CurtPalme.com Home Theater Forum

[wendortb]

I recently hooked up a ps3 to my sony 1272. I have a screen that is 4:3. Before, If I watched material that was in widescreen (most stuff), I would just let it fall into the area of the 4:3. This was not a big deal for me because my screen is of decent size. I have the hd-a2, which I can setup for 4:3 and an HD tuner, which I can also setup for 4:3. I have everything setup in 1080i.


After I added the ps3, I could not find a setting for 4:3 tv's, so I had to change the height of the picture so everything wasn't stretched. In doing so, since my other sources are 1080i also, I had to change my other sources to only output in widescreen. So now my hd tuner and hd-a2 display a 4:3 picture inside of the 16:9 setup on my larger 4:3 screen.(4:3 Picture is smaller than 4:3 screen)

Does anyone have any suggestions as to anything I can do? I don't watch too much 4:3 material but it is something that kind of bothers me because I now have unused screen material at the top and bottom.

The only option I can think of is to replace my screen with a screen that is 16:9 My screen is the parkland material so it was pretty cheap. I could also just mask off these areas with some velveteen.

Anyone have any other ideas/suggestions?


I hope this is clear as mud to everyone.

[Ile]

Adjust 4:3 geometry to another memory block. I'd use some 4:3 resolution for that.

[wendortb]

I am not sure I can do that. The 1272 has memory blocks according to a frequency range the are predefined. After I adjusted the memory block for the ps3 so the image wasn't stretched, the image from the hd-a2 was then squashed. This tells me that the hd-a2 in 4:3 mode at 1080i setting is in the same memory block as the ps3 at 1080i widescreen. If you tell me I am wrong then that is great, but I think I am right on this.

If I can't adjust something here, I guess it doesn't bother me that much to change my screen to 16:9 for all my sources and let 4:3 material fall into that. I was just hoping there was something I could change easily instead of having to create a new screen.

[ecrabb]

You could do what Ile suggests and run a different resolution/memory block for the PS3, but I'd say you need to think about the screen issue...

How much 4:3 material do you even watch? 10%? 20%? Do you really want what little 4:3 material you do watch (in crap SD, no less) to be BIGGER than the beautiful widescreen HD material you watch? Thank about how tiny a cinemascope presentation is compared to 4:3!

Guys go to crazy (expensive) lengths with blended CRT setups and digital projectors with anamorphic lenses to do constant-height setups... to get their wider formats to be larger instead of smaller... With your 4:3 screen, you have exactly the opposite. The 4:3 material is the biggest, and with each wider format, your presentation gets smaller and smaller. That's not right!

I'd ditch the 4:3 screen and go widescreen. Just do it. It's home theater, not big TV!

SC

[ecrabb]

He's saying you run the PS3 at a completely different resolution - 720p for instance. Adjust the geometry for widescreen, and leave all your other 4:3 sources at 1080i with the geometry adjusted to 4:3. That would work.

SC

[AnalogRocks]

Ahhh you need to read this: http://www.lostboy.com/vph-12xx/5BNC.pdf

[AnalogRocks]

Ahhh you need to read this: http://www.lostboy.com/vph-12xx/5BNC.pdf

[wendortb]

ecrabb: Well, that isn't a bad point about going w/ a 16:9 screen instead of a 4:3 screen. I think I may end up doing that. It didn't really bother me with the 4:3 material being larger than 16:9. I know the lower quality was larger than the hd, but I was able to deal with it pretty well. BTW, 720p, in my opinion doesn't look as clear as 1080i on the 1272 so I would like to stick with 1080i if possible.

AnalogRocks: I actually have a pc-1270 switcher in my setup so I don't think I will be able to use that method, although I didn't know that you could do that. Thanks

I was kind of hoping there was a setting I missed on the ps3, but I guess there isn't. I don't really mind going to 16:9 screen now because then I can raise my center speaker up a little more

Now I have to decide what cheap screen material to go with.

Thanks,

Travis

[ecrabb]

I'm sure it's one of the options you were referring to, but be sure you check out the threads on WilsonArt laminate - I love mine.

I still can't believe the quality I get out of my source/projector/screen setup. Considering how little it all cost, it's almost mind-blowing. I'm giddy every time I head down to the theater and fire it up. It looks INCREDIBLE.

SC

[wendortb]