Looking for Advice on a new TV with Tivo

[brooklynjoe]

I have a Series2 Tivo. Love it. I bought a Samsung LCD HD a few months ago and didn't realize that Tivo couldn't record HD (naturally) and also didn't realize that normal non-HD channels looked like **** on the LCD. So I returned it and have gone back to our Sony CRT that we've had forever.

We want a new TV. We live in New York City so we're looking at a 32" or 37". No bigger due to apartment size. I'd like a TV that will let me watch HD when I want to watch "live" but will also have a decent image when I watch in non-HD or record to Tivo.

Does this make sense? Am I asking for something that isn't possible? I'd rather not hack my Tivo or buy a new one or spend more money than necessary.

To be honest, HD isn't even that important to me. Screen size is more important but I don't want to buy a 200 pound TV. I prefer a lighter weight flat panel.

Thanks for the good advice.

Joe

[classicsat]

See if your provider has Cablecard and get aCC set, or plan on getting an HD cable box.

[brooklynjoe]

Certainly we can get HD; that's not the problem. My concern is that the HD LCD I bought previously had awful non-HD quality so anything I Tivoed didn't look too hot.

Will an HD plasma look better if I Tivo non-HD shows. Is that my only option since Tivo won't record HD?

Thank you.

[cmaasfamily]

If you go with a tube, its gonna be a big stinkin' box. I have a 37" Toshiba HD CRT and it weights close to 300 lbs. (I don't think they make one anymore - its five years old.)

There are many factors that go into whether SD via Tivo will look good on HD - perhaps the most critical is personal taste/sensitivity. I currently have (or have recently had) Tivo to the above Toshiba, to a 42" 1080P Toshiba LCD, a 42" Panasonic plasma, and a Sharp 26" LCD. Probably best on the CRT, but the Toshiba LCD is quite good. IMHO, Plasma was the weakest.

In order, I'd make sure you're getting a stong clear signal and that the cabling is decent, record at "best" quality, make sure you're following recommendations for viewing distance for your apartment size (big can be bad if you're too close), and, ahem, get used to it. Seriously, you will. It takes a little while - the shock of seeing Tivo SD on your new $$$ HDTV when you flip between a 1080i or 720p source is dramatic, but it's quite watchable.

[MickeS]

You aqbsolutely have to do a good and precise calibration on a hi-def display to get a good non-hd picture. Also, like the above poster said - get used to it. A correctly calibrated picture on a HD display will look decent in best quality, especially on a screen as small as 32".

[Stanley Rohner]

TiVo can record HDTV.
The DIRECTV/HDTV/TiVo has been out for a few years now.

[MickeS]

Did you miss the part where he writes "I have a Series 2". You know, the first sentence?

[danfi]

Try an EDTV that has a built in HD Tuner. It will receive the HD channels and down convert them to ED resolution, 856X480p, so it will look as good as a DVD. At the same time it will do a nice job of displaying the SD signal from the TiVo as the signal upconversion is not nearly as extreme as an HDTV's native resolution would be, usually 1280X720p or greater.

I've been doing this for over a year on a 42" Plasma EDTV and have been very happy with the picture quality from the TV, the HD channels & DVD's.

[Jazhuis]

Certainly we can get HD; that's not the problem. My concern is that the HD LCD I bought previously had awful non-HD quality so anything I Tivoed didn't look too hot.

Will an HD plasma look better if I Tivo non-HD shows. Is that my only option since Tivo won't record HD?

Thank you.

There may be a couple of things working against you. Some of the newer HDTV's do a decent job of displaying SD content, and some do a really poor job. That really comes down to having to research the unit you want to buy, to see what it looks like with SD content.

The *other* factor is the quality of analog cable, unless you're running A/V cables out of the back of a digital cable box.

For example, I recently got a new HDTV. Of course HD looks good on it. The SD cable channels through the TV's analog tuner look *terrible*. Noise, snow, you name it. The same channels through the digital tuner (built into the TV) look a LOT better.

Unfortunately, your S1/S2 Tivo only has an analog tuner; that's one reason it doesn't do HD, and also why you have to go through extra effort to even get digital SD into it (via A/V jacks; then you have to worry about the IR blaster or serial connection or whatever to get the cable box to change channels, etc...)

Your best bet, though, if you want your new TV to work with what you want, is to probably ask your cable company for a digital cable box and wire it to your Tivo.

(Note: one of the other advantages of the S3 Tivos will be the digital tuner built in, so that you won't have to futz with a digital cable box in order to get digital signals)

[brooklynjoe]

Thanks. I live in New York City and we use Time Warner and have cable. DirectTV or really any other option isn't possible in our neighborhood and building. I've been looking at the 37" Panasonic Plasma which has fantastic picture in the store. This has all been helpful.

[ScottUrman]

Thanks. I live in New York City and we use Time Warner and have cable. DirectTV or really any other option isn't possible in our neighborhood and building. I've been looking at the 37" Panasonic Plasma which has fantastic picture in the store. This has all been helpful.

When we bought our 42" Panasonic plasma, we brought the Tivo with us to the store to hook it up, that way we could see the quality ourselves.

[MickeS]

Thanks. I live in New York City and we use Time Warner and have cable. DirectTV or really any other option isn't possible in our neighborhood and building. I've been looking at the 37" Panasonic Plasma which has fantastic picture in the store. This has all been helpful.

Just be careful about deciding based on the picture in the store. It is not particularly indicative of how the picture will look when it's properly adjusted at home.

[rhanson]

I live in Brooklyn too and have TWC. When I bought my 37" Toshiba LCD HD tv I didn't really notice any degradation on the SD channels. In fact I thought they looked better then on my old 27" crt tv.

I am temporarily using the HD DVR from TWC. Its the SA 8300HD with the Passport software. Its certainly not Tivo but it does the basic job of recording HD shows. One problem is that the disk space on the 8300 is too small. Because of that I got two 8300s.

I am not really using my two S2 Tivo's very much because I would rather watch HD programs if I can.

I'm eagerly waiting the release of the S3 so I can get back to a real DVR.

Rich
Brooklyn

[Stanley Rohner]

Did you miss the part where he writes "I have a Series 2". You know, the first sentence?

Did you miss the part where he writes "... didn't realize TiVo couldn't record HD". You know, the third sentence?

I was clearing that up for him.

[brooklynjoe]

Thanks. All very helpful. I bought the Tivo Series2 5 years ago with the lifetime membership so I really don't want to buy another one and have to start paying a monthly fee. Not sure what to do. I was ready to buy a plasma but the dude at Best Buy told me it will die in 6 years. I don't want to spend 2 grand on something that is worthless in 6 years. Not sure if he was blowing smoke up my a** but that's not a great sales pitch.

[MickeS]

Maybe the early model plasmas only lasted for 6 years, but the ones they make today have a much longer lifespan than that - probably at least double. The advertised time on a lot (most?) of them is 60,000 hours or so, and even half that would be more than 10 years if you used it 8 hrs/day.

[Stu_Bee]

I was ready to buy a plasma but the dude at Best Buy told me it will die in 6 years. I don't want to spend 2 grand on something that is worthless in 6 years. Not sure if he was blowing smoke up my a** but that's not a great sales pitch.

http://www.crutchfieldadvisor.com/ISEO-rgbtcspd/reviews/20030930/plasma_myths.html