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[quote user="Sunday Driver"]

Just got to work out how to connect everything upt - TV, DVD recorder and Humax.....[;-)][/quote]

 

Just ask the ten year old kid next door..............He'll have it done in two minutes, without the destruction manuals.

 

 

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[quote user="Sunday Driver"]

Telly arrived 8.30 this morning  - just sixteen hours after placing the order. Well done Amazon and Chronopost.

No problems connecting it up, all automatic channel search and setup.  Very pleased - apart from backstrain shifting the old set out of the way......[:-))]

[/quote]

Yes, are not modern TVs wonderful......mind drifts back to good old valve sets........

Manually tune in each of the channels (still there was only a couple). As the set warmed up adjust the horizontal and vertical hold. And the prices! Bought my first colour set in 1972, a 17" Hitachi and the price was a mere £203, how much is that in todays money.

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[quote user="Chezstevens"]hi Sunday Driver, GR8 that we can perhaps help you for a change! TV wise it may be worth looking at the LED TVs - longer life, less power etc. Having said that we are very happy with our Samsung 37" LCD .... Samsung & Sony share the same boards but not the price ;) If you do not subscribe to Sky then you may consider Humax Foxsat HDR - brilliant HD recorder .... however not a player, without fiddling with CAMs etc, for subscription Sky. Might be worth goggling both suggestions. Plasma screens have many issues, and with the brightness etc of modern LCDs, non of the early advantages (IMHO). If nothing else it has started the discussion :) Vern[/quote] As a technical moron, what is the difference between LED and LCD for someone just wanting to watch the telly, and which would you recommend? If it is not too much to ask, and I wonder if this might be of interest to others, would it be possible for the experts on this forum to recommend a completely new system? We are thinking of upgrading our telly system, and wonder if anyone in laymans' terms can suggest a system starting from scratch considering modern advances in equipment. Things to consider are receiving French digital telly through an aerial (already fitted), and UK telly through a satellite dish (already fitted). Preferably incorporating a Sony video recorder for the old video library, and considering that the computer is at the opposite end of the house to the telly. Many thanks, David
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[:-))][quote user="David"][quote user="Chezstevens"]hi Sunday Driver, GR8 that we can perhaps help you for a change! TV wise it may be worth looking at the LED TVs - longer life, less power etc. Having said that we are very happy with our Samsung 37" LCD .... Samsung & Sony share the same boards but not the price ;) If you do not subscribe to Sky then you may consider Humax Foxsat HDR - brilliant HD recorder .... however not a player, without fiddling with CAMs etc, for subscription Sky. Might be worth goggling both suggestions. Plasma screens have many issues, and with the brightness etc of modern LCDs, non of the early advantages (IMHO). If nothing else it has started the discussion :) Vern[/quote] As a technical moron, what is the difference between LED and LCD for someone just wanting to watch the telly, and which would you recommend? If it is not too much to ask, and I wonder if this might be of interest to others, would it be possible for the experts on this forum to recommend a completely new system? We are thinking of upgrading our telly system, and wonder if anyone in laymans' terms can suggest a system starting from scratch considering modern advances in equipment. Things to consider are receiving French digital telly through an aerial (already fitted), and UK telly through a satellite dish (already fitted). Preferably incorporating a Sony video recorder for the old video library, and considering that the computer is at the opposite end of the house to the telly. Many thanks, David[/quote]

Why dont you just gOGGle it like Madame Stevens.

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Pachapapa,

Sorry I asked. Please ignore my post above.

FYG I do not know what "gOGGle" is, but I have Googled it and did not understand the answer. Surely this kind of flip answer could be applied to almost any question on this forum.

I had hoped for some simple laymans advice from people who had actual experience and understanding of modern systems.

Never mind,

David

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here's a selection for you about LED or LCD

not quite sure what you meant by "considering that the computer is at the opposite end of the house to the telly.

but .......

You should buy a new telly and connect it to your aerial for French TV and possibly buy something like a  Humax freesat box for UK TV by sat.

You can just connect your video recorder to the TV by Scart cable.

Danny

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LCD is the older technology so more tried and tested .  Personally, David, I would wait until LED has been around another year or two and then buy, by which time "coloured backlit" versions should be a sensible price.

You might also want 3-D?

Have a look at this - not the gobbledegook but the verdict bit.  You'll see that good old Plasma still wins in a few categories but they are hefty and expensive to run (I love mine and won't be swapping it until I have to.)

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/lcd-vs-led-vs-plasma.html

 

Buy a good review magazine and look for their best buys in your price range, then nip into a shop and have a good look at the tellies on your short list then decide on the one whose picture you prefer.  Also, look at the customer reviews on Amazon and similar sites and go for the TVs which get 4 or 5 stars and whose reviews reflect what's important to you (picture, sound, looks, reliability etc)  Personally, I wouldn't buy an obscure make that I haven't heard of, but that may be daft - I may be missing out on cheap bargains.

If you want to renew all your kit then bear in mind that the more it is "all in one" the more you'll have to replace if it goes bang.  Thus, for myself, I prefer a separate decoder, telly and recorder but it gets very complicated "round the back" so you might want to exchange future proofing for simplicity, that's up to you.  Having said that, my Panasonic hard drive recorder has 2 built in Freesat decoders which makes life very easy (click on a progamme and it records the entire series and even remembers it when it comes back on air for a second season if you want it to!) and records two programmes while you watch a third- with the proviso that it needs a quad LNB on the dish - if that is something that interests you!  What I would avoid, personally, is a decoder or anything else built into the TV itself because that's the thing you don't want to replace just for the sake of a bit of add-on technology which you can buy relatively cheaply anyway.  What I would look for in a telly is Wi-fi capability so you can watch stuff from your PC on it if you want to.  Also go for as many SCART and HDMI connectors as you can.

I think you'll have trouble finding a new VHS recorder but might find one on e-bay, so be prepared to continue using your old one.  Maybe tranfer your tapes on to DVD?  Just be sure you get a TV with SCART capability, some of the new ones don't have sockets, as my dear old ma' found out quite recently...

Those are very broad thoughts from a non-techie but I do have a lot of kit and know what I like.  No doubt others will have other views.  Martin and Anton are good at explaining stuff as are many on here.

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Danny,

Thanks very much for that very helpful advice.  I will follow the link.  I must confess that I was a little puzzled when Chezstevens after googling recommended a LED, but SD bought a LCD telly.

The bit about the computer being at the opposite end of the house was a clumsy way to show that it would be difficult to receive telly by internet, which Orange keep trying to offer me, or to connect the telly to the computer.

We presently get French digital telly through an aerial with little smart box, and Sky via a satellite dish through an old basic Pace Sky box to a CRT telly.

Thanks for your help.

David

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David

It sounds like the new system that I've now got would suit you.

Sony LCD flat screen 37" high definition TV plus a Humax high definition digital satellite decoder.  We connect our roof aerial lead to the TV which gives us French digital telly and connect the sat dish lead to the TV via the Humax decoder which gives us all the UK telly.

We also have a DVD recorder wired into the loop for recording TV programmes and playing DVD films.

As regards the computer being at the opposite end of the house, the TV has a USB port which will allow you to view photos/movies downloaded onto a simple USB memory stick.

PS:  I have a spare combination VHS/DVD player which you can have for your video collection.

 

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Coops,

What a wonderfully helpful reply.  Exactly what I needed.  I had not thought about an "all in one" telly being difficult to renew or repair if a small bit goes wrong.  I had thought about buying an all singing all dancing telly with decoder and DVD included.  Now I will look for separate bits.  Exactly the sort of advice I was hoping for.

Presumably your Panasonic hard drive recorder with two Freesat decoders needs a double satellite LNB receiver?  My old VHS recorder should work with a new system, and I will see if the Wi-fi signal from the livebox reaches the telly.  I will have to see if my present Sony DVD recorder and VHS will work with any new telly, or if I need a Sony telly.  Perhaps I can get away with just a new telly and new decoder recorder such as Humax or the Panasonic you mention which sounds ideal.

Thank you very much indeed for your enormously helpful reply which has given me a great start in looking for equipment.

David

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David,

You seem to have summed it up exactly - thanks indeed.  I have an old VHS player, and an old DVD Sony five disc player, but if they do not work, or there are not enough scart fittings, I may take you up on your kind offer.

Off now to work everything out.

Thanks again,

David

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Sorry I'm a little late on this thread but can someone advise me;

Do I need Sky to receive Eurosport or can I get this on a Humax box.

I am moving to france in the spring and need to know what I need to watch motorcycle racing, be lost without it! sad!!
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At present you can still get British Eurosport in analogue - but not on your Humax (digital) box (on Astra 1 at 19 deg E)

By using a dish on Astra 1 at 19 deg E you can also get German Eurosport digitally,   but there is no English soundtrack.

Otherwise I'm afraid it's Mr Murdoch for you.....

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