On Dec 3, 2007 6:13 PM, James Maki <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I am currently looking at replacing a 27" CRT television in the family room > that is attached to my computer via S-Video for watching TV (SageTV based > HTPC). My work computer has a 19" 4x3 LCD monitor and I have noticed that > television often looks better with the 27" television than on the 19" LCD. > Reading some of the forums, many people complain about the quality of > regular SD broadcasts on their HDTV sets. So my first question is whether I > would be disappointed purchasing an HDTV to use for SD output from SageTV > and Xvid file?
The problem is that HD makes SD look so poor and when its easy to compare the two its really easy to notice. The first year I had the HD Sunday Ticket was the perfect example. I would get 5-6 games in HD and the other 2-3 in SD and flipping channnels around would literally make me cringe. The SD signals were so poor in comparison as to be unwatchable. Now, it is possible to have a SD signal that looks pretty good (like DVD) but a lot of networks (CBS and FOX affiliates come to mind) are still pumping crappy analog SD over their cable networks. So if you have a good quality SD output it should look okay but some of your Comcast/Time Warner stuff will look like crap. > Next question is the relative merits of 1080p vs. 720p. It would seem that > to have any hope of readable screens, 1080p would be necessary. Why is that > most HDTVs do not have DVI inputs? DRM issues? Many people in the forums > also complain about problems driving an HDTV thru the HDMI ports using a > computer. Valid problem? My video cards seem to the correct aspect ratios > for 16x9 screens, 1920 x 1080 and 1360x768 (for 720p). Most of the HDTVs I > have investigated have a VGA (analog) input, but no DVI. This has been a long running debate among the HD community. It mostly comes down to what content you watch. The vast majority of HD signals coming over satellite or cable are 720p at best. Broadcast HD is a mix of 1080i and 720p (see the Wikipedia article on HDTV for details). Between the two it is really a wash - technically 1080i has more lines/pixels but 720p is a progressive signal and thus tends to look better for high motion (think sports). The only sources of 1080p content right now are computer produced video and Blu-ray / HD-DVD, although they depend on the player. The Xbox 360 and PS3 also support 1080p and but only if the game developers actually put it in the game. DVI is not widely used because it is an unprotected output - anything connected to it can copy the signal. Also, it is video only. HDMI can carry both video and audio and has HDCP which provides content protection to avoid the whole stealing thing. Think of HDCP as Macrovision for the digital age. I have experienced problems connecting my HTPC using DVI. It is a Mitsubishi 55" DLP and has HDMI input and a VGA input. The TV only allows a PC to connect to the VGA input and says in the manual that a PC will not work connected to the HDMI. I tried it and they are right. But the VGA works. Again, I think it is a copy protection issue. > Lastly, would I be disappointed in the quality of the display of an HDTV for > computer output? It would not be my primary viewing platform, but would be > nice if it could be used by my wife or daughter when I am busy on my main > system. 720p is 1280 vertical by 720 horizontal and 1080p is 1920×1080. I run a 19" CRT at 1280x1024 on my computer so it is pretty comparable. The biggest adjustment is that your screen will by 16:9 instead of 4:3 so you will need to shift some windows around. But it should be just fine in terms of clarity. The one piece of software you NEED to have is Power Strip. It is a shareware utility that allows you complete control over your video card output and allows you to craft any resolution, scan rate, screen size, and offset that you need to display computer video on your TV. And it has a pretty good community with lots of people solving problems. You might want to look into buying a TV that is popular among the community and has been proven to work well for this purpose: http://www.entechtaiwan.com/util/ps.shtm http://www.ramelectronics.net/html/powerstrip.html > Lastly, budgetary constraints would keep the total outlay in the $1000 > range. Am I hoping for the impossible? I would look at the latest episode of DL.TV. Robert Heron is the HDTV guru at Cnet and just updated his holiday buying guide: http://dl.tv/2007/11/dltv_episode_206_gps_hdtvs_for.php > Thanks for the input. Other suggestions most welcome. > > Jim Maki > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > -- Brian Weeden
