Hello all!
I have a perplexing issue. I just bought a brand new Sony HDTV, 26". This one I tried with two different DVD players, a Magnavox player from 2007 and a brand new Sony player from 2009. Both are progressive scan players.
The weird thing with this TV, and my previous HDTV, DVD playback looks worse than on my old CRT TV from 1999!! Alot worse.
I don't understand the settings of these things. DVD's playing on my HDTV look pixelated, clothing and hair almost look "painted", there's lot's of "fuzz" and pixelation on the screen. Trees and leaves look horrible, you can see severe pixelation. Fading to black in between scenes, you can see the pixelation of the gray fading to black. The contrast is washed out. The picture is terrible, as I said my old CRT TV from the old days looked way better playing DVD's. WAY better!
I also had this same DVD problem back with my older Sanyo HDTV. I've tried this new Sony HDTV with two DVD players as I said.
I always thought that even with an HDTV with the WORST resolution capability and a fairly new DVD player, that it would be way sharper and clearer than the BEST CRT TV playing DVD's. I'm lost. Is there something I'm not doing in the settings?
Now, the thing is I'm using component cables for the DVD players I'm using, but I have HDMI cables on order. Will that make a difference? It shouldn't make that much difference right? Even if someone is using only component cables to connect an HDTV to a new DVD player, it shouldn't look like I described above right? Also, even if you can only play DVD's at 480p or 720p, it shouldn't look pixelated and painted like I described above right? Shouldn't even a 480p HDTV image look way sharper and clearer than an old CRT display??? Is what I'm missing here the HDMI cables that will allow me to watch DVD's at higher resolution? And if HDMI cables are what "clear up" the pixelated playback, why don't they come standard with HDTV's??? I can't imagine people are buying HDTV's and putting up with DVD playback that is as crappy as mine looks!
In addition, I thought that HDTV's now automatically adjust themselves to play DVD's at their best.
Just some side info. I have a Sony Bravia 26", and my DVD player is also Sony.
Thanks in advance,
Mike in CT
Need help with HDTV resolution playing DVD's!
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campaigner111
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eliwhitney
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Hello campaigner111 ...
Lots to try to cover . . . so, it'll need far more than a single try? By-The-Way .... what is your HD service connection and how do those channels & programs appear, please?
HDMIs have never been included w/ each HDTV set . . . sometimes a Player, yes! Different lengths, with or w/o certification, which wire or conductor gauge, gold flashed or not, etc..
Only my very biased view - but - you needed to have gotten a much larger than 26" display .... that is an extremely-limited viewing "choice" - - should be viewed from ~ ~ 25" - 30" tops, eyes-to-display, like a P.C. Monitor!
That aside, there are ZERO new sets which may be unpacked / plugged in & watched straightaway! NONE!
Each of those input ports on the Sony act as IF each one is a different set - so - every single setting within that Sony Menu has to be changed / set up for home viewing on EACH port or Input rather than the Factory Defaults. No "automatic" selection that does them all at one 'click' exists for your Sony.
Needing adjustment will include: Picture(remove from Vivid), Color, Contrast, Brightness, Backlight, Sharpness(set at zero), Noise Reduction(also zero), etc.. - - - Many, many .....
NO - a HDTV can NOT "adjust" itself to match whatever is being sent into it .... the opposite happens in that all HDTVs must display every single input only in the naive resolution of that specific set - i.e. - in your instance all has to go to 720p, even IF you had bought / were using a Blu Ray Player & HD Movie which are ... 1080p.
That tiny display can obviously be calibrated via the Sony Remote & those Menus to achieve acceptable pictures - but - no, it will never display "HD" across a normal room or typical 7' - 8' viewing distance at all.
HDMI cabling will not make any difference in your specific instance whatever ..... hopefully, you "ordered" those as certified 1.3 HDMIs from any of the proper web stores? The reasoning being that whenever you decide to acquire a larger display as well as an Up-converting DVD Player, all must have / use strictly these .... your existing (2) DVD Players don't need HDMIs .... "progressive" is FAR different than " Up-Converting."
That manual has a number of steps to be followed to achieve a proper display ... there are also DVD Calibration Sets for ~ $29.99 or, one may also hire a Pro Calibrator but not usually for such a small set.
eli
Lots to try to cover . . . so, it'll need far more than a single try? By-The-Way .... what is your HD service connection and how do those channels & programs appear, please?
HDMIs have never been included w/ each HDTV set . . . sometimes a Player, yes! Different lengths, with or w/o certification, which wire or conductor gauge, gold flashed or not, etc..
Only my very biased view - but - you needed to have gotten a much larger than 26" display .... that is an extremely-limited viewing "choice" - - should be viewed from ~ ~ 25" - 30" tops, eyes-to-display, like a P.C. Monitor!
That aside, there are ZERO new sets which may be unpacked / plugged in & watched straightaway! NONE!
Each of those input ports on the Sony act as IF each one is a different set - so - every single setting within that Sony Menu has to be changed / set up for home viewing on EACH port or Input rather than the Factory Defaults. No "automatic" selection that does them all at one 'click' exists for your Sony.
Needing adjustment will include: Picture(remove from Vivid), Color, Contrast, Brightness, Backlight, Sharpness(set at zero), Noise Reduction(also zero), etc.. - - - Many, many .....
NO - a HDTV can NOT "adjust" itself to match whatever is being sent into it .... the opposite happens in that all HDTVs must display every single input only in the naive resolution of that specific set - i.e. - in your instance all has to go to 720p, even IF you had bought / were using a Blu Ray Player & HD Movie which are ... 1080p.
That tiny display can obviously be calibrated via the Sony Remote & those Menus to achieve acceptable pictures - but - no, it will never display "HD" across a normal room or typical 7' - 8' viewing distance at all.
HDMI cabling will not make any difference in your specific instance whatever ..... hopefully, you "ordered" those as certified 1.3 HDMIs from any of the proper web stores? The reasoning being that whenever you decide to acquire a larger display as well as an Up-converting DVD Player, all must have / use strictly these .... your existing (2) DVD Players don't need HDMIs .... "progressive" is FAR different than " Up-Converting."
That manual has a number of steps to be followed to achieve a proper display ... there are also DVD Calibration Sets for ~ $29.99 or, one may also hire a Pro Calibrator but not usually for such a small set.
eli
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campaigner111
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Eli,
Thanks for the quick response! I appreciate it.
Well, I've heard different things about the size of HDTV I selected. A 26" should still be able to play back media in high quality, it shouldn't look the way mine does. I don't agree about the viewing distance. Other people I know use 26" HDTV's in bedrooms and kitchens as a second TV and they view them from the same distance as larger displays. People buy this size to use as primary and secondary TV's, not just as PC monitors.
Due to personal circumstances, I don't have a space in my apt. that can accommodate anything bigger than a 26" the way I have my space set up. I could do a 32" perhaps, but 26" works better for me.
Having said that, also due to personal reasons I can't get into here, I do not have an HDTV cable service. This TV is used for DVD playback and for gaming only, there is no cable connected. I can tell you that my PS3 and Xbox 360 look MUCH clearer and sharper than my DVD's do. When I'm gaming the picture is gorgeous, it's the kind of picture I would have expected with my DVD player. It's the DVD playback that's always the problem.
Thanks again for your info.
Mike
Thanks for the quick response! I appreciate it.
Well, I've heard different things about the size of HDTV I selected. A 26" should still be able to play back media in high quality, it shouldn't look the way mine does. I don't agree about the viewing distance. Other people I know use 26" HDTV's in bedrooms and kitchens as a second TV and they view them from the same distance as larger displays. People buy this size to use as primary and secondary TV's, not just as PC monitors.
Due to personal circumstances, I don't have a space in my apt. that can accommodate anything bigger than a 26" the way I have my space set up. I could do a 32" perhaps, but 26" works better for me.
Having said that, also due to personal reasons I can't get into here, I do not have an HDTV cable service. This TV is used for DVD playback and for gaming only, there is no cable connected. I can tell you that my PS3 and Xbox 360 look MUCH clearer and sharper than my DVD's do. When I'm gaming the picture is gorgeous, it's the kind of picture I would have expected with my DVD player. It's the DVD playback that's always the problem.
Thanks again for your info.
Mike
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campaigner111
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DVD calibration sets? A professional DVD "calibrator"? I almost laughed out loud when I read that! With all due respect, why does this sound like an industry thing to get more money out of us? You pay $500 for a new technology TV and you have to have someone professionally calibrate it to play DVD's????? What exactly does the $30 calibration set do? Isn't that what the TV is supposed to do?
I have to say, my manual for this TV contradicts somewhat what you said about automatically adjusting to play DVD's. The manual sounds very much like HDTV's can detect and adjust for the best picture when connecting a DVD player. It sounds like from what I read that the TV should be able to at least adjust to achieve a high quality image. At the very least it doesn't say anything at all about leaving your DVD playback pixelated and fuzzy if you don't change specific settings? if it can't do this, it's misleading.
Mike
I have to say, my manual for this TV contradicts somewhat what you said about automatically adjusting to play DVD's. The manual sounds very much like HDTV's can detect and adjust for the best picture when connecting a DVD player. It sounds like from what I read that the TV should be able to at least adjust to achieve a high quality image. At the very least it doesn't say anything at all about leaving your DVD playback pixelated and fuzzy if you don't change specific settings? if it can't do this, it's misleading.
Mike
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campaigner111
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"That tiny display can obviously be calibrated via the Sony Remote & those Menus to achieve acceptable pictures - but - no, it will never display "HD" across a normal room or typical 7' - 8' viewing distance at all."
If what you said above is true Eli.....then why on earth do they even make 26" HDTV's at all????!!!!????? Sounds like what you're saying is this size display is not even worth owning? Then what's the point? Are you saying a display this size was never really meant for viewing DVD's? So in the end you'd actually get a better DVD picture with old CRT TV's in the 26" size, or a flat screen digital TV from five or six years ago? I'm not talking about getting an "HD" display across a room, I'm talking about getting a clear, crisp normal DVD picture from what is supposed to be newer technology!
This is all frustrating me very much. I'm hearing that I have an HDTV in 26", which isn't REALLY an HDTV at all, but nothing more than a monitor which wasn't really meant for viewing DVD's in their true quality.
I'm not encouraged by this, but I appreciate your info.
Mike
If what you said above is true Eli.....then why on earth do they even make 26" HDTV's at all????!!!!????? Sounds like what you're saying is this size display is not even worth owning? Then what's the point? Are you saying a display this size was never really meant for viewing DVD's? So in the end you'd actually get a better DVD picture with old CRT TV's in the 26" size, or a flat screen digital TV from five or six years ago? I'm not talking about getting an "HD" display across a room, I'm talking about getting a clear, crisp normal DVD picture from what is supposed to be newer technology!
This is all frustrating me very much. I'm hearing that I have an HDTV in 26", which isn't REALLY an HDTV at all, but nothing more than a monitor which wasn't really meant for viewing DVD's in their true quality.
I'm not encouraged by this, but I appreciate your info.
Mike
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campaigner111
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"Only my very biased view - but - you needed to have gotten a much larger than 26" display .... that is an extremely-limited viewing "choice" - - should be viewed from ~ ~ 25" - 30" tops, eyes-to-display, like a P.C. Monitor!"
Then why is there a whole class of HDTV's in the 26" size range? They're not sold as "monitors", they're sold as HDTV'S to be viewed from a normal TV viewing distance! Nothing in the advertising or the manual suggest a monitor viewing distance.
Then why is there a whole class of HDTV's in the 26" size range? They're not sold as "monitors", they're sold as HDTV'S to be viewed from a normal TV viewing distance! Nothing in the advertising or the manual suggest a monitor viewing distance.
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eliwhitney
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campaigner111 ...
I'll be glad to try to respond to your variety of queries ....
But - please slow down a little ... which one first, pls - or - which is most critical to you?
By-the-way ..... no problem whatever to NOT have any HD Service connected at all ! Neither did I until the past 37 months .... strictly used Only whatever came via an outside antenna for ~ 35 years !!
In quickly scanning your multiple posts .... over these past 30 - 40 months that HD sets have really "taken off" in sales, there has NOT been any penetration whatever in the "wee" displays ---- there ARE many quite involved studies by eye doctors, etc., regarding what the human eye may perceive NOT only in their direct-field-of-vision but in their peripheral, as well.
In connection with these, there ARE a multitude of recommended distances for HD Immersion as opposed to simply viewing an illuminated display ...
Since you apparently do NOT wish or expect to view the added features & data presented via an 'HD' display when viewed at these proper distances, you probably would have been better off simply to remain w/ the older CRT.
eli
I'll be glad to try to respond to your variety of queries ....
But - please slow down a little ... which one first, pls - or - which is most critical to you?
By-the-way ..... no problem whatever to NOT have any HD Service connected at all ! Neither did I until the past 37 months .... strictly used Only whatever came via an outside antenna for ~ 35 years !!
In quickly scanning your multiple posts .... over these past 30 - 40 months that HD sets have really "taken off" in sales, there has NOT been any penetration whatever in the "wee" displays ---- there ARE many quite involved studies by eye doctors, etc., regarding what the human eye may perceive NOT only in their direct-field-of-vision but in their peripheral, as well.
In connection with these, there ARE a multitude of recommended distances for HD Immersion as opposed to simply viewing an illuminated display ...
Since you apparently do NOT wish or expect to view the added features & data presented via an 'HD' display when viewed at these proper distances, you probably would have been better off simply to remain w/ the older CRT.
eli
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eliwhitney
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# 3 ...
$500 is NOT really very much in regard to acquiring a proper HDTV .... 42" plasma sets @ 720p are about as small as one should start with, in my experiences , with a typical web store delivered cost of ~ $650 -$ 700.
A full 1920 X 1080 or also described as 1080p set will be over the $1,000 mark.
No - a 26" display is NOT considered a legitimate HD item ... many new P.C.s DO actually have / use 24" monitors, in-point-of-fact.
Because all are 16:9 format, they are wider horizontally BUT ~ 25% smaller vertically, making a 26" close to trying to watch an old 19" -20" 4:3 picture tube set.
eli
$500 is NOT really very much in regard to acquiring a proper HDTV .... 42" plasma sets @ 720p are about as small as one should start with, in my experiences , with a typical web store delivered cost of ~ $650 -$ 700.
A full 1920 X 1080 or also described as 1080p set will be over the $1,000 mark.
No - a 26" display is NOT considered a legitimate HD item ... many new P.C.s DO actually have / use 24" monitors, in-point-of-fact.
Because all are 16:9 format, they are wider horizontally BUT ~ 25% smaller vertically, making a 26" close to trying to watch an old 19" -20" 4:3 picture tube set.
eli
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eliwhitney
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#4 -
I HAVE (3) Sony sets & have installed a considerable number of sets for friends / relatives ... YES .. those manuals DO state the steps necessary to achieve proper settings for viewing in a home ...
No, no HDTV set ( any type / brand / plasma or LCD / cost / Display Size ) is "Plug & Play"
If you would like help, try again whenever you might be in a proper frame of mind, pls.
eli
I HAVE (3) Sony sets & have installed a considerable number of sets for friends / relatives ... YES .. those manuals DO state the steps necessary to achieve proper settings for viewing in a home ...
No, no HDTV set ( any type / brand / plasma or LCD / cost / Display Size ) is "Plug & Play"
If you would like help, try again whenever you might be in a proper frame of mind, pls.
eli
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dadden
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Musings on HD Quality
Sorry Mike,campaigner111 wrote:DVD calibration sets? A professional DVD "calibrator"? I almost laughed out loud when I read that! With all due respect, why does this sound like an industry thing to get more money out of us? You pay $500 for a new technology TV and you have to have someone professionally calibrate it to play DVD's????? What exactly does the $30 calibration set do? Isn't that what the TV is supposed to do?
I have to say, my manual for this TV contradicts somewhat what you said about automatically adjusting to play DVD's. The manual sounds very much like HDTV's can detect and adjust for the best picture when connecting a DVD player. It sounds like from what I read that the TV should be able to at least adjust to achieve a high quality image. At the very least it doesn't say anything at all about leaving your DVD playback pixelated and fuzzy if you don't change specific settings? if it can't do this, it's misleading.
Mike
I guess then, that you have indeed been misled.
I have spent lots of time tweaking the set from "Normal" settings and I have 46 in Sony 1080p HDTVs in the US and in Europe. Sony has very nice color rendition but it can be wrong out of the box. If you don't have the recent monitors/TVs set to something other than "Store Mode" they will look like Wonka Vision or the Joker in Batman. These settings are made to sell Display devices and have nothing to do with what actually looks good in your home.
You need to ensure that your Bravia is set to Standard or Cinema mode or Custom mode and then using a known source material adjust things so that they look correct. If you don't understand what you are doing go very slowly and look for differences. To much processing is not always a good thing. This is the reason that alot of people pay someone once to set up their sets. On LCDs once is usually enough for many years of viewing.
Turn off the Auto Dynamic Range control. Auto Iris should start off. These change the image actively depending on how bright or dark the source material is.
On the Sony Bravias the 200Hz film modes can look like total garbage on older dvd players. Check your film pulldown settings to make sure that you start with them off and only used them if they actaully improve the image.
480p looks fine on my 1080p sets sbut I have never liked the way my Sony Bravias up convets 480p video. If you are using component conections then you need to ensure that the cables you are using are good. I don't mean audio/video-phile good but clean tight connections are nice. If you are using audio cables for the connections and they aren't coaxial then this will cause problems. If any of the cables are bad in any other way this will also cause problems.
I watch older DVD players with the display line Doubled but don't use the Up Conversion in the Bravias. I have a BluRay player and an HD player and they are both very good at up converting DVDs. They are not as good as BluRay or HD native media but still much better than the Bravias and much better than nothing.
Disable every special mode on your TV that you can and look at your image from your DVD. Make sure that you have disabled the Zoom/Stretch feature as well. All processing can cause the visual aberrations that you are referring to. ANY PROCESSING that isn't specifically doing something that you desire is just like salt/pepper/ketchup/mayo/mustard on everything because more is better, right? Wrong! Add only what you can SEE that you NEED or understand that you need and stop there. Anything else is like turning all of the sliders on a Graphic Equaliser up to full. Yeah, you can do it and it probably wont break it but it wont work correctly and wont sound right or good.
And before you come on this site and start with your brash casting aspersions on people who have been here for a while and are very helpful and have much to say that is useful, Pause for a second and think about what you are writing. It looks like to me that it was late when you wrote what you wrote but this is a nice group and we don't have a lot of FLAME WARS. What we do have alot of is thoughtful and useful discourse and yes we disagree alot too.
As a professional Video Camera Operator/Sound Engineer/Switcher Operator/Etc/Etc I can tell you that your statement that HD devices come out of the box and you just plug them in and they work the best way possible is dead wrong. I will agree that they come out of the box and work. They even work reasonably well for just plugging them in. But in my world when you plug something in you get a signal and then you go to work. Plugging in the devices is just the first part in a very long sequence of events. When you begin to understand what is going on you will realise than plug and play is just a marketing gimmick. According to the marketing department the highest numbers ie. 1080P or 720p are the BEST and everthing else is unimportant.
Very few companies will tell you on the cover of the box/manual that you will have to wait for your gratification. They are selling numbers. They won't tell you that the best viewing distances are from 4 to 8 times the screen height of the display. Sure the new LCD works just as well if not better than most of the old CRTs, but if you aren't closed enough to see the resolution then it doesn't really matter. You say that you watch your new TV as eight feet. That is the same distance that I watch my 46 inch Sony Bravias. Also we all watch different things for different reasons in different rooms. I would never tolerate watching movies on my laptop or iphone if my TVs are available and the content is as well.
Last thing is to remember that HD is now digital and if the numbers don't line up then you can get some unpleasant results. For example when we record audio we are given a choice of 48kHz or 44.1kHz sampling rates. CDs are done in 44.1kHz. 48kHz is better sounding by a small margin. Yet when I record to computer and go straight to CD I always use 44.1kHz. Why is this? Because when you convert from 48 to 44.1 you have to interpolate the data. This means that the computer is making up numbers up to fill the gaps at different locations than in the original recording. Unless your computer is very, very, very clever this does not sound as good as recording with the original rate being the same as the final. In practice it is not worth the effort. Same thing with digital video. If you are getting a 480p signal it is good if you can display it as a 480p signal or doubled. 720 is best as 720. And so on. 720 doesn't look quite as good on a 1080p monitor. The reverse is also true.
Unfortunaltely there are many reasons why you might have problems with your setup and it doesn't happen in one place. There is no silver bullet.
Good luck with your search, if you should choose to continue it, for better reproduction. It is nice when it works.
Brian Marten