Thanks for the input - we did see the 'less expensive' TV's at Walmart and Amazon (just looking online for now) and find the quality and reviews not so great, and most that look good show "used or refurb" when we click on it.
We're not trying to 'save money', just don't want to pay for something we don't need or won't use ... tough to do nowadays, as each company puts everything in and then the cost goes up regardless.
As it seems now, after looking around, we'll probably move the "small 46 inch (HA) into the den, and buy something new and larger - even tho we don't really need it and everything fits right where it is, and I'll have to do some cabinet modifications ... and of course, up the budget.
I expect we'll stay with Samsung, as the two we've watched over the years have been great. We do have external speakers w/ HDMI. Never an easy answer with tech products :(