New Newbie made a purchase

[DLA]

Well without going into all the details I just bought a new Mitsubishi 55" WS-55315. I paid $1900 out the door this includes delivery (this Sat. yippy!!!!) and a 5 year full replacable warrenty, no matter what goes wrong they fix it or replace the set with a new one or newer model, with multiple replacements, no 1 bulb 1 time thing ( I really grilled them on this. I know it's not the best set, but I really wanted a big screen and it seemed a good deal, the set was actually $1396.00 + tx, but the warrenty is what I liked too. So I am just asking when it's delivered what can you videophiles tell me I should expect. I saw something about an avio DVD? whats that, and of course did I do good.

Thanks in advance for all your imput.

DLA

[Neal_C]

Mitsubishi tv's are usually pretty good right out of the box. First thing you will want to do is make sure brightness and contrast are turned down to around 50%. I would recommend getting the AVIA dvd, it can help you tweak your set even more.

Probably the best thing you can do though is save about $500 over the next six months and get your set professionally calibrated. This will give your set time to break in, and then the calibration can get the best picture quality out of your set.

And yes, $1900 out the door with 5 year warranty is a pretty good price for that set.

[Shane Martin]

no 1 bulb 1 time thing ( I really grilled them on this.

No bulb to worry about since its a 3 gun CRT set.

Having bought I Mits, I'd recommend the following:

Buy Avia
Tweak your set with this.
Expect regular cable to not look so good(it's blown up in this case and a case of Crap in, crap out).
Tweak your convergence9both modes)
Turn off VSM
Turn down contrast/brightness
Get HDTV ASAP Once you get it, then the regular cable issue is moot because you won't watch it
Find a way to remove the protective shield. Removing it has made a huge difference on the 3 Mits's I've seen it done(including mine).
Get a set of good component cables for your dvd player.
Upgrade to progressive scan when you can.

I paid $1900 a year ago without the 5 yr including Tax so you did fine. I think my set was the set above that but still no 5 yr warranty on my part.

[David Meek]

Hi Skip, welcome. :welcome:

AVIA is a good choice for a set-up disk although the Digital Video Essentials disk is just as good IMO. Regardless, calibrating your new set is essential to get the most out of it, and (as mentioned) at some point a good ISF calibration is the way to go. Nice price BTW - we won't discuss what I paid for my 58" Pioneer Elite four years ago. :roll:

The 5-year replacement warranty is a good deal on an RPTV. If you replace only one of the guns (red, green, blue) over that period of time, then you've easily paid for your warranty right there. :T

[Lex]

DLA, did you consider going front projection? Not trying to take anything away from your decision, but you could have bought a pretty nice front projector for what you've paid here...

If there is a return policy, I'd consider doing this if it suits your room and viewing habits.

But congrats otherwise, I am sure your Mitsu will serve you well.

Lex

[Kevin P]

You made a good choice in a RPTV, Mitsubishi is amongst the best. Once it's properly tweaked with Avia, and (after a few hundred hours), ISF calibrated, you'll get about the best picture quality you can get from a RPTV set.

Shane's suggestions are good ones. Especially turning down contrast right away since it's always jacked up to 100% at the factory. You should only need it up to 30-40% or so. Doing so will minimize the risk of phosphor burn and give you a better picture as well. Sharpness is another one that is usually set too high, and you'll get a better picture with it turned down to around 1/3rd (use Avia or DVE to set properly). Some sets are best with sharpness at 0, but I didn't find that to be the case with my Mits. Use Avia/DVE to set color and tint properly and you'll get more accurate color--this makes a huge difference in the perceived picture quality. After a few hundred hours of use, consider investing in an ISF calibration. An ISF tech will properly adjust the grayscale of the set, as well as other parameters to get the most accurate black & white as well as colors (since the colors "ride" on top of the grayscale, an accurate grayscale leads to more accurate colors).

Getting the 5 year warranty is a smart idea as well. It'll pay for itself if you have to have a tech out for repairs (since you don't want to be hauling that big box back to the store yourself). And if a CRT fails, the warranty just paid for itself. Chances are though that you won't need to use the warranty. My 46" Mits was great for the 5 years I had it. Then I had a house fire which reduced it to a blob of molten plastic, and I don't think the extended warranty will cover that. 8O

[Lex]

Oh, as it turns out, there is one less player in the RPTV market, I noticed Pioneer no longer builds one. Shocking really...

Lex

[Kevin P]

Interesting, Lex. The Pioneer Elites were considered the best of the best in the RPTV arena. I guess that distinction goes to Mitsubishi now.

[David Meek]

Doesn't Faroudja build an RPTV? 8O That's got to be a pretty nice picture.

[Shane Martin]

I believe Runco did at some point.

Elite is out(going Plasma pretty much). Mits is still holding on as its Hitachi, Sony and Toshiba amongst the big players. I would suspect that Toshiba is getting out as well as Sony and likely Hitachi before too long.

Mits will be the last builder until they finalliy give up the ghost on the CRT.

[Lex]

A rear projection TV is not even in Faroudja's discontinued products section, it's been DQ'd so long. But I recall they did build one, seems like it was like 10000-17000 bucks or something, lol.

It looks like it will soon be LCD, plasma, DLP, projectors, and whatever other new technologies come out. The rear projection TV will go the way of the dinasaur.

Lex

[DLA]

Wow...Thank you

I really appreciate all the info...I am really excited and can't wait for tomorrows delivery. I went back to the store and bought a copy of Avia so I can adjust it until I get some time on it and then have it ISF calibrated that will also give me time to shop for a good tech. I realized that since this purchase I have a lot of equipment now I don't want or need.... just want to trim it all down to the HD DVR that my cable company is bringing out on Tuesday, surround receiver and my DVD player. I see another obsession coming, oh God. Once bought a 10 gallon salt water tank…1 year later had a $10k, 200 gallon system in the house, golf, jeeps, Harley's, guns, and 3 X-wives, what have I done.

Thanks again everyone, I know I will be here pestering you all a lot.

DLA

[Shane Martin]

One other thing: Once you do the convergence. Check it in about a month or 2 to make sure it hasn't drifted. Mine didn't but you want to be sure.

[Kevin P]

One other thing: Once you do the convergence. Check it in about a month or 2 to make sure it hasn't drifted. Mine didn't but you want to be sure.

The convergence probably will drift over the first few months, then it'll settle in, so you may find yourself tweaking the convergence maybe once a month or once every couple months until the set settles in.

Also, if your room sees wide temperature swings (say, if it gets hot in there in the summer and cold in the winter), you'll likely have to touch up the convergence every 6 months or so. Also, if you move the set it'll likely need to have convergence touched up afterward.

Also, make sure the set is fully warmed up (been on 20-30 minutes or so) before doing a convergence, since it tends to drift or be a bit funky when the set is cold.

[DLA]

Sorry forgot

Lex,

No I didn't concider a projection type, I don't think it would be indicative for where my Mitz is going...in a corner of the room. My main viewing position will be about 8-10 feet away from the screen which if the calcs I've seen are right is pretty much optimum. Since I don't have any wives left :T , my furniture stays where I want it and the big chair I live in has the best seat in the house, and I don't share well. but the couch is also in a great position,..LOL... also I don't have any lighting behind me it's all wall washed upward between me and the Mitz no reflections in the evening, maybe some window lighting in the daytime but very minimal.

Anyway after it comes tomorrow and I am done giggling, oh and adjusting it, I will let you all know how it goes with a bunch of questions I'm sure. Oh and since the "Diamond Shield" is removable and it is suggested here that I do that, can anyone tell me how it detaches and how I should store it. It does get a little hot here in AZ 120 degrees in summer and my garage is not A/Ced.

Thanks again...everyone.

DLA

[David Meek]

I've got mine stored in my master bedroom closet up against the wall behind the hanging clothes. It stays cool and there's no chance of a random encounter with a pet, child or clumsy in-law. :B

[rdram]

Welcome to the world of HDTV...or waiting for HDTV...depending on how you look at it. Hope you like nature programing. :-) The easiest way to remove the shield is to go back to the store and ask your saleman how. My 55" Mits has a ...what would you call it...beveled plastic trim strip around the inside edge of the screen. The top strip just peeled out and the shield came out the top. But mine is a few model years back and without seeing the 55315 don't know if the mounting has been changed. From one newbie to another ...enjoy.

[DLA]

I've got mine stored in my master bedroom closet up against the wall behind the hanging clothes. It stays cool and there's no chance of a random encounter with a pet, child or clumsy in-law.

Dave,

How did you remove yours?
DLA

[Neal_C]

My Mits is 4 years old, but the screen removal was similar to rdram. I had to remove two plastic strips (one from each side of the screen) and then just pop the screen out.

I wrapped mine in a sheet and it is stored under our bed.

[Shane Martin]

Mine which is a yr old is the same as Rdram's as well.

[Lex]

David has a Pioneer Elite, so it is different. I had my Elite one off before it tore up. But I can't recall exactly how it came off.

At least without any wives left, there's a good chance of you actually being able to keep the TV. lol.

Lex

[DLA]

Yippy !!!!

It's here and working great, still need to run the AVIA disk, just having to much fun watching Star Wars.
But I can't see how the Diamond Shield comes off at all, even though the Mitz website says it's removable...so again any help would be great.

Thanks,
DLA

[DLA]

I guess looking at the instructions would have been the 1st thing to do...I got it off.

[David Meek]

I guess looking at the instructions would have been the 1st thing to do...I got it off.

:B

How did you remove yours?

I had mine removed by my dealer when he delivered it.

[DLA]

There are 2 small 1/2" wide strips on the left and right, very carefully as to not scratch anything I pryed them away from the screen, they pop right out then pull the "Diamond Shield" from the center side and it bends enough to come out the top retainer, pop the trim back in. By the way it did make a huge difference, a nice mat finish screen now no reflection or glare of any kind.

DLA