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In Reply to: Loewe Aconda 38", for $2000.00, with slight blemish, Should I go for it? posted by g_greenamyer on January 30, 2006 at 21:05:50:
has the very same picture tube as the Loewe (the tubes for both sets were manufactured, I believe, by RCA/Thompson in the U.S.).The picture from my set was (still is) exceptional. High contrast, excellent colors, great resolution. The trouble is, I could never figure out how to input a line-doubled NTSC signal (say from a DVD player) and have it display in the proper aspect ratio on the screen. The image was always flattened, with large black bars at the top & bottom. The aspect ratio control was no help--it doesn't function at all on a progressive scan signal. When it did work (on interlaced signals), it was practically useless--no matter which setting you picked, the picture would always be partially cut off, either on the sides, or top & bottom.
The RCA has a built-in line doubler, but it's crappy--huge motion artifacts, and obviously no 3:2 cinema pulldown.
I even managed to have an RCA-authorized tech come out and look at the set (under warranty), but he couldn't solve the problem, either.
I would check the Loewe to make sure that you can: 1) input progressive-scan signals properly, with the correct aspect ratio. And, 2) what kind of aspect-ratio control/video scaler comes with it, and does it work on progressive signals?
Follow Ups:
...because at close-out the RCA had such great pricing for such a large set. Very tempting. But the issues with this set put me off it. Lotta people had repair issues with it, and RCA was not known for its quality control.I can tell you that the tubes were the only thing these two models had in common. (Thompson is headquartered in my hometown.) The electronics and feature sets are different. The Loewe is a SOTA CRT. The RCA, while terrific bang for the buck, ain't in that league.
BTW, have you ever tried a scaling DVD player to defeat the auto widescreen lock with progressive signals? This annoying feature of locking on widescreen with a progressive input signal is a fairly common problem on sets of this era, not just your model. It isn't a defect, it's the way a lot of sets were designed, the companies assuming all p-scan input would be widescreen. Idiots.
I purchased a Panny RP91 a few years ago for that very reason. It's an excellent DVD player which also has great de-interlacing. I can scale to original aspect ratio using the Panny, despite the auto WS what my Philips 9818 wants to lock onto.
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