Armed Polite Society
Main Forums => The Roundtable => Topic started by: Ben on November 05, 2022, 01:33:24 PM
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So my grandniece is coming to visit next weekend, and I'm thinking about pulling the trigger on a new TV before she gets here. A 65" for sure, but I've been doing a bunch of measuring, and the area that I thought might be too small might not, and I might go 75", since Samsungs of both are discounted at Costco right now, plus I have a bunch of Costco cashback to spend before the end of the year. Anyway....
I always get worried about transporting the TV myself. I have done 55" and smaller TVs in their original packaging both standing upright in the back of my truck and also "semi" laying flat in the back of my 4Runner. Never a problem. In either instance, I pack a ton of moving blankets around them, and in the truck of course, strap them down. I was curious about the laying flat thing with larger TVs, even in their factory packaging, since I guess there can be more stress on the areas where the screen meets the frame, so I hit the gazoogle.
Holy crap, man. Upright vs laying flat is like 1911 vs Glock. I think I'll end up just doing it upright in the back of the truck, up against the cab, with moving blankets everywhere. My main worry whenever I transport in the truck bed is road bumps, which are a lot less cushioned back there than in the cab. Which is why the other way for me would be to fold the rear seats in the 4Runner and shove the box in the back of that (though a 75" might not fit).
Anyway, what do you guys think?
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I think I'm going to let Best Buy deliver my next one. I don't have any way of getting anything larger than a 48" home.
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I think I'm going to let Best Buy deliver my next one. I don't have any way of getting anything larger than a 48" home.
If you go out and buy a 2023 F150 Platinum as your beater truck, you won't have that problem. =)
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If you saw how they ship them…I used to work at Walmart back in college they throw them in the back of a 53 ft trailer with everything else
I bought our 65 home laying flat in my truck bed in its box no issues.
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If you're decently local to the retailer, you might be able to swing free delivery as part of the deal. Even if it's not an advertised perk, most sales depts can throw a few sweeteners in the pot.
If you end up hauling yourself, upright is better. Box and packing are designed for that orientation. Only haul laying down if the box can be place flat with full support. Cushion with a heavy blanket or comforter for a bit of extra insurance.
Brad
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I brought my 75 home laying flat in the back of my F150. It was fine. Took up pretty much the whole 6' bed though.
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I like the way you are using your grandniece's visit to justify the TV you have been wanting to buy for a long time but just couldn't pull the trigger. :)
bob
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I like the way you are using your grandniece's visit to justify the TV you have been wanting to buy for a long time but just couldn't pull the trigger. :)
bob
Me too! =D
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The current prices on 75" tv's are not that much higher than the prices on equivalent quality 65" TVs now; when I bought my Sony several years ago, the price differential was $1400, so I went with the 65.
I also went with a wall mount - safer than setting it on a cabinet - and at the time BestBuy had a "free delivery and installation" special I took advantage of, so no problem (for me) with transport. I saw that in the Geek Squad van, the TV carton was vertical and strapped to the side of the van so it wouldn't fall over. I don't recall seeing any special padding under the box.
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I finally got off my ass and decided to measure the area where I want to put the new TV.
A 65" is going to be perfect.
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Well, delivery problem solved. Costco currently has free shipping plus a free $100 extended warranty if you order online, so I'll just be waiting for a delivery truck next Thursday. My little grandniece will miss out, but it will be incentive for her to come visit again sooner than another year from now. :)
I went with the 75" Neo 85 series. I was actually at the warehouse today doublechecking that the warehouse price wasn't cheaper (it wasn't) and spent a large amount of time standing various distances from the 75" and 65" (my original choice) and decided to go for the humongous one. It is definitely going to be the center piece of the living room. I'm just glad that they went back to the center stand. My 55" has the end legs, and if the 75" one had those (or even the 65" one) I'd have to sink dough into a new TV stand as well, because mine would have been too short. This 75" one is going to have the screen hanging off either side by 3".
I hope this one ends up being good quality, because it's my last TV for a good long while. I won't buy another one until they come out with holo TVs. :laugh:
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I won't buy another one until they come out with holo TVs. :laugh:
https://techcrunch.com/2022/06/07/looking-glass-factory-large-holographic-display/
Brad
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https://techcrunch.com/2022/06/07/looking-glass-factory-large-holographic-display/
Brad
Yeah, that's not what's on Star Trek.
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Yeah, but Mildred wants the other three walls replaced with TVs, Montag...
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Yeah, but Mildred wants the other three walls replaced with TVs, Montag...
=)
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Yeah, but Mildred wants the other three walls replaced with TVs, Montag...
(https://media.tenor.com/un4UXCaukiQAAAAM/stranger-things-fire.gif)
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Well, it was delivered today. I'm glad I had it delivered and pissed that I didn't give up my man card and pay $30 for unboxing and setup. Holy hell. While they are making newer TVs lighter, this size still weighs in at 90lbs, and I did not consider that weight matched to the ginormous screen where I couldn't get any good handholds. It was simply too heavy for me to lift it with one hand from the bottom while the other hand stabilized the top. I would start getting it up in the air, then the giant rectangle would start to wobble and I was scared that I was going to lose balance and the thing would crash down. I couldn't figure out any way to get a two hand hold for lifting without having the thing flip on me or else putting too much pressure on the sides of the screen and busting something.
I was really stuck for a minute there, until I remembered that I had a harbor freight hydraulic lift cart in the shop. I dragged that into the house and put the TV on that. The downside was that the cart was still 8" off the ground when lowered, so I still had to do a balancing act with the TV to lift it that 8". But unlike lifting it onto the entertainment center, I didn't have to go from kneeling to standing, and was able to lift it onto the cart from kneeling. I put a bunch of pillows on the back of the cart for if I slipped. :laugh:
After that, it was easy peasy. I just cranked the cart up even with the entertainment center and scooched the TV over to it. Still, this would have been absolutely worth $30 and being called a girl to have the delivery guys do it. A TV this size is just absolutely unwieldy for one guy.
Meanwhile, I picked up the comparatively light as a feather 55" TV and carried it up the stairs to my bonus room, piece of cake. Weighs half as much as the new one, and I can actually get my arms around it.
As far as the TV:
Unboxing: I was really impressed with the box. I guess for these big TVs, they design the box so you don't have to lift the TV out or else cut up the box. It was almost like origami in reverse. The box was designed to fold open, with tabs everywhere. Including a special fold out section where the stand goes. You fold that out and then slide the stand in the slot and attach it while the TV is still in the styrofoam. Really slick.
As for the stand itself, super heavy duty. The base plate is like 1/8 steel and weighs a good 15lbs. The TV seems to be very stable on the entertainment center. Nevertheless, I'm going to do a wall tie-down for it. There's a spot near the top of the back where you can mount a connecter and then strap the TV onto a wall. Earthquakes a rare here, but still, better safe than sorry.
The picture is amazing, and even my old eyes notice a difference between it and my old Q60 55" (which was amazing itself). It has autosensing for room lighting and type of content playing, which so far seems to work well, but time will tell (especially about blacks and the tendency of moviemakers to make very dark scenes these days).
I was really worried about 75" being too big for the room and the space, based on measuring dimensions before I bought it, but now that it's up there, it doesn't look as overbearing as the tape measure made me think it would be. It's definitely the centerpiece of the living room now, but not ridiculously so.
Setup was a breeze. It found all my HDMI stuff and the CAT6 instantly. It also moved my menus and apps from the old Samsung to this one. I'm a little worried about security and will be digging into submenus to turn some "convenience" stuff off that might be security problems. I've already deactivated the mic.
I'm not super crazy about the updates Samsung screen menu. Instead of just being on the bottom of the screen, it now takes up the whole dang screen. Also it seems to be slower to react than the menu on my old Samsung. Not a super big deal, since I have never been crazy about the Samsung menu anyway, and run my Netflix, Hulu, etc. off my Roku, so I just have things defaulting to that at startup.
Anyways, so far, so good. However the next time I get a TV this big, I'm just paying for unboxing and setup.
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Turn off motion smoothing.
Brad
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Glad that you got it squared away. Yeah, they're lighter than the old CRT TVs, but they're still not featherlight.
I figure when I finally get mine I'll have a friend of mine come over and help me get it set up.
But, let's make sure of something...
This new TV isn't the center of the room.
Steve is the center of the room. Of any room he's in.
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The other advantage to unboxing and setup is they generally take away the packing material so you don't have to deal with it. Our garbage service is persnickety about styrofoam packing: you have to pack in a garbage bag and tie it off so no foam escapes. For electronics, by the time I cut it all up to fit in the bag, that fills up the can for that week, if not into the next week.
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Steve is the center of the room. Of any room he's in.
Well, that goes without saying. :laugh:
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Our garbage service is persnickety about styrofoam packing: you have to pack in a garbage bag and tie it off so no foam escapes. For electronics, by the time I cut it all up to fit in the bag, that fills up the can for that week, if not into the next week.
That's the one thing I don't have to worry about. =D
(https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi.ytimg.com%2Fvi%2F4y0mKdNzdxc%2Fmaxresdefault.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=6ffa5c39ad95af9d7f9799a07eb757c4af550e5d6fd7f89d9bc6b1cd79038472&ipo=images)
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^^^Just be sure to stand upwind from the toxic fumes!
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Another thing about self unboxing, big electronics box on the curb = "Steal Good Stuff Here" sign to thieves!
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Now think about calibrating that TV - there are calibration files you can download and burn to DVD. Calibration definitely improved my picture.
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Steve is the center of the room. Of any room he's in.
All Steve needs now is a full Dolby Atmos sound system. He would appreciate that. Like really really appreciate it. And you're a terrible person if you don't get him one.
Brad
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All Steve needs now is a full Dolby Atmos sound system. He would appreciate that. Like really really appreciate it. And you're a terrible person if you don't get him one.
Brad
Costco does have a Samsung soundbar system with Atmos on sale right now, $350, regularly $600.
Why are you guys spending all my money?!? :mad: :laugh:
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Costco does have a Samsung soundbar system with Atmos on sale right now, $350, regularly $600.
Why are you guys spending all my money?!? :mad: :laugh:
Because Steve can't spend it after you are gone.
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All Steve needs now is a full Dolby Atmos sound system. He would appreciate that. Like really really appreciate it. And you're a terrible person if you don't get him one.
Brad
No. Not all. He also needs a nice, new comfortable power recline couch.
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Costco does have a Samsung soundbar system with Atmos on sale right now, $350, regularly $600.
Why are you guys spending all my money?!? :mad: :laugh:
Because we can, kind Sir. Because we can.
Besides, if you really loved Steve, you wouldn't make him suffer through a sissified pansy-ass soundbar setup. Eight grand is a pittance for your best pal.
(https://images.crutchfieldonline.com/ImageHandler/trim/3000/1950/products/2021/19/022/g022RXA8ABL-F.jpg)
(https://images.crutchfieldonline.com/ImageHandler/trim/3000/1950/products/2022/26/700/g700R70512B-F.jpg)
Brad
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No. Not all. He also needs a nice, new comfortable power recline couch.
I think he needs both.
Brad
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I mean clearly, Steve deserves a THX certified Atmos capable system. Preferably one that requires an aux gen when it powers up.
That said, I got the matching Vizio Atmos soundbar system when I got the new TV last year, and it is surprisingly good to listen to, and Atmos is actually really cool. A good soundbar will do a lot for your experience at a good price. The new trend of wireless speakers and sub make setup really nice as well.
My soundbar has little motorized speakers on the end of the soundbar so when you select an Atmos source, you can see them whirr up to the ceiling unveiling the Atmos logos, and you know *expletive deleted*it is about to get real. It's actually really fun, like a home version of the THX sound in 1990's movie theaters.
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I mean clearly, Steve deserves a THX certified Atmos capable system. Preferably one that requires an aux gen when it powers up.
That said, I got the matching Vizio Atmos soundbar system when I got the new TV last year, and it is surprisingly good to listen to, and Atmos is actually really cool. A good soundbar will do a lot for your experience at a good price. The new trend of wireless speakers and sub make setup really nice as well.
My soundbar has little motorized speakers on the end of the soundbar so when you select an Atmos source, you can see them whirr up to the ceiling unveiling the Atmos logos, and you know *expletive deleted*it is about to get real. It's actually really fun, like a home version of the THX sound in 1990's movie theaters.
I think I can be talked into the Atmos soundbar. My hearing has degraded too much to make anything over 500 bucks a worthwhile investment. Honestly, I'm probably missing a good part of the visuals on the new TV with my aging eyes.
I had a soundbar two TVs ago, with a wireless woofer or whatever they call the big speaker, but didn't get one with the most previous TV, and was fine with the onboard sound, other than limited options for trying to make voices clear over background noise. For that alone, I'll consider an Atmos sounbar if the latest generation allows setting adjustments like that.
This TV says that it has built in Atmos that activates depending on what I'm watching. I don't quite know what that means and haven't researched it yet.
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That said, I got the matching Vizio Atmos soundbar system when I got the new TV last year, and it is surprisingly good to listen to, and Atmos is actually really cool. A good soundbar will do a lot for your experience at a good price. The new trend of wireless speakers and sub make setup really nice as well.
This in spades. It's is astonishing how much even modest sound reinforcement can add to the experience. If nothing else, a good pair of headphones, or even earbuds.
The visceral impact of well-engineered sound thorough a decent system can elevate good movies to great, and great movies to "DAMN!!" It's amazing how little you can spend and still have a really nice system, including a properly brutal subwoofer. With a little patience and some sale-watching, you could easily put together a kick ass system for under $1500. A little luck and a clearance sale or two, maybe even under a grand. Like dogmush said, there are also soundbar-based systems out with wireless surround speakers which are amazingly good.
Brad
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We have a Samsung soundbar on the 75" Samsung TV in the living room. Both my wife and I are hard of hearing, especially at the higher frequencies. The soundbar has a 'clear voice' setting that really helps us with the dialog. We also have captions on at all times.
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I think I can be talked into the Atmos soundbar. My hearing has degraded too much to make anything over 500 bucks a worthwhile investment. Honestly, I'm probably missing a good part of the visuals on the new TV with my aging eyes.
Don't discount the sound quality improvements of a good soundbar or system. Onboard sound on most TV's is, at best, mediocre. We have three TV's and I struggle with all of them when using onboard sound. Muddled mids make it difficult to understand conversations. Higher volume only make it worse as it's just louder, not better. Like Millcreek mentioned, the modest equalization capabilities of most midrange soundbar systems really can make a big difference.
Brad
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Well, a little over a week in, and I'm really glad I got the 75". As I had mentioned, just measuring before I bought it made me think, "What the hell are you doing? This is ultra-ginormous and too big for your room!" Then when I set it up I said, "Well, it's kinda big, but it's not really that bad." Then yesterday as I was walking through the living room, I thought to myself, "You know, this is actually just right." Funny how it shrunk. :laugh:
The picture is great. I can't tell a big difference between it and my older Samsung, but that one is not even four years old. About the only difference is that this one is Neo and that one is not. Anyway, my recommendation to anyone else who may be waffling that a new TV they're looking at may be too big, it probably won't be. I guess they're kinda like gun safes. =)
I went ahead and got the soundbar that was on sale at Costco. I think the sound is better, but honestly, both this TV and my old one have really good onboard sound. With my Samsung two TVs ago, getting the soundbar (and it was a cheap one) made a HUGE difference. With this TV, it's harder to tell. The room does "fill" with sound better, and I think that turning on the speech settings has made voices clearer. Oh, and this Samsung soundbar is also cool because it's designed so that you can set it on a Samsung TV's (of the same generation) stand, and it fits EXACTLY into that space vertically so it almost looks like it's built in to the TV. Otherwise I would have had to mount it on the wall above the TV, so this was a slick option.
I'm still not sure about Atmos. I'm not sure if I can tell, and it may be because I haven't listened to the right content. I watched Top Gun Maverick the other day on Netflix, but couldn't tell if I was getting Atmos or not, other than the TV and soundbar were telling me that it was on. Yes, I did plug into the eARC HDMI port. Maybe I'm expecting too much of a difference?
A related and really stupid question: If I'm streaming through a non-Atmos Roku, would that affect Atmos? Or will Atmos always activate as long as I'm getting sound through the TV and soundbar, regardless if I'm watching content through my older non-Atmos Roku or DVDs through my older blue ray player?
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A related and really stupid question: If I'm streaming through a non-Atmos Roku, would that affect Atmos? Or will Atmos always activate as long as I'm getting sound through the TV and soundbar, regardless if I'm watching content through my older non-Atmos Roku or DVDs through my older blue ray player?
Are you using the soundbar as your input selector, or are you switching inputs at the TV with sound backfeeding from TV to sounbar?
Brad
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Are you using the soundbar as your input selector, or are you switching inputs at the TV with sound backfeeding from TV to sounbar?
Brad
To copy perd:
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I plugged the soundbar into the TV, where it was immediately recognized and configured to use both the TV and soundbar combined, as Samsung apparently intended for matching Samsung components. It comes on everytime the TV comes on and shows Atmos active on its display.
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Lol, okay.
Are the Roku box and DVD player connected to inputs on the TV, or on the soundbar?
Brad
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. . . The soundbar has a 'clear voice' setting that really helps us with the dialog . . .
You know there's something SERIOUSLY wrong with the way they're making movies these days when many manufacturers are putting in hardware so viewers can HEAR dialog over the background sound effects and (mostly horrible) music the directors are demanding.
Well, a little over a week in, and I'm really glad I got the 75". As I had mentioned, just measuring before I bought it made me think, "What the hell are you doing? This is ultra-ginormous and too big for your room!" Then when I set it up I said, "Well, it's kinda big, but it's not really that bad." Then yesterday as I was walking through the living room, I thought to myself, "You know, this is actually just right." Funny how it shrunk. :laugh:
I bought a 65" Sony 4k several years ago. At the time, the 75" version cost around $1400 more, so I went with the 65". At the store, my mother (she invited herself along to "help" me shop. :laugh: ) said even THAT was too big for my living room, but once it was installed - she came around much like you did.
Was at Best Buy the other day and the price differential between 65" and 75" has shrunk considerably, so were I buying today, I'd get the 75" just like you did. (The 85" TVs look good, too . . . but not only do they cost more, they'd require some inconvenient adjustments to the location.)
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Lol, okay.
Are the Roku box and DVD player connected to inputs on the TV, or on the soundbar?
Brad
TV
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My guess is the TV is feeding Atmos-encoded signals to the soundbar regardless of incoming signal quality/quantity from a particular component. That maintains the highest possible TV/soundbar link quality.
Unfortunately, the TV's capability is likely being neutered by the Roku box and possibly the blu-ray player. If they aren't capable of decoding and passing Dolby Atmos signals, then the TV has nothing to pass through to the soundbar. The TV/soundbar link may be Atmos, but the source audio is of lesser quality. Consider it this way... If you watch an episode of Airwolf on your new TV, it still looks and sounds like an 80s TV show. You're watching the show on an Atmos-capable 4K TV, but the content itself isn't natively Atmos audio and 4K resolution.
The Roku also adds an extra layer of Maybe due to inherent limitations of provider applications (Netflix, Prime, HBO, etc). Even if you get a spiffy new Atmos-capable Roku box, the provider app must also support Atmos. Fortunately, most Roku apps are at least 5.1 surround capable, and many can now do Atmos with the number continually growing. Upgrading your Roku to match your new equipment's capability is a simple fix. Better yet, WalMart has the Roku Ultra on sale for $70.
Depending on your blu-ray player's mfg/model, you may be able to get Atmos capability with a firmware update. You should be able to access the update feature in Settings. If your player is blu-ray only, not 4K, consider upgrading. Not only will you gain the ability to play 4K content, most mid-range and better players do an impressively good job of upscaling older content for viewing on a 4K TV.
Finally, don't forget to turn off motion smoothing.
Brad
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Yeah, I was thinking about upgrading the Roku after seeing it on sale for the 70 smackers at a number of places. The DVD player is getting a little long in the tooth as well. I was already doing some research on the multi-format players, since I'm always seeing European region versions of DVDs I want for like half of the price of US region ones, or only seeing DVDs I want in non US region format.
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The beauty of 4k/UHD blu-rays is they are region-free.
Brad
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The beauty of 4k/UHD blu-rays is they are region-free.
Brad
Now that's information I can use. I did not know that.
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Now that's information I can use. I did not know that.
Why? You going to transport it from region to region? :rofl:
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Why? You going to transport it from region to region? :rofl:
How else would I do it?
Also, bummer, apparently Samsung stopped making blue ray players in 2019. Looks like one of the Sonys is a good bang for the buck right now though. A new player might be a sooner rather than later thing, if others start following Samsung's path. Not all of us live where we can reliably stream 4K. I'm well below what appears the 25mbps recommended bandwidth.
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I have the Panasonic DP-UB820 and have been extremely happy with it. Spendy, but I was able to combine Best Buy points and an Open Box discount so it ended up about the cost of a much lower-spec unit. Probably massive overkill for your application, but it's currently on sale for $100 off and there are always a couple of Open-Box options.
Whichever unit you get, be sure to use either the included cable or a respected brand (Monoprice, Belkin, Bluejeans, etc). 4K uses a ton of bandwidth so crappy cables are a sure fire ways to cause problems. Fortunately, HDMI 2.0 spec cables are dirt cheap and 2.1 prices are dropping rapidly.
Brad
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Why are you using a Roku? Is the TV not wifi enabled? I stream straight to the TV from the net, and from the TV eARC out to the soundbar.
As for Atmos, it made a huge difference in my room. Early on I watched a movie that had a helicopter come from behind the camera, overhead. And off into the distance, and I could hear every aspect change as it went over.
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Why are you using a Roku? Is the TV not wifi enabled? I stream straight to the TV from the net, and from the TV eARC out to the soundbar.
I'd probably still go Roku. Much more responsive with a superior user interface. I've yet to experience a baked-in app that wasn't slow and/or clunky compared to the Roku. Roku seems better about updates, too.
Brad
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Why are you using a Roku? Is the TV not wifi enabled? I stream straight to the TV from the net, and from the TV eARC out to the soundbar.
Well, I can probably try it on this one, but I'm not a fan of at least the past iterations of the Samsung menu. Maybe a one off, but on the old TV, I would get general lag after I hit a button, and annoyingly, youtube tv would constantly hang like it was buffering. When I experimented switching to the Roku, that went away, and everything ran smooth and slick, so I've been on the Roku ever since.
Maybe they improved the menu interface over the last few years.
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Yeah that would be annoying.
My Vizio built in is pretty nice. Turn on TV, pick app I want from home screen, watch the TV. It's nicer than the Roku box in the man cave by far. But if the built-in OS sucks, I can see running an extra streamer. Just gotta make sure the non Atmos stick is actually forwarding the sound info.
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Yeah that would be annoying.
My Vizio built in is pretty nice. Turn on TV, pick app I want from home screen, watch the TV.
That's how the Samsung one is supposed to work, and your description is the same menu that I have. It's actually laid out nicely. Like I said, I might give the onboard menu a try on this new TV and maybe they fixed things. I recall when googling the issue, that despite the praise for Samsung TVs overall, there were lots of complaints about the menu functionality.
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Maybe they improved the menu interface over the last few years.
They haven't.
Brad
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Just as an FYI . . . stopped at Best Buy today. They had a LOT of TVs in stock, stacked everywhere they could possibly cram them in to the store. Most of the cartons were standing on end so as to take up less floor space. So they must all be packed pretty securely in the cartons.
I've been to BB right after thanksgiving quite a few times over the years, and I've never seen the showroom floor this packed with inventory. If they don't do a real bang-up business selling big screen TVs between now and Christmas, I think they'll have some awesome sales in Q1 of 2023.
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'I think they'll have some awesome sales in Q1 of 2023."
That's what I'm hoping for!
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Just saw this...
"Also, bummer, apparently Samsung stopped making blue ray players in 2019."
Well that's unfortunate. I was planning on getting a Blue Ray player when I finally get the new TV, and I was planning on keeping it all in the family with the Samsung TV and Sound system.
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Well that's unfortunate. I was planning on getting a Blue Ray player when I finally get the new TV, and I was planning on keeping it all in the family with the Samsung TV and Sound system.
Yeah, that was my plan since Samsung components and remotes all integrate together so well. Anyways, the Sony 4K player just arrived last night, so I'll hook it up this evening and see how seamless (or not) it is.
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Yeah, that was my plan since Samsung components and remotes all integrate together so well. Anyways, the Sony 4K player just arrived last night, so I'll hook it up this evening and see how seamless (or not) it is.
Sounds like the sound bar defaulted to eARC so you should be good. Plug and play. At most, you might have to toggle on eARC for the 4K player's specific input. If you're not familiar with eARC (enhanced Audio Return Channel), it's the way the TV sends audio back to the sound bar via HDMI cable. With eARC, audio signals sent to any TV input are rerouted to the sound bar rather than played through the TV speakers.
As for the player, some don't detect to HDR/Dolby Vision video capability (presuming your TV is so equipped). They sometimes don't detect 4K display capability, either, defaulting to some lesser resolution. You might check both settings to be sure.
Also be prepared for 4K discs to have longer load times. I've had them take anywhere from 20 second to almost a minute depending on disc menu complexity.
Finally, be very careful handling 4K discs. Spindle hole and edges only, please. 4K blu-ray data density makes discs hella sensitive to surface imperfections - scratches, smears, smudges, etc.. Wiping your booger hooks all over the disc is a surefire way to get read errors.
*edit to add* Once you get the player working and connected to the interwebz, do a firmware update. Probably in your "System" settings. Usually only takes a minute or two.
Brad
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Okay, so...
Update, dammit. We want an update!
Brad
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Okay, so...
Update, dammit. We want an update!
Brad
I got distracted with other stuff and haven't hooked up the new roku or dvd player yet. I did decide to pay the extra $5/mo on stupid Netflix (at least for a while) for the 4K, since they have 15mb as the recommended bandwidth for theirs, and my 10mb connection usually runs 16-18.
I just started watching a German Netflix Original, "King of Stonk", that is 4K and Atmos. I think I see a difference with the 4K. I definitely know that Atmos is working (at least through the TV - I'm using the TV menu for Netflix just now). I must have a half dozen times now said, "What the hell was that?!?", paused the show because I thought I heard something behind me in the house, and it turned out to be scene background noise from the video. :rofl:
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Everything is hooked up now. The Sony DVD player ended up being just as plug and play as the Samsung. The only difference is that the TV didn't configure for Sony remote commands, so I need to use that remote. Atmos is definitely working through the newer Roku, which runs off the Samsung remote.
I still can't tell for sure if I'm seeing a big difference in 4K with my old man eyes. The old TV was 4K too, but I never activated 4K on any of my services (I suppose some stuff I watch on youtube is 4K, but I never paid attention before). I've only started looking for 4K stuff now, and have still not paid the upcharge to 4K on Youtube TV. I also don't own any 4K DVDs, but just this morning splurged for the 4K LOTR discs. I have the older blue ray set, but have been really impressed with Atmos, and with LOTR being one of my favorite movies, figured this should be my first DVD upgrade.
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I still can't tell for sure if I'm seeing a big difference in 4K with my old man eyes. The old TV was 4K too, but I never activated 4K on any of my services (I suppose some stuff I watch on youtube is 4K, but I never paid attention before).
Doubtful you've ever seen any true 4K content on your home screens. Until very recently, like last month, Youtube 4K content was restricted to paid subscribers only. Vids stamped 4K would automatically downconvert to HD unless you were a Premium subscriber. Plus, you needed a 4K-compatible player to view them, which your old Roku wasn't.
Next is the issue of some 4K YouTube videos only being 4K in the technical sense. Creators film and edit in HD, then upconvert to 4K for uploading. Creators who weren't into gaming resolution numbers for view counts often choose to stick with HD anyway, not only due to equipment costs and performance demands associated with filming, editing, and storing true 4K content, but also because YouTube's compression algorithm mutes a fair bit of 4K's goodness.
Your eyes are going to bug out when you start LOTR. It is one of the top five 4K presentations available, both video and audio. Truly reference-level in every way. Go ahead and pop for Top Gun: Maverick, too. You can thank me later.
Also, have you turned off motion smoothing?
Brad
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"Also, have you turned off motion smoothing?"
That sounds like a really, REALLY personal question, but whatever... :rofl:
Why would you want to turn motion smoothing off?
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Also, have you turned off motion smoothing?
Brad
It's still set to auto. When I have some time, I'll play with it, though from reading it seems to be kinda content specific - like good for sports, bad for movies?
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Why would you want to turn motion smoothing off?
It's ostensibly for minimizing image jitter and digital artifacts during periods of high screen activity. Used discretely and in moderation, it can be a good thing. Unfortunately manufacturers insist on turning it to 11 by default. Overuse imparts unnatural smoothness and a waxy appearance, the "Soap Opera Effect" which makes action artificially fluid and erases fine detail. Cheap sets and no-name house brands also use it to mask noise and artifacts from weaker processing engines.
I can't stand it and usually disable it completely. Some folks prefer it on just a bit, but no one enjoys when it's set to "Kill" and everything looks like plastic.
Brad
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Your eyes are going to bug out when you start LOTR.
Holy crap dude, you weren't kidding. I just watched The Fellowship yesterday. That's pretty amazing. I had also bought a 4K copy of Casino Royale, and the difference was notable.
Also, and I don't know if it was the Atmos DVD, my Atmos TV/Soundbar or a combination, but this was the first time I was able to clearly understand everything Sauron said without the aid of closed captioning. Previously I have owned the standard and Blue Ray DVD sets. If I hadn't already moved the old TV and DVD player upstairs, it would have been neat to do a side by side viewing of my original LOTR set with this new one.
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Also, and I don't know if it was the Atmos DVD, my Atmos TV/Soundbar or a combination, but this was the first time I was able to clearly understand everything Sauron said without the aid of closed captioning.
That's the sound quality part I championed previously. Integrated TV speakers are usually a giant ball of suck, a conglomeration of audio compromises which seldom fail to disappoint. A dedicated audio system, even a modest one, elevates the experience considerably.
Glad you're enjoying it, but more important, does Steve like it?
Brad
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Glad you're enjoying it, but more importantly, does Steve like it?
Actually, Atmos + Steve is kind of a pain in the ass. He keeps thinking there are intruders in the house or something. :laugh:
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We've got a 75" Samsung on the way to our house now. Cost was the same delivered as from Costco, so I'll let someone else be responsible for transporting it.
This will replace the 32" 720p TV we've had since about 2008.
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We've got a 75" Samsung on the way to our house now. Cost was the same delivered as from Costco, so I'll let someone else be responsible for transporting it.
This will replace the 32" 720p TV we've had since about 2008.
Good move buying it now. I was at Costco yesterday, and actually said "Goddammit!" pretty loud when I rolled by the TV section to see that mine is now $200 cheaper (and it was "on sale" when I bought it a few weeks ago). C'est la vie. =)
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Good move buying it now. I was at Costco yesterday, and actually said "Goddammit!" pretty loud when I rolled by the TV section to see that mine is now $200 cheaper (and it was "on sale" when I bought it a few weeks ago). C'est la vie. =)
https://customerservice.costco.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/628/~/price-adjustment---costco.com-orders
If it's within 30 days, they might help you out!
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https://customerservice.costco.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/628/~/price-adjustment---costco.com-orders
If it's within 30 days, they might help you out!
Good to know, though I paid for it on 10NOV. I don't know how long the price drop has been in effect, but I'm guessing it started 31 days from my purchase. :rofl: