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I've Joined Club Pio


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After much research, driving around and pestering of various retailers, I finally purchased my plasma! :P

It came down to two choices for me the panasonic TH-50PV500A or the pioneer PDP-506HD (don't talk about fujitsu please, they are like rocking horse poo up here).

To cut a long story short the WAF went to the pioneer, and I think the 5yr warranty helped a bit, but she said she preffered the look of the pio too.

Wound up getting it for $6,478.00 in Toowoomba.

It's getting delivered and installed tomorrow (dinna canardly wait! :P )

Edit oops fixed up the transposed digits in the price! (6.4k, not 4.6k) :blink:

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After much research, driving around and pestering of various retailers, I finally purchased my plasma!  :blink:

It came down to two choices for me the panasonic TH-50PV500A or the pioneer PDP-506HD (don't talk about fujitsu please, they are like rocking horse poo up here).

Wound up getting it for $4,678.00 in Toowoomba.

You got the new 50" Pio for under 5K????? How did you manage that? The new 42" hasn't been seen under 5K yet.

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Thanks for the clarification geoffman. I hadn't quite made it to the outskirts of Melbourne   :P . Still a good price though.

:blink: I am still going to come to toowoomba anyway, it's crap weather in Adelaide.

Hey Eric, by the time we get there it may be possible to get that deal if prices keep falling and if we keep on picking up others on the way... :P

On the way back we could collect bottles and cans and do a Kramer/Newman style run back to SA where we get 5c for them... Do you guys have this system yet?

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Hey there everyone - Ive joined the same club as Geoffman today - albeit in the 43" catagory. Couldnt be hapier so far - the service and instal by the pio guys was fantastic as is the new unit - wow it sure makes a diff from the NEC 68cm I had become used to over the last 11 years!

I do however have a few questions hat Im hoping someone can be bothered typing suggections too for me (my tech knowledge on the ins and outs of these units is exceedingly limited so I appologise if Im asking the obvious)

My set up includes the pdp436dhg - fox digital, dvd player (conected into fox box), and bose lifestyle for sound. I am still awaiting delivery of a new pio hd set top box - hopefully within 2 weeks. At present its just using scart from the fox box and rca everywhere else.

My questions - whats the best connections method to use (component/svideo?) and are there any particular brands of leads I should go for or avoid? where the best spot to buy these?

also I am finding that watching through Fox a lot of the channels are not displaying in widescreen (including 7, 10, TV1, arena,and the one thats really pissing me off ESPN) and ideas as to why this would be - its even stranger with 7 and 10 as they are in widescreen when not watching through Fox???? very confusing indeed

cheers

Statman

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congratulations in joining the pio club :blink:

I have a pio434 which cost $2k more then what you paid for a year ago!!!

but I have not regreted it one bit as I"ve enjoyed it for so long already :P

they're beautiful machines :P and absolutely the best looking plasma :P - non of that cheap painted silver finish.

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also I am finding that watching through Fox a lot of the channels are not displaying in widescreen (including 7, 10, TV1, arena,and the one thats really pissing me off ESPN) and ideas as to why this would be - its even stranger with 7 and 10 as they are in widescreen when not watching through Fox???? very confusing indeed

cheers

Statman

The channels you refer to are not transmitted in 16:9. They are 4:3 transmissions. 7 and 10 are 4:3 because they haven't reached agreement with Foxtel on the terms of digital retransmission. Many of the other channels are 4:3 because a 16:9 version would be useless for the vast majority of their programming (eg TV1 or FOX Classics). EPSN is sourced from the US. I don't think a 16:9 feed of this exists outside of the HD feeds available only in the US.

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Statman,

There are a few things out there now, I think it goes (please someone correct me if not right),

HDMI - picture and sound, newest format, digital

DVI - picture only, digital

RGBHV - reg/green/blue/horizontal/vertical, most common in PC world, high bandwidth, analogue

RGB - I think two different things here, one you can have a composite synch (4 cables) and the normal one you just have the rgb (3 cables), analogue

YUV - similar to RGB (maybe the same?) this is what fox outputs into a comonent connection, analogue

S-Video - older analogue connection, but better than composite

Composite - as a last resort!

From fox digital to panel, Scart to component. You will need change the setup of the fox box to output to YUV. As for actual make/model of cables, v. large can of worms there, personally just went with the Dick Smith Titanium range, not the cheapest, but far from the most expensive.

From fox to DVD player, component to component (unless your DVD has scart in which case it's the same as above) I have a DVD recorder so have another run from fox into DVDR, S-Video and using the Left and Right stereo channels for sound, that's as good as it gets with my setup.

If you have an amp which switches component (multiple component in/single out), then feed all your components into this and use this to switch rather than changing input on our panel all the time.

For sound if you have an amp, obviously use the digital feeds (optical, coax) first, then stereo (left and right) last.

Hope this helps.

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:blink: I am still going to come to toowoomba anyway, it's crap weather in Adelaide.

Hey Eric, by the time we get there it may be possible to get that deal if prices keep falling and if we keep on picking up others on the way... :P

On the way back we could collect bottles and cans and do a Kramer/Newman style run back to SA where we get 5c for them... Do you guys have this system yet?

Dan,

You're on! We don't have the 5c refund system yet, but if we 'borrow' a postal van (Kramer/Newman style) we can fill the leftover space with cans and bottles after the Plasmas have been put in. Should be a nice little earner. Not taking any golf clubs though! :P

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I procured a PD-435HD in June and absolutly love it :blink: . It is mounted on the wall and it looks nearly as good when it is off as when it is on.

It is getting HD from a Teac DVB800 Terrestrial STB via a DVI-D to HDMI (Input 3) cable from Dick Smith at about $60. I initially had component which was no problem, but the digital cable does a lot of automatic stuff to screen and resolution based on the transmission, which is very cool. Image is spectacular (considering the crap HD our broadcasters are pumping out)

Sound is being run though a soon to be upgraded Pioneer AVR VSXD-608. It does not convert analogue to digital hence the pending upgrade. But into it I am running S-Video from the DVD and Foxtel (IQ Pace box) It then runs S-Video to input 2 on the Pio. Audio from both via Optical is Digital and very good.

The old VHS (which is not used much these days now we have IQ) is running composit into the AVR and then composit out of the AVR to Pio input 1. The AVR won't switch composite even to S-Video.

All cables are the purple DSE ones at $24 -$60. On advice from the HT Guys it seems you don't need to spend a mint on digital cables. All working well. I recommend checking out their archive and Podcasts for a heap of good stuff.

Cable consolidation has been my goal and DSE is good value and the cables are very good.

The new Denon AVR 3806 due out in December has HDMI inputs and Outputs and switches internally. So saving the pennies... :P

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The new Denon AVR 3806 due out in December has HDMI inputs and Outputs and switches internally.  So saving the pennies...   :blink:

I've got my eye on the pending release of the 3806 too, (but pleeeease don't tell the wife! :P )

It's funny, I had a call from Pioneer this morning saying they didn't have any stocks of the 506, and so I wouldn't be getting my panel for two weeks. I told them that the shop I bought my panel from had stock and they had arranged delivery and installation.......

About 30 minutes until my panel is supposed to arrive, wheeeee.

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Thanks Statman. :blink:

EDIT Yay, it's arrived and been installed. Been playing with it for about 3hrs and am pretty happy so far.

Haven't made any adjustments as of yet, as I'm still learning to drive the beast!

P.S. Didn't tell the kids we were getting it. They got home this arvo and just went OMFG......

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Wow, must say I'm impressed so far, the PQ of this thing is great and the colours very natural, and I haven't seen any solarisation etc yet. Quite happy.

The only thing wrong is that I have found a pixel in which both the red and green subpixels are dead. :blink:

It's 38mm up from the bottom of the panel and 125mm in from the left hand edge, now that I know it's there my eyes keep drawing themselves to it, distracting from my pleasure of the panel.

Do you guys reckon I should contact Pioneer about it?

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Wow, must say I'm impressed so far, the PQ of this thing is great and the colours very natural, and I haven't seen any solarisation etc yet. Quite happy.

The only thing wrong is that I have found a pixel in which both the red and green subpixels are dead. :P

It's 38mm up from the bottom of the panel and 125mm in from the left hand edge, now that I know it's there my eyes keep drawing themselves to it, distracting from my pleasure of the panel.

Do you guys reckon I should contact Pioneer about it?

Hell yes. They should replace it straight away. For the coin the you are paying for this it should be perfect. Other people on the forum have had excellent results with Pio service, you shouldn't be any different. Make sure you let them know ASAP. You should not have to put up with any dead pixels in a brand new panel. :blink:

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Wow, must say I'm impressed so far, the PQ of this thing is great and the colours very natural, and I haven't seen any solarisation etc yet. Quite happy.

The only thing wrong is that I have found a pixel in which both the red and green subpixels are dead. :blink:

It's 38mm up from the bottom of the panel and 125mm in from the left hand edge, now that I know it's there my eyes keep drawing themselves to it, distracting from my pleasure of the panel.

Do you guys reckon I should contact Pioneer about it?

I got my for 3 weeks and there was a dead pixel already, an image retention of a logo from a DVD and a horizontal bar line across the screen from watching DVD.

So be careful with your PDP!!!

already disappointed

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I got my for 3 weeks and there was a dead pixel already, an image retention of a logo from a DVD and a horizontal bar line across the screen from watching DVD.

So be careful with your PDP!!!

already disappointed

Did you leave the unit on for 3 weeks with a static image? Its rare for the pioneers to easily get burn in/image retention.

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Did you leave the unit on for 3 weeks with a static image?  Its rare for the pioneers to easily get burn in/image retention.

Well I spoke to Pioneer and they have said that they won't look at replacing my panel as it is only one pixel that is defective, refering me to paragraph (d) of the warranty

" This warranty will not apply to: “pixel on/off” within normal commercial tolerance; "

which they then told me normal commercial tolerances is seven dead pixels, they did however say that if it had been a stuck (bright) pixel the situation might have been different.

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Sounds like you got a shop Demo.  Was it out of the box and therefore super cheap?

nah ......was a brand new one

Did you leave the unit on for 3 weeks with a static image?  Its rare for the pioneers to easily get burn in/image retention.

just watch TV & DVD and not that long hours. I dont believe Pio is that good as claimed by manufacturer.

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