It's a Sony

It indeed is a Sony. However it wasn't the first choice... 

Ever since the old TV blew up, it was a struggle to get a new one. I thought asking the Twitter followers would be helpful, so I brought it up. I usually don't bring up stuff as expensive as this to public because I tend to keep that stuff private. Unfortunately I know NOTHING about TVs nowadays. LCDs? Plasmas? LEDs? Woosh! It went all over my head.



I was researching through Google and asking on Twitter. A good combination, except whenever somebody suggested something I went off-track of my search and looked at the new option ^^;

Yuuichi-kun and RadiantDreamer suggested LEDs, but I don't want to spend that much. They were also the first few who suggested LCD. LCD was my first choice because of the old problem that Plasmas used to have; burn-in images, and short life time. However as I was researching plasmas, I've learned that the old misconceptions have been fixed now. Not only that, but Plasmas are much cheaper than LCDs! So with the help of FatB, I followed through the plasma route.

So I looked it up, asked questions to FatB many, many times, read reviews and even looked at prices. I decided on the 42" Panasonic plasma. I found a cheaper price at Visions.ca, but I wanted to get it from Best Buy so I can get the price match. So even though it was a website printout, Best Buy accepted my price match. So I got a good price and since I wasn't sure if the TV could fit in my car, I asked it to be delivered but also to get the old bulky TV to be picked up.

Then the drama begins... TV was delivered on Friday, January 8th. One guy came and delivered it... I wondered if he'll be strong enough to pick up the old TV, I wouldn't mind helping... Except they never got an order to pick up the old TV. The guy claimed it was a different company, yet the receipt says it's the same company! I told him to check, and he called his boss and then just left... I am pissed off at this point. I drove right away to where I bought the TV from since Best Buy don't pick up their phones apparently.Of course, the problem was I was so enraged I forgot to bring the receipt and my wallet! Once again anger just took over and it made me clumsy... Thankfully Best Buy were able to clear it up and the next day the same guy from the same company with two other people came by and picked up the old TV. So now I'm free to enjoy the new TV.

I was finally able to play Bayonetta, because the TV blew up the night I got it.

I was happy. The TV was bright, crisp and clear! I really loved the colours and the sound wasn't as bad as I've heard on these new types of TV. Games looked great and movies looked good too. Unfortunately, just as Chun said on Twitter... She and her husband weren't satisfied with her first TV and had to return it. I was feeling the same... As you can see in the picture below, the TV is pretty much like a 42" mirror. I had too much lighting in the room; even at minimum lighting, it still reflects.

I thought I could be fine with it since it was such a hassle already, but it was such a "glaring" problem... At first I looked up many alternatives to make it less reflective, such as an anti-glare spray and a screen cover/protector. Unfortunately that might just cost me more on this already expensive TV. I guess I shouldn't have gone cheap. If I spend just a bit more money then I could have one with the anti-reflection filter. Alas, that sold out already at Best Buy. So I had to exchange it. I can't live with it. Time to research again... This time with the help of my brother. He suggested the 46" Sony with 120Hz refresh rate, while I looked at the 40" Sony with 240Hz refresh rate; both at the same price. The table was made for a 42" TV.

I bought that table real cheap at Wal-Mart, but it was really hard to make, and it was definitely not an Ikea quality. My brother and his girlfriend pretty much made it. I was too dumb to make it. So I was worried if I get a 46", it won't fit this table. I measured again but the size is only 10cm difference and any of the LCD choices was lighter than this plasma. So now it was my choice what to pick. One was more "eco-friendly" while the other had better features and refresh rate. In the end... size matters, and I chose the 46" "eco-friendly" TV from Sony.

But before I returned the plasma, I played Bayonetta one more time on the brightest setting!

So the next Thursday my brother helped me return the TV and I was hoping to get the new TV right there and then. Unfortunately the last one sold an hour before we came... Sigh... Another wait. It felt like forever, but the next Tuesday, we picked it up and installed it with a slight problem because the stand seems funny. But I think I'm finally satisfied with this choice.

Yay Sony again! Do you believe in the Sony Timer?

 Do you trust Sony? Would you buy an extended warranty for Sony products? They're supposed to be the best, right?

So far I haven't had any problems with it after more than a week. Some pictures do look strange, but probably because I don't have an HD feed and I'm not too sure how to set up the pictures properly ^^;

First thing I did after getting the TV was to expand my HD movies library! I got the Top o Nerae Gattai movie aka Gunbuster/Diebuster movies, Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder, and Up. The Bayonetta case was around the same spot, so I just included it in ^^

I forgot the first Top o Nerae/Gunbuster was in 4:3 format. There were a lot of cuts in the movie though... I've always loved anime Blu-Rays after watching the Paprika Blu-Ray. They look so good! Now with the HD TV, they look even better! Hopefully future anime Blu-Rays will be as good or even better than these.

Yes... they look better! *drool*

I'm really loving Gunbuster again... Maybe I'll go watch the OVAs again soon. I wasn't completely satisfied with those cuts in the movie. They even barely included the Gainax Bounce! What's up with that!? They had a great extra too, where the second Top o Nerae cast does commentaries for the first movie while the first Top o Nerae cast does one for the second movie. Unfortunately they didn't include English subtitles for these... That's too bad. I really need to learn Japanese again...

I also bought a couple of new cables; HDMI and a component cable. The HDMI was for the PS3 and I didn't realize it connects both video and sound... I was struggling to figure out how to make the screen fits from the DVD player because it didn't seem to give me the optimal picture. So I asked around again; RadiantDreamer and FatB and a few people (whom I forgot, sorry!) answered and told me that component cable would definitely help. It really did! Not only did I clear a plug for my composite cables, but the DVD player connected perfectly with the TV! These cables are the cheap kind by the way. I know I shouldn't go cheap, but they're only cables :P

The stuff that was on top of the old TV had to be moved unfortunately... The center speaker won't fit properly and it would block the motion sensor on the TV. You heard me right, "motion sensor on the TV". If there are no movement within the set time (I set it at 30 minutes), the TV will turn off by itself! It's perfect for me actually because sometimes I fall asleep when I play console games ^^; Damn old age...

Some smaller figures should fit on top of this TV though... The Meiko puchi nendo seems to fit ok. I wonder if it's save to put it on top... Or maybe I'll put it on the table (in the red circled area). Definitely need to clean up the area first, but I've been lazy and doing nothing but "test" the TV ^^;

Well that's my adventures in getting this TV... It was more of a hassle than I thought it'd be. At least I'll have better pictures this time around. I'm connecting the computer to the TV too now. Looks pretty good as I'm getting tired of sitting in front of the computer to watch anything. And for sure I'll have more fun watching anamorphic anime now! It's just a matter of what I want to watch! If only this stupid ringing in my ear would stop... Sigh... Nothing's ever perfect, is it? Oh well... it's バヨネッタイム！

So Long, My Gargantuan Friend...

BZZZZTTT! Poof! Those were the death knell of our TV in the living room on Tuesday night. It just happened so fast. One moment we were watching the hockey game, the next it was smoking... The picture completely disappeared and only scrambled lines left, so we turned it off. Then smoke started to come out. I frantically fan the smoke with a nearby magazine so that it won't set off the sprinkler system. One dead TV was enough for that night...

Picture somewhat related and not related... Will elaborate further on it at the end of this post.



So here is what it will look like last before it gets recycled when the delivery truck shows up. It was a 53" rear video projector television made by Sony. So when I say "gargantuan", I mean it! Though I don't really call it a friend except in the post title ^^;

This TV has been with us for 10 years now, at the end of 1999 to be exact. I remember it very well because everyone else was panicking for our technology when the Y2K hits, while we bought a big screen TV... It was a floor model, so we got quite a discount on it. We also took the seller's protection plan since it is a floor model. The warranty has long expired now, but the offer was that if nothing happened to the TV for the length of their extended warranty they'll offer something for the amount of what we paid. So we got a VCR/DVD combo for my parents.

Of course my mom wasn't too thrilled that we got something so monstrous, especially since our old house was leaning one way. We placed it at the far end of the house where it leans the most... We joked so much that it will probably make the house lean even further.

Wiring's a mess back here... Only my brother knows what's going on in here... Does it remind of you Lain?

Eventually we moved to a bigger house and so we had more room for this TV. So we have better set up for it as well.

Wow it was actually made in 1998! So this TV lasted for about 11.5 years even after being a floor model.

The ladies and gents had to move from the top of the TV... Not sure where I'm going to put them... Can't exactly put them on top of a flat screen TV.

We moved to this new house around 2001... I'm pretty sure we haven't cleaned under the TV for that long... So if you can see clearly, that's the amount of dust that's accumulated since that time!

Here's a representation of how big the TV is by showing me standing beside it. I'm 5'10"-5'11" or 178-180 cm. So pretty big TV! I'll really miss it because we never thought we'd replace it. It was so big that even widescreen movies look good on it. Plus back then I didn't wear glasses yet, so I could read anime subtitles off of it with no problem!

Alas it has to go one day... the smell of whatever made that smoke from the back of the TV really signaled its death. The smell lasted for the night... A sad reminder that I can't play Bayonetta that night =(

Anyway... I quickly looked up and researched everything that I never had to do for a TV before. Finding out what the difference between LCD, plasma and now LED. What their prices are, their lifespan, pros & cons and all the hertz and HDMI that came along with them. From all the all nighter study, I think I've made a good decision, not to mention finding a cheaper price from another store so that Best Buy can beat it.

So make way for a new television! A new table stands at the place of my "gargantuan friend" ready to receive its new resident... I don't suppose y'all be interested in what I'm getting? I don't plan on showing or posting about it, but if you're curious enough about the process then I'll be happy to type it out one day.

The part highlighted in red... if you're not distracted by Sayla herself...

As for the top picture... If you've noticed for the last few titles of my blog, I've spelled out names of my favourite Vocaloid and my favourite voice actress, "MEIKO" and "AYAKO" Kawasumi. Well this time, the last five posts titles spells out "SAYLA". My favourite girl from the original Gundam series. I originally liked Frau Bow in the beginning, but the advent of strong female characters were the in thing... Sayla Mass was Amuro Ray's backup Gundam pilot. Though she wasn't as good as him, it shows that she can kick some ass as well! Perhaps she was also the reason why I started to like blond anime characters such as Saber, and strong female leads, such as Maki from Air Master.

She also lead to my liking of Cagalli's design from Gundam Seed, even though I haven't seen the show. Once I seen it though... my desire diminished... Good thing Lunamaria showed up in Gundam Seed Destiny. A spiritual successor to Sayla Mass. There's still no Gundam show with a main character who's female and a Gundam pilot that I know of to this day.

Oh and this should be the last one that I'm doing to spell out names of people for my post titles for a while ^^;;; It can be quite a challenge to make it work depending on what you want to post about, but fun also ^^