Pioneer PDP427XD 42" Plasma TV

PC

Hi everyone.

I'm considering purchasing the above TV from Richer Sounds in Belfast. Would anyone out there know will this tv work ok down south, being fed for the moment ntl cable, Sky HD possibly down the road. Will there be any problems receiving a signal. Did I read somewhere that they operate from a UHF frequency and we're VHF? Their prices for this tv are quite good and also they're offering a 'free' swivel stand. If anyone went through a similar experience I'd be grateful if you'd share it with me. Thanks a mil.......

Snake Plisken

Yeah I was considering buying one of these as well, if you read the mags its a great set, and gets great reviews, BUT if you read AVForums there are two major issues with this set
1) Loud Buzzing from back of set (shouldn't be a big issue if using for home cinema)
2) Dirty Screen, now this would be a major problem after a few hours use, and if you watch sport you can see what looks like dirty marks on the screen, it seems to be some sort of issue with the manufacturing process and a lot of set owners have issue with this and have sent the sets back.

Also Richer sounds charge about 125 Euros to deliver down south. Imagine getting the set and having an issue with it you'd have to get it up and down to Belfast.

Rgds

Snake

big_moe

yeah i've heard the buzzing but its nothing mad. if you stand about 2 feet from the set in dead silence you can hear the buzzing. if it bothers you, u got problems!! the minute you turn up the sound you cant hear it anymore.

havent heard that dirty screen one tho... like all plasmas they attract dust to the screen, but nothing different to the rest of the screens out there...

and if buying from the north, make sure the tuner is PAL-I compatable. thats what we need here to use ntl analogue.

great set by the way, and design wise its stunning. excellent picture quality, great connectivity as well.

moe

Snake Plisken

Hey Moe,

no its not dust, you need to read from about page 13 of the 427 thread ( http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=448020&page=13 ) in AV forums, also a poll was ran regarding the issues and over 40 percent of owners have this issue( http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=466376 ), it is NOT dust on the screen, its called dirty screen as that what it looks like but from reading the thread it seems to be a fault in the manufacturing of the panel.

As with the Panasonic you would think that these manufacturers would sort out these issues before asking the buying public to pay top dollar for their sets.

Snake

PC

Thanks Snake. I had read the AVForums re. the problems that some people are having with these sets and I suppose buying in the north or indeed on any online source, its ok if theres no problem but if there is, whatever you might have saved would certainly be spent, very quickly if you have to ship it back to the retailer for repair etc. Its something that I will have to give more thought to.

PC

Thanks big moe. I'm sure its pal-I compatible but its something i'll check again. It seems to be a fabulous set alright and i've seen its sister set, the 4270xd in Currys and its picture quality is excellent. I would buy that set only it has only one hdmi output. They dont stock the 427xd. Cheers

Snake plisken keep me informed on what you may decide on...ta

Benster

I'm getting one on Sunday, along with a new set of speakers etc, all from Richer Sounds. They have the best price I've seen with the stand included, they beat other online UK retailers.

I've heard about the buzzing problem but it hasn't put me off buying it. I saw one in Harvey Normans in Airside last week, looks the biz, but not at their price (€3100!)

I'm using it with Sky, so it doesn't matter to me what signal format it takes, I'll be using scart and probably attaching a PC to it soon as well

Will let you know how it goes when I get it set up.

B.

Snake Plisken

Hey Benster

How much to send it down from Belfast?? Also wouldn't be to worried about the buzzing would be more worried about the dirty screen issue

Snake

uzami

i bought one of these last month - absolutely delighted with it.

No dirty screen - buzzing not an issue once you change the power save mode (research avforums)

....just need to find a quality cabinet/stand - i don't like the glass stands that are all pervasive - looking for something in a high gloss black

Benster

Guys, got this set up on Sunday night after high-tailing to Belfast with a mate's van that morning. RS were quoting £150 to have it all delivered to Meath so collecting worked out better.

Set up on the black glass table and stand, it looks the biz, a very classy set IMO. No problems with the picture at all, DVDs are the best I've ever seen (in my limited 21" experience ). The buzzing is evident all right, so I'll be trying that power-saving tweak tonight.

There's even an s/pdif port for sound output and just as well too. On the old TV I had Sky and DVD scart output going into the amp so I could get (virtual) surround sound on ordinary Sky programs. But there's something different about the new telly and it doesn't like a single feed from the amp for all output, so Sky now goes direct to Scart1, DVD still into the amp then into Scart2. The s/pdif is then fed from the TV to the amp and crystal sound is back again :cool:

The new baby...

Snake Plisken

Hey Benster,

Nice setup it looks the biz!!!! Its a pity Richer don't have a better deal with couriers as 150 to get it down from belfast is a ripoff! So is the buzzing that noticeable? Also make sure to keep the settings low for the first couple of weeks to avoid screen burn and keep away from channels with solid logos on them. Keep us up to date on how your getting on with it in the coming weeks.

Snake

Benster

Talking to the guys in RS, they actually use their own van as they said they've had problems in the past with some couriers here not giving a toss about what they're actually carrying, horsing it over potholes and speedbumps, not positioning flat-screens correctly etc. So that's why they are pretty high, it's their own guy. Mind you, still pretty stiff at £150.

However, I can't reccommend them highly enough, they know their stuff and are a pleasure to deal with, even if it's just advice you're after.

Oh, I tried the power-save tweak and it lowered the buzz considerably. Mind out though as is does lower the brightness a bit, so for viewing in a bright room you might have to revert to full power for the best picture.

Also been checking out linking it to a normal roof aerial to see if the DTT trial being run at the moment is receivable where we are. Handy having a built-in digital tuner, eh? :-)

B.