it as a "checkbox" I believe under Video, possibly under advanced or something along those lines...should say somewhere in the manual.

Jason

[Alibaba]

I looked in the manual....no such setting on the S500.

Any other pointers would be much appreciated :T

Al

[aud19]

It looks like they've re-named it "Edge Enhancement". Turn it off or to it's lowest possible setting if off isn't an option. Same with "Black Enhancement", "Auto Colour" and "Noise Reduction". (If you have a REALLY bad cable signal, see if Noise Reduction helps) It looks like you can reduce the red push under "Colour Decoding" as well :) so you don't need to get in to the service menu in the newer sets :P

You'll have to re-calibrate with DVE after adjusting all that :p:

Jason

[Alibaba]

Thanks...I did as you said :T ...now I will recalibrate it once I have a moment. I'll let you know how it goes later.

Al

[Alibaba]

There was some improvement :T I realized that my brightness was set a bit low, when I recalibrated it with DVE.

I am quite happy with the Hitachi so far. The pictures seems to improve day by day :confused:

Thanks again for the tips Jason :D

Al

[stoked]

Al,

I'm in GVA looking for a 51S500 as well. I read of someone getting a set for quite a bit less than MSRP. I was wondering if you would mind telling me how much you spent and where you purchased it from. Please PM or email me as most AVS forums I've been to won't allow prices posted.

[aud19]

You should be able to get almost any electronics, TV's or otherwise, for between 25%-15% off sticker, plus tax if you go to the right places (the ones that will haggle ;) )

Jason