Currently got my HD STB & DVD connected to my TV through Component 1 & 2 inputs. Just noticed in TV manual that available format for Component inputs are 480i/480p/1080i-60hz or 50hz.

What does this mean ? I thought DVDs ran at 576i. Am I losing PQ ? Should I be connecting by some other way ? Same with channel 7 et.c. which runs at 576i.

My HD STB is Pana QTR2140-dip swithes are left so output is 1080i.

Any experts out there please help me get the best out of my system.

Thanks.

you want to be running 1080i as that is the highest form of HDTV at the moment. It's all a matter of configuration i think with the pana set top boxes, you also have to realise that some stations on output in SD/576i so unless your watching the specific HDTV program your not going to be able to view them at 1080i.

Think progressive if wanting HD.

The component input AUTO scans from a LOW of 576i to 1080i, it is adaptive signal bandwidth.

Progressive DVD players scans a 576i and ouptuts PAL encoded 576i and WEAVE frames A and B into film like mode which translates this in 576p. What this happens is a few benefits in doing so:

1. We remove artefact interlacing. that by line doubling we now have merged the interlacing offsets.
2. The DVD we appear on your HD in higher quality and you'll find looking directly into movie rather then the delay of 25Hz split between frames a & b. The end result is greater depth, richer colour rendering, greater contrast dynamic and brightness.

As for STB's...by setting on 1080i the HD box, my understanding it will upscale a 576i to spartial 1080i. But you may suffer artefacting by the upscaling. It is really dependant on the QUALITY upscaling method used in the HD box.

Newer HD STB's now out seem to be able to upscale 720p ...progressive ...but according to what you're listed it won't do 720p upscaling.

Some newer progressive DVD players now will upscale a 576i DVD to 576p/720p and 1080i.

Component is adapative video band detection input standard based around the US standard for HDTV.

The bonus for Australia is that PAL ordinary interlaced is 576i whereas in the US their base interlaced standard is 480i ..far lesser in resolution then Australias in native interlaced video standard.

Many home theatre experts are reading US Web sites and are basing MISINFORMATION around 480i encoded DVD's. Some will ONLY convert 480i US to 480p from US encoded DVD's.

The removal of jitter, artefact as much as possible is what your chasing after as well as taking every opportunity to take advantage of your HD display capable higher band presentations of video sources.

Despite the fact I am progressive computer derived via a computer equiped with DVD player and DVB-T DTV tuner card the SAME identical results are applicable.

As for me, I'm using the computer platfrom to achieve simular results. This is not theory but rather everyday experience.

1. I am connected via DVI... the highest presently video connection available. It is opure digital connection.
2. I am upscaling all DVD's to 720p
3. I am upscaling all DTV, SD (576i), EHD (576p) and HD (1080i) to 720p.

The present hierarchy from interlaced to higher quality goes something like this:

1. Composite 576i only
2. SVHS 576i only
3. Component @ 576i ONLY ... found on most SD TVs now.
4. SCART RGBs ... (Standard dates back to 1987!) A Euro standard that Foxtel Digital have implemented along with most SD STB's. Despite all the hype concerning Foxtel digital ... all this is STANDARD defintion encoded digital MPEG 2 @ 576i. Advantage is thar Red, Blue and Green primary colour carriers are seperated and delivered to the display hence a clearer cleaner pciture will achieved @ 576i.
5. Component @ 576p/720p/1080i
6. VGA or called RGBHV or simply RGB.
7. DVI-D

Regards

DA

DA,
All transmissions in Australia are 4:2:0 which means for a grid of 4 luminance (monochrome), That area is represented by 2 larger pixels containing red- luminance and another signal representing blue - luminance.

This means that the luminance signal is twice as sharp as the colouring in signal. This is consistent with the eye's resolution.

Since this is the way the signals are transmitted, any processing is better doing it with these signals rather than R, G & B. This will require more memory, for no improvement in picture quality.

So the highest quality connection is component (Y, Pr & Pb). This will result in only one matrix to convert back to RGB for display. In addition the colour signals in HD TV represent stronger colours than SDTV allowing the display to select the correct matrix coefficients.

DVI is essentially a digital connection allowing the MPEG 2 decoding to happen once which is ideal.

I do not think that that the VGA connection is any better than SCART RGB. This is because there is no advantage to send separate synchronising signals. Also SCART has control signals to tell the display the Aspect ratio.

In summary it is better to send a undecoded MPEG 2 signal to the display so that decoding and matrixing only happens once. This prevents the accumulation of errors.

AlanH

Hi Alan

You said:

"So the highest quality connection is component (Y, Pr & Pb). This will result in only one matrix to convert back to RGB for display. In addition the colour signals in HD TV represent stronger colours than SDTV allowing the display to select the correct matrix coefficients."

Disagree. In theory may sound nice, but in practice component high looked smeary and CORRUPTED when compared to VGA (RGBHV) and even improved further with DVI. As well lets not forget the goodly firmware 'behind' component inputs..... some HD display manufacturers screw it up good and proper.

You said:

"I do not think that that the VGA connection is any better than SCART RGB. This is because there is no advantage to send separate synchronising signals. Also SCART has control signals to tell the display the Aspect ratio."

Disagree. Scart RGBs has limited bandwidth and only does 576i interlaced. Yes we have scart derived signal width controls but in VGA (RGBHV) you control the presented horizontal width timing and resolution in abitary fashion. It is also higher bandwidth therefore better quality. Enter PowerStrip. We are NOT referring to data grade computer derived inputs. We talking about HD derived timings and upscaling processing on MPEG digial sources done by a computer platform.

You said:

"In summary it is better to send a undecoded MPEG 2 signal to the display so that decoding and matrixing only happens once. This prevents the accumulation of errors."

I say...

Accumulated errors? What in rescaling? Of course we match ther NATIVE panel display and avoid errors like this in the displayed source.

I think you forgotten in this whole mix one thing:

We are pre-processing the video source and using some of the latest intelligent rescaling techniques found in GPUs namely Radeon based cards.

EVERYONE who has seen my results on the Samsung go away like stunned mullets, the comments are continually that is the best presentation of SD/EHD and HD they had ever sighted.

Shortly In the next month this has stirred so much interest that a HTPC build will going through an evaluation by a major home theatre reseller in QLD with on floor market testing that will provide walk in customers with "blindfold" test forms to fill out.

The theory is fine but the human eye and human interface although subjective maybe well the final say on this matter after this real world survey.

As for the other debate:

Which is better? 720p or 1080i. Well I am actually using 720p @ 75Hz vertical. Compared to 1080i it is superior. (we are circumventing derived source dependencies here and upscaling to 720p.

I'd love to test a Foxtel Cable MPEG driectly digitally derived but I'm afraid I cannot as no DVB-C card presently works with Foxtel SUBSRIBED LEGAL CAMs inserted, but I have sighted computer derived decoded FTA DVB-S Digital SAT MPEG 576i upscaled to 720p and I tell you it looks a mile ahead.

Regards

DA

DIGITAL ADVISOR

any advice on building a HTPC.
BUDGET AND PERFORMANCE??
main application is to watch HDTV AND DVD.
i have an 86cm HDTV to start with.
need some good advice on the setup and where to get them.

best connection from the HDTV is XGA.
WHAT FRONT END AND SOFTWARE IS THE BEST TO USE???
including upscale movies.

DESPERATE FOR YOUR ADVICE.
THANKS