1. Foreword
Hello everyone, my name is abrams2415. focuses on the research of home appliances. Good at in-depth evaluation of home appliances with various test equipment. Supplemented by popular language to tell everyone the true performance of the product.
today to test a currently on the market, the most cost-effective 75-inch 4K 120Hz true HDR TV-Thunderbird S545C.
▲Sent an unboxing video to the short video platform, which received 610,000 views in a short period of time. It can be seen that everyone has a strong interest in this TV.
Over time, it is believed that more and more console players have already started the next-generation game console Play Station 5 or Xbox Series X . Therefore, as a qualified game TV, having true 120Hz display panel, HDMI 2.1 interface, VRR, ALLM function has become the rigid indicator of the next-generation game TV.
But for ordinary consumers, buying a TV is full of pitfalls, and you fall into a pit if you are not careful. For example:
1. A certain brand of TV advertises a 120Hz 4K TV, in fact, only 60Hz at 4K resolution. can only reach 120Hz at 1080P resolution.
2. A certain brand and a certain model of game TV originally advertised support for VRR, but finally castrated, and the original poster was also changed. And the picture is blurry at 4K 120Hz resolution. This is the problem caused by the drawbacks of the MediaTek 9950 chip without an independent external image quality chip: 4k 120Hz input blur and lack smooth gradient these two major flaws.
today brought this TCL online sub-brand-Thunderbird S545C. It is a pure online brand of TCL, so it cut most of the channel and marketing costs. In addition to TCL’s monopoly-level LCD panel factory- Huaxing Optoelectronics , these points make Thunderbird have a cost advantage compared to other brands of TV: low prices provide high-specification hardware, products are extremely Cost-effective.
▲ Last year’s Sony X9000H was delisted in June this year, although its price-performance ratio is fair; but the image blur under 4K 120Hz signal has always been its weakness.
▲X90J, the sequel of X9000H, has been replaced with the latest generation of Dafa XR cognitive chip, but the screen has also been changed from Samsung to TCL Huaxing.The price of 13,000 yuan for 75 inches is also difficult to equate with the price/performance ratio.
So currently lacks cost-effective "real" gaming 4K 120Hz TVs on the market.
In addition to HDMI 2.1, VRR, and VLLM all equipped, Thunderbird’s 75-inch S545C has 120 checkerboard partition backlight, up to about 800 nits of peak brightness. However, the Sony X90J 75-inch TV has only 56 partition backlights.
So at the current price of Thunderbird S545C 75-inch, plus various stacked hardware configurations. It can be said to be very cost-effective and powerful performance.
So what is the difference between the actual performance and performance of this TV and the original Sony X90J 65-inch in my house? Come and have a look with me.
2. Appearance & interface
▲The TV also follows the principle of one inch big and one inch. Before opening the box, I feel that the 75-inch outer packaging is much larger than the 65-inch. The internal packing list is shown in the figure above.
▲The material of the support leg should be plastic to the touch. After all, the large cost of this TV is on the 120Hz 120 partition backlight module. So we can't ask how exquisite its material is. However, the appearance after the combination of the support feet and the TV is still very simple.
▲This Thunderbird S545C screen, like the Sony X90J, uses the TCL CSOT VA soft screen, which is characterized by high contrast. However, the reflection of the screen is a bit serious under sunny conditions (X90J also has this problem). But fortunately, the screen itself is bright enough, close to the peak of 800 nits. The mirror screen will not affect viewing.
▲The protruding chin directly under the screen contains 4 far-field voice pickups . The center is the working state breathing light .
▲Thunderbird S545C is a with an integrated black metal frame, which is much better than the large black plastic frame used in X90J.
▲ The thickness of the whole machine is thicker than that of the extremely slim TV with side-lit backlight. After all, the 120-zone module is in, and the heat dissipation problem caused by higher brightness must be considered. But it is basically the same thickness as X90J, and will not affect the wall hanging.
▲Thunderbird S545C has an HDMI 2.1 interface, which separates eARC from the interface like X90J. The advantage of this is that you can use the eARC function at the same time while connecting to the next-generation game console.
▲The power supply of the TV is located on the back of the lower right corner.
Third, the actual test link
This Thunderbird S545C is based on the upgraded version of the re-engraved North American model R625C, and naturally full of HDMI 2.1+4K 120Hz screen.
3.1 screen type
▲The same sub-pixel 8 domain VA panel of Thunderbird S545C and Sony X90J. This type of panel can be controlled in multiple levels according to the grayscale of the image and has a larger brightness control interval.
3.2 Screen backlight partition
LCD TV needs a backlight module to illuminate the pixels. The more backlight partitions, the better the black control effect and the smaller the halo. The area of the picture with high brightness will be brighter, and the area with low brightness will reduce the brightness or directly turn off the light source according to the picture to achieve pure black.
▲ Use Rtings' test demo to adjust the TV contrast to the highest. It is measured that there are 10 partitions in the horizontal and 12 partitions in the vertical . 10×12=120. In other words, the number of partitions of this 75-inch S545C has indeed reached 120 !
▲ In addition,Thunderbird S545C does not reduce the backlight partition in game mode. I mention this because some TVs will merge partitions in game mode, causing the actual number of partitions to drop. Affect the display effect!
screen black control ability actual test
All the next screen shots are taken by Sony A7R3 SLR, A file ISO is fixed at 250, F4.0. However, due to the latitude of the camera, sometimes the highlights in the picture are overexposed and the dark field is darkened may be caused by the camera. So subject to my description.
▲The pictures above are the real shots of Sony 65-inch X90J and Thunderbird 75-inch SP545C playing 4K HDR demo video _span4p _span4p _span4p _span4p
The Thunderbird 75-inch S545C has 120 backlit partitions, 4 times that of Sony!
The two TVs have the same screen, and the peak value is close to 800 nits! This brightness can't be said to be particularly high, but it can already show the highlight details in HDR. Thunderbird S545C is at the same level as Sony X9000H and X90J, and belongs to true HDR TV. So echo my opening sentence: is currently the most cost-effective 75-inch true HDR 4K 120Hz TV.
in the control of hacking, Thunderbird S545C easily beat Sony X90J,In the Las Vegas demo film, the halo is much less than that of Sony. For example, the following picture:
▲The halo at the edge of the Thunderbird S545C neon light is very small. However, Sony can show the difference here due to the 65-inch 32-zone relationship.
3.3 24P jitter-free test
The test Demo of rtings is also used, and the test video frame rate is 24fps, which means that only 24 grids have been run in a small square in 1 second. Using the Sony A7R3, the shutter is set to 1s, if it is a photo taken at 24P without jitter, each grid will have a uniform color (representing the same exposure time for 24 grids). If it is pulled down by 3:2, the grids will be bright and dark, because the exposure time of each grid is different.
▲Using a desktop computer, set the input 4K 24Hz and 120Hz. It is measured that 24 frames of content can be played without jitter under 24hz and 120hz input. (There is no dark shadow around the screen, but caused by the camera's 1 second shutter)
But when using a USB flash drive to play the rtings demo on a TV system, there will be grid pulldown jitter. It is guessed that the system is running at 60Hz, which will cause 24P jitter at this refresh rate.
consulted with the official, saying that it will improve the 24P no jitter at 60Hz in the subsequent firmware upgrade.
3.4 Motion compensation
▲Smoothness adjustment supports user-defined,There are four options: Relevant, Weak, Medium, and Strong. Through the smoothness test video, you can feel the difference very intuitively.
However, GIF and video cannot be given here, because the refresh rate of the video cannot be compared with the human eye, and it is naturally indistinguishable. Here is a pure text description: under 1280PPS, the 120Hz panel supports motion interpolation compensation, which can keep the white and black pictures smooth and have very little smear.
3.5 smooth gradient
X9000 can effectively eliminate the low-level gradation code compared to the previous generation of JHX90. Rate the contour effect in the video.
And the Thunderbird 75-inch S545C, as a TV within 7000 yuan, also has a smooth gradation function. Let's see how it performs.
▲S545C can adjust the watermark smoothing option in the definition adjustment, which is divided into three levels: off, low and high.
▲The biggest problem with mobile phone screencasting or watching low-bitrate videos on online streaming media platforms is that will have color blocks and "contour lines" in the red oval . If the TV does not have a smooth gradual change function, the above picture will appear.
▲After the Thunderbird S545C turns on watermark smoothing, the "contour line" effect of low bit rate video is significantly reduced.The effect is still very significant.
3.6 Dark details
▲All the following Blu-ray 4K original disc sources are played by the Egreat A10 Pro Blu-ray player. The output signal is 4K 60Hz.
▲Test dark field detail selection The third episode of the eighth season of the rights game, 4K resolution 9.43GB size. Because this episode requires very high performance on TV dark field . However, many TVs have a high probability of overturning during this episode, and many scenes are completely unclear. There was a wailing on the barrage: too dark to see clearly.
▲When testing dark scenes, the image effect is standard, and the brightness is 70 by default. Did not deliberately increase the brightness. Next we look at the performance.
▲S545C significantly brightens the dark part, and can clearly see the details of the dark part. No, the Undead Legion could see it immediately as soon as it appeared on the horizon. And many TVs here simply go completely black.
▲ Although the highest brightness of Sony X90J is the same as Thunderbird S545C. But under the same scene, the dark part of Thunderbird S545C is obviously improved. But the problem is that the noise increases significantly. , but the noise is used for dark details,I think it is acceptable.
3.7 Blu-ray 4K original picture quality experience
The previous Thunderbird TV had some bugs, that is, the color performance was slightly red. Maybe Thunderbird is also aware of this. The S545C is adjusted on the production line one by one when it leaves the factory. ΔE≈2 The color gamut coverage is 88% DCI-P3xy and 94% DCI-P3uv.
Test video 1: 4K Blu-ray original documentary
▲ 4K Blu-ray original documentary "Rocky Mountains", size 18.91GB, video stream 57.7Mbps2p
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▲Image mode: movie. Through 4K resolution presentation and image quality adjustment. Nature is wonderfully presented with S545C, and every frame is enjoyable. The picture is clear and the color is transparent. It's like traveling in person.
Test movie 2: 4K Blu-ray original "Super Player"
▲ The last episode of the super player battle should be the most addictive for the audience. Including the appearance of HALO Master Chief, Star Alliance, Gundam and other characters, the atmosphere reached the highest point. The high-speed fighting pictures are so enjoyable to watch on a large-screen TV, and with the blessing of motion compensation, the pictures are clean and not blurry.
Test video 3: 4K Blu-ray original disc "Pacific Rim"
▲ Test video 3 is 4K Blu-ray original disc "Pacific Rim" with a rate of up to 7.3 8GB, size test , Color base color: BT.2020 (it is the recommended color gamut for HDR color space)
▲First of all, look at the projector. Compared with TV, the disadvantage of projection is that the contrast and HDR effect are much worse. For example, the dark details in the yellow frame are all lost.
▲Thunderbird S545C benefits from the support of HDR10, HLG, Dolby Vision. Even the niche Samsung HDR10+ supports it. So in HDR increased viewing mode, these details can be well displayed.
IV. 4K 120Hz next-generation game console
This link I’m going to talk about separately, after all, I have Xbox Series X and Play Station 5, which is the most important. It is the functions of HDMI 2.1, 4K 120Hz, VRR, ALLM!
So what is the VRR function? It's so important.
cannot maintain 60FPS games on previous home consoles.As a last resort, it can only be changed to 30FPS. This is because the variable frame rate technology that stabilizes the frame rate has not yet been applied to home game consoles. The PS5 has increased the variable frame rate from 30fps to 120FPS, which can make the game image smoother.
▲ If the TV has already displayed the picture, but the 60FPS cycle display does not wait and refreshes the new picture, the old picture displayed will appear on the screen at the same time as the new picture. Above and below. If the movement changes a lot, it will look like the screen is cut off (tear) from top to bottom. Therefore, the TV with VRR variable refresh rate is a must-have feature for next-generation console players.
▲ To enable HDMI 2.1 and VRR variable refresh rate , you need to use Xbox Series X1 HDMI input 1 port, switch to HDMI input 1 . Then turn on the HDMI advanced mode and variable refresh rate at the bottom of Settings-System-General Settings.
▲Xbox Series X comes with a detection system to detect Thunderbird S545C, confirming that it supports 4K 120Hz, HDR10 . But the display here does not support Dolby Vision.
▲The reply I got after consulting the official is that VRR and Dolby Vision are not compatible.If you turn off the VRR, you can light up Dolby Vision. Thunderbird will upgrade this bug in the next version of the firmware.
▲I confirmed it later and found that Sony X90J also does not support Dolby Vision after turning on VRR. It seems to be a common problem!
ALLM-Auto Low-Latency Mode
▲ Thunderbird S545C supports automatic low-latency mode. Switching to the game in the Xbox main interface will automatically open the game mode. At this time, the HDMI delay is minimized, only 5.2ms . This delay rate is really very very low!
▲The resolution in the xbox main menu is 4K 120Hz. After entering the game, it will be output with HDR10 PQ16.
▲I have to say that playing games at 75 inches is much more shocking than playing games at 65 inches. At 4K resolution, the gameplay is full of presence.
5. TV hardware configuration & operating system
No ads on boot! No ads on boot! No ads on boot is the key.
▲The SOC of Thunderbird S545C is MediaTek 9652, quad-core A73 1.3Ghz, and the performance is good. MediaTek 9950 is second only to Sony X9000H.
But MediaTek 9950 has two major flaws, 4K 120Hz input blur and lack of smooth gradation. For TVs that do not have external picture processing chips, the MediaTek 9652 of the Thunderbird S545C is the best TV SOC on the market.
system's built-in online streaming media platform I won't explain too much. In addition to the built-in application market, you can use a USB flash drive to install third-party applications. This is relatively open, unlike Samsung, which cannot install applications on a USB flash drive.
▲The feedback of the buttons on the remote control is still a bit worse. The functions are also relatively ordinary, and it would be better to integrate a somatosensory mouse.
▲Support mobile phone screen projection, but there is no advertisement when booting. But the projection software is a third-party, and there will be advertisements every time, which is quite annoying.
6. Sound quality
▲S545C speakers are located at the bottom left and right of the fuselage, with two speakers on each side. They are all global speakers.
▲Play a segment of 9GB in size,The 4K resolution Witcher 3 Wild ODST live concert, the high and mid-range sound is relatively clear. But the bass is almost gone. This is also a common problem of TV. If you want a better experience, home theater is essential.
Seven, summary
75 inches, 120Hz, 120 backlight partition, close to 800 nits peak brightness, VRR, ALLM, smooth gradient and other functions. It has a picture performance similar to that of the Sony X90J. The X90J has been exploded in the number of partitions. The price of 6,999 yuan has become an invincible presence in this price range. If you have a small budget but want a high-performance "gaming" TV, this Thunderbird S545C can definitely meet your needs.
But for now, the flaws are not concealed. There are still several problems with this TV at present:
1. 24P input will jitter at 60Hz, the official said that the next version will fix this problem;
2. After turning on VRR, it will interact with Dolby Vision Not compatible. The next version will also fix this problem.
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