i've been out of the TS loop for like the past month as my focus changed entirely to my search for a big screen HDTV, and i finally made my purchase a few weeks ago. i ended up going with the previously mentioned Maxent MX-50X3 50" plasma and i'm
really digging it. after much research on AVS Forum i decided to take the plunge after learning that most of these units are built with 7th or possibly 8th generation Panasonic glass, as well as the same internals Panny's use that are made by Matsushita. Bought the unit at Best Buy, as there are only a few places to buy these...Costco, Best Buy and a few others, however some claim the model Best Buy carries is different from what Costco carries, and the BB units are supposed to be of higher quality than the Costco units (the AVS link below explains this though be forewarned, it's a
long read). As mentioned by pjdavep, if you buy from Costco, you might want to check out the Vizio 50" as this unit is supposed to be better than the Costco-carried Maxent 50" (which is a different flavor than what BB carries. I've also read, for instance, that the 42" Maxent is supposedly not as nice as the 50" Maxent for whatever reasons. Yes, confusing indeed!). However, I don't have any Costco's near me so I investigated the Maxent 50" instead.
After comparing it head-to-head and side-by-side with other units such as the aforementioned Panasonic, Toshiba, Philips, Zenith, and even the plasma standard Pioneer, I
really liked what I saw so I took the plunge for $2599.00. The day I first saw this thing in the store I didn't realize it was on sale for $2399 and two days later i bought it at $2599 (duh), but it just went back down to $2469 so i got $135 back yesterday from their 30 day price guarantee thingy. I have 30 days to return it if i don't like it, and i also got the 4 yr. extended warranty for
$299 (edit: $399...my bad). Warranties are something I don't normally do, but since it was a much less expensive unit to begin with, and a new-company-on-the-block, i figured 4 yrs of in-home service for 299 sounds pretty friggin' good, especially since if they can't fix your unit in home, they will give you a new one on the spot. not bad.
AVS Forum MX-50X3 thread:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=595430&page=1&pp=30&highlight=maxentfwiw, my pal who recently purchased the highly-rated Panny TH-50PX50U 50" (at $3999) was over for a game the other night and he was blown away with the picture quality and said he felt as if he was sitting at home watching his Panasonic. We ended up watching other hi-def broadcasts as the game was a blowout (LSU-Miami) and after a few hours he saw nary a difference between his unit and this Maxent. Oh yeah, I should mention also that I picked up the
Avia Guide to Home Theater DVD that assisted me in self-calibrating this unit. I figured it was $35 well spent...
When I first started this HDTV quest i had plasma on my mind, and i had a thing for the Panasonic plasma, but the price tag was just too steep for my budget. I then looked at LCD's, and while I do like them, with the new finished basement i now have, and the entertaining i do for all types of sporting events, i wanted the widest viewing angle possible for the sometimes 15-20 guys who might be down there watching. I always ended up coming back to plasma cuz i could see the so screen well from all angles with no degradation of picture quality. When the Maxent came about it was as if it was meant to be: an affordable, well-built unit that wouldn't break the bank for me. The money I saved buying this HDTV has now been invested in a new surround unit (Onkyo TX-SR603X receiver and Infiniti TSS-750 surround speaker system). Instead of 4K for a 50" Panasonic plasma, i now have a 50" plasma
and a new sound system.
Hope this helps!
Keith
p.s. a friend just told me the other day Maxent plasmas are mentioned in the latest edition of Budget Living Magazine. not sure if the write-up is for this exact unit, and the info is not online yet, but just thought i'd mention it anyway:
http://www.budgetlivingmedia.com/issue200521/index.php