Unimpressed with 6020 & 58" Viera at BestBuy

[jc480]

Just got back from BestBuy and they had a 6020 setup with a receiver bd player speakers etc...I couldn't see behind it but I'm going to guess it was an HDMI input to the TV.

I reset the TV mode to "MOVIE" and watched the demo disc. They had a section where the skier was doing arial jumps/flips etc...lot of motion. I was struck at how I kept seeing big blocky pixels. Even my wife (who doesn't know anything about TVs except that she likes how LCDs are "bright") noticed the blocky pixels.

The 58" Viera...the picture was inferior to the 65" Sharp LCD next to it. I could not see if it had HDMI or component cabling for the video feed.

What am I missing here? I'm pretty sure I set the 6020 to it's default picture mode and, with all the goodies, it most certainly doesn't look like a $4k+ picture.

[graf1k]

Actually the default picture mode is 'Standard' but my guess is whatever the demo disc was, it either wasn't very good quality or it wasn't hooked up right. I've noticed the blocky pixels when watching SD content on the 5020. HD content on the other hand looks amazing. I watched Band of Brothers yesterday and the picture was incredible.

[crackinhedz]

I could not see if it had HDMI or component cabling for the video feed.

...which makes the observation pointless. What if they had it connected with composite??

[Santeria]

i had this question also... saw my 46pz80u and saw blocky pixels, ordered it anyway and i have zero regrets GREAT PQ.

[Blu As Hell]

Originally Posted by crackinhedz

...which makes the observation pointless. What if they had it connected with composite??

Exactly, I like to look and see how TV's are hooked up at Best Buy and I know I haven't seen a HDMI cable yet, so I'm always looking behind the TV's.

[lojack1976]

There's definitely something with the source or the settings...maybe both. If the feed was a 1080i broadcast then that's probably the culprit. A lot of tv's have problems with 1080i including my own. A progressive signal such as 720p or 1080p should not give you that result.

[jc480]

The positive thing about this visit to BestBuy is that the wife really preferred the size of the 58 & 60 inch to the 50 inch models, even at a $1-$2 k price premium

Good to hear that the blocky pixelation was an aberation. Still find it hard to believe even if it was 720 or 1080i though :/

[brett_day]

you can never go by the way tv's look in showrooms! The best thing to do would be to buy the tv you are interested in, take it home and get it into your environment, with your equipment using your cables etc. Calibrate it and see if it is what you like for your room, if not take the tv back and pick out another one until you find the perfect tv for your home!

[saprano]

If you were unimpressed at a pioneer plasma then there is no way in hell it was set up right. im sure it wasn't a proper HD source. get them to play a blu-ray movie on it. my BB has the same tv on display playing demo's of POTC2, king kong and some other films. it didn't give off the wow factor at all, it was grainy, colors were off, and a little blocky also. dont ever juge a pioneer at BB, worst place ever......but, when i saw the pioneer KURO elite at BB playing the dark night prologue i was blown away. thats when i became a fan of pioneer, the PQ was amazing.

Now is the right time to buy a pioneer plasma. it sucks that their not making anymore tv's.

[mikenike]

Originally Posted by saprano

but, when i saw the pioneer KURO elite at BB playing the dark night prologue i was blown away. thats when i became a fan of pioneer, the PQ was amazing.

Now is the right time to buy a pioneer plasma. it sucks that their not making anymore tv's.

TDK looks fantastic on the Kuro, even at BB. Their King Kong demo looks nice too, even though the quality may not be as good as the BD. There's this surreal quality from the Kuro that makes you feel like you were falling through the rope vines with Naomi Watts.

Originally Posted by BACsader

Honestly, those TVs never look good in store becaue they have the brightness settings, the noise reduction settings, and some other settings jacked all the way up. I have never seen one look good in store, but my Panny Plasma, while not the Pioneer looks great. I bet if you got to take it home, it would be a completely different story. Also, don't forget, that beyond them jacking up the settings, when the TV is first started they select store display mode which already increases the settings before they mess with it.

It seems that BB does the opposite on the Pioneer what they do to all other sets when it comes to brightness. The image on the Kuros I've seen are usually darker compared to ones hanging on their backwall. This is at BBs across three states. Damn it if they couldn't leave the remote out for this set at any of those stores. I'd love to see what everyone else has been seeing.

[dobyblue]

Originally Posted by jc480

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1001_3-10158724-92.html

Simply quoting the same report everyone else has been talking about for over 24 hours.

Originally Posted by jc480

Good to hear that the blocky pixelation was an aberation. Still find it hard to believe even if it was 720 or 1080i though :/

It could very well have been 480i upscaled.

Originally Posted by jc480

Just got back from BestBuy

Therein lies the problem. Go to Pioneer's website and find your local A/V specialty dealer (ie - not big box).
They'll give you a proper viewing environment and let you bring in your own Blu-ray reference material or choose from theirs.