[markl]

I finally got an HDTV and I have some questions.

I have the box from the cable company that provides the cable and HD channels. My TV is the latest and greatest Samsung top-of-the-line 40 inch. It has several HDMI inputs.

The cable company gave me a package of wires to hook the box up, but no HDMI cable. At the moment, I'm using compoent video outputs from the cable box to the TV and regular analog RCA cables for sound.

My question is, will I get better picture and sound by switching to HDMI? That will mean my TV will be doing all the video/audio processing. Is it more likely that my TV's video section will give me better picture and sound than the cable box?

In other words, should I use an HDMI cable to hook it up to the TV, or stick with what I have?

 

[tot]

You won't get HD picture to your television without HDMI cable.

For normal channels you'll need to test which gives you better picture. I use RGB (via scart) for non-HD content, the TV does much better job than the box.

 

[markl]

???

tot, I do get HDTV from the component video outs from the box. It looks stunning, actualy.

 

[jpelg]

My cable company included the HDMI cable with the DVR box.

 

[marvin]

HDMI won't be spectacularly better, but it usually is better. For fixed resolution displays, RGB input is redigitized, scaled, then converted into a format that the display understands. HDMI removes the redigitizing part of the equation.

Plus it doesn't any pesky overscan issues, though you likely wouldn't notice with TV programming.

 

[tot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by markl /img/forum/go_quote.gif I do get HDTV from the component video outs from the box. It looks stunning, actualy.

Hmm, that would be new to me, I have never seen that, and I always thought for DRM reasons they don't want to give out normal video for HD content.

However, HDMI would be preferred method since the picture is transferred digitally to the TV. If you use component video, TV gets analog video signal and has to digitize it again for the display.

 

[tot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by marvin /img/forum/go_quote.gif For fixed resolution displays, RGB input is redigitized, scaled, then converted into a format that the display understands. HDMI removes the redigitizing part of the equation.

True, but for non-HD content it depends which does better job to make it watchable. In my case it is the TV, the picture is nice and smooth, almost like a good CRT, whereas the box makes it pixelated and compression artifacts are more visible.

 

[markl]

Quote:

TV gets analog video signal and has to digitize it again for the display.

Quote:

For fixed resolution displays, RGB input is redigitized, scaled, then converted into a format that the display understands.

Hmmmmmmm... I'm not so sure about this at all. Why would it have to re-digitize it? When you send the signal out of your DVD player via component video, the set is not "re-digitizing" it, it's just showing what is coming through. Correct? Why would the cable box work differently? I have to believe the cable box is doing all the digital processing of the video and then simply outputting the result to the TV which just gets displayed as is. Right?

It's only when I attach the HDMI cable from the box to the HDTV, that the box is not doing any processing, it's just passing on the digital stream to the TV's video section to process.

 

[tot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by markl /img/forum/go_quote.gif Why would it have to re-digitize it? When you send the signal out of your DVD player via component video, the set is not "re-digitizing" it, it's just showing what is coming through.

We are talking about flat panel TVs with fixed amount of pixels both both horizontally and vertically and the TV has to somehow find value for each pixel to show.

Analog video signal is a continuous stream of varying values with fixed amount of horizontal lines but no fixed value for vertical resolution, that is just depends on the signal accuracy and bandwith/noise.

 

[meat01]

Quote:

You won't get HD picture to your television without HDMI cable.

You can get an HD picture with component cables. My old HD cable box did not have HDMI, it only had component and DVI.

Markl, I would use HDMI. I am not sure about the picture quality, but it is nice only having one cable for sound and video.

 

[mrarroyo]

I get HD using component video cables out of the cable box. In my case I want my Yamaha receiver to do the video and music processing so I feed the component video and the optical out of the cable box to the Yamaha. I also feed the output of my BluRay dvd to the Yamaha.

Then from the Yamaha I take the video out to the Samsung LCD HDTV using component video and the speakers out to the various speakers.

 

[necropimp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tot /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hmm, that would be new to me, I have never seen that, and I always thought for DRM reasons they don't want to give out normal video for HD content.

this only applies to DVD upconversion and any HD-DVD or Bluray titles with the image constraint token activated (i only know of a couple of import hd-dvds that do)

component will handle HD output up to 1080i on all HDTVs and 1080p on models that support 1080p over component (provided the source device can send 1080p over component)

and if your HDTV reciever has HDMI out there is no reason not to use it... though i recommend buying your cables from monoprice... you can get HDMI cables considerably cheaper from them than any retail store (why pay $30-100 for a cable when you can get a decent cable for under $10)

 

[Audio-Omega]

Full HD (1080) would require HDMI cable right ?

 

[Riboge]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrarroyo /img/forum/go_quote.gif I get HD using component video cables out of the cable box. In my case I want my Yamaha receiver to do the video and music processing so I feed the component video and the optical out of the cable box to the Yamaha. I also feed the output of my BluRay dvd to the Yamaha. Then from the Yamaha I take the video out to the Samsung LCD HDTV using component video and the speakers out to the various speakers.

The way to get the best quality in your rig is to go hdmi from the cable box and from the bluray directly to your lcd monitor, if it has two hdmi inputs. Then you switch input settings on the monitor rather than on the receiver for video and switch the receiver input for sound. Passing thru the receiver inevitably adds noise and distortion to some degree, as with any situation where another component is interposed.

Component can pass 1080i but not 1080p. HDMI is required for the latter. HDMI can also carry the audio, but only more recent cable boxes, receivers and monitors are able to use the hdmi audio. Others require separate audio cables.

 

[Audio-Omega]

I think my Samsung requires HDMI cable to be able to display 720 or up.