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Why are there no tube televisions anymore?

It’s funny when you come to think of it and compare video with audio. How come in the audio world discussions sometimes become intense, while there seem to be far less intense discussions in the TV & video realm?

With TV’s there’s no talk on tubes, transistors, analog, digital, vinyl, cables, power cords, heck we can even get ’audio’ fuses and -USB cables.

No one has a tube TV (while they really have a ’warmer’ image :) and very few people use a $400 power cord with their TV set. And while there are expensive HDMI cables on the market, the vast majority uses one below $50. And no one spends money on floor spacers to avoid cable vibrations.

Our eyes may even be far more sensitive than our ears ... yet discussions are far less intense. How come?


rudyb
rudyb OP
141 posts
 
@larsman I guess that’s it ... anyone can see the difference, and/or it can be objectively measured. Unlike with audio, where someone can claim he/she hears an improvement after installing expensive accessories like cables, fuses, or floor spacers which have no scientific base for any effect ... no one can verify that claim.

If someone likes the ’warmth’ and the distortion of tubes, or the higher noise floor, the crackling, the limited dynamic range and the wow and flutter of vinyl ... then that’s a matter of taste. Just like with a TV set where only few people use the ’movie’ setting which has optimum color representation ... many have it on ’standard’, which blows up the contrast and colors ... also a matter of taste.
tonywinga's avatar
tonywinga
844 posts
 
I love my eye popping colors and razor sharp 4k picture. That’s part of the entertainment. If I want realistic colors and contrast I’ll walk outside. And another thing- you can buy a $500 pair of speakers with perfectly flat frequency response and a $500 receiver with top rate THD specs and wide frequency response. Set them up in a hemianechoic room so that you have no reflections and standing waves. On paper it is the perfect stereo; in real life it is completely useless.  I know.  I tried that once. 
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,653 posts
 
Ha! Back in the old days a few of us audiophiles in my neighborhood in fact noticed that the analog with the tube video amplifiers were better able to bring out detail. Of course, you have to have the convergence set right... Zenith and Setchell-Carlson made some of the better TVs in those days, before the Feds got in and limited TV power draw to 75 watts. Then the fun was over... no way they hold up to modern sets though.
tonywinga's avatar
tonywinga
844 posts
 
So out of curiosity I changed my picture setting on my TV to Cinema.  I find I like the picture better on this setting.  Live and learn.
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