Anyone own a CRT HDTV?

Hi,

Just starting to get the video bug again. Thinking about CRT sets for HDTV viewing because of its superior image quality and wondering if anyone had any experience with the Sony units or other brands. Something in the 30-36" range is about right for our room.

Any comments, ideas or experiences you'd care to share would be appreciated.

Wilkey

well im not much help but my dad bought a sony rear proection it has amazeing picture but as u say the viewing angle is awefull its the 56 inch hdtv if i recall he also bought a dish network hdtv and it has amazeing viewing angle but the picture aint as nice imho but it was only like 499 for a decnt size hdtv that crt ill ask him what size it is next time he calls

Look for a set that can do both 1080i and 720p. Not all CRTs can do both. Also make sure it has an ATSC tuner in it if you're not planning on hooking it up to a cable or satellite box (which have their own HD tuners built-in).

worst thing about hdtv i even will give a warning about this once ya watch hdtv regeler tvs look aweful .even makes my sony trintron look bad. i watched i robot on my dads and man it blew me away .

Another thing - check the dot pitch (pixel size) of the CRT. The least expensive CRT-based HD sets have a fairly coarse dot pitch so they don't show all of the details inherent in the HD signal. Get fairly closer to the set and see if the picture looks too "dotty" for your taste.

I bought the Sony 40XBR800 last year for a good price
when it was discontinued. It's a 4x3 screen but still
gives you almost 37" on HD (16x9), which is bigger than
the other HD CRT Sony's at the time (34" max).

My family room layout precludes wall mounting so Plasma
and LCDs were out. And I have small kids so low mounting
of a delicate plasma/lcd or rear projector was out.

Also the room is bright so RPs were out, and I didn't
want to fool with blinds every day. Oh, and I can't stand
the rainbow effect from rapid motion on single chip DLP TVs.

Lastly, no (normal) thief is going to walk out with
my 300 pound TV. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

All that said, I still don't have HD signal source (yet).
But the Sony's Digital Reality Creation is excellent and
makes even analog TV look good (good channels look better
than weak one naturally), and DVDs look awesome.

I plan to buy an HD PVR in fall and then switch over to
digital cable (and HD).

The newer HD Sony CRT sets have a fine dot pitch CRT (the XBR ones at least)
but I don't notice a problem with my regular pitch set.

Greg

I purchased the Sony WEGA KV-34XBR910 about a year ago or so. Its a ground-up made for hi-def TV with a 16/9 screen. The picture is magnificent - both in hi def and conventional resolution. As with switching to hi-res on a computer monitor, some brightness is lost in hi-def mode. You can use pre-sets to increase brightness automatically when switching to hi-def mode but if you crank it too much, the picture is bleached out. Just a touch is OK. Just be aware that with any brand of hi-def CRT, the reduced brightness takes some getting used to but the sharpness and clarity of the picture are worth it. This set has both component and DVI inputs for hi-def. Highly recommended. It can do 1080i and 720P native resolutions.

I have a Sony KD-34XBR960, which is a 34" direct-view CRT, and I love it! It was not the cheapest model we looked at, but it definitely delivers. It has a built-in HD tuner, is capable of both 720p and 1080i, has a HDMI port, and also accepts a CableCard. The image is stunning. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif I haven't had any problems with the viewing angle nor brightness. The geometry isn't perfect, but not so much so that it takes away from the viewing experience. Sound isn't bad either... even has a small, built-in subwoofer.

Although the direct-view CRT format is far from the mainstream choice for high-def sets these days, that certainly doesn't make it a bad choice. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Sony XBR. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif

Wow,

Excellent advice and reports. Thanks! This unit is topping our list right now.

I have a friend with a Samsung ED or HD CRT and he loves it. Great picture and half the price of Sony.

Wilkey

Hi Ginseng,

You may want to go to AVSforum.com and read
the Display Devices/CRT forum. There is lots of
expertise there.

Greg