I'm headed out to pick up a new TV. I've settled on the Sony KV-40XBR800 ($2500). However, I found a guy who has the KV-40XBR700 (last years model) for about $1300 less. Trouble is, I did a feature compare and it seems to be that there are very few obvious differences between the 2 sets (DVI input and Sony Memory Stick port on the KV-40XBR800), problem I'm having is deciphering the changes in the names of some of the other features. Bottom line, I need to know if the Specs of these 2 sets are comparable aside from the DVI and momory Stick deal. Help

problem I'm having is deciphering the changes in the names of some of the other features.

Can you list these names or provide links?

KV-40XBR800

KV-40XBR700

Well this item sounds like it potentially could be an actual improvement in video circuitry on the 800:

HD Detailer™ Wideband Video Amplifier

On the other hand, it could be a new whiz-bang marketing term for the exact same (but then unnamed) circuitry as in the 700.

What d'ya think, Tony?

I've got no idea what that "HD Detailer" thing is. Otherwise, I don't see a lot of difference in the feature list other than the DVI input.

I have the 40XBR800 and went through the same situation you are. I got it when they just came out so the 700's were on clearance.

Supposedly the 800 has a different tube. My experience looking at them in stores was the 800 looked better the 700 was kinda fuzzy.

For 1300 less though the 700 would be hard to pass up.

I'm reading these over closely, and here's what I see as being useful additions to the XBR800 over the XBR700:

- 720p support (native upsampling to 1080i)
- DVI input *
- memory stick JPEG viewing

* not all DVI inputs are created equal. I was once staring at the specs on some very pricey plasma monitors, and deep in the fine print, it mentioned that you couldn't run DVI at the full resolution of the monitor. You'd like to be able to use one of these things as a killer monitor for your computer, but it won't necessarily work.

Most importantly, if you can get last year's model for practically half the price, that's an impressive savings. On the theory that anything you buy now will be obsolete in two years, unless you need these features right now, you might as well save the money and get some other toys.


(And, while you're at it, I want to know how on earth you're supposed to handle a 300 pound TV set. Even with two people, that's an impressive load to move around.)

... impressive load to move around.

My answer: pay for delivery/setup and then never move!

Is there anything that Sony make that doesn't have a memory stick slot in it these days??

Thanks for all the help. I'm headed out to pick up one of these sets in about 30 mins. Could you explain what the advantage of 720p support (native upsampling to 1080i) is. This sounds pretty important as far as HDTV goes.

Sony never ceases to amaze and amuse me. Just picture it. Sony executives look at the chaos and confusion caused by competing standards for removable memory and say: We gotta get us some o' that action! There's already SSFDC/SmartMedia, Compact Flash, SD/MMC and the weird xD camera people, but now we get to enjoy Memory Stick, Magic Gate MS, Memory Stick Duo, and now the ultimate in not-backwards-compatible Memory Stick Pro! Their tagline should be: Innovation's Evil Twin.

Gotta give the devil its due: those XBR TVs are good stuff (and I own an excellent ES-series CD player, too).

Could you explain what the advantage of 720p support (native upsampling to 1080i) is. This sounds pretty important as far as HDTV goes.

Uh, boy. There are two main ways that HDTV signals are broadcast over the air: 1080i and 720p. Different channels use each one. The former has more scan lines but, like current TV, is interlaced so you get the even lines first, then the odd lines, then the even lines again. 720p has fewer scan lines but no interlacing issues. "Progressive" scanning is what computers tend to output and it's what every computer monitor in the world, as well as any LCD or plasma screen, uses as its native input. On the flip side, "interlace" standards are a whole lot easier to do for cathode ray tubes (TV sets, rear projectors, etc.). It's all a big mess.

That said, the upsampling support may or may not be strictly necessary for you, depending on what sort of HDTV tuner you end up buying. Tony probably knows more about this than me, but I'll bet that some HDTV tuners have this upsampling bulit into them. If you're planning to do over-the-air HDTV receiving right now, then have a look at the feature sets of the different HDTV tuners at the shop where you're buying your Sony. If your main source of video is traditional TV plus DVD, then you don't need the feature.

Thanks a bunch. That's just what I needed to know.

FYI, Crutchfield has a pretty decent page explaining the terminology of HDTV. I've been surfing various manufacturer pages, and I haven't been able to find a clear explanation of whether you'd be screwed or not if you didn't have support for 720p input in your TV. If you can wait a day on this, some more people will chime in here with advice. Or, I suppose you could always go wade through chat boards like Audio Asylum or AVS Forum.

FYI, Crutchfield has a pretty decent page explaining the terminology of HDTV. I've been surfing various manufacturer pages, and I haven't been able to find a clear explanation of whether you'd be screwed or not if you didn't have support for 720p input in your TV. If you can wait a day on this, some more people will chime in here with advice. Or, I suppose you could always go wade through chat boards like Audio Asylum or AVS Forum.

Sony is really pissing me off, too. Not only is that Memory Stick Duo a new format, but my phone will not be able to read the higher capacities of the card. How freaking unbelievealbe is that? They are even causing difficulties within their own product lines!! Idiots.

Ah hah! I think I found a definitive post on the topic. Here's a thread on AVS forum. In short, some HDTV signals may soon be broadcast with an evil "down-rezzing" flag turned on. If you've got the DVI connector (and an appropriate tuner box), then you'll see things properly. Otherwise, you may get less than stellar performance from your component outputs.

Now, whether this triggers lawsuits and heaven only knows what else is a fantastic discussion topic.

Tony probably knows more about this than me, but I'll bet that some HDTV tuners have this upsampling bulit into them.

Correct. In fact, I think pretty much all of them do. So you don't necessarily need this on your set. But if the set has a better upsampler than the HDTV tuner, then you can put the tuner into what's called "native" mode (where it just sends out whatever it gets in, verbatim, without doing up- or down-sampling) and let the set do the scan-rate conversion.

Since 720p and 1080i are so completely different in terms of the way the images are displayed, there are only two ways to display both on the same screen:

1. Leave the screen in the same mode and digitally mangle the image so it fits the opposite screen format.

2. Change the scan rate of the CRT raster to fit the image type.

Obviously, the second option is better, but it's only do-able on certain expensive CRT's, and not possible at all on plasma/DLT/LCD screens.

My rear projector CRT TV can only display 1080i or 540p, it can't do 720p. It takes an expensive CRT to do 720p. (For those in the know, 1080i is equally "hard" to do, raster-electronics-wise, as 540p. To do 720p the raster has to hit a higher frequency.)

But my TV also doesn't have any scan-rate conversion or upsampling built-in, so I can't use my HDTV decoder in "native" mode. I have to set it to forced-1080i mode, and its upsampling SUCKS. Blurry and washed out. So any signals less than 1080i (such as 720p broadcasts or regular 480i TV shows that I choose to route through the HDTV decoder) look like crap.

That's probably more information than you needed to know, but what it comes down to is that if the TV has a particularly good 720->1080 converter algorithm, it might be better than the one in your HDTV decoder, so try both and pick the one you like better. Depending on your equipment one might be better than the other. Or maybe vice-versa.

I've been surfing through more stuff on AVS Forum, and they seem to be saying that the quality jump when you go to DVI is worth the bother. Here's an AVS Forum thread and here a FAQ on DVI, HDCP, and HDMI.

In short, if you buy the pricier TV set with the DVI and buy a suitably equipped DVD player, you'll start seeing significant improvements in video quality, right off the bat. (Or, so they claim.)

This strikes me as the video equivalent of the dilemma I have with hooking up the audio from DVD players right now. I have an outboard Dolby Digital AC3 box and don't need D/A conversion done inside the player. But how do I get a good-quality player w/o 6 unnecessary analog jacks on the back?

My choice is easier because I know my outboard decoder is better than internal ones in DVD players ('though perhaps not as good as in some new, high-end receivers); so, I just bypass all that D/A circuitry with a digital optical output to my AC3 box. But why do I have to pay for stuff I'll never use?

But how do I get a good-quality player w/o 6 unnecessary analog jacks on the back?

The presence of those jacks does not affect the quality of the player's digital output, and they don't really increase the price of the player much. I wouldn't consider that an issue. If you're going to use the digital out, just ignore that they exist.

When choosing a DVD player, it's more important to look for one that doesn't have the common de-interlacing bugs.