120hz possibly defective? (Sony Bravia Z KDL46z4100)

Question

Thanks in advance with any help provided.
I recently purchased the Sony Bravia Z with 120hz model KDL46z4100. I have tried in vain to mimic the in-store motion blur reduction with no success.
I am using a blu-ray disc for testing in order to get a true 1080p signal. Both a PS3 and Sony blu-ray player have been used. I originally started with a cheap $20 Philip's HDMI cable but last night decided to try the Monster 1000 ultra-high speed cable (both of which seem to produce an identical picture).
I have reviewed several different websites for manually customizing the signal on the TV and at this point feel I have changed every setting possible on the TV (MotionEnhancer, Cinemotion, etc.). I have also played with all of the settings of the PS3 and Sony blu-ray player. All three devices are fully updated with any firmware/software updates released. The whole reason I took the chance on the Monster cable is because it was the last change I could think to make to reproduce the quality.
Displays at Best Buy and another local retailer both show a better quality of blur reduction than mine. And yes, I have even written down their display model settings and tried them at home.
I am open to any suggestions as to what could possibly be the problem at this point. Is it possible the 120hz feature is simply not working on the TV?
Thanks again.

Answer 1

Hello, I work in Store 170 in Brentwood, Tn in the Magnolia Home Theater Room.  That is a great Tv, nice contrast, video color and even that 120hz, that doesn't seem to like you right now.
It's a good thing you switched your hdmi cable.  The one thing that people people look at is price,  and the thing they don't look at is how much the cable can process.  If you look at the back of the package or sometimes, like on the monster 1000, the front, it will tell you a number like 10.2, or even as low as 2.  This is what allows that faster video to pass through.  More than likely the cable you started with was a really low number... Using that cable was stopping the 120hz before it even got to your tv. (a good alternative to the monster 1000 for the price, is the rocketfish in the black package... it can also do the 120 and a fast pass through)
Another thing that might come into play is the setting on your tv.  When I setup a new tv on an endcap or for a display, when in the store turn the 120 on low, or if it is animation we turn it on medium.  If you turn it too high you will get almost like a glow around the main images.  I usually tell customers to leave it on low, Until you get hardcore into sports.  You can find that setting in the menu, picture, and i believe it is advanced settings at the bottom,  I will double check that at work.  The old sony menu was easier to find the 120 settings like in the xb4.
Other than those 2 things i haven't heard of any other problems, let me know how it turns out.