Looking for suggestions for a new gaming setup.

gaxur

gaxur

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Basically, looking into getting a TV to set up apart from the living room, largely because I need a nicer set anyway, partially because a new entertainment center would eliminate one of my biggest reasons for not buying a PS3, and partially because having wires reaching out of your wall like the Chekov's Gun in a frightening Japanese porno doesn't look good for guests.

It would only be used for four things; Wii (with component cables), PS3, PSP, and to display images from an old computer. Whatever would handle each of those tasks best; although the focus is by a large margin on the PS3 and Wii. HD, 16:9 are about my only requirements, and I'd like to get input on various brands, manufacturers, and types; although I'm leaning towards an LCD. Since I'd likely be buying a new PS3, which (unless Sony makes a nice announcement tomorrow) lacks BC, I'd be keeping my launch PS2, so I'd want that hooked up nicely as well (I know it has some high quality outputs, but never looked into them). Given the geometry of the room, a surround sound setup would just be awful, so I'll be using headphones instead for anything beyond watching sitcoms or playing Tetris. Information and recommendations on surround sound headphones would be appreciated.

It will be set up fairly close to the couch (I suck at units of measurement, but if you don't know how long a Sony DualShock 2 cord is you very badly need to go buy a PS2), so it doesn't need to be too large, although I'm not looking for something the size of a computer monitor. Advice on the entertainment console itself would be appreciated as well; it'll be setup somewhat in the middle of the room, so a way to conceal the backing (wires) would be good, although I want it to be very easy to access them. Price is definitely an issue, as is reliability and durability.
 
I think you gotta give a price range, dude. I mean, you say last that price is an issue - well how much of an issue?

Sam's Club has a 1080p Vizio 32" for ~$550, and it's got (don't quote me, I'm not 100% sure) 2-3 HDMI, Component, and I believe an RGB input. There's a 1080p 26" Toshiba out there (can't remember where) for like $425 as well.
 
Plasma >> LCD. Look at the Panasonic plasma lineup. For the most part you would have get an LCD that costs 2-3x as much to come close to matching the overall performance of the Panasonic 1080p lineup and these sets start at just over $1k.
 
I think you gotta give a price range, dude. I mean, you say last that price is an issue - well how much of an issue?
Click to expand...

Well, I don't really have a set price range, I'm just saying "Don't suggest the best TV possible, I'm not spending a ton on it"; and of course if something is so much better, it might be worth spending the extra couple hundred dollars. I am more looking at the $500-600 range than the $1000 range, though-- I want something that looks good, of course, but I'd like to avoid spending more on the TV than the actual games. I'm even open to 720p, depending on how much of difference that makes in terms of performance (color, ghosting/refresh rate; I have a somewhat loose knowledge of displays) and price.
 
In that price range, you may be better off with a top-end 720p set than a mid-tier 1080p set. You are actually looking at a good time, because now is when the "new models" are starting to hit the floor, and places are looking to clear out last year's models. Perhaps look for a Toshiba, Sony, or Samsung 720p set on sale. There are several from those manufacturers that get high marks, and are in that price range. Pick a few model numbers, then check out what people are saying about it on the AVS forum.

The Sony Bravia series get high marks for having a crisp picture when set up nicely, as do the Samsung 6 and 8 series. Toshiba Regza are just solid and priced well.
 
Huh? LCDs are for the rich? WTF are you talking about? FYI, the cheapest Panny I could find from a reliable retailer (42" Plasma) was $750 from Amazon. Which is out of his price range. Also, Plasmas generally are 40" and up. Anything below 42" from Panny is an LCD.
 
Most LCDs suck unless you buy an expensive one, whereas you can get a quality plasma inexpensively. $750 is a great price, if you can't afford it then save up, that's what I am doing.
 
I guess there is some truth to that, when looking at Sylvania or an Insignia branded one, but there are a number of moderately priced LCDs out there that are definitely worth their salt, and can be improved upon well with a calibration disc. In particular, the Vizio LCDs are pretty decent when calibrated right, according to all I've read on AVS. Especially in the price range we're talking here.
 
The 42" Panasonic plasma 720p was on sale last month for $599 at 6th Ave Electronics, if you keep your eye on the paper you can probably find it for that.
 
Do not invest in surround sound headphones. It's really better in the long run to invest in a good pair of stereo cans. SS headphones are ridiculously big, and most likely feature 5 weak speakers within the cans themselves. The route I took for surround sound is a normal stereo headphone hooked up to an adapter that outputs Dolby Headphone. This preserves the sond quality and the Dolby algorithm is excellent.

Here is my current audio setup, quoted from Socom Confrontation thread.

[quote name='option.iv']I'm actually running this setup.

Sony MDR-7506 -> Astro A40 Mixamp -> TOSlink/Optical Cable -> PS3

As for the headset, it's just the included Socom headset in microphone mode. Surprisingly it picks up every little sound. Right now I'm waiting for Sony to patch the headset so I can finally use the HQ at a higher volume.[/QUOTE]

The headphones were about $90 shipped/new from ebay. You can get them $100 plus tax online or B&M if you can find them. They are labeled "studio monitor" and produce excellent sound. Plus they're comfortable to boot.

The A40 mixamp features a Dolby Headphone (DH2) option. It runs for about $150 shipped/taxed.

The Sony BT headset is worth every penny I paid for. Actually got it from the Endwar bundle which I promptly flipped the included game getting the headset for practically free. However, there's a glitch that plagues it right now and HQ mode, though sounds great, can only out put 2.7/5 on the volume scale. In normal mode you can go to 5/5, but restarting the headset in the XMB is required everytime you load up a game (takes like 15 secs to do this).

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As for the screen. Since you would like an LCD and HD at the same time. I would suggest Samsung T2XXHD series. I have a T200HD which is 20". It actually can take a 1080p signal. Though you can only get true 1080p with the 24" and up, the t200hd can either crop (about quarter of an inch around) the 1080p signal or squish it slightly to size. I really don't mind this and anything 1080p looks perfectly fine.

The response time is great, no lag in fighting games. Also the picture is excellent. Plus since it's considered a computer monitor (w/ HDTV tuner) it has a 3 year warranty. The only cons is the sound. The sound is definitely decent, but it's not going to blow you out of the water. Also you can't wall mount the TV out of the box. You'll need a wall mount adapter if you wish to mount the TOC T2XXHD series. I personaly went with the 20 because my room isn't that big, wanted to save money, and portability.

Hope this helps.
 
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