Spectacular DVD and HD performance

So so regular TV performance, Low quality fit & Finish, user's unfriendly remote, noriveable geometric distortion, picture is very soft at left and right side, less OK audio, unpleasant reps at the head quarter, charge more for parts if self employed techs

I had this set for some time, and the opportunity to work and review it. I thought I pass on the info. to those who are interested. First you should be able to buy this set well below $3000 today (mail outlets & local stores alike, Just haggle.) Second buy this set only if you are intending to use it as a second TV (assuming you have a 4:3 set) for DVD and HD stuffs. My first impression of the set was, how good the colors were, pure, clean, saturated color all over. I used the TV with various sources, and learned that this set is primarily is designed for 16x9 format only. So what is the catch? Target test fields from video essential revealed resolution around 350 line in 4:3 mode, however, much better around 450 in expanded mode. That is the resolution of this TV with DVD (Sony DVP-S7000.) Those gray bars.. Get to you badly, or see every thing in expanded mode see the world fatter.
Resolution is not all there is to a TV set. I played the Apocalypse Now and the images I saw was breathtaking. This set will produce the most vibrant colors you can get from any set available today. That includes Pioneer Elite sets. The red and green are so pure and saturated that make you forget the movie and enjoy the scene. Under certain circumstances, however, I felt the red was boosted, nevertheless, it looks the best I have seen (that is very cinematic). The color temperature, out of box, was on blue side in both low & high windows. I intended to perform gray scale Calib. , but due to high price for service manual, it was left as it was. One can live with way it comes if not to critical about it. It has to be left on 6500 K all the time.
I saw vertical lines have a wavy look (curl) to them and found it to a great degree annoying. About 4" top, bottom, left and right portion looked expanded and less contrasty. I saw the edge definition, while good, exhibited some degree of ghosting and uncleanness appearance. Perhaps I am too picky, and average eye may not even see what I saw.

I performed both optical and electronic focus on this set. And it improved things greatly. Inside the set, I realized Mitsu had used adhesive tapes to fasten the focusing rings of the lenses. A better practice is, of course, screws. The speakers were not partitioned in their own enclosures. Hence firing in the cabinet where chassis board is assembled.

The remote is rather small, and # botons are small. If you have large fingers like me, you are going to have hard time to input direct numbers for channels. I absolutely disliked the way the favorite channels are set up and operated. The largest bottoms on the remote are backlit. That is ironic, since you need the smallest one to be found in dark.

Overall, if you want to set up a dedicated home theater, for DVD and future HD programming, this is the set to buy for the dollar. It provides you ultra smooth, rich colors and good detail, and multiple connections. In all honesty, you will hardly see or do not see those flaws I mentioned before. This set make a strong presentation of you favorite movies. If I want to buy a wide screen set in this size category, this would be my choice. For those who really looking for the best, there is Pioneer Elite.

I rate the value 5 and performance 4.0 on overall basis.
For DVD and HD performance (excluding the TV) hey it gets 4.5. That is a good score for a TV under $3000 street price.

See my review of Sony 61HS10 as well.

Similar Products Used:

Sony HS10, Toshiba X80

Execelent on-screen menus, and controls. extensive convergence setup and av inputs. Wide viewing angle.

All expand modes introduce at least some distortion, but you get used to it.

Picked this unit up from a PC Richard, a chain store in NY and NJ. I'm using the set with Dish Network and a Sony DVD. The anamorphic DVD look the best of all sources so far. I'm using all S-Video inputs for now. I only used the remote shortly since I have a sony lcd, which I highly recommend, but I didn't have any problems with it. Since I have the dish network, I'll be hooking up to HDTV channels as soon as I can get a decoder. I'm using a Pioneer Elite HD ready set for comparison. The mitsubishi is superior in all ways except in the expanding modes. The pioneer has a "progressive" expanding mode that expands the outer edges of the picture more than the center protions. This effect minimizes the stretching effect.
In all I completely satisfied with this set and I can't wait to see some HD content on it.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer Elite 52" WS

Great picture (depending on source), price and color convergence support. You can save settings for each input. HDTV upgradeable.

Shows how bad some sources really look. Focus could be better. You lose all of your settings if the power goes out.

I recently needed to look into a new set because my Sony was giving up the ghost. It had worked hard and it was time to look at another set.

I stumbled accross the Mit on clearance at The Wiz (a Northeast electronics chain). Apparently, a store in the area had gone out of business so they had a ton of "out of the box" clearance items from various manufacturers. I was interested in the Sony XBR at first but when I compared the picture the Mit actually had a slightly better picture and it was 16:9 which I was interested in (although it wasn't a requirement). I wound up getting the Mit for $2380 which is an awesome price.

Anyway, I got it delivered and immediately started playing with the various settings on the set. I have DSS as my primary source and I had read reviews of the set saying it shows how bad DSS can be. I noticed right away that some channels are better than others but I haven't found a channel that's as good as using my DVD player (only using composite video not component). I noticed ESPN is especially bad (I had noticed this on my Sony before but it wasn't as noticeable). Also, I noticed the CBS channel (channel 2 from New York) is HORRIBLE. I haven't had it long enough to know what other channels are good/bad.

At first I thought it was my Tivo since Tivo can degrade the picture so I plugged the satellite decoder directly into the TV and got the same picture. So it's definately DSS. I never realized how bad DSS is! The good thing is my DVD output looks AWESOME! It's unbelievable how good it looks! The line doubler really helps get rid of any scan lines. If you look real close (from about 4 feet) you can see the scan lines but you almost have to know what you're looking for. At about 6 feet the scan lines all but dissappear.

I have been playing with the IRIS setting, Black Enhancement as well as the noise reduction (in addition to the basic color, tint, brightness/contrast, etc.) to try and get the best picture I can. I have not had a chance to use my friend's Video Essentials DVD (I'll be doing that any day now). No matter what I do I can't seem to get the picture as sharp as I'd like. I've played with the convergence which is a great feature. You have 64 points you can converge which really helps. I had wanted this on my older Sony but the only way I could do this is to actually pull out a board inside the set and do it using the pots on the board. Not a fun thing. I've come to the conclusion that the picture is slightly out of focus. I have not been able to find any way I can adjust the focus without going into the set (I'd rather not have to do this). Anyone know how do to do this?

Anyway, overall I think this is an awesome set. It gives you an awful lot of control over the picture (except for the focus thing). Also, the fact that it's HDTV upgradeable is really nice. Although I live near NY I live in the hills and cannot get good reception off the air so I'll hold off on the HDTV decoder until DirecTv starts broadcasting HDTV (if they ever do). I'm also interested in the combination HDTV decoder/DSS decoder they're coming out with any day. I like the component video input although my current DVD does not output component video. This brings me to my major complaint about the set. I have to upgrade some of my other components in my home theater! I need a new DVD player and a new receiver (had been planning on this for a while anyway). So it's costing me more money! Ok, I'm joking about this. It's a good problem to have.

I'd like to see DirecTv send out better signals. I know they're at the mercy of what they get but I can't believe they're all that bad.

If you can swing the money (it seems like $3000 is the average street price) it's VERY much worth the price. I like the widescreen model but I'm sure the normal (4:3) set is just as good.

Similar Products Used:

Sony 46" bigscreen (1992 model)

Anamorphic DVDs are AWESOME, Remote is excellent, 480P removes scan lines

Expand Mode introduces too much distortion, Lack of aspect ratio control for progressive inputs, vertical streaking problem

After I decided to get a RPTV, I originally bought the Mits because of the lack of scan lines when compared to regular RPTVs. The HDTV ready was a side benefit since there is so little programming.

After connecting the unit and playing an anamorphic DVD, I couldn't have been more pleased. The picture is stunning. I have yet to connect a progressive scan DVD such as the 5109 since I had a Sony S7000 already. I decided to wait to see if the next gen PS DVD players might have aspect ratio control built in. I did see the 5109 hooked to the 46" version of this TV and was able to do a side-by-side comparison with a Yamaha DVD. There was NO comparison. Anyone that is getting this TV and a DVD player would be well served to get the 5109. It can be had for as little as $425 online although my dealer is trying to sell them for $749.

I will say the lack of aspect ratio control on progressive inputs is a bigger deal than I had originally thought. Laserdiscs and DSS don't look good on this set. The doubler and the size only make a bad source worse. I would love to be able to get the iScan from DVDO and use it to convert the LD, DSS and non-anamorphic DVDs, but without aspect ratio control, this is not an effective solution for LDs. I deducted 1 point for this "feature".

The remote is great. I am able to control my entire HT from this remote. The passthrough features for volume and mute are great, as long as you don't use the TV speakers for anything. I do wish they had backlit more buttons on the remote.

The user interface is great, and the ability to skip inputs that are not being used is not a feature that should be overlooked. I don't believe the Toshibas have this ability and it can be very annoying to have to cycle through unused inputs. I like the ability to have independent settings for each input. This comes into play especially with the HDTV signal as the contrast and brightness need to be lowered further for this signal. I do wish Mits would provide a means to set apply settings across the board and then tweak them independantly.

I connected a RCA DTC-100 to the set and it was stunning. The HDTV picture on this set is great. Not as good as the Pioneer or the Zenith with 9" CRTs, but unless they are setting next to each other, I venture that noone could tell the differnce. There seemed to be an issue with the DTC that was causing a small area of the screen not to be scanned so I took it back and decided to wait for the Mits box.

The only major problem I have had with this set is the vertical streaking. however, a fix was applied and for the most part the strakes are gone. The picture still seems to be a little "lighter" around 2" from each side. Not very noticeable on DSS, more so on DVD and very noticeable on the HDTV signal. Mits claims the problem with the streaks in the HDTV signal was caused by the RCA box and that they will not be there with the Mits box in June. They say they will trade the set if that is not the case when I get the Mits box in June.

I chose this over the 905 simply because I felt I was paying for cabinet. Don't be fooled, the cabinet on the 905 is MUCH prettier than the 805. However, since mine was in a HT not a living room, I didn't care. I did not see a noticeable difference in the picture with the EDF lenses.

All in all I think this is a great TV. I paid $3600 at a local dealer and I have been glad I didn't buy online due to the streaking problem I have had. HDTV aside, the 60" Sony was going for about $2300 so I paid $1300 more for this and I get the same sized picture on letterbox DVDs which is what I wanted the TV for anyway. The look on anamorphic DVDs coupled with the HDTV ability make this a great buy for someone in the market for a RPTV.

System:
Yamaha 995 Receiver
Sony S7000 DVD
M&K 750THX
Hughes DSS
Pioneer LD
Sony VCR
Monster Power 3500 Power Center
Monster Cables throughout

The people reviewing this set as bad for NTSE are - in my opinion - being a bit misleading.

The fact is that the entire Mitsubishi WS series get's a FANTASTIC picture from all input sources. However, a good picture means a true reproduction of the signal. And, a noisy RF modulated signal on a screen this size looks like sh*t. It's not the TV's fault. It's just doing it's job and Showing you the sh*t you're feeding it, as it truly appears.

For those considering a purchase, it does have several features which can help an RF signal.

One of these is a line doubler which converts the 480 interlaced picture to 480 progressive. This FEATURE, (which makes input from a non-progressive DVD look as good as most progressive DVD pictures), eliminates the distinction between scan lines which is normally caused by interlace, and REVEALS the actual lack of resolution which is there in all pictures.

That causes people to notice "jaggies" and other problems which were blurred on their old big-screen because of interlace distortion.

Frankly, I'd rather not see NTSE under a microscope either, but it's something that makes me impressed with the TV, not dissatisfied with it. Who cares? NTSE is OUT! A few more years before all broadcasts will be HDTV. And the DVD images are better than on anything I've ever owned.

16:9 support, 2 Component Video In

Settings lost when power flickers, Remote/Menus, Reliability, Warranty, Picture Quality

Originally I purchased a Sony KP-53XBR300 for my home theater. However, I just couldn't deal with the fact that the Sony's 4:3 picture made 16:9 anamorphic videos appear too small (although still 45" dia.). Since I was displeased, I decided to return it and go with a widescreen instead. I ultimately settled on a Mitsubishi since the quality seemed pretty good in the store, and the price was great.

For starters, let me suggest: DO NOT ORDER THIS TV THROUGH MAIL ORDER. The first set that arrived must have had a bad line doubler because the picture quality was horrible and no amount of fine tuning would fix it. The second one (I currently have) was much better, but it still displays a bright quarter moon image when looking at a solid black screen (or the VE pludge test). The funny thing is that the picture is pretty good the rest of the time, even though you can't set the black propertly because of this defect.

Another major annoyance with this set is that you have to set the video settings for EACH input. While some may prefer this feature, it annoys me because you can't use Video Essentials to set the picture on all inputs. What's worse is that if the power so much as flickers (brown out), you'll loose some of your settings. If the power goes completely out, you loose all your settings. This means that you'll need a UPS for this system if you don't want to keep resetting everything -- ARGGHHH!!!

The remote annoys me, but that is because I was already used to the Sony's remote which is far superior. This is a personal preference, so you may think differently. I just hate the layout and the absence of backlighting on the buttons you'll actually use in the dark. The on screen menu is even more pitiful, but again I think I'm spoiled with the Sony.

Watching cable TV is terrible with this TV. Digital cable is better, but overall this TV wasn't meant for broadcast television. Where this TV shines is with DVD input. I'm using the component video input from my Sony DVP-CX850D 200 DVD Changer, and the picture quality is very good. The only thing that annoys me is that I get random black pixels on various portions of the screen from time to time (didn't happen with the Sony using the same DVD source). Another thing you should be aware of is that only anamorphic 1.85:1 sources can be displayed full-screen (16:9 expanded mode) on this TV. Anything larger will have black bars above and below, which is important because Mitsubishi threatens to void your warranty due to damage that can result in using this TV in anything less than full screen. So while you are enjoying T2, Any Given Sunday, A Bugs Life, Air Force One, etc... in 2.40:1 you'll be worrying about damaging your TV and your warranty becoming void.

Speaking of warranties, the warranty is only a meager 30 days for parts & labor and 1 year for parts. This is pathetic, so I recommend buying an extended warranty. I almost never buy extended warranties, but given the fact that I've had problems with 2 of these already, you can't afford to not have some extra protection with this TV.

If you can wait, get the 807. It shouldn't cost you much more, and the input panel is much improved. What's more, there may be some features to address the problems I've seen.

In summary, if you want a great TV, this isn't it. If you want a cheap widescreen TV, then you should consider the 807 after comparing all of the choices. If you want a GREAT TV for the money, and can live with 4:3 then buy a Sony. Their DRC (line doubler on a pixel basis) is OUTSTANDING, and the picture quality is breath taking.

Similar Products Used:

Sony KP-53XBR300

WS 55807 2001 model -- great picture

none yet

After careful and time comsuming research and viewing, I decided to get the Mits. It really came down to picture quality. There was a very noticable difference between the other TVs and this one. Mitsubishi really got it right. The reviewers at Home Theater and Sound & Vision both like the Mitsubishi TVs (This one and the 46" version). Out of the box it looked great -- so far no adjustments seem necessary. The experts tell you to have it professionally adjusted. Right now I'm taking a wait and see approach. Overall I am very happy with the TV and would easily recommend it to anyone. At the price I paid (orig $4000 -- pd $2200), I am very satisfied.

Similar Products Used:

compared to toshiba 56" and Hitachi 53"

quality of picture

don't know yet

i have digital satelite and tried to change the aspect ratio to 16x9 but with no success, can someone help me, maybe i am doing something wrong. i have all of my equipment going through my denon avr 3300 and using monitor out to vid 1 thru s-video cable to tv. other than that i still have to expand letterbox dvd and then zoom my toshiba 2109 to fill the screen. i'm sure there must be a better way! help!!!!!
today is my first day with the set and the picture is wonderful. give me some more time once i figure these concerns out i will be back with a full review.

as far as anyone out there that might be able to help me my email address is mcohen52@msn.com.

to be fair the system is great. paid 3100.00 for it at a local retailer

Similar Products Used:

let me start first by asking all you new owners for some help.

PICTURE QUALITY,WIDESCREEN FORMAT,
THIS IS THE 2001 55807

WATCHING DBS INSTEAD OF DVD AT ALL TIME

I HAVE BEEN REVEIWING SOME OF THESE REVIEWS, AND FOR ALL YOU GUYS THAT ARE NOT BLOWN AWAY WITH THE 807 YOU HAVE TO BE SMOKING SOME GOOD $%&* YOU MUST BE CRAZY OR JUST HAVE TO MUCH TIME ON YOUR HANDS TO SIT AROUND AND NIT PICK YOURE NEW PURCHASE.... LETS BE HONEST YOU GUYS HAVE A VERY BAD CASE OF BUYERS REMORSE YOU MUST NOT HAVE HAD THE MONEY BECAUSE YOURE SITTING AROUND TRYING TO JUSTIFIE THE MONEY YOU SPENT!!!!!! WHEN THE DELIVERY GUYS TOOK THIS THING OUT OF THE BOX AND I SET IT UP WITH THE PROPER INTER CONNECTS I TURNED ON MY DVD AND SAMPLED SEVERAL DVDS WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW THE PICTURE IS SUUUUUPERRRR...I COULD NOT BELIEVE THAT ALL THOSE PRETTY MOVIE STARS REALLY HAVE BLEMISHES JUST LIKE EVERY OTHER PERSON ON THE EARTH...
I DID TUNE THE UNIT USING THE VIDEO ESSENTIALS DVD AND CLEANED UP THE PICTURE EVEN MORE IF YOU DODNT LIKE THE PICTURE I SUGGEST YOU TRY THIS DVD, IT WILL MAKE A SMALL DIFF.. IF YOU STILL DONT LIKE THE PICTURE THEN IM SORRY TO SAY BUT YOU ARE EITHER AN IDIOT OR YOU NEED TO CALL YOURE EYE DOCTOR IN THE MORNING AND SET AN APPOINTMENT FOR SOME NEW SPECKS BECAUSE YOU ARE BLIND!!!!!!! A GOOD PEICE OF ADVICE OR LET ME SAY THE BEST PAICE OF ADVICE I CAN GIVE YOU IS QUIT TRYING TO JUSTIFIE YOURE PURCHASE AND ENJOY THE UNIT IT IS TRUELY THE BEST PICTURE I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY HOUSE OR ANYONE I KNOW!!!!!! YES I HAVE FRIENDS WHO HAVE OTHER BRAND HDTV'S AND THEY ARE ALL NICE BUT I BOUGHT MINE BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT HAD THE BEST PICTURE OF ALL....TRY SOME PROPER CONNECTION CABLES IT WILL HELP ONLY USE THE COMPONENT CONNECTIONS FOR YOUR DVD IT IS THE ONLY WAY.. THE REMOTE IS VERY FUNCTIONAL AS WELL IT ALSO WORKS MY DBS SYSTEM AS WELL AS MY SONY DVD AND REC.. FITS IN ONE HAND AND IS EASY TO USE IN THE DARK WITH A LITTLE PRACTICE.....

Similar Products Used:

RCA, TOSHIBA

A FEW, but the price was right

MANY...but the price was right

I purchased this set as a floor model. I bought it imeadiatly cause the sales guy said it was an amazing deal. After looking around i feel i got burnt. Many more many better sets out there. i don;t knwo what this "red push" is that the guys before me have talked about but i do notice that my set is very red all the time, flesh tones are terrible.

Don;t let price be your decision. Mine has been serviced twice already. reliability is terrible. I would look at somthing else

Similar Products Used:

none