How to buy a TV

Think back to the last time you bought a TV. How did you research and decide on what to buy?



If you went into a big box retail store, I'll bet you went to the "wall of TVs" where you were able to look at dozens or hundreds of different TVs side-by-side. You probably looked for the screen that looked the brightest or most colorful.



Or, you looked at the specs (especially if you bought the TV online), and chose based on what looked like they had the best numbers.



Or, you may have asked the sales associate for help.



All of these are good starting places, but they also all have some pitfalls that you need to be aware of so that you can make the best decision for your specific needs.



Narrowing the choices

Given so many choices in TVs these days, you really need to weed out the obvious non-starters. The first thing most people do is to settle on the size. I talked about screen size in my last blog entry. Once you've done that, you still have a formidable array of choices. So the next logical step is to decide on your budget. Now you probably have a dozen or two screens to choose from.

The next step most people want to take is to decide between plasma and LCD. That's a pretty good decision point, provided you choose for the right reasons. Look back at my blog on Plasma vs. LCD to get some tips on that.

So now you've cut out about half of the remaining choices, and you're ready to get down to business.



Big Box Stores - the Wall of TVs

First, let's talk about the "Wall of TVs". Every big-box store that sells TVs has one of these. Acres of video displays all trying to catch your eye and get you to take them home. But how do you decide which one is right for you?



At this point, most people compare the screens side by side (or as close as they can, given the layout of the store). They look for brightness, color saturation, black levels, and motion blur effects. Sometimes they'll consider how the TV sounds, if they're not going to hook it up to a sound system.



But remember, this is a big-box retailer we're talking about. These guys are masters at showing off the most profitable TVs, while leaving the less profitable ones hanging in the wings.



So the first thing you need to know is that these TVs all have the brightness and color saturation cranked up to the maximum. Just like a shiny car or piece of candy, the brighter and more colorful an object, the more it will catch your eye. (Some manufacturers even go so far as to engineer the TVs for maximum brightness and color saturation, just for this reason.) Also, remember that you're viewing these TVs under the store lights. Generally, they're metal halide lights, which are very different than your lights at home, causing the picture to look different.



Black levels are harder to disguise, but remember that when the brightness is cranked up, the blacks will naturally wash out a little bit.



And then there's motion blur and smoothness of the picture. Remember that these stores connect all of the TVs to a single source device. This means the signal is split and split again many times, and that process can degrade the picture quality. So the TVs that look better may very well have fewer splits, resulting in a better picture through no fault of the TV. Of course, some stores will go so far as to have completely different source material designed to make a TV look its best for the TVs they want to push.



Online comparisons - overwhelmed by numbers

If you're shopping or comparing on the Internet, you obviously can't look at the choices directly. So you compare based on specs, right? Of course, whenever I look at specs for TVs, I see as many as 50-75 different specs listed. And not every TV lists the same specs. And many of the specs mean something different between different TVs. Other specs make you think that more (or less) is better, but that's not necessarily true.



For example, you may look at the refresh rate for an LCD TV, listed at 60 Hz, 120 Hz, or 240 Hz, or even 480 Hz. I was comparing specs for a client the other day, and had to really dig to find the refresh rate for one of the TVs she was interested in. But is the higher number really better? There's too much information on this topic to go over in detail here, so I'll do a blog in the future about this whole refresh rate subject. So let me just say that once you get to 120 Hz, there's really no need to go any higher, because the TV can accurately display all source material correctly.



Oh, and Plasma manufacturers don't want to be left out of the Hz game, so they have their own spec for that, called "subfield drive" usually quoted as 600 Hz. but this has nothing to do with refresh rate, and really isn't useful in comparisons.



Contrast ratio is another comparison factor that has very little basis in reality. Every manufacturer measures it differently, and there's no way to compare them.



There are literally dozens of specs that can really overwhelm you when comparing TVs online.



Sales Associates - how do they know?

So let's say you've decided to ask the nearest sales associate for some help in comparing. One of the things I've noticed in a big-box store is that most of the time when I ask for help, they simply go to the display and look up the specs, which you probably did already.



Another thing I've noticed is that sometimes the associate is knowledgable, but sometimes they come from the household appliance department. Or they're really new.



Most big-box stores have programs to train the associates in the products they're selling. Usually, it's manufacturer-driven training. Some brands are more agressive than others, and will fill the trainees' heads with lots of (dubiously useful) information - I know, I've sat through a lot of these classes.



Finally, remember that the sales associate may be on a "spif" program. This means if he/she can get credit for selling a certain brand or model, they get a cash bonus, often from the manufacturer. So they're incentivized to recommend the models that give them the best spifs.



Is there any good news?

Wow, that's a lot of doom and gloom! I'm not usually a negative kind of person, but I see so many friends and clients getting bad advice on what to buy that I really want to make sure they understand how the information they're getting can be tainted.



So how do you cut through this morass? I won't pretend there's a perfect alternative.



I will say, though, that when I do find a truly knowledgable person in any field, I tend to hit them up again and again for advice on what to do.



Like most custom installers, we spend a lot of time not just comparing specs, but looking at different TVs in real-life situations. We also spend a lot of time in training such as ISF (Imaging Science Foundation) classes to understand exactly how video and film pictures are created and distributed, and how that impacts picture quality. And of course, we try to understand what things most people will actually notice on their TVs. After all, a spec is completely irrelevant if you can't see a difference on the screen!



So my advice is to find a custom installer that you can trust, and work with him or her to figure out what's best for you. Of course, we'd love to be that advisor, so call us at 847.471.4420 or visit our web page. But even if we're not, we know that most of the people in this industry are very knowledgable.



Thanks -

Rob

The $25K Home Theater

Over the last few posts, I've talked about what you can get in a home theater for $2,500, $5,000, and $10,000. This week, I'm going to step up a bit and talk about what you can get with a larger budget, in this case, $25,000. I realize that's a pretty big step, and there's a lot of room between $10,000 and $25,000. Just remember, we can tailor any package to your specific budget, so call us to design your perfect home theater on your perfect budget!

Think of this more as a home cinema than a home theater. Everything is upgraded. You get better video, better audio, and better control. Quality installation remains the same, but since you'll have a somewhat more complex system, installation time may rise a bit. We also assume this system is going into a dedicated cinema room or a media room where the light levels and outside sound infiltration can be controlled.

Video

The most visible part of a home cinema is, of course, the video. In this package, we use JVC’s Reference Series 3-chip projector. This option eliminates color separation and “rainbow” effects, and provides one of the best 1080p pictures available at this price point. We couple that with a Draper 106” fixed-mount screen that has a “hi-def grey” finish. The grey finish actually helps a projector deliver more accurate pictures in both lighter and darker areas of the picture. And in a room where light levels are controlled, you don’t need the higher reflectivity (or gain) of a bright white screen like you would in a room with lots of light. Just like a movie theater, the room will be dark when you’re watching a movie, both to reduce distractions and to provide better contrast in the projected picture.

And of course we included a Blu-Ray player that has interactive capabilities, Netflix streaming, and a few other bells and whistles.

Audio

In the $10,000 system we had stepped up to a more powerful receiver that could handle multi-zone and a few other things. Here, we step it up again to get even more power, and more importantly, to handle the 7.2 speaker system.

We’ve coupled that receiver with 7 satellite speakers and two subwoofers. The 7 satellites provide a more even sound field at all seating locations, and help with locating sounds that are coming from the sides and behind. The multiple subwoofers even out the bass frequencies and can help compensate for room modes (peaks and valleys in the bass range due to the way those sounds are reflected around the room).

And furthermore, we’ve chosen speakers that are THX Select certified. So you know that when the system is calibrated for your room, you will be getting the sounds that the director intended. After all, sound is at least 50% of a movie!

Control

Controlling all of this equipment is one of the most interesting parts of putting together a home cinema system. You want a single control device that anyone can pick up and use, and that provides a level of “wow factor” that will have your guests talking about your system. We chose a Universal Remote Control MX6000 touchscreen tablet for this level. This remote is a tablet-style remote with a color touchscreen interface that we can tailor just for you. We can even put on a sports theme or movie theme for you!

And the remote has 2-way capability with Internet connectivity, so you can get real-time sports scores, news, weather, and stocks, and you can see album cover art, artist lists, or song lists right on the remote.

Of course, we’ll program it to turn your system on with a single button that’s labeled according to what you want to do. For example, the buttons might be, “Watch Blu-Ray”, “Watch TV”, “Play Video Game”, “Listen to CD”, etc. And we’ll even program the remote to turn the lights up or down according to what you’re doing. Just imagine pressing “Play” and having the lights slowly dim to off or almost off. Then pressing “Pause” and having the lights come up part way so you can find your way to the fridge or bathroom!

Accessories

Naturally, there are a lot of other things you need to make your home cinema system work – cables, mounting brackets, a rack to hold the equipment, wall plates to connect the speakers to, equipment to provide clean power, and much more. All of this is included at the $25K price point.

Labor

Since we offer both equipment sales and installation services, you know that you not only get the best equipment for your budget, but that it’s also properly installed, configured, and calibrated for your room so you get the most out of your investment. After all, why spend $25,000 on anything, just to get only some of the performance that it’s capable of? Our professional installation services are included in this and every package. We will install the system quickly and cleanly, and will make sure everything is working for you. And with our 90-day labor warranty, you can be confident the system will work perfectly for you!

Above $25K

For someone with a larger budget, the equipment listed here could easily be considered “mid-range”. Of course, if your budget is well below $25,000, this is considered “high-end”. We cater to all ends of the market, so we have plenty of options at all price points.
For example, we could step up to better speakers. The THX Select Certified speakers listed here aren’t THX Ultra certified. And while they’re from an excellent brand (Atlantic Technologies), they’re not Martin Logan’s or another very high-end brand.

And the projector is still “only” 1080p – we could step up to a 4K projector, go to a brighter projector, at a motorized drop-down screen, incorporate a better Blu-Ray player, add an anamorphic lens, and make many other changes to fit your lifestyle and desires in your perfect home cinema.

Another item to consider is that this doesn’t include any construction costs, seating, sound isolation, decorative items, etc.

Remember, there are more choices in electronics than you can imagine. Each choice opens up a range of options in other areas - if you spend more on the projector, you may be more limited in your seating choices. Your budget and what's most important to you are the main determining factors of what makes your perfect home cinema!

At Inspired Electronics, Inc., we can help you cut through all of the options to figure out how to maximize your home theater experience within your budget and constraints. Call us today to get started on your project!

For more information on how Inspired Electronics, Inc. can put in your dream home theater, visit our web site at http://www.inspired-electronics.com/ or call us at 847.471.4420 for a consultation or an appointment to meet us at our showroom!

Thanks -
Rob