autoboy

[autoboy]

Netflix via playon on the sagetv extenders works on my 32 inch TV, but on the 65 it can’t keep up with CE devices.  Part of the problem is that there isn’t any HD content for the PC compared to HD on CE devices.

Knowing SageTV it won’t be open to just one vendor.  I would think they would want to go the plugin route so they could support other systems like Amazon video, pandora, etc.

[autoboy]

I’m pretty sure that the HD100 and HD200 do not use the chips that support DRM pathways.  That means you will need the fabled HD300.

Ceten tuner $400
3 HD300s – $600

That’s a steep upgrade for me.  Hopefully the old extenders are able to still play copy freely content.  I don’t have any premium channels that are typically DRMed.

[autoboy]

It isn’t the size that matters, it is the ratio of size to sitting distance.  My 24″ monitor from 15 inches is pretty dang big.  It fills 50% of my view.  It fills more of my view than the 65 from 11 feet.

For the slow paced FPS games I play, bigger is better.  Often times I’m shooting at something only a few pixels big.  And I’m pretty dang good at hitting those few pixels with a bolt action rifle.  You don’t know how to aim until you’ve only got one shot every 2 seconds.

[autoboy]

As you’ll see from the first post I’ve replaced the harddrive with 2 different models.  The first time I replaced it with an identical 80GB harddrive (I have a ton of these laying around from Dell servers.  It is cheaper to buy harddrives online than from Dell) and then, thinking it just might not like that type of harddrive, I got a new 2TB drive for my server and yanked the old 750 for this machine.  The 750 has the same problems except now I’ve got a ton of extra space I’ll never use on it. 

[autoboy]

A couple updates. 

I tried a SATA card I had laying around, and could not get it to boot from it.

There are 3 SATA modes.  AHCI, SATA, and RAID.

I had been running on AHCI since that is what I thought we were supposed to run under.  RAID mode got to the boot but blue screened shortly after.  SATA mode booted and I’m typing this on it right now.  I guess I won’t know if it really worked for a few more days / weeks.

I’ve never seen both AHCI mode and SATA mode since I thought they would be the same.  Maybe SATA mode really means legacy IDE mode?

[autoboy]

Cnet has a review up of your S2

http://reviews.cnet.com/flat-panel-tvs/panasonic-viera-tc-p46s2/4505-6482_7-33972953.html?tag=rb_content;carouselMain

[autoboy]

The system is always under very light load.  It has happened only a few minutes after recovering from sleep.

The system is also stable under load from the occasional video game.

I don’t think it can be heat related.

[autoboy]

Windows XP was way different than Windows 7.  I’ve heard that windows 7 was designed to be able to replace the harddrive controller.

Naylia had a good idea.  Instead of replacing the motherboard, I’m gonna try a pci-e SATA card I have laying around. 

[autoboy]

So you are saying what I am dreading then.  The only solution is to buy a new motherboard…

That’s what I am thinking but I certainly don’t want to have to buy a new board.  It can’t be PSU.

Has anyone tried going to a new chipset on an existing Windows 7 install?  If I DO have to buy a new motherboard, I’ll probably get one with the AMD chipset so I can at least try to unlock another core.  At least I’ll get something out the deal right?

[autoboy]

[quote=”Matt”]
[quote=”autoboy”]
No.  I consider a 50″ the minimum size for a main viewing room TV. [/quote]

Yep, don’t go any smaller… I love my 50″ for most TV watching, but when we watch a lot of HD movies (especially those in 2.35:1) I start to want a 58″/60″ plasma.

Even 50″ at ~10-12ft like most apartment living rooms your eye can’t resolve all the detail of 1080p (you can barely resolve the full detail of 720p at the size/distance), so you certainly don’t want to go smaller.

Here’s a good chart that’s been around the ‘net that I added different distance markers to.
[/quote]

thats why I went 65″ at 11 feet.  I don’t think any bigger would be much of a benefit, and HDTV of questionable quality is still ok on it.

People that come by to take a look, think its the perfect size.  After almost a year, I would agree.

I have the 65″ V10 Panny and it has the THX mode.  I’ve only used the THX calibration that comes with THX certified disks, but I just downloaded the AVS disk after seeing it on HDNation and I’m looking for some time to calibrate it some more.  Overall, I find the THX mode pretty dang good and I just adjusted the brightness and sharpness settings.  I prefer a sharpness set to 0 because it gives a natural look.

[autoboy]

No.  I consider a 50″ the minimum size for a main viewing room TV.  You can deconstruct the box to fit it under the bed.  It should fit as long as you take it apart.  The foam will be the hard part.

Congrats on the new TV.  You’ll be very happy with the Panny.  I know I am.  With only a little bit of effort you can have it calibrated to meet the THX color spec of the G25.  And, as a plus you can write about your calibration as well!

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