Connected HTPC to Plasma

[JUC]

Just pulled the plug on the 42" Sony A10---it rocks!!. Decided against the plasma for the time being. If prices drop some i might have to return and get the 50" though.

Now, i have not updated my catalyst drivers, so take that in mind with the following question. I connected the A10 to my HTPC via my DVI out to VGA converter into VGA input on the tv. I selected 1024 x 768 for resolution and it is still not filling the screen. I have borders around all sides. I do not see any options to enable 720p out in my display properties. Am i missing something or do i need to upgrade my drivers to take advantage of that. Basically, it shows my display as being a monitor but nothing in terms of setting it for 720p or any other special settings. Any thoughts as my wife is not too happy with a zoomed image cutting off people's heads?
thanks
JUC

-i do plan on upgrading my drivers tonight though


edit---i just saw somewhere that if i am using the VGA in on the HDTV that I cannot access the 720p settings-is this true? And if so, would it make any difference if I just get a DVI to HDMI cable and go with HDMI into the TV?
THanks and I really need to get this figured out before tonight!!


another edit!: if i just select in the ATI controll center the 1280 x 720 resolution--would that work?

[rickgillyon]

Maybe someone can give me a little help here. I'm thinking of buying a Sony Bravia 26" LCD TV, and want to know how best to connect it. My old TV is just connected via SCART, but the LCD is best done digitally, no?

My VGA card has DVI, if I get a DVI to HDMI cable, will that work? Is DVI always compatible with HDMI? I'm new to this stuff, just built my HTPC a month or two ago...

Thanks,
Rick

[GbrNole]

buying a 42" hd plasma is just a poor investment. the 42" edtv is sufficient for most especially if you sit 6' or more from the set.

bigger than 42" and you need an hd version.

[Naylia]

Originally Posted by JUC

Just pulled the plug on the 42" Sony A10---it rocks!!. Decided against the plasma for the time being. If prices drop some i might have to return and get the 50" though.

Now, i have not updated my catalyst drivers, so take that in mind with the following question. I connected the A10 to my HTPC via my DVI out to VGA converter into VGA input on the tv. I selected 1024 x 768 for resolution and it is still not filling the screen. I have borders around all sides. I do not see any options to enable 720p out in my display properties. Am i missing something or do i need to upgrade my drivers to take advantage of that. Basically, it shows my display as being a monitor but nothing in terms of setting it for 720p or any other special settings. Any thoughts as my wife is not too happy with a zoomed image cutting off people's heads?
thanks
JUC

-i do plan on upgrading my drivers tonight though


edit---i just saw somewhere that if i am using the VGA in on the HDTV that I cannot access the 720p settings-is this true? And if so, would it make any difference if I just get a DVI to HDMI cable and go with HDMI into the TV?
THanks and I really need to get this figured out before tonight!!


another edit!: if i just select in the ATI controll center the 1280 x 720 resolution--would that work?

using VGA in on the A10 is a less then perfect solution, try 1280x720 and 1280x768 if you have it, but from what i've heard everyone gets at least an inch black border all the way around using the VGA in....it seems to be an auto underscan and i am wondering if it can be adjusted by a tech in the service menu

apparently the tv supports a vga mode of 1280x768 and the display panel is only 1280x720 so the tv auto underscans so that your 1280x768 will fit, now if you do anything close to 1280x768 it will set the tv to 1280x768 vga in mode and you just get even larger black bars...i know it's ridiculous that they didn't build vga in to support 1280x720 to match the display panels's native res

i would recommend just using DVI to HDMI and setting your pc's resolution to 1280x720, that will probably give you the best picture since you'll get a 1 to 1 pixel ratio on the display or you can use a component adapter and do the same if you need your HDMI for something else

[JUC]

Naylia, thanks so much. That is along the lines of what I was thinking and I plan on getting a DVI to HDMI cable today. doesn't really make sense why they wouldn't match the VGA inputs resolution with the rest of them but from what I have been reading--many sets do this. Anyway, hopefully this will work and I can enjoy a wonderful night watching quality tv.
Thanks
JUC

[JUC]

quick question: if i for some reason cant' get the video to fill the entire screen, can i just use the zoom feature on the tv (which basically will overscan the picture so 1-2" are cut off on the sides) and then adjust the vertical and horizontal stretch in sage to bring it back down to fit the screen? I was able to adjust the UI portion while the tv is zoomed and that looked good. Seems like it might work right?
thanks
JUC

[Kanati]

you can also change the video size in advanced settings.

[JUC]

just a quick update--updated my catalyst drivers and set display to 720p-using DVI to HDMI connection to the A10---fills the screen perfectly. All is good.
thanks
JUC

[Naylia]

Originally Posted by JUC

just a quick update--updated my catalyst drivers and set display to 720p-using DVI to HDMI connection to the A10---fills the screen perfectly. All is good.
thanks
JUC

How good? The A10 is at the top of my list when I upgrade to HDTV (hopefully around New Year's timeframe).

[JUC]

Naylia, in terms of quality--i am actually impressed at the SD content I am viewing. I went from a 24" crappy tv and the quality on that wasn't so great. I figured that watching SD content on a 42" would probably not be too good from what I have heard but its very watchable and i have no complaints. Even better, my wife has no complaints on the quality either. i do sit about 9 feet back though and if you get up to it the quality does get noticably worse--no pixelation but softer and not as sharp and you would like it to be. I haven't calibrated it yet so that has something to do with it. Hope this helps but from my experience its a great set and has really good quality for SDTV (as a side note--i really need to tweak some settings in sage as when i hooked it up from my DTV receiver directly to the TV the picture WAS still a little better than through sage).
JUC

[Naylia]

yeah, i've only seen it in the stores and i was quite impressed by the zoom mode that stretches the sides more than the middle, i was amazed by how you don't notice the distortion as much when you're focusing on the middle of the image (does sage have a similar zoom?)

how's the pc image? played any games? how's text and the desktop?

[JUC]

haven't played any games yet but plan to try them out this weekend. PC image is great--very readable. I really only use the PC for sage related tasks so i haven't really tweaked any desktop settings to make them more legible but it is much better than what i had before. I don't think sage offers the zoom function that lets you only stretch the outside portion of the screen. Its a pretty nice feature and my wife likes that better than keeping the 4:3 material in its native form....I for one prefer the bars but the stretch doesn't bother me really. If you have any questions just ask and I will be happy to help you with any details although my quality perception and acceptance level may be drastically different than yours.

JUC

[blade]

Originally Posted by Naylia

yeah, i've only seen it in the stores and i was quite impressed by the zoom mode that stretches the sides more than the middle, i was amazed by how you don't notice the distortion as much when you're focusing on the middle of the image (does sage have a similar zoom?)

The problem with that type of zoom is that the distortion shows up really bad during pans. Looks like someone walking in front of a fun house mirror IMO. You can see the images distort and change shape as they move across the screen.

Sage doesn't have a stretch like that, but FFDshow can do it.