2019 Sony 55", 65", 75" & 85" X950G

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by Robert Zohn

Two comments, 1st, in our evaluation of Sony's new 65" X950G where we it wall mounted on our TV Shootout wall butt next to the 75" Z9D, 65" Z9F and 65" A9F all of our staff and our professional calibrator loved the 65" X950G. Excellent color fidelity, color volume and color saturation, plus very good black levels.

Tomorrow, we'll have the 75" X950G on the TV Shootout wall and we'll compare it against the 65" X950G and the Z9F.

Regarding MechaGodzilla post above, yes it's true that the beautiful A9F will be discontinued this summer and replaced by the A9G, available in 55", 65" and 77" screen sizes. The Z9G will be an 8K HDR TV available in 85" and 98" screen sizes.

I knew about the A9F being replaced by the A9G, but the Z9F surprises me. Again, FlatpanelsHD claim that they've been told by Sony that the Z9F will be discontinued, with the X950G taking over as the flagship 4K LCD.

Would it perhaps be possible for you to confirm with Sony whether or not this is the case? It just seems strange to me. While the X950G is no doubt a very good TV, it can't really be considered a like-for-like replacement for the Z9F.

Originally Posted by DJR662

I have little faith in any Sony TV that has the X-wide view tech and that includes the Z9G (in which I actually had an interest). I've been a dedicated Sony fan and supporter for decades, but they can keep that wider viewing angle nonsense until they can make it work with absolutely zero compromises being made in other far more important areas.

Originally Posted by Fendergopher

Man that X-Wide Angle tech is really not doing these displays any favors, feels like traditional FALD LCDs are given less and less priority and more attention is being given to these Mini/MicroLED displays. Buying a high-end TV right now that's not an OLED seems like a real crapshoot to me, at least OLED is a fairly well known quantity by now. Good things come to those who wait I guess.

Hopefully.

It will be interesting to see, when they announce new LCDs later this year and/or early next year, whether or not X-Wide Angle is still included. Either they'll drop it due to the backlash, or these sets have - in spite of the negativity on HT forums - sold just fine and there's no incentive for them to do away with it.

Maybe, best case scenario, they're able to improve on it so it doesn't have (as much of) an adverse effect on contrast and black levels anymore.

[Beasso]

Originally Posted by Robert Zohn

Tomorrow, we'll have the 75" X950G on the TV Shootout wall and we'll compare it against the 65" X950G and the Z9F.

This is great news, Sir. I have been looking all over the internet for a comparison between the 65" and 75" of the X950G.
Sony has added the X-Wide Angle feature to the 75" and 85" models and a lot of people are expecting lower contrast and too much blooming effect.
I am aiming for the larger sizes, but if this is true I might stick with the 65".

Could you please send us side by side photos of the 65" and 75" X950G TVs, especially in a dark room with a blooming test.

[MechaGodzilla]

Rtings' review is up.

[MarcinL]

WOW! What a crap. Basically a 900F with a faster processor, lower game input lag and all HDMI ports capable of full bandwidth vs. just HDMI 2 and 3 as well as EARC that is capable to pass DTS X and ATMOS. I mean great improvement on technical aspects but not something that I would pay $2199 for at Best Buy today when a 900F 65 inch can be had for $1299 on the internet. Not worth $900 difference. When I've seen Sony Z9D come out 3 years ago I was just happy that in 2-3 years we can get a great TV. Sadly Sony hasn't made a great LED since that time. I'm anxiously waiting for a Samsung Q90R review. Was hoping to replace my Samsung KS8500 with 950G but not enough reason to do it now. If the Samsung Q90R review is crap I guess I'll just get the 900F or wait till next year. Was really hoping to get a Sony this time as I love the performance of my 900E in another room

[Fendergopher]

It's disappointing that they haven't improved the contrast or local dimming, otherwise this would have been a very nice iterative improvement on the 900F. The higher peak brightness is about the only thing that appeals to me about it.

[MechaGodzilla]

Vincent will be reviewing the 65".

[MechaGodzilla]

Sony X950G 2019 TV Review - RTINGS.com - YouTube

[MechaGodzilla]

Vincent's review is up:

Sony XG95 (X950G) TV Review - YouTube

[Fendergopher]

I always enjoy Vincent's take on things, not to mention he can provide a european market perspective which is more relevant to me.

[MechaGodzilla]

The review itself is enjoyable as always, and the X950G looks a good TV. But for me, getting clarification on what's going on with the Master Series is the most interesting part.

We already knew the Z9F and A9F are being phased out, with the A9G replacing the latter. However, there was no obvious like-for-like replacement for the Z9F, which confused some of us. Yes, there is the Z9G, but it's only going to be available in 85" and 98".

Now, through Vincent, we've learned that Sony consider the A9G a combined replacement for both the A9F and the Z9F. That would seem pretty strong indication that OLED is top priority for Sony now, and it's only when they're releasing a monstrously massive beast, for an equally monstrous price tag, that they feel "over-engineering" LCD is worth the bother. Case in point: the Z9G.

[Fendergopher]

Originally Posted by MechaGodzilla

The review itself is enjoyable as always, and the X950G looks a good TV. But for me, getting clarification on what's going on with the Master Series is the most interesting part.

We already knew the Z9F and A9F are being phased out, with the A9G replacing the latter. However, there was no obvious like-for-like replacement for the Z9F, which confused some of us. Yes, there is the Z9G, but it's only going to be available in 85" and 98".

Now, through Vincent, we've learned that Sony consider the A9G a combined replacement for both the A9F and the Z9F. That would seem pretty strong indication that OLED is top priority for Sony now, and it's only when they're releasing a monstrously massive beast, for an equally monstrous price tag, that they feel "over-engineering" LCD is worth the bother. Case in point: the Z9G.

That's pretty much the assessment I've been going by over the last year or so, and it's more or less reflected in every major TV manufacturer's lineup with the exception of Samsung, though they're looking into OLED manufacturing as well from what I've heard. It's too bad OLED skyrockets in price the larger the panel is compared to LCD tech.


I think all these MicroLED prototypes we keep seeing at CES is also indicative of why traditional LCD displays are given less and less priority from the bigger players in the industry. The R&D money seems to be going in that direction. I wouldn't be surprised if Samsung launched a proper 65"-85" MicroLED display in the near future, though I have no idea whether they've nailed down the scalability or not. It's all about profit margins in the end, not about giving AV enthusiasts the perfect product.

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by Fendergopher

That's pretty much the assessment I've been going by over the last year or so, and it's more or less reflected in every major TV manufacturer's lineup with the exception of Samsung, though they're looking into OLED manufacturing as well from what I've heard. It's too bad OLED skyrockets in price the larger the panel is compared to LCD tech.


I think all these MicroLED prototypes we keep seeing at CES is also indicative of why traditional LCD displays are given less and less priority from the bigger players in the industry. The R&D money seems to be going in that direction. I wouldn't be surprised if Samsung launched a proper 65"-85" MicroLED display in the near future, though I have no idea whether they've nailed down the scalability or not. It's all about profit margins in the end, not about giving AV enthusiasts the perfect product.

Indeed, it's something we see time and time again; once a manufacturer jumps aboard the OLED train, they stop trying as hard with LCD. I will give Sony credit for still putting more effort into their LCDs than others, though. Panasonic and Philips for example have completely given up, just expecting anyone who wants a high-end TV to choose OLED. At least with Sony, the X900F, Z9F and X950G are very good FALD LCDs, even if they don't always deliver exactly what some enthusiasts wanted or expected.

As for what the future holds, obviously none of us know for sure, it's all conjecture. Things aren't looking great for LCD right now, I agree, but at the same time the optimist in me believes there's still some hope. We've got Hisense with their dual-panel solution for the ULED XD, and TCL are releasing LCDs with mini-LED backlight later this year. These are exciting innovations, especially if the big boys like Sony follow suit.

Time will tell. I'm looking forward to IFA in September, and then CES next year. Hopefully, some exciting new LCDs will be announced. If not, then I may feel compelled to go OLED for my next TV. It's just too bad about the burn-in risk, something I don't feel good about as I like to use my TVs for gaming.

[steve1971]

When I first heard about the 950G I was thinking that this might be the tv that replaces my beloved 900E. After reading and hearing about the review's it's not. I have no clue what the heck is going on at Sony but it seem's to me that they are putting all their egg's in one basket with OLED. It's all good because it means I stick with my 900E for the forseeable future and I am ok with that.

[MarcinL]

After going back and forth on Sony 950G and being a Sony fanboy for a while, finally gave up and got the LG B8 OLED for $200 cheaper than 65 inch 950G. After watching 4K movies, blu-rays and Apple TV I'm never going back to LED again. Sony blows LG out of the water on upscaling Comcast content but thankfully I don't watch too much of that other than sports so might have to figure out something for that with the settings.

The X-Wide Angle is only on the 75" and 85" models.

[schwano]

My 7 month old 900F got a horizontal line across the screen, and it’s either a bad video board or bad panel. Either way, I used the opportunity to move to a 950G. (I work for a custom integration company, so in my case this was relativly painless to do).

The performance of the TV is significantly improved with the new processor, and that’s the biggest difference thus far. I also think that the local dimming is improved a bit as well with less blooming, as is stutter, which I felt was pretty strong on the 900F. The 950G also required significantly less tinkering with the settings to get the picture calibrated to my liking.

It's not a night and day difference, and if my 900F hadn’t failed, it wouldn’t have been worth the effort of taking down, boxing up, swapping, remounting, etc. That being said, if you are looking to purchase either one, the 950G improvements are worth the couple of hundred dollars difference, most notably having all 4 HDMI ports being HDCP 2.2 capable versus the 2 on the 900F.

[Pickyvideophile]

I think I am going to be holding on to my z9d for a long time since sony has no intention of making a better replacement so there is nothing to upgrade to.

[SteelbookCat]

what is the best 4k player and sound system for this tv?

[slimdude]

Originally Posted by SteelbookCat

what is the best 4k player and sound system for this tv?

You can buy any 4K UHD Blu-ray Player and sound system for any TV. It depends on what you want to spend and how much you can afford. You don't have to get a sound system at all, you can get soundbar.

[ZoetMB]

Originally Posted by slimdude

You can buy any 4K UHD Blu-ray Player and sound system for any TV. It depends on what you want to spend and how much you can afford. You don't have to get a sound system at all, you can get soundbar.

If you want inferior sound (although usually better than what the TV's own sound system can produce).

If you want the equivalent of theatrical sound, you need a good processor or receiver and speakers, whether it's 5.1, 7.1 or Dolby Atmos (usually 7.1.4). But it depends upon what you use your TV for.