Are Pioneers worth the extra over the panny 50pz800

Richardod · 17-10-2008, 23:37

Hi,
been on the av forum and there seems an awful lot of bias towards the Pios on there I just wanted to know if anyone on here has spent time comparing the kuro to the pz800 panny 9%)inch) and is the Pio worth nearly £600 more.

MAW · 18-10-2008, 06:05

Short answer, no. There is an awful lot of pro pioneer bias, 2 of the main conrtibutors sell them. However, one area where they do excel is system integration. The remote control on Viera TVs is hard to integrate successfully. You can get around this with a Panasonic Pro panel called the TH50PF10, plus the dual HDMI video board. It's just a monitor, no tuner at all, but with a nice Sky or Freeview (or soon freesat) PVR, you don't need that. A 1080p plasma for 2k with no corners cut anywhere, just the bits you don't need left out. Nearly enough change from the Pio to buy an Onkyo 606 surround amp, which serves as a video switch. You'd effectively have 4 HDMI inputs then

Richardod · 18-10-2008, 12:20

Thanks,
not sure about buying just the monitor what I really meant was the Viera range specifically the 50pz800b or the 50pz80b.
Are the Pios that much better for the money?

Waj_100 · 18-10-2008, 12:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richardod

Thanks,
not sure about buying just the monitor what I really meant was the Viera range specifically the 50pz800b or the 50pz80b.
Are the Pios that much better for the money?

My own completely biased opinion is that the Pioneer is an excellent TV, you would not be disappointed with the quality.

I think the only way to compare is to see them side by side, properly set up in a shop capable of doing this. Currys and the like would best be avoided.

I had the same thoughts before I bought my Pioneer, people told me I was crazy to spend hundreds more on the Pioneer compared to the Toshiba Z series that I was thinking of buying.I looked at the Panasonics, but didn't think they were for me, I didn't like the styling and the picture just didn't wow me like the Pioneer did.

MAW · 18-10-2008, 14:51

The viera is not a bad TV. Don't dismiss the monitor out of hand unless you have a real as opposed to a percieved need to an inbuilt tuner, you probably don't need it. Most serious hi fi buffs have no difficulty with the concept, they've always bought separates. SkyHD is now a typical component of folks 50" setups, there's 2 tuners, how many do you need? However, as I said, I don't consider the Pio to be VFM ovwer the viera anyway.

Richardod · 18-10-2008, 20:09

well I have sky + at the moment upgrading to sky hd when I get my tv.
Does this meanall tv has to be watched through the sky hd box? if so then there is no teletext and i wouldn't want to be without that.

Nigel Goodwin · 18-10-2008, 20:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richardod

well I have sky + at the moment upgrading to sky hd when I get my tv.
Does this meanall tv has to be watched through the sky hd box? if so then there is no teletext and i wouldn't want to be without that.

There will be no teletext in a year or two anyway, it will disappear as analogue does (and already has at Whitehaven).

Richardod · 18-10-2008, 21:03

Nigel,
Are you sure about that I'd be lost without teletext

Waj_100 · 18-10-2008, 21:58

Teletext will still be available when analogue is switched off as Digital Teletext, availabe now on Freeview.

Chris Frost · 18-10-2008, 23:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richardod

well I have sky + at the moment upgrading to sky hd when I get my tv.
Does this meanall tv has to be watched through the sky hd box? if so then there is no teletext and i wouldn't want to be without that.

Sky has a form of teletext. My wife also makes use of the subtitling on Sky broadcasts a lot too.

bobcar · 19-10-2008, 00:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Waj_100

Teletext will still be available when analogue is switched off as Digital Teletext, availabe now on Freeview.

Yes but the digital version is massively inferior to the analogue teletext.

bampsam · 19-10-2008, 06:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richardod

Hi,
been on the av forum and there seems an awful lot of bias towards the Pios on there I just wanted to know if anyone on here has spent time comparing the kuro to the pz800 panny 9%)inch) and is the Pio worth nearly £600 more.

Not in the same league as you in size............but I recently had the good fortune to try the Panasonic TH-42PZ81B which is a plasma with built in freesat.It was a excellant TV viewing HD but suffered a lack of sharpness on SD.Nothing against Panasonic as my last three tv have been supplied by them.
Purchased my Pioneer a week ago and it is the best TV I have ever owned by a mile! SD PQ is pin sharp,whilst HD is amazing.OK they are a premium price but I really think they are more than worth it.If you can afford it,go for it!

Last edited by bampsam : 19-10-2008 at 06:56. Reason: Addition.

MAW · 19-10-2008, 07:11

Your settings are the cause of the percieved lack of SD sharpness. Teletext, yes, you can kiss goodbye to that. Get used to digital, or connect a PC to your TV and use the net instead.

bampsam · 19-10-2008, 07:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by MAW

Your settings are the cause of the percieved lack of SD sharpness. Teletext, yes, you can kiss goodbye to that. Get used to digital, or connect a PC to your TV and use the net instead.

Nothing "percieved" about the lack of SD sharpness-tried all different settings to try to improve SD PQ on the Panny to no avail. Text is also pin sharp on the Pioneer.

Waj_100 · 19-10-2008, 08:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by bobcar

Yes but the digital version is massively inferior to the analogue teletext.

Agreed! No argument there.

skinj · 19-10-2008, 09:22

The old format is familiar but I much prefer the new text system on the BBC. ITV's is awful and Sky's is ok. Don't understand the negativity about the change though.

Nigel Goodwin · 19-10-2008, 10:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richardod

Nigel,
Are you sure about that I'd be lost without teletext

Yes, Teletext is an analogue service - there is digital text on Freeview and Sky, but it's completely rubbish.

bobcar · 19-10-2008, 11:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by skinj

The old format is familiar but I much prefer the new text system on the BBC. ITV's is awful and Sky's is ok. Don't understand the negativity about the change though.

The reason for the negativity is that the new system is much worse than the old. With the old system you could instantly bring up whatever information you required and there was lots more of it. Lots of items (such as letters) are either not present on digital or are cut down in size. Just bringing up the football scores is a palaver and means you lose whatever you were watching.

Digital is better for weather and that's about it.

17-10-2008, 23:37	#1
Richardod Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Posts: 27	Are Pioneers worth the extra over the panny 50pz800 Hi, been on the av forum and there seems an awful lot of bias towards the Pios on there I just wanted to know if anyone on here has spent time comparing the kuro to the pz800 panny 9%)inch) and is the Pio worth nearly £600 more.

18-10-2008, 06:05	#2
MAW Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 28,577	Short answer, no. There is an awful lot of pro pioneer bias, 2 of the main conrtibutors sell them. However, one area where they do excel is system integration. The remote control on Viera TVs is hard to integrate successfully. You can get around this with a Panasonic Pro panel called the TH50PF10, plus the dual HDMI video board. It's just a monitor, no tuner at all, but with a nice Sky or Freeview (or soon freesat) PVR, you don't need that. A 1080p plasma for 2k with no corners cut anywhere, just the bits you don't need left out. Nearly enough change from the Pio to buy an Onkyo 606 surround amp, which serves as a video switch. You'd effectively have 4 HDMI inputs then

18-10-2008, 12:20	#3
Richardod Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Posts: 27	Thanks, not sure about buying just the monitor what I really meant was the Viera range specifically the 50pz800b or the 50pz80b. Are the Pios that much better for the money?

18-10-2008, 12:42	#4
Waj_100 Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Lancashire Posts: 3,640	Quote: Originally Posted by Richardod Thanks, not sure about buying just the monitor what I really meant was the Viera range specifically the 50pz800b or the 50pz80b. Are the Pios that much better for the money? My own completely biased opinion is that the Pioneer is an excellent TV, you would not be disappointed with the quality. I think the only way to compare is to see them side by side, properly set up in a shop capable of doing this. Currys and the like would best be avoided. I had the same thoughts before I bought my Pioneer, people told me I was crazy to spend hundreds more on the Pioneer compared to the Toshiba Z series that I was thinking of buying.I looked at the Panasonics, but didn't think they were for me, I didn't like the styling and the picture just didn't wow me like the Pioneer did.

18-10-2008, 14:51	#5
MAW Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 28,577	The viera is not a bad TV. Don't dismiss the monitor out of hand unless you have a real as opposed to a percieved need to an inbuilt tuner, you probably don't need it. Most serious hi fi buffs have no difficulty with the concept, they've always bought separates. SkyHD is now a typical component of folks 50" setups, there's 2 tuners, how many do you need? However, as I said, I don't consider the Pio to be VFM ovwer the viera anyway.

18-10-2008, 20:09	#6
Richardod Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Posts: 27	well I have sky + at the moment upgrading to sky hd when I get my tv. Does this meanall tv has to be watched through the sky hd box? if so then there is no teletext and i wouldn't want to be without that.

18-10-2008, 20:51	#7
Nigel Goodwin Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: North Derbyshire Posts: 41,789	Quote: Originally Posted by Richardod well I have sky + at the moment upgrading to sky hd when I get my tv. Does this meanall tv has to be watched through the sky hd box? if so then there is no teletext and i wouldn't want to be without that. There will be no teletext in a year or two anyway, it will disappear as analogue does (and already has at Whitehaven).

18-10-2008, 21:03	#8
Richardod Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Posts: 27	Nigel, Are you sure about that I'd be lost without teletext

18-10-2008, 21:58	#9
Waj_100 Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Lancashire Posts: 3,640	Teletext will still be available when analogue is switched off as Digital Teletext, availabe now on Freeview.

18-10-2008, 23:04	#10
Chris Frost Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Cheshire Posts: 6,462	Quote: Originally Posted by Richardod well I have sky + at the moment upgrading to sky hd when I get my tv. Does this meanall tv has to be watched through the sky hd box? if so then there is no teletext and i wouldn't want to be without that. Sky has a form of teletext. My wife also makes use of the subtitling on Sky broadcasts a lot too.

19-10-2008, 00:59	#11
bobcar Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Posts: 14,718	Quote: Originally Posted by Waj_100 Teletext will still be available when analogue is switched off as Digital Teletext, availabe now on Freeview. Yes but the digital version is massively inferior to the analogue teletext.

19-10-2008, 06:54	#12
bampsam Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: NORTHANTS Posts: 992	Quote: Originally Posted by Richardod Hi, been on the av forum and there seems an awful lot of bias towards the Pios on there I just wanted to know if anyone on here has spent time comparing the kuro to the pz800 panny 9%)inch) and is the Pio worth nearly £600 more. Not in the same league as you in size............but I recently had the good fortune to try the Panasonic TH-42PZ81B which is a plasma with built in freesat.It was a excellant TV viewing HD but suffered a lack of sharpness on SD.Nothing against Panasonic as my last three tv have been supplied by them. Purchased my Pioneer a week ago and it is the best TV I have ever owned by a mile! SD PQ is pin sharp,whilst HD is amazing.OK they are a premium price but I really think they are more than worth it.If you can afford it,go for it! Last edited by bampsam : 19-10-2008 at 06:56. Reason: Addition.

19-10-2008, 07:11	#13
MAW Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 28,577	Your settings are the cause of the percieved lack of SD sharpness. Teletext, yes, you can kiss goodbye to that. Get used to digital, or connect a PC to your TV and use the net instead.

19-10-2008, 07:31	#14
bampsam Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: NORTHANTS Posts: 992	Quote: Originally Posted by MAW Your settings are the cause of the percieved lack of SD sharpness. Teletext, yes, you can kiss goodbye to that. Get used to digital, or connect a PC to your TV and use the net instead. Nothing "percieved" about the lack of SD sharpness-tried all different settings to try to improve SD PQ on the Panny to no avail. Text is also pin sharp on the Pioneer.

19-10-2008, 08:54	#15
Waj_100 Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Lancashire Posts: 3,640	Quote: Originally Posted by bobcar Yes but the digital version is massively inferior to the analogue teletext. Agreed! No argument there.

19-10-2008, 09:22	#16
skinj Forum Member Join Date: Nov 2001 Posts: 3,206	The old format is familiar but I much prefer the new text system on the BBC. ITV's is awful and Sky's is ok. Don't understand the negativity about the change though.

19-10-2008, 10:55	#17
Nigel Goodwin Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: North Derbyshire Posts: 41,789	Quote: Originally Posted by Richardod Nigel, Are you sure about that I'd be lost without teletext Yes, Teletext is an analogue service - there is digital text on Freeview and Sky, but it's completely rubbish.

19-10-2008, 11:22	#18
bobcar Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Posts: 14,718	Quote: Originally Posted by skinj The old format is familiar but I much prefer the new text system on the BBC. ITV's is awful and Sky's is ok. Don't understand the negativity about the change though. The reason for the negativity is that the new system is much worse than the old. With the old system you could instantly bring up whatever information you required and there was lots more of it. Lots of items (such as letters) are either not present on digital or are cut down in size. Just bringing up the football scores is a palaver and means you lose whatever you were watching. Digital is better for weather and that's about it.

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Are Pioneers worth the extra over the panny 50pz800