I recently got a hlr5064 as well with shaw HD box (now traded for a Shaw HD PVR) and Sammy DVD upconvert. You have to use the spliter before the box for pip when on. I haven't tried yet but if you loop the RF bypass on the back of the box then go into setting and there is a place to turn it on so you get a straight feed of none digital channels. I bought a good spliter (over 1500mhz according to shaw) and was going to do that to try to improve PQ on some of the channels and get pip.

So far I have gotten to that spectacular only a couple of times. For movies I have just gotten that spectacular look after much tuning. Bright scenes look better than dark (weakness in the HD3 chip). I found that Cinema mode with the DNle turn on and colour weakness turn to red level 1 looked close to and some times better than the Movie Central hd movies. Note: this was after using the THX optimizer with all the other settings turned off. I sit about 12 ft away. I use the pore standard when testing. If a closeup on a face you can see the pores and hairs on the face looking sharp and natural like in a movie theater I consider this close to hd as I have never seen this on dvd on standard tv no matter how big (blurred out) or small (detail there but to small to see).

HD channels are excellent. Using Rogers component cables that were provided and it seems fine.
Shom

Try using the HDMI or DVI connection as I have tested it and there is a noticable difference in HD.

Ok I got an all white screen and carefully examined the screen as you described below. The white colour/shade was consistent throughout the screen.

Do you think these smudges your describing are related to signal quality or a defect of the TV? Do you see this in 720p/1080i?

ATOMSMASHER, put your TV on a light picture perferably all white and look for anything like little gray clouds or smudges or dirts. Do you see anything like that? Look for them striaght at the TV not from an angle.

Ok I got an all white screen and carefully examined the screen as you described below. The white colour/shade was consistent throughout the screen.

Do you think these smudges your describing are related to signal quality or a defect of the TV? Do you see this in 720p/1080i?

You were viewing directly at the TV right? not from side ways or from above or below.

It is a problem with the TV, I have read many posts of other people have similar problems across this forums and AVS forums and various other ones. I am getting a technician to check it out. Right now it could be either a screen problem or something with the DMD mirrors.

Try using the HDMI or DVI connection as I have tested it and there is a noticable difference in HD.

There's something wrong with your setup if you see a difference between an HDMI connection and a component connection from your HD cable box and your TV. If there is a difference it's not noticeable to me. HD is stunning with either.

So far I have gotten to that spectacular only a couple of times (HD TV with Shaw). For movies I have just gotten that spectacular look after much tuning

The "spectacular look" you are after is reserved for HD. There are no DVD players that can achieve what you can achieve from an HD channel, whether program or movie. I think there is something wrong with your setup. Use Letterman or Jay Leno as a reference on a high def widescreen broadcast as a base reference. That's probably as good as it gets at the moment, and take out that splitter just for fun to see if it helps.

I do have Rogers, not Shaw, so I am assuming they are similar.

Do you think these smudges your describing are related to signal quality or a defect of the TV?

From Samsung FAQ:

A number of Samsung DLP TVs are displaying blotches or smudges on the insides of their screens. These blotches or smudges are caused by the bending movement of the Fresnel screen, a screen set directly behind the screen you view, which is called the Lenticular screen. The distortions in the Fresnel screen are caused by changes in the temperature of the Fresnel screen that occur as the TV heats up during the operation. The blotches or smudges are most noticeable on lighter backgrounds.

If your DLP TV displays these blotches or smudges, please call Samsung Customer Care at 1-800-Samsung (1-800-726-7864) to arrange for a service appointment. Have the model number and serial number of your TV on hand when you call.

There's something wrong with your setup if you see a difference between an HDMI connection and a component connection from your HD cable box and your TV. If there is a difference it's not noticeable to me. HD is stunning with either.



The "spectacular look" you are after is reserved for HD. There are no DVD players that can achieve what you can achieve from an HD channel, whether program or movie. I think there is something wrong with your setup. Use Letterman or Jay Leno as a reference on a high def widescreen broadcast as a base reference. That's probably as good as it gets at the moment, and take out that splitter just for fun to see if it helps.

I do have Rogers, not Shaw, so I am assuming they are similar.

I disagree. The difference is there through HDMI on some stuff more than others. Slightly better HD and alot better for some other sourses. I find the hockey and football feeds to be the best and a good guage since it is letterboxed. The difference probally comes from the HDMI being a digital meduim. Component is Analog. So a program is changed to digital at the box converted to analog for the cable and back to digital at the tv could afect a weak signal.

As far as DVD PQ you are sort of right. The dvd is 480i and the HD channels are 720p or 1080i. However the set is 720p and that is the lines of res you get displayed regardless. Now bit rate comes into play. A good DVD can be up 7-8mps and cable hd around 2-3mps. An upconverted DVD tends to lose the sharpness because of the pixels that have to be manufactured to fill in the difference between 480 and 720. With a good dvd and a precise calibration you can put that sharpness back in and achieve CLOSE to HD look when compared average hd (some movies on MC).

BTW- Whan I say spectacular I mean the action scenes in LORT Return of the KIng. In close up you get some pixelations in the face especially the end of the nose. I have not put in the splitter yet.

A few more questions ...

There was mention of using HDMI or DVI as oppose to component. For the HL-R5054, it has both; for the Rogers HD box, I have to check what it has tonight, though I don't think it has HDMI. So I assume I should go DVI to DVI and keep the coaxial digital cable for sound from my Rogers box to my Receiver, is that right?

Is a DVI/HDMI cable upgrade worth the cost to toss the components out?

For PIP, instead of the splitter, can I not use the connection described in the Samsung manual (cable from wall to ANT 1 IN in TV, ANT 1 OUT from TV to Rogers cable IN)?

For SD channels, should I be using the Rogers box or leave that off and use the Samsung TV stand-alone?

If I use Rogers box to watch TV, should I use the 1080i format for both HD and SD channels? I thought I read somewhere that SD should be watched at the lower resolution to get a better PQ. Comments?

Thanks!

A few more questions ...

There was mention of using HDMI or DVI as oppose to component. For the HL-R5054, it has both; for the Rogers HD box, I have to check what it has tonight, though I don't think it has HDMI. So I assume I should go DVI to DVI and keep the coaxial digital cable for sound from my Rogers box to my Receiver, is that right?

Is a DVI/HDMI cable upgrade worth the cost to toss the components out?

For PIP, instead of the splitter, can I not use the connection described in the Samsung manual (cable from wall to ANT 1 IN in TV, ANT 1 OUT from TV to Rogers cable IN)?

For SD channels, should I be using the Rogers box or leave that off and use the Samsung TV stand-alone?

If I use Rogers box to watch TV, should I use the 1080i format for both HD and SD channels? I thought I read somewhere that SD should be watched at the lower resolution to get a better PQ. Comments?

Thanks!
I am on shaw but should be similar. The hd box has DVI the HD PVR has hdmi. You have several audio outs on the box and all work regardless if you are using HDMI and can pick the ones you want to run to your stereo.

The set up you describe will give you signal for pic analog and the box should be fine IF the tv passes the singnal through unprocced or tuned. I am more comfortable with a split before the box to ensure best signal goes to the box. I have not done it yet but might try some other options. So far the analog has not been that bad to have to do it. BTW the splitter before the box is the way descibed in the shaw docs and recomended to me by a tech to get pip and better analog PQ and record analog to vcr without being tuned to that channel.

When you get your box you will see that you can set the hd signal to 720 or 1080i and have the option on 480I 480p stretch and off for the 4:3 (SD) over ride. You will have to mess around and see what you like better as there are trade off to each and a bit subjective.

The cable upgrade is subjective. It is not worth the 150 for monster cables. Check out Walmart for "RCA" brand DVI and HDMI cable or www.tigerdirect.ca for good cheaper cables. I do think it is worth it (as you can afford them since component is real good too) because your tv is digital and by using component which is analog you have to do more processing which can lead to reduced PQ or audio sync problems some people have.

I bought the 5064 just before Christmas and have no complaints.

I can't say I'm very picky about subjective measures such as black level, sharp or soft focus or contrast but I did a lot of research on what goes into the tv's so that I can get an idea if a manufacturer is trying to cut too many corners. (And in this market, there are always trade-offs). I also read a lot in these forums. A lot of good information but not always accurate!

To the original post though, I brought the tv home in a u-haul van, dragged it downstairs and plopped it on top of a coffee table. It's worked fine without any of the bugs I thought I'd have to deal with. There is fan noise, (not whiny, but there) and the remote is pretty cheesy but let's face it, we'd all rather get a Harmony remote anyway.

I was really torn between this set and the Toshiba 52" but didn't want speakers on the side of the set and liked the computer input. (Not to mention that only the HMX comes in Black - extra bucks).

My 2 cents

Strangest thing >> I really really really want to like this 5064. I spent alot of money and thought I'd done all my research. I too have many smudges on the back of my screen - very annoying with a white skating rink is showing. The DLP also tends to go half green and momentarily have picture spasms on a regular basis - pretty sure its the DLP as it happens during DVD's as well - since it happens sporatically it's tough to show as a service call (probably won't happen in front of a tech)
The most recent thing that has now become annoying is the fan noise. I've had the unit for 7 months now (got one of the first from Visions) - always heard the fan before but now it whines on start up and shut down and can be easily heard if the sets volume is below '12'.
In hindsight the LG was too big for my room but had '0' problems with it. Maybe I just got a bit of a lemon >>> WOULD LOVE HEAR from those of you who have had the set for a while and/or have dealt with Samsung customer service ---- are they resposive to service calls???

Thanks...Ken

I have one of these TV's on hold for $1979.00... after reading this thread I a little worried about getting it...so I'm looking for advise...$1979.00 seems like a great deal or should I put my money into something else?

Thanks for your feedback

Depends on what things you are concerned about. If it is a characteristic of the tv then rethink because nothing can be done. If it is quality issues I also read those and the ones on other site and most seem to be from early in the production run and also lots of similar posts for the tosh's I was looking at. There does not seem to be as many raves on this set but it is not cutting edge anymore. I found it to do everything well if nothing exceptional well. DVD look good with less pixelation than others. HD looks good but not as sharp as some. SD looks good where the softer picture makes a difference. Remote is basic and cheap but funtional. The adjustment options are mininistic but get the job done.

For me the choice came down to that I liked the pq on all sourses and price alowed me to get new DVD, cables, and PVR hd STB.

BTW- Was not going to get extended warranty but because the price was under 2k it only cost $200 for 4yrs.

After 3 trips to Futureshop, I have finally got a HL-R4264W without any smudges! I had to ask a friend to drive me 3 times since the damn TV won't fit in my Accord.

The first one had the most smudges, so I went back the next day and got the 2nd one. It's not as bad as the first one but still had noticeable spots and it bugged me for 2 weeks after I had the tech to check it out. The tech just came and used a bottle dust-off to clean the lamp... and no, it did not fix anything. He told me I had to bring it to a service location, so I decided to exchange it for the 2nd time. The salesman who sold me the TV and his boss was extremely friendly and they were there both times I exchanged the TV. This time I was determined to get a "perfect" set, so I brought my xbox which I stored a perfect white picture to pick out any smudges and asked the salesman to open the TV and check it out before I ask my friend to drive me back again (he's getting annoyed by this time). It's the third set and there was only one smudge on center top of the screen so his boss said "bring another set down" without hesitating. This is where the magic happens, finnally after 3 sets with smudges I got the perfect set!

I am very pleased with high level of service Futureshop had provided (the one I went to is on 1141 Kennedy Road, Toronto, ON). This time I could really enjoy the high quality pictures this TV produces. Before I was always subconciously looking for the smudges. I got the set hooked up to the a Rogers HD box via component cables and to my xbox via VGA cable. I use my Logitech Z-5500 for surround sound since it's perfect for my condo. The picture quality, brightness resolution is stellar for someone like me (my first true hdtv). I haven't tuned it with Avia or Digital Video Essentials dvds yet and haven't tried any DVI or HDMI cables. (Any advices on would be appreciated) I would definitely recommend this TV to anyone whos coming into the HDTV market as the value gets you very far.

I also bought the HL-R4264 just before Christmas and feel it is a good value at the FS sale price. I connect it via HDMI to a Bell 9200 with the toslink feeding the audio to my pre/pro. HD can very good with a well produced program and SD is acceptable. I have no sinc issues, smudges, or other problems. If memory serves, after set up with DVE contrast was 82, brightness 42, sharpness in the 24 and colour mid 40's. I use the cinema mode with warm2 and DNIe on. I could not find a setting where certain greens did not pop a bit, but at this price point I did not expect perfection. Other then replacing lamps as required I would hope to get 8 to 10 years out of this set.

does the hl-r5064 have an atsc tuner? i was interested in this tv, but only if i can pick up ota hd signals without having to buy a set top box.

also, anyone have any problems with the fan on this? i have heard a few people say dlp has fan issues

thanks

the HL-Rxxr4 series does have the ATSC tuner.

the HL-Rxxr4 series does have the ATSC tuner.

No, it doesn't.

My apologies. I checked my facts in response to BD006's post and confirmed I was wrong. I was this thinking of my 9200 which can receive over the air HD, a feature which is currently of no value in Northwestern Ontario.

I finally bought an HLR5064. My buddies have HLR6164 and HLR6168 without any problems for 4 months now.

My setup uses SC DSR530(via DVI to HDMI) and LG DV7832(via DVI to DVI). The set replaces Samsung 47'' HD CRT. So far, the resulting PQ is stunning.

Slight hum, no problem for me. Only issue is my centre channel is blocking the IR receiver on set. I'll fix that soon with an IR repeater.

In my humble opinion, video via DVI or HDMI is superior to Component. The first thing that I noticed was there is less noise in the picture, especially on a black or white field.

I think it is also important that you make some basic adjustments before commenting on PQ, I'm no expert, just a thought.