120Hz Done Right

February 7th, 2008 -- by Scott Wilkinson
Source: Playback

These days, the big buzzword in LCD TVs is “120Hz.” What does this mean? In the U.S., video frames are displayed on a TV screen at a rate of 30 or 60 per second. (“Per second” is technically called “hertz,” which is abbreviated “Hz.”) Because fast-moving objects often appear blurred on LCD TVs, manufacturers are now starting to double the rate at which frames are displayed to combat this so-called “motion blur.” The effect of 120Hz operation is often subtle at best, but the JVC LT-47X898 does it right, reducing motion blur to reveal a sharp, clear picture.

Features

120Hz operation said to reduce motion blur.
1:1 pixel-mapping mode avoids image softening by overscan scaling, but set reverts to overscanned mode after cycling power or even switching back to HDMI; very annoying.
10-bit panel allows smoother gradations than more common 8-bit panels.

User Interface

Remote

Universal, can control up to 5 devices.
Fully illuminated.
Dedicated input buttons; yea! However, they are labeled V1-V5 rather than by type of input; hard to remember which is which.
Two concentric rings of buttons around Enter button; confusing.

Menu System

One long series of pages, not divided into submenus; difficult to navigate.
Four picture-mode presets, 2 user memories; picture controls tied to presets, not inputs; user memories are independent for each input.

Recommended User Settings

Video Status: Memory-1
Tint: 00
Color: -13
Picture: +10
Bright: -09
Detail: -30
Energy Saver Mode: -20
Color Temperature: Low
Color Management: Off
Dynamic Gamma: Off
Smart Picture: Off
Natural Cinema: Auto
Digital VNR: Off
MPEG NR: Off
Smart Sensor: Off
Sensor Effect: Off

On Remote

Aspect: Full Native

Performance

	Detail	Color	Blacks	Shadow Detail	Artifacts/Noise
Blu-ray Disc (Click)	Excellent; items on Morty’s cluttered workbench well defined.	Skin tones somewhat orangish, greens limey.	Letterbox bars unobtrusive.	Not great, detail lost in night scene; entire picture looked too contrasty.	No noise, super-smooth motion.
DVD (Fifth Element)	Carved walls and pillars of stone temple very clear, cityscape as Leeloo jumps very sharp.	Blue earth from space almost fluorescent; skin tones better than in Click, but still a bit orangish.	Black of space fairly deep, letterbox bars unobtrusive.	Not great; lots of detail lost in darkened battleship.	No noise, super-smooth motion.
HDTV (World’s Most Extreme Homes)	Very good; shingles on house clear and crisp.	Green trees and yellow walls exaggerated, skin tones a bit pinkish and pasty.	No opportunity to test.	No opportunity to test.	No problems noted.
SDTV (The Girls Next Door)	Surprisingly good for standard- def, especially in closeups; long shots softer.	Skin tones a bit pasty and pink.	Windowbox bars unobtrusive.	Large solid dark areas in night scenes and dark interiors.	Lots of shimmering in pan across pin lights in trees at night, also in lights of Las Vegas; could be in signal.

Ambient Light Tolerance: Very good; can set backlight fairly high and still achieve a decent black level because of dynamic black function that cannot be entirely disabled.
Viewing Angle: Quite good for an LCD TV.
Audio: Better than most TVs.

Conclusion

On test discs, the JVC LT-47X898’s 120Hz operation reduced motion blur better than any other such LCD TV I’ve seen to date, though the effect was less dramatic on real-world content. Blacks were quite deep, due in part to the fact that the set dynamically changes the black level depending on the overall brightness of the image. The LT-47X898 provides several parameters that control this function, but it is never completely disabled, even when all those parameters are turned off. The color accuracy and shadow detail were of most concern to me, leaving much to be desired. Once JVC addresses those concerns, it will have a real winner on its hands.

JVC LT-47X898 LCD TV