Difference of dvd to br on 1080i tv (1 Viewer)

[bruceb3]

I recently replace my 20+ yr. old speakers with Klipsch. I think they are B3's. Of course that led to a Yamaha receiver which obviously meant I had to replace my old dvd player with a new Sony Blu-ray player. I'm still going to use my 57" Sony rear projection hd tv. It has a great picture, but of course nothing like the new flat screens.It's a 1080i tv. Isn't a dvd 720p and a blu-ray 1080p? It seems to me that a blu-ray would look better on a 1080i tv than a dvd.

The reason I'm questioning this is that a friend said that with a 1080i tv, there wouldn't be any noticeable difference.

I know, dumb question. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[David Willow]

DVD is 480i. Depending on the player, it can be made 480p, but that is more of a trick than anything. With a 57" TV, Bluray should look better. Of course to know for sure you will have to try it. I wouldn't doubt your new BD player will make your DVD's look better as well. I'm assuming your TV does not have HDMI? If it has DVI, get a converter cable (HDMI to DVI) and use it for your picture. If it has neither HDMI or DVI, use component (red, green, and blue) cables to get the best possible picture quality. And BTW - I would bet your 'old Sony' is as good or better than today's flat screens. Flat screens are a comprise of size over picture quality. I still use a LCoS RP TV for my main movie screen. I have LCD and Plasma in the bedrooms.

 

[snoopy28574]

I prefer tube HD. I did not bealive that blue ray players would upscale better. Thought it was hogwash created by a bunch of people more nitpicky than me. I was wrong.

Originally Posted by David Willow

DVD is 480i. Depending on the player, it can be made 480p, but that is more of a trick than anything.

With a 57" TV, Bluray should look better. Of course to know for sure you will have to try it. I wouldn't doubt your new BD player will make your DVD's look better as well.

I'm assuming your TV does not have HDMI? If it has DVI, get a converter cable (HDMI to DVI) and use it for your picture. If it has neither HDMI or DVI, use component (red, green, and blue) cables to get the best possible picture quality.

And BTW - I would bet your 'old Sony' is as good or better than today's flat screens. Flat screens are a comprise of size over picture quality. I still use a LCoS RP TV for my main movie screen. I have LCD and Plasma in the bedrooms.

 

[DocCasualty]

Your friend does not know what he is talking about. Unless you sit closer than 7' to your 57" screen, you would not even gain any improved clarity from a 1080p display. I have a 57" Hitachi CRT RPTV that's still going strong downstairs and Blu-ray and HD DVD both look awesome on it. I have a 58" Panny plasma (768p) that edges it out but more a difference in degree than kind.

You will see an astounding improvement with Blu-ray over DVD on your CRT RPTV and you will likely gain a noticeable improvement in watching DVDs from the upscaling capability of your Blu-ray player. You don't mention if your previous DVD player is capable of upscaling or not, so the difference between it and the Blu-ray player may not be that big when it comes to upscaling. Your CRT will not be able to accept a 1080p signal from the Blu-ray player, so make sure and set its output to 1080i or "auto" if you are using and HDMI-DVI cable, which I would recommend also. I doubt you will see any difference between using component cable or HDMI-DVI with the Blu-ray discs but using the HDMI-DVI is the only way you will be able to take advantage of the players upscaling capability with DVDs. I am assuming your Sony has a DVI input and not HDMI but the later models had already changed to HDMI so make sure before you purchase a cable.

Lastly, if you haven't cleaned the optics in your Sony in awhile you should do so. You will be amazed at the improvement in your picture clarity and brightness. If you've never done this, just google for some "how to's". Just be careful about the electrical shock potential (50kv is nothing to ignore!) and don't scratch the lenses and mirror. If you have a mylar mirror, just leave it alone.