High Definition

[robert393]

How do you "see" it? Considering this is a "Home Theater" forum, I'm curious how the members here are prepared for HD.

[GMichael]

Jim Morrison is dead? That sucks! So much for Christmas this year.

[kexodusc]

ROFLMAO...GMichael, you just made me spit my beer out all over my monitor :mad:

[GMichael]

ROFLMAO...GMichael, you just made me spit my beer out all over my monitor :mad:

So sorry,
Hope it wasn't your last beer.

Merry Christmas

[Eric Z]

Still waiting for prices to drop and all the types pf TVs to reduce a bit. Also, still happy with my SDTV so no big rush for me. My luck, I drop $2K on a set and then some fantastic technology comes out the next month that blows everything else away.

[L.J.]

I get HD through Comcast, only $9.95 for HD&DVR.


Sports in HD = a :) LJ!

[bjornb17]

When it came time to buy a new display device, it was either a 51" HDTV or a projector and a screen (final cost was similar). Can't beat the 85+" of a projector, even though its only 480p :) Still looks better than any HDTV i've seen when it comes to watching movies (with the except of an 80" plasma TV i saw at circuit city once, but hey, i spent less than 1/10th of the price of that TV!).

[GMichael]

When it came time to buy a new display device, it was either a 51" HDTV or a projector and a screen (final cost was similar). Can't beat the 85+" of a projector, even though its only 480p :) Still looks better than any HDTV i've seen when it comes to watching movies (with the except of an 80" plasma TV i saw at circuit city once, but hey, i spent less than 1/10th of the price of that TV!).

Not a thing wrong with that. It will make a great bedroom set when you're ready to upgrade. I plan on a 480p projector for my bedroom (when I finally own one).

[bjornb17]

Not a thing wrong with that. It will make a great bedroom set when you're ready to upgrade. I plan on a 480p projector for my bedroom (when I finally own one).

I already use it in my bedroom :) But by the time i get a new one I'll probably have my own house (3-4 years) and then i'll be able to assemble a 2.35:1 constant height setup :D (i hope..)

[robert393]

Wow! Almost 88% are HD capable or plan to be in the near future! I really didn't think the number would be that high on this particular forum........surprising!

Keep the votes coming!

Robert

[swgiust]

We currently get ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, AND PBS (off air) and DISCOVER, TNT, ESPN, HD NET, HD MOVIES AND 10 VOOM CHANNELS (off dish).

I have been watching all the bowl games in HD, I get all the new sitcoms in HD,
But no Survivor (and what a tv show to really demonstrate HD!) I would guess that
40% of the time we watch HD.

So in my opinion, HD is not something thats coming, it's not something that is new,
it is here today, right now.

[robert393]

....HD is not something thats coming, it's not something that is new,
it is here today, right now.Preaching to the choir! I have the same channels as you (VOOM IS COOL!) and I would have to say 98% of all my viewing is HD. Survivor has GOT to get "on-board", like you said, what better venue to show-off HD?

Robert

[Eric Z]

I don't think it's surprising at all the majority of people on this site have HD sets. The people who access this site are HT enthusiasts and HD is the newest and greatest thing in TV.

I've been looking for facts online regarding percentages of homes that have HD and found something that states 10 million homes have a HDTV- 10 million? Someone had to do some fantastic marketing to get the majority of the boat into HD. There was something else that read 48% of the people polled said they would buy an HDTV if the price was $300. I'm thinking people are waiting for HDTV prices to come down to regular SDTV levels. I don't know anything else about these polls, but I still find them interesting.

[robert393]

[QUOTE=Eric Z] The people who access this site are HT enthusiasts and HD is the newest and greatest thing in TV.
QUOTE]
What's surprising to me is one person on here actually vote "I am NOT HD compatable & have no plans to be so in the future." ?????????? And they are actually on a HT forum. I need to figure out who that one is and give them a great deal on some old VCR Movies & $1 DVD's I have laying around....lol!

Robert

[Smokey]

What's surprising to me is one person on here actually vote "I am NOT HD compatable & have no plans to be so in the future." ?????????? And they are actually on a HT forum. I need to figure out who that one is and give them a great deal on some old VCR Movies & $1 DVD's I have laying around....lol!

I am sure you don't have to hire a detective to find out who that person is :D

[robert393]

I am sure you don't have to hire a detective to find out who that person is :D Actually, this morning I figured out how to see who voted for what (left click on the number!). So, now I know who voted for what. Now I wish I had not posted # 14. I really figured (you know who) was the lone vote for "I just spent all my cash on a projector that can only reproduce 480p. Progressive Scan DVD quality (480p) is good enough for me." I made that one of the vote options specifically for him, and reason enough for me to leave that alone. Oh well, goes to show you never can tell. I will apologize in advance for calling (him) out as one of only two people on this HT site who has no intention of ever watching HD in their home.

Seriously, no flame or war wanted or intended with (him). Apology has been made in advance.

Thanks for all your votes. As of today (12-29-05) more than 91% of you are HD compatable or will be in the future!

Robert
btw Smokey, I don't see your vote........

[Eric Z]

How about being HD compatible, but not watching it? If I'm dropping all of that cash, you better believe I'm watching HD- even if it's Martha Stewart!

I am slowly getting on the HD bandwagon- I'm thinking about going the DLP route, but my family room (where I have my better HT set-up), isn't an ideal setting, IMO of course. I don't know how much HD I would watch- that's the cost/benefits analysis side of me!

A couple questions:
*Do DVDs still look really good on an HDTV?
*I heard SD broadcasting can look bad on an HDTV- is that true?

Thanks.
Eric

[robert393]

How about being HD compatible, but not watching it? If I'm dropping all of that cash, you better believe I'm watching HD- even if it's Martha Stewart! You got me Eric. Go figure? 98% of all my viewing is HD, but I have almost 30 HD channels to chose from, and 2-HD DVR's that are capable of recording 50 hrs of HD! Believe me, I'm not watching Martha Stewart....lol! Lot's & lot's of quality HD programming to chose from every day. Look here (http://www.satelliteguys.us/showthread.php?t=29723) for today's HD line-up!
A couple questions:
*Do DVDs still look really good on an HDTV?
*I heard SD broadcasting can look bad on an HDTV- is that true?

Thanks.
Eric Eric the short answer is this. When you get HD you will probably watch much more of it than you think. The PQ is that superior to SD. So, it's not that SD looks worse on an HDTV, but after watching HD you will certainly notice how low the quality of SD is when compared with HD. Does that make since?

DVD's will still look good on your HDTV. Many factors will have to be considered to know just how good the DVD's will look (when compared to SD monitor). Without getting too complicated and technical the major factor in determining just how good your DVD's will look on your HDTV is the upscalling ability of your player/reciever (remember, all DVD's are native 480i). But in any event, you should notice that your DVD's actually look much better on your HD monitor.

Hope this helps.
Robert

[Eric Z]

Definitely helps, Robert- thanks! I have friends and family starting to take the plunge into HD and I might not be far behind them.

[robert393]

Keep the votes coming!
Robert

[evil__betty]

It is VERY surprising just how many people believe that they are watchin HD on their 10 yr old 27" simply because stations advertise that the program that they are watching is also availible in HD. I had quite a heated debate with a stranger the other day because he told me he wanted a HD LCD flat pannel tv with a ATSC tuner in it so he won't need a HD set top box. I tried to tell him that unless he subscribes to a HD source like satillite or cable WITH the HD box, he will not be receiving HD (here in Canada, there really isn't anywhere where a ATSC tuner would work because no broadcast company is broadcasting in HD over the airwaves. Unless you're near the boarder, then you can get some US stations). He went on to tell me that his 27" Samsung TV that he bough 3 years ago recieves HD without a cable box. This went back and forth for some time before I simple walked away from the conversation.

[robert393]

More votes?
Robert

[zepman1]

It should be a crime to own an HDTV and not receive an HD signal. What a waste of a fine (and expensive) piece of technology. There used to be a time when HD programming was limited and it was a waste of money, but now it seems that most primetime network tv(that I watch anyhow) is available in HD. There are some good cable offerings too on ESPN, TNT, DISC and others.

[dean_martin]

I have the Dish HD receiver/box, HD satellite and "upgraded" cabling that the installer said was required for HD. Unfortunately, I'm still watching my SDTVs. I plan to get an HD display soon. I would like to start with the family room where we watch tv together, but the behemoth entertainment center my wife insisted on because it matches the rest of our furniture is best suited for a 4:3 TV - I want a widescreen display.

Are any of you guys watching HD on a 4:3 display?

[swgiust]

I can't tell you how many times Iv'e read, my wife won't let me.
Don't they understand that a home theater is just that, a HOME theater.
My wife loves our stuff. When we sit down on a saturday night to watch
a movie, we are transported away from our everyday lives. We are imersed (sp?)
in the experience. We snuggle, have a cold one, share some popcorn...ect.

[Jim Clark]

Are any of you guys watching HD on a 4:3 display?

No. I think part of the definition of HD is that it's widescreen format although I'm sure that there are some HDTV sets in 4:3 size but why bother? I was like you, the several thousand dollar custom furniture didn't fit accomodate a larger screen presentation. The good news is that now she can participate in buying new furniture. Of course you could always go with the wall mounted variety which typically has a high WAF. That's still going to leave racks for the gear, which typically get no WAF.

I spent a long time looking for the right pieces to accomodate a 55 inch LCD rear projection. Along the way I found several nice pieces including some really nice looking Ethan Allen solutions. In the end I went a different route but there are several choices and one is surely bound to please the wife. In the end it can easily add a couple thousand dollars to the cost of HD, but for me it was worth it. Your results could of course vary.

Good luck,
jc

[EdwardGein]

The Problem when you go to places like Best Buy & casually look at say a football game on their widescreen HD (ready) TVs is the picture looks distorted and you're not seeing actual HD because they're not getting the feed from an actual HD cable or satelite broadcast. I was hesistant for a while of getting anything on widescreen because of the distortion shown in stores like Best Buy. However, when an HDTV picture is truly broadcast on HD, it looks fantastic, as people on this board initially reminded me when I expressed reservations about widescreen. In the case of non HD 4:3 filmed broadcast shows, the picture on widescreen sets 34" or bigger look great (I can't vouch for 32" sets because I haven't seen anything on one) but look like crap in my opinion for sets 30" or below. DVDs also look great in widescreen if they were filmed in widescreen, for those that were in 4:3 like old TV shows & movies, I recommend you watch them in 4:3 as they look too distorted to me on full widescreen.

[recoveryone]

Jim, I think part of the FCC definition of HDTV is that the screen must be in a 16:9 format, so if someone is selling a set lable HDTV or HD-ready in a 4:3 format is selling smoke up peoples butts

[dean_martin]

I can't tell you how many times Iv'e read, my wife won't let me.
Don't they understand that a home theater is just that, a HOME theater.
My wife loves our stuff. When we sit down on a saturday night to watch
a movie, we are transported away from our everyday lives. We are imersed (sp?)
in the experience. We snuggle, have a cold one, share some popcorn...ect.

I must admit that we got the entertainment center several years ago before I had seen a widescreen set or heard about HDTV. I think the tv compartment in the entertainment center was designed for a conventional tv up to 35" (the whole is taller than it is wide). I don't think an adequately sized widescreen HD-ready or HDTV will fit.

So, I can't blame her for it not being compatible (even though I never have liked that big-assed piece of furniture). We may start with our bedroom. Even she has suggested that we get a bigger tv for the bedroom - the door is open.