Pioneer Elite PRO-510HD 53 in. TV

Before purchasing this TV, I researched the market thoroughly. I decided on a widescreen (16x9) format since I mainly watch DVD movies, sports and news. After several months of looking at various manufacturers models in lots of different stores, I found one store where I could see every model I was considering, in one room, and basically side by side. I saw the Sony KP-57XBR10W, Hitachi 61HDX98B, Mitsubishi WS-55907, Pioneer Pro-510HD, Pioneer SD-532-HD5 and Toshiba 55HX70 -- all playing the same source. There was no comparison in the quality of picture -- the Pioneer Pro-510HD blew the competition away! I viewed the picture from a DVD player and a satellite broadcast. This TV is so good, you won't need to spend additional money on a progressive scan DVD player.

One of the problems I had was satisfying my wife's decorating sense. The TV would be in our living room, so she wanted something that looked good off as well as on. After all, this is an extremely large piece of equipment. The TV has a high-gloss black finish that looks like what you would see on a grand piano -- beautiful. I also purchased a matching a/v cabinet, also from Pioneer, for my components. She is extremely happy.

So far, I have been extremely happy with my decision -- widescreen is the way to go! I even enjoy regular TV broadcasts -- the Cinema wide format is perfect for most programs and it fills the screen with a very small sacrifice of some of the top & bottom of the image -- you will only notice this when the station broadcasts "creepers". The viewing angle is wonderful for a rear-projection TV -- you can sit just about anywhere & still see a great picture. Viewing from the floor is fine, however, the picture dims a great deal if you are standing -- not a problem for me since I don't watch TV standing up. The picture is sufficiently bright for daytime viewing, however, direct sunlight on the screen is a killer -- just like it is for all TVs. Reflections can be more distracting on this unit -- it is better to have indirect lighting, or lighting behind the TV. I sit about 12 feet away from the picture -- but, I could sit 2 feet away and see the same image -- this TV is not like most big-screen TVs that require the viewer to be some distance away for the picture to look good -- the "sweet spot viewing distance" on this unit is basically anywhere you want to sit!

The remote that came with this TV is fair. You can program it to control a VCR and a DVD player. I don't use it at all, so I can't comment on it. I have a Philips Pronto TS-1000 to control all the components in my home theater setup.

The only thing I "hate" about using this TV is that it has too good a picture for normal (as opposed to HDTV) TV broadcasts. Broadcast signal imperfections can't hide! Oh well, my area is getting HDTV broadcasts this year and I plan on installing a satellite service for the "cable" type of programs.

This TV is for serious viewers only -- those with a dedicated home theater setup. It would be a waste of money for just watching broadcast TV. The sound in this unit is adequate -- it can be setup to be used as a center speaker -- but I don't use it at all -- I have a Klipsch speaker setup for my home theater. Although the picture is pretty good right out of the box, I used Video Essentials and got a dramatic improvement on an already great picture!

All in all, a great TV -- I would highly recommend it to Home Theater Enthusiasts.