Ask S&V

I am finally finishing the renovation on my home, but I have "missed the boat" on installing a Pioneer plasma. Do you have a recommendation on a possible equal to Pioneer Elite Plasma?

Sadly, I know of no equal to the Pioneer Elite plasma. I used to say that the next best thing is a Panasonic plasma, but with its black-level problem, I can no longer say that. The last Samsung plasma reviewed by HT had fairly high black levels, and I've never been impressed with LG plasmas, so I honestly don't know where to turn for a good plasma. We'll keep looking...

^ Sadly, I'd have to concur with Scott. Panasonic may have executed the most memorable "trippin on our own feet" incident the industry has seen in years with this dreadful move.Just when PDP could use a boost in the arm, it gets a shot in the foot.At least you could still enjoy the superior motion handling and off-axis viewing offered by a decent plasma. Whether the rising black levels are still nearly on par with COMPARABLY priced LCDs would be an interesting bit of info to know.My guess is that they'd be fairly close with all but the highest-end local-dimming LED models, but I could be in error with that assumption.Just noting there IS more to a display's performance than black level- although it is quite important to the critical viewer.what a dilemma!

One thing to consider if shopping for a plasma is what you're upgrading from. I recently upgraded from an old "flat screen" 180 Lb monster CRT that was only 30" in. to a Panasonic 46" in. G10 series plasma.I debated for a long time whether to go with Panasonic or not after reading about all the black level problems. Kuros are hard to find, and there aren't a lot of other options. In the end, I decided to go with the G10, rising black levels be damned, because I knew it would be such a vast improvement on my old TV. I got a great price and I'm thrilled with the result. For well under $1000, if I move this TV to a secondary system in a few years when there are some better Kuro-like options, I'm OK with that.Then again, I purposefully devoted the bulk of my budget to the audio side, so perhaps I'm just not a videophile...

We have, in the past, used a Gefen 4x4 HDMI switcher or Key Digital component video switcher combined with an RTI or URC control system to achieve great success with "man cave" video walls. Strong recommendations for these manufacturers!

Panasonic black level issues? All the latest models I've seen (G20/25, VT20) have superb black levels; all way better than anything Samsung can offer. Also, the Sony 55HX701 is a great LCD. Some of the deepest blacks I've ever seen out of the box.

Ricky, try googling "panasonic plasma black level problem" for starters. Out of the box, maybe, later, not so much??See also http://blog.ultimateavmag.com/scottwilkinson/calling_all_panny_owners/

I went from a Hitatchi 57" CRT to a 58" Panasonic Plasma and I am completely satisfied. The Pioneer would have cost me twice as much.LED/LCD might be better for a bright room, but plasma is more natural in a semi-dark room.

I recently purchased a samsung 58 inch 530 model. My main reason for doing so over panasonic was because of the black level problem with panasonic. If I am understanding the problem correctly ,it was the black levels readjust brighter after so many hours.I have been nothing but impressed with the picture quality of this tv. Black levels are superb. And there is not that annoying buzzing sound that alot of people have complained about the samsungs. I would definately recommend a samsung to anyone looking for a good plasma.

It's sad when people buy into the hype about panasonic and it's "rising" black levels. I recently purchased an 54s10 and have run it for over 150 hours and noticed nothing. Still looks fantastic with the exception of the color inaccuracies which should soon be fixed with a calibration. I wonder how many people have actually seen these changes in the tv's and have made their decision on that. I looked at Samsung and LG and can honestly say my TV would have to rise an aweful lot to be worse then these brands plasmas. I know it may happen but I'm sure i'll still be happy. Paid 1700CDN and worth every penny.

KURO AT BEST BUY!Hey all,Just thought i would like to let some people know that if you live anywhere near the Detroit area they have multiple Pioneer Elite KuroPRO-101FDs available. That's the monitor and not the TV but they do throw in the stand :) It's only $2999 and last time i checked 3 weeks ago they said their distribution center had 54 of them! so if you can manage to do it or call them up the shipping might be worth it. I specifically talked to the Magnolia Southfield store.Good news, no? :)

Great news, Andrew! The 101 is the 50-inch monitor, which is exactly the model I have in my home theater. (Sadly, I don't have enough room for the 60-incher.) Anyone contemplating a plasma purchase should definitely look into this!

Ricky and JJ, welcome to the internet. Perhaps both of you should spend a little more time before voicing your opinions. The black level issue is there, and it may not show up right away when Scott and other reviewers are doing their reviews, but it can happen over time.and over 150 hours of viewing is not enough for your data to be calculated. people who have reported the increased black levels, are the ones usually north of maybe 600-700 hrs, from what I've seen. the problems are there, and even Panasonic came out and released a statement. perhaps you two gentlemen have the magic panasonic plasmas that were made by underground Pioneer 11G Kuro factory!

In regard to the noise issue: I recently installed the Mitsubishi HC3800 in my home theater (first time PJer). I have a noise problem as well in the same dark, solid areas of the picture. This occurs even when the BD is paused, eleminating the conclusion that it could be film grain (there's a 'shimmy' as opposed to still distortion). My signal comes through a 25 foot, 22 AWG HDMI cable rated CL2 for in wall use. Unfortunately the most convienient installation involved my running the cable in conjunction with the 120V power cable through the same conduit (in addition to 5 channels of speaker wire). I believe this is the cause of my issue. Any ideas on how I can reduce the noise without significant cable seperation?

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