8 out of 8 people found this review helpful.
Best bang for my HDTV money
Date of Review: Jul 4, 2006
The Bottom Line: Best bang for your buck. I recommend this set highly.
I picked up the Syntax 42" from Microcenter 17 days ago and am very happy I finally made the plunge into HDTV. I had originally thought I could only afford a 37" but seeing how the price of this Syntax 42" is lower than most 37's, this set is definitely the best bang for my money. Buying a big ticket item from a new name manufacturer is a bit of a gamble, but using my Am Express card to automatically get an additional year of in-home warranty gave me some additional assurance.
I had to buy a Terk TV5 indoor antenna from Newegg to receive OTA HDTV and during the best conditions receive 6 HD channels. I'm 35 miles away from the broadcast towers in San Francisco so signal strength is not the strongest and sometimes can't even get a signal on some stations. A strange thing was watching channel 5 KPIX news broadcasted in 1080i the picture looked like SD, not HD. But other 1080i programs looked amazing.
Likes:
1. Gotta love the price.
2. The set itself looks beautiful with the piano black bezel, very elegant not cheap looking at all.
3. SDTV looks very good depending on the channel. I was very concerned that SD would look worse than the crt but some channels actually looked even better. Most of the programs I watch are SD so it was a huge relief that this set can deliver such a good SD picture.
4. Displaying pictures from our digital camera on this HD set is a huge improvement over the crt, pictures just fabulous. Same goes for playback from the mini-dv camcorder.
5. DVD's look fantastic. Using the supplied component cables to connect the Panasonic DVD-S29 progressive scan player the picture looks very close to HD, again depending on the source material. Watching the Eagles Farewell Tour which was a recent 2005 production shot in 16:9, was very impressive as it filled up the entire screen and the pq looked very nearly like HD.
6. The audio was quite impressive due to the built in equalizer.
7. The glass provided good protection since I have a 5 year old boy and a few of his toys have already bounced off of it.
Dislikes:
1. This set weighs a ton, at least 30 pounds more than other 42" lcd's. When I get the new tv stand setup after getting rid of the old entertainment center, I'm going to need to have someone strong to help me hoist the set onto the stand.
2. Shadow detail in dark scenes is pretty bad. Maybe someone can suggest adjustments to improve it.
3. Audio from tv signal is only stereo, not digital. I've seen one or two HDTV programs which had 5.1 surround sound but was not able to get it. Not a huge issue for now but a few years down the line when more programs have 5.1 sound, I'll miss it more. Not a deal breaker for me taking everything else into consideration.
4. The remote's operating angle is very narrow. You pretty much need to be right in front of the set and point directly at the lower right corner.
For those of you that are looking for the best value for your money, I would highly recommend the Syntax 42". If money is no object and you want absolutely the best picture quality then get something like a Sony and spend twice as much.
I paid $1600 and will get $200 in rebates making final price $1400 (pre tax).
