Mits Ws-65711 Or Hit 65xwx20b?

[Dan]

It is down to these two for me. The knowns are the unit will be a RPTV and the size will be 65".The unit will be built into the wall of a new home we are building.  This site appears to have a slight bias to MITS, for all the right reasons. HIT I feel is making a serious run at MITS dominance. First , Sony did not make the cut due to the famous flicker problem discussed in many forums. Pioneer Elite did not make the cut because of price.

The deciding factors are:

(1)Anti-Glare quality of each unit.(the room it will be in has A wall of windows)

(2)PQ(SD-OTA, DTV and HD(OTA--not DTV HD)

(3)Tweakability Ease

(4)Reliability

(5)PQ degradation over time

I have all the HT components purchased except for TV and HD DTV/OTA receiver. I am going to make a decision this week on either of these units. My budget is $4000 to $5000 for the TV.

I would appreciate advice from current, previous and potential owners of each of the units in question.

DAN

Components Selected thus far:

YAM RXV-2095 receiver
NHT in Wall front and rear sorrounds
Teal Center Channel
Mits progressive Scan DVD
Energy SUB

[gparris]

I am a proud owner of a WS-65511 that has all the features of the WS-65711 but without the glamorous lower bottom. It has the antiglare shield, the Firewire for upgrades and lots of other inputs.  It will set you back about $3399.95 plus tax and delivery at American TV plus any extended warranties, as if it"needed" them. Save your money for more electronics, like an antenna as it has an built in DTV tuner for OTA, or a Firewire-equipped DVHS recorder/player. The Mits I have is excellent. The WS-65711 model is $5499 and is not worth it. Get the WS-65511 for more bang for the buck.
The Hitachi is nice, but the opinions of the buyers in the feedback section of the Circuit City website on this model is horrendous! Their  65 inch model has Firewire AND DVI, but the feed back of the buyers made me go back and buy another MIts instead. I had a Mits 4:3 model for 3 years and sold it to get the 16:9 for all the DVD's I have and the OTA ability. This is just my experience, but if you go with the MIts model I got,you will not go wrong and save some for the other items you might desire. Note my equipment.

[Matt Heebner]

I too will throw my .02 in for the Mits. I've had mine for two years now and although I have had it calibrated, I have yet to see a RPTV yet that comes close to the PQ of my Mits.

(1)Anti-Glare quality of each unit.(the room it will be in has A wall of windows)

I think the Hitachi does have the better anti-glare screen, especially in the higher end models...but... the protective/anti-glare screen is removeable off the Mits

(2)PQ(SD-OTA, DTV and HD(OTA--not DTV HD)

No question, the Mits has the better PQ in all of the above areas. HD is without a doubt "window like" and colors are jaw dropping amazing.

(3)Tweakability Ease

There is a wealth of information, especially on Home Theater Spot, on tweaking the Mits's. Most tweaks are simple, but many are pretty tricky and difficult. The more you read and learn, the easier those tweaks become. The more tweaks you do, the better the PQ of the TV.

(4)Reliability

I know of three people who have Mits RPTV's for more than 10 years. The things are built like tanks, built to last. My brother owns a kitchen in a sports bart with an ancient, and I mean ancient 60" Mits RPTV. It has to be close to 15 years old. The picture only in the last few years has gotten pretty bad. This thing is on like 18 hours a day, 7 days a week.

(5)PQ degradation over time

Any TV's PQ is going to degrade with time. It all depends on usuage, and how high you have your picture controls set, etc. A good calibration will ensure many years of above average PQ.


I also want to add that you should save your money from buying the top-of-the-line, and put that extra you save into a full calibration by a professional. Thats where a Mits really shines over other TV's! There is another thread going about an excellent calibrationist Craig Miller coming to Milwaukee this summer. Ideally you want about 300 hours on your set before you have this done, so there is still time.
A calibration is what seperates a good looking TV from a absolute stunning looking TV and well worth the money. You won't be able to get any better PQ  than by having this done....it's like the ultimate upgrade for a TV.

Mitsubishi is the way to go IMHO (as with everything I have stated above, all in my opinion) but I have heard from some who are considered to be among the best ISF and calibrationists in the video field say that a calibrated Mits can't be beat.

Matt

[AndrewP]

HITACHI!

[Dan]

Thanks for the encouraging comments on the MITS.

I just need to find it at an attractive price. The HIT is $800 more and I can't (except for the anti-glare screen) justify it.

Any recommendations on OTA & DTV STB.

Zenith HD SAT 520?
Sony HD-200?
Samsung model?

Dan

[Pat]

Calling the protective screen anti-glare is pretty funny.  If you have kids with a tendency to press the buttons and drive their cars and trucks on the screen, then I'd suggest getting new model kids and removing the screen.

The picture quality is much better without it.  That's why Mits owners are pleased to be able to remove it, and do so.

[gparris]

Get the RPTV that offers the best picture you can buy per budget. My Mits WS-65511 was delivered from American...that was it! Try to get the WS-65611 or 711 if possible- the Mits I bought has its flaws. All American did was literally  "drop it off" into my Media room and tell me to wait for the thing to warm up before turning it on...then left.  American did NOT call back if I had any problems, did NO "setup" as advertized-and I have had 2 problems already! First-I had to chase after the delivery guys to have them order a replacement screen for the one that was chipped on the corner of the screen ( it is not installed on 65" size Mits) and to keep the packaging-which I am STILL waiting for, since Mits shipped the SECOND one Scratched ( not a fault of American). Then problem #2: The far right side of the screen is discolored, especially in the lower righthand corner-it appears "brown" on black and white commercials and discolored at the edge on all other transmissions.  American has to come and fix this along with hopefully, the THIRD screen- after 3 weeks using the set.
The difference of the 611 to the 511 is not the screen, but finer optics for corner-to-corner focusing, like on the 711 and that is all. The 711-only has the special screen, better optics and electronic tweaks and cabinet: Note the Mitsubish-TV website!

As for me, if I ever buy a TV again, it will be a Hitachi and the "jury" is still out if it is from American.

[Dan]

I am responding to your sentence "next Tv would be a Hitachi".. I am also considering the HIT 65twx20b from a dealer in Chicago(since the closest place in WI, is in Stevens Point and they offer a poor extended warranty). I am concerned about the HIT because other forums have discussed severe preoblems with DVI inputs on the HIT when using the DVI out on STB as the main feed for the HD signal. HIT corporation has supposedly confirmed the problem(which i am attempting to verify with HIT directly). Assuming this is true and there is no fix in the immediate future, I will likely get the MITS 65711 or Toshiba with DVI input. Just my $.02

Dan

[gparris]

All I am saying to you and anyone else for this matter, of what to buy, is that the Mits is a fine HDTV set-just buy the better of them as your budget allows and at a dealer you can trust for service.
Since I had problems with my new Mits-I would not buy another one. I had a 60" 4:3 for 3 great years and only sold it for a 16:9 model because of the Firewire, my DVDs and that now there is more HDTV than was available before when I first purchased it.
The Hitachi 65XWX20b is a great set with its lifelike picture, great "Deep Black Anti-reflective" shield and IEEE and DVI ports and even an upgrade slot for future technology. It has convenient handholds for moving it around for cleaning and system upgrading and an attactive cabinent that I find less imposing than the Mits. If I could do it over again, or American can spot me a trade for the lemon I have to get the Hitachi, I would.

I have never heard anything bad about Hitachi-I just do home theater install/consulting and have done mostly the Mits HDTV's based on my 60" experience. My customers are still pleased with their 42, 46,55 and 65 inch models from Mits. I wish I was....

[jlegge]

If you would like, I can send you an email with some pricing on the Mitsubishi line. Send me an email and I will respond to it.

[Dan]

John , thanks for the offer. Everyone that carries the Mits is about the same price(MAP, I think you folks call it.) What really dtermines who I buy from is how good and reasonable($) the extended warranty is. For example a local large reatail dept store has the Mits priced decently but they offer their own extended warranty(not phillips or GE) and they want $599 for 5years and I do not trust their techs. Servicing appliances and TV's do not mix. Second, If the warranty folks fail to live up the contract I signed I expect the Store I purchased it from to make it right even though the warranty is now the responsibility of the third party. The reason this has to be the case is they(your store) chose to offer a specific brand of warranty. I will give you an example. A friend hre in MILW purchased a 65" RPTV from a National Chain Electronic store. There were problems with the set which were not able to get resolved. The store who also is the third party warranty company said the issues were within tolerances. This person was an accomplished videophile that owned the set. They could have replaced the set but chose not to. This is a scenario I do not want to experience. Most electronics including RPTV's are commodities, though fickle in their performanceI usually know more about the set than the salesperson does before I walk in the door of the store. It is the after sale issues that determine who wins the sale for my particualr situation. Did they deliver the set on time. Do they do curb drop off or do they charge for in home delivery and set up? If I do want the set is there a restocking charge? Willthey charge me to pick it up. Will the store try to talk me out of returing it or will they cheerfully refund my money? Word of mouth and discussions on sites like this determine which retailer is the winner in the long run.

Dan

[jlegge]

Dan, I really would like the opportunity to go more in depth on this topic with you. However, in the interest of fairness to other retailers and to avoid controversy, I do not want to do so in a public forum such as this.

I'm sure the moderators can appreciate this as well..... Heh  

Give me a call or fire me an email with ALL your questions and I will address them in detail.

As for word of mouth for recommendations on where to buy it, ask around. You are going to hear good and bad stories about ANY retailer, just who has the least bad stories.....? I am, of course, biased. *cheesy grin*

[Dan]

I may stop by Thursday night for the PC sale.

Thanks

Dan

[drgingras]

Dan, my experience with Flanner's was great. Their delivery and setup is second to none. Way better than the "drop and run" delivery offered by most of the big-box stores.

During setup, a fairly severe problem was discovered (dysfunctional red gun). The delivery crew (who, BTW, actually knew how to operate the TV and even perform  basic convergence) made 1 call to the office, and offered to take the set back and either replace it with anything in the same price range, or refund my full purchase price. I was so comfortable with Flanner's professionalism, I opted to keep the unit. Within 3 working days, a Flanner's tech showed up and performed the necessary repair. He even walked  me through the 64-point convergence when he was done with the warrantee work.

As you mentioned, their pricing is competitive. I opted for the extended warrantee on my last purchase. At the time, it was through Phillips. Pretty extensive in-home repair or replace, also competitively priced.

Although I haven't personally dealt with John, I recently recommended Flanner's to a co-worker ready to purchase a Mits.
Coincidently, John took care of them:)  They gave him rave reviews - even went back to him for additional stuff!

Make it a point to visit. I'm sure you'll find it worth your while.

Dave

[jlegge]

*blush*

Thank you.