TV help

[DRiccio21]

i need to buy 2 new TV's.

my tv's are ancient, but i'm not a techie and don't really care all that much about being in the latest tech

anyways, my criteria:

- i'd like one to be bigger for the main room 'maybe a 50+'
- one can be smaller, mid 40's for bedroom
- doesn't need to be the latest and greatest
- i don't want to spend a fortune cause i know i won't get my money's worth either way
- i want it to be a reputable brand that i can trust won't burn out in a few months but at same time it doesn't need to be the best brand. just something that is reputable.
- i also need to know all the cords i need/should get
- also any new cool gadgets that are out there (i know you cable hackers have advice for me)

feel free to give me advice on what i should look for, where i should look to buy and how much i should spend (again, i'm not spending a ton so save the TFAN latest and greatest new toy advice) and/or some links. if you told me there were 2 tv's i could get at Walmart that are 500 bucks a piece that meet my criteria, thats fine with me. but at same time, i want to know what i shouldn't cheap out on so i don't buy a dud.

thanks guys.

[nick]

i didnt read everything but if u want my honesty, get whatever you want in a price you want.

I bought a Sony Bravia 32" years back and it still works.

when my parents wanted 2 TVs, I bought just random companies, even turned down Warranty, and they both work great to this day.

As long as you don't leave your TV on overnight and run it into the ground you should be fine.

[GeorgesGoons]

- i also need to know all the cords i need/should get

What do you plan on hooking up to them?
Do you have a receiver with a 5.1 setup?
Using an all in one surround setup?
Sound bar?

I ask this because the TV speakers may come into play here.

I have a Toshiba 47" that I love, it's around 5 years old but works like the first day I bought it.

[dakshdar]

For basic, almost no frills, I'd go with something like this:

55" main room 1080p Samsung with Smart TV features - http://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-55- ... Id=7068146

40" bedroom 1080p Samsung with Smart TV features - http://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-40- ... Id=5410021

From what you're saying, you don't want or wouldn't care about 4k or 3D.

The only cables you need that it doesn't come with are HDMI. You'd be best buying these someplace like Amazone (http://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-High ... dmi+cables) for the best price.

Most likely, you won't care or don't need additional sound system for the bedroom. It's just for casual watching. I would suggest some kind of audio system for your main room, even if it is just a sound bar. They make many good ones that are reasonable. You'd hook-up to that with HDMI as well (so maybe 2 packs of the 2-pack cables from Amazon just so you have spares/enough). This LG system is very similar to one my parent's have which was surprisingly good from my experience - http://www.bestbuy.com/site/lg-soundbar ... Id=3148083. It's also not that expensive and rather easy to set-up, though it only has one input, so if you're running more than just a cable box on the TV (PS4?) you may have to get fancy with an HDMI switch in the set-up somewhere.

[DRiccio21]

awesome!

thanks guys.

george, i buy a tv, plug it in, pay someone to hang it on my wall and never do anything else. i don't even know what a sound bar is.

speaking of which, is there an easy way to mount it myself? or should i just pay someone to do it?

[GeorgesGoons]

awesome!

thanks guys.

george, i buy a tv, plug it in, pay someone to hang it on my wall and never do anything else. i don't even know what a sound bar is.

speaking of which, is there an easy way to mount it myself? or should i just pay someone to do it?

If you have to ask I'd pay, also if you are not 100% positive you can do it without it falling pay the $100 to have someone do it.

Not sure how much you would be willing to spend on a sound bar but i would definitely get something to use instead of the TV speakers. No need in your bedroom but you'll love the added sound for Football Saturday/Sunday. I have no clue how a sound bar sounds but have heard good things, I prefer my 5.1 setup

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2465071,00.asp

[cougnix]

I got a Sharp from Costco. Works great

[Whittness10]

I have three Vizios in the house, and have had 0 problems with any of them. One of them I got 7+ years ago. I probably won't get another one for a long time.

[texasfan4444]

Dave - Not sure where you are living and how your living room is setup currently. But if I were you, I'd spend the extra $300-400 on a set up like this. some of them will even include a decent powered subwoofer for the extra depth in the sound. It gives sports and movies an added dimension that's missing with just TV speakers. The bar can be mounted just below the TV ( at eye level to the couch typically) on the wall and the cables can be hidden. The sound will be great and it has a lot more polished look to the set up vs just a TV on the wall or a stand.



As far as the TV goes, I recommend getting a TV with at least 240hz refresh rate or motion rate if its a 4K TV.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-50- ... Id=5185184

You can certainly find cheaper but just make sure its at least 240 hz if you are going to be watching a lot of sports or high action movies. Feel free to shoot me a text if you have questions.

[GeorgesGoons]

Dave - Not sure where you are living and how your living room is setup currently. But if I were you, I'd spend the extra $300-400 on a set up like this. some of them will even include a decent powered subwoofer for the extra depth in the sound. It gives sports and movies an added dimension that's missing with just TV speakers. The bar can be mounted just below the TV ( at eye level to the couch typically) on the wall and the cables can be hidden. The sound will be great and it has a lot more polished look to the set up vs just a TV on the wall or a stand.



As far as the TV goes, I recommend getting a TV with at least 240hz refresh rate or motion rate if its a 4K TV.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-50- ... Id=5185184

You can certainly find cheaper but just make sure its at least 240 hz if you are going to be watching a lot of sports or high action movies. Feel free to shoot me a text if you have questions.

Luis gets it! Must have the extra sound coming from something other than the TV speakers. Think of using $9.99 headphones from Walmart and then compare them to some Klipsch or Beats headphones. The sound will be that much better!

[DRiccio21]

Dave - Not sure where you are living and how your living room is setup currently. But if I were you, I'd spend the extra $300-400 on a set up like this. some of them will even include a decent powered subwoofer for the extra depth in the sound. It gives sports and movies an added dimension that's missing with just TV speakers. The bar can be mounted just below the TV ( at eye level to the couch typically) on the wall and the cables can be hidden. The sound will be great and it has a lot more polished look to the set up vs just a TV on the wall or a stand.



As far as the TV goes, I recommend getting a TV with at least 240hz refresh rate or motion rate if its a 4K TV.


You can certainly find cheaper but just make sure its at least 240 hz if you are going to be watching a lot of sports or high action movies. Feel free to shoot me a text if you have questions.

i knew you were going to sell me on something more than i need!!! i'm such a sucker, i'll text you when the time comes

[The_Niddler]

My setup is very similar to Pino's.
I have the TV mounted on the wall, but we have a table under it, against the wall and the sound bar is on a shelf on the table.
That is also where I have my DirecTV box and BluRay player.
All cables run in the wall up to the tv, so it looks nice and clean like his does.

And just about any soundbar blows away tv speakers.
They are not as good as true 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound systems, but a big improvement over tv speakers.

[texasfan4444]

Dave - Not sure where you are living and how your living room is setup currently. But if I were you, I'd spend the extra $300-400 on a set up like this. some of them will even include a decent powered subwoofer for the extra depth in the sound. It gives sports and movies an added dimension that's missing with just TV speakers. The bar can be mounted just below the TV ( at eye level to the couch typically) on the wall and the cables can be hidden. The sound will be great and it has a lot more polished look to the set up vs just a TV on the wall or a stand.

As far as the TV goes, I recommend getting a TV with at least 240hz refresh rate or motion rate if its a 4K TV.


You can certainly find cheaper but just make sure its at least 240 hz if you are going to be watching a lot of sports or high action movies. Feel free to shoot me a text if you have questions.

i knew you were going to sell me on something more than i need!!! i'm such a sucker, i'll text you when the time comes

Im here to help when you are ready. i helped corey troubleshoot his receiver and speaker system in his new house via facetime.

Also, that is not my setup pictured above. I use a full 7.1 system. But for someone looking for a basic clean looking configuration you cant beat a sound bar + sub.

There are many ways to wire this too. You can have the A/V components in a closet and use a RF extender so that they cant be seen at all. You still point the remote towards the TV and the signal is captured and relayed to the proper component. You can use a table like JD was talking about to put your components into and run the cables up the wall to the back of the TV.

Im guessing Dave will have a cable/satellite box and his pS4. So there should be minimal cables to negotiate and the best bet would be some sort of table/cabinet type setup below the TV since he will need access to the pS4 when he wants to pop in a disc.

[dakshdar]

Here's the table for Dave. Don't need to put the TV on top, would still wall mount. Just buy a sound bar that fits nicely in the top drawer (mine has a drawer, I think they just went with a pull-down door/compartment in the more recent version) and you're set.


https://www.bdiusa.com/theater/avion_2_ ... fmCMWOwUig

I somewhat kid, because these are super expensive, but the build quality is unbelievable. I actually scored this exact cabinet off Craigslist for $110. Belonged to some woman's ex, he'd left it at her place after moving out a month ago because he had no way to come get it, and she she just wanted it out. I actually asked her if she was sure she just wanted $110 for it and she said yes, she knew it was worth more, but just wanted it gone. Felt a little bad for the guy but if you don't come back for your shit a month after a break-up, you're loss.

Amazon page for price reference: http://www.amazon.com/BDI-Avion-8928-En ... B002OEBM6G

Caveat - I'd never pay the retail on this thing.

[The_Niddler]

Yeah, I cut a hole in the wall at the bottom, just above the baseboard and cut a hole in the wall behind the tv and I drop everything down that way.
So you see no cables when sitting on the couch.

[Whittness10]

Yeah, I cut a hole in the wall at the bottom, just above the baseboard and cut a hole in the wall behind the tv and I drop everything down that way.
So you see no cables when sitting on the couch.

How would you go about hiding cables with a TV mounted on a fireplace? Wiremold? Can't exactly run cables in the fireplace.

[The_Niddler]

You have to use a cable channel. The ones that mount on the surface and you paint it the same color as the wall so it blends in.
Something like these:
http://www.homedepot.com/b/Electrical-H ... 5yc1vZc64e

And they look like this when completed...and blend in pretty well once you paint them the same color as your wall.



The other thing, we did at my parents, just after the brick of the fireplace, we cut the wall, put in a pvc pipe and then fixed the drywall. So you may see the cables till they get to the drywall part of the wall.

[Whittness10]

Ok that's what I meant by wiremold. Maybe it's just a brand of what you pictured. My house was built in 54, and it has a long mantle above the fireplace that extends over to a bookshelf that's built in between the fireplace and the exterior wall, which is where my cable box and PS4 are. I'd probably have to post a picture to show what I mean a little better.

[shel311]

Forget what everyone has said and just go with this

[The_Niddler]

Just do a projector and run the cables all through the ceiling.

Then you can have up to a 300" screen depending on the distance from the projector to the wall.