The Pioneer PDP-LX 5090 H TV is a 50-inch, Full HD plasma TV. Released in summer 2008, it currently sells from around 2,100 GBP online.

Florian Friedrich, tested on December 18, 2009

Extremely deep blacks.
Low-judder HDTV video at 60i and 24p.
Built-in HD tuner.
USB and LAN connections for multimedia.

Slight weaknesses in operation.
Grey bars instead of black on 4:3 pictures.
Limited brightness in daylight.

This huge Pioneer plasma might suffer some quirks in its operation and picture presets, but it easily won our affections; we can’t help but be impressed by its top feature-set, excellent video processing, dreamlike picture quality, and maximum contrast ratio of 9,400:1! At the time of this TV’s release, that was the highest contrast ratio we’d ever measured — since then, however, the successor Pioneer KRP-500 has managed to beat it. Pioneer’s plasmas truly are a force to be reckoned with!

Most important connections:

3x 1x 3x 1x 1x

Multimedia

Conveniently mounted on the side of the set, the USB port will play back multimedia files from portable storage devices.

The Pioneer can play back multimedia files via its side-mounted USB port, but this was nothing new even a year and a half ago. Playback via a network interface, however, was something only the top TVs were touting. And we’re not just talking about MP3s and JPEGs — it goes without saying that the Pioneer can handle easy pickings like that. No, the LX 5090 H will even stream video files — in HD quality — from a PC running the appropriate software (such as Windows Media Connect or TwonkyMedia Server). One thing its Ethernet socket cannot do, however, is access the Internet.

Operation

The remote control is a touch too heavy, but provides direct access to many handy functions.

The remote control makes everyday use easy — pressing the “Enter” button, for example, immediately brings up the channel list. Channel changing is fast, and there’s a back button for quickly flicking between two channels.

Pioneer has re-worked its on-screen menu design, with very smart results, but has failed in a few places to add the necessary pinch of logic. If, for example, you want to use the Scart-RGB input, you must first deactivate HDMI input 3 — baffling.

Also annoying is that the TV’s “Movie” preset cannot store separate settings for the various video inputs; those looking for an optimum picture — and we’d guess that’s most of the people shopping in this price range — will have to readjust the settings whenever they switch from one input device to another. Similarly inappropriate for a TV of this class is the lack of a framerate readout for HDMI signals.

But the wide range of unique, first-class picture controls makes up in some part for the TV’s quirks. The “Drive Mode” setting, for example, lets the user set the panel’s operating frequency, which affects issues such as flicker and motion depiction.

Features and TV Picture Quality

Rich connectivity makes the Pioneer a real all-rounder in both the living room and home cinema.

With a built-in multituner, the PDP-LX 5090 H can receive DVB-T, analogue cable TV, and digital satellite TV (DVB-S2, also in HD). But since the TV isn’t freesat-certified, it won’t be able to access the freesat EPG — you’ll still be able to receive the channels, but you won’t be able to access programme information.

The Pioneer displays a highly natural picture for standard-definition signals such as analogue cable TV and DVB-T. If you switch off the noise and 3D-comb filters in the “Movie” preset, the picture even looks as good as that of a CRT. At the same time, however, this setup also reveals all of the signal’s inherent weaknesses.

The video processor delivers a cleanly up-scaled picture in the letterbox-zoom setting, and renders scrolling text smoothly and without blur or irritating artefacts. It’s important here, however, to switch the “Drive Mode” from 1 to 2; otherwise, the text will judder.

Picture Quality of Standard-Definition Signals

Analogue video signals process decently on the Pioneer, with only the Scart-RGB input exhibiting some small deficits — the picture looks slightly blurry and squanders some of its potential by introducing picture cropping (overscan). Otherwise, with “Film Mode” set to “Standard” and “Text optimization” switched off, even tricky details display accurately — for example, in the picket fence in Chapter 8 of “Space Cowboys”, which has proven to be a stumbling block for many TVs in the past. You’ll get the best DVD picture via HDMI — and ideally as a pre-scaled 1080p signal.

Picture Quality of High-Definition Signals

The LX 5090 H’s factory setup turns out to have a slightly extended colour space, as shown by the white triangle in this CIE diagram, but the menu offers controls for correcting both this and the slight magenta tint.

As you’d rightly expect, the Pioneer displays an impressive HDTV picture — from both Blu-rays and high-definition TV channels. The superb detail, excellent motion depiction, high contrast, and accurate colours provide a first-class home-cinema experience. Even in the factory setup, the colours are well adjusted, and the numerous picture controls allow the user to correct the slight magenta tint and marginally extended colour space.

HDTV signal-processing works well, but the “pixel phase” test pattern — a black and white checkerboard with one-pixel-sized squares — displays a fine, granular noise. In practice, however, this has little effect on your viewing enjoyment. 24p signals display accurately; the opening of “Casino Royale”, for example, suffers no judder whatsoever. Even if the player cannot output 24p signals, the Pioneer’s “Advance” film mode can remove the 3:2 pulldown, converting a 1080i signal into judder-free video with no line-flicker. This comes very close to perfect 24p playback.

Sound Quality

The removable speaker bar outputs impressive sound: The levels are accurate, the bass is dry, the treble is transparent, and the stereo mapping shows good differentiation.

Signal: 1080/24p

AV Selection: Movie

Sharpness: -11

DRE Picture: Off

Black Level: Off

ACL: Off

Enhancer Mode: 1

Drive Mode: 2

Screen Size: Dot by Dot

PureCinema Film Mode: Standard

PureCinema Text Optimisation: Off

Noise Reduction: All noise filters off

Room Light Sensor: Off

* These settings apply to realistic playback of HDTV/Blu-ray material through the HDMI interface in a darkened environment. Manufacturing and HDMI playback device deviations may necessitate slight adjustment.