Q&A # 276 - February 27, 2002

Staff

Q I love your new feature on industry professionals, but I have to wait a long time to get the download. Is there any way to speed this up?

A We are still developing this new section, but it would appear that the RealVideo Player works the best in terms of download because the file size is small compared to the other formats. We are settling on Windows Media Player and RealVideo Player, in the low resolution sizes. The others are just too big. Go to http://www.real.com and click on the "Our Free Player" link in the middle of their home page to get the free player. That is what I use to test the files, and it works great. There is less sibilance in the voices than Windows Media Player, and the files are relatively small.

Q I am trying to get the best picture I can afford and have been considering adding the iScan Pro, Faroudja VP-251 (used), or the Omega One to my home theater. Considering what I am working with, are these realistic directions for me, or should I just get a new progressive DVD player (perhaps the Denon 1600) and quit trying to make satellite and cable look better?

A You did not say what kind of display you are using, but I assume it is an HDTV display of some sort, capable of high scan rates. Satellite and cable signals are compressed to varying degrees, and it is a matter of chance whether or not you can get a good result with a scaler when watching programs. However, for DVD, it is a different story. A progressive scan DVD player will only output 480p. An outboard scaler can take a 480i signal from your DVD player and scale it to 720p or 1080i, and a few other resolutions. We have tested lots of scalers here, and we like them much more than just the basic 480p, so would suggest that you go with the scaler and use interlaced output from your DVD player to the scaler, and the scaler to your TV.

Q I recently calibrated my home theater audio and video using Ovation Software's Tune-Up DVD. I found the software very useful and easy to understand, and it included both DD and DTS audio test tones. My TV is a Sony KV35S42, which has the following modes: movie, standard, and enhanced. Each setting gets progressively brighter with more color.  Prior to calibration, the Ovation software instructs users to set the mode to "movie", and turn off any automatic/variable correction settings on the TV and enhanced black levels on the DVD. All calibrations are done in "movie" mode. My questions are: (1) what are the standard and enhanced settings? (2) do calibrations made to the movie mode also affect the standard and enhanced modes? (i.e. are they just different settings adjusted from the base "movie" settings?) (3) do calibrations and adjustments also need to be made to the "standard" and "enhanced" modes? (4) Will the Sony save different settings for different modes? The owner's manual is silent on this I ask because I enjoy the calibrated movie" mode when watching a movie at night in a dark, or almost dark room. However, for normal TV watching during the day with sunlight in the room, I find the "standard" or "enhanced" modes better. Under those conditions, the movie mode is simply too dark.

A There should be memories for each of the modes, so that settings made in one mode, e.g., movie, will not affect the settings made in the other modes. Otherwise, there would be no point to having three modes. However, if you use Ovation to calibrate the three modes, they will all look the same. They are basically just three memory banks to store whatever settings you like for different situations. So, use Ovation for the one mode, such as Movie, and then set the other modes by eye, for watching at night, or one for daytime satellite, one for night time satellite, and one for DVD watching.

Q I traded my Onkyo 696 for a Onkyo TX-DS797 a couple of days ago to reap the advantages of the DTS-ES, Neo:6, and THX Select. My question is this: since connecting the 797, I have found that the receiver makes a subtle but audible clicking (the only way I can seem to describe it) sound when adjusting the volume. One click for each volume adjustment increment. I don't believe it has any real effect on the performance of the receiver, but it is very annoying to me. The 696 did not make this noise and I had it hooked up identically to this one. I have checked and rechecked the connections on the receiver for both the speakers and other hardware. My CD player (Sony CDP-CD) and DVD player (Toshiba SD-3109) are connected via optical (Toslink) connections. My speakers are Polk RT-800i's. I hope with all your experience and expertise, you can tell me the source of this 'clinking' noise.

A This occurs with digital volume controls, and I have experienced it too. If the click were loud, it could be a result of voltage leaking, but as long as it is a quiet click, this is normal.

Q Does anyone make a black box that allows cable ready TVs to view at least the basic satellite channels (network, CNN, ESPN, etc.) without a separate satellite receiver? That is the major reason I do not switch to satellite because I have 4 televisions and don't want to buy or rent 4 receivers.

A Yes, such boxes are made and sold, but they are illegal because the satellite companies do not get paid for the service that you would be getting from them. I see ads for the boxes in the back of some magazines, and I also get spam e-mail offering them for sale. You might consider just buying one regular satellite decoder box that gets all the channels, subscribing to basic satellite service, and connecting that one box to one or two of your TVs. A basic no frills decoder box with satellite dish is not very expensive. I have seen offers from service providers that would give you the decoder and dish for free, if you sign up for a specific length of service period.

Q Will I always see black bars on my front projection screen when watching a 2.35:1 anamorphic movie? I can squeeze the vertical size of the raster but I have to leave it at the 1.78 setting to keep the correct aspect ratio on 2.35 movies. This uses part of my CRTs to paint black bars, what a waste. Any suggestions?

A Just be glad that HDTV did not settle on 2.35:1 as its aspect ratio. They actually considered it early on. Since HDTV is 1.78:1, you will always have the black bars when watching 2.35:1 movies. No way around it. But, the waste is in the movie, not the picture tube. All normal lenses produce a circular image. As the framing moves from a circle to a square, then to a rectangle, more and more picture info from the lens is thrown out. 2.35:1 is worse than 1.78:1, and 1.78:1 is worse than 1.33:1 (our regular TVs). Anamorphic lenses have two focal lengths, one in the vertical plane and one in the horizontal plane. A 50mm anamorphic lens delivers twice as much picture info as a 50mm spherical (conventional) lens, but only half as much info as a 25mm spherical lens, onto the same film space. The real function of the anamorphic lens is to get a widescreen image onto the 4:3 film space. You could get the same picture viewing area from a 50mm anamorphic lens as from a 25mm spherical lens by only projecting a horizontal strip from the 25mm lens exposure, but it would waste half the film, with the top and bottom 25% being cropped out in the projector. Anamorphic lenses produce images without film wastage.

Below is shown a diagram of the comparative picture view area that different lenses would see. Let's say you are standing on a hill overlooking a valley and pointed your camera at the valley. A 50mm spherical (standard) lens would see part of the valley outlined by area "A". A 50mm anamorphic lens would see area "A" plus area "B". A 25mm spherical lens would see the area outlined by "A" plus "B" plus "C". However, all lenses would project their image areas onto the same film space, such as the 1.33:1 Academy Aperture.

Q First, I love your informative site. The best on the web! I really love the look and quality of plasma television. My question is , do you think its too early to purchase due to the current high pricing? Will today's plasma televisions be quickly obsolete with better technology? Andy finally, if I don't go plasma, are there any standard televisions that have the 16:9 aspect ratio?

A When color TV first came out, many people waited and waited, thinking that prices would come down and the technology would get better. It did of course, but during all that time, the consumers denied themselves the pleasure of color TV. I really love plasma TV too. It is bright and crisp, and the whole thing fits on a wall. The technology will improve, and prices will come down. They already have in fact. It all depends on what your needs and preferences are. If it is just something to go in the kitchen to watch news and programs while having dinner, one of the 42" 16:9 models would be fine. They are in the $6,000 range. If it is for the home theater, then bite the bullet and get one of the 61" models that have just been released. You are talking $22,000. They will handle 720p, but not 1080i. However, digital projectors don't handle 1080i either, and they are selling like hotcakes. I ought to know, because I have one (Sony 10HT). But, I have to pull the blinds and bring the screen down to use it. A plasma can be viewed during the day with the blinds up. Black levels will be better if the room is darker, but that is the case with any TV. I am going to buy plasma too, but I am waiting for a 72" size, which will probably be here in a year or so.

Q  Is there anything wrong with a speaker if you notice a 1 dB difference using an SPL meter? I've swapped the speakers around on the amp left and right channels, but still the 1 dB difference exist. Even when the speakers have been positioned in the room side by side, sure you can increase the dB levels of either channel, but should I really be doing this?

A These are the kinds of things you pay for when buying high-performance products. Extra time (money) is put into matching components for the better models and brands, but you pay for that. It really does not take much to make a 1 dB difference. Even placement of the internal damping material could do it. As long as the tonality between your two speakers is the same, I would not worry about the 1 dB difference in volume. You might try testing the relative volume at different frequencies, using a test disc that has sine wave tones on it. I suspect the problem is not at all frequencies. Probably somewhere in the mid-bass.

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