BigBad64 Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 At present I have a standard 68cm 4:3 TEAC analog TV with Foxtel Digital (Satellite) and a standard VCR/DVD combo unit connected. I'm looking to upgrade to a 106cm Widescreen TV and need advice on what sort of equipment to start looking for. I tape a lot of soccer from Foxtel onto the VCR, and my wife and I tape a number of shows from FTA TV such as Law & Order, NYPD Blue & The Sopranos, and watch them when it suits us. Often we are watching a tape that we have recorded whilst recording something else on a separate VCR. We watch the occasional DVD, but mostly we watch what we've recorded via VCR. With the new set up I would obviously like to be able to record these FTA shows and watch them back in Widescreen. I need advice on what set up would suit my above viewing habits. Would a 106cm plasma with a PVR with twin tuners be the way to go? SD? HD? I'm fairly new to this area so be gentle with the jargon. I would say that my wife would think I was dreaming if I wanted to spend over $3000, and this purchase will probably be after the tax return comes back in about July/August this year. Can I get something decent to satisfy my requirements for this sort of budget? I like to buy name brands if possible as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aztec Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 At present I have a standard 68cm 4:3 TEAC analog TV with Foxtel Digital (Satellite) and a standard VCR/DVD combo unit connected.I'm looking to upgrade to a 106cm Widescreen TV and need advice on what sort of equipment to start looking for. I tape a lot of soccer from Foxtel onto the VCR, and my wife and I tape a number of shows from FTA TV such as Law & Order, NYPD Blue & The Sopranos, and watch them when it suits us. Often we are watching a tape that we have recorded whilst recording something else on a separate VCR. We watch the occasional DVD, but mostly we watch what we've recorded via VCR. With the new set up I would obviously like to be able to record these FTA shows and watch them back in Widescreen. I need advice on what set up would suit my above viewing habits. Would a 106cm plasma with a PVR with twin tuners be the way to go? SD? HD? I'm fairly new to this area so be gentle with the jargon. I would say that my wife would think I was dreaming if I wanted to spend over $3000, and this purchase will probably be after the tax return comes back in about July/August this year. Can I get something decent to satisfy my requirements for this sort of budget? I like to buy name brands if possible as well. Hi Bigbad, if you are not looking to buy until July/August you should probably ask this question late June. Do some reading through various threads here (starting with the stickies) in the meantime and you may find you don't even need to ask the question. Viewing distance and enironment conditions will also affect your decision, as does your budget. A quick answer would be, a SD plasma (probably Panasonic) with twin-tuner SD PVR (plenty to choose from). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBad64 Posted January 24, 2007 Author Share Posted January 24, 2007 Aztec, will do and thanks for the advice. Does it matter that a lot of the FTA programs say "HD" in their description, if you only have an SD set and tuner? The TV would be about 4 metres away from the couch as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoody1 Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Aztec, will do and thanks for the advice.Does it matter that a lot of the FTA programs say "HD" in their description, if you only have an SD set and tuner? The TV would be about 4 metres away from the couch as well. no it does not matter, although you can weigh up the debate yourself on the virtues of hd or sd here 4m is long enough away that you might regret not buying the 50' - of course budget needs to come into it unfortunately! still better than the crt! look at dvdr's with hdd - i just got the pana dmrex75 and its great for me. i record all the soccer from fox also - its great to set timers a week in advance as well as the foxtel autotune so i never miss a game! - and you can watch a recording while recording something else, or even use timeslip and watch the same program you are recording to edit out the ads. read up all the threads on hd and sd tv's, and the pvr-dvd thread also and ask lots of questions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBad64 Posted January 24, 2007 Author Share Posted January 24, 2007 Thanks hoody1. I checked out that first thread you suggested and can't believe all the varying opinions on SD vs HD and how serious everybody gets about it. Just when you think you've settled on something good someone else rubbishes it. Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBad64 Posted February 5, 2007 Author Share Posted February 5, 2007 Re the DVD-R with HDD, do I really need one or will my existing VCR play Foxtel recordings back in WS? I gather the optimum set up (if budget will allow) is for a twin tuner PVR for taping the FTA and a DVD-R with HDD for the Foxtel? Also, if I do get a twin tuner PVR, is an in-built HD Tuner in the TV then of any value? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mich1503559502 Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Re the DVD-R with HDD, do I really need one or will my existing VCR play Foxtel recordings back in WS?I gather the optimum set up (if budget will allow) is for a twin tuner PVR for taping the FTA and a DVD-R with HDD for the Foxtel? Also, if I do get a twin tuner PVR, is an in-built HD Tuner in the TV then of any value? your VCR will technically play recordings back in widescreen, but at very low resolution. VCRs cant really tell the difference between 4:3 and 16:9, whatever you feed it (which will essentially be a squashed 16:9 signal) is what it will record. a PVR (ie. one that has a digital tuner only, which is what most are) wont be able to record foxtel, so you will need a dvd/hdd recorder. until recently most were analog only, however there are a few that now have digital and analog tuners in them, so you can record digital FTA aswell as foxtel via analog or via the AV inputs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inego1503560167 Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Of course, no-one's mentioned Foxtel iQ as your option for recording - basically a Foxtel box plus PVR to record from Foxtel all-in-one. But you don't own the box, and the PQ is standard foxtel. In a sense, yes, a DVD-R for foxtel plus a PVR for FTA is what you're after for optitimum flexibility and PQ. None of the DVD-Rs have HD tuners (although some do have SD). Many suggest that the HD PVRs are still buggy, and are sticking with SD PVRs (such as the Toppy) at this stage. In which case, the inbuilt HD tuner has some value for those few HD shows, although you could only record to SD on your PVR (which is still pretty good). If you did go with an HD PVR then, no, there is little value in the inbuilt tuner, if your wife and/or others using the system can sort through all the components. I'm about to jump to a 106cm (already have a toppy), but have come home to find my babysitting parents watching analogue FTA with the TV speakers.....in which case an inbuilt tuner and speakers may sometimes make sense..... Cheers Kent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBad64 Posted February 5, 2007 Author Share Posted February 5, 2007 Thanks Kent. I think initially the budget will just stretch to a 106cm plasma and a twin tuner PVR. The Foxtel IQ is another $14.95 a month and I'd rather not keep on increasing ongoing monthly fees. I'll have to put up with recording Foxtel (EPL Soccer) on the VCR until I can then afford to add a DVD-R. The quality will probably look a bit crappy like you say but as long as it's in WS I'll get by for a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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