Nice deal on LCD TV for 380/410 dancers and possibly others

[osd9]

I had been looking to replace the TV over the Fridge in the salon of my 380, but then I sold the boat. The 410 I bought, basically has the same set up and dimensions.

Yesterday, I went to Circuit City at Lunch time, and their online store (gave me same price in store) has a killer deal on Element/Polaroid 19" Wide Screen, HDTV with built in tuners for $249. I bought 2... :grin: ...might as well replace the one in the Master while I'm at it...... :wink:

The physical dimensions of the TV are a perfect fit!!!!

Luckily for me, they were out of the $119 dollar Sanus LCD articulating mounts. When I got back to my office, I bought two mounts on ebay (exact same model) for $50 each....

I'm not sure of the quality of the TV's, but the specs seem fine, especially for my intended use. I'll post pics after the install. At this point, I have to wait for the mounts to arrive before I can install....but demo will hopefully begin this weekend.... :thumbsup:

 

[Warren]

Great price on the TV's Dominic! Are you intending to put a door on the space over the fridge where the old set was located? A friend of mine did that and, as you probably know, the SR knobs are available to tie the design in to the other cabinetry if you choose this approach.
Good luck with the project - I'm tuned in!
Warren

 

[osd9]

No Door .....over the fridge, the opening to the TV is lower than the black valance over the fridge. A full door to cover the opening would not be able to open.

But that is part of the beauty of the these TV's. Their physical dimensions, cover the width of the opening and most of the height. I plan to install with a Sanus articulating arm so that I can position the TV for viewing at other angles. The Sanus Arm has tightening nobs on its arms so the TV should stay put while watching. I am not sure yet how to keep the TV it against the cabinet. I'm thinkg of heavy duty 3M velcro, like on the E-ZPass tags.

 

[Warren]

I'm sure that you have already considered the option Dom - my friend utilized the space occupied by the old TV for stowage by installing a door to hide the contents of this new "closet" and then mounted the flat TV to the exterior of the door. Another post at this site showed a swing-up door with the TV on it. If this is possible for you the articulating mount could be affixed to the exterior of the door..

Perhaps your boat does not provide this option. I'm not familiar with the design of your space, but thought I'd ask the question as my friend got (a) a sleek new flat screen TV and (b) more storage space.
Good luck!
Warren

 

[RonF]

Dominic,

Thanks for the ideas. Are you going to run on 110 volts AC, or 12 volts DC? I think some of these TVs have a transformer in the AC line to bring 12v into the set.

 

[rondds]

i installed a 15" samsung LCD in the forward stateroom recently (replaced the old 9" panasonic that came with the boat!). the samsung does not have the in-line transformer you describe. if i were buying now, i'd look for that. i have seen a few such tvs that use a transformer to convert the 110ac to 12-14v dc, which would work well on the boat. but unless you have tracvision or watch dvd's/videos (with players that work on 12v too), there's really no need for a 12v tv. those crappy flying saucer tv antennas dont work unless your docked next to the empire state building.

dom, as far as quality, i just look at the warranty. they're all made in korea and there's probably two or three companies that manufacture the guts (sony, matsushita, etc), and 200 companies that put their logo on the front (KLH, Broksonic, Polaroid, Daewoo, HUH??? :huh: )

 

[osd9]

Right now, with out really getting into it, I plan to install a shelf or two in the space and use the storage. I will also be putting in a DVD player.

I'm not really conerened with operating off of 12V. I never really use the TV's on DC. I do carry a small 400 watt inverter that I could just plug into the accessory port if I had to OR I could just turn on the generator.

I fired up the TV's last night and I was very impressed with the quality of picture, the features and the inputs.

Hopefully I can start the demo this weekend....

 

[rondds]

off topic. i just realized i'm an "admiral." how'd that happen???

 

[RonF]

Ron & Dom,

I guess that 90% of the time we are hooked up to shore power at a marina. Most of them don't have cable, and the antenna reception is poor. We do bring tapes or DVDs. We bought an el-cheapo 110v DVD player for these trips.

Occasionally we are anchored where we can get a couple of channels. Then we run the genny.

 

[osd9]

Demo is done....went quite easily....lots of room back there, and I'll have to decide how to finish the space.....for now, I'm waiting for the Sanus mounts to be delivered along with the DVD players I ordered.....more to come.....

 

[ImpulseIII]

I kept trying to figure out what the first picture was until I realized that you were installing two TV's and the first picture is the Forward Stateroom!! :smt021 Duh.........My dumb....

You're ambition may be enough to get me off my dead "you know what" and do the same thing to at least the Salon TV.

Thanks for sharing. :thumbsup:

 

[Warren]

Great job Dominic! It looks terrific - fits perfectly. And looking at the salon photo now I understand about the cavity above the fridge. Thanks for posting the results!
Warren

 

[osd9]

Warren....there's nothing there yet to fit.. :grin: ...just two big ol' holes in the walls for now......but..... the dimensions of the Element 19" LCD does fit nice...I held them up over the cavities...... :thumbsup:

 

[Warren]

Still..... good lookin 'ol holes!
Warren

 

[rondds]

now dom, did you use a sawzall or a chainsaw to make those holes? did you mask the veneer so it didnt chip? is that special marine black paint on the inside of the hole or just regular home depot type stuff? :smt043

 

[osd9]

One down...One to go.....got the Salon TV in after work....still have to dress the cables and install a "keeper"....I have a few Ideas, but I'll have to wait for the weekend to test....more to come....Oh..no Cable hooked up to the boat....so no picture....DVD player is scheduled to be delivered by the end of the week....

 

[dc380]

Did you have to remove the refrig in order to get the TV out?
After seeing your post. I looked at mine, to see how it came out. It looked to me that you had to get at it from underneath.

I'd like to replace the two I have. The one in the master area seems easy as it's just screwed onto a shelf.

 

[osd9]

No.,..I did not have to remove the fridge. You only have to Pry up the black valance around the base of the TV. It is held in with Christmas Trees. I had to remove/break one of the CT to get the TV out, but you really don't need it. There are two screws holding in a wooden base at the front of the TV and then 4 screws holding the TV to the base. You get the 4 screws out after the base/TV combo comes out. Just be careful prying out the black valance.

 

[ImpulseIII]

Hey Dominic,
If I buy the TV and support arm, do you suppose you could install it for me while we are in Baltimore??!!?? :huh: :thumbsup: Great installation, It looks teriffic!

 

[osd9]

Hey Dominic,
If I buy the TV and support arm, do you suppose you could install it for me while we are in Baltimore??!!?? :huh: :thumbsup: Great installation, It looks teriffic!

Not a problem....it should only take about an hour (But like the admiral always says....multiply by two and add a third).....if you are serious, I'll send you a parts list of what you need to bring........the dimensions of this TV are a perfect fit...and the price was very reasonable.....check Circuit City to see if it is still on special.....you can buy the mount on ebay....again, this mount is also a perfect fit, and the tightening knobs on each arm help to keep the TV where you put it.....I can send that link also....the guy had 18 last I looked.....by July, I should have the kinks worked out to keep the TV in place in rough seas......It's the "keeper" solution that'll cost you... :grin: ....(just kidding)....