S Video Connection for FTA C & Ku Band Reception

[jsattv]

Not sure if this is the correct Forum for this advice and question but here goes: - Due to a breakdown of my 17 year old Sony Tube TV I had to purchase a new Flat Panel HDTV. (Guess I'll be in the poorhouse now). I was extremely dissappointed with the grainy and washed out colors when connected to the Video In Input on the Flat Panel TV from my Viewsat Receiver re Russia Today on 97.0W and other Satellites. I even tried a Component Video cable from the Viewsat but that only resulted in washed out Greens and Yellows. (Of course reception on my Bell ExpressVu 9200 Subscription Receiver is great but it doesn't work on HDMI Connectors - just Component Video).

I was about to throw my Viewsat Rx in the trashcan when my brother in law told me he uses his non HD Bell Receiver on the S Video Connection and has been happy with it. So I checked the back connections of the new Flat Panel TV and the Viewsat Rx and since I had an old S Video Connector that came with the 17 year old Sony Tube TV I tried it out with the ViewSat to my new Flat Panel TV and IT IS Working GREAT!! Reception on ALL FTA Channels especially 99.0W is even better NOW on all channels than it was on my old Sony TV. The only problem is that the S Video connector is / seems very hard to plug in, & I hope I don't have to unplug it too often. Is there an easy way to insert these plugs in and out?

 

[Anole]

To answer your direct question, here's what I'd say:
Plug it in and leave it alone! -

Now that may not be possible, so if you really must do it occasionally, then put a mark on the plug so it's easy to align.
Red fingernail polish, white paint, or some contrasting color is best.
And use a flashlight when inserting the connector.
Nothing worse than a black cable, with a black connector, behind the back of a black-body TV set, in the dark! -

If you find you need to do this on a regular basis, ya might see about getting a cable extender (cable with male on one end and female on the other).
That way, if you ruin a cable, you don't ruin the jacks on your FTA nor TV equipment!

Check with MonoPrice Com ... oh, you're in Canada... then I have no suggestion.

Now, as to a better (?) solution:
I've read complaints like yours before.
And when I got my first LCD HD TV (about 3 years ago), I had the same problem.
Generally, each input when activated, can be tuned for contrast, brightness, color, sharpness, et al.
Those settings are -not- global !
Careful tuning of all the inputs returned the quality I demanded. - :up

 

[jsattv]

To answer your direct question, here's what I'd say:
Plug it in and leave it alone! -

Now that may not be possible, so if you really must do it occasionally, then put a mark on the plug so it's easy to align.
Red fingernail polish, white paint, or some contrasting color is best.
And use a flashlight when inserting the connector.
Nothing worse than a black cable, with a black connector, behind the back of a black-body TV set, in the dark! -

If you find you need to do this on a regular basis, ya might see about getting a cable extender (cable with male on one end and female on the other).
That way, if you ruin a cable, you don't ruin the jacks on your FTA nor TV equipment!

Check with MonoPrice Com ... oh, you're in Canada... then I have no suggestion.

Now, as to a better (?) solution:
I've read complaints like yours before.
And when I got my first LCD HD TV (about 3 years ago), I had the same problem.
Generally, each input when activated, can be tuned for contrast, brightness, color, sharpness, et al.
Those settings are -not- global !
Careful tuning of all the inputs returned the quality I demanded. - :up

Thanks a lot for the great suggestions Anole. Never heard of a S Video Cable Extender - great suggestion!! Its just that with the Sat Rx I had an extremely difficult time plugging in the S Video Cable even with using a 1 million power recharageable flashlight, so I've taken your advice & marked the connection position with a piece of white chalk on that black cable and where it plugs in on the Sat Rx!! I don't want to mess with the TV connection, and as you say plug it in and leave it alone - despite the yearly factory update to add new Sats & Tp's to the Satellite list!!

 

[Anole]

refining the rough idea . . .

My thought with the cable extender, was that you plug it into say the TV, and the other regular S-video cable into the FTA box.
Then, you can plug the two cables together in the middle.
Or, you could plug either into other things, if that's your wish.

However upon reflection, maybe a dual female S-connector (have to look for that one) and then regular cheap S-video cables would make more sense.
Buy yourself an arm-load of those cables; I did last year, and they're dandy.
Only have to fight to plug 'em into the TV or FTA box once. -

 

[truckracer]

Larger widescreen tv's reveal imperfections in the standard def 480i picture.
Those channels on G25Ku are pretty compressed and a larger tv will make them look worse.
Some new flat screen tv's don't seem to display SD pics very well.

 

[tvropro]

Larger widescreen tv's reveal imperfections in the standard def 480i picture.
Those channels on G25Ku are pretty compressed and a larger tv will make them look worse.
Some new flat screen tv's don't seem to display SD pics very well.

I also notice that while S video separates the Y and C which may look a bit more accurate (dot crawl etc). It also enhances the macroblocking and mosquito noise. Sometimes using composite masks some of these conditions. Although the larger the picture the more you will see all the anomalies associated with digital compression.

 

[jsattv]

My thought with the cable extender, was that you plug it into say the TV, and the other regular S-video cable into the FTA box.
Then, you can plug the two cables together in the middle.
Or, you could plug either into other things, if that's your wish.

However upon reflection, maybe a dual female S-connector (have to look for that one) and then regular cheap S-video cables would make more sense.
Buy yourself an arm-load of those cables; I did last year, and they're dandy.
Only have to fight to plug 'em into the TV or FTA box once. -

Wow Anole 25 cents for an S video cable at Sat AV - that is amazing! Up here in Canada I went to The Source Store today (which I think took over Radio Shack) and the only ADAPTER they had was a Plug that converts S Video to a straight single pole plug in like a standard RCA type Audio / Video cable, price was get this: $12.99 canadian dollars!! Now right beside my Flat Panel TV - S Video Connection there is a Single kind Of RCA type plug, I wonder if that is also for S Video, for that $12.99 Adapter?? Maybe I need to phone up the TV Manufacturer.

Thanks Truckracer and TVpro for the comments. You are right as Anole also noticed that it seems like Flat Panel TV's don't seem to play well with cheap FTA Satellite Receivers. I did try out other connections to the new Flat Panel TV such as RCA Video In, and Component Video, but none of them could even come close to the picture quality of the S Video Cable setup to my Sat Rx, the colors on Russia Today, Al Jazeera, & Saudi TV on 97.0W as well as on Sat 99.0W - US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Lesea Network appear to be soft and true colors. But maybe that's just my impression.

 

[Corrado]

I use one of those 3 position switch boxes for S Video on my setup. Available here for about $12. The cables around $6 each. Even Walmart has them.

The output to the TV and that leaves you with 3 selectable inputs. Just run a separate cable to each device, no need to continually unplug and reconnect anything.

 

[jsattv]

I use one of those 3 position switch boxes for S Video on my setup. Available here for about $12. The cables around $6 each. Even Walmart has them.

The output to the TV and that leaves you with 3 selectable inputs. Just run a separate cable to each device, no need to continually unplug and reconnect anything.

Thanks a lot for the reply Corrado. Not sure I understand, is there a manufacturer of the Switch Box with 3 selectable inputs that you are suggesting? And I'll check out at Wallmart, we have them up here.

 

[emuman100]

It's a terrible shame your Sony CRT TV went bad. If I were you I would have repaired it. LCD looks crappy with SD signals because the video scalars (the circuit that takes the digitized analog video and upconverts the resolution to the native resolution of the LCD panel) are usually crap. Manufacturers make sure HD pictures look good because they think that's what you buy it for. They won't use good quality scalars because that'll bring the price up.

There are places where you could have ordered a replacement chassis for your old TV. I'd never ever ever get rid of my CRT. Produces the best picture available. It might not be HD, but SD can still look really good.

I use an s-video switcher box, I have 4 s-video devices connected to my TV.

Jonathan

 

[jsattv]

It's a terrible shame your Sony CRT TV went bad. If I were you I would have repaired it. LCD looks crappy with SD signals because the video scalars (the circuit that takes the digitized analog video and upconverts the resolution to the native resolution of the LCD panel) are usually crap. Manufacturers make sure HD pictures look good because they think that's what you buy it for. They won't use good quality scalars because that'll bring the price up.

There are places where you could have ordered a replacement chassis for your old TV. I'd never ever ever get rid of my CRT. Produces the best picture available. It might not be HD, but SD can still look really good.

I use an s-video switcher box, I have 4 s-video devices connected to my TV.

Jonathan

Eumuman100 exactly my thoughts, - my 17 year old Sony Tube TV is a 31 inch XBR Series weighing over 200 pounds with rich colours when it was working well, the picture was going Black - but after an hour or two it would work well for hours. The temporary Fix was to continuously switch it Off and On until the picture came back, OR hitting it on the side of the Cabinet - not Recommended - (did anyone see the movie Fargo?). The only repair I have had on it was cold solder joints on the Power Supply circuit board about 9 years ago for a $99.00 repair. This wasn't a component failure, - just poor solder connections from heat build up on the chassis. So I haven't thrown it out yet and am considering the 1 hour new repair charge of $166.00 to get it looked at again.

 

[Anole]

fix the old, or buy the new?

I had a rear projection 45" Mitsubishi, and it failed after a number of years of service.
So, I sat on it for a while, watching a 27"...

A buddy had a 56" rear projection RCA which died after... 10(?) years.
He spent $300 to have it fixed a couple of years ago.
I came close to following in his footsteps.
My 45" Mitsubishi had been outstanding!

Another friend spent around $350 to get his large set fixed, and it lasted maybe a year before failing again.
He trashed it.

This was all around 5 years ago.
I watched the LCDs come into their own, and thought about the choice:
- spend money to fix the old set and worry how long it would last
- put the money aside to spend on the new one

In the end, I chose to save the money and suffer, waiting for the LCDs to improve in quality and price.
Then, three years ago, I got a 42" Syntax for $800.
The $300 I hadn't spent made the deal all the sweeter.

My 45" Mitsubishi is still dead so I can't compare the picture, but when visiting my buddy with the 56" set, I feel like buying him and his wife new glasses so they can see how crappy/soft it looks!

LCD sets have improved a lot since I got mine, but even on it, the picture quality when watching HD is dramatic!
As described above, it's possible to tune up a set independently on each input (have 10) to optimize the picture.
I have a number of video sources driving my set, and they all look as good as they are.
You cannot make a sharp HD picture out of an SD, nor particularly a crappy SD, but given the quality of each source, they are tuned to give the best pictures possible.

 

[truckracer]

I have read about some high quality scalars that make the SD pics look good on a bigger screen. They are terribly expensive.

 

[jsattv]

Thanks Anole & Truckracer. Anole, after lots of Video store visits trying to decide between LCD and Plasma, I settled on a Panasonic Plasma Flat Panel. You are correct in that when I watch "Discovery" HD and another great channel called "Oasis" on my Bell 9200 Rx the HD pictures are indeed stunning. Sports, ie Canadian and NFL Football, & NHL Hockey on TSN are also great. So flat panel TV's have their place in todays modern technology, - the only downer was that the 2 - HD channels package choices are another $10.00 to $15.00 per month more!!