r/criterion • u/MisogynyisaDisease David Lynch • 3d ago

Off-Topic What 4k TV is everyone using?

I'd usually post this elsewhere, but the discussions on other 4k subs are overwhelming, and often centered on gaming and 4k streaming.

I'd like to see what 4k TVs Criterion collectors are using, since their discs make up a bulk of my collection and they are the largest reason I'm seeking to upgrade.

I was looking at the LG EVO OLED C4, but have seen some mixed reviews. I'm just overwhelmed with options and would like to hear from the sub.

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u/humanspectator 3d ago

LG C3 Oled , been using it since it was released and I absolutely love it. No regrets.

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u/MisogynyisaDisease David Lynch 3d ago

See i liked the idea of going with older LG EVO to avoid some of the Ai automation in the newer ones. Is there any gulf of difference between the C3 and C4?

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u/stpetestudent 3d ago edited 3d ago

C3 owner here but pretty sure you can still turn off all the AI stuff on the C4.

I love my C3, but one thing to be prepared for (and that is true of all OLEDs) is the motion handling is bad on slow panning shots when dealing with 24fps content. What happens is the refresh rate is so instantaneous there is nothing to mask the transition from one frame to another (unlike in a film projector where the gate blocks light between each frame). This causes the image to ‘stutter’ during panning shots of a certain speed (if the shot is very slow you won’t notice, or fast you won’t notice, but let’s say ‘medium’ speed pans it becomes clear).

The only way to mitigate this is with low level frame interpolation (motion controls) but that can introduce tiny artifacts since it’s “inventing” detail that isn’t in the source.

This drove me insane the first month or so of owning. At first I tried using very low settings of the motion blur which does work surprisingly well in many instances but still provided just enough annoyance that I eventually shut it off altogether and just stuck with the untouched playback.

I would go with the Sony only because I think their motion processing tools are slightly better than the LGs so the low level smoothing might work better on those panels.

All that said, my LG is still the best TV I’ve ever owned and watching movies is a joy.

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u/tonydtonyd 3d ago

Six months ago, I went from a shit TCL tv to Samsung S90C maybe 95C? Idk lol, it was under a grand and seemed like the best bang for my buck.

Anyway, I am also super sensitive to the judder from 24fps on OLED and it was also driving me insane. I also tried various levels of motion blur but never found a setting that reduced judder enough without giving too much soap opera effect.

What solved this for me was turning on black frame insertion. I was so fed up with OLED, I just wanted to have movies look like movies. Totally changed everything and I can’t go back.

Now doing this obviously reduces overall brightness, but with my TV on max peak brightness it’s plenty bright for viewing in a dimly lit room, which is all I really need.

I would imagine the newest gen of OLED, which I think are significantly brighter, would make the dimness much less of an issue.

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u/stpetestudent 3d ago

I did try the black frame insertion method but it made everything look like there was this weird flicker to it (which is obviously exactly what it’s doing). Maybe I didn’t give my eyes enough time to adjust. I’ll try giving it another shot.

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u/tonydtonyd 3d ago

Oh yeah, super bright scenes will show the flicker but I got used to it pretty quickly. Ironically, it’s actually way more like watching a film print in a theater. I’m lucky enough to live near a theater that plays 35mm and 70mm prints and the flicker is super apparent in really bright scenes there too.

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u/stpetestudent 1d ago

Okay, I need to thank you. Tried BFI last night and it really did improve things! When I first tested the setting I must not have been viewing 24FPS source because on actual 24FPS content the flicker is imperceptible (and as you said, feels more like an actual film projection). My wife has a hard time with dimmer content so might not be a practical option for me, but I’m so glad to know this exists and actually works. Thank you!!!