Sharp 42" - NTL Picture

Kenpo

Hi, I just bought the latest 42" Sharp LCD.

I have a problem with the ntl feed, the picture looks like everything I watch was filmed on a camcorder.

Is there a better cable I can use to improve the picture? Or is there a settings change I can make to improve this?

Thanks
K

big_moe

you could try a better scart cable, but NTL on LCDs isnt great imo.

and you could try messing around with the settings, especially if there are any "digital effects" on the tv

moe

artvandulet

this is the stupid thing about digital TV here. NTL give you no option but to use a composite video cable to view your digital TV. Whats the point!

Snake Plisken

don't bother wasting money on better leads, won't make a difference, problem is that UPC (NTL) brodcast at a very low bitrate per channel, this is so they can stuff the 150 or so channels down the line to subscribers, that is why you get a slightly soft washed out picture from them, I'm afraid only option would be subscribe to Sky as they use a higher bitrate thus better pictures.

Snake

Kenpo

Thanks for the help guys.

The problem is I live in an apartment and the mgmt company won't allow dishes (so no Sky).

I have any other digital tv options?

Ta

big_moe

yeah, magnet.

but if you think NTL looks §hite, you should see magnet!

moe

Kenpo

I was thinking of going with them before.

Does Magnet provide a proper digit signal? Will it be similar to Sky (minus the dish)?

Thanks

K

big_moe

nah, they have crap quality. i've seen it a few different times and every time its been very disappointing.

moe

Wertz

Kenpo wrote:

Thanks for the help guys.

The problem is I live in an apartment and the mgmt company won't allow dishes (so no Sky).

I have any other digital tv options?

Ta

That would do my f*ckin' head in...couple of grand for a telly, multiple grands for the apartment and you're forced to pay good money for a sh*tty signal that makes a mockery of the new TV.
Management companies my arse...taking backhanders from whatever service provider by limiting the competition, more like. What exactly is so offensive looking about a satellite dish? It's the 21st century for pity's sake. If they don't want loads of single dishes, install a couple of large communal ones on the roof of the block(s).

Kenpo

€1800 on the TV.
€330000 on the apartment.
Countless amounts spent on phone bill to a cable service (NTL) who I don't have any choice to use and would drop today if I had an alternative.

Yep, well p*issed off.

michaelanthony

NTL/Chorus compress the **** out of the signal. Sky doesn't compress it nearly as much as gives a much much better picture on LCDs.

artvandulet

But do Sky boxes have scart out only, like NTL boxes? Forget about bitrate guys, the difference between composite and component, even YC, is massive. I have the same LCD as someone in the UK. It has a digital tuner. They plug theirs directly in, I have to use scart from decoder. Massive diff in picture quality.
Moe, what about Magnet?

Royale with Cheese

Just got a 32" samsung lcd. Picture quality looks shíte on ntl. Came on here to ask about it and found this thread staring me in the face. So consensus is that ntl is shíte. Damn.

Are ntl going to offer hd anytime soon? Is hd even possible via cable?

Sideshow Mark

Out of interest why did you all go for lcd? No matter what the source at 42" Plasma will always outperform LCD.

cubix

I always thought LCD's were the newer version of Plasma's technology, not so? hence the reason plasma's seem to be getting cheeper. So if your buying a large screen like a 42" you reckon Plasma out preforms LCD

Cheers

Calibos

artvandulet wrote:

this is the stupid thing about digital TV here. NTL give you no option but to use a composite video cable to view your digital TV. Whats the point!

???????????????

All I can think of here is that 'You gave your NTL box no option but to output a composite video signal to view you digital TV' by connecting it up with a non fully wired scart cable, ie a composite only scart cable or have connected the wrong socket from and/or to the wrong socket.

Have a look at your scart cable you use to connect your NTL STB. Does it only have a handful of pins. Definately a Composite only Scart cable. Does it have a full compliment of pins? Then twist off the cap that holds the connector together and pop it open. If only a handful of the pins are connected to a wire then it is a Composite only scart that has all the pins but only wires for composite. If it has all the pins And all the wires then it is a 'Fully wired Scart' and can carry composite RGB and S-Video signal types.

If you don't have a fully wired scart then get one. Good quality and reasonable priced cable would be a Profigold etc for about €25 from any TV shop. Tesco's might even have them. Don't pay any more then around that figure. ie €100 for a monster cable scart. 400% difference in price for an argueable and invisible 5% improvement in PQ.

If you are already using a fully wired scart then your problem is either that you have simply not gone into the NTL settings menu and enabled RGB or if you have in fact done that then the problem is you have connected the wrong scart output on the NTL box to the TV and/or to the wrong Scart input on the TV.

Heres the thing. All NTL boxes are cable of outputing Composite and RGB. Now The older larger NTL boxes have two scart outputs. One labeled TV and one Labeled VCR. The one labeled TV can output both Composite and RGB. The one labeled VCR can only output Composite. The newer smaller NTL boxes only have one scart socket. This single socket can ouput both Composite and RGB. With these boxes NTL supplies a special cable with one scart connecter on one end that plugged into the single scart socket on the back of the NTL box. With to scart cables coming out of it. One cable was the fully wired scart which carries RGB and composite and is labeld with a sticker with 'TV' and the other branch of cable being the composite only brance labels VCR. In effect the same thing as the bigger boxes. ie one uses two seperate cables connected to two seperate sockets. The other uses a single special cable connected to one sockte that splits into two.

In effect in both cases you have Two scart cables one marked TV and one marked VCR. You connect the one marked TV to the TV as this is the RGB/Composite one. You have to connect it to the RGB scart input on the TV. Most TV's have two or 3 Scart sockets generally only one of which will be RGB/Composite. IF you connect your NTL RGB/Composite scart to say the TV's S-Video/Composite Scart socket then you will only ever see the composite signal even though you may be using a 'Fully Wired RGB Scart/NTL's 'TV' Labeld scart lead'.....have RGB enabled in the menu....have the cable connected from the correct NTL socket labeld 'TV'. Its all for nothing if you connect it to the wrong scart input on the back of the TV. In fact its all for nothing and you will see only a composite signal if any element in the 'Setup for RGB Chain' is wrong.

As for the VCR labeled Scart, You connect the one marked VCR to your VCR or DVD Recorder. This cable only carries Composite so you will only be recording in composite. With a VCR this doesn't matter as VCR's can only record in Composite anyway. With a DVD recorder it doesn't matter if you don't care about the Picture quality for your recordings. If it does matter then you would connect the TV RGB cable to the DVD Recorders RGB Scart input and as most DVD recorders 'Passthru' an RGB signal you connect another RGB scart cable from the Dvd Recorders RGB scart output to the TV's RGB Scart input. That way you can record in RGB and also Watch Live TV in RGB

It sounds complicated but once you get your head around it by reading it a few times it will be easy.

In Short......

All NTL Boxes/STB's output RGB and Composite.

SouperComputer

^ at last, someone else who understands SCART and NTL/Pace decoders.

Sticky FTW

Kintarō Hattori

Fair play to Calibos, that's quite the post. I just recently got NTL Digital installed with broadband. Within the last week I bought a 32" Panasonic LCD and NTL looks excellent as it's connected up via an RGB scart cable. Ok it's not HD, but I wasn't expecting that, and for standard defintion content it looks superb.

cubix

I am running Ntl's MMDS service and on the 32inch LCD it does not look the best where as on the normal 28inch CRT downstairs it looks fine. Did the checks and both pace boxes are RGB enabled and both scart leads full pins. Now the 32inch LCD is the noname brand that tesco where doing a special on around xmas that was posted on board's. So I am not expecting any great shakes but when I hook up the xbox360 it looks pretty sweet.I will be bringing it up to a mates who has sky to try it out there.
Can anyone shed any light on Ntl MMDS as in would it be very compressed because of the way the signal is delivered via the ariel?

Cheers