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General Discussions => Inner Glimpse => Topic started by: Marcial on March 27, 2006, 12:06:14 am
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After several hours of pulling my hair out, I finally found the problem... my HD cable box was set to 480ionce I changed checked the 1080i & 720p boxes everything worked perfectly!
Thanks again!
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interesting. could be the DVI/HDMI vs. Component thing - with the digital cable, the aspect ratio (for HD and Digital broadcasts) switches automatically, and you can\'t change it. that\'s not the case with component though.. hmm...
as for the bright fuzzy line - :idunno:
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hmmmmm. i will have to play around with it some more tonight... I\'m not sure if I have a "normal" zoom mode though... seems like last night I had to choose which picture size I wanted (16:9, Panorama, Zoom 1, Zoom 2, and 4:3 were my options), and the picture size stayed the same even if I switched channels.
Another question: on several channels, while viewing with the black bars, there was a bright fuzzy line between the picture and the black bars... any ideas what this might be?
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yeah i don\'t mess around with any of the zoom modes ever. i keep everything its OAR (original aspect ratio).. if something is 4x3, i watch it in 4x3.
so does your tv automatically adjust itself to the OAR? or do you have to do it?
you should be fine if you just set the zoom to \'normal\'.
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yeah i don\'t mess around with any of the zoom modes ever. i keep everything its OAR (original aspect ratio).. if something is 4x3, i watch it in 4x3.
so does your tv automatically adjust itself to the OAR? or do you have to do it?
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Ok, so it is normal to have the black bars depending on the format of whatever you are watching. Do you change the aspect ration on your tv to fit what you are watching, or do you just leave it in 16:9 mode all the time?
Also, if you constantly watch shows with the black bars, is there any danger of burning the black bars into the screen?
Thanks for helping me out with this.
you purchased a LCD TV so there is no burn in period.
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yeah i don\'t mess around with any of the zoom modes ever. i keep everything its OAR (original aspect ratio).. if something is 4x3, i watch it in 4x3.
there\'s no danger of burn-in with black bars either, so you\'re safe there..
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Ok, so it is normal to have the black bars depending on the format of whatever you are watching. Do you change the aspect ration on your tv to fit what you are watching, or do you just leave it in 16:9 mode all the time?
Also, if you constantly watch shows with the black bars, is there any danger of burning the black bars into the screen?
Thanks for helping me out with this.
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ok, couple things to keep in mind:
- just because something is on a hi-def channel (say, CBS HD), doesn\'t mean it\'s in hi-def. not everything is recorded/broadcast in HD on those channels. so if you turn on The Price Is Right this morning on CBS HD, it won\'t be HD - it\'ll be 4x3, and you\'ll have vertical bars on the sides.
- not all HD content is 1.78:1 (16x9). most television HD content IS 1.78:1, but there are different widescreen aspect ratios used in movies, etc. in cases where you have widescreen aspect ratios other than 1.78:1, you\'ll see horizontal bars on the top and bottom.
- VERY few commercials are in HD. some are shot widescreen, but are broadcast in 4x3, so in this case, you\'ll see both vertical and horizontal bars.
hope that makes sense.. here (http://www.rexer.com/cine/oar.htm) is a good visual resource..
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depends on which HD channel I am watching.... some have it on the top & bottom, some have it on the sides, some have it on all 4 sides. I called the cable co., and the answer I got was that it depends on which format whatever show I\'m watching at the time was recorded in. On some channels, I can get full screen picture by choosing the "zoom" aspect ratio, but on others, there is no way to get rid of the bars no matter which aspect ratio I choose.
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as for the dvd - complicated? a little... rocket science? definitely not..
black bars - are you talking about on the top and bottom or on the sides?
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now that I have mine set-up, another question... is it possible for you to eliminate the black bars on all of your HD channels? for some reason, there are a few channels that always have the bars regardless of which aspect ratio I select on the tv.
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I read the reviews on that DVD, and it sounds like you have to be an electronics professional to figure it out... was it a pain in the ass?
And thanks for the link regarding the DVI / HDMI / Component... it took me about an hour to get through it, but I have a good handle on it all now... sounds like the best one depends on your specific system. Of course, since my DVR box only has component, it is my only option. Nice to read that you can still get an equally nice picture out of the component hook-up.
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Dave, do you run from your HD box to the TV with an HDMI cable or a 5 wire component cable kit? Does this effect the picture at all? For some reason, my HD service box doesn\'t have an HDMI jack...
component = 3 wires (RGB).
i use DVI, which is esentially the same as HDMI, just sort of the \'older version\' of it. does your cable box or tv have DVI?
as for the picture - it depends. DVI/HDMI is digital. component is analog, so with HD signals and digital SD signals, the D>A conversion is done in the cable box. with DVI/HDMI, the D>A conversion is done by the tv. whichever one has a better D>A converter, has better video processing circuitry, etc, will give you a better picture. here (http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/34579/122868.html) is a good article on the subject.
which one is better? not sure. you can try posting the specs of your TV and your cable box on avsforum and see what they suggest..
finally (and i can\'t possibly stress this enough), pick up a copy of Digital Video Essentials, and spend a few hours calibrating your new TV. it really makes a world of difference versus watching your TV right out of the box.
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Dave, do you run from your HD box to the TV with an HDMI cable or a 5 wire component cable kit? Does this effect the picture at all? For some reason, my HD service box doesn\'t have an HDMI jack...
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HDTV service gets turned on tomorrow!
prepare for a level of TV-snobishness that you never expected. don\'t expect to ever be the same, cause you won\'t be! enjoy it!
Maybe it\'s just me, but I\'m surrounded by hdtv all day at work, and still watch a crappy 10 year old standard def tv at home. The remote doesn\'t even work on it, but I\'m fine with it. I really don\'t care either way. As long as I have my simpsons dvds, history channel and TCM I\'m content. :shrug:
but you don\'t have hi-def at home, that\'s the difference. once you go HD, it\'s painful to watch something in SD. i have all the HD channels programmed as my \'favorites\', and just use the FAV button on my remote. very rarely do i stray from those HD channels now..
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HDTV service gets turned on tomorrow!
prepare for a level of TV-snobishness that you never expected. don\'t expect to ever be the same, cause you won\'t be! enjoy it!
Maybe it\'s just me, but I\'m surrounded by hdtv all day at work, and still watch a crappy 10 year old standard def tv at home. The remote doesn\'t even work on it, but I\'m fine with it. I really don\'t care either way. As long as I have my simpsons dvds, history channel and TCM I\'m content. :shrug:
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HDTV service gets turned on tomorrow!
prepare for a level of TV-snobishness that you never expected. don\'t expect to ever be the same, cause you won\'t be! enjoy it!
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Thanks for the info, guys. I ended up paying a bit extra and getting a 40\'\' LCD. Seeing them side by side, the plasma did have slightly better color, but the LCD seemed crisper and brighter.... and you don\'t have to worry about burn-in.
HDTV service gets turned on tomorrow!
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price and size is most peoples biggest concerns, but as Mike said, beware of Plasma as they cause burn in images. Personally, I would never buy a plasma, ever. They look great when they are new, but that\'s it. We have some at work (couple hundred) ;) and even the brand new ones were getting burned in images within weeks of being turned on. Given, we run them 24/7, so yours would probably last a few months before you see it, but that\'s still pathetic for the price your paying. Go with LCD unless you plan on tossing or putting up with this within the next few years.
Also with price, never be afraid to threaten a sales rep with a sale price from another store. Most of the time, whatever the price is elsewhere, it is still well above cost. Also, since most salesmen work on commision, you can usually get them to give it to you at that price from another store. This is especially true the more something costs. We had a super bla-bla-bla sale on big screen tv\'s at work through circut city last year. One of the guys who worked with me also worked at sears and said he would beat any of those prices by at least $200 if you bought it through him, as it was still such a good commision for him. And this was a sears department store! Remeber, the worst they can say is "no, I can\'t do that price".
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Thanks for the heads up Dave on tigerdirect.
I have never used them before and I probably won\'t now from your review.
1 thing I forgot to mention.
response times. With LCD tv and not sure about plasma.
if your gaming response time is a big deal
the faster the reponse time the better for gaming and fast squences in movies etc.
From what I have read 16ms or faster is where you want to be if your going to be gaming on them etc
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just a couple things to add to what mike said -
tigerdirect is a horrible retailer. just an fyi. they have a rating of 6/10 on http://www.resellerratings.com, and i\'ve had a bad experience with them myself with never getting a rebate i was due.. YMMV, but i\'d steer clear.
before you buy anything, anywhere, go to http://www.pricegrabber.com. i went there to check out the TV you\'re looking at, marcial, and surprisingly, circuit city\'s price is pretty competitive. you should, however, factor in tax vs. shipping, and figure out what your best deal is. you may be better off buying out of state. i can tell you that pricegrabber saved me ~$450 off of circuit city\'s price on my 20" LCD, and ~$2000 off of tweeter\'s price on my 60" LCDRPTV.
lastly, check out discussions about various displays at http://www.avsforum.com. VERY resourceful.
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OK I have been doing a lot of looking in to these things and a few things to keep in mind.
LCD TV will look great with High Definition. Depending on the make / model some are going to look a lot better than others with standard TV / cable feeds.
The viewing angles for most decent LCD TVs isnt going to be an issue really. Some will have larger viewing areas than other but it all depends on how far away you sit from the set vs. size of screen
Benefits of LCD TV. NO BURN IN. LCD TVs do not suffer from image burn in. This is an issue if you intend to game on the the TV. ie. playstation, xbox , pc etc
Thats really one of the big issues
Plasma. Usually less expensive for the sizes involved. Have brighter screens deeper blacks. Supposedly better color but that isn\'t as big a difference from LCD now as it was when they both came out.
Plasme suffers from image burn in. Like the CNN logo or comedy central logo etc in the bottom of your screens. gaming etc. These usually are not rec for those purposes.
becasue the image burn in issues I would say go with LCD TV but Plasma might look a lot better with standard cable and direct tv etc
If it was me and I may be buying 1 very soon I would go LCD TV. I plan to use it for my PC Gaming, TV watching, DVDs etc. I know that standard cable isn\'t gonna look that great so I would get 1 with the idea of getting a HD-tuner.
http://www.tigerdirect.com has some pretty good prices for all of the above. I hope this was a little helpful
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I do not know much about this department, but an LCD TV if anything like an LCD monitor is probably a bad idea. Assuming that an LCD would only be viewable from certain angles. I could be completely wrong though. A friend of mine has a 42" Plasma from Dell that\'s about the same price as that Pioneer, and its pretty friggin sweet.
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I have been thinking about it for a while & have finally decided that I need a new tv. I\'m trying to decide between an LCD and a plasma... from what I have read & sales people have told me, it really just comes down to personal preference as far as which is better.
I have tentatively decided on the Panasonic model at the link below. Does anyone have any other suggestions? I\'ve read all the specs, but honestly, I may as well be reading Chinese, because I have no idea what any of it means. I also like the Pioneer models, but they are considerably more expensive.
With all the techies around here, I hope someone can offer me a little advice...
http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Panasonic-42-Plasma-HDTV-TH-42PX60U-/sem/rpsm/oid/146417/catOid/-12869/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do