Demo DVD's for LCD TV

Here’s my hands-on experience with my first LCD TV, the Sharp Aquos LC-19A35M. Initially I was disappointed when I played my first DVD in my Samsung player since I expected to see something similar to those wonderful videos shown in the showroom. The DVD I used was “We Are the Future”, a charity concert in Rome produced by Quincy Jones (remember We Are the World?) for impoverished children of war-torn countries around the world. I used this as my test DVD since it had one of my favourites, Josh Groban singing “You Raise Me Up”. It also had “The Prayer” with Andrea Bocelli and Karina Pasian, another of my favourites. Sorry if this sounded like an album review rather than a LCD TV review but this is a two-in-one thing! Well, the video was not too good (since it was an outdoor concert and lighting is not ideal) and definitely nothing like what I saw when the shop demonstrated my set. Did I get a lemon?

Luckily no, thank goodness. After watching the demos at the showroom with all the LCD TV showing such vibrant and vivid colours you would naturally have high expectations when you bring your own set home. But be prepared for some disappointment. First you must realized that what is usually shown in the showroom are specially prepared programs and not any run of the mill DVD. And they are connected with costly HDMI cables and not a supermarket RCA video cable. But that does not mean that you cannot enjoy your normal DVD with your LCD TV with a simple RCA video cable. You will not be too disappointed if you bear in mind the following points based on my experience with DVD's that I have.

1. The quality of what is shown is firstly dependent on the source material.
2. The medium and transport from the source to the LCD TV also plays a part.
3. The settings on your LCD TV set will also determine what is shown.

Source Material.
The LCD TV cannot improve on bad source material so it is garbagein, garbage out. In fact any defects will look twice as bad on a LCD TV than on a conventional TV since it is very unforgiving. A well produced DVD will give you something similar to what you see in the showroom. If you can get that demo video (remember you always seem to see the one with two children dancing in a magnificent concert hall) and connected the way it was done at the showroom, I bet it will look just as good on your LCD TV at home.

Medium and transport.
The same video from a DVD will definitely look better than from a VCD. A connection using the three cable component video connections will look better than using just the single RCA video connection. Using a DVD with progressive scan will look better than from one without. And if you have the output connected on HDMI cable, it will surely look the best.

TV Settings.
Once you have got your source material with the medium and the transport settled, you can start looking at the settings on the LCD TV. There are so many of them and you can tweak them to your heart’s content. If you have messed them up, just go back to the factory preset and start all over again, this time hopefully wiser. I tested mine with the factory default with just the Brightness adjusted up a few notches.

Now back to my testing of the Sharp LCD TV. After my initial disappointment, I tried several other DVD’s in my collection and my disappointment disappeared progressively since it definitely looked better with better source material and the quality do vary a great deal. Among the movies that I tested so far, the best looking was undoubtedly Luc Besson’s “The Fifth Element” starring Bruce Willis and Milla Jovovich and you should grab a copy to show off your LCD TV and impress your friends. BTW, I tested using the ordinary Samsung MM-DA25 micro component system running progressive scan with component video connections. Then I sampled other movies like Toy Story, Dinosaurs and Shrek. Wow! Now I understand why they usually show animation movies such as Ice Age, Ratatouille and so on in the showrooms since they will look better than the normal movies. Just pop in any of these new digital animation movies and you will not be disappointed.

Then I tested some of my concert DVD’s and the best so far is the Eagles’ “Hell Freezes Over”. And if you are a Beatles fan, go for “Concert for George (Harrison)”; the video is slightly below that of the Eagles but is musically much better in my opinion. What about my classical collection? I have not found an outstanding one yet but for brilliant colours and photography, it must be “Classical Destinations”. This is not a full classical concert but a BBC production on various music capitals of Europe. The outdoor scenes are just breathtaking and feast for the eyes. It rivals some of those travel demo videos seen in the TV showrooms.

I have not tested the HDMI input since I do not have any HD source but I am more than happy with what I have with just the component video inputs. So much for my subjective view of the Sharp and I will give more technical details on the specs in my later posts. It may not be the best LCD TV in the market but at the price I paid, it is certainly the best value for money

Here are details of some of my test DVD’s in case you are interested to show off to your friend. (The first one is not that great for video but more for the contents and if you love Josh Groban. I'm also smitten by the youthful innocence of Karina Paisan, a young Dominican Republic singer.)
Or you can just pick up any of the digital animation movies and they will probably look great.

“We Are the Future”.


Apart from the artists mentioned above, it has many Middle East, African and South American singers and also the more familiar Santana and Nora Jones. There’s also a performance by Stomp. It is a most enjoyable concert if you do not mind some of the unfamiliar music style and if you like something different. There are also short intros by celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey and Angelina Jolie. Video is not that great but content is superb.

“The Fifth Element”.


Sights and Sounds are spectacular. This is an outstanding movie demo disc to show off your system. An amusing sci-fi of stunning visual and sound. Milla Jovovich made her movie debut in this movie with no clothes on (but alas, with "bandages" over the vital places) so this is a must for her fans. (Edited: Sorry, this is not her movie debut but her breakout role.)

“Hell Freezes Over”.


This DVD has often been used in the past to in HiFi showrooms for demonstration so it has both great video and audio. Since I’m no a great fan of the Eagles (I only know Hotel California), I would recommend the following as an alternative.

“Concert for George”.


A tribute to George Harrison at the Royal Albert Hall, London. Artists include Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Jeff Lynne and Ravi Shankar (OK, he did not play the sitar, only his daughter Anoushka did) among others. Most of the pieces are wonderfully played but the gem is undoubtedly George Harrison’s classic “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” that never sounded so well. “Something” is another charming piece, from the quiet ukulele solo by McCartney in the beginning to the grand entrance of 8 guitarists and 3 drummers (plus many other musicians). If you are a Beatles fan, you’ll weep gently with the guitars and if you are not a Beatles fan, you’ll become one after watching this. If you also like sitar and Indian music, it is an added bonus since there are 3 pieces in this genre. This is a 2-disc set, the first is the full concert and the second is the edited theatrical release. Disc 2 has the better video so this is the one to play for your friends.

“Classical Destinations”


Remember seeing those beautiful sceneries of magnificent buildings with colourful foliage and flowers, shimmering turquoise waters and crystal blue sky on the LCD TV’s in the showroom? I don’t think you can get hold of those demo videos but you’ll be having something close if you get “Classical Destinations”. This is a BBC TV series taking you on a classical music journey to 12 European cities associated with some of the greatest classical composers. The shots are so beautiful that some of the pictures leap out at you. It is also a good introduction to those cities if you plan to visit them on a holiday. You also get snippets of the composer’s music to accompany the stunning sceneries so what are you waiting for?

Happy viewing.

Ronald Kwok
http://ronaldkwok.atomicblog.hop.clickbank.net/