Long, strange trip getting there. I’d been researching and researching over what to buy to replace my ancient Zenith 32″ tube TV. One day, it dawned on me what I needed to do. I unplugged one of my ReplayTV DVRs and brought it with me to Best Buy. Rather than gambling on what a given TV’s picture quality would be *after* I made the purchase (I remembered a friend’s disappointment with a well-reviewed Samsung DLP), I was able to see first hand how different TVs looked.

I rarely watch TV live any more. With the exception of the news and an occasional sports event, I watch nearly everything pre-recorded on my DVR. Why? Because I can watch four hours of network TV in roughly three hours by skipping ads. I can also stream video between my two networked ReplayTVs and download recorded shows in MPEG-2 format to my PC (I’ve been doing that for over two years). However, like the vast majority of DVRs, mine cannot record in high-definition. That’s what made my TV shopping experience so confounding… I really wanted my next TV to be HD, but the reality of the situation was that every HDTV model I plugged my DVR into, the picture looked, shall we say, crappy.

So with the assistance of an unusually accommodating sales associate, I tried my ReplayTV on four or five HDTV models. Each time, I would connect via S-Video and play back something stored on the DVR. And each time, the picture looked muddy. What was I to do? I tried a couple HD DLP TVs and a couple HD Plasmas (the HD plasmas were out of my price range, but I was still curious about picture quality on a non-HD signal). I thought briefly of getting a 36” Sony WEGA tube TV, but the beast weighed 215 lbs!!!

So I connected my ReplayTV to a 42” Samsung EDTV Plasma (I forget the model). The picture still didn’t have the crispness of a Standard Definition Tube TV, but it was much better than the HDTVs I tried. I knew I was on to something here. I thanked the sales associate for his time and decided to focus my research on EDTV plasmas, of which there were many to choose from.

In the end, I purchased a Panasonic Viera 37” EDTV Plasma (#TH-37PD25UP). It was a handsome looking TV with great features, including an SD slot for viewing digital photos. It even came with an attractive pedestal stand, which would come in handy since I wasn’t planning to wall-mount. And the I/O panel was pretty sweet: (2) video inputs for either composite or s-video, (2) component inputs, (2) Coax RF Antenna inputs, an HDMI input… and on the front panel, another composite or s-video input plus VGA-Input!

Before I even took delivery of the new TV, I mapped out how I planned to utilize the A/V hookups based on my various components. My ReplayTV had Component out (480p), which the new TV supported, but I had heard about issues with it on a couple enthusiast blogs. My fallback would be trusty s-video. I was also excited about the prospect of putting a PC in the living room.

The big day quickly arrived and my new TV was delivered. I waited until that evening for my wife to help me carry the old Zenith (goodbye old friend) to the car. It was bound for my dad’s house, who had been asking about it for months. Wouldn’t you know it, I pulled a muscle in my back moving that old thing. We unpacked the new Plasma, bolted it to the pedestal stand, and put it on top of the entertainment cabinet. It looked good! I quickly connected the ReplayTV to a composite video input, knowing I would have to go back and reconfigure all the cabling the next day.

I awoke the next morning with an aching back, but also with child-like excitement about my new toy. After a day at the office, I returned home a quickly started the task of re-wiring my entertainment system. My Sony DAV-C770 DVD Dream System would be connected to the Panasonic’s Component-1 input (and I would set the Sony for Progressive, rather than interlaced, output from the DVD changer). My ReplayTV was switched from composite to s-video on video-1 input (I had tried the Component output, but it had a greenish tint to it, and I didn’t want to fuss around with it).

My old Stereo VCR, kept around to archive certain shows from the ReplayTV, was setup on composite on video-2 input. I also switched the connection from my Comcast Digital Cable STB to the ReplayTV from Coax/RF to Composite Video. And finally, I took an old P-III laptop I had in my home office and put it on top of the VCR and plugged it into the VGA-in on the Panasonic Plasma (I also had a cable running from the headphone out on the laptop to the Stereo L/R on the TV). Since this was on the front-panel input area, I wouldn’t always keep it connected because of the unsightly cabling, it was more like a proof-of-concept exercise.

I popped in one of my favorite movies, Blackhawk Down, and skipped to some of the more intense scenes. The picture quality was excellent, true wide-screen bliss (the sound from the Sony system had always been pretty decent)! I switched over the ReplayTV and played back some recorded shows. Playing around with the Aspect button, I found the “Just” mode (Justified) was best for viewing from this source. Video quality was decent enough for me to be happy.

Next, I powered up the laptop and switched the TV to PC input mode. The native resolution of the TV is 852 x 480, which I cannot select on the video settings on the laptop. I ran with XGA (1024 x 768), which was viewable, albeit slightly fuzzy on smaller text objects. SVGA (600 x 800) looked a little sharper, but I didn’t like losing real-estate on the screen. The laptop was running Cat-5 into my D-Link Wireless Router, and I’d attached a Logitech wireless keyboard and trackball. For some reason, even with new batteries, the trackball had to be quite close to its receiver to work reliably. But still, it was pretty slick. I pulled up iTunes and began streaming music stored on my desktop downstairs in my home office. I turned on the visualization to a U2 track and sat back to enjoy the show. This will be great for parties! The last step (is there every truly a last step) was to reconfigure my Logitech Harmony Remote control. This is the smallest, yet one of the most appreciated, pieces of my entertainment system. Once I updated the TV mfr and model and the activity buttons, it was able to control all the key components with a single remote. Brilliant!

Satisfied that I had everything configured optimally, I finally let myself relax and enjoy the fruits of my labor. Yes, I haven’t made the leap into HDTV that perhaps many of you have, but for reasons already laid out, I’m OK with that. This was a huge leap forward for me. HDTV is still in my future, but only when I can record it and play it back like I do currently. Yes, I know one of the digital satellite TV outfits has a HD DVR, but it’s very expensive (around $1K I think). My plan is to eventually migrate to a PC-centric solution, whether it’s XP Media Center Edition-based or custom-built, but HD recording solutions are still in their infancy. Heck, I think a Mac Mini would be a great addition to my entertainment system. I need to find a better cabling scenario, and a better wireless keyboard/mouse setup (Adesso makes a slim wireless keyboard w/ integrated touchpad that I might try out). But for the time being, I’m happy with full-featured web surfing and media streaming with the old laptop.