HD ready and Full HD

Roman, I still believe that you are wrong regarding the DStv HD resolution. I don't know why it is displaying 1080i when set to original. I have just mailed someone at MC, to clear this up. Will post when I get an answer...
 
Quantum Theory said:
I have just mailed someone at MC, to clear this up. Will post when I get an answer...
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Yes, please do, I would also like to understand it. Can you also ask from some detail, there are many legs to the full signal path. Lets take a live sport broadcast for instance ...

1. The format the source HD camera is encoding in and sending back to the source broadcaster
2. The format the source broadcaster transmits it to MC
3. The format MC re-broadcasts/re-encodes back up to its satellite transponders
4. The format the MPEG chip in the HDPVR decodes to and sends down the HDMI cable

As mentioned, for now I'm working of the physical evidence I can see before me.
 
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Roman4604 said:
I've not hidden this, mentioning it in numerous previous posts. Fact remains, the offer is avaliable and if taken up one will get the TV for the price indicated taking into account the value of bundled decoders.

If you ask me this is just clever bundling/promoting. Chances are someone in the market for a budget flatscreen is most probably a first time buyer into HD, and as such the probablity is high they would also be wanting to upgrade to a HD decoder at the same time.

The Drifta is thrown in as a sweetner, which I derive great value from. Works nice with my iPad, but day-to-day its permanently connected to the work desktop via USB allowing me to have a small window on my desktop to monitor news (CNN, eNews), or follow a live match on the Supersport channels.
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Fallacious argument. Fact remains, LA40C530 retails at R6,000 - sometimes R5,500 on special if you're lucky (well, not really...).

Now who's blatantly lying again, as you did above by stating the minimum resolution of low end Plasma is 1366x768, when we all know it is 1024x768 (e.g. Samsung PSXXC430 range and many other non branded low-end sets).
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I thought mentioning the res of the 50" plasmas added better effect because you would still phreak out; since it's a higher resolution, yet the PS42/42xxx still beats your LA40C530 at anything 720p or below, including FHD when you sit far back enough. Like I have said, when ever people went in to compare budget TVs, they chose the PS42Cxx over the LA40C5xx. It's fun watching you pixel phreaks phreaking out, while everyone else knows which is better.

Do you actually own a DSTV HDPVR? From you responses (contradicting your own screenshots) its seems like you're just making this up as you go.
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Did you not look at my pics?

Setting the PVR to 720p is better. I could notice the difference, even with the break in transmission while setting the different resolution options.

So yes, everyone who recommends 720p 42"/50" plasma for HDPVR is 100% correct.
 
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Roman4604 said:
Until I see the HDPVR switching the signal to 1280x720p@50Hz by itself, I will take the 'Multichoice sometimes broadcasts in 720p' as pure conjecture.
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I found this hilarious. :D The man is so stubborn, and all out just so that he can justify his purchase of a worse TV, just so that he can get his resolution fix (1280x540 :wtf: :D).
 
PostmanPot said:
I found this hilarious. :D
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Dude if you find it hilarious to base ones understanding of the world on provable fact, then you're living in la-la land. Dont tell me you're a follower of that moegoe who said the world would end?
 
Okay Roman... I did not know this. HD's at work and home set to 720p. I wonder when they changed. They didn't even let us know :mad:
 
That one user on the DStv forum seems to think that the original setting does not work, as it always puts out 1080i. Maybe he is right... Should get a reply from a MC guy tomorrow. I really hope they are still using 720p. Who is MC Brenda? She tech or PR?
 
Quantum Theory said:
That one user on the DStv forum seems to think that the original setting does not work, as it always puts out 1080i. Maybe he is right... Should get a reply from a MC guy tomorrow. I really hope they are still using 720p. Who is MC Brenda? She tech or PR?
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She's not a tech, mainly software related. I'll email a tech about it later
 
Roman4604 said:
1. The format the source HD camera is encoding in and sending back to the source broadcaster
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The source footage is arbitrary - especially in broadcast. Professional cameras for broadcast shoot at a much higher bitrate (around 50Mbit/s - 800Mbit/s to uncompressed) and colour space (4:2:2 - 4:4:4).

Broadcasters compress the sh*t out of the video stream down to around 2-20Mbit/s max depending on the feed and they reduce the colour sampling to around 4:2:0, so I don't think you'll ever have to worry about the acquisition formats, as they will always be of a far superior to what the end user sees on their television screens.
 
Apparently the sport and certain other content will revert back to 720p after an upcoming FW upgrade.
 
Fsck yeah!

I take it some HDMI cables will be delivering different outputs soon.

It's aaawn!
 
genetic said:
Broadcasters compress the sh*t out of the video stream down to around 2-20Mbit/s max depending on the feed
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OK, I get the camera bit. The question then is, does the source broadcaster encode/compress the raw camera signal to some (higher res) intermediate transport format or is it already encoded to their target subscriber format?

Utlimately what I'm intesrested in is, does MC recieve the feed in intermediate format allowing them to chose the target subscriber format (e.g. MPEG4 720p or 1080i)? Or do they already recieve it in the target format meaning they would just retransmit it to end subscribers as is (i.e wouldnt be able to choose format)?

Same goes for movies & series, which I believe they recieve on digital tape. Is it already encoded in the (pre-chosen) target format or are MC at liberty to choose the format?
 
Roman4604 said:
OK, I get the camera bit. The question then is, does the source broadcaster encode/compress the raw camera signal to some (higher res) intermediate transport format or is it already encoded to their target subscriber format?

Utlimately what I'm intesrested in is, does MC recieve the feed in intermediate format allowing them to chose the target subscriber format (e.g. MPEG4 720p or 1080i)? Or do they already recieve it in the target format meaning they would just retransmit it to end subscribers as is (i.e wouldnt be able to choose format)?

Same goes for movies & series, which I believe they recieve on digital tape. Is it already encoded in the (pre-chosen) target format or are MC at liberty to choose the format?
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Multichoice receive their feeds in a much higher bitrate than you receive on your decoder - ie. they compress the feed their side before it gets to you - they choose the bitrate and delivery format (720p or 1080i).

M-Net and M-Net movies for instance broadcast HD content from HDCAM tape, which typically runs at a much higher bitrate (440Mbit/s - 800Mbit/s).

If you submit material to M-Net, you either have to submit it on Betacam SP (SD) or HDCAM tape, however, they specify that HDCAM content must be 1080i. They don't accept 720p or 1080p.
 
Thanks for the explanation genetic, that clears up a few things.

genetic said:
they choose the bitrate and delivery format (720p or 1080i).
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So HD broadcasters like MC (& Sky in UK for example) purposefully choose to use the 1080i format even though from a bitrate point of view 720p/1080i are roughly similar thus costing more or less the same (in satellite transponder capacity). What I dont get is, if 720p is deemed superior (by the likes of Potman and his experts) why would the engineering professionals/management of these companies make such a choice?

I've only had my HDPVR for a few weeks, so have only been viewing (native) 1080i with no complaints. Was watching the athletics last night and the feed from Zurich (I think) was clear, sharp & fluid at 1080i. I cannot image how reducing it to 720p is going to give me a superior viewing experience?
 
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