FD Trinitron flat picture tube * 4:3 screen aspect ratio *
Sony's KV-27FS120 27-inch WEGA television is a CRT (cathode-ray tube) set that's both stylish and feature-packed. A silver cabinet houses a flat-screen Trinitron picture tube that cuts down on glare and minimizes image distortion. A host of technologies ensure vivid, distortion-free viewing.
One of the coolest features is the KV-27FS120's 16:9 enhanced mode, which delivers maximum picture quality by concentrating all viewable scan lines within a letterboxed image--wasting none of its horizontal resolution on rendering the black bars that border a widescreen image.
Velocity modulation (selectable: off, high, low) improves the definition at picture edges, creating sharper images by slowing the CRT beam's horizontal scanning during demanding work--say, when rendering transitions from light to dark parts of an image--and speeding it up when scanning easily rendered sections, like broad dark areas. The set's three-line digital comb filter further enhances resolution by removing blurred edges between colors and reducing dot crawl (tiny, moving dots of color along a sharp color separation in a vertical line, as in a depiction of a character's striped T-shirt).
Top-of-the-line component-video inputs minimize digital and line-scan artifacts from compatible video sources, while standard composite- and S-video inputs accommodate all DVD players. You can choose between a set of rear AV inputs and a set of front AV inputs for extra convenience when hooking up a camcorder or gaming console. A rear AV output offers both fixed and variable-level analog audio outputs for hookup with, for instance, both a VCR and a surround receiver. You can label the set's video inputs and channels for easy selection.
The set produces stereo audio with 10 watts per channel. Its fine-pitch aperture grill allows more electrons to reach the screen surface, while a high-precision deflection yoke guides the electrons accurately for bright, clear images. A headphone jack lets you listen in private. Other video technologies include auto white balance, Dynamic Picture Processor circuitry, tilt correction, Trinitone color temperature control, and vertical aperture compensation.
What's in the Box
TV, remote control, remote batteries, warranty information, and user's manual.
1 Is gullable in the dictionary?
I'm a chump! I signed up for one of those get-a-cool-Sony-TV-free "offers" that are continually being posted here.
Within one day, I received over 200 spam emails and 15 telemarketing calls. Arggh!. There really is something to the saying "you can't get something for nothing".
I hope everybody here can learn from my horrible experience and avoid these ridiculous pyramid schemes.
Sony makes great TV sets. It's too bad they're being used as bait by unethical people.
2 Great medium sized flat screen at a good price.
The Sony 27" Trinition WEGA flat screen TV is a great investment. Throw out your old rounded screen tube TV and get a flat screen; do yourself a favor--you won't regret it!
Once you watch DVD movies on this TV you'll never go back to that old Zenith clunker. I've had four Sony televisions and I would not get any other brand; its affordable, but also good quality, with a great picture. Don't want to spend the money to get this TV? Well, you can get one for free, by going to http://tinyurl.com/5jq3u. It really works!
3 CRAP
I bought my WEGA 1 1/2 months ago, and am now on my 3rd set. i'm taking it back tomorrow to get my money back and switched brands.
the picture has alway been bright and vibrant, but we consistently had distortions at the top and bottom of each unit we had = problem 1.
with every set - when a program goes to commercial, the screen is not black, but a charcoal color with faint white glow. this also is the case when watching a DVD. incredibly annoying = problem 2.
we had a tv repair person come out each time to tell us what we already new - that he'd have to take it into the shop to fix it. i mean, how absurd is that! a tv is only 2 weeks old and i'm supposed to pay to repair it!!!?
i will never buy a sony tv again!
4 Sony KV27FS120 27" FD Trinitron, Excellent TV for cost
I bought the Sony KV27FS120 27" FD Trinitron WEGA Flat Screen TV
in early July of 2004 and haved loved it ever since. My family has always been a Sony product buyer, but there definately is no bias coming from me on this TV.
The picture quality is amazing for a non-HDTV. This is due to the digital comb filter that increases picture resolution. As for the AV component hookups, there are four of them, including an S-video hookup that greatly increases your DVD and Video game system pictures.
The sound is fairly good on this model, as additional speakers are not necessary, but definately would make your experience that much better.
5 Great picture - bad screen geometry
I've had three Sony TV's over the past 15 years - all wonderful.
As such, I immediately looked at the FS120 Wega in buying a new unit this fall. The picture color, contrast and detail are superb and the sound rich. But I noticed that horizontal banners such as those on CNN, ESPN and the TV Guide were wavy - curving up at the left and right sides of the screen and bulging up in the center. I thought the TV must be defective so I exchanged it for a second, then a third and fourth. I even changed cables and locations. All were unable to hold horizontal lines straight. I have two 4 year old Sonys with rock solid screen geometry. I also checked new Toshiba's - I didn't like the sound - but the picture geometry was fine.
This flaw is only really noticeable in news or informational programming, but if you watch these - note: current Sony FS120's have an apparent design flaw that may drive you to distraction.
Though I love them, I am returning my last Sony and will likely switch brands.
6 Break out the service manual to bring this unit up to speed
I like a lot of the features about this unit, but folks interested in a really good picture will want to lower the red push and fix the 16:9 oversqueeze problem. To do these, you'll need a service manual (not the users manual you received with the unit). Not sure how much they are, haven't bought mine yet. There's a few places on the web that talk about how to correct these two problems, but they are for the previous WEGAs not the FS100 and FS120.
I have not heard the high-pitched whine, but I don't hear so well anyway. It's pretty heavy (my specs said just a few ounces shy of 100 pounds), but that doesn't matter to me, I don't lug it around from room to room ;).
7 Best small/med non HDTV with clean 16:9 mode for DVDs
I've had a slew of uninspiring 19 inch conventional televisions, so this Sony 27 inch is practically perfect in size, picture quality, and function. No, this is no HDTV and when viewing cable and tv shows, you can easily see more graininess and lines than an HDTV if you do a direct comparison, but for a conventional TV, it still is the best that I have seen.
The picture is sharp, clear, and lively when you sit close and from afar. Colors are saturated, but not overly so- the result is pleasing to my eyes and I enjoy watching it. The biggest feature in my mind is the 16:9 mode. This mode allows the TV to use all of its resolution for widescreen viewing, making it a mini 25-26" widescreen. In this mode, I cannot see any lines and the picture is clean and vivid. Watching widescreen DVDs in this mode is so rich and clean- I cannot describe it- I swear it is close to HDTV, but in tiny form, but the clarity and resolution are still very high- Finding Nemo is very sharp and there are no lines visible to my eyes.
There are some downsides that I have noticed- Even though this is a flatscreen, the glass has some distortions and lines are not perfectly straight. This is normal in all tubed TVs. Also, for this basic model, the 16:9 mode is activated in a menu so it takes like five button presses to get to turn it on. The sound quality is improved, but you still need a surround system to get full sound. As another reviewer has said, to turn off the TV sound (to use your own surround sound), you have to go through a menu. I think the more expensive versions have direct buttons for these features.
Dudes, you know how important a TV is when you get home and just want to veg- HDTV is great, but costly and not really ready for anything other than basic TV channels and DVDs. If you are watching regular non HDTV channels on an HDTV, you will need a 34" widescreen to get the same conventional 27" picture. For the price, I'd rather get this TV now and wait for HDTV when it matures (in about 2006). The 27 inch TV is perfect for a small apartment or a large bedroom. At a viewing distance of 6-7 feet, it feels intimate, but not "large." This TV is the cream of the crop in its class and provides entertainment without digging a large HDTV hole in your wallet.
8 broke down less than 2 month
The picture tube went less than 2 month. This unit is made in Mexico.
9 Good, but flawed
I was looking for a good 27" TV and of course everyone mentions the Sony.
Not a Sony fan, I see them resting on their name more than anything these days, but I figured I'd give it a shot.
Hooked it up - Component DVD, S-video gaming, antenna.. all of it. First things first, clarity is really good. I went from a blurry as heck 25 to a pretty crisp 27. Nice. Games looked outstanding. DVDs looked.. well.. wrong.
I bought the TV because it had 16:9 mode. Great, I love anamorphic dvds. Turned the option on in my dvd player, turned 16:9 on with the tv.. Hmm, it doesn't look right for some reason. I checked online and it is a known issue that the sonys oversqueeze the picture. And we're not talking a mm or so, we're talking over an inch. So a 2.35:1 movie was more like a 2.45:1 or 2.5:1. Something that was grossly distorted. Soo, I had to break into the service menu, grab some measuring tape, and used a setup disc to make a circle, well, circular. Something Sony obviously couldn't do. Flaw one, but fixable.
I tried watching the Simpsons on this Tv - not a good idea. Homer is Yellow, not orange. People don't all have sunburns on TV. I tried fixing the colour and it got to the point where to make skin tones look even tolerable, everything else had a noticeable drop in saturation. Checked online, surprise surprise, red push for sony tvs. Only on the newer FS100s they've changed the registers in the service menu, so good luck finding out exactly what to change because it's not what it used to be. Flaw 2, not quite fixable.
Then there was the geometry. Images shouldn't bend out near the top few inches. Also, when I was playing games there was major distortion in games that had letterboxed cutscenes - to the point where it looked like the few inches between the blackness of the letterbox and the bright scene resembed a scrambled cable station. NOT good. Flaw 3, I didn't even want to try to fix it.
Took the thing back. From what I've read, it's definitely common enough that I didn't want to bother with another Sony. Maybe I'm picky, but for 400 bucks I deserve to be.
10 Wega is the best!
Even though it is a very heavy TV, it is the best picture tube TV for the price and picture quality. My mother now has this TV since I moved and I miss it. I am going to wait for a year or two for the price to come down on the plasma/LCD before I invest in an another TV. I am three stories high and I do not want to have to carry it in the future! I liked the v compression. I used v compression with the s-cable and a dvd player. The picture was clean and sharp like no other non HDTV tube TV I have ever seen. You do loose some size of the TV, but if you are like me and watch TV a couple yards away, you should not be bother much. If you are a big dvd fan and are farther away than a couple yards, you might want to look into the 32-40 inch tube tv wega. Make sure you have buff friends to help you move it though. I mainly used the TV with my DirecTv and tivo with outstanding consistant quality. Now I am going to have to get use to an old plain picture tube TV.
11 High pitched noise for a great tv
I bought this tv from CC and had high hope for it. A $350 Sony 27" flat screen? what a steal right?
Well.. maybe...if you have a big house or bad hearing..
The high pitched noise from the back of the tv is so annoying, i never felt happier turning OFF the tv! its like a better version of nails on blackboard... i have to exchange it to another tv thats not as good graphic wise as the Sony.
What a shame, i love everything else about this tv..
12 high-pitched noise not so great
Please read timfou's review. It's dead-on. First, this set is VERY heavy. You'll probably need some help to lug this thing home, and going up/down stairs is a PITA. Second, the geometry at the bottom of the screen does come up to a peak in the middle of the screen, and slope downwards at the edges. Of course, you can't really notice this except when there's a box or line across the bottom, but that does happen pretty frequently. I have noticed this on other flat screen TVs, so its not just this one. But like timfou, the reason I returned this TV was because of the high-pitched noise that came from the set whenever it was turned on. It didn't matter which inputs were plugged in, or the proximity of my power cable to my stereo cables, or anything. My wife could hear it when she put her head by the vents on the side of the TV set, but it didn't bother her like it did me. I expect a little bit of that high-pitched noise from a TV or CRT monitor, but this was more than I could stand. I must admit, I really loved the picture on that TV, but I would've regretted keeping a TV I couldn't stand to turn on. Good thing Circuit City has a 30 day return policy.
13 Would be Great if I had the TV
When I received my TV Broken I Spoke to customer service right away. They told me that they would email the shipping information that day so I could return the Broken TV And would get a NEW TV when the Broken one had been Delivered. I Shipped it Back the next day. I waited six days to hear/receive anything. I called support again, They said that they would not be resending a TV, But a Credit to my account. I Did not want a Credit, I wanted a New TV. I was told that I would have to wait Nine days for the Broken TV to Be Credited to my Account. I still have no NEW TV. Thanks For the Inconvenience.
14 Sony KV-27FS100 FD Trinitron WEGA TV - Perfection!
As the title states, this television "is" perfection! I purchased this approximately a year ago as the centerpiece to a second system and have since found it to be one of the wisest television purchases I've ever made. The only mistake that I made was not getting the model that included the picture-in-picture feature. In conjunction with the Sony SLV-N700 Hi-Fi VHS VCR and the Sony DVP-NS325S DVD Player (Silver), this small system has worked beautifully, with this exceptionally outstanding FD Trinitron WEGA TV enhancing the viewing/listening experience with its superior quality in image and sound!
As features go, there is little to want for that this marvelous television set does not have as is detailed in the editorial review and the technical specifications on the front page for this product, there are however, some wonderful features that I would like to highlight in this review. One of the most important aspects of a purchase such as this is a well written and thought out operating manual with clear and concise setup directions and Sony has done an outstanding job with that whereas many other manufacturers do so miserably.
Given that there are four separate video inputs for this exceptional TV, it can be, as I've been using it, set up as a system independent of a stereo receiver and you can have up to four different devices such as a VCR player, DVD player and camcorder attached to with no problems and still have room for one more device of your choice. Given for such wonderful performance as a stand alone set as functionality goes, you'd be hard pressed to find a better deal in a television set of this quality and price range.
The on screen menu system is perfect on this set, possessing a majority of the functions that a customer would enjoy. Among those features are parental controls; two timers and a sleep timer; four different preset video modes; color temperature; VM (Velocity Modulation; audio setting to include treble, bass, balance, effects and MTS.
The remote is also a picture of perfection providing you've set yourself up with a Sony "system" as you can control the television, the VCR and the DVD player with it, providing that much more ease of use without having to keep track of two or more remotes at once.
For the consummate audio and videophile such as me, this is an outstanding television set! I highly recommend this or any other outstanding Sony television set to any and all who demand quality from their television sets without wishing to dish out much higher dollars for HD and flat panel sets that are "way" over priced at this time. {ssintrepid}
15 Disappointed
Got the 27FS100 at CC and compared it to my 24in 24FV12 (side by side feeding the same signal through my Panny 56) and black cut away scenes are "chorcoal" compared to my 24in (which are black). Whites are whiter on my 24in and colors are more intense and vivid on the 24FV12. Maybe Sony's QC isn't what it use to be.
16 Great tv full of great features !!
A year ago I was in market for a new tv and I figured for a few dollars more I would get a system with all the features I needed to put together a decent hometheater system for very little money.I did a bit of research and always came back to the Sony Wega.I thought it was great right out of the box but after finding a website with instructions on how to tweak it for better enjoyment I'm even more in-love.I use it to watch tv , dvds, play video games and also as a large monitor hooked up to my computer since I have a tv tuner card and use my computer as a dvr.I am so glad I stuck with Sony and went Wega this time, well worth the xtra bucks.The only complaint I have and have read it happen to other people , is that the front a/v connection seems to losen up after a while and it takes some wiggling to get it to work but other than that I love my 27" silver roomate.I use the 16:9 feature all the time even when watching regular tv.
17 Sony Does It Again! Great Entertainment Buy!
I do graphic arts for a living and as a classicist, have loved listening to Sony sound for many years and perhaps that is why I love this tv. I was initially torn between Toshiba's 27" with the invar shadow mask (actually appears to be better resolution but somewhat dark because of the shadow mask) and this Sony. However, like all graphic artists, I am very attune to true color and resolution, and that is I kept coming back to the Sony -- perfect everytime --channel to channel, indoor or outdoor views. Crisp resolution, lovely contrast, striking depth of color and superior surround sound (I play classical cds over the speakers and it's beautiful). A very best buy for me. Excellent TV. Go Sony!
18 To Previous Post
To the previous poster: The V-compression mode should not "squish" your picture anymore than it would normally in 16:9 mode unless the DVD your watching isn't ANAMORPHIC or "Enhanced for wide screen TVs".
What V-compression does (using ANAMORPHIC discs) is that it takes the resolution that would normally be used in projecting the black bars on the top and bottom of the TV screen and adds this to the resolution of the actual film image so you get more resolution. A sharper and more film-like image just as you would get if you use a widescreen TV. What you see as "black bars" then is just those portions of your screen being "off".
Personally, I'm very happy with this set. You get a lot of features and a great image for the price and size. And with the custom matching stand it just looks great in any small to medium sized room! The only negative I've encountered is the weight. Very heavy!
19 Almost Perfect
I own two 27" Sony Wega TVs. The first one that I bought a couple of years ago is excellent. It is the higher end model with all the bells and whistles (PIP etc).
The other one (KV27FS100) I bought last month and am somewhat disappointed with it. There is a distortion at the bottom of the screen. When I view my Satellite TV guide, there is a slope that goes from left to right. Also, if there is a banner that scrolls accross the bottom of the screen (like the one on the news networks), it appears all squigley and distorted.
That problem did not arise on my first 27" Wega. I am not sure if it is a inconsistency in the manufacturing or if the quality control is just poor.
This problem withstanding, the features on this model are easy to use and the remote is wonderful. I would still recommend the WEGA, but just wanted to caution future comsumers of the picture problem (which appears in a couple of other reviews on Amazon).
20 nothing better
i tried really hard to find something better. I didn't want to buy this set as I would be paying a premium for the Sony name (as opposed to paying for quality and features). I stood in front of numerous TV's at the local store trying to get the Toshiba and Samsung to have the same picture, and the Sony beat them hands down. As soon as this set went on sale, I snatched it up.
21 GREAT WHEN IT WORKS
I purchased mine 9 months ago and it worked perfectly for 7 months.
Of course, now that it's out of warranty all sorts of problems have arisen. Primarily, it has a mind of it's own.
While watching a program, the set tries to re-set itself and jumps from input to input for no reason whatsoever.
I've read the manual four times and have contacted Sony all to no avail.
Just have have a service tech come to my home is $70. Tack on what will surely be several hundred dollars for the repair (with no assurance that the problem will go away without 4 more visits, if at all) and I've decided to simply throw a $500 set in the garbage.
For what it's worth, the picture on this set is fantastic. Especially with a DVD and component cables.
I just think that for $500 I should have gotten a set with a warranty a lot longer than 90 days for labor.
Never again will I touch a Sony product. I'm on my way to buy a Toshiba this afternoon.
Buy this piece of junk at your own risk.
22 Great flat screen TV.
The Sony WEGA series has always been known for its supurb picture quality and this continues to be true for this model. This TV carries very good price to quality ratio. If you are looking for a quality, flat screen 27" TV, this is it.
I gave it 4 stars because the v-compression mode is over-rated. This feature simply squishes the picture when playing a DVD. Although quality and resolution increases, the size of the picture decreases. You are sacraficing size for quality. I prefer to see a larger picture vs. a smaller picture you almost have to squint to see. My suggestion to Sony: get rid of this feature and drop the price, this TV would then sell like hotcakes.
Does anyone out there like the v-compression feature / mode?
23 Annoying high-pitched noise
I just bought the Sony KV-27FS100 on Saturday after spending a couple of weeks researching other flatscreen TVs. In the end, it came down to this Sony model and the Toshiba 27AF43. I opted for the Sony since I love my 32" Sony XBR and I really wanted the 16:9 vertical compression mode for watching anamorphic DVDs.
Unfortunately, my excitement for this unit was short lived. After physically struggling with the setup (unit weighs around 100 lbs and is too big to move solo), and hooking it up to my digital cable, I powered on the set. Although the picture is great, there was a constant, annoying, fairly loud high pitched noise coming from the set. I turned down the volume, removed all the inputs, tried different power outlets, even turned off the TV's speakers and the sound remained. After searching the web for "sony high pitched noise" I found other complaints about this same problem. The TV is unwatchable for me at this point, I can't even stand having it on for more than a few minutes (might be a good thing long term :)
A second problem is bad geometry at the bottom of the screen. When my digital cable viewing guide is up, you can clearly see that the bottom edge of the menu -- which should be parallel with the bottom of the screen -- slopes up from left to right. I could live with this, but the high pitched whine is unbearable. The unit is going back tomorrow. I'll try a couple other units to see if the problem is just with my set, but will likely go with the Toshiba since the vertical compression wasn't as big a deal as I thought it would be.
24 Good bang for buck tv
I got a great deal on the TV so buying it wasn't really a tough decision. I've only had it a few days, and so far I'm happy with the purchase. I have one downfall to point out though -> the blacks and greys of the picture seem really grainy on most channels and some of the DVD's I've tried. Could be I've just gotten used to my sony monitor's resolution.
25 Good bang for buck tv
I got a great deal on the TV so buying it wasn't really a tough decision. I've only had it a few days, and so far I'm happy with the purchase. I have one downfall to point out though -> the blacks and greys of the picture seem really grainy on most channels and some of the DVD's I've tried. Could be I've just gotten used to my sony monitor's resolution.
26 Great TV - good deal too!
Understanding that the TV is a little more money than most 27' tube TV's, even in the flat screen garden variety, this is really a great television. The pisture is crystal clear and even though consumer reports rated this television second after a Toshiba model I think they got it wrong! In my opinion after reviewing both, this television is better than the Toshiba (they are about the same money). It turns out that this TV and the Toshiba are produced by the same producer however toshiba uses a phillips tube while sony uses "sony" tubes. If you do a little research phillips TV's are not so hot. Although the toshiba does have two S-Video hookups while the sony only has one (The sony does have a conponenet viseo output which is better and to be honest I am not sure if the toshiba has one or not).
From what I found this is a great alternative to a High Definition television. The pisture is about as good as you can get and with the high componenet hookups a DVD is crystal clear. So for roughly [$$$] you can have a great TV instead of paying [$$$]for an HDTV.
I highly recommend this TV. (by the way, I have had it about a month)...
27 Great Value for the Money
I highly recommend this TV. It may be a little more pricey than equivalently equipped televisions from other manufacturers but the Sony quality shines through. The picture is fabulous and even without a home theater set up the sound is great. I spent the extra money for good cables and hooked my DVD player up through the component Video and the picture is great. It is almost like seeing "The Fellowship of the Ring" in the Theater. Also the 16:9 aspect ratio is great for those items that aren't in Widescreen format. It gives them a real widescreen feel. All in all this is the best electronics purchase I have made in years.
28 A Really Great TV
I purchased the Sony 27" flat screen about two months ago, and I am very impressed with it. The picture quality is excellent and the sound is great. Though it is a bit more pricey than other 27" tv's, it is made by Sony, which makes the best quality products.
29 Not a perfect TV, but good enough
Every time I turn on the TV, I have to wait about 10 seconds to see video, and screen keeps flashing when I look the object beside the TV. Although ALL THE FLAT SCREEN TV HAVE SAME PROBLEMS, so what can I say.
That TV doesn't have a lot of room for me to put antenna at top of TV.
Audio is perfect.
30 Good 27 inch Flat Screen from SONY
This is a good Flat Screen TV set from SONY. It has a Digital comb filter that increases picture resolution and reduces noticeable dot-crawl, which is visible on less expensive 27inch brands. It has Rear audio and composite video inputs as well as an S-video input for DVD, Laser Disc players and Super-VHS recorders for higher picture resolution. It also comes standard with Clock, Sleep Timer, Last Channel Recall, Remote and V-chip. I just saw this last weekend with a satellite signal and DVD demo. The picture looked very good.
31 nice tv
i got this tv a week ago. it's great, but may be too small for my tastes. i am waiting for the 32fs100 to be available.
looks clearer than i thought it would be from the display models, may be from digital cable. also, when things scroll on the bottom of the screen, seems to be almost wavy, may be because it is flat or i am looking too hard, not sure. only one s and component input. heavy. otherwise awesome
32 Best 27" tv out there
we bought this tv a week ago and we r really happy with it. it has all the features as the $749 model except the pip. the picture quality is crisp and sharp and the sound is fantastic. i would recommend this model over the expensive one because no one really uses pip. it includes a component and s video input which can fulfill all the needs. if u want to spend little more money then buy the zenith or philips hdtv. i think this tv offers everything style, affordability, picture quality, sound, and features. just buy it without even thinking. IT's SONY.
33 Good For the price
I own this TV and it has all the features of a Sony latest models with the exception of WOW sound and PIP. With the price difference of this TV with the latest model you can buy a good music system. The quality of the picture is good. I hope this helps.
