X

BTW, this page says it has a 16:9 mode.

http://www.etronics.com/product.asp?...44&svbname=305

And my ears still hurt!

DVD Josh

X, it's looking more and more like I owe you a Coke

It's strange how it's not on the website, not on the BB spec card, not on the box, etc.

Hey 5 Watts is still pretty loud. I used to have a 5W tube amp and on 10 that thing would make your ears bleed.

tha_dvd_man

X- sorry about your ears. I appreciate the info you've provided.

And yeah, it is strange that the 16:9 feature is not listed anywhere (except the link X provided, that is). I should know fairly shortly for sure.

X

Damn, turning it up that loud was just plain stupid.

The rated power isn't something I trust much knowing how it can be measured peak-to-peak, RMS, etc.

tha_dvd_man

X, it's your lucky day. You get a free coke.

I went with the Toshiba. It was 30 bucks cheaper, has the 16:9 thingy, and I messed around with the video on both quite a bit and I didn't really think the Wega's picture was $30 better, if at all. Besides, they didn't even have the FS120 in stock.

Thanks again for the help, fellas.

X

Nice! I'd like to know what you think of its volume.

And calibrate it. It will probably need some geometry and sharpness adjustments done from the service menu.

You can search for a post under my name with the word "Toshiba" or "service" and probably find the instructions in here.

tha_dvd_man

That must be one of the differences between the 43 and the 44. I don't think there are any geometry calibration abilites on the 44. I'll look for your post....thanks again.....

tha_dvd_man

By the way, it seems as though you are/were under the impression that the Wega FS120 doesn't have the 16:9 compression. I thought so at first, until a Best Buy Guy opened up a menu that had "16:9" listed at the bottom. It was unselectable; I guess you can only switch it on when the tv sense a 16:9 signal or something.

X

You'll have to get into the service menu. I'm not talking about normal "menu" adjustments.

And the Sony model I saw was probably the previous one, whatever that was. Did the current one have component inputs?

tha_dvd_man

Sorry, I didn't check to see if it had component inputs. I honestly don't even know what those are.

And yeah, I found your other posts about the service menu, holding down the volume and pressing 9. I made a couple adjustments (mostly to the sharpness), but didn't want to mess around with it much. That Avia disc sounds interesting, but jeez, it's around 40 bucks. I wonder if Blockbuster has it...

tha_dvd_man

Another question: what is colorstream? Is it a type of video connection that's better than s-video? My Sony DVD player (DVP-NS575P) has three outputs in the back labeled Y, Pb and Pr....is that for the colorstream inputs on the tv? And if so, do I need special cables for it or can I just use regular a/v cables?

X

You better write down those service menu settings before you screw with them. And don't bother changing them without a calibration DVD. There are some cheaper ones than Avia.

Colorstream is Toshiba's term for component. It is better than s-video but it might not make too much of a difference on a small set. And yes, they are the Y, Pb and Pr connections.

You need 75 ohm cables. Only the yellow cable on your regular a/v cable is 75 ohms. But you could try it out anyway, it's a small set and not as sensitive to correct cabling as much larger sets are.

tha_dvd_man

Then I suppose I'll just splurge another $30 on component cables. Feel stupid for already baying $20 for an s-video cable, though, which doesn't even reach my computer. :-/

Do you know if there's a service menu setting that will affect the 16:9 dimensions? I'm using the 16:9 feature with some DVDs I have that are anamorphic, and it seems too squeezed to me.

DVD Josh

At least now we are sure about the AF44 16:9 mode . Sorry for doubting you X, I should have known better .

I'm happy that you are happy DVD Man! It's always cool to get a new TV

Alright, now to your post, two things:

1) Go to CC and get the GE Component Cable. 12 FEET for $20. That's a great deal. I personally prefered them over the AR / Monster cables. They are nice and thick, and have a lifetime warranty. Best store bought cables for the price.

2) ALL TVs with 16:9 "oversqueeze" the picture. WEGAs have an adjustment, and I'm sure that X can help you with yours through the service menu. That's just the nature of the squeeze. I think it's worth it for the increased resolution.

A very important word of warning - BE CAREFUL WHEN ADJUSTING THROUGH THE SERVICE MENU!! You can really mess stuff up in there, and not only that, you'll void the warranty as well.

As always, we are here to help, and X is here to correct me

tha_dvd_man

Thanks Josh!

X

You really can't adjust the squeeze very well without having a calibration disc. I assume you have set your DVD player to "widescreen" or "16:9" because that's what your set in squeeze mode looks like to it. You don't want your DVD player to be doing the anamorphic downconversion as it would need to do with a regular 4:3 TV.

I don't know what particular service menu adjustment handles just the squeeze. It may be part of the general vertical size.

tha_dvd_man

I didn't even know there's a setting for that on the DVD player. I'll look into it, thanks....

DVD Josh

Remember to set it back to 4:3 when you aren't watching anamorphic source material. I've found, at least for me, that the picture is slightly better on 4:3 material when the dvd player is set that way.

It's a hassle, I know, but completely worth it.

tha_dvd_man

Okay, I set the DVD player to 16:9. That seems to take care of that issue. But what I want to know is what's the difference between having the DVD player set to 16:9 and turning 16:9 on on the tv, and having neither on? The size is about the same, so is it just that the resolution is actually higher?

I also have a sort of similar question regarding audio-- both the DVD player and TV have "surround simulation" modes. If I'm watching a DVD with 5.1, should I have the surround simulation turned on on both the DVD player and the TV, or just the DVD player? How exactly does that work?

by the way, I got those $20 12" component cables at CC. Great buy, man...thanks.

DVD Josh

DVD Man,

The 16:9 modes work in concert. If you notice, when you set the DVD player to 16:9, there were no black bars, but when you activated the mode on the TV, the bars returned. The player sends the image to the TV and the TV takes care of the rest.

I would NOT use the simulation mode if you have a 5.1 capable receiver.

Glad you like the cables, they are a good buy.

X

Yes, the 16:9 mode makes your 4:3 TV look like a 16:9 set by squeezing all the scanlines into the 16:9 box.

The 16:9 setting on your DVD player tells the player not to do anamorphic downconversion which would discard 1 out of every 4 lines it outputs to the set (which prevents the stretch you would see on a 4:3 set if it didn't do that). So you get the full resolution of the anamorphic signal displayed on the 16:9 squeezed area of your TV instead of 3/4 of the full number of lines of the picture. And often DVD players are not very good at that anamorphic downconversion so it's better to let the set do the squeezing.

On a 20" set it may not make a huge difference in the picture though.

tha_dvd_man

Okay, I think I get it.

I'm currently just using the tv speakers.

DVD Josh

I'd choose between one or the other. I'd think your TV would be the better bet, since that's where the sound is coming from.