DLP and Standard Broadcast

[Michael McSharry]

I saw a review where the author preferred the DLP projection HDTVs over the other HD technologies, but indicated disappointment for standard broadcast TV on the DLP units. Does anyone have any first hand experiences with DLP and 525 line broadcast?

 

[mdesmarais]

Sure. Doesn't look too bad on mine- Samsung HLM507.

But really, I'm not sure what he is talking about. . . I guess maybe DLP is sharper and more revealing? I can't imagine what else he would be talking about. The video processing (which is going to vary tremendously from maker to maker and even sometimes from model to model) should have a larger impact. How old is the review?

 

[Michael McSharry]

I did not pay attention to the date on the cover. It was at the barber shop so it could have been old, but I read it about a month ago.

 

[Mike]

It may just be that DLP sets are typically bigger. Blow 400K pixels through a screen designed for 2 million and it will look better on a smaller screen.

I've got a 61" and it is not bad, I prefer DVD's of course and HD. Netflix is a good thing...

 

[MeSteve]

I don't think its a DLP thing, because a buddy of mine has a Sony SXRD 61" that looks HORRIBLE on SDTV. I think it is more likely a rear projection thing.

 

[sic0048]

It's not a rear projection thing either. It is simply that SD doesn't look good when it is on a large screen. It was OK when it was on a 26" or even a 36" CRT, but enlarging that SD source to a 50" or 61" or larger (and keeping the same resolution remember) it just doesn't look that good.

HD TVs as a whole don't produce a great SD signal. There are some exceptions, but most produce a picture that is just too sharp and highlights all the defects in SD. Then factor in that most HD sets are going to be larger, and the problem is multiplied.

A SD set produces such a soft picture, that a SD source looks better on it than the same source on a HD compatible TV.

That being said, once you have HD, you'll never go back. But if the majority of your TV viewing is going to be via a SD source, you might think twice about spending the money for a HD set.

 

[Guy Lavoie]

When talking about SD, are you referring to analog or digital? I find that digital SD actually looks rather good, at least on my 46" lcd panel set it does. Analog SD can look quite bad if you have signal quality problems like herringbone patterns, which seem to show up more on a large screen. Digital SD can look bad or good depending on how much compression is used by the cable or satellite provider. A good measure of how well a set can display a clean SD signal is by watcing a DVD with the output deliberately set to interlaced scan. Any defects here will be caused by the set's internal scaling capabilities and not with signal source problems.

I agree though; once you've experienced true high definition its hard to go back to SD.