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Sony 65" OLED/Mini LED/LED: How to Choose?

148.77.3.2
Posted on October 4, 2024 at 11:35:51
cin5
Audiophile

Posts: 88
Location: Long Island
Joined: August 17, 2015
 Help! I have over $1200. in Sony card points which will expire end of December!!

Okay, please don't LOL so hard that you can't breathe to help me, but this will be my first widescreen TV. Though money is no issue, I've always watched 4:3 (1.33:1) and widescreen aspect ratio content in my bedroom on a 32" Toshiba CRT TV, 11 ft away.

But now's the time for a 65" widescreen in my living room.

While not a deal breaker, power consumption is important.

Currently, even the oldest Sony OLED model

https://electronics.sony.com/tv-video/televisions/all-tvs/p/xr65a75l

still draws 438w vs. 444w for the best model.

https://electronics.sony.com/tv-video/televisions/all-tvs/p/xr65a95l

Sony's best Mini LED draws 345w

https://electronics.sony.com/tv-video/televisions/all-tvs/p/k65xr90

vs. 359w for the second-best Mini LED.

https://electronics.sony.com/tv-video/televisions/all-tvs/p/xr65x93l

vs. 281w for the third best Mini LED.

https://electronics.sony.com/tv-video/televisions/all-tvs/p/k65xr70

Sony's best LED draws 265w.

https://electronics.sony.com/tv-video/televisions/all-tvs/p/xr65x90l

Thus, how can this report possibly claim that OLED is best for energy savings?
https://www.zdnet.com/home-and-office/home-entertainment/i-changed-these-5-soundbar-settings-for-a-better-tv-viewing-and-audio-experience/

Here's my other than typical situation and priorities:

1/) The sound system which I will use in place of the TV's audio will draw ~ 525w. Though far less than what many audiophile systems consume, there's also the TV's power draw while running for two to three hours or so. And though I have central AC, my sweet-sounding Class A biased stereo amp plus the TV may generate considerably noticeable heat.

2/) I don't subscribe to any pay TV, but I'm a big collector of DVDs and 2K BDs, so I want a TV with an excellent upscaling processor. And I'm also a big film noir genre fan, so deep black levels are essential. Of course, 4K TV is wasted on me as I have next to no 4K discs and don't plan on buying more than I'd need to. Thus, if those bums from Sony didn't kill off 1080p TV I could have enjoyed great optical disc picture quality and way better energy savings.

3/) Question: While Sony doesn't state or imply this in the specs, are the power consumption numbers with Sony TVs adjusted to maximum, normal or low brightness settings?

About the only good news(??) is that I keep my living room dimly lit, though I've never measured the room's ambient light. There are only three windows in the room; bay windows ~ 40" x 4 ft each. Black curtains are usually kept drawn over them, but there's still plenty of light to see where you're walking in the room.

So how can power consumption vs TV brightness settings vs. room's ambient light be optimized for best energy savings @ ~ 11 ft away?

And how then can that power draw number help me buy the best 65" Sony TV for me?


 

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Easy., posted on October 5, 2024 at 08:27:30
grantv
Manufacturer

Posts: 7891
Location: B.C.
Joined: January 15, 2002
 Buy a 75". :)
Our last TV was a 65", we were both disappointed the minute we turned it on. How big is your living room?
That aside, I'd think most people aren't that concerned with power consumption. Thus why you're not getting any replies yet. That and the video forum here is vacant.

 

RE: Easy., posted on October 5, 2024 at 17:33:03
cin5
Audiophile

Posts: 88
Location: Long Island
Joined: August 17, 2015
 As Rtings.com has apparently found 112w to be the average power draw for Sony's best 65" OLED https://www.rtings.com/tv/reviews/sony/a95l-oled , that makes it a no-brainer choice for me. No doubt my typically sub 4K content and below average living room light level will allow me to dial down the TV's brightness for even more energy savings.

Size wise, my room is 20 ft x 15. The TV would be installed on a floor standing mount like this, with adjustable height. https://www.bestbuy.com/site/insignia-tv-stand-for-most-flat-panel-tvs-up-to-65-black/6389372.p?skuId=6389372&utm_source=feed

Generous height adjustment is essential as I'm one of those strange people who needs to have my gaze at least in the center of the screen, if not a bit above it. The stand would be placed between my pair of large floor standing DIY speakers ~ 7 ft apart and 2.5 ft from the east rear wall. That would put the 65" TV ~ 13 ft from my eyes. Or I can put the TV in the southeast corner and only 11 ft away.

Best Buy will give me 10 days to decide if the 65" is too small. Sure hope it won't be. Sorry to hear that most videoasylum inmates have escaped.

 

RE: Sony 65" OLED/Mini LED/LED: How to Choose? , posted on October 9, 2024 at 11:10:10
Dynamite Ham
Audiophile

Posts: 256
Location: State of Confusion, U.S.A.
Joined: February 24, 2005
 The power consumption ratings are almost always listed in the Eco mode so the don't represent real world usage

A 65 inch or larger screen will generate around 100 degrees F of heat so it will slightly warm the room.

Since big screen prices have dropped so precipitously many people buy a screen too big for their space. I visited a friend who sat eight feet from a 75 inch screen and almost threw up from vertigo.

 

Bigger isn't always better., posted on October 9, 2024 at 14:31:18
grantv
Manufacturer

Posts: 7891
Location: B.C.
Joined: January 15, 2002
 I have a 110" screen in my big room. Some of the seats are a bit closer... but even at my listening seat it's borderline.
We hooked up a video game of some sort many years ago, way too much. Don't know where the game went, in a closet somewhere, I guess.

 

RE: Sony 65" OLED/Mini LED/LED: How to Choose? , posted on October 10, 2024 at 19:05:27
cin5
Audiophile

Posts: 88
Location: Long Island
Joined: August 17, 2015
 So, does that mean that 444 watt is the average or maximum power consumption? This game Sony plays is really despicable where consumers instead have to rely on Rtings.com-not the TV's manufacturer-for what we can only hope is the truth about average and maximum power consumption.

Beyond this, the plan is to mount the TV on either a floor standing TV stand with adjustable height or a table standing TV stand with same atop a small riser-to have my eyes fall just below the center of the screen ~ 12.5 ft away.

Assuming you have a 65" TV what is your ideal viewing distance?
And do you also insist on aligning the screen near on axis with your eyes?

 

Analysis Paralysis , posted on October 11, 2024 at 09:18:25
AbeCollins
Audiophile

Posts: 47837
Location: Maidenhead Grid Square DM79
Joined: June 22, 2001
Contributor
  Since: February 2, 2002
 You posted your inquiry on October 4th. Did you buy a TV yet?

I humbly submit that you have overburdened yourself by fixating on Power Consumption resulting in analysis paralysis. If you'll be watching only a couple hours a day does it REALLY matter that much if the TV draws 260-Watts or 460-Watts? If you want a big TV it is going to draw big power.

If all you want is a 1080P TV you can still buy them but they will have smaller lower quality screens at bargain basement prices with picture quality to match. Why? Because the world has moved up to 4K UHD and even 8K UHD. Even if you own no 4K content the upscaling to 4K UHD is pretty amazing so I wouldn't wish for the good ole days of only 1080P TV.

As for screen size, I sit 12 feet away and I am SO glad that I listened to my wife who suggested we consider going up one size. I thought the sweet spot would be 65" and I even taped a piece of cardboard to the wall to represent a 65" TV. It looked a little small as my wife had suggested. We bought a Samsung 75" QLED TV and sitting 12 feet away is just about perfect. We also mounted it slightly above center of eye level. This gave me a little more room under the TV for audio gear. And since I slouch back in the sofa I'm looking slightly up so that worked out well too. There are online guides for ideal TV mounting height and viewing distance. I looked at those guides and decided to mount ours just a bit higher and I'm glad I did.

We also have a new Samsung 55" OLED TV above the fireplace. Samsung OLED technology is brighter than others and the picture quality is amazing. We needed a brighter TV in the family room due to many windows and bright ambient light during the day. The 55" TV height over the fireplace is not ideal but not too bad considering.... Remember, I lean back a bit (slouch) with my head resting against the couch cushion looking slightly upward.

Oh, and it's not just Sony. It's really hard to find the power consumption specs for most TV's. I just looked for the power specs for our Samsung TVs. Can't find them on the manufacturers website or owner's manuals.


Samsung 75-inch Q90T QLED TV installed 2021 in the basement setup

I sit smack in the center of the sofa while listening to music. Wife's spot is her favorite chair off to the side for movie night.

My own albums and Qobuz + Tidal albums up on the big screen.

Album navigation and playback control via iPad (or iPhone)

Did you notice there's no DVD or Blu-ray player? We stream movies in HD or even 4K from services including AppleTV+,
Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, etc. Got rid of the "players" years ago. Sold off all the CD's too.

In the setup up above I have a choice of using the fully separate Sonos ARC soundbar and rear channel surround speakers -OR-
the two channel only audio setup you see in the rack. The amp is Class D which is highly efficient, draws very little power at idle,
and runs cool. Class D has come a long way in recent years and it sounds excellent.


 

Yep, posted on October 11, 2024 at 10:11:15
grantv
Manufacturer

Posts: 7891
Location: B.C.
Joined: January 15, 2002
 I agree on all.
Power consumption is not something I would have ever considered. Our old 50" plasma (bedroom) probably eats power at a high rate, but it is what it is.
And definitely be sure a 65" is going to work. We regretted buying our 65" the instant we turned it on. We were happy the thing died about 14 minutes after the 1-year warranty.
Even our 75"... 85's were pretty costly at the time still, still are, but that'd be our preference for the living room. I sit around 16' away, wife usually around 14' or so.

 

RE: Analysis Paralysis , posted on October 11, 2024 at 11:58:23
cin5
Audiophile

Posts: 88
Location: Long Island
Joined: August 17, 2015
 Well, it's also that one of my amplifiers-either for the center or L/R speakers-will likely be Class A biased, so the combined power draw could be large. Also someone at this post said that a 65" TV will radiate 100 degrees of thermal energy; more of course for a 75". That plus what my Class A amp will radiate may not be great for my energy bill. So I hope Rtings.com is right about the 65" A95L's average power draw.
https://www.rtings.com/tv/reviews/sony/a95l-oled

The good news is that last night I propped up a piece of cardboard that's 48.25" wide; the exact width of the 55" A95L. And it's 32" high; the exact height of the 65" TV, minus the detachable camera. I placed it 11 ft away and it did not look at all small to me. The 65" model is exactly 10" wider, so at 12.5 to 13 ft I doubt I would need a 75" TV.

Btw, though you stream movies rather than use physical media, since you don't use a center speaker, does the dialogue vs. the music levels ever sound unbalanced or lacking clarity?

 

RE: Analysis Paralysis , posted on October 12, 2024 at 15:21:29
AbeCollins
Audiophile

Posts: 47837
Location: Maidenhead Grid Square DM79
Joined: June 22, 2001
Contributor
  Since: February 2, 2002
 You gotta do what you gotta do based on your priorities.

I'm not sure if I mentioned that our "surround sound" setup is completely separate from the 2-channel stereo system.

When we watch movies we are using the Sonos ARC soundbar just below the TV. It emits center, left, right, and height channels. The setup also has two rear channel speakers for surround and a separate subwoofer (not the two shown in my room photo). These are wireless over Wifi so there's no cable clutter normally associated with surround sound systems.

The dialog and music levels are fine but the soundbar offers the ability to enhance dialog if desired. That feature can come in handy when viewing movies at low volume but we rarely do that. It can also be set to reduce dynamic range so extremely loud scenes (explosions or whatnot) will not have you jumping out of your seat. We don't use that either. We like to be startled.

If we're watching a concert video some of those don't sound great to begin with and I will switch between my 2-channel stereo setup and the Sonos multi-channel system. The 2-channel setup will sometimes sound better for concert videos.

In the past when I had my AV home theater receiver I would integrate it into my main 2-channel system. In other words, the amps in the AV receiver were used for all channels EXCEPT the stereo Left/Right channels which were powered by a much higher quality stereo amp. In that setup I didn't use a center channel so center channel content was fed to the Left/Right channels. I think some folks call that a "phantom" center channel and it works because you still get dialog that sounds like it's coming from the center if that's where it belongs. However, a true center channel would be better in a home theater system.

The Sonos ARC soundbar, Sonos Sub, and Sonos rear speakers do a surprisingly good job considering it's an easy to setup and use "surround sound" system. This is especially good for my wife. Turn on the TV and all the channels associated with the TV are automatically selected. She doesn't even have to turn ON my 2-channel stereo setup. It's probably one of the best "soundbar" based systems out there. If you're real serious about home theater you probably wouldn't go the soundbar route but for us it's perfect. Oh, and did I already mention that except for connecting the soundbar to the TV's eARC HDMI port all the other speakers are wireless so there are no cables running along the baseboards, under the carpet, or up in the ceiling. Setup requires the Sonos App on your iPhone.

And I still have my totally separate 2-channel system for music.

Sonos ARC soundbar, 2 wireless rear speakers, and square donut subwoofer:

Just like our Sonos system but ours is black

 

RE: Sony 65" OLED/Mini LED/LED: How to Choose? , posted on October 12, 2024 at 21:00:20
stereo5
Audiophile

Posts: 1367
Location: New England
Joined: June 22, 2008
 I purchased a Sony 65 inch OLED in January 2023. The picture quality is amazing. The colors are so deep you can reach in and touch them. I did not notice any increase on my electric bill. I paid $1600 on sale. Buy it, you won't regret it.


"I've always been mad, I know I've been mad, like the
most of us...very hard to explain why you're mad, even if you're not mad..."


 

Agreed, posted on October 13, 2024 at 09:46:14
Jack G
Audiophile

Posts: 9761
Joined: September 24, 1999
 The OP should just buy the Sony OLED. I've had one for a few years now. I haven't noticed an increase in my electric bill, and after 6+ hours of use, it doesn't even get warm to the touch, unlike my old Panny plasma.
Jack

 

RE: Bigger isn't always better., posted on October 29, 2024 at 18:07:19
dgaapc7
Audiophile

Posts: 467
Joined: August 16, 2013
 That can happen. I don't want a tv screen so large as to force me to "scan" back and forth with my eyes while I watch the show.
LowIQ

 

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