LG C9 OLED 65" - Bright Room, Disappointed

zxcvb on 11/12/2019 - 11:45

Hi All,

I finally gave in into the hype and got myself an LG 65" C9 OLED. I set it up last Sunday: (6.2m x 4m room, sit 3m from the TV on stand). Whilst the TV is perfect, I'm massively disappointed for the following reasons:

  1. I find it hard to watch if the room is bright (curtains closed natural light during the day and Downlights LED dimmed at night).

  2. Whilst 4K and Dolby Vision looks fantastic (Netflix: Planet Earth, Amazon Prime: Jack Ryan), SDR simply sucks. With the exception of the breakfast shows on 7HD and 9HD, all other SDR content look infinitely worse.

  3. Whilst the blacks are superb, I'm now off the opinion that this TV looks good only on 1080p and 4k. Anything else, I cant watch. ABC news for example, it feels like my TV has a defect.

  4. I have adjusted the settings, turned off all motion processing, AI handling etc etc.

  5. The sound from the TV is really good though, Dolby Atmos appears realistic. The only thing missing is the low end. For most people out there, they would not need a sound bar or external speakers as the sound is good enough.

In conclusion, I think this TV is more suited for the purists with dedicated home theatre dark rooms and gamers. Yes Dolby Vision and HDR look great but not that much greater than 1080p with streaming sources.

Given that the TV is only 4 days old, should I attempt selling it and buy a normal LCD instead? What is a reasonable price to expect for a 4 day old TV in perfect condition?

Any and all thoughts welcome.

Thanks in advance.

Poll Options

  • 10
    1. Sell the TV and cut your losses.
  • 86
    2. Give it some time, you'll get used to it.
  • 6
    3. Too late now, not much you can do!
Electrical & Electronics 65inch LG OLED TV

Comments

  • HighAndDry on 11/12/2019 - 11:56
    +12

    Tempted (but didn't) to vote (1) so that I can pick it up for cheap lol.

    Anything else, I cant watch. ABC news for example, it feels like my TV has a defect.

    The "defect" here is called your TV is too big for standard definition content. Can't really do much about it.

    As for brightness, it's not as bright as some Sony and Samsung LED TVs, but it's also going to be a matter of positioning and angles. No TV is going to look that good in a bright room.

    • cameldownunder on 13/12/2019 - 10:23
      +1

      The TV does not UPSCALE nicely

      • serpserpserp on 13/12/2019 - 10:52

        No new 4k TV's upscale 720p (at best) broadcast content well. Even the HD channels are hopeless on most TVs.

        I would say it upscales 720p sport content from the likes of Kayo really nicely. Much better than I expected.

        It upscales 1080p content beautifully.

  • Skramit on 11/12/2019 - 12:08
    +12

    I got poopoo'd in another thread for bringing up the bright room scenario for OLEDs.

    Samsung QLED is better for brighter rooms and has better reflection handling.

    • zxcvb on 11/12/2019 - 12:51
      +5

      Sorry you had to go through that. It is the internet and an anonymous forum, people are going to be *icks. You should however continue to offer your opinion as it will help with the decisions of new buyers.

      • Whisper Quiet on 12/12/2019 - 12:36

        I've been saying exactly what you said for about 3 years and get so much sh*t for it. OLEDs should only be used for home theatre. Even then my Sony X9300E out does it more times than not because of the brightness for HDR. I got burn in on my OLED and I'm glad I did because it was underwhelming for the most part and got to see true HDR after I exchanged it over. Picture quality is obviously great on OLED and it gives off this almost 3D effect because of the depth of picture but I'd only want it for watching horror movies in the dark.

    • Ryanek on 11/12/2019 - 13:27

      Yep this is pretty much the reason I went with QLED over OLED because it was going in a bright room.

      • [Deactivated] on 11/12/2019 - 14:14

        A lot of people talk abou QLED vs OLED as if there's a brightness issue with OLED. There isn't, OLED easily overpowers the brightest of rooms. Samsung's LED implementation has a really good anti reflective coating though, much better than LG's.

    • serpserpserp on 13/12/2019 - 10:54
      +1

      No ne will poopoo you for the bright room scenario. Everyone knows that if you have a super bright room, you need to buy an LED. All OLEDs are NIT limited and aren't suited for bright rooms.

      • Hangryuman on 13/12/2019 - 12:52

        'Everyone knows' ? - news to me

        • serpserpserp on 13/12/2019 - 15:51

          'Everyone knows' ? - news to me

          I guess you have never read a "what TV should I buy?" article on the internet or asked the opinion of a TV salesman then.

      • onlinepred on 16/12/2019 - 14:37

        Yep this is a given, if you have a crazy bright room for the majority of your viewing, or all you do is play games/leave on static images then you need to go LCD, otherwise OLED. I work during the day, so am only home when it's evening/night so I'm lucky I guess

  • sam91 on 11/12/2019 - 12:12
    +2

    If you live in Sydney and would be willing to sell it for a good price then let me know :)

  • nfr on 11/12/2019 - 12:20

    Sell it if you can find a satisfactory offer, otherwise no biggie, it's just a TV, chances are you will get used to it.

    I never thought SDR would suck. Is that a known feature of OLED?

    • HighAndDry on 11/12/2019 - 12:28
      -1

      Just a characteristic of OLED panels that they don't (can't yet?) be as bright as LED panels (including Samsung's QLED ones which are just a type of LED panel).

      • nfr on 11/12/2019 - 12:38

        Wouldn't that make hdr suck even more?

        • HighAndDry on 11/12/2019 - 12:53
          -1

          Possibly, it still depends on the actual set because even though LED TVs can be brighter, not every LED TV is going to be.

          But yeah, the C9 only ('only') has HDR10 certification, and not the highest HDR10+ certification. Other OLED TVs do come with HDR10+, so that's not limited by the tech, just more pricey.

          https://www.whathifi.com/advice/hdr10-everything-you-need-to…

          • [Deactivated] on 11/12/2019 - 14:35
            +1

            @HighAndDry: Backwards a little, HDR10+ is cheaper than Dolby Vision which has a licence fee. They're both roughly equivalent HDR standards.

            Samsung have chosen HDR10+ as there's no licence fee. Sony and LG have picked Dolby Vision. Panasonic has both.

            • serpserpserp on 13/12/2019 - 10:56
              +1

              @[Deactivated]: You miss the key point that there is very limited HDR10+ content out there (still).

              HDR10 standard and DV covers most content.

              • [Deactivated] on 13/12/2019 - 11:44

                @serpserpserp: Ironically I have a handful of HDR10+ movies and no DV. Nothing that can play them though and based on reviews not missing much, DV seems to be better, but both aren't that much better than HDR10.

                • serpserpserp on 13/12/2019 - 15:56

                  @[Deactivated]:

                  but both aren't that much better than HDR10.

                  I wouldn't say that, DV is dynamic range as opposed to HDR10 which is a static preset for the entire piece of content so you'll notice the differences when you play content side by side.

                  But who does that in the real world right? In the real world most people wouldn't even notice if HDR10/HDR10+/DV was turned off.

                  In fact most people struggle to see the difference between a bluray and a UHD/4k video except for when the frame rate changes between them.

        • StickMan on 11/12/2019 - 12:55
          +2

          HDR is actually difference between the bright and dark. LCD TV's need to be super insanely bright because their black levels suck, so they need the brightness to get a good ratio.

          OLED blacks are excellent, so they can demolish the ratio without being insanely bright.

          It's a misunderstanding that HDR = "really bright parts of the image". Though, there is a minimum brightness TV's must reach to be HDR compliant, anyway.

          • Whisper Quiet on 17/12/2019 - 13:43

            @StickMan: No… Not even close that's just contrast ratio. HDR has two main aspects that is high brightness and wide colour gamut. Most high end TVs are within a few percent of each other for colour but brightness also determines the colour volume. True HDR and Dolby Vision is mastered at a minimum of 4000 nits up to 10000. OLED cannot even get close to 1000 nits. There's no different ratio with contrast that compensate for brightness peaking at 700 nits (ABL limited which can drop to 130 nits!) Watch a TV that can do 2000 nits or more then compare it, I've had both and 75-80% of the time I'll choose the LCD.

      • serpserpserp on 13/12/2019 - 10:54

        What does that have to do with SDR content?

        • HighAndDry on 13/12/2019 - 12:20

          I'm not certain but I'm fairly sure OP meant to say "SD" (standard, not high, definition) content there. And not SDR as opposed to HDR (because afaik "SDR" is not a common term).

          And nfr meant to refer to HDR.

  • StickMan on 11/12/2019 - 12:27
    +11

    1. The OLED likely has better anti-reflective properties than any other LCD, however you're watching in purposefully stupid scenarios and complaining. Why? Like hiking with rocks in your shoes and doing nothing about it.

    2. SDR is actually standard dynamic range, aka non-HDR content.. so you're confusing terminology. Yes, free-to-air broadcast at 720p upscaled to 4K panel at 65 inches will look terrible. This is known. This is not the fault of the OLED. Any 4K source non-HDR content will also look amazing.

    3. Again, yep, you're trying to play trash at 65 inches. It's gonna look bad. Any TV at 65 inches will look bad.

    4. The TV probably doesn't even support Atmos output from it's built in speakers - I'm not even gonna bother checking. Yeah, you kinda need a soundbar at the minimum, to get decent audio. You spent $3500 on a TV and $0 on audio?

    Overall, it's clear you did ZERO RESEARCH before spending insane amounts of money. If you're rich, just sell it for $1K discount on Gumtree and call it a day. If you're not rich, re-assess how you spend your money.

    You sound like you're an Average Joe who doesn't really care about a nice picture quality and sound quality. You watch sports and shows on free-to-air, and the odd Netflix (which is bad quality compared to 4K bluray). You watch in terrible viewing conditions. While there's nothing wrong with this, you need to have done a little research to find out what type of product will best suit you.

    You need an LCD TV (they are all LED now pretty much), because you have a bright room. You need a really good brand with excellent upscaling (I think LG is best from memory, someone correct me) for the free-to-air TV.

    • HighAndDry on 11/12/2019 - 12:29
      +1

      Hahaha damn dude you went all in on OP!

      • StickMan on 11/12/2019 - 12:33
        +2

        I mean I hope they don't take it personally, but they came in with "I did zero research and bought an ill-suited product", so I made sure to give em the correct info.

        • HighAndDry on 11/12/2019 - 12:39
          +3

          Yeah, I don't really disagree with anything you said, just OP is giving a (useful?) everyday layman's account of his experience with the TV. You're right - OP seems to be just an average Joe, but there are probably a lot of people like them in the market looking for a TV and the post is probably good for expectation management for those people.

    • zxcvb on 11/12/2019 - 12:48
      +17

      1. I watch with curtains closed during the day but there is still natural light unless I darken the room with the shutter. At night, I'd like some light on (dimmed LED lights) but this TV looks good only in the dark. At least to be.

      2. So far I've watched Dolby Vision and HDR on Amazon Prime and Netflix. I watched SD for comparison. ABC News is not 720p last I checked. It was briefly 720p back when it was called ABC NEWS HD. Now its in SD. My last TV was a Sony 55 1080p 100Hz LCD that looks glorious in the exact same space and setup. Interestingly it has a bezel so is actually the same size of the C9 without the bezel. My point here is in my old TV, SD was not that bad, 1080 was fantastic. So I guess I cant see an incredible difference and hence my disappointment.

      3. Tonight I'll be watching 4k DV BluRay mastered in BluRay. I suspect streaming sources have high compression, so despite my NBN100 HFC connection, so called DV and HDR don't look as great as they should when compared to uncompressed sources.

      4. I have a dedicated 7.1 setup with some high quality components (Denon Audessey XT/Silver, Klipsch reference for Mains, Aaron CC240 centre, SVS PB12NSD sub). My Sony has decent sound for a TV. My point was the C9 actually has good sound for a TV for normal people not interested in home theater. The sound inst tinny. The dialogue is excellent. There is actually no need for a sound bar. It was a positive comment when I listened to the sound before hooking my home theater. Obviously the sound is incredible with my home theater hooked up, hence my comment on the low end.

      5. I did a lot of research before getting the C9. I watched it in the shops. However they play only high quality content to make the TV look good. Not real life content. So no way of knowing unless it is in the real world. You can do all the research you want, you can look at the TV in shops but you still wont know unless it is in your setup.

      Finally, yes this is the internet, so yes you can trash all you want in your anonymity, but it is nice to be civil instead of being a *ick and form opinions based on a forum post. Your choice of course.

      • StickMan on 11/12/2019 - 12:58
        -2

        I'm not trashing you. It's just how it is, it's the reality.

        I see you edited the post to say you "disabled all motion processing etc" .. that will make the image significantly worse. These TV's are made with the assumption that most of the viewing will have the processing turned on. You need it on for the upscaling to actually work.

        At the end of the day, I'm agreeing with you, that this TV isn't ideal for YOU.

        • zxcvb on 11/12/2019 - 13:06
          +8

          I have made ZERO edits to my OP.

          I loath motion processing of any kind - just like I hate up-scaling, I believe they introduce more issues than they attempt to solve. it is my preference. The first thing I do is turn them off.

          Having said that, I have played with the settings a fair bit in SDR, HDR, and DV. I have attempted setting RTINGS calibrated settings despite knowing my TV has to be individually calibrated to achieve the same results.

          My point here is: OLED has more hype and hence higher expectations - it is a case of real world experience not matching the reviews - at least in my case. Maybe I expected a night and day difference between my 7 year old Sony and the C9 and feel let down.

          • StickMan on 11/12/2019 - 13:36

            @zxcvb: Ok maybe I misread the post.

            You hate motion processing and upscaling - because you don't know any better. There's a HUGE difference between bad 'soap opera effect' early LCD motion processing, and 'judder free 24p mode'. And you hate upscaling yet don't understand how a 480p or 720p image looks bad at 65in ?

            OLED is insanely better than a 7yr old LCD. There is zero question about it. You're just disabling features and shining light on it, which is one of the very few weak points of OLEDvsLCD.

            So I mean go ahead and shine the light, but don't complain that you "can't see a difference".

            Also for the record if you disable motion processing on an LCD you're going to have a very very bad time.

            • zxcvb on 11/12/2019 - 15:20
              +2

              @StickMan: As I mentioned in the post above your reply, Initially I had all of them in stock, was not happy, turned them off, was still not happy, then I applied the recommended settings from RTNGS for the C9 - am still not happy.

              I'm nitpicky which I why I waited so long before making the jump. Originally I owned the Sony KVHRM36M31 - argubaly the best CRT ever made. I absolutely loved. I then upgraded to Sony 55EX500 1080p 100hz - a TV absolutely close to my heart which is now in the bedroom before upgrading to the C9. So far I have been extremely happy with my choice include my home theatre which is absolutely incredible: every component handpicked, to seamlessly blend.

              The C9 is disappointing for ME because I expected a huge difference which I cannot yet see. I will know today when I watch my 4K Dolby Vision bluray on my brand new Sony BluRay 4K DV player. At the very least it will give me a frame of reference between Dolby Vision Netflix/Amazon Prime and uncompressed 4K HDR BluRay - On the same TV.

              As for soap opera effect - it is just not there on my Sony and Yes I do have the 24p enabled from memory but have turned off everything else (from memory picture settings). The result is stunning on my Sony. Absolutely natural. BluRays look spectacular at 1080p (some incredibly good blurays I own: Planet Earth, Kingdom of Heaven etc).

              Yes I hate up scaling. Yes I don't understand why it looks bad at 65" but was acceptable on 55". May be I do now. May be the TV is so good it exposes the video for what it is - just like in Audio when truly great speakers faithfully reproduce and expose a bad mastering. Some of the good mastered CDs and FLAC I truly treasure. I hate most other mastering on CD due to compression in (post) mastering, but I digress.

      • HighAndDry on 11/12/2019 - 13:03

        1. I think it might be the fact you're coming from the Sony TV that's making the LG seem bad, give it some time and I think it should be fine.

        2. 55" —> 65" is a big jump so still not surprised SD content is going to look bad. Unfortunately that's a content issue, not a TV issue.

        3. -

        4. -

        5. Yeah, display models literally use a "display setting" for the TV which overcharged the brightness and colour saturation (but also from memory kills the TV faster and has less colour accuracy).

        • zxcvb on 11/12/2019 - 15:25

          You might have hit the nail on its head on 1 and 2.

          As for display models: The C9 and B9 I watched in the shops was fantastic, life like and they still do on the C9. The nature video shoot in Youtube (Norway I think - is incredible and lifelike, best of the best).

      • 9674784 on 13/12/2019 - 07:52

        Sorry but your research was poor.

        If you talking about your own content or free to air tv, any decent salesperson will allow you to pop in your own favourite disc and view free to air.

        And you've been given constructive criticism I'm a fair way. Yet you're calling them the *ick?

        That is you sorry.

      • serpserpserp on 13/12/2019 - 10:58

        Not real life content. So no way of knowing unless it is in the real world.

        Mate you are going to very disappointed with ANY 4k TV out there playing SD content from TV broadcast. It looks terrible on all TV's.

    • [Deactivated] on 11/12/2019 - 14:27
      +1

      The brightness is a non-issue for OLEDs, but you can see even in the store the anti-reflective coating on the Samsung LEDs eats reflections compared to the LG C9. This isn't an LED vs OLED thing, there are plenty of LED TVs out there that don't have the same coating.

      That said in an extremely bright room with no light control, I had to be looking for the reflections in the LG C9 to have them affect the viewing experience, and I only really noticed in dark / black scenes.

  • ratoloko on 11/12/2019 - 12:47

    There are 2 main things I always tell when the subject is OLED TV:

    • Is your room too bright?
    • Are you gonna play on it?

    The answers for your questions:

    1 - I have a 2018 Samsung QLED Q7FN 65" and it is ridiculous its quality. It can be a sunny 50c degrees outside I am still able to watch or play without problems.
    I had to actually reduce its light in the settings coz I was going to get blind hahahaha
    It might don't have the darkest black like OLED but the Dimming allows you to improve that, the latest models are far much better and you will never have burn-in screen.

    2 - That is a normal problem with high end TV. I hardly ever watch TV channels, if I do it has to be HD otherwise h0ly m0ly, no way! It is not just your TV. First world problems hahah

    3 - It shouldn't. I watch 1080p, 720p movies from Popcorn running from a Windows Tablet connect with the TV via HDMI. You can tell the difference between the resolutions but it is not something that bothers you. You shouldn't be having problems.

    4 - If the TV settings doesn't make you happy with the results, you have the wrong TV :(
    Samsung QLED has pretty good settings available, HDR modes, Game mode. It is just perfect.

    5 - There is no TV with an excellent sound system, that is why they are so slim. If you want to have great sound experience you will need at least a soundbar and end of discussion.
    My QLED isn't tooooo bad with its 5.1 but I do have a Philips HTL3160B 200W 3.1ch Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer and h0ly m0ly, playing or watching on it gives me an amazing surrounding experience for $400
    Recently I found out that my Xbox had the wrong sound settings and now the games such as the current COD MW, scares the sh1t out my cats hahahaha

    I am not sure where you bought it, explains the problems to the store and you might be able to return. At least some stores here if you are not happy within 7 days you can return. I recommend the Samsung 9 Series QLED which is the same price range you paid this LG https://www.jbhifi.com.au/products/samsung-series-9-q90r-65-…
    Latest models have a much better black-black, and you will never have to get worried about burn-in screen or your room is too bright and you cannot see sh1t.

    I hope I helped and yes, OLED fan users will hate my comment :)

    • onlinepred on 16/12/2019 - 14:43
      +1

      I went from B7 to QLED and now OLED C9, I don't get your points at all. My room is bright, I play games on it, it has more options than my old QLED as far as configuration/picture adjustment and modes go. The main issue is for me going from a 55" QLED to 65 OLED, SD content looks shit when it's stretched so far, that's it. I do most of my watching at night, so that's why I chose OLED, and quite frankly you can't compare to oldschool LCD tv's at all. Although if I was going to get a family TV, I would get an LCD so I don't have to worry about it, but being my media room TV where I have control over blinds/sources etc, the picture is leaps and bounds better than QLED. I am a picky watcher though, perhaps people that buy QLED aren't that picky or only use TV's during the day with blinds open

      • ratoloko on 16/12/2019 - 15:13

        If we are talking about Samsung QLED, there is difference between the 55 and 65" models, as there is huge improvement in the black from Q7(mine) to Q9, as there is a huge difference between 2018 models(mine) with 2019.
        I agree that QLED black might not be as darker as an OLED since we are talking about projecting color against turning the pixel off.

        I do most of my watching at night, so that's why I chose OLED, and quite frankly you can't compare to oldschool LCD tv's at all.

        I do watch at night everyday and I have no problems. QLED does use back-lightning but you are wrong to say it is just an ordinary LCD TV.
        I chose QLED over OLED coz I don't wanna be pissed being unable to watch on it during the day having to make the room darker. You don't have this with a QLED, you watch whatever you want when you want.
        Also, I play a lot like 6h without stopping. Do that with an OLED TV and soon you will have a very bad surprise :)

        This is my experience and don't wanna change yours :)

        • onlinepred on 16/12/2019 - 15:51
          +1

          Yea for sure! I still use my QLED for gaming now and then when the main TV is taken, but without a doubt, after daylight, the OLED gives the best unrivaled experience, especially for movies - and not everyone needs the best picture or wants it and I understand that. That's really the end of any discussion. You can bring on variables that change this, but you will then be taking a hit on ability. Like I said, I'm a picky person and really don't like backlight at all, I notice it instantly and hate all of my LCDs for it. So late at night, I wouldn't enjoy watching movies etc as much as I do on my OLED, so the argument goes both ways, you can't watch anything on QLED without at some point wish it was an OLED. It's really the same argument all over like LCD vs plasma etc. Just buy what suits you, but the capabilities of OLED is better than LCD, forgetting about burn in, so it really depends when your needs, and if you can live with the lower performance of LCD or live with the possibility of burn in.

  • jace88 on 11/12/2019 - 12:50
    +1

    Other than SD content looking like crap on a big screen, I think you'll get used to it. I find that using the relevant apps on my Apple TV 4K (eg Tenplay) improve the picture quality a bit when it's not live, but it's never going to look crisp like what you see in 4K content. I also paid to get Netflix HD and Foxtel HD for these reasons too.

  • MagnamoniousRex on 11/12/2019 - 13:05
    +4

    lol is this a troll post

    FTA looking like shit on your $4000 TV isn't a problem with the TV. FTA just looks like shit.

    • zxcvb on 11/12/2019 - 13:10

      I was just sharing my experience. I also talked about 4k, Dolby Vision and HDR in my OP. FTA didnt look as bad in my 7year old sony as it does in a premium TV.

      My question here is: does the target audience for this TV only watch 4K everyday? What if they want to watch news, we just accept it is going to be poor PQ? How come the older premium LCDs dont look as bad?

      • StickMan on 11/12/2019 - 13:37
        +3

        FTA looks worse now cos you have a point of comparison. You have a 4K image you just saw… now you have a 720p (at best image). With your old TV you couldn't compare.

        Even changing the channels and getting the 4K user interface appearing on the TV will totally break the immersion and give you a point of comparison, making it look terrible.

      • MagnamoniousRex on 12/12/2019 - 11:19
        +2

        FTA is for people who don't know what 4K is. Why would you watch advertising willingly?

      • bcdubz on 22/12/2019 - 10:25

        This chart may help explain.

        https://imgur.com/a/nZXDbTk

        Older premium LCDs weren't 4k, so the SD image didnt have to be stretched as far, only to FHD.

        Now they are being stretch to 4k size and lose quality in the process as the original image doesnt contain enough detail to display at that size. You generally notice artifacts or patchy spots of colour where the upscaling is trying to do its thing.

  • cray on 11/12/2019 - 15:07
    +1

    I upgraded from a less than 1 year old 55" NU8800 LED to a 65" B8 OLED.

    1. No problem in the day as long as the room isn't brightly lit. I suspect it's the positioning of your TV, i.e. reflections on the TV? Try turning off all the lights completely in the evening and see if it improves? OLEDs are best in a dark room.

    2. Coming from 55-65 there is a huge difference in SDR content, there's simply so much upscaling can help with contents that are 480p and 65" is significantly bigger than 55" so while it may look like the upscaling is crap on the C9 I think it's mostly to do with the content itself.

    3. ABC News is crap for me too, but it is what it is. Until ABC decides to start airing in HD you'll just have to watch your news elsewhere or put up with it. Even ABC news live on Youtube is on 480p only.

    4. I think with motion/judder on 0 or 1 it isn't too bad. No soap opera visible until it's higher.

    5. Sound is actually decent but nothing beats a proper setup. My Samsung N950 soundbar works really well on this especially with the right Atmos content even on Netflix.

    I initially purchased a NU7100 which was really disappointing, the next day I packed it all up and brought it back to JB and asked to exchange. They just had to run it up and I upgraded to the NU8000 no problems. Now I wish I had a B9, but the B8 panel truly is amazing so far, with the right content.

  • reactor-au on 12/12/2019 - 08:35

    I'm guessing it's bright enough but the image looks like Minecraft because it is a bug screen and scaling <720p to 4k is never going to look great. Not much difference swapping to QLED.

  • Red Rocket on 12/12/2019 - 08:52

    The trouble is some content still looks good. I bought a 75in Samsung that was that bad I couldnt watch it during the day. I swapped it for a Panasonic which was a lot better. They plugged the Samsung back in the showroom and the picture was perfect. What they were showing had no dark areas so the picture was going to look great no matter what they showed it on. There advise was to buy a smaller tv or be prepared to pay a lot of money. Like you I don’t like SD but you only notice the difference for the first 10min. I also have a sound bar.

  • OzHunterNSW on 12/12/2019 - 09:32

    It's called scotto, the eye sees what the mind wants to see. Where is the chalice of a billion colours… in the middle you say… well isn't that rather odd don't you think, the most definitive point in TV history, and yet, you can't even see the chalice of a billion colours. Look, look what happens when I pull the curtains closer… see how they form a "V" shape. No No… your eyes are only seeing 720p at best. The chalice of a billion colours are seen through the "V" of the curtains - it is out there, in the land of reality, that you see 4k, 8K, and a billion colours - go on, open the window and climb through into the world of reality.

  • DarthAntz on 12/12/2019 - 12:48

    I had buyers regret for a new TV (Samsung Q70R) I bought in August, lasted 2 days and I got used to it. Advertising promises you much more than you get and that applies to everything.
    I was most upset that just installing and turning on the TV didn't yield immediate quality results, instead I had to tinker for an hour, to get my personal preference for the room it was in. I started with RTINGs, and modded it to what works best for me.
    The panel on my new TV is amazing in comparison to previous. The motion plus and judder is just mind boggling, I still dont know why this exists as a setting. Its for people who watch golf, right?
    I didnt buy the TV to watch free to air TV at all, its used as a monitor for HTPC.

  • Thor Bargain God on 12/12/2019 - 13:42

    It is Ok if you find this tv doesn’t suit your needs and current situation if you are able to sell it and not make too big a loss. I have had a 55 inch E8 for a little while now and love it for viewing 4K HDR content in the bedroom. I now want a bigger OLED for the living room to replace my other LED and have been circling these with all the sales lately, looking for a good price. For the benefit of other prospective purchasers like me, where do you live (i.e. city/town)? I was thinking of making an offer and maybe you might even be interested in the LED I’m probably going to swap out to make up for your troubles. I know it’s kinda tricky doing business with people you’ve never met over an Internet forum when selling a valuable item, but I’d appreciate a reply.

  • Wolfofwallstreet on 12/12/2019 - 17:15

    Should get the Panasonic FZ Oled as it is the brightest OLED and cheaper than the LG C9. It has better upscaling/motion processing than the LG as well.

  • JimB on 13/12/2019 - 05:04

    FTA broadcasts are the reason why I'm still rocking a 9yo 65inch Plasma.

    Still, I'm trying to find a suitable replacement in 80inch or above that plays all contents well.

  • Windows98 on 13/12/2019 - 08:02

    Terrible quality shows look terrible? Stop watching them then 😁

    It's like complaining that playin N64 on flat panels isn't as good as on CRT's.

    Old content was designed for old technology

  • YeemaiI on 13/12/2019 - 08:53

    You don't have to sell it. Just return it to wherever you got it from. Can't be more of a hassle than selling it

  • revheadgl on 13/12/2019 - 08:57

    I generally watch FTA, news etc on a Hisense 32" tv, which looks fine.

    I watch some DVD's, std Blu rays and 4K Blu rays and streaming on a LG 65. On the odd occasion that I do watch low definition on stuff, eg YouTube etc, the 65, I can't complain, crap in = crap out.

    I think you are expecting too much. Upscaling works to a degree but it is not perfect.

    As for brightness? Crank the brightness and contrast levels up.

    I was watching tv, DVD's and playing PC games on a projector throwing on a 2.5m screen 20 years ago in daylight with blinds open. Was it a bit washed out? Yes. Was it not as bright as my crappy old CRT tv, No. Did I complain? No.

    I realised the limitations of artificial lighting against natural light. Or I closed the blinds when it bothered me.

  • Zondor on 13/12/2019 - 09:25

    All TV has looked like ass for years, even the "HD" channels. Welcome to 2013

  • hypie on 13/12/2019 - 10:15

    Sony A1 on a wall bracket in a fairly bright living room. No direct light but Windows open. No concerns here.

    I don't watch fta.

  • blonky on 13/12/2019 - 11:09

    OLEDs are not as bright as the equivelent QLED - this is widely known and that's why people recommend QLED for brighter rooms

    SD FTA TV is typically 576i isn't it? No big TV is going to do a good job upscaling 576i to 2160p for a 65" screen

  • TEER3X on 13/12/2019 - 11:22

    Maybe checkout some of the calibration settings here:

    https://www.rtings.com/tv/reviews/lg/c9-oled/settings

  • Blitz001 on 13/12/2019 - 11:31

    Free to air… can’t remember the last time I even looked for an aerial plug…

  • jno on 13/12/2019 - 13:15

    I have a 65 c8 and don't have a single issue you do lol

    I've never needed it to be brighter and it's right next to my big window.

    You'll never find a tv you'll be happy with it seems. If you go LCD, you won't like the shitty blacks they produce and no 4k tv looks good on FTA soooo Goodluck?

  • Hangryuman on 13/12/2019 - 13:16

    'SDR simply sucks … SDR content look infinitely worse'

    donkeys ago when Rudd saved Oztrayland from the GFC by giving everyone ?$800 - we splashed it towards a 50" Panasonic 720p plasma TV. I suspect the total cost was more like $1500 at the time - maybe 2008 ?

    At the time 720p (HD) was in my budget, 1080p ('Full HD') was maybe twice the price.

    Being a detail guy I read up about viewing distance, and read that at our viewing distance (around 11 feet) we wouldn't be able to detect any difference between 720p and 1080p. I read that to see the difference for really high resolution like 4K you'd need to be sitting like 1 metre from the screen, in which case I don't like the sea-sick feeling I get like sitting in the front row of a cinema having to scan my head up and down and side to side to take in the full screen size.

    So we bought the significantly cheaper 720p TV - still happy with - I recently was unhappy switching between TV and my PVR recordings as the PVR was set on Standard Definition (SD) - when I dug around enough and found the right PVR menu setting and changed it to record at HD - all is bliss again.

    Reading the OPs complaints as an old guy I'm like - wow - new technology - it does 15 amazing things I couldn't do before - but because it doesn't do a few things like my old one, I HATE IT !

    • serpserpserp on 13/12/2019 - 16:03

      because it doesn't do a few things like my old one, I HATE IT !

      I think most people's disappointment come from the fact that they don't understand that most content they will play at home will not be UHD/4k. So they think everything sucks because they are playing los res content on a very high res screen and the TV should just magically upscale everything to look brilliant when that isn't possible. I really think there is a market still for really big TV's that do 1080p well and do excellent upscaling. Old people would be pretty pleased with that since it'll play their breakfast shows decently and they won't complain so hard.

      • zxcvb on 24/12/2019 - 10:31
        +1

        As I have said a few times before, this is not true. I mostly watch Full HD content on my old TV and now mostly it is a combination of Full HD, UHD and Dolby Vision on Netflix, Prime and 4K Blurays.

        My 'complaints' stem from the fact that I expected a lot more from Full HD to 4K/Dolby Vision. The reality I find is that is that it is not a big an improvement in comparison to the cost paid . Yes it does look stunning, but so did my Full HD 1080p LCD which is a 7 year old set. Hence the disappointment. Put another way, had I not paid a "premium" for this TV, I would have been less disappointed.

        I can understand that it comes across as whinging as everyone seems to be focused on SDR and FTA. However that was only means of comparison to my old set, Nothing more.

        The sole purpose of this "upgrade" was an upgrade from 1080p to 4k, LCD to OLED and 55" to 65" - in that order. In this regard, it has not lived up to my expectations, which perhaps was probably a lot more in my head than the experience itself.

        Having said all this, I do understand your POV and that of the post above you.

        • serpserpserp on 25/12/2019 - 18:28

          LCD to OLED and 55" to 65"

          Oh right. You do pay a premium for that 65" for an OLED. I feel like I would have felt poor if I ended up getting that one (and I almost did).

          But on the flip side. You have a really premium viewing TV that is truly best in class at its price point.

          Saying this though, some people just prefer LCDs because they are super bright and often saturating in bright colours and just gives those right bright scenes a real punch in a bright room because the glare/reflection doesn't affect it like an OLED. But really, this is a viewing area issue more than I TV issue. Even the brightest LCD won't do a good job in a big glass box.

  • [Deactivated] on 14/12/2019 - 11:47

    AI Upscaling variously scaled everywhere, maybe bee's knees for 576i and other low-res content.
    Even first iteration of this in a year or two may be tremendous overall, brightness-wise, otherwise Enjoy - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65YIlwxBuvM :)

  • pneumatic on 18/12/2019 - 07:33
    +1

    Upscaling is like a dark art. First you need to detect the field cadence to deinterlace using weave fields whenever possible (doubles vertical resolution) then convert to linear light, then sharpen, de-ring, de-noise BEFORE upscaling (the exact filters and their coefficients will have a MASSIVE impact on the final image) then upscale, then back to nonlinear light.

    In your OP you said

    turned off all motion processing, AI handling etc etc.

    Fair enough with motion processing, but I suspect AI might be dynamically adapting sharpness filters to the type of content. eg. it might detect how much sharpness is in the scene and adjust it accordingly to keep the image looking clear. So try turning it back on. Also play with the sharpness control, obviously. What signal are you sending the TV? HD? Then your media box is doing half the upscaling, and media boxes and set top boxes ALWAYS do a shit job with upscaling. This is why AI processing is needed because the damage is going to be done before it arrives and only AI algorithms can even hope fix that by trying to detect what kind of damage is in the source.

    I still use a 2011 piece of shit Samsung plasma because its upscaling is so good and I watch a lot of SD, and I happen to own the only DVR that can even output a clean 576i (Tivo).

    I bought the Panasonic FZ950 OLED last year and its upscaling was so bad I got rid of it after a month. Nothing on free to air SD was even remotely watchable. It appears to not use any unsharp mask at all, only crude edge enhancement on high contrast edges. Even with the sharpness control at 100 (max) the image is still soft and blurry, actors faces out of focus, but high contrast edges have massive ringing artefacts. Garbage processor.

  • Sam557 on 18/12/2019 - 21:56

    I can swap my new Sony 65X8000G. Just bought it 3 months ago. Can work out the difference.

    • fredblogs on 29/12/2019 - 16:57

      That bad, huh

  • dins on 22/12/2019 - 21:58
    +1

    Have a play around with pic settings. Don't take the "accurate" and default settings as gospel. Go with what looks the best to you. Got our 65C9 delivered the other day and set the XBox One X to Game mode / OLED 95 / Contrast 95 / Brightness 45/ Sharpness 50 / Colour 55 / White Balance Colour Temp Medium / Rest unchanged. It looks unreal! Using similar settings with other stuff as well (ie Medium/cooler colour temp and max sharpness etc but with Cinema/Expert modes) and no issues with the bright room apart from reflections so you need to get the angles right more importantly. So yeah spend an hour and have a good play around with pic settings and angles. It's a beautiful piece of kit.

  • zxcvb on 23/12/2019 - 12:15
    +2

    UPDATE: Thanks for all your replies.

    1. I have watched a whole lot of content, mostly Dolby Vision: The Witcher, Some movies, BluRays (Dark Knight).

    2. I have played around the settings a LOT, the curtains are permanently closed. One issue I released was the OLED light was unusually bright set at 80 on stock and 100 on some preset Dolby Vision settings. I changed the settings for all the modes. Dolby Vision, HDR, Standard (which I think includes all FHD and SD)

    3. I have changed OLED light to 70~75 (I change depending on content), have increased sharpness a LOT as I like it that way and turned on some most inbuilt corrections after listening to the advise posted here. Mostly based on settings I do like.

    VERDICT:

    1. Yes I have gotten used to the TV a lot.

    2. Yes Dolby Vision and HDR do look stunning especially on Netflix 4k content like The Witcher (which I totally binge watched).

    3. Yes the PQ now amazing TO ME for THIS SET. However I still maintain this was not an upgrade I was expecting. I suspect this is mostly because of how darn good my old 55" Sony LCD was, so much so, I'm keeping it in the bedroom.

    4. I still the hate the judder on the C9. I have tried toggling between Smooth and Clear and it seems bearable but still hurts my eye. This was something the Sony was simply excellent at.

    5. I do intend to turn on the Sony and recreate a similar room setup in the bedroom and then watch the same content, like the Witcher for example, so I'll get a frame of reference in 1080 as compared to Dolby Vision. Hopefully this will tell me if this was truly an upgrade worth dropping so much coin.

    6. Overall I have released - I prefer the Sony due to its motion processing and general picture clarity. The picture is incredibly lifelike on a Sony. Like I said I will be re watching the same content for comparison.

    In hindsight, I probably should have looked at some FALD Sonys when making the decision especially something like X9500G. The Sony OLEDs costs way too much in comparison to the C9 so was out of my price point. One of my reasons for not choosing a FALD LCD over OLED was simply thinking about the future. I reasoned to myself, that LCD TVs are on their way out and OLEDs the future. So I was to hoping to use this TV for the next 5 years, it made sense to invest in an OLED. Again in hindsight, probably the wrong decision for ME under MY circumstances.

    Finally to clear a major point based on the responses here: my ratio of watching SD vs HD vs UHD is 5% : 40%: 55% respectively. I watch FTA occasionally only for the news, specifically ABC news. I mentioned this in OP but the main reason for mentioning SD was in comparison to my old Sony and why it looked so bad. When I reread my own post, I can see why it seems to come across as me watching FTA more than the others. This is not true. Hopefully this clears it up.

    One of my frustations that still exists is me having to modify my TV watching behavior for the OLED as in: Keep the room dark, remove light based reflections etc. This does annoy me greatly and something I have to get used to. Had I my own home theatre dark room, this TV would have been perfect, but for everyday viewing - am not so sure.

    I will post the final update in some time.

    Thanks for all your inputs including the criticisms. They were super helpful in making me understand how others perceive all this and their experiences.

    • Whisper Quiet on 24/12/2019 - 17:53

      Thats a big thing that can actually do so much for the picture! Sharpness.
      Sony is obviously king for upscaling and motion. The other thing they are far and away ahead of everyone else is contrast modulation, which us how clear each individual pixel comes through. They are around 70%, LG around 50%, Samsung 25%. So the clarity of picture is the best with a flagship Sony TV. Samsung actually got in trouble with their 8K TV's not reaching the required 50% mark and have to go back to the drawing board if they want to still call their TV's 8K, as the maximum the pixels were showing would be equivalent to 6K.

    • sidesw1pe on 02/03/2020 - 18:25

      That's a lot of releasing.

  • Top G on 23/12/2019 - 14:05

    I have been mentioning for a while that qled might me more appropriate dependent on use case, but people keep forcing the OLED is best no questions asked, speel.

    For the average consumer there both should be looked into as viable options, but uber technophiles can sleep comfy knowing their OLED has better sounding specs on paper.

  • MiguelSanchez91 on 24/12/2019 - 12:08
    +1

    I have one of these TV's and I would trample over my own mother to get another. Absolutely stunning TV, please keep it you will definitely get used to it.

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