Philips 32PW6506c Review

Overall Rating

Bought this TV yesterday. Didn't look for any reviews other than price. How I wish I had. I'm getting a low hum from the speakers whenever there is any noise on screen. ie during silent moments the hum goes. Looks like this was common with the 32pw6515. Looks like I'll be taking this back to the shop!

Members' Comments onGutted.'s Review

• 001maz on 13th Jan 2004

  hope you have got sorted with the tv you wanted, just looked at this site again (Jan 04)

• Knarutz on 16th Jul 2004

  Have a problem like the mentioned with my 32PW6506. Mostly when using other sound pre-settings than "Personal" and "Talk" (never uses this because of the "flatness"). Worst and unbearable is "Theater". To me it's an unwanted, extra, noisy sound like a radio not tuned into the right frequency. Often it is heard even in "silent" passages too, perhaps it only seems silent passages because a low level sound signal in fact is sent, but can't be heard by the ear. But it's clear that the noise has nothing to do with wanted effects of a movie or other content. It's a fault of the TV. Appears with any connection: Composite, RGB and VCR/S-VHS.
  Have recently returned a 32PW6517 (newer model) because of the same problem, but in that case the noise was heard also with "Personal", and it grew worse! Wonder if it's a fault that comes with the "Virtual Dolby"-feature and the construction of speakers to give that effect?

• Knarutz on 31st Jul 2004

  Now I've been the owner of the Philips 32PW6506, with the chassis L01 E1 from 2002, for about a month. As mentioned in my earlier comment, until recently I found the sound acceptable with the preset "Personal". But not any longer! Guess I've just been lucky with the programs for a while.
  
  At a danish AV-forum, where I have asked, if anybody knows the problem, I got an affirmative answer from a member. He describes - or in fact Philips has described it so in a bulletin about "known faults" - the problem as "wind in microfone"-noise, which is spot on. I myself described it as a "distant thunder"-noise. We're obviously talking about the same experience. He claims that a number of sets with the L01E-chassis has the fault, a software-fault to do with Ultra Bass (a part of Virtual Dolby) or something like that - and that it can be diagnosed with Philips' ComPair (PC-interface). As a response to Philips' not knowing the problem, he states that Philips should know it, because they have found the solution for at least L01.1E og L01.2E! He hasn't heard/seen the fault on models with the A10-chassis (6526, 6515, 6516) and haven't seen the L04 yet (with the new PW6518, PW6618 and PW6408). (In fact I've been promised a 6518 as a replacement as soon as the store where I bought it gets it.)
  
  I've noted the following facts:
  1) The noise disappears with the preset "Speech". I assume that this preset cuts off the lower frequencies, indicating that the problem has to do with decoding the bass-area.
  2) Worst preset is "Theatre". That preset accentuates precisely the lower frequencies.
  3) Problem is present most of the time watching movies. Most movies use Dolby Surround with a wide spectrum of sound.
  4) Both models (6517 and 6506) have a L01-chassis (L01 LS and L01 1E).
  
  Anybody similar experiences? Had the problem solved?