HD Advisor June 26th

[Attebery]

He's back!

This week's Friday coverage seems to have a G.I. Joe angle going on....

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/sh...D_Advisor/2959

[crazzeto]

check amazon.com for optical audio splitters, I picked a great one up off there... I'm sure monoprice also has some.

[Lee Stewart]

To help understand Color Temperature- this link uses more English than Math equations () and IMO is easier to understand:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_temperature

Color Temp determines not only the color of white but all the shades of gray between white and black on the gray scale.

And just to throw a wrench into the equation . . .

If you watch old B & W movies from the 30's and 40's - then "white" is supposed to be set to 5400K and not 6500K

[RBBrittain]

Originally Posted by crazzeto

check amazon.com for optical audio splitters, I picked a great one up off there... I'm sure monoprice also has some.

He specifically said he needed a SWITCHER (i.e., switch), NOT a splitter. Some splitters act like they're reversible, but a reversed splitter simply WILL NOT WORK in many cases!

My research found the same thing; it's either expensive switches or cheap-looking plastic switches that must be turned manually. Mine lasted more than six months, but I got tired of playing with the switch; I upgraded to a new HTIB with HDMI audio inputs and enough optical inputs to get rid of the switch.

Seriously, the only way out of this hole is to spend some money--whether for the expensive switches, an HTIB or receiver with HDMI audio inputs (edit: and/or more optical inputs), or a battery of optical-to-coax (and perhaps reverse) converters with a standard AV switch using RCA jacks.

[RBBrittain]

There's another good reason to switch to HDMI audio too, and it fits in with the last two HD Advisors: Optical & coax can only handle LPCM 2.0 *or* Dolby Digital & DTS at up to 5.1; DD & DTS are "lossy" compression standards, like MP3. HDMI, on the other hand, can handle LPCM, Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD Master Audio at up to 7.1 each; those are all bit-perfect "lossless" compression, like Zip files. (Some think LPCM *is* the uncompressed format, since it's the native format of CDs and WAV files; it's actually just slightly compressed.)

Thus, optical simply cannot handle the latest, greatest sound formats; only HDMI can--even with the PS3, which (as noted in HD Advisor 17's homework assignment) decodes TrueHD & DTS-HD MA to LPCM before sending it over the HDMI cable. If you use optical with the PS3, you're limited to DD/DTS 5.1 at most; only HDMI gives you lossless audio, even when TrueHD/DTS-HD MA is converted to LPCM.

Of course, higher-end BD players & receivers can bitstream TrueHD or DTS-HD MA over HDMI; but even those are limited to DD/DTS 5.1 over optical. So optical is NOT king anymore...

(Edit: I won't even get into the bitstreaming-vs.-LPCM war, except to say I'm on the LPCM side; IMHO, the only thing you really lose by going to LPCM is the Dolby or DTS light on your receiver. Others may prefer bitstreaming; but either way, you *need* HDMI to get past DD/DTS 5.1.)

[Hastor]

I just realized my TV was using some overscan thanks to this article. Luckily, my Samsung set has a picture-size option for "Just Scan". However, I noticed that movies truly framed at 1.85:1 now have slight bars at the top and bottom, as they should, but it seems, at least on the one I tried, "Burn After Reading", that the top and bottom line of pixels have a higher brightness than the rest of the picture. Things at true 16x9 show a little more picture (well everything does to the sides, even 1.85:1 showed a tiny bit more on the top and bottom). It seems this would be the best way to watch, but what is with the top and bottom row of pixels being brighter? Also, DirecTV HD looks great on HD channels, but noise becomes visible on SD channels at the top. While my TV will let be adjust the position for "just scan", moving it up to crop the noise leaves a black bar at the bottom of HD pictures. The TV remembers different settings for different resolutions, but the DirecTV box outputs all at 1080i, upscaling, unless I want to hit the format button a bunch of times every time I switch between HD and SD chans. I'm not so concerned about DirecTV, but do wonder why the top/bottom row of pixels on Blu-ray are so bright when I don't overscan.

Edit: I just tried another 1.85:1 BD, "Hellboy", and didn't have this problem. Maybe it is just an issue with the "Burn After Reading" encode. Not that distracting, and better than cropping, so I'll still watch it with no overscan. Glad this article got me to look into this, as I wasn't watching movies at the true native res, and any conversion is gonna affect quality, especially a slight one. Not like we are talking 480 to 1080 here, just pretty much a useless scaling pass.

[smallville]

Seek out the HDMI/Optical switch made from Psyclone. Model #PSC-47. It features 1 HDMI/Optical input and 4 HDMI/Optical outputs. The quality of the product is top notch, and the performance is very good. It also features an LCD display that is user programmable to "label/name" each input, and comes with remote control. The best part is it's fully compatible with universal remotes such as Logitech's Harmony line, Universal, Phillips etc. I've had great results with this product and would recommend it to anyone that is willing to spend a little money on it...and can handle running signals through a switch. MSRP $199.99, usually found for $150-160.

[ajmrowland]

TI recently got the HD Basics disc, but am more confused than ever before. It tells me in the color section that I should switch modes to accurate, or in the case my Toshiba 47HL167, "Cinema". The colors, and brightness are at halfway, and the contrast at 90 and the colors don't really pop as much as I would have liked. However, I do want to watch my movies the way they were intended to be seen. I just though factory presets were generally wrong?

[damonous]

Originally Posted by smallville

Seek out the HDMI/Optical switch made from Psyclone. Model #PSC-47. It features 1 HDMI/Optical input and 4 HDMI/Optical outputs. The quality of the product is top notch, and the performance is very good. It also features an LCD display that is user programmable to "label/name" each input, and comes with remote control. The best part is it's fully compatible with universal remotes such as Logitech's Harmony line, Universal, Phillips etc. I've had great results with this product and would recommend it to anyone that is willing to spend a little money on it...and can handle running signals through a switch. MSRP $199.99, usually found for $150-160.

Nice! I was just going to recommend the very same thing. Although I don't use the Psyclone anymore because I found a smaller auto-switching Gefen at a great deal (and I'm not longer concerned much about optical switching), the Psyclone is a good product, and it even has variable HDMI gains (if you fancy it).

To the Reader with the question: Just BITE THE BULLET. I used to be like you trying to rationalize that, "I'm not going to spend a lot of money for a simple switcher!" ...But the end reality is it's NOT really 'so simple' anymore. We're not talking about splitting RCA lines, anymore; we're talking about a component capable of transmitting an encrypted (or 'formatted', for optical) digital signal. You're not doing yourself a favor by scrounging around for 'small little cheap boxes', and hoping they work out.

For example, before I joined the "HDMI party", I had the need for several component connections. Unfortunately, nearly ever one I tried had horrible white-clip problems. I finally had found a Joytech that wasn't too bad (by the way, it's also an optical-switcher), although it's aesthetically matched to the white Xbox. But, there again, I had to keep taking things back, and keep increasing how much I paid. Even as it was, I could've probably sank $300 to get a really perfect one.

Long story short, I agree with the Psyclone recommendation. You'll also be pretty-well set for HDMI, once you migrate toward that in the future. Check your local BestBuy's. They may still carry them at certain locations.

[Josh Z]

Originally Posted by ajmrowland

TI recently got the HD Basics disc, but am more confused than ever before. It tells me in the color section that I should switch modes to accurate, or in the case my Toshiba 47HL167, "Cinema". The colors, and brightness are at halfway, and the contrast at 90 and the colors don't really pop as much as I would have liked. However, I do want to watch my movies the way they were intended to be seen. I just though factory presets were generally wrong?

Factory presets are almost always wrong. And that includes the "Cinema" preset. That mode should just be a starting point for your calibration, not the end of the line.

As far as the colors not popping, once you have them dialed in per the test patterns on the calibration disc, give yourself some time to get used to the new settings. Over time, you may come to appreciate accuracy over "pop". At first, it may seem jarring, however.

When you say you have the Contrast at 90, what range is that scale? If that's 90 out of 100, you have your Contrast way too high. Every TV is different, but it should generally be closer to the mid point.

[ajmrowland]

well, the cinemay mode set the colors to 50, ten points lower than before. That feels jarring, but seems accurate on the DVE disc.

So, is it the Warm or medium color temperature that best replicates the D65 colors.

[Hastor]

For some reason my Samsung will let me pick Cool2, Cool1, or Normal. It lists Warm and Warm2, but they are greyed out and unselectable. Normal seems to be right though. I don't have a DVE disc or anything, but things look right to me, though I've adjusted things greatly from factory settings. Have only used a THX optimizer included with a movie though, and slight adjustments actually watching movies. Definately not as bright as store displays, but looks about the same as the brightness at the theater.

[ajmrowland]

he DVE discs come with colored lenses to help with color adjustments. Also,it's usually inadvisable to make changes based on video content

[RBBrittain]

Originally Posted by damonous

Nice! I was just going to recommend the very same thing. Although I don't use the Psyclone anymore because I found a smaller auto-switching Gefen at a great deal (and I'm not longer concerned much about optical switching), the Psyclone is a good product, and it even has variable HDMI gains (if you fancy it).

To the Reader with the question: Just BITE THE BULLET. I used to be like you trying to rationalize that, "I'm not going to spend a lot of money for a simple switcher!" ...But the end reality is it's NOT really 'so simple' anymore. We're not talking about splitting RCA lines, anymore; we're talking about a component capable of transmitting an encrypted (or 'formatted', for optical) digital signal. You're not doing yourself a favor by scrounging around for 'small little cheap boxes', and hoping they work out.

For example, before I joined the "HDMI party", I had the need for several component connections. Unfortunately, nearly ever one I tried had horrible white-clip problems. I finally had found a Joytech that wasn't too bad (by the way, it's also an optical-switcher), although it's aesthetically matched to the white Xbox. But, there again, I had to keep taking things back, and keep increasing how much I paid. Even as it was, I could've probably sank $300 to get a really perfect one.

Long story short, I agree with the Psyclone recommendation. You'll also be pretty-well set for HDMI, once you migrate toward that in the future. Check your local BestBuy's. They may still carry them at certain locations.

Though I think the Psyclone was one of the over-$100 solutions the original question referred to (possibly the Joytech as well), I agree with you 100%. There is simply NO low-cost way to switch optical signals besides those el-cheapo plastic knobs; you need either a more expensive switch that integrates optical with HDMI and/or component (like the Psyclone or Joytech), or HDMI audio.

Though I took the plunge to HDMI audio, with all the "pass-through" HDMI in low-end AV receivers nowadays, the switch may be the best solution for you if you're still comfortable with your optical equipment. Not only that, but some optical (or coax) solutions simply can't be replaced at present; those are the *only* ways to pass DD 5.1 from a TV's built-in tuner till HDMI 1.4's "return audio path" is implemented, some STBs haven't implemented DD 5.1 over HDMI yet (like AT&T U-verse until the Total Home DVR Phase 2 update now being rolled out--it hasn't made it here yet so I'm stuck with optical for the moment), and PC HDMI audio is limited by HDCP and other hardware constraints (most HDMI sound cards simply can't implement the "protected audio path" drivers HDCP demands).

[Sticks4legs]

I would put trust in anything Monoprice has to offer!! An you know you will be getting the best price

http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...seq=1&format=2