TVs - And Where to Buy
 

Back in September, I posted questions about appliances - and where to buy. Based on the advice provided here, we had a good experience shopping and purchasing at Baron's. No problems experienced with the Bosch fridge, GE range and Bosch dishwasher. At least so far as we only operated them for a month before closing up for the winter.

I'm now researching big screen televisions - looking at a Samsung OLED as we'll be viewing in a bright room with a wide range of viewing angles. I'm interested in (1) your experiences with different brands/types of big screen TVs, (2) soundbars you've coupled with your TV and (3) where you recommend purchasing from (or any other advice you have). I'm particularly concerned with the mounting as we'll be contending with a natural stone chimney (by no means a perfectly flat surface) and I'll want the mount to have a decent amount of downward travel to get the TV closer to eye level when in use and above the firebox when not in use. We'd also like to minimize the distance it protrudes from the wall when not in use. Note - we almost never use the fireplace & we don't have a mantle. I'm not sure I want to tackle the mounting job so wondering if there are any local Baron's-like shops that might provide a higher level of mounting service than I might otherwise secure from the usual suspects like Best Buy.

We're in Meredith. Thanks.

I bought a new 55" Samsung and a 50" LG just in the past year. I like the LG better than the Samsung. Better picture and easier streaming service. My children bought me a sound bar which I added to the Samsung. The only difference I see from the regular TV sound is the sound from the base which amplifies explosions in movies. I guess if you want that movie theater experience then it's worth it, but I wouldn't have bought it myself, JMO.
I bought my TV's from Costco when they were on sale but obviously there are no Costco's near Meredith.
I've always been a proponent of NOT buying the latest and most expensive TV because they are obsolete pretty quickly.

Doug at Cinemaesque is your guy. He is also a Samsung dealer.
We bought all new Samsungs when we remodeled our home. We mainly went with Frames as we wanted the low profile. We have one above our stone fireplace. The only problem with the Frames is the oneconnect box.

I bought a Samsung 85 inch Q9 series about two years ago and it has been great. I know there are many different Samsung models and the picture quality changes with each one.

Best Buy had them on sale last week for $1,000 less than I paid but that is the way it is with TV's. That sale is still going on. They also have a 100 inch Hisense but you would really need the right room for that. The Hisense is $2,999 marked down from $9,999.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/hisense...?skuId=6561416

Last year I mounted two televisions on stone fireplaces and it really wasn't that hard. The right drill bits and concrete anchors. I used telescoping articulating mounts but the TV's seem to just stay in one place, we don't move them.

I have had very good luck with Samsung TV's over the last 15 years or so. The first one that I had lasted 13+ years and I gave it away and it was still working. The 65" one upstairs in my house is now 6 years old and trouble free. This replaced a Vizio TV that died after 13 months of use, 1 month out of warranty. I purchased a new Samsung TV for my man town in the basement last year that was one of the higher end models with a 120 hertz refresh rate for better performance. Thus far that one has been great as well.

As far as sound bars go I would recommend that you go with the same brand as the TV that you purchase. That way the TV and the Sound Bar "play nice" together and integrate seamlessly. Don't cheap out on the sound bar. There is a good reason why some sound bars cost $100 and some are $1000.

Walmart and BJs in Tilton

The www.pemivalleyhabitat.org/shop, the ReStore on Tenney Mtn Hgwy in Plymouth has flat screen tv's for sale for some pretty low prices that people have donated when they upgrade or something.

As long as you are looking at their website, maybe you want to help them replace their broke down, large garage door that's in the back of the building.

Digging into this a bit further, I assume you must have power above the mantel now to plug into? What are you planning on using for tv service? Do you need cable/ethernet going to it, or are you streaming wirelessly through the tv or a plug-in device? Things to consider.

If you plan on using a soundbar you will need to power it. If using an articulating mount, most sound bars can be attached with a bracket below the tv.

We decided to go with Sonos for all of our sound needs. In the great room we aren't using a soundbar, but have Sonos units in the room that interface wirelessly. Our master bedroom tv is on an articulating mount and has a Sonos bar attached. The Frame tv in the greatroom was our choice because of the extremely thin profile of the mount and body itself. We didn't want to see mounts and wiring behind it, and found that in this room we don't really need to articulate it.

Agreed.

Some newer TV's have a dedicated HDMI port for the soundbar.
Some soundbars have a separate dedicated volume remote.

If all of this is wireless. Then read up. Some soundbars have a lag.
If viewing dialog - the speaking movement of person talking doesn't match the sound.

Do check on return policy if soundbar does not meet your expectations.

Thanks for the advice, everyone.

Codeman - you ask some good questions. Unfortunately, we don't have existing power to plug it into. But I'm planning on purchasing a 77" QD-OLED unit (strongly considering the Samsung S90C) which will mean it'll cover all but about 2 inches of the chimney stonework on each side of the TV. From there, I may go with some conduit (covered by some decorative molding) leading down to an outlet. Not ideal but there's no way I'm going to be able to position power in the stonework.

I plan to stream wirelessly from our mesh network and I'll be purchasing a soundbar (haven't researched these yet) which I know will require power as well. Maybe I'll skip the conduit and molding and simply wrap a single power cord around the chimney and connect it to a surface mounted plug outlet behind the TV.

I mainly want an articulating mount so that I can move the TV lower when using it. Lowering the TV 18 to 24 inches while also minimizing how far it protrudes from the chimney when it's returned to it's resting position would be ideal. So, I need to research mounts as well.

Nothing's easy.

Thanks Biggd. I'm a proponent of this as well. Problem is, I don't always follow my own good judgement.

Still, based on my research, one of the few drawbacks to OLED's is that they're not as bright as LED technology. One of their main benefits however is their stellar viewing angles...much better than LEDs. We'll be positioning the TV in a bright room with fairly extreme viewing angles on the two sides.

The latest OLED technology is called QD-OLED which significantly amps up the brightness levels to where they are comparable to LED. So, on the surface, that seems ideal for our situation. Yet it is the latest technology and rather costly. Could be the consumer is just getting bamboozled. I wonder if at some point TVs get so good that any further enhancements would be literally imperceptible to the human eye.

Thanks Biggd. I'm a proponent of this as well. Problem is, I don't always follow my own good judgement.

Still, based on my research, one of the few drawbacks to OLED's is that they're not as bright as LED technology. One of their main benefits however is their stellar viewing angles...much better than LEDs. We'll be positioning the TV in a bright room with fairly extreme viewing angles on the two sides.

The latest OLED technology is called QD-OLED which significantly amps up the brightness levels to where they are comparable to LED. So, on the surface, that seems ideal for our situation. Yet it is the latest technology and rather costly. Could be the consumer is just getting bamboozled. I wonder if at some point TVs get so good that any further enhancements would be literally imperceptible to the human eye.[/QUOTE]


Both of my TV's are OLED but my LG is in my screen porch and is plenty bright enough. I don't view at extreme angles so I can't really speak to that.. The Samsung is in my living room and has the sound bar. I'm a Samsung fan as I have a Samsung phone also, but I really like the LG TV. As far as the sound bar, I don't find it to be worth the expense, but that's JMO. I'm 70 so take it for what it's worth.
I'm not big into home theater and I will admit I'm not a TV expert. I prefer to be outside whenever possible rather than indoors watching TV. I will put a jacket on and go out to my screen porch and watch a hockey game, makes me feel like I'm there. :D
I bought both of my TV's at Costco on sale but the LG came with a free year of Paramount plus and I have continued the subscription. Walmart had the same LG TV at the same price but no free year of Paramount plus.