I've also seen some of the 16:9 tubes (including the 38" RCA you saw, Lena) and been enthralled. The reasons I don't have one currently? Money (trying to minimize home theater investments in order to afford a bigger house), long-term HD compatibility and features (every time I start reading up on direct-view and rear-projection HD, I get wary of the current options), and aspect ratio (I'd love to go 16:9, but my wife watches a lot of TV and so 4:3 is a more useful aspect ratio for the time being). A lot of people feel differently than I do about rear-projection, but I have always preferred direct view; the screen will be smaller, but a really good tube can look wonderful. Rear projection is also larger than Mrs. Gonk wants in her living room, so that's one more reason to stay with direct view. Interesting point I heard recently -- a 40" 4:3 tube that is HD capable (Sony makes some, and I think there are others) has the same 16:9 viewing area as a 34" 16:9 display, give or take an inch, but offers a lot more for 4:3 TV watching. I will probably get an HD-compatible set after we move (next year, if all goes well), dont know if it will be 4:3 or 16:9 but it will most likely be direct view.

If you are thinking of going with a direct-view set in the future, you might look at the cabinet dimensions for a 40" 4:3 TV and a 34" or 36" 16:9 set (they should be similar width) as well as the RCA 38" (although I've read some less complementary reviews of the RCA). If I get a new entertainment center before a new TV, that will be my approach (space for 40" 4:3 or a 34" 16:9).

Having made my pro-direct view comments, I will say that rear projection has come a long way in recent years, and 16:9 HD RPTV's have become pretty reasonably priced as well as offering very good pictures (especially if you watch a lot of DVD's). Benjamin's got a very nice one with his Mitsu (my little 27" TV is one of the last direct-view sets that Mitsu made, and I love it -- just wish it had component video inputs).

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Gonk

Gonk, I feel your pain, from the ‘other’ side of the coin. We live in the ‘cottage’ big lot, 60-yr. neighborhood, were values have soared. My guy resists any and all major upheavals in his life, and is sentimentally attached to a megalith 2-story garage, he and his father built. (I’d have to burn it down, or pop it on a truck!)
And yes we’ve discussed razing it and building bigger but even I shudder at living thru that mess. SO… I have more income to pick up occasional ‘big’ toys for the dollhouse.

I take the ‘direct’ approach; for some reason projection has just never wowed me (but the new 16:9 does).
That’s food for thought on the 40” Sony and aspect ratio, although I bet it’s more than the 2K RCA? (sill like to know how Hydro feels watching 4:3 on the RCA)
‘Wary’, - me too, - just trying to decide which side of the firewire issue to land on, was enough for me for now. I peaked into tech. on DTV issues and thought, …well .. What a bigger mess!
And low and behold even Congress cares about this one, (which by past experience will just aggravate the situation)

I should sit on my 32” inch JVC for a bit longer and see how it all plays out. Honestly, I have loved the pic. I get from the set, and never a prob. running constantly. If my memory serves me it had higher Horizontal Resolution than was the norm when purchased and it’s really a beautiful/gorgeous colored screen.
It’s nice to hear from Benjamin that some have gone forward and never regretted back!

Thanks so much Gonk for the Cabinet dimensions (extremely helpful advice!!!) I juggle so much in my “bear of very little brain” head, and trying to also factor “allowances” for the future can be mind bending, we know the set will at least be bigger!

(do I have a fever, am I catching audio lands upgradeitis)

Lena,

16:9 is the approved aspect ratio for all digital television programming in the "near future". There are reasons why a rear projection set (RPTV) can deliver higher resolutiions with HDTV sources versus a direct view tube set so you may not want to by-pass this option. Plasma, LCD and DLP are other options (expensive!) to look into and I feel will eventually replace existing tube technology because they operate only in the digital domain. You might want to go to www.hometheaterspot.com to learn everything you want to know on this subject- that is until the first Outlaw set becomes available. I hope this helps. .02 on this subject.

[This message has been edited by steves (edited February 15, 2002).]

Thanks to everyone!
You have confirmed what crossed my mind when studying "cabinet ratio", that it is important to factor for the wider-ratio sets. Unfortunately choices are scarce, out of 40 at the furniture store I like, they had only one fully enclosed cabinet set up that way. And it lacked one component shelf I needed, (leaving one item on top) which I'd rather not do. I’ll just have to keep looking.
And thanks Steve! I’ll try to spend some time soon on the site listed. Cause I have a feeling…. if I come home with the furniture for the 950/770 pretty soon, I’ll be saying, “Well that old JVC just doesn’t fill that big old hole right!”

Be careful if you take the plunge into the larger RPTV realm. I currently own a WS55807 mitsu that has been ISF/I2C'd by Chuck W. I love the extra screen size so much that I'm considering the move to a front projection system.

Watching 4:3 programming on this size and shape of a set does not bother me at all. You get very used to it after the first day or so. I actually dislike watching TV on my 32" bedroom set now, but sometimes I'm too lazy to get out of bed.

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Food for thought. An electron moves at the speed of about 8cm/hr in a typical light bulb.

Troop

Then, of course, there's the doubly-annoying situation that comes with the increasing number of TV shows that are now being broadcast in "letterboxed" format -- gray bars on the sides of your 16x9 screen, and black bars at the top and bottom! When, oh when, will DTV get here?

What TV shows are you watching Matt? I own a 16 X 9 set (Mitsubishi WT-45809) and the picture fills the whole screen on normal 4 X 3 viewing without "zooming in" or "stretching" the picture and I live in Alaska where the thought of "DTV/HDTV" is something we won't see for sometime.

I'm watching store displays as my home TV is 4x3. Anything that's anamorphic, like newer DVDs, comes through properly as long as the DVD player is set right: letterboxed on 4x3 TVs and full screen on 16x9 TVs. Anything which is in 4x3, such as most broadcast TV, comes through full screen on 4x3 TVs and with gray bars on the left and right on a 16x9 TV. Anything that's 16x9 but letterboxed into a 4x3 format, such as a letterboxed VHS tape, a letterboxed movie on TV, or some of the newer TV shows that are recorded in letterbox, will show up properly letterboxed on a 4x3 TV but with both gray bars and black lines on a 16x9 TV.

I've noticed at home that a lot of the TV shows I watch now are being broadcast in letterbox (such as _Angel_ on the WB, for example). I assume that if I had a 16x9 TV that it would put the gray bars on because it's a 4x3 signal, and then show the black lines top and bottom which are part of the signal.

Matthew Hill: I've noticed at home that a lot of the TV shows I watch now are being broadcast in letterbox (such as _Angel_ on the WB, for example). I assume that if I had a 16x9 TV that it would put the gray bars on because it's a 4x3 signal, and then show the black lines top and bottom which are part of the signal.


You are technically correct Matthew. If you watched regular 4:3 programming with no stretching/zooming involved you would end up with a picture with bars on all sides of the display. Most people that I know that have 16:9 sets alter their 4:3 images to fill the entire screen. I do this because I would hate to have burn in from the side bars.

The only time that I know of where you cannot adjust the set for the bars on all sides would be if: You were watching letterboxed 4:3 material on an HDTV station. (This does happen!!!) On my Mitsu TV I cannot adjust the format when in 1080i mode.

Common HDTV. Lets get going... hehe like that's going to happen.

Troop


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Food for thought. An electron moves at the speed of about 8cm/hr in a typical light bulb.

Troop