If you've been following the HDTV market for a while, you know that LCoS (liquid crystal on silicon) projection technology really took it's sweet time maturing. Going back at least three or four years, manufacturers including JVC, RCA, Toshiba, Mitsubishi, and Hitachi all briefly introduced LCoS rear projectors, with all but JVC exiting the business.
Why? Though similar in some respects to widely used LCD (liquid crystal display) technology, LCoS suggested great promise, particularly in the achievement of high resolution 1080p screens — always considered HDTV's Holy Grail. Traditional LCD displays require a backlight shining through the liquid-crystal pixels, which act as electronic shutters to control the amount of light passing through to the viewer's eyes. Not only does this "transmissive" arrangement chew up some of the lamp's brightness, but it dictates that the electrical conductors used to address the pixels must be hidden in the grid lines between them. That, in turn, limits how closely you can place the pixels and explains why many LCD rear projectors, particularly older models, have an obvious "screen door" effect when viewed at close range.
LCoS, on the other hand, is a reflective technology. Instead of a backlight, light from a projection lamp strikes the liquid crystal cells from the front, hits a mirrored pane behind them, then bounces back out toward the screen. This means the wires to address the pixels can be hidden behind the mirror, and the pixels can be, well, as close as you can make 'em. This improvement in so-called "fill factor" makes for a smoother, more seamless image that really lends itself to up-close, cinematic viewing.
Nice concept. The only problem was that no one could figure out how to manufacture LCoS chips efficiently in large quantities, so the technology was restricted initially to expensive "statement" HDTVs. And in the end, they didn't make much of a statement: Despite their ultra-high resolution for the time, early LCoS rear projectors all suffered from an inability to reproduce a solid black.
Flash ahead a couple of years to the introduction of Sony's version of LCoS, dubbed SXRD for Silcon X-tal Reflective Display. Along with JVC, which has continued to refine its own LCoS technology (called D-ILA or, in HD models, HD-ILA), Sony notably pushed the envelope on LCoS performance while simultaneously solving the manufacturing issues that had plagued the early attempts. SXRD started out in a hyper-expensive $30,000 front projector and, later, the $13,000 Qualia 006 rear projector (first reviewed by Sound & Vision here). But, by the end of last year, affordable SXRD projection sets were flooding stores and winning awards from enthusiast publications. We selected the 50-inch KDS-R50XBR1 as Sound & Vision's 2005 Product of the Year.
The Sony KDS-60A2000 60-inch SXRD HDTV reviewed here marks the launch of Sony's second-generation SXRDs and represents the entry-level model for this size in an expanded, now multi-tiered line. Not too much has changed — "if it ain't broke," right? Perhaps most important, Sony has stuck with the same 1,920 x 1080 (1080p) SXRD chip that drove last year's 50- and 60-inch models (including the KDS-R60XBR1 that won our DLP/LCoS face-off in April). As before, there are three chips, one each for the red, green, and blue primary colors from which all colors are derived, eliminating the need for the color-wheel found in almost all DLP projectors and their potential for associated rainbow artifacts.
As for what's new, most obvious is a more Spartan industrial design that features bottom-mount speakers, a departure from last year's "winged" design with side-mounted speakers suspended several inches off the outer edges. These were gorgeous, stylish TVs but were too wide to fit many existing cabinets and wall units, so it's bye-bye to all that flash.
Also new are two 1080p-capable HDMI digital inputs alongside the usual bevy of component- and S-/composite-video connections. Unlike on earlier SXRDs, these HDMI inputs will accept the native 1080p signal coming from a high-definition disc player and put that up on the TV's 1080p screen without requiring a signal conversion. But the ultimate value of this remains a question. Since movie content on both the Blu-ray and HD DVD disc formats are carried as 1080p HDTV, the thinking is that it's best to keep the signal in that format rather than making the player convert the content to a 1080i HDTV signal only to have the TV convert it back to 1080p for display.
Still, experts I've consulted recently suggest such 1080p-to-1080i-to-1080p conversions like this, at least from 24-fps film-originated video, usually do no harm to the signal and that feeding the TV straight 1080p from the player is not likely to produce any noticeable improvement in picture quality over 1080i as long as the TV has a good deinterlacer. At this writing, only one high-def disc player — Samsung's BD-P1000 Blu-ray player — can provide a 1080p output signal to allow us to test this theory. But Samsung has confirmed that the BD-P1000 first converts the 1080p signal on the disc to 1080i before converting it back again to 1080p for output from the player, so it's not much of a test. We'll see how other Blu-ray and HD DVD players handle this before making a final judgment, but either way, it's looking like the benefit of a 1080p-capable input on a 1080p TV may turn out to be more hype than reality.
Other features of the Sony KDS-60A2000 will be far more valuable to users. Though the redesigned remote control lacks backlighting, this tall, lean wand fits nicely in the hand and boasts a clean, well-conceived layout that puts all the important buttons in easy reach of your thumb. A Wide button just above the navigation rocker allows you to cycle through four screen modes available with either standard-def or high-def sources to watch shows in their native 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratio or to stretch or zoom them to fill the screen. Unfortunately, Sony doesn't provide direct access keys to select the different source inputs; as before, you have to step through the inputs with the TV/Video key or scroll through an onscreen menu to select the one you want (though you can set the TV to skip unused inputs). But a new Tools key right off the nav rocker provides easy access to the video and audio set-up menus — a welcome addition for inveterate picture tweakers.
SETUP And tweak they will, thanks to Sony's inclusion of an impressive raft of picture controls. There are three picture presets, Standard, Vivid, and Custom, all of which can be customized to your liking, with the TV remembering all of your adjustments for individual source inputs within each preset. Enthusiasts will gravitate to the Custom setting, which offers the widest range of additional controls beyond the usual Brightness, Contrast, Sharpness, Color, and Tint. Critically, the set offers a full set of six White Balance adjustments (separate Bias and Gain controls for Red, Green, and Blue). After selecting the Custom preset's Warm2 color temperature mode, these allowed me (with the assistance of test instruments) to get near-perfect alignment of color temperature to the industry-standard gray without having to enter service menus (see Test Bench). Still, when I began looking at program material I noticed that reds looked a little hot and that bright scenes had a slightly rosy appearance — something we've seen on earlier SXRD models as well. I brought the picture into better balance by taking the Color (saturation) and Red Gain controls down a notch.
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The Short Form
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Snapshot
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| This 2nd-gen SXRD rear projector follows the tradition of excellence set by its predecessors. |
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Plus
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•Punchy, vibrant color •Excellent black and shadow reproduction •Crisp 1080p resolution •Impressive selection of picture controls to adjust the image |
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Minus
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| •No backlight on the remote |
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Key Features
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•1,920 x 1080-pixel SXRD •Two 1080p-capable HDMI inputs •Full suite of picture controls including White Balance, Gamma, Iris, and others •Inputs: 2 HDMI video/audio, 3 component-video, 1 S-video, 3-composite video (all with stereo audio), 1 PC (with mono audio), 1 RF coax (antenna), 1 RF coax (cable) •Outputs: 1 optical digital audio, 1 analog stereo audio •Dimensions: 55.8 x 39 x 20.3 inches •Price: $3,500, optional stand (SU-RS11X) $400 |
Beyond this, the set has a number of other advanced picture processing options, most of which I eventually left off. But the High setting for Noise Reduction really helped clean up crappy 480i broadcasts without affecting higher-quality sources. Along with Sony's Digital Reality Creation (DRC) modes, which kick in for low-res signals and allow you to play with the balance of image detail and smoothness, I was able to get standard def signals into a very watchable state, particularly high-quality DVDs.
PERFORMANCE It didn't take more than a few moments of scanning the high-def cable channels to realize this Sony follows in the big footsteps of the SXRDs that came before it. Even with the brightness adjusted down for our darkened home theater, these TVs all share a vibrancy and punch that's something to behold. Watching coverage of the space shuttle Atlantis launch on HDNet, the shuttle's white body and the clouds behind it were set in almost 3-D relief against a rich blue Florida sky. The spaceship's auxilliary fuel tank was a pungent brown-orange rust, and I could see the shiny white finish on the solid-rocket boosters that straddled the tank.
When the scene switched to the two shirt-sleeved commentators sitting at their outdoor anchor desk, the screen flooded with hyper-sharp detail. I could easily see the shiny, embroidered logo on the pocket of a vivid blue dress shirt one of them was wearing — even though the logo was exactly the same color as the shirt and set off from the fine cotton weave only by its raised, satiny finish. Flesh tones were excellent: nicely balanced without being exaggerated, and full of subtlety. I could instantly see the contrast between one of the anchors' fair skin (and the red tops of his ears from too much southern sun) and the other's more ruddy complexion and rosy, freckled cheeks. I observed how the gold wedding band one of them was wearing popped off the screen as it caught the light when he moved his hand around and the perfectly reproduced neon-green markings on the reporters' typed notes where they had highlighted them.
When I switched over to a New York Mets-Los Angeles Dodgers baseball game in HD on SportsNet NY, the set made easy work of resolving the vibrant Mets blue and orange (with which I'm intimately familiar) from the deeper blue and red on the Dodgers uniforms. The grass at Shea Stadium was a perfectly natural green hue, rendered in sharp detail by the Sony's 1080p screen, and when El Duque (Orlando Hernandez) came off the Mets mound, his face soaked in sweat, I noticed that his blue cap was stained dark all the way around the rim where he had soaked it through. Wow! This is the kind of mesmerizing HDTV experience that can make you stop caring about what you're actually watching.
By then, I couldn't wait to get to the really good stuff, so I plugged in our high-def disc players to look at some film-based content. During the big opening heist in Venice on the HD DVD of The Italian Job, all the beautiful woodwork details in the well-appointed dark interiors were revealed. Later, when the gang stops to celebrate its $35 million victory on a snow-covered mountain pass in the sunlit Alps, the precise rendering of every shadowy undulation in the mountains against the brightness of the snow gave the scene terrific depth. On a tight shot of John Bridger (Donald Sutherland), I could clearly make out the salt-and-pepper whiskers in his beard and the ripples in the black wool of his coat and the black leather jacket worn by the job's mastermind Charlie Croker (Mark Wahlberg).
Sticking with the Mark Wahlberg theme, I cued up the whacky hitman comedy/action flick The Big Hit on our Samsung Blu-ray player. Interestingly, this Paramount transfer, as well as several Warner Blu-ray titles I've viewed recently, suffer none of the noisy grain and scene-to-scene inconsistency that plagued the first wave of Sony Blu-ray discs we reported on in our review of the Samsung. In fact, it looked spectacular on the KDS-60A2000. In the opening sequence, in which Wahlberg's character Melvin Smiley transfers bagged body parts into the back of his SUV on the top deck of a sunlit parking lot, the subtle red hue of the actor's dyed hair was immediately obvious against the deep blue sky and the white and sand-colored skyscrapers in the background. In a later scene, the Sony passed the ultimate skin test as Melvin and his ragtag foursome of goodfellas show off their buff, naked bods and backsides in a gym locker room after a workout. I could easily make out the differences in their skin tones and see the razor sharp cuts in their muscles. No butts about it — with high-quality HDTV material, the Sony KDS-60A2000 really delivered the goods.
BOTTOM LINE I have to admit a touch of bias in favor of rear projectors. In a world gone mad for flat-panels amidst plummeting prices for LCD and plasma displays, there's even been talk of manufacturers abandoning RPTVs. But, to my eye, the best of the ilk still deliver the cleanest and most natural, film-like presentation I've seen from integrated HDTVs, especially at large screen sizes. And on a dollar-per-inch basis, they deliver that fabulous picture quality at a bargain price.
That said, the Sony KDS-60A2000 60-inch SXRD HDTV easily takes its place among the best rear projectors we've tested, offering not just a sensational image but all the means to adjust it to perfectly suit your taste and viewing conditions. It may not be as skinny as a flat panel, but if this set is any indication of things to come, I think it's safe to say RPTVs won't be disappearing from Sony's line for a long time to come.
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