Lg 32pg6000

[Brer Rabbit]

Bit later than most probably but I don't like to rush these things :hdspin: anyway I am looking to get my first plasma or LCD TV.

Read loads of reviews etc and as far as I can tell the best set I can get to match my requirements (32" screen) and finances (about £400) would be the LG 32PG6000 plasma currently selling for £399.

I would be interested to hear any views on this set ( or an alternative if you think there is a better buy out there !) please before I make a purchase.

I don't know if it makes any difference but the tv would be mainly for watching freeview and playing wii games on, not too bothered about full hd and all that business :confused: as long as it is a good picture.

Thanks

Paul:cheers:

[PhilEnfield]

My advice would be .... go to the Retail Park and see the set for yourself, compare it with LCDs and make your own decision.

Check out the 32" Sony Bravia LCD, which comes in at about the same price, with full 1080p res.

[mmace]

if you're not watching HD on it then go with Plasma, SD material looks awful on LCD's compared to plasma

[Brer Rabbit]

Thanks for the input gents...I will certainly be going around several stores to view as many brands etc as possible before hopefully making the right decision (Richer Sounds seem to have the best deals in my area...South West).

Your views have basically reinforced what I have been reading in various reviews ie plasma is far better for sd broadcasts...no motion blur on sports programmes etc, which is common on lcd's unless they are full 1080.

I don't think I will be in a position to watch hd until it becomes more commonplace and you don't have to pay even more money to Mr Murdoch to receive it.

Cheers Paul

[mmace]

not with Free Sat HD (only ITV & BBC at the moment but more due soon)

make sure when you view them they don't have brightness and contrast set wrong (as they do for the bright lights in stores)

[Brer Rabbit]

So will freeview be getting free hd aswell (or is it on there already ?), as the new telly's all appear to have it built in. I am thinking of top-up tv/freeview on the main lounge telly, (I have sky at the moment...I don't fancy freesat as the viewing package seems inferior to freeview) and I have set up freeview receivers on the kids tv's etc.

Assuming plasma is better for sd pictures, is lcd or plasma better for full hd 1080 viewing ? I realise that the brand and model of the tv and the amount of money spent etc all make a difference.

Cheers Paul

[mmace]

there's little difference these days between LCD and Plasma for HD

there will be 3-4 HD channels on freeview eventually, but they will use mp4 (h.264) compression so no current tv's with tuners built in will be able to get them, you will need a new STB when they are out

[Brer Rabbit]

:cheers: I think I now which way to go now, thanks for your help.
No idea what an STB is but I am assuming it means buying a new TV when the freeview Hd programming becomes commonplace.

Therefore for basic sd viewing the best choice at the moment appears to be plasma.
I see that Amazon are selling the Panasonic TH-37PX8BA 37" Widescreen Plasma TV - HD Ready with Freeview for just over £400.

Might be the one to go for :tup:

Paul

[mmace]

STB = Set Top Box, sorry, a freeview box is an STB, a Sky box is an STB etc etc
sorry, should have explained

[Brer Rabbit]

Ha ha no problem mate, just me being a bit thick !!

Last question ;) would a new stb for hd broadcasts override the sd freeview tuner that was already installed in the tv ?

Paul

[PhilEnfield]

You would have the choice of using either.

[Brer Rabbit]

You would have the choice of using either.

So any tv bought now would be able to pick up the freeview hd broadcasts when available, as long as the correct stb was connected.

Got it I think !!

Paul

[mmace]

that's right, HD freeview boxes will have HDMI output, HD Ready TV's have HDMI inputs, you'll be fine

[arthurpness]

So any tv bought now would be able to pick up the freeview hd broadcasts when available, as long as the correct stb was connected.

Got it I think !!

Paul

Cash is king at the minute, best to, as mentioned, go to a retail park and play one off against the other. I remember when buying tv, kingsize bed, carpets, anything really, just come straight out with it and ask "I'd like a discount". My wife cringes and makes excuses but the sales guys will, if they want the sale, go see their manager or give 10% on the spot. It's still less than they give staff members. If they don't give a discount, or give you sales talk (i.e. Bullshit) just go somewhere else. I remember turning from the salesman and starting to walk away before he stammered and raced after me. That was cause I asked for 5 grand off a car.

Got it mind :wink_santa: Be cheeky! Ini this day and age, you never know. £500 telly for £400? Maybe...

[Brer Rabbit]

Cash is king at the minute, best to, as mentioned, go to a retail park and play one off against the other. I remember when buying tv, kingsize bed, carpets, anything really, just come straight out with it and ask "I'd like a discount". My wife cringes and makes excuses but the sales guys will, if they want the sale, go see their manager or give 10% on the spot. It's still less than they give staff members. If they don't give a discount, or give you sales talk (i.e. Bullshit) just go somewhere else. I remember turning from the salesman and starting to walk away before he stammered and raced after me. That was cause I asked for 5 grand off a car.

Got it mind :wink_santa: Be cheeky! Ini this day and age, you never know. £500 telly for £400? Maybe...

Went to Richer Sounds today and picked up the LG32PG60 plasma with stand and managed to get £40 off the listed price, (not very good at haggling to be honest, you've either got it or you haven't lol)

Got it set up and looks superb with excellent picture quality from the built in freeview and from our sky sd box. Just need to work out now how to integrate my dvd recorder into the loop so that I can record from sky whilst watching freeview and visa versa.

Thanks for all the replies.

Paul

[mmace]

dvd recorder - scart - Sky VCR input
Sky TV output - scart - TV

if you turn on your DVD recorders menu or play a disc then Sky will allow the signal to pass through so you just need your TV on the Sky scart channel for anything to do with Sky or DVD
to stop Sky over-riding you watching the freeview channel then turn scart control off in the Sky menu or press "TV" on the Sky remote, when you press "Sky" the signal is activated again and will turn your TV over (unless scart control is turned off)

[Brer Rabbit]

dvd recorder - scart - Sky VCR input
Sky TV output - scart - TV

if you turn on your DVD recorders menu or play a disc then Sky will allow the signal to pass through so you just need your TV on the Sky scart channel for anything to do with Sky or DVD
to stop Sky over-riding you watching the freeview channel then turn scart control off in the Sky menu or press "TV" on the Sky remote, when you press "Sky" the signal is activated again and will turn your TV over (unless scart control is turned off)

:cheers: managed to get the sky remote to work the tv and freeview aswell, so all in all well chuffed.

Cheers

Paul

[Brer Rabbit]

Is it common for plasma screens to not have an on/off switch as the lg only appears to go to standby and there is no way to turn the power off completely other than switching off at the wall ? I always understood that leaving electrical equipment on standby was quite expensive.

Also assuming it is ok to turn off a plasma at the wall every night :confused: would this affect any recordings that were underway or set on a timer to start at a later time ? ie would having the tv taken out of the dvd recorder/sky/tv loop stop the programme from being recorded ?

Cheers

Paul

[mmace]

TV being off won't affect any recordings
is there a power switch on the back? near where the power cable comes out?

My LCD only has a "soft" power switch (putting it into standby)

[Brer Rabbit]

Had a look around the back and there is no on/off switch at all. Only got the soft switch as you describe to turn to standby. Am I right in thinking that leaving the tv in standby mode uses roughly half the power used when the unit is switched on ?

Why do you think there are no on/off switches anymore...and can I cause any damage to the tv by turning it off at the wall every night (I assume it is better to go to standby before turning off completely?)

Appreciate your help with this

Paul

[PhilEnfield]

If you are concerned, why not consider one of these (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intelligent-TV-PLASMA-Standby-Saver/dp/B001ACBKK6)

Plasmas defintely use more juice than LCDs, but I dont believe they use 50% of power in standby mode.

[Brer Rabbit]

I think I will get one of those, don't know how long it will take by switching off over leaving on standby to get my £20 back though lol.:tup:

[Brer Rabbit]

Another query I'm afraid, not sure if it's a tv, sky or possibly scart problem !

Basically I am really pleased with the new telly (LG32PG60 plasma ) bought a week ago, picture quality is great but occasionally I lose all sound when watching sky and the only way to get it back is to flip over to freeview and then back to sky...switching the sky box off and then back on has no effect.

If anyone has any theories on what the cause of this could be please post below.

Thanks

Paul

[mmace]

not heard of this before, check the scart leads aren't loose

[Brer Rabbit]

Tried that mate, all in correctly.

The problem is very intermittent, the tv has been on sky this evening from 8pm and we lost the sound once at around 9pm...as previously stated this only affects sky and can only be remedied by turning onto freeview briefly and then back to sky. The main problem I can foresee with this is going to arise when I set the timer to record something really important for one of the kids off sky and the sound cuts out half way through playback !!

Looks like the tv might have to go back :(

[Brer Rabbit]

Still getting this weird problem with losing sound on SKY occasionally. Recorded Lewis tonight, half way through playback the sound went off. Checked the end of the recording and no sound at all. Switched Sky box off then on again and sound resumed. Checked the recording and sound was back. The only thing I can think is that there must be a problem with the AV2 channel on the TV maybe?:(:confused:

This doesn't happen when watching or recording on Freeview.

Any ideas please

Paul

[Van Nugent]

I think the problem might be in the Sky box. Have it replaced to see if the problem goes away.

[Brer Rabbit]

I think the problem might be in the Sky box. Have it replaced to see if the problem goes away.

Could well be right there mate as my sky box is one of the really old ones :)
How does one go about changing then and will I have to pay Uncle Rupe' for the priviledge (Can I just pick up a 2nd hand one off ebay or has my card got to be paired with the box ie have to purchase from Sky?)

Thanks for your help

Paul

[Van Nugent]

Phil and other UK folks will tell you. I can't give you the answer. :)

[Brer Rabbit]

Sorry...didn't realise you aren't from around these parts (West Country saying) :laugh:

[Van Nugent]

You can try connecting the Sky box to AV1. If you still have the same audio problem, the Sky box is bad. If you don't, the AV2 on the TV is bad. The Sky box is more likely the problem.

[Van Nugent]

Had a look around the back and there is no on/off switch at all. Only got the soft switch as you describe to turn to standby. Am I right in thinking that leaving the tv in standby mode uses roughly half the power used when the unit is switched on ?

Why do you think there are no on/off switches anymore...and can I cause any damage to the tv by turning it off at the wall every night (I assume it is better to go to standby before turning off completely?)

Appreciate your help with this

Paul- The TV's when in standby mode will consume only a fraction of the power they require when you turn them ON. For example, a 32" TV that might require 120W max to run will only consume 2.5W in standby.

- You don't want to plug an LCD or Plasma TV directly to the wall outlet. Use a surge protector instead. Many LCD/Plasma screens got damaged because of the power surges from bad AC lines.

- You don't want to plug/unplug the TV every time.

[Brer Rabbit]

Thanks for the advice. I have been switching off at the wall socket every night...trying to be a bit "greener" !!
I will leave in standby mode from now on and also purchase a surge protector as recommended.

Appreciate you taking the time to help..I will also try switching from av2 to av1 to see if it makes any difference.

Cheers

Paul

[Van Nugent]

Please keep us informed of what you find out about the problem.

Edit: A bad scart adapter/connector may also be the cause.

[Brer Rabbit]

Please keep us informed of what you find out about the problem.

Edit: A bad scart adapter/connector may also be the cause.

Have just got on to Sky about a new box...I have had the same one since Sky Digital first came in, so the guy on the phone reckons I should be entitled to a free upgrade. He will enquire and is going to give me a call back on Monday...might have to pay £30 for installation though ( to connect two cables !!), we'll see about that:)

I thought I would go down this route first to see if it cures the occasional sound loss problem. To be honest I don't want to fiddle too much with the cables at the back unless absolutely necessary as it took me an age to get everything to work properly in the first place...fluked it I think :laugh:
I still can't fathom how to record from freeview and watch Sky at the same time...it works the other way ie record from Sky on AV2 and watch freeview through the antenna.

My set up is Plasma tv with freeview built in, Sky box (not sky+) and a panasonic DMR EH50 HDD/ DVD recorder.
I have been checking out the set up this evening and it appears that if the dvd recorder is switched off then sky tv comes through on AV1 and AV2 is this correct? I can't seem to get the freeview to come through the recorder, only sky and the four analogue channels. Do you think I have the wiring set up incorrectly (highly unlikely :rolleyes:) or will sky always over ride the freeview signal.

Thanks again for any help

Paul

[Van Nugent]

My set up is Plasma tv with freeview built in, Sky box (not sky+) and a panasonic DMR EH50 HDD/ DVD recorder.
I have been checking out the set up this evening and it appears that if the dvd recorder is switched off then sky tv comes through on AV1 and AV2 is this correct? I can't seem to get the freeview to come through the recorder, only sky and the four analogue channels. Do you think I have the wiring set up incorrectly (highly unlikely :rolleyes:) or will sky always over ride the freeview signal.

Thanks again for any help

PaulIt sounds a bit strange because the external box should appear only on the connection it was connected to. To record from the built-in tuner, you must connect the TV video output to the recorder.

[Brer Rabbit]

It sounds a bit strange because the external box should appear only on the connection it was connected to. To record from the built-in tuner, you must connect the TV video output to the recorder.

I don't suppose there is a completely idiot proof guide to connecting these three pieces of equipment up so that everything works ie scart from a "in"to b "out "etc or is it unlikely that freeview built into a tv can be recorded onto a standalone dvd recorder when a satellite box is also in the circuit.

Getting late now but tomorrow night I will crawl behind the tv with a torch and make a note of the way it is all connected at the moment and post back :tup:

:cheers:

[Van Nugent]

The pdf manual can be downloaded from this page (http://uk.lge.com/products/sidemenu/list/tv%7Cplasmatv_PRD%7CMANU_manu.jhtml).

[Brer Rabbit]

The pdf manual can be downloaded from this page (http://uk.lge.com/products/sidemenu/list/tv%7Cplasmatv_PRD%7CMANU_manu.jhtml).

Thank you :cheers:

I have just made a quick note of the way I have wired up the tv etc...
TV AV1 socket - Scart - Satellite receiver TV Socket
TV AV2 socket - Scart - DVD Recorder AV1 TV socket
TV antenna - coax - DVD Recorder RF out
DVD Recorder RF IN - coax(antenna) cable - to external aerial
Satellite receiver VCR socket - Scart -DVD Recorder AV2 Ext socket
Satellite receiver - satellite cable (coax?) - to external dish

Is there anything blatantly wired incorrectly that might cause the loss of sound problem or explain why I can't record from freeview but I can from analogue or satellite.

I see there is an aerial in socket on the satellite box...do you think I should have something plugged in there :confused:

Cheers

Paul

[Van Nugent]

How's it going, my friend? Did you resolve all the problems you had with this TV? This is a great TV so I'm sure it's just some incorrect connections that can be fixed fairly easily. Do you still have the cut-out audio after changing the box? Sorry I could not help much because I am not familiar with the scart connector on the TV. We don't use scart here. :)

[Brer Rabbit]

How's it going, my friend? Did you resolve all the problems you had with this TV? This is a great TV so I'm sure it's just some incorrect connections that can be fixed fairly easily. Do you still have the cut-out audio after changing the box? Sorry I could not help much because I am not familiar with the scart connector on the TV. We don't use scart here. :)

Sorry for not getting back, I have been checking here every day hoping that some wise soul would be able to find a fault with my wiring set up above which might be causing the problem :D

As you say it is a great tv and even in sd the picture (to my eyes anyway) is superb.

I am currently trying to source a cheap sky+ box as I think the intermittent sound loss problem might be a fault in my current box which is one of the first edition and quite old now. Also the sky+ has got a twin tuner so that you can record one digi channel from the satellite whilst watching another...therefore, hopefully I wouldn't need to work out how to send the freeview signal through my current dvd/hdd recorder ...just a thought, I wonder if a recorder with freeview built in might cure the recording problem ie how to get both the freeview signal and the sky signal going through the recorder so that either can be recorded. Or am I just making it even more complicated lol:)

Appreciate all your help

Regards

Paul

[Van Nugent]

If a recorder has a built-in Freeview tuner, I believe it'll let you select whether to record off the tuner or from the input signal. But I also think cheap recorders don't let you record a signal while watching another. This (http://www.freeviewrecorder.org.uk/) is a good Freeview Recorder site that will give you the info you need.

[Brer Rabbit]

Thanks for the link, I will have a trawl through it later when the kids are tucked up in bed...got to go and play football now :tup:

What I am looking for is a recorder that will give the choice of recording freeview or satellite with the same box.

:beer:

Paul

[Brer Rabbit]

Had a look through, interesting reading :tup: but I don't think it says anywhere whether it is possible to record off a satellite receiver as well as from the built in Freeview...at least I couldn't see it anywhere;)

Might try to google this, I'm sure my brother has got a Sony tv with freeview built in and also a matching Sony dvd/hdd recorder with freeview built in and also Sky satellite...and he can record from whichever source he chooses. I think the problem is (maybe) that my recorder (Panasonic) is an older (2 / 3 years) analogue model and I need to upgrade to one with a digital tuner.....does this make any sense or am I going completely off the rails?

Paul

[Van Nugent]

I have been checking out the set up this evening and it appears that if the dvd recorder is switched off then sky tv comes through on AV1 and AV2 is this correct? I can't seem to get the freeview to come through the recorder, only sky and the four analogue channels. Do you think I have the wiring set up incorrectly (highly unlikely :rolleyes:) or will sky always over ride the freeview signal.What types of video and audio outputs does the Freeview box have and what types of video/audio inputs does the recorder have?

[Brer Rabbit]

What types of video and audio outputs does the Freeview box have and what types of video/audio inputs does the recorder have?

Sorry, I think I might have confused you. The freeview is built in to the tv, not a separate box...will have to get back tomorrow re the second question, the Mrs is engrossed in helping Lewis solve his latest case at the moment and probably wouldn't take too kindly to me turning the tv around to have a look !!

Had a quick gander at Richer Sounds and found this

LG RHT397H Black (DVD Recorder - with MR playback, HDMI, Freeview and 160Gb hard drive)

Might do the trick and should match the tv. Don't know why the typing is coming out in caps (I haven't got caps lock on...must be something to do with the link above)....know as much about pc's as I know about tv setups lol

Paul
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Not come out in caps after all then dohh...time for bed I think

[Brer Rabbit]

Managed to get the freeview coming through the recorder by adding a cheap standalone freeview receiver...ext aerial to freeview receiver then on to tv and scart between freeview receiver and dvd recorder. Only problem is there are only two scart sockets on the rear of the dvd recorder ( need three one for sky in, one for freeview receiver in and one for feed to tv) so have had to add a splitter cable? ie one that goes from one scart on one end to two on the other. It all seems to work, the only slight problem is there is quite bad "ghosting on the recorded material taken from the freeview receiver, sky recording isn't affected.

Might need to play around with the connections a bit to try to improve this? Time will tell if the intermittent sound problems are now cured or not!!

We'll get there in the end :D