TV Geeks, Help please!

walter

Fourth Party
I got myself a new "hd" tv and had it installed today. I admit I am by no means a tv guy and could probably care less about tv, but here's my dilemma.

Crew came out today and ran the wires, did a great job. Of course, upon initial viewing everything looked great. Now as I sit and fiddle around with things I have a few questions. Are certain channels that are rated as "hd" filmed differently than others? I have noticed that while watching show "X" on channel "Y", the picture is a bit grainy, but when it goes to commercial on same channel the picture is incredible. The guy at the store said some things are filmed in HD while others are not, and it doesnt necessarily have to be filmed in HD to be on a HD channel. For the record, this is just a regular tv show on an HD channel.

I noticed that the local HD networks, 2,4,7, Fox News, CNN, etc. are really good. On some darker suit colors I see a slight flashing, but as it changes to a different scene, it goes away. Is this normal? Also, cartoons are mind blowing, really bright rich color.

I admit I have only started screwing around with the settings so I am sure I have alot to figure out. Just looking for some tips/help/advice on TV's. Do I have an issue with the line or TV? Service is Cablevision/Optimum, TV is LCD.

Thanks kids!!
 

VanDbtRiver

Well-Known Member
go to your providers website to figure out what channels make up your HD tier. No matter which hd channel you tune to nothing is going to look better than HDT which is the dicovery channel's hd network. also use your hdmi cable if your box accepts it, if not you need an adapter...it does make a difference. After about a month you are going to be so spoiled with the high def and you will turn your nose up at all inferior images.
 

J-Dro

Well-Known Member
If the original TV show was not filmed in HD, then it won't look that great even on one of the HD channels. Most network shows just started going HD a few years ago, so there is still a lot of standard def content being shown. In fact, I would argue that SD shows look even worse on an HD monitor because it looks more pixelated. Also, the aspect ratio for SD is different from HD, so the SD shows are usually either stretched or chopped to fit the screen.

Movies are a different story since most of them were shot on film. They can go back to the original and render the video in HD standard with pretty good results.

To make it even more confusing, all HD channels are not equal depending on how much compression your cable provider uses on the signal. And that can vary depending on how they want to manage their bandwidth. For example, Directv had limited capacity based on the number of satellite channels available, so on Sundays when they show all the NFL games simultaneously in High def, they 'steal' bandwidth from the other HD channels by using more compression and the picture will degrade.

The most amazing HD channel (for top quality picture) is the Discovery channel. I stared at the picture for hours when I first got my HD a few years ago.
 
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walter

Fourth Party
Cool, thanks guys. So what I am seeing is probably normal?

Jeff, your pixel description was spot on, exactly what I see.

Going to check out the Discovery channel
Thanks again.
 

VanDbtRiver

Well-Known Member
Whats a HDMI cable? My box is a brand new HD/DVR one they brought today.

if you have 1 cable going from box to tv it's likely an hdmi cable, if there are 5 color-coded cables between box and tv those are the standard issue. whenever you change the connection type you need to goto menu and reselect your source. they usually try to sell you an hdmi along with the tv, i wouldnt be surprised if they slipped one in there and tacked on a couple bucks.
 

walter

Fourth Party
if you have 1 cable going from box to tv it's likely an hdmi cable, if there are 5 color-coded cables between box and tv those are the standard issue. whenever you change the connection type you need to goto menu and reselect your source. they usually try to sell you an hdmi along with the tv, i wouldnt be surprised if they slipped one in there and tacked on a couple bucks.


Thanks for the tip, I will check it out in the morning.
 

RNG1

Well-Known Member
First off, check what picture "mode" your tv is in. Most come default to sports or vivid which usually makes things look brighter than they should be and will sometimes make that flickering you described. Put the TV in standard mode it may have a slightly less initial wow factor but you will appreciate it more after 5 minutes of viewing.
Also if you choose to connect with an HDMI cable (one connector to provide digital audio and video) you will need to go into the setup on the cable box in order to activate the audio portion through HDMI. I believe it is in "devices" under audio then click on it and select it. Very common for people to think the cable is broken or something else is wrong when you have picture with no sound when all you have to do is activate it through this setting. God knows why the box is not defaulted to this setting but that is the big beautiful machine known as cablevision or time warner. Welcome to my world.
 

walter

Fourth Party
Thanks Rob, and yes the flickering only occurred on the dynamic mode. Any other suggestions? Do you recommend the hdmi cable?
 

Frank

Sasquatch
The most amazing HD channel (for top quality picture) is the Discovery channel. I stared at the picture for hours when I first got my HD a few years ago.

My favorite was a story on the Space Shuttle on Discovery HD Theatre....totally blew me away when it launched.

Walter, be sure to check out Sunrise Earth....some awesome images there too.
 

walter

Fourth Party
Another example: when I'm up in the music channels, the text on the screen is slightly blurred. Normal?
 

Frank

Sasquatch
None of the channels should be ''blurred''. Like others have said some programs will not be recorded in 1080 HD format (lines of resolution) but will be in 380 (?) which is why you get that "not so great" picture. If a channel(s) are blurred I would check the connections, but wait until after you have gotten the HDMI cable.

Come to think of it...the text on the screen was a tiny bit fuzzy before I hooked up with HDMI.
 
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walter

Fourth Party
As I am looking around, I see different brand hdmi cables, is there one that is better than the other?
 
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