Hello all...I just bought a Panasonic CT34WX54 and have subscribed to Time Warner cable in NYC and was hoping someone can help me with the following questions: 1. What are the general comments on TWC v/s RCN cable/internet - is one better than the other; differences in cable boxes/cable modems make one better than the other? or pretty much the same thing. 2. For non-HD channels a part of the picture is getting cut off - for example on the regular ESPN (non-HD) the ticker at the bottom of the screen is getting cut off; also no matter which channel I am on - HD or SD - pressing the Aspect button on the Panasonic remote does nothing. 3. I have the Pioneer HD box from TWC in NYC; had originally asked for HD-DVR but they messed up the order; recording aside should I push to get the SA8300 v/s the Pioneer? Can you get the HDMI output from the SA8300 to work? Also I noticed that the Pioneer does not have digital output for sound. Is the picture quality on HD and SD better on the SA8300 v/s the Pioneer? 4. Any other pointers/tips on how to best enjoy my new TV? secret codes or things of the sort?
Vinny, 1. can't help you there, I don't know anything about RCN 2.Depends on what type of STB you have, how you're connected to your TV, and what input you're viewing non-HD channels ( I'll wait for you to fill in these blanks) 3.The SA8300HD-DVR has some really nice features, the HDMI output works just fine, picture quality is a little better then the Pioneer (depending on which STB it is HD or SD)The pioneer should have a AC3 (coaxial) digital audio output, but again depends on which model before we condemn it. The picture quality issue all depends on the same things I asked on question #2, how you connect it to your TV, and what inputs you're using to view SD and HD channels. You'll find that using the HDMI or Component cables are great for HD channels, and your Composite inputs are better for viewing Analog and Digital channels. If you connect your HDMI cable to your TV and it doesn't support 5.1 digital audio you may find your stereo receiver won't have 5.1, This is being addressed. The temporary solution is not to use the HDMI, but instead connect using component cables. Also if you use the HDMI and you're connected to a vcr or dvd burner, the TV needs to be left on when you record from cable through your STB. It has to do with the formal handshake that takes place when you connect the HDMI to a device, to ensure CP of the device it's connected to. If the TV is off, the HDMI doesn't get CP permission to pass signal through and won't work. 4.I'll let the real HD geeks clue you in on that one, I'm just a cableguy ;)
Vinny
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Cableguy, Thanks much for your comments - I'm going to try and provide detail best I can... It is a Pioneer Voyager HDTV box and is connected via component to the TV - the Audio can be connected via RCA cables to the TV (so that should be the coax digital audio that you mentioned) - there is no Optical sound output. On the HD box settings i have it set to Widescreen HDTV and to sidebar non-HD signals, which is what it seems to be doing except for the fact that its cutting off the bottom on some channels (that i notice..ticker bars) - and aspect button on the TV remote does nothing - think it has to do with the box sending all signals to the TV in 1080i whether HD or not? I saw a post on this that references the SA8300 that I'm going to try tonight. I think Im going to call TWC and ask for the SA8300 instead. Also if I connect the STB via HDMI to the TV then how do I connect the HDMI DVD player...or basically I should pick one
Sounds like you're only connected with component wires only, two options:1- If you go into the general settings/more settings feature on the STB, do you see an option to set output formats? if so select 1080i/720p/480p/480i ( don't select 720p if your TV doesn't support it) If you're using component cables and you haven't selected 480i/480p your STB puts out all analog and digital pictures in a 1080i format, which isn't helping your picture quality nor giving you options to format your TV screen. The easier option 2- connect your composite video/audio to the TV. When watching analog and digital, view them on your composite inputs of your TV, when watching HD channels-view them on your component inputs. Keep me posted
Vinny
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Thanks again for your help... I did go into the Output options and when I added 480i (I already had 480p and 1080i selected) I was able to change aspect ratio on non-HD channels. The TV manual said that it supports 480p and 1080i which is why I had not selected 480i before, but it works when I select 480i. Swicthing the connections composite/component also makes sense...Thanks To my last question - is there a way to connect two input sources - the STB and a DVD player using the HDMI interface on the TV? I'd rather have the DVD through HDMI right? Thinking of getting one of those HD upscaling players.
No, I am in contact with Toshiba and supposedly they are having engineers go out next week to a few owners homes to see if they can figure anything out. I volunteered to have them visit me but I think they have enough other users. Hopefully in the next two weeks I will hear something but there is definitely something Comcast does differently than the other cable companies as the problems seem to be isolated between the Toshiba sets and Comcast.
Kind of what I was alluding to without pointing a finger. If you could be sure and update the other thread we've been using so I can keep track of your progress. I yearn to learn
