am0n

Going to buy a TV to set up with my trainer. Right now, the closest I can get to the screen is about 8.5 feet (~90 inches). That's just a limitation of the space I have available to me. At that distance, what would be a good size TV screen? I've seen the recommendations for normal viewing as 1.5-2.5x (screen to distance), which means something 36-60 inches would be fine, with something around 45 inches being nominal. I was eyeing up either a 50" or a 55", but I am also open to a 43". The 43" and 50" will fit in my space with my bike being centered on the screen. The 55" will mean I am about 2 inches off center (can't change this, I've tried). I have a 43" in my living room and I am probably sitting further away and I don't have any complaints, but that's for watching movies and shows. I'm also thinking to get something larger because at some point, when I can get the bike closer, I can put the 43" with the bike and the bigger one I buy now in the living room. My goal isn't immersion, it's to keep me entertained while I am on the bike and big enough that I can see stuff on the screen (metrics, etc.).

My questions are, would a 43" be big enough at that distance? Anyone have something similar and can comment? Would a 55" be too big? If I am doing Rouvy or Zwift at 1080p (Laptop can't do 4k), would the 55" be too big (i.e. grainy)? I run the 43" 1080p in the living room and again, have no complaints. Right now I am leaning to the 50" (slightly bigger for eventual swap, allows me to ride centered, a couple bucks cheaper), but wanted to get some feedback from people (if it exists) who might have a situation similar to mine and how they felt about the screen size.

spelger

the tv in this image is a 42" originally in a closet and i was 7ish feet away. it was fine for me. other factors made me change the setup. i like it better now. 1080p. when i am zwifting i am still not always able to tell which way i am going on the little elevation profile they have in teh upper right corner.

2020 Edition of indoor cycling setups

Astrozombie

55 is like the most common size now days, maybe a 50''?

CadenceCrazy

I bought a 50 inch that is only about 5 feet from my eyes when on the saddle. Could I have survived with a smaller TV at that viewing distance? Yep, undoubtedly. But with seasonal sales, a 50 was right around $200. It might be overkill for cartoonish software but for real world video it looks pretty sweet.

am0n

Opted for the 50". If the 43" is fine from about 13 feet away in the living room, then 50" should be fine from 8.5 feet in the cave.

Sadly, got screwed by Walmart (bought one on sale, but it came broken and they didn't have any replacements, so they are just refunding me), so had to pay full price, so the 50" saves me a few bucks as well.

AdkMtnMonster

TV/monitor size is slightly subjective, depending on the end results and how "immersive" the rider wants to be. No matter how "immersed" you are in Zwift, it's still the same level of graphics whether your tv is big, or bigger. What *REALLY* matters is how many watts your sound system is putting out. If you're able to crank out half as many watts as your tunes can dish up, then you're not doing it right. Sound matters.

PoorInRichfield

When running Zwift on a PC, you can choose higher resolutions if your PC's graphic card can handle it. I run at 1080p because I have a wimpy laptop, but Zwift can run at 4k if it detects a system that can handle it. I'd like to see if there's a difference in graphic rendering at 4k. Of course, this would also mean getting a 4k TV.

guachi

4k in Zwift is noticeable but the graphics are pretty low-end over all. If it were simply for Zwift I'd be inclined to get a fairly inexpensive TV, maybe even a used TV from a friend that's upgrading.

Barry2 

55" 4K TV running FulGaz software.
Very pretty rides.

I get so caught up in the rides I try to lean into the corners.

Barry

PoorInRichfield

First time I used Rouvy, I tried braking at stop lights