New setup new problems

[bwexler]

Well now that I have both new HWS setup I decided to finally hook up my Samsung DVD surround sound system and also a new 50" 1080 P Changhong LED TV.
first problem is different shows display differently on screen. Some seem to be 4:3 with black bars on the sides, others with black bars all around still others too big for the screen. Where is the best place to look for adjustments, Hopper, TV, or is it a lost cause?
Second problem, when listening on the surround the volume changes dramatically from a whisper to an explosion as you go from show to commercial or to another show. Is there any solution other than adjusting the volume?
havent really tried the sound on the TV yet only got it setup yesterday.

 

[dwarren2]

Start with the Hopper. Menu-Settings-Format TV-HDTV. Make sure TV Type is 1080p/1080i and aspect ratio is 16*9.

 

[Scherrman]

50" 1080 P Changhong LED TV

 

[rglore]

Use the format (*) button on the Hopper remote.

 

[Tampa8]

50" 1080 P Changhong LED TV

Made in Hong Kong. I think I read in the U.S. the Apex brand is from this company.

 

[Scherrman]

So a crap TV.

 

[Tampa8]

50" TV for $399. You be the judge.

I do know my Polaroid TV a cheap brand bought at a bargain price can't hold a candle to my LG. But it does work and has for a few years now.

 

[bwexler]

I knew it was a cheap TV. It is not Hong Kong, it is from mainland China. I looked at there booth at CES. They make a full line of TVs including a curved 4K set. From what I saw and read they manufacture components and TVs for many other brands and are now buying market share recognition in the US. The revues at Newegg were 95% positive so I took a chance.

i did use the format function on the HWS at 1080. I think I figured out part of the problem, I had som SD recordings of Fox News to save hard drive space. That is what had the black bars on the sides. I was playing with zoom on the TV which may have caused the black frame all around.

 

[kwindrem]

first problem is different shows display differently on screen. Some seem to be 4:3 with black bars on the sides, others with black bars all around still others too big for the screen. Where is the best place to look for adjustments, Hopper, TV, or is it a lost cause?

Black side bars on a 4:3 program are needed to keep the picture from stretching to fill 16:9 screen. There should be settings (Hopper's format or settings in the TV's menu) to stretch if you really want to but the aspect change makes things look terrible IMHO.

"Postage stamp" (black around the entire image) often results when a movie or wide screen content is aired over an SD channel. You can zoom the image to remove most of the bars with the Hopper's format button.

Some 4:3 content is artificially stretched to 16:9. You may be able to fix this with controls in the TV, but none of the Hopper format settings will.

The worst is "stretch-o-vision" where the center of the image is not stretched but the edges are highly stretched. Nothing you can do at home will undo this.

A true 16:9 source that overfills the screen cutting off stuff around the edges is likely a setting in the TV. It may be set to zoom the image to get rid of postage stamp programs or it's overscan is simply too great. If there is a "dot by dot" or similar setting that places the edge of the image at the edge of the screen without any overscan or zooming, I'd start there then see of the Hopper's format button satisfies your needs for programs that aren't 16:9. Format is the * button.

Second problem, when listening on the surround the volume changes dramatically from a whisper to an explosion as you go from show to commercial or to another show. Is there any solution other than adjusting the volume?
havent really tried the sound on the TV yet only got it setup yesterday.

This is most likely caused by programs that incorporate Dolby Digital sound with commercials that do not. Some commercials incorrectly set "dialnorm" to make their content stand out from the program. It's a big problem. I skip commercials so don't hear the problem often. Hopper does have a volume leveling mechanism that might help: Menu/Settings/Audio/Audio Output.