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Advice on "breaking in" a new Panasonic plasma TV

After 20+ years with the same sorry 27" Sharp CRT television, my wife & I bought a Panasonic TH-58PX600OU 58" plasma HDTV. I have read here and there about the desirability of "breaking in" the screen, using lower than default brightness settings, etc. Is this really required? It's not mentioned in the manual. Also, there is much mention (including in the manual) about not displaying 4:3 images for "prolonged periods" (whatever that would be) due to the bars on the sides burning into the screen. Is this much of an issue with a modern plasma? Black bars also appear at top & bottom with other aspect ratios, are these also potentially damaging in "real world" terms? This set is terrific, we had bought a 46" Samsung 1080P LCD & returned it, because the shadow detail, black levels, uneven blacks across the screen, etc., and this one is MUCH more impressive, even though it is "only" 720P. Any observations from the experts here about living with this set in general would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Dan

Reply to
Dan
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The panasonic glass is pretty bomb proof.

There are a couple of precautions to take but that's about it

1 - Take the display out of 'Dynamic' mode. This is often the default setting and has the brightness and contrast way to high. Some say this is a deliberate effort by the manufacturers to make their panel stand out in the showroom

2 - Drop the brightness and contrast down for the first 100-200 hours. Don't go mad, just so that you can view it comfortably but it isn't lighting up the room.

Also check that you have done this for each of the inputs you use. It's pretty common for TVs to have sepearte display settings for each input.

I run the satellite (loads of logos) and XBox on my Panny without a hint of screen burn.

Cheers,

Nigel

Reply to
Nigel Heather

"Nigel Heather the-heathers.co.uk>" The panasonic glass is pretty bomb proof.

Thanks, Nigel, that's good to hear & I appreciate the tips. The set did default to "Vivid", which I've back off to "normal". I'll back the brightness off a tad as well. When you go into service mode, the set actually tracks hours of use, so it's easy to tell when the 100-200 hours have elapsed.

Dan

Reply to
Dan

Once you get used to this set, I'd wager you'll NEVER use "Vivid" - it's just awful. Drives the circuitry into saturation on my Panny, gives a solarization effect - picture starts to look like a moving color-by-numbers painting - just terrible!

If you want top picture quality from this set, I strongly suggest you get one of the video setup DVD's (e.g. Avia or Joe Kane Productions DVDs) and use it to completely align your set.

I fiddled with all my settings for hours before I decided I had adjusted it to its optimal picture - but then I got one of these alignment DVDs, ran through its suggested settings and WHAT A DIFFERENCE. I wasn't even close. And I learned a bit, too. For instance, I was surprised to learn that on these sets, a "Sharpness" setting of anything greater than 0 actually degrades the picture (you get overshoot on dark/light transitions.)

Enjoy this set, it's great.

Reply to
Mr. Land

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