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Plasma

5 (62.5%)

LCD

3 (37.5%)

Total Members Voted: 6

[mindracing]

I'm going to buy a big screen (42") as the center piece of my AV HTPC setup and need to know which screen to buy.

A list of pors and cons would help me no end.

All views appreciated!

[NoCodeUK]

I think Plasmas are better quality but you pay the price for that...  LCDs have trouble with very fast movement due to their low refresh rates.  Normally this is not noticeable but can lead to shadowing in certain fast paced DVDs etc.  As far as I know this is still a problem, it may have been fixed in higher range LCDs but if you can afford one I would say go with the plasma.  I really want a nice 42inch wall mounted job!!

Adam

[bjsolem]

I don't know much about it but I remember reading that plasmas have a much shorter life span.

This makes them even more expensive as they will need to be replaced that much sooner.

[jleerigby]

I have a Panasonic 42" Plasma and love it.  I also have 2 LCD TVs for wall mounting.  These are not a patch on the Plasma in terms of picture quality and sharpness.

I read some useful stuff on this site.  Look for the articles at the bottom of the page.  Even if you are not in the US (I'm UK) the information is really useful.

My main tip is to go for a screen with a high contrast ratio as these offer the better pictures.  Mine is 4000-1.  Anything 3000-1 or higher is recommended.  Make sure you get one with a VGA input ON THE REAR.  This was the mistake I made as mine's on the front so can't be hidden.

[Chris Shaw]

I've got a 43" Pioneer plasma. It's bloody lovely. Plasmas aren't ideal for PC use, though, since static images that are displayed for a long time burn in. You certainly want to make sure you have a screen saver with lots of movement and a relatively short timeout. This won't help you with Hairstyle, of course, since it disables the screensaver.

[gpvillamil]

I think, realistically, the choices are plasma, LCD or a projector. Plasmas are cheaper and slightly brighter than LCDs, LCDs seem crisper than plasmas, projectors take up less room. Plasma screens, seen up close, do not do a good job of representing large black areas. They also run at quite high temperatures, so require cooling fans.

If you do get a plasma (or LCD), do make sure it takes a VGA (or DVI) input. You may also find Powerstrip from http://www.entechtaiwan.com/ useful, it will let you define the screen resolution appropriately.

Basically, the proportions of plasma (and most LCD) screens are 16:9, but most of the common computer resolutions are 4:3. Widescreen PCs generally support a resolution of 1280x768, which is not precisely 16:9. So you will need Powerstrip or something like that to force 1280x720 (or 852 x 480). If you don't fix the resolution, DVD movies will look somewhat distorted (stretched horizontally or vertically). Most projectors don't have a problem with aspect ratios.

To improve readability, I found it useful to change the screen font to bold MS Trebuchet, and increase font sizes all round. I changed both the Windows XP settings and those in MC. (See example here: http://www.villamil.org/images/htpc1.jpg) Large screens, even those with a "native" resolution of 1024 x 768, are less readable than computer monitors.

A big screen for your AV PC really changes the way you use it - definitely recommended.

[Robert Taylor]

I have a Hercules 15" LCD monitor hanging off my primary monitor port, and an Infocus X1 DLP projector hanging off the secondary.

The projector displays on a wall which has been painted with two coats of flat ceiling-white paint, with a tiny touch of black tint. The wall was also given two top coats of matt clear finish.

The projector is only 800X600 resolution, native, but has a scaler chip in it which means it can handle 1024X768.

I run the main MC window on the 15" LCD (my "alpha control"), and the full-screen stuff (like visualisations) on the projector.

Works a treat! Here in Australia, the price of LCD/Plasma flat screen is pretty scary compared to projector prices, that's why I went that way. For example, a 42" plasma will still set you back anywhere from $6000 - $13000, whereas my proj cost me $3000, and it gives me about a 7 foot wide screen. I'm very happy with it, but obviosly you need a room setup the right way for a proj to be feasible.

[Pink Waters]

i have Philips 170S4 17" LCD screen and it really Rocks

[Sundog_AK]

The AVS Forum has a wealth of info on Plasmas/LCDs and other rear screen types such as DLP as well as projectors.  I have been researching for about a year there, and it is very useful/helpful forum.  

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/

As to which is best, it depends a lot on what you are doing and your personal preference.  After lots of dithering, I am going for a Panasonic Plasma, they have very good blacks (better than most LCDs IMO).  However, Pioneer, Fujitsu, and Hitachi plasmas tend to be very good, as well.   I was also impressed with my brother-in-laws new DLP projector which are much cheaper than plasma and give you a very large picture (more of a movie like size).  But to my eyes, plasmas still have the best picture.  Plus, I can see the "infamous" rainbow effect on DLP types.   Direct display LCDS are more expensive than plasmas at the larger sizes and are not available bigger than plus 37 inch (at least not without a load of gold).  Bad thing about plasmas is they are expensive (42 inch Panisonic 1024x768 runs around $4K via reputable online vendors) and you have more concern with burn in, which is not an issue with DLP and LCDs.  If you are going to keep a static image for long periods then plasma is not your choice (just like the older CRT rear projection TVs.  As far as lifespan, plasmas have come a long way and most are running around 30,000 hours to half-brightness (CRT brightness degrades over time too).  They also run cooler and have better fans.  The ones I have looked at rarely can be heard from normal viewing distances.  If you live at high altitudes (Denver), plasmas are not for you either, unless you like to hear buzzing.  Oh, and there is no such thing as "refilling a plasma" tv, contrary to what some Best Buy sales types will tell you (as they pitch their extended warranty).

As with all things, your eyes should be the judge.  However, you do have to watch out for the fact that many setups at places like Sears, Best Buy, CompUSA are horrible and very rarely do justice to any of the above type displays.  If you can, compare from the same feeds, and with a quality input.  Plus, garbage signal in...means really bad viewing on a big screen.  What you would not have noticed on a 27" TV may be unwatchable with a 37" or bigger.  If you have Dish TV or digital cable, you soon realize how much they compress the signals which tends to make things look like junk.  But, my read on the general consensus is most of the above technologies look great with HDTV.  SDTV can look really bad depending on your equipment, and type of signal.  

[NickM]

This is not meant to be a mine’s bigger than your’s post… But,
I have a Hitachi 42” plasma, a Pioneer 38” LCD and a Sharp DLP projector.  Each has it’s own merits and suitability.

The plasma has the highest resolution – this makes watching DVD’s least stressful on the eyes.  The LCD and projector both have lower resolution and this makes the images less defined.  This means watching a VCD looks pretty much the same on all.

For sports, the projector is best as there is generally more reason to have the largest possible picture and the transmission resolutions are normally lower – especially when looking at anything NTSC based.

Lastly, but most importantly, running a hairstyle mode looks far better on the plasma as the resolution means much much crisper image.  My Hitachi runs at XGA, and there are still VGA and SVGA models around sot be careful to read the whole spec…

nick

[loraan]

I think, realistically, the choices are plasma, LCD or a projector.

Keep in mind that a projector is going to suck if you're not in a light-controlled room.

[NickM]

Sorry, yes Loraan is absolutely right.  My projector is in a room with no windows...  GREAT in the dark but not suitable for ambient light.
nick

[gpvillamil]

A question for all of you with 42" plasma displays: how did you solve the aspect ratio issue for watching DVDs?

Did you actually adjust your resolution to 1280 x 720, or did you leave it at 1280 x 768? Do you make any kind of adjustment in your DVD player software?