Plasma help

dietrich

Hello all , have been looking to buy a 42" plasma 4 a while now and have my heart set on the Pioneer 428xd ! In my research i found dixons in belfast 2 be the cheapest even with the exchange rate factored in . But alas talking to someone yesterday they said there might be a uk tuner issue not being compatable down south ! And now i hear Pioneer are stopping production of their plasmas! Oh what to do?

big_moe

if you buy in the uk/northern ireland it wont have an irish tuner (for ntl/chorus) but will be ok if you use digital tv.

they are stopping making their plasma panels, instead panasonic will make the panels and pioneer will sort out all the processing & electronics.

the PDP-428XDs will be around until november (ish) of this year.

dietrich

Cheers 4 that, could have been a costly mistake ! Do u know of a panisonic equivalent and price region?

big_moe

panasonic have 2 42" models for the irish market. PV70 & PY70. priced at €1249 & €1599 respectively.

http://www.allianceelectric.ie/products/tv/plasmalcd/th42pv70.htm

http://www.allianceelectric.ie/products/tv/plasmalcd/th42py70.htm

there are new models coming for panasonic PV80 & PY80. the pv will be here fairly soon but the PY80 wont be around until late may. prices will be similar.

the pioneer is still an excellent set, and it has come down substantially in price last week.

http://www.allianceelectric.ie/products/tv/plasmalcd/pdp428xd.htm

ceejay

I bought the PY70 from Alliance Electric just before Christmas and it really was a toss-up between that and the Pioneer. I went for the Panasonic because it's a 1080p panel, while the Pioneer is a 720p panel - and in fact it's a 1024 x 768 panel, so the pixels are rectangular. That said, they both are excellent, and the difference is only really noticeable when looking at HD content, so if you're mostly watching SD content then you probably won't see it. Black levels on the Kuro are amazing, but the Panasonic is pretty close. In the end I felt the Panasonic was better value for money.

Ciarán.

dietrich

Cheers for replies, i asked earlier about buying a set up north and was told there may be tuner compatability issues....Theres another section where people rate their sets and purchaces etc. some have bought up north and some online from a german site and nobody has mentioned having problems tuning their sets! ???????? Help

big_moe

what tv signal do you have?

they dont have tuners for ntl/chorus analogue service

dietrich

Cheers, its just plain ole analogue ntl

big_moe

well then you'll need to buy one either in store in ireland or check with the site you buy from if it'll work on ntl analogue.

tbh, unless you have a very strong analogue signal (or you dont watch much tv) you'd be mad not to get digital of some sort for any flat screen tv.

ceejay

Note that if you currently have a VCR, then you could use the tuner in that and connect via SCART to the new TV. Or upgrade to digital so you get a set-top box with the tuner in that.

The UK doesn't use the full set of frequencies for analogue transmission that we do - I think it's the UHF band they don't use, just VHF, or maybe it's the other way round . While you should be able to pick up the usual 4 channels (RTE1 & 2, TV3, TG4) from an aerial, I don't think the UK tuners can pick up the frequencies used by NTL etc. for cable TV.

Ciarán.

dietrich

Thanks all, bit the bullet and put a deposit on a pioneer 42" 428xd from alliance electrical. Cost 1950e and got a pioneer surround sound system thrown in for good measure! I couldnt resist. Its the entry level 428, but i think you will agree still the business. The next version up is 200 snots more, picture quality the same and just 2 or 3 slight differences as in pic in pic facility and a sub woofer connection! Lookin forward to getting it ! 2 say the least. Once again cheers for the help to all...

trabpc

Well done on the Buy. I bought the same 4280xd 2 weeks ago from Alliance.

Mind you I have still to set it up.

anyway it looks Fab not plugged in!!

dietrich

Jezus man whats the hold up on hookin it up???????? I'll be like a kid in a sweet shop come sat! Hope it does exactly what it says on da tin! Have a denon amp and dvd player and B&W speakers to hook up with it! Just wonder what dvd to christen it with??????

stevenmu

Congrats on the new TV. Just to point out if others are looking at this thread in future, Dixons no longer have stores in the north, they are now an online store only in the UK. Which is a pity because they have some excellent prices.

trabpc

Its in New house im building and I have not moved in yet. I dont fancy Placing it on the wall with no one in the house in case some one takes a fancy to It!!

Bane

Trabpc and dietrich let me know what ur impressions of the pio when u have it hooked up. Been thinking of getting one myself but holding up for the release of the panny pz80 just in case. Should be one or the other. Cheers!

trabpc

http://www.hdtvtest.co.uk/news/category/reviews/

Here is the first proper review of of its lesser brother the the 80PX(pv)

dietrich

Picked up the pioneer yesterday from alliance elec. It is just an amazing set. Pic quality to die for and its ease of use, even beautiful to look at when its off! Well worth waiting for! Alliance doin a cracking deal on them at the moment. The pioneer and panny side by side in the shop so you can see for yourself.... Just to note you do need to be at least 10 feet from the set to appreciate it.