Progressive Scan with non-HDTV (1 Viewer)

[Steven_B]

Does progressive-scan work with non-HDTV's? I am going to get a DVD player and am deciding whether or not to get a

JVC XV-S62SL which has progressive scan or save some money and buy a cheaper non-progressive scan player. The TV is a 5-year old 27in Sharp. Thanks

 

[Pete N]

Steven,

I will first tell you that if you don't have a digital TV now that can handle a progressive signal, few people on this board will give you the time of day, it seems. I have posted a similar question about the JVC XV-SA70bk because it is a progressive DVD player but I also only have a 5 year old 27" TV.

From my own research, I can tell you this. The two questions you should answer are these:

1. When I purchase my DVD player, how long am I going to keep it?

2. How long will it be until I upgrade to a digital TV?

For me, the DVD player I buy within the next week will probably be the one I own for probably around 3-4 years. I plan on having a digital TV by the end of next year. Therefore, I am going with a progressive scan because I will be able to use that mode within a year. DVD players with progressive scan are not THAT much more expensive than interlaced only anyway. (unless you are on a super tight budget). In my case, the 70bk will cost me $246 shipped from consumer direct warehouse. Other places like Etronics and Ecost have great deals on this and other progressive scans.

I JUST WISH SOMEONE WOULD TELL ME IF I SHOULD AVOID THE JVC BECAUSE OF ITS INTERLACED OUTPUT, WHICH SOME PEOPLE HAVE SAID IS HORRIBLE. But no one has yet.

Hope this helps.

 

[Pete N]

By the way, yes, all progressive players will also output an interlaced signal for non-HDTVs. Some do it better than others and, although the JVCs have top notch progressive output, their interlaced output is supposedly lacking because it derives that output from the progressive signal, instead of the other way around like all other DVD players.

 

[Elbert Lee]

I think I answered a post similar to this one a while back. I'm an early adopter and was one of the first people to have a Widescreen RPTV (a Toshiba) and the first TV in the US to have component video inputs. After about a year, the first DVD players came out and then, after another 2+ years, the first progressive scan players. I was asking everyone I knew if I can use a progressive scan player on my analog RPTV. No luck. I even e-mailed Gary Reber (?) of WSR and got a long, complicated "yes" answer (I even provided the model number of my Toshiba). After trying it out and not having any luck, I had a series of long e-mail correspondences with Gary to no avail. I don't remember how, but I think someone at Panasonic ended up answering my question.

If you are in the market for a DVD player, I would invest in a relatively inexpensive one, like one of Toshiba's new players. I heard that they have very good interlaced output. IF you upgrade the display, you'll have a solid 480p picture, but if Progressive scan player have been greatly improved by the time you upgrade your set, you'll be glad that you didn't spend more than $250 for you first progressive scan player.

Elbert

 

[Steven_B]

I really appreciate the feedback. So if JVC is lacking in the interlaced output (which i'm assuming is the only output non-HDTV can pick up) which are better suited. Please keep in mind that I was wanting to put it on my Sears card, so the inventory is limited.

 

[Steven_B]

Bump

 

[Rick Radford]

I don't know if your questions are answered by the DVD shootout or not. You might do a search for it and see if that helps.

IMO, progressive scan may be less of a benefit depending on the TV you have. I don't know that I see much difference on my 32" DV HDTV set from my RP91 in PS mode. I think the TV has a pretty good line doubler built in.

Regardless, I leave the player in PS mode and turn off the TV's 3:2 pulldown.

IAC, I'd suspect that a big screen would show much more difference in PQ than on a small screen like I have.

I haven't spent a great deal of time analyzing this. I've been mainly just enjoying the system!

 

[Steve Schaffer]

Steven B.
As others have said, you won't be able to use the progressive output from a progressive-scan player on a conventional ntsc-only tv. All progressive scan players can also output an interlaced picture, and if you plan on upgrading to an HD-ready set before you upgrade your player again, there's no reason not to get a progressive scan player now--good ones can be had for minimally more than non-interlaced players of similar quality.
Here's the deal with the JVC's interlaced output:
It is derived from the progressive output. The only thing this means as far as quality of the interlaced output is that the setting of the 3/2 pulldown affects the interlaced signal the same way it does the progressive signal. If the pulldown setting is wrong, you'll get combing just as you would if you were using the progressive output.
The player has a number of choices for setting pulldown, film, video 1, video 2, auto, and smart. Just select "smart" and you're good to go--in that mode the player detects whether the signal is film or video based by sampling, not having to rely on disc flagging as it does in "auto" mode. Errors are very rare, and I've only seen a couple during special features sections, never during a movie.
I had my JVC connected to my analog rptv for 3 weeks before I got my new digital ready set, and the picture quality was at least as good as from my old Panasonic A-320 which was a very highly regarded interlaced player.
The new JVCs start at about $229 street price, and you won't find an interlaced-only player with equal picture quality and the same useful features for any less.
The player lets you store 2 complete sets of user-adjustable video settings, a useful feature if you need to have your dvd input calibrated differently from your other inputs or tuner picture, as was the case with the analog set I had at the time. It also allows you to switch from progressive to interlaced output on the fly via the remote, no switch on the back of the player. I didn't even plan on getting a progressive scan player but could not find a non-progressive player with so many useful features for less than what I paid for the JVC.
I will admit that curiousity about how a progressive picture would look did accelerate my tv upgrade schedule, lol.
I hadn't planned on upgrading my set for at least another couple of years, but felt the JVC was great bang for the buck even if I didn't need it's progressive scan capability.