Pioneer Elite Pro-950HD 42" Elite Kuro Plasma TV

Richard · Post by **Richard** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 11:34 am

Resolution isn

cwest54 · Post by **cwest54** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 9:25 pm

It is quite surprising that the PRO-950 has the PQ that it does precisely because with its non-standard, essentially XGA computer resolution, it is having to scale ALL inputed signals up or down. You would think, on specs, that this TV would be doomed to dumbing down every signal it touches and floating in a sea of artifacts. But those of us who have seen the 950 perform with a variety of source material would have to acknowledge that nothing could be further from the truth. It outperforms other TVs in this screen size that have "standard HD" resolution panels. I believe that Pioneer R&D knew that at only 42" they had very little to be concerned about in the territory of visible scaling atrifacts and that the strengths of Kuro engineering would still push through and generate superior PQ.

Richard · Post by **Richard** » Mon Jan 14, 2008 11:29 am

You would think, on specs, that this TV would be doomed to dumbing down every signal it touches and floating in a sea of artifacts.

And it is. This is a performance concern for those seeking accuracy.

Put another way this exact same engineering design in a native HD 720 or 1080 pixel matrix making 1:1 pixel mapping the only difference would look better. Overall it will appear to have an edge in detail the other does not with the native HD scan rate. With specific images there will be artifacts with one that do not show up on the other.

cwest54 · Post by **cwest54** » Mon Jan 14, 2008 6:18 pm

I of course wouldn't quibble with the notion that 1:1 pixel mapping lays the foundation for a more accurate display of the inputed signal as is; at the same time, I would never suggest that a signal that has to go through scaling to conform to a panel's pixel matrix emerges unscathed. I too bemoan the fact the same enginering design for the 42" Kuro panels could not have been incorporated into a panel whose pixel matix is in snych with standard HD scan rates.

My main point was that despite this panel's matrix shortcoming, its PQ at a normal viewing distance is superior to other TVs of this screen size and that it pulls off this level of performance because its strengths command your attention, not any loss of resolution or scaling artifacts. With price wars and economies of scale being what they are, I don't think we can expect Pioneer or any other manufacturer to invest in the unique tooling and additional R&D necessary to advance performance in this plasma panel size much higher.