pixalation

[fr_jack]

How clean a signal picture should i get. i have had dish a week and some chanels just look bad. Especially the locals. ABC for particular my signal strengths are as follows

sat 119 Signal strength = 124
sat 110 Signal Strength = 107
Sat 121 Signal Strength = 112 (though marked as wrong sat)

Could it be a problem with a reciever?

 

[Stargazer]

If 121 is marked as wrong satellite then you are either no/weak satellite signal from 121 (dish needs repeaked or blocked by trees/object but not likely blocked by trees/object), switch test needs to be performed, or there is an issue in a wire/connection. I would try to do a check switch first (Press >MENU >6 >1 >1 then >CHECK SWITCH). Tell us what you see on the summary after the check switch is performed.

 

[fr_jack]

I dont think i am using the 121 sat. i only have local and regular.

what is the 121 used for. i dont have HD


The pixalation looks as iff it has been over compressed like there is a pixalated fog in front of it. Especially noticable in dark/black area's

details after check switch

----satellite input 1----
LNB status: Direct connect to a DP-twin
DP-twin-0 119 Even, odd 110 Even, Odd

----Satellite input 2----
LNB Status: Direct connect to a DP-twin
DP-Twin-0 119 Even, Odd 110 Even, ODD

 

[rickshobbies]

I have noticed a form of pixelation on my 522 as well. Especially noticeable on the locals, the pixelation looks like the image is made up of thin, vertical "digital strips". They are faint but noticable. Another way to desribe it would be that it looks like someone has placed a filter in front of the image with these strips on it.

I had a 508 once before and the pixelation looked more like color banding and faint blockiness where dark and lighter colors blended. I don't see this on the 522, so I am thinking that maybe different receivers show different artifacts? Maybe due to the different analog to digital converters maybe? This is why I have been suspecting that a DVI or HDMI connection between TV and receiver might get rid of or reduce these artifacts.

This is in addition to the compression artifacts that I see as "halos" around edges on the screen. Those look like JPG compression artifacts found in digital photography and I would assume that those are expected from the highly compressed signals that Dish is "dishing out".

 

[fr_jack]

it does look like the thin verticle lines. A friend just mentioned that it looks to him like a really over compressed video feed.

 

[mholbrook]

I think on the 522 what you are watching in "Live TV" mode is actually the recorded singnal play back from the internal hard drive. My 522 looks awful in "Live TV" play back. The picture is definately being compressed. However, it's being compressed with whatever codec DISH uses to record the signal on to the drive. The compression looks like internet media play back at times. HORRID!

 

[fr_jack]

that could be the case. the chanels do look like a low quality that are downloaded off the net.

 

[mholbrook]

I'm pretty sure that's what it is. I've been a digital video editor for over 10 years and the characteristics of the compression are identical to working in a low res mode for editing. When I watch a football game the field looks like green, splotchy clay instead of grass. Also, on a pass play, I lose the football. It disappears because of the compression going on. DISH has to fix this!!!!! I can't believe they pass this off as "Digital Quality"! I get better picture quality with an S-VHS deck hooked up to an antenna. DISH needs to fix their codec issues.

 

[rickshobbies]

I agree, it needs to be fixed. I moved from Time Warner Digital Cable because I thought there was too much grain going on in the picture, but at least it didn't look all over compressed like this. I am not sure which is the lesser of two evils. At least with TWC, if I was watching locals that looked bad I could always change channels and watch them in HD Of course, the two locals I watched the most, WB and UPN, are not yet available in HD. The other channel I watched, SciFi, looked extremely grainy on TWC. Now that I have Dish, no grainy pic, but the pixelation is probably just as annoying.

I hear that SciFi is going to start an HD feed. Has anyone heard anything about that?

 

[Vasto7]

I'm pretty sure that's what it is. I've been a digital video editor for over 10 years and the characteristics of the compression are identical to working in a low res mode for editing. When I watch a football game the field looks like green, splotchy clay instead of grass. Also, on a pass play, I lose the football. It disappears because of the compression going on. DISH has to fix this!!!!! I can't believe they pass this off as "Digital Quality"! I get better picture quality with an S-VHS deck hooked up to an antenna. DISH needs to fix their codec issues.

I have the same problem. See my thread from 1/22 (Football Games Look Bad). Don't know if it is unique to 522 or just Dish. Seems to be worse on locals.

 

[fr_jack]

I looked at dish at mylocal radioshack. it was running on a 522. and there was no pixalization or combing. I have an eng comming here on sunday i will let you know what he says.

Steve

 

[fr_jack]

the guy came over today. and the problem is still there. He switched out my 522 and that did not fix. it he does not see any other problems.

out of curiosity what make TV set does anyone else having this problem have?

Steve

 

[rickshobbies]

I have a Mits 55515. If you are viewing on a large screen TV, then it's probably just par for the course.

 

[jerseyjk]

Just got my 522 in delivered yesterday (ebay) so I can't speak for it, but I've been running a replayTV for years. 30 hour model "upgraded" to 240 hours with dual 5400rpm drives. There is a noticable difference watching "live" tv through the replay and watching live tv directly from my legacy 4xxx receiver. I've always just chalked it up to the fact that all video is running through the hard drive before it's sent out to the tv. I assume any DVR device (522, tivo, replaytv whatever) will suffer the same effects. I did try faster (7200) drives incidentally, and they were no better and ran way too hot.

 

[Shadowtester]

The more digital to analog and analog to digital conversions the signal goes though the worse the picture will be. On a stand alone PVR such as a Tivo or Replay TV the signal goes though 3 conversions before you display the signal digital to analog out of the sat receiver then analog to digital to store on the hard drive and then when you watch the show digital to analog to display on the TV. With a intergrated PVR like the 522 or any Satellite providers PVR there is only 1 digital to analog conversion since its recorded digitally directly from the satellite it never goes though the digital to analog then analog to digital conversion to get to the hard drive.