Pixelation in Movies (1 Viewer)

[Robert.CB]

Hello All,

I had just set up my new Sharp XV-Z12000 and am really admiring the picture quality. I notice though at times there is some pixelation in the picture, which seems to occur on smaller images in the picuter with brighter colors and sometimes occurs on fast moving objects. I've noticed this on the tv in my office as well, but being on a 106" screen this is a lot more apparent. I haven't gotten the rest of my components yet for the home theater room so I stole the DVD player and receiver out of my office which is a Sony DVP-NS725P. The receiver is a Sony which was part of a complete home theater system so it doesn't have component video, so for the moment I am using straight RCA video in to the projector. Is the pixelation that I am seeing due to the DVD player or Receiver or is it possibly something else?

Thanks in advance for any help,
Robert

 

[Kevin. W]

You need to calibrate your setup with an AVIA or VE disc. It sounds like your black levels are too high. You may also want too look at getting your setup ISF calibrated.

Kevin

 

[Allan Jayne]

I would blame the player first. Have you tried a different player?

If the player's MPEG decoder cannot keep up with the amount of picture detail and motion, something has to give and the least of evils is coarse pixellation. (as opposed to a "torn" picture where half was left from the previous frame.)

Next I would blame the particular disk, where its production was inadequate to preserve all the picture detail.

Video hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/video.htm

 

[David Strand]

Might want to also check the disks for scratches and/or smudges, dirt and fingerprints. My Panasonic RP-82 does that on occasion and it has always turned out to be the disk at fault (rentals).

 

[WesleyHester]

Sometimes too, there is just pixelation in the DVD movie with no way to get around it. Check out Widescreen review magazine. In there DVD reviews they mention when pixelation is seen and if it's a problem (i.e. alot of it) or not. They have one kick a#@ test system so if they see pixelation, it's the DVD and NOT equipment related. Really "bad" pixelation like full screen or satellite fade during a thunder storm bad then David Strand makes a good point about stratches, dirt and fingerprints. Also, on rare occasions, there are manufacturing defects. Out of 1100+ of my collection, 4 have been defective in one way or another. In fact, I had one disc with a fingerprint UNDER the protective plastic layer! So much for "clean room" production quality! Anyway, that's for really bad pixelation and/or lock-ups. If you are refering more to mild pixelation then I believe you are seeing more along the lines of what Widescreen Review magazine's reviewers and I see on some discs from time to time based on the their quality of encoding and other charateristics that can't be eliminated with better equipment. Although proper picture calibration can sometimes reduce the effect. More reasons to want HD-DVD!

 

[Robert.CB]

Hello All,

Thanks for your replies so far. I tried playing the same disc on a dvd player hooked to my Samsung SPN4235. The pixelation occured as well here. The dvd player was RCA portable job, so I could watch the screen as well (picture looked excellent on the portable). The pixelation still occured on the samsung (it looked pretty bad in fact) (the dvd was Finding Nemo). I have wathed this disc on smaller TV's with no problem. In fact the Finding Nemo that I have came with a Full Frame version and Widescreen. I tried both with the same effect. I even took it and tried in on the sharp projector with the same results using the sony dvd player. Could it be that I am using composite video? Thanks again for your help and any more help you can provide.

Kevin W. I'm sorry I'm still learning about home theater. What kind of disc (AVIA or VE) are you referring to and where would I get it? Also what is the setup ISF?

 

[Kevin. W]

Avia and VE are calibration discs that I believe you can find at your local BB. An ISF calibration is done by a professional calibrator found on this site. They use their years of experience and computers to tune your set to optimum.

Kevin

 

[Cameron Wright]

after some DVE setup.. I would switch to a quality component if you can... it might help clear up the picture.

 

[ChrisWiggles]

That sharp is a fairly relentless projector, and will resolve pretty much everything on the disc, including all the MPEG blocking, mosquito noise, pixelation, etc. You really should be using a superior source for this projector though, and you should have it setup by an ISF tech, because this projector has quite extensive adjustments that allow for superb calibration of color and grayscale tracking, which you certainly should undertake. Enjoy that unit!

 

[Allan Jayne]

Use of a composite connection when playing DVD's may show what looks like pixellation along the edges of color patches. Pixellation in the middle of what should otherwise be a solid color patch is not an artifact of composite video.

 

[Robert.CB]

Hello all,

Thank you for all your responses. I did find out the the problem was composite video. When I was able to connect it by using component video, everything looked great. The sony dvd player is only temporary and I plan on getting a much better player in the near future. I would definitely like to get projector calibrated by an ISF tech. I am still a newbie to home theater, so how would I go about locating one? I live in Church Hill, TN 37642. Does anyone no of one near my location? Thanks again for all of your help.

Robert

 

[Adam Barratt]

The Imaging Science Foundation's website has a directory of ISF-trained calibrators here, which should get you started.

Adam