Owner feedback on CRT RPTV's

[stjoenewt]

Hi, I am going to get a HDTV in the near future. Due to budget constraints and desir4ed screen size, I will not be able to get into the newer technology so will be staying with CRT’s. My short list includes a Mitsubishi WS555315, Hitachi 51F510, and Panasonic 53X54. Could any owners out there advise me on what to watch out for with any of these sets? Would you purchase one again? How do you feel they compare? Many thanks in advance for you assistance.

[Shane Martin]

I was planning on purchasing one as of December 2003. I finally decided on something as of March. The CRT sets I focused on were:

Mits
Hitachi
Sony
Panasonic
Toshiba
Pioneer Elite

I also briefly considered Plasma(Panasonic was the best bang for the buck and still is), DLP, and LCD. DLP had and still has too many issues for me to make a jump and get less screen size. The same could be said for LCD which has motion blurring and poor black levels.

My friend bought an LCD projector and swore up one side and down another that he didn't care about the black level.. He has changed his mind now that he has a set capable of true black. It's not just black that is affected.

Ok moving on..
I talked to an ISF guy and he helped me narrow my choices down further to Mits and Hitachi. I had a deal offered to me on a Toshiba that was $400 less than what I paid for the TV I ended up with. The ISF tech warned me not to do that not because it wasn't a good deal but because the image quality wasn't as good as the Mits or Hitachi or the Pioneer Elite. They have more tweaking capability according to him. Being I worked in a service department for Tv's for a while, I would agree. So at that point I focused on the 3 sets. I couldn't justify the cost for the Pioneer Elite and the regular Pioneer line didn't do it for me so it came down to Hitachi vs Mits.

Hitachis were far more expensive here($300-$500 for the same type set 55" Mits vs 57" Hitachi). I could have paid the same money and gotten a 51" Hitachi but I felt 51 would be too small and 55/57 would be perfect as I sit back about 10 feet back. if you sit closer, then I'd suggest a 51". If you sit farther back then a 65" would be easy to recommend. The bigger Mits 65's have 9" CRT's which the Hitachi can't match. A guy I know saw a 65" 9" CRT Mits on closeout at Good Guys or Tweeter for $2400 delivered which is a stone cold bargain.

I myself am very satisfied with the 55" Mits I bought which I paid just short of $1700 for. Mine was the higher grade Mits w/o the Tuner built in. I use a Motorola 6412 Dual Tuner PVR HD box. The 315 has the lower grade CRT's but the new cabinet that is out now. If you wanted the Silver + CRt's or better, you'd have to step up to the 615 with the Tuner and more. The 315 is still a killer set. The difference was not that much between mine and the lesser grade crt 313 model. It was enough for me to pay a $100 difference though at the time and the lesser set still had as good PQ as the Hitachi or Sony that was near it.

I was also able to directly compare it to the Hitachi and also Sony in another showroom.

If you do get the Mits, find a way to remove the screen. HUGE IMPROVEMENT. I would also make sure you get a quality set of component cables and a progressive scan dvd player to go with it. I would also get a copy of avia to tweak it out. There are 2 convergence modes you need to do too. Those are pretty easy. Once you do them immediately, you might need to retweak them again in about a month. I didn't need to. They didn't drift.

These tweaks you can perform on any of the sets you have listed above except the Panasonic which I'm not sure has the ability to remove the protector. If you have kids, then you might want to leave it on. My friend didn't for 15 years and in the last 4 years of his set when he did have kids, he had no issues. I have dogs that get near it but I don't worry.

For me most of them are pretty comparable. I didn't care for the Sony's color on fleshtones at all when I messed with one. I also didn't care for the all silver case when tends to cause some glare.

If you were in Canada, then you wouldn't have a choice of the Mits and it would be replaced by Toshiba. I didn't pursue the higher end Toshibas when the ISF guys told me not to mess with them. They're not salesman so they don't have any alterior motives.

Good Luck. Enjoy your TV with real blacks, No blurring, No rainbows or bulbs blowing

[Kevin P]

Agreed, Mits and Hitachi are the top dogs in CRT RPTVs nowadays. Pioneer Elite used to be king but they stopped making CRT RPTVs.

With any CRT, you'll need to tweak it to get the best picture. Out of the box most of them look like garbage, but like a diamond in the rough, with a bit of polishing they really shine afterward.

And there are many tweaks. Some simple, some complex. Dropping contrast and sharpness to a reasonable level is the easiest and best tweak to improve PQ and prolong the life of the set. VE, DVE or AVIA can be used to adjust the basic settings right off the bat (contrast, brightness, sharpness, color, tint). Adjusting the convergence is needed to get the sharpest image without any color fringes. Many sets come with protective screens which can be removed to improve the picture (watch for inquisitive toddler fingers though). Some of the more advanced tweaks include focus, turning off SVM, grayscale, gamma, color decoder adjustment, lining the interior of the set with Duvetyne or dark felt, the list goes on. Some of these tweaks require opening the set, which you shouldn't do if you don't know what you're doing since there's high voltages in there.

An ISF technician can really squeeze the last ounce of performance out of your CRT set.

[aud19]

Hitachi/Mitsubishi vote here too

I'm in Canada so I went with Hitachi and have been completely happy. Other than that I think the other guys pretty much covered everything.

[stjoenewt]

Thanks to you all for your posts.

I don’t think my room could handle the 65” model, 55” is pushing the envelope. Also I don’t think I can go another $700 for the 65”, but I might be able to go to the next higher 55” model. If I read your post correctly, Shane, that would be the 55615, although I’m not sure where the 55515 fits in..

I do plan on replacing my DVD player with a progressive scan model and buying new interconnects. Also, my youngest child is now 17, so I think I could probably remove the protective screen without worrying about toddlers. Not until grandkids happen, anyway. I too have a dog, but she’s pretty oblivious to any TV. It was encouraged to hear Shane talk about a friend who CRT RPTV has lasted 15+ years. Reading some threads, you would think they will burn out in 5 if that long.

I already own an AVIA disc. I originally got it for home theater set-up, but also have used it on my 27” SD CRT set. I doubt if I would feel comfortable doing the tweaks Kevin recommended which would involve opening the set, but AVIA is certainly within my capability.

Again thanks for your help, once again the HTGUIDE forum came through, just as in the past.

[Shane Martin]

your post correctly, Shane, that would be the 55615, although I’m not sure where the 55515 fits in..

The 515 is the 315 + the Tuner for HDTV. The 615 adds the better crt's, better inerds, tuner etc. Unless they eliminated the 515 and I didn't see that

It was encouraged to hear Shane talk about a friend who CRT RPTV has lasted 15+ years. Reading some threads, you would think they will burn out in 5 if that long.

Most of the Mitsubishis I worked on or worked with at the repair shop at 10+ years on them. My father in law's lasted nearly 19 years. His tubes were really shot at the end but he made it work. You and I would have upgraded several years before that

As far as these advanced tweaks:
turning off SVM,
color decoder adjustment

These on the new Mits's are done in the main menu now. Yet another advantage
The Perfect Color menu will adjust the Color decoder. The VSM is listed under Define VSM ON or Off on the menu that houses the Contrast/brightness etc. Keep in mind when you make the change it is not universal to all inputs which is a good thing. You have to adjust EVERY input.

[stjoenewt]

Many thanks Shane. I assume that the progression of model features you noted above, from 315 to 515 to 615, are consistent across all screen sizes. Meaning if I can’t afford the 55615, perhaps I should consider the 48615. One other question, I notice the Mits accept 1080 and 480 sources. What does it do if I couple it with a progressive scan DVD player sending a 720p source? Does it up convert this in some way?

[stjoenewt]

Sorry Shane. I made an assumption on that last post. After checking the Mitsubishi website, I see there is no such model as a 48615. Excuse the oversight, but still thanks for your assistance.

[stantheman2]

I own a Hitachi 51" RPTV. I bought it 2 1/2 yrs ago after much research. Great picture, excellent feature set, good interface. Hitachis are always rated very high in mag test reports or comparos. I have found Hitachis cheaper than Pioneer or Mits, at least in my area.

I saw a 57" Hitachi RPTV @ CompUSA for $1200 USD last month - that's a steal. I don't know any other technology out there that offers TRUE 1080i anywhere near that price.

If you do go for Hitachi, get their Ultravision series - that series uses better CRT tubes than their lower-end series.

[Shane Martin]

What does it do if I couple it with a progressive scan DVD player sending a 720p source? Does it up convert this in some way?

It won't accept it. You'll need to upscale to 1080I if you feel it is worth it.

I have found Hitachis cheaper than Pioneer or Mits, at least in my area.

My experience is opposite especially with the ultravisions. Nice sets though.

[RebelMan]

I have the Mits 55515. I considered the 55615 but it was about 4 inches too deep to fit into my nook not to mention quite a bit more money, but you do get some better components with it as Shane mentioned. In case you didn't know it, the 55515 has a fan in the back that can annoy you. I am sure the other Mits do also.