High definition or upconverted

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  • leighdog
    Junior Member
    Junior Member
    • Oct 2006
    • 1

    High definition or upconverted

    I sure hope people arent being suckered into thinking they are buying a blu ray or hd dvd.Isnt it true that in order to be a high def dvd the original film has to be shot with high def cameras?I saw terminator on amazon being sold as a blu ray dvd but remember this film is old and i dont think it was shot with high def cameras was it?Its upconverted"""
  • mc4man
    Junior Member
    Junior Member
    • Jun 2006
    • 14

    #2
    i'm no expert but my impression is that film, as in 35,70 mm, is a higher resolution than hd

    Comment

    • nwg
      Left *****
      • Jun 2003
      • 5196

      #3
      Originally Posted by mc4man
      i'm no expert but my impression is that film, as in 35,70 mm, is a higher resolution than hd
      Correct.

      The source does not have to be in Hi Def to start with. Film uses a lot more resolution than Hi Def (at least 4 times more).

      Also upconverted cannot match the quality of proper HD. Don't fall for these upconverting DVD players. The only player that is does a good job is the Toshiba HD-DVD player. That is because it costs $500 rather than a cheap player which would be hopeless.

      Also, people with HDTV's will also upconvert normal DVD for you anyway. Generally, a TV that upscales is better than a player that upscales.

      Comment

      • volfann
        Digital Video Enthusiast
        Digital Video Enthusiast
        • Jun 2006
        • 384

        #4
        Originally Posted by leighdog
        I sure hope people arent being suckered into thinking they are buying a blu ray or hd dvd.Isnt it true that in order to be a high def dvd the original film has to be shot with high def cameras?I saw terminator on amazon being sold as a blu ray dvd but remember this film is old and i dont think it was shot with high def cameras was it?Its upconverted"""
        Maybe you were thinking of IMAX...
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        • toomanycats
          Digital Video Expert
          Digital Video Expert
          • Apr 2005
          • 595

          #5
          Actually the Zenith DVB318 is an upconverting player that does it thru the YPrB jacks and has the Faroujda chip it is. This player is excellent as far as playback. The price range is around $150.00. Upscaling is also available thru the HDMI. If you want to use the YPrb there is a firware upgrad(downgrade) which will allow the player to play commercial DVD's at 1080i without the worry of HDCP. I have had this player for a year and it is better than my Samsung or Sony DVD players which I payed a lot more for, which are also both progressive scan but not upscaling.

          Comment

          • TNT
            DVD Shrinker
            • Jan 2004
            • 1296

            #6
            Originally Posted by nwg
            Generally, a TV that upscales is better than a player that upscales.
            Is this the general consensus? I have a feeling that it depends a lot on the equipment, but I was interested in other people's opinions as well.
            Beauty is in the eye of the Beer-Holder.
            I'm in shape. ROUND is a shape. - George Carlin

            How to choose an HDTV, Step by Step

            Comment

            • toomanycats
              Digital Video Expert
              Digital Video Expert
              • Apr 2005
              • 595

              #7
              I was going to buy a separate upscaler but it was way too much money. I did get to see it in operation and it was awesome, just not $1500 awesome. I think your right TNT, it does depend on a lot. I can't imagine one necessary for anything other than something extremely large (Viewing) and HDTV.

              Comment

              • nwg
                Left *****
                • Jun 2003
                • 5196

                #8
                Originally Posted by TNT
                Is this the general consensus? I have a feeling that it depends a lot on the equipment, but I was interested in other people's opinions as well.
                It does depend on the equipment but also how much it costs. You can't expect a £100 upscaling DVD player to equal the scaler in a £1000-£1500 HDTV. The DVD players that cost £500 do have some impressive upscaling.

                You can't really beat a external upscaler though.

                Some TV will automatically upscale (to 1366 x 768 or 1920 x 1080) and some will accept a 480/576 input and display it as 480/576.

                It comes down to experimentation.

                By the time I get into HD discs. I will just use a HD player and use it to upscale my current DVD's. I will then buy new DVD's in HD.

                Going back to the OP post. You will unlikely get acceptable HD picture from video. This will affect TV series which is edited on video (although shot on film). These include series such as Friends and all the Star Trek series after TOS and before Enterprise. Enterprise was shot on HD film so that should look good. Trek TOS has recently been remastered in HD (and updated SFX) because it was shot in film back in the 60's.

                Comment

                • toomanycats
                  Digital Video Expert
                  Digital Video Expert
                  • Apr 2005
                  • 595

                  #9
                  If you TV/Projector doesn't have the resolution the upscaling will have a minimal if not detrimental effect. You do have to experiment but anything under 36 inches you won't notice too much of anything (if is is a good TV to begin with). All the HD stuff is for the big sceens. If the resolution isn't there to begin with your peeing into the wind.

                  Comment

                  • nwg
                    Left *****
                    • Jun 2003
                    • 5196

                    #10
                    @TMC
                    Have you seen upscaled SD DVD on a HD DVD player? It is certainly not peeing in the wind. It is very impressive but then it does cost a lot more money over most SD DVD players. I have seen the difference on a 32" easily.

                    Comment

                    • TNT
                      DVD Shrinker
                      • Jan 2004
                      • 1296

                      #11
                      Obviously, having an esternal scaler of decent quality will help. I guess that if you're dealing with a $200 DVD player, chances are good that the scaler in the $2,000 TV is better. The scaler in a $20k Mark Levinson is not going to hurt a $2,500 TV on the other hand. I guess I should have included the caveat that the two components should be of similar "grade".
                      Beauty is in the eye of the Beer-Holder.
                      I'm in shape. ROUND is a shape. - George Carlin

                      How to choose an HDTV, Step by Step

                      Comment

                      • toomanycats
                        Digital Video Expert
                        Digital Video Expert
                        • Apr 2005
                        • 595

                        #12
                        One must not forget the most important component of all, the "psychological" component.

                        Comment

                        • TNT
                          DVD Shrinker
                          • Jan 2004
                          • 1296

                          #13
                          Yeah, there's nothing that will improve your system performance like a couple of beers.
                          Beauty is in the eye of the Beer-Holder.
                          I'm in shape. ROUND is a shape. - George Carlin

                          How to choose an HDTV, Step by Step

                          Comment

                          • sweetrmarie
                            Junior Member
                            Junior Member
                            • Mar 2006
                            • 27

                            #14
                            Originally Posted by nwg
                            Correct.

                            The source does not have to be in Hi Def to start with. Film uses a lot more resolution than Hi Def (at least 4 times more).

                            Also upconverted cannot match the quality of proper HD. Don't fall for these upconverting DVD players. The only player that is does a good job is the Toshiba HD-DVD player. That is because it costs $500 rather than a cheap player which would be hopeless.

                            Also, people with HDTV's will also upconvert normal DVD for you anyway. Generally, a TV that upscales is better than a player that upscales.
                            Hi, having just recently purchased a 42 inch Plasma Panny Viera TH42PX60, would I benefit from an upconverting dvd player? I want to get the best PQ as possible without buying a true hd dvd player. So far, I really like wha t I see, using SVideo from the dvd player to the set. Nothing to compare it to besides my 20 year old crt Mitsubishi. Thanks for any input. SM

                            Comment

                            • nwg
                              Left *****
                              • Jun 2003
                              • 5196

                              #15
                              Originally Posted by sweetrmarie
                              Hi, having just recently purchased a 42 inch Plasma Panny Viera TH42PX60, would I benefit from an upconverting dvd player? I want to get the best PQ as possible without buying a true hd dvd player. So far, I really like wha t I see, using SVideo from the dvd player to the set. Nothing to compare it to besides my 20 year old crt Mitsubishi. Thanks for any input. SM
                              Nice TV.

                              The TV is capable of 720p. The TV has to convert the DVD to that resolution anyway. I would make sure you use the best connection to the TV. This would be either HDMI, DVI or component. In your case you have two HDMI's (very nice). I would use a DVD player with that connection. It is a pure digital connection and will be a lot better than S Video with that size TV (also enable progressive scan as well). If you get a upscaling DVD player. You could turn it on and see if the picture is better or not than the TV doing the upscaling. As, the TV is normally over £1000. I would expect the TV to be better and makes it pointless in the player.

                              A decent player would be the Sony NS76. This has both upscaling and HDMI. It is just £90 from Amazon.co.uk and it also multi region. You will also need to buy a HDMI cable as they are not normally supplied with the player. Don't get ripped off, around £15 should be enough.

                              Sony DVP-NS76H £89.99

                              3 Metre HDMI cable £16.99

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