What Hi Fi Sound and Vision
25 JUL 2008
JVC LT-32DA9BJ
For such a price, we were pleasantly surprised with the JVC's performance – a great buy if you're on a budget
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This 32in JVC LCD television didn't quite make it to What Hi-Fi? Sound and Vision towers in time for last month's Supertest, so instead it finds its way in to our First Tests section in the Sept 08 issue of the mag, and here online.
First and foremost, we can't help but be struck by the cost. The £400 figure is a 'real world' price, making the JVC one of the cheapest 32in sets we've seen.
Thankfully the style and design does its best to hide this fact, with a gloss black frame and smart swivel stand. The menu system is less impressive but does the job, and it's a similar story with the remote.
The TV is HD-ready, with 1366 x 768 resolution but, unlike most sets, it can't deal with a 1080p/24fps signal. Nevertheless, the two HDMI inputs can take 720p/1080i, while there's a component input, two Scarts, plus a digital optical out for sound. A digital Freeview tuner completes the set.
A natural, realistic colour palette
We take a look at the tuner with some horse racing. The fast-moving action makes for a tough test, but the JVC stays sure-footed. There's a touch of noise around the edges but this is a largely clean, colourful off-air picture.
Switch to DVD and again we're impressed. There Will Be Blood shows that this TV can't quite deliver deep blacks, but it does offer a natural, realistic colour palette, with flesh tones delivered excellently.
Cars on Blu-ray shows that the JVC doesn't quite have the sharpness of the very best sets, but again it's a smooth, clean, detailed delivery. Top this off with a set of clear and detailed speakers, and this JVC TV represents fine value.