HDTV READY,4:3 RATIO STILL GOOD FOR MOST OF TODAYS BROADCASTING BUT READY TO WITH DIGITAL WHEN AVAILABLE

MY PICTURE WAS TILTED WHEN PLAYING A DVD. REPAIR GUY CAME OUT TOOK THE BACK OFF ADJUSTED A SMALL SCREW FIXED IN 10 MIN. I'VE HEARD OTHERS WITH THIS PROBLEM IT'S NO BIG DEAL.

I LOVE MY SONY XBR400 IT IS A GREAT TV.

Picture in most cases is fab

Some stations not so fab

Great set! I had the TV del. and set-up, worth the money $50.00. I plan to have AT&T Cable (my cable provider) check to see why some stations look a little gritty. They will check the wiring coming into the condo. I might purchase an amplifier if the problem is not corrected easily. I have good cable viewing on the other sets. AT&T said there is no reason that the 36" shouldn't get as good a signal. The tech did say sometimes the lower stations will come in at a less quality and the higher the station number the better. This is not the case w/my reception as 4 is not great, 5 is excellent, 7 so, so. I'll let you know if the cable co. can correct this or if the amplifier has an impact toward improving the reception.

Picture

weight

This set has been great. It's been interesting to read comments about source issues. I notice a real difference in some cable channels. The Discovery Channel and some PBS programs are outstanding as were the Olympics and many commercials. They need to get HDTV up and running on all channels. One strange problem I've had with the remote - it does not turn the TV on initially. Once it's on, it works fine. Same goes for my new Sony DVD player. If any one knows the answer to that riddle, please e-mail me. Next question: any idea how to clean the screen and the case? Sony's manual says use a dry cloth - well, that won't clean much. Can I use windex or a spay dust cleaner? Obviously, I don't want to ruin the set! I'd appreciate any e-mails.

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none

Picture, flexibility both now and near future

Remote, tuner, ghosts on low numbered cable channels.

I read all the reviews and viewed the set several times at the dealer. My price includes 5 year warranty and delivery. And 6.5% state tax. The first set lasted 6 days before the tuner went out. I called service and they sent a repairman out WITHOUT a tuner so he couldn't fix it. Audio King has a 30 day no questions asked policy so I had then deliver a new one and take back the old one. Still have the ghosts. And one of the repair guys told me "off the record" that Sony puts a cheap tuner in this high end set, that the tuner in a $50 VCR was often a better quality one. Sound's like Sony scrimped on the tuner. I will hold my breath and hope this set functions well. Real concerned about the reliability. I urge anyone buying this set to also but the 5 year warranty.
The rest of my system: Denon 3300, B&W P5 fronts and center, JBL sub and surrounds, Toshiba DVD and Panasonic VCR.All cables are Monster.

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Sony 32" non xbr

Clarity of picture. Flexibility during interim time of change in broadcast industry.

weight and price

First, the reviews which I have read here have, in an overall sense, helped me in the selection of a replacement for my old 1991 xbr which "died" recently. I am not a "video" expert like many of you but I wanted to get the best product for my needs. In looking at the wide choices that exist I just did not want to spend between 4 and 6 thousand dollars on a product that will be significantly better and cheaper in a relatively short time. The sony 36" xbr 400 that I purchased is a wonderful televison and I have not experienced the severe problems some of the prior reviewers had. The set has played absolutely great since it was first taken out of the carton. Yes, I am using high quality and, incidently, expensive cables as a direct result of some of the reviews I read here. I have Cox cable and some channels are more "grainy" than others although digital cable is being installed next month. But,overall, the quality of the picture is excellentand is far better than my old xbr. The picture quality when a dvd is played on my non-progressive player through the component connection is superb. Colors are vivid and, to me,truly lifelike. Also, for me, the set up menus are user friendly and fairly easy to use. I view this set as a transition which I will use for the next few years until high definition television is uniformly available and cost and standardization that should take place occurs. Of course I would love a 65" 16:9 picture now but it just seemed premature to have a compromised picture. By that I mean a picture that is either distorted or cropped in order to fill a screen to avoid burning the tube with lines from the bars on either the sides or the top. For me, the xbr400 was an excellent choice and one I enjoy every day.

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sony xbr tv's and mitsubishi projection televisions.

Beautiful Display

I do not have this TV but I have viewed it extensively at the Sony Store and I would love to get one. This is a response to the last poster, that springy sound is most likely related to a degauss feature that the set probably employs. It reduces the static build up in the monitor. Most digital computer monitors have this same feature and Sony ones definitely do, I have one.

Knock-your-socks-off clarity, color and depth of picture.

See below

I concur fully with all the raves in other reviews but....

1. Like one of the reviewers listed below, when I turn on my set it usually makes one hell of a loud mechanical noise -- sort of like a tightly-wound spring unleashing. The delivery guy who set it up said that was "normal." Is it? And what causes it?

2. Often on a few channels, the voice does not sync with the lips. At times the discrepancy is really distracting. And it seems that the lack of sync is most pronounced in an older movie. When the commercials come on, the out-of-sync is still there but seems less obvious. (It might be my imagination, but it seems to help somewhat if I turn off the TrueSurround feature.)

Granted, this is not a problem on most channels. And I want to believe the problem is related to my cable company. Can anyone offer enlightenment?

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Nothing "similar"

Quality of picture after adjustments

Are you kidding.

First to Tony Tong. Tony, my best suggestion without going crazy is purchase or rent a copy of Video Essentials on DVD. This will educate you with the proper color variations and correct level your brightness,sharpness, tint,color and contrast. If you don't see an immediate improvement, than call a tech. to professionally adjust your set.
The TV itself is phenomenal. IMHO there is no TV on the market for this price any better.

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You name it!

Styling, Full sound

Poor picture with standard cable

Like previous owners, I was dissapointed with the poor picture quality using standard cable. I live in the SF Bay Area (Fremont) and many of the channels are quite grainy and pixelated. Any suggestions on how I may get the most of the poor signal would be appreciated (unfortunately I can't upgrade to sattelite since the XBR put set me back).

Additionally, I was wondering if anyone could suggest how a newbie like myself could properly calibrate the TV either myself or if I would need to hire someone, etc.

I have to say though, I've got my Playstation 2 and it looks phenomenal on this TV. The only problems I have are with DVD playback which are still more pixelated than I would like...additionally, the voices aren't always in sync.

I appreciate the candor on this site. Thanks for reading.

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Picture quality, build, everything but the weight.

Weight

I love this TV; Everything looks good on it. Yes, sometimes weaker signals look rough on this TV, but this is such a good TV that it reveals those flaws, much like the way high end audio equipment will reveal flaws in the source materials. (and I don't understand how some people can buy a TV at this cost and weight and then find all these flaw in it. I looked around and compared a lot of TVs before I bought this one, and I would have never bought it without doing so.)
I find that my cable looks great except during storms, and can't say enough about how fantastic my DVDs look. Highly recommended.

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27" Trinitron