The "Sharpness" Dilemma

frnd08

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I'm sure most LCD owners would be facing the situation I'm about to describe.

I have turned the sharpness level to 2 (2/100) on my LCD (KLV26T400A) for watching DVDs, as the video settings of DVDs are too awesome to require a sharpness adjustment.

Now when I watch TV channels via STB, the sharpness levels have to be increased bcoz the pic quality is far from perfect. That means, every time I change from DVD mode to STB mode, I have to change my sharpness! That can get a bit boring after sometime.

Have you faced this situation? Whats your solution?
 
I'm sure most LCD owners would be facing the situation I'm about to describe.

I have turned the sharpness level to 2 (2/100) on my LCD (KLV26T400A) for watching DVDs, as the video settings of DVDs are too awesome to require a sharpness adjustment.

Now when I watch TV channels via STB, the sharpness levels have to be increased bcoz the pic quality is far from perfect. That means, every time I change from DVD mode to STB mode, I have to change my sharpness! That can get a bit boring after sometime.

Have you faced this situation? Whats your solution?


Some fancy remotes will do that but they are super expensive. However for normal viewing, you can set the TV to a mode such as "movie" that is a good compromise for sports/movies/concerts. Overly sharp images tend to look unreal esp. for sports when grass might end up looking like paint.
 
well for DVD and HD i put the sharpness mostly to zero,but as u do increase the sharpness when watching via STB,and thankfully my sony tv as individual settings for each input.
 
well for DVD and HD i put the sharpness mostly to zero,but as u do increase the sharpness when watching via STB,and thankfully my sony tv as individual settings for each input.


well, mine has that too. all TV sets, whether bravia or not, have picture modes in them. but you still have to change the picture mode while changing the input source.

is there any easier way out?
 
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Some fancy remotes will do that but they are super expensive. However for normal viewing, you can set the TV to a mode such as "movie" that is a good compromise for sports/movies/concerts. Overly sharp images tend to look unreal esp. for sports when grass might end up looking like paint.

ya, that is what i have to do. i will compromise on my tv viewing. dvd is too irresistible to be used inappropriately.
 
btw, marsilians, could you please elaborate on the remote you're talking about? what exactly does it do?
 
well, mine has that too. all TV sets, whether bravia or not, have picture modes in them. but you still have to change the picture mode while changing the input source.

is there any easier way out?

well for local cable wala RF signal the sharpness,color settings are set to higher,for my big tv via component 1 color settings and sharpness are slightly lower then what i set for cable wala,for DVD,games from my xbox via component 2 the shapness is zero color settings are the same,these settings i dont change,when ever i play DVD the settings which i had put remains.it remembers the picture mode.
 
Frnd, if you are using the cable that came with the STB, please try replacing it with a decent brand. I fitted a Brandridge cable, and I don't have to make any changes. Many times, the TV signals are better than some DVDs particularly in channels such as HBO, Start Movies, Discovery and my favorite Cartoon Network.

Cheers
 
how much would a decent component cable cost me? and how do i know if its good? i mean, most component cable available in the market dont have any packaging! :)
 
well for DVD and HD i put the sharpness mostly to zero,but as u do increase the sharpness when watching via STB,and thankfully my sony tv as individual settings for each input.

That was an awesome pice of information! thank you so very much! i didnt even know this setting was there in my bravia! and my model's a lower range bravia, so if my tv has this setting all bravia models will have it. (and this isnt even mentioned in the manual!)

i changed the HDMI sharpness to 2 and Component(HD/DVD) sharpness to around 8.

keep posting these tweaks! :)
 
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how much would a decent component cable cost me? and how do i know if its good? i mean, most component cable available in the market dont have any packaging! :)

You must buy from a decent shop. Look for one of the following brands:

1. Bandridge
2, Altona
3. Eagle
4. DAC

Any of these will cost you between 750 to 1000 max.

Cheers
 
how much would a decent component cable cost me? and how do i know if its good? i mean, most component cable available in the market dont have any packaging! :)

well i had bought profigold banbridge component cables from croma for 2k or 2.3k a year ago,there is a slight difference in image quality compared to the composite cables given by the STB one of the reason is that DTH and other providers content or heavily compressed and its realy hard to spot the difference, but if u are looking for a component cable i suggest u to look for some cheaper options such as philips priced at around 900 or less,i hear of MX cable which is also good priced even lesser.
i dont think the compoent cables like my profigold bandbridge is worth that 2k price,and i defnitly regret spending so much on that cable.its so thick that cable management is a problem and its very heavy.
 
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btw, marsilians, could you please elaborate on the remote you're talking about? what exactly does it do?

You can write simple macros or customize "video modes" in harmony remotes to change the picture mode. Its slightly tricky but not too much of a sweat.
 
You must buy from a decent shop. Look for one of the following brands:

1. Bandridge
2, Altona
3. Eagle
4. DAC

Any of these will cost you between 750 to 1000 max.

Cheers

sir,
price range betn these are 450 to3000 so is it worth to pay for brandridge profigold for2700 if DAC is for 500?
 
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sir,
price range betn these are 450 to3000 so is it worth to pay for brandridge profigold for2700 if DAC is for 500?

nope its not worth it i have a profigold which costed 2500 ,honestly it aint worth it atleast for DTH which i use it for,may be for HD,but then again nowdays, u are going to use HDMI.
 
price range betn these are 450 to3000 so is it worth to pay for brandridge profigold for 2700 if DAC is for 500?

Bandridge has two brands - Bandridge and Profigold. The Bandridge should not cost more than 300 to 500 for most products and a max of 800 for the high end component.

Profigold is the more expensive brand.

For things like STB Bandrige is good enough.

Cheers
 
Venkat,

With a bit of apprehension (because you have much more experience in this than me), I must share my experience with the component cables (repeating myself from another thread, don't quite remember which one):

I have BigTV DTH service with the STB having a component connection with our Sony Bravia 37" LCD TV bought around Diwali last year.

I have tried this video connection using a usual video (yellow) cable, a Bandridge component cable (Rs 700 -800) and a Profigold component cable (Rs. 2300).

Component cables are a significant improvement over the video cable in terms of everything: contrast, sharpness, color etc. Between the component cables, the more expensive Profigold showed also significant improvement over the Bandridge, not so much in contrast and sharpness, but definitely in color depth. Now the picture in many channels are nearly DVD quality.
 
With a bit of apprehension (because you have much more experience in this than me), I must share my experience with the component cables (repeating myself from another thread, don't quite remember which one):

I have BigTV DTH service with the STB having a component connection with our Sony Bravia 37" LCD TV bought around Diwali last year.

I have tried this video connection using a usual video (yellow) cable, a Bandridge component cable (Rs 700 -800) and a Profigold component cable (Rs. 2300).

Component cables are a significant improvement over the video cable in terms of everything: contrast, sharpness, color etc. Between the component cables, the more expensive Profigold showed also significant improvement over the Bandridge, not so much in contrast and sharpness, but definitely in color depth. Now the picture in many channels are nearly DVD quality.

There is no denying a good cable will provide better results. I have even tried my Tara Labs that beats the hell out of all these cables.

But, what most people in this and other threads are looking for is VFM. I keep telling people to move away from the unbranded and unknown, mostly composite cables, that are supplied with STBs and even DVD Players. Since they are apprehensive about spending too much money (VFM, VFM), I keep advising them to look for products I know will work well at around 300-500 Rupees. I have tried Bandridge, Atlona and DAC and they all make a significant improvement to the sound and video signal that comes from the STB. I have also experimented with a couple of new Indian brands, and they have failed miserably. Colours disappeared and my TV suddenly became B&W !!

Cables from companies such as Bandridge, Atlona, and DAC are not high end by any means, but they do provide significant improvement over the roadside cables.

Though I use a lot of MX spades, unfortunately, I yet don't have too much faith in their cables. I am bit apprehensive about suppliers who do not provide enough technical detail on the composition of their products.

I have even tried a few Panasonic cables that are available quite easily and well packed. Believe me, they are as bad as the roadside cables. I don't understand why Panasonic is doing this at all. In particular, I tried their 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable to connect my iPOD to the car system. I just couldn't don't believe the scratch noises I heard every time there was a bump. The noises disappeared the minute I replaced the Panasonic cable with a Bandridge cable.

I am ready to experiment, but for regular usage I will stick to what I know. And that is advise I am trying to provide here.

Cheers
 
Point about VFM well made, Venkat. It's true that the Bandridge component cable at about 700-800 rupees is a good deal. I just wanted to point out that the profigold is even better, but at a much higher cost.

Agree with you completely on Panasonic cables, they are simply rubbish. They cost around Rs 400-500. No experience with MX so far. Have you ever tried Vivanco cables, they are also reasonably priced (under 1K)? Seen them at a few stores, but never tried them.
 
hey Venkat, what's a good place to pick up these cables in Chennai?

There is no denying a good cable will provide better results. I have even tried my Tara Labs that beats the hell out of all these cables.

But, what most people in this and other threads are looking for is VFM. I keep telling people to move away from the unbranded and unknown, mostly composite cables, that are supplied with STBs and even DVD Players. Since they are apprehensive about spending too much money (VFM, VFM), I keep advising them to look for products I know will work well at around 300-500 Rupees. I have tried Bandridge, Atlona and DAC and they all make a significant improvement to the sound and video signal that comes from the STB. I have also experimented with a couple of new Indian brands, and they have failed miserably. Colours disappeared and my TV suddenly became B&W !!

Cables from companies such as Bandridge, Atlona, and DAC are not high end by any means, but they do provide significant improvement over the roadside cables.

Though I use a lot of MX spades, unfortunately, I yet don't have too much faith in their cables. I am bit apprehensive about suppliers who do not provide enough technical detail on the composition of their products.

I have even tried a few Panasonic cables that are available quite easily and well packed. Believe me, they are as bad as the roadside cables. I don't understand why Panasonic is doing this at all. In particular, I tried their 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable to connect my iPOD to the car system. I just couldn't don't believe the scratch noises I heard every time there was a bump. The noises disappeared the minute I replaced the Panasonic cable with a Bandridge cable.

I am ready to experiment, but for regular usage I will stick to what I know. And that is advise I am trying to provide here.

Cheers
 
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