HDTV a letdown?
 

I know I'm going to be possibly lynched for this, but hell, here goes anyway.

I live in an apartment complex, where our lease is signed that we aren't allowed any dishes in the windows(and even if we were, I'm facing the wrong way). I have Comcast servicing my area. I haven't had cable for the last few years because I really only needed the basic network stuff(NFL/MLB) for what I reallyliked to watch.

I bought an HDTV , mainly for the increased resolution for DVDs and my XBOX's 16:9 games.

I decided to get cable again, to see the "HD REVOLUTION" so to speak. I ordered the HD package with Digtial Plus and got the cable card delivered and then set up..

For the first few days, I watched the HD nature shows, the cool INHD channels and was amazed. Then Sunday came, and "WOW" NFL in HD. I was in heaven.

Then it tapered off. CBS shows, maybe 1/4 of their games in HD (at least in thiks market) the CBS/Fox/ABC are barely in HD and ESPN HD is lame until a big game or sportscenter...

When do I get a real hi def netowrk channel all day?

I'm very underwhelmed other then sports right now.

How about premium movie channels?

Hey, your lucky. We only get Fox Sports Net, ESPN, FOX and NBC in HD. No ABC, CBS or antyhing else (except movie channels, but i'm nto going to pay more for those).

My cable provider doesn't offer much -- HDNet, HDNet Movies, HBO-HD, Showtime-HD (which I don't subscribe to since, y'know, Showtime kinda blows), Discovery HD Theater, ESPN-HD, and the local NBC affiliate. I get more HD channels OTA (NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox, the WB, two PBS stations; I can pick up the UPN affiliate's digital channel, but it's not in HD and probably won't be here anytime soon), and although it's nice that I can still watch those channels, it's a bit annoying that I can't timeshift them with my cable company's HD-DVR.

I do the vast majority of my HD-watching on HDNet and HDNet Movies, which Comcast doesn't offer. HDNet Movies has a pretty varied lineup, and while there's a lot of dreck in there, there's usually at least one movie a day I'd really like to see. I woke up this morning to see Annie Hall on my DVR, f'r instance. I'm admittedly really only interested in HD to watch movies, though. I'll catch some shows while I'm at it, like Lost and Arrested Development, but they're kind of secondary to HD movies.

Hey Thunderballs, try and get that Zenith DVD Player that upconverts the signal to 720P or 1080i through component hookup to HDTV TV. Pictures on dvds are upconverted and look just as good as an HDTV broadcast.
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0...CLZZZZZZZ_.jpg
Zenith DVB318 1080i Progressive-Scan DVD Player
Oh, it can be found for a price of around $150 or less.

I'm paying for all the movie channels right now because it's the only way to get a lot of HD programming. I don't watch much on the networks. For me the only current network show that I'm really glad is in HD and surround sound is Lost. 24 will be another one when it comes back on, but I can't think of many others. Most aren't that big of a deal.

I would like for Scrubs to convert to HD, but it's not really too big of a deal for me that any of the sitcoms I watch are HD or not. I think I'm past the phase of watching anything just because it's HD. I gave up on Desperate Housewives over a month ago.

Carnivale and Deadwood on HBO are a different story. They benefit greatly from HD.

I like the NFL on CBS or FOX, or the various awards shows

It might look smoother, but you can't add resolution that isn't there, so it won't look as good as an HDTV broadcast. If you have a DVI connection on your set find a DVD player that has a DVI connection as well.

Is there a Sony that does the upconversion with HDMI input? Because

1)I'm a sony fanboy and

2) I dont' ahve DVI

Your set has either HDMI or DVI. I am unsure if there are any upconverting players that have HDMI, but you can buy a cable w/ a DVI output on one end and HDMI output on the other.

Well, what do you know. Sony has an upconverting DVD player with HDMI. Here: http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTE...DVD_DVDPlayers

Thunder, check this thread: http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=402393

about the DVD player upconversion stuff. Also do a search for 1080 in the Hardware forum. You'll get a ton of good info.

Thunderball, skim thru the first thread abotu the Zenith dvd player. AVS forum members like the player. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forum...php?forumid=18

I have had a similar experience as the OP. I love the sports and the few shows that come in the HD widescreen format are quite stunning. But I get frustrated at the limited pogramming Comcast offers.


I have some questions for those who were posting about the DVD players that can produce a better picture. I was very dissappointed when I learned that my new 55 inch HD upgradable TV was unable to give me a clearer picture when I watch my DVDs (the fact that I didn't realize that DVDs don't come in HD should clue you all in on how limited my knowledge is in this area). Can someone tell me a little more about 'upconverting' and 'DVI', like what are these? Will they make my DVDs appear in the 1080 resolution? Does the fact that my TV uses the HD Tuner from the cable box matter?

Also, something else I noticed that bugs me. When I watch a DVD (and many normal channels) the picture on the screen appears to be stretched to fit my TV, causing all of the actors and more importantly actresses to appear a little bit wider. With DVDs this seems to be even more prominent since they are already in widescreen format. What can I do about this? I know there is a setting on my TV that puts bars on the side and shrinks the picture, but this result is not all that enticing either.

dave-o, check your dvd player's settings and see if there is an option to set it from 4:3 to 16:9 and also make sure the strech setting for your tv is on full. that should fix the streched look when watching dvds.

I have the Zenith DVB318 DVD player upconverting to 1080i through components and it looks very, very good. Not as good as true HD of course but fantastic for DVD.

You may want to investigate that DVI preference since I believe it limits what discs will upconvert due to copyguarding. The early production units of the Zenith allowed everything to be upconverted through component but newer models have disabled it because the studios don't like commercial stuff having its resolutions converted up to 1080i. There is firmware available online that will open up the components on those newer models. I really don't think DVI is the way to go in this particular situation.

dave-o :

Is your DVD player progressive scan? That alone should make a significant improvement on video quality once you connect it to an HDTV.

Well make sure that you have set the output on your dvd player to be formatted for 16:9 tvs. You may still have it set to display properly on 4:3 tvs. You should still experience in upgrade in resolution if you go through the component outputs on the dvd player, if you have been using composite cables or an RF modulator previously, especially with a progressive scan DVD player.

The stretching of regular channels is just a side-effect of the old format on a different shape tv. You can try using different stretch modes to find out which picture adjusts it the least, or that you can at least stand. Or you can have the grey/black bars on the side and no stretching for normal tv watching.

Be aware of burn in risks if you do this and check your contrast settings. If contrast is set up high, lower it down to about 25% at least.

A good calibration disc would be worth getting to adjust all of your settings.

I guess the question is, what do you watch? I also have HD service through Comcast, and all the major programming is in HD for me. CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox, HBO, and major events on ESPN and soon ESPN2. Granted, CBS' NFL coverage in HD is spotty, but Fox is pretty good and the playoffs will bring the top quality stuff. All the major network shows are in HD. There are a few non network HD channels for me (i.e. PBS, Discovery, Comcast Sports) and of course the inHD channels.

I'm not saying everything I watch is in HD, but how much TV do you really watch on other channels?

You do bring up a good point. I mainly stay on the HD channels/network stuff anyway, but that isn't to say I wouldn't flip thru more channels if they didn't look like ass on my TV ya know?

The thing is,w ith my schedule, I'm usually in bed by 730 so I dont' get to see any of the network shows :( in HD.

I've found myself watching Discovery Theater far too often...

Thanks Deftones for that Sony link, Im gonna go check it out today, maybe pick one up or something.

Yeah - I'm planning to take the plunge in the next month or so because the HD coverage is excellent in the DC area with Comcast.

I have this and it has its own set of problems: It introduces some compression-like noise at times, especially on darker images, it adds a green tint sometimes, particularly noticable on B&W images, and sometimes when stuff cuts to black it leaves an "afterimage", especially during credit sequences.

I have yet to find or read about a DVD player that is completely free of problems, so this one is no different.

Yup :up: That's where we are at as well. With that coverage probably 90% of my TV viewing is in HD now.
FX is one of the noteable standouts that we are lacking in HD.

And...after getting the new Motorola 6412 dual tuner digital cable box I can watch one HD channel while recording another, I am set. This box also features a built-in DVR with increased hard drive space, and a programmed in 30 second commercial skip. :D

I guess I'm pretty lucky in my area with HDTV. I get the following:

ABC
NBC
CBS
PBS
HBO
SHOWTIME
CINEMAX
STARZ
DISCOVERY CHANNEL
HD NET
HD NET MOVIES
ESPN
INHD-1
INHD-2
NFL NETWORK

Fortunately, I get FOX on my over the air antenna...not sure why my cable company (Adelphia) hasn't added it yet...probably because FOX just went HD in Sept. 2004.

While others are mentioning DVD players with great upconverting and DVI, I'll throw one into the mix.

The Momitsu v880, as advertised by HKFlix here at DVD Talk. Got one for Christmas. It's also a great DivX/Xvid player, a macrovision blocker, and of course, region free ntsc/pal...

Gil, then it might be your tv. I have a Sony wega 36 inch. and is calibrated. I read too about the dark scenes and blocks. The player plays bright so just lower the brightness.

Thanks for the help with my questions guys. I am going to make sure that my DVD is set to 16:9 ratio (hopefully this is easy since I no longer have the manual). I have some more questions for you (keep in mind I am home theater retarded).

Unfortunately my DVD player is not progressive scan. I have been working my way through the many threads on these topics (I did the recommended search for 1080 in the hardware forum). It seems that the majority opinion is that a progressive scan DVD player makes a big difference and is worth the upgrade. Is this true?

I tried to calibrate the tv by myself but I probably should purchase a calibration disc. I am assuming that this is a DVD that helps you through the process. What is the best one to choose (or are they all the same)?

Also are there any good links you can provide about HD-DVD technology? I am wondering if I should wait to purchase a new DVD player, or if these things are going to be too pricey.

Anyways, this thread has been helpful, I am slowly submerging myself into the world of HD technology.

As a side note, does anyone else get completely overwhelmed by the complexities, multitude of options, and lightning speed advancement of this type of technology? I remember there was a time that I considered myself more than able to hook up any type of home theater equipment. I feel old and I am still a week away from reaching thirty!

I had HD for about 6 months via my cable company (MediaOne) before finally having it disconnected. ABC was the only major network (of CBS, NBC and FOX) that they offered and the picture wasn't any better than it was on my non-hdtv set. I did enjoy game on ESPN in high def but finally decided that the cost for what I was getting just wasn't work it.

I think the stations I got were:
ABC
PBS
Bravo
ESPN
Discovery
HD-Net (movies if I remember correctly)
HBO

Have you heard of Voom? The movie channels are not the only way to get a lot of HD. 30 channels, HD all day long. Most are movie channels, but then there is a live music channel, extreme sports channel, monster movie channel, westerns channel, an HD animation channel. Not to mention all the channels the cable company charges you extra for, ESPN, Discovery, TNT HD, et. al. Locals are also in HD. Plenty for me, but anyway... I have also read that bandwith is an issue. And always will be for cable companies. You are more likely to get a better signal from a satellite dish. But, I'm not sure how well that holds water. Interesting theory at any rate.

Couple of other things. Almost every show(non-reality), on from 8pm-11pm, is in HD on the big three networks. There are some exceptions, like Scrubs. It isn't in HD because they don't film it in HD. You can't make something hi def when it wasn't filmed that way. Leno is also HD, which isn't in the 8-11 time slots. But if reality shows are your thing, then yes you will be disappointed in HD.

I second the nod to the Momitsu V880. Just got it a couple months back. Upconverts to 1080i. Not a huge difference in pic quality(not as drastic as say going from a standard dvd to progressive scan), but I watched a dvd on a different player the other night and it did seem softer than what I had been watching on the V880. A professionally calibrated tv would probably help more than my fiddling with a calibration DVD myself. Region Free as well. :up: Plays all kinds of computer files as well.

Yes I heard about Voom but satellite isn't an option for me because of trees. Even if it were, I doubt I'd go with Voom just to get as much HD content as possible. I mostly watch primetime network shows, movies on the premium channels, and some of the HBO and Showtime series. I don't watch a whole lot of PBS and INHD which I would bet show similar programming to a lot of what Voom offers.

I would disagree, as I see Voom very much as a movie-centric service. PBS and InHD are not. Instead of betting :D, you could always go to their website and look at what they offer.

Re: Voom
They have every(well about 95%) channels your cable company has, AND 30+ channels in HD, AND locals in HD. It is hard to beat. I am getting quite impatient with the release of their DVR box though. That is why I signed up last summer. I read that they are supposed to give the prime deals to current customers as a reward for getting them off the ground. Instead of the typical give all the sweet deals to new customers to fatten our bank roll method.

It was supposed to be out back in the fall. I called last week and they said March, but they had no details like price, lease, trade in on old receiver or anything like that. So I doubt March is going to happen.

I love it. Well I did over the summer when everything was in re-runs. Now I have a tivo and catch watch everything on that though the season pass. It is just too easy. So I don't usually watch a primetime show in HD anymore. Time is more valuable, and Tivo gives me that right now.