Electronics-Expo.com Experience

[jamison162]

Electronics-Expo.com, an authorized Sony Dealer, has awesome prices on the new 42, 50, 55, and 60" WF655 LCD Televisions. When they are not in stock, they list the retail price for those who want to pre-order. When they are in, they get rid of them fast. Check back often. I got my KDF-60WF655 for $2,532 + $200 shipping to FL ($2,732 total). Got it in a week and was in perfect condition, the box was just dirty. They ship via Seko Worldwide and included a tracking number. Very Satisfied!!!

[Breezer88888]

Hi Jamison,

I was trying to use the Electronics Expo.com internet ad to have 6th Ave Electronics (an authorized Sony dealer as well) beat or match the price on the KDF-60WF655. I did it out of loyalty to my longtime sales rep. He could only go as low as $2,767 with $0.06 shipping. Pretty close to your rock bottom price from an authorized dealer. I'm curious what, or if, you paid for an extended warranty. I paid $400 for another 4 years, totalling 5 years coverage. But that's without the bulb.

I saw your other post about the "video 1" display problem. Have you toggled thru the tv/video choices back to #5? And then hit the display button one more time to remove the "video #" from the screen? Hopefully that's not a stupid suggestion. But good luck.

I've had my set for a few weeks now and I'm still working things out. I haven't used a calibration dvd yet, but I'm very happy with the PQ. I've been thinking of having a roof antenna installed to pick up HDTV channels (I'm over 30 miles from the nearest broadcast). I have Dish Network who only has CBS as its only HD local channel. Do you have any good OTA suggestions?

[jamison162]

I have comcast cable with the Motorola box (already had it). I'm wanting to ditch the box and fees and go with the cable card ($30 install fee). I hear the PQ, etc. will be superior as the signal goes right into the television's tuner.

I just purchased a $50 Terk TV5 indoor antenna from CC for experimentation. I can only get 1 HD channel, CBS and another digital (480i) station. I don't pick up any other analogs well at all. The digital even at 480i is great, and the 1080i CBS HD channel, by first impression is superior to the same coming from comcast. Comcast only carries the following HD channels: Discovery HD, ESPN HD, INHD1, INHD2, HBO and other premium channels, CBS, PBS. I thought NBC, FOX and ABC may be in HD locally but haven't picked them up. Comcast is supposedly working things out to carry them.

I did not buy an extended warranty yet but you can purchase direct from Sony at SonyStyle.com. The 5 year Service Plan is $289.99.

I did get the video problem fixed, it was obvious but I was being stupid and thought she was in some funky mode or service menu. I don't know how she done it but she switched to tv setup. I had "Cable Box" on Video 5 and the other skipped, she hit a button or two and it immediatley jumped "Cable Box" to Video 1 and skiped the others. I was glad that it was so simple.

I haven't tweaked too much yet, I have the DVE disc but I'm still getting cables, etc. and doing a custom install. Building a stand myslef with MDF and making a front panel out of MDF covered in black speaker grill cloth so you don't see the stand or bottom of the TV. You will just see the front panel and the actual black screen of the Sony which is between two audio towers of the entertainment center. I'll post some pics when I complete the project. This TV is awesome though, I wouldn't have chosen anything else. If you search the web you can find some tweaks within the Service Menu if you have the balls.
I hear this TV can go way beyond the factory setup.

Enjoy!

[Breezer88888]

Hey Jamison,

I'm getting someone to give me a quote on installing a roof antenna. Dish Network only gives CBS in HD. CBS seems to be the easiest signal to reach in my neck of New Jersey. As for other HD channels, Dish is comparable to Comcast (HBO, Discovery, etc.). I was considering the Terk TV55 (long whitish bar) and mounting it above my drop ceiling in the basement, where I have my HT. But I'd rather do this right, and the Terk Antenna Locator (neat feature on their website) indicates that I still won't pick up ABC in HD.

As for calibration - I'm looking forward to it. But I'm stuck at work on Saturdays, so it'll be a while.
Btw, I'm sitting at 14 feet from the TV. All standard def looks blah. Progressive Scan DVD is okay, not spectacular. I'm considering an upconverting DVD when Sony puts out their next model (current #975 has some bad reviews). Any thoughts on your end for an upconverting DVD player?
In the meantime, enjoy!!
Breezer

[edtyct]

Guys, your DVDs should look really good on that TV, provided that you set it up correctly, seat far enough away to let the display breathe (3 screen heights or so), and set the parameters appropriately, preferably using a test disk. You don't need an upconverting player to get a great picture, by any means. But a good digital connection (HDMI/DVI) from the player to the TV should be able to squeeze the last bit of sharpness and color fidelity out of the DVD by avoiding D/A conversion. Upconverting can be the icing on the cake, if the player handles it better than the display itself, which is often the case, but the difference isn't staggering from 480p. In my case, upconversion to 720p, which you should use as well, manages to bring the bandwidth up a notch, about ten more lines of vertical resolution than a straight 480p feed. To be clear, I have the Sony DVP-NS975V. Its initial run had lock-up problems and the rare HDMI failure, but the later ones (firmware 1.8 or 1.9) seem fairly secure. Its PQ, however, is stellar, better than you would ever imagine on a $250 player. Plus, it doesn't suffer from the macroblocking of the Denons and Panasonics. I recommend it wholeheartedly in that regard, as do many others (pro and amateur), though I don't think that it's a bad idea to wait for the new Sonys to hit the shelves. In the meantime, your current DVD player, if reasonably good (and how many aren't these days?) should suffice. When you get a new player, however, you'll have to recalibrate the TV for it.

Ed

[jamison162]

I've been thinking about the Denon 1910 or 2910, I have the 2200 and it's great. With all the mixed reviews though, I'm not sure. Sounds like trial and error. I would definitely purchase locally just to try it out. Depending on the brand and specs, it may or may not have a drastic improvement with the 60WF655.

[edtyct]

If you can swing it, the 2910 is a major step up from the 1910, closer to the 3910. Some people are really bothered by the macroblocking on the Denons, especially on a large screen. You would do well to test it out before committing. Just in case you haven't seen it, macroblocking consists of discolored patches, or blotches, on broad backgrounds, like floors, walls, skies, etc. caused by compression error. Personally, I think "drastic improvement" would be too much to expect, and usually unnecessary.

Ed

[Breezer88888]

Hi Ed,

Thanks for helping us out here. By the way, I didn't mean to sound in anyway disappointed with my 60WF655, its just that I know it can be better, and of course that takes a bit of tweaking. My choices were either the next edition Sony, or Denon 1910 (unless I can find the 2910 at a really really really good price). Question on the macroblocking problem. Do you think it depends on the individual unit (hit or miss), or that it depends on the display device? Basically, is there any way to forecast or avoid this problem without trial and error?

Breezer