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General discussion

Samsung Plasma TV - have questions

Mar 9, 2009 2:49AM PDT

Let me first say that I know 0 to nothing about HD TV's, Plasma TV's, LCD TV's etc. so please excuse my ignorance and the length of this post. Our "old" TV (A sony rear projection tv) died over the weekend and we had to go buy a new one. We bought a Samsung 50" Plasma TV model #PN50A460S4D (we had Comcast come out and install an HD box for the new TV) We seem to be having several issues.

The picture (on some stations, HD channels included) is blurry - some stations blurrier than others and on sports channels (doesn't matter if it is HD) the players are very blurry (their heads especially). I noticed this morning while watching an HD news channel - the mouth of the person when they spoke was blurry.

When I asked the cable tech that came out to install the HD box - he said that was normal???? I thought Plasma, LCD, HD TV's were supposed to give you an incredibly crisp, sharp picture? I hate the thought of having to pack up this huge tv and take it back to the store. I thought maybe we just don't have it hooked up right or something??

I have a few questions if someone can help me and any advice would be greatly appreciated.

1. Does it matter if we use HDMI Cable or regular component cables (right now we used our old component cables) I asked at the store we purchased it at and the salesman told me everything would be included in the box (I specifically asked if we needed an HD cable) he told me no - everything would be included in the box - there were no cables in the box.

2. What is the best "picture size"? Our options are: (I think I have these right I am at work right now so can't check the tv) 16:9, 4:3, Zoom1, Zoom2 -- when I use 16:9 - everyone looks short and squatty; when I use 4:3 there are grey sidebars (gray on the left and right side of the tv screen) which I don't like at all and the zoom cuts off either the top or bottom of the picture.


We went back to the store and they said all that would be fixed once we got our HD box from the cable company -- however that didn't happen.

Once again I apologize for my ignorance and for the length of this post. I appreciate any help, answers and advice you can offer.

Discussion is locked

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hdmi - highest quality audio and video
Mar 9, 2009 3:26AM PDT

"People looking blurry" Is the input on your tv set to
component 1 or coaxial tv?

1. Does the cable box have an hdmi output? If so, preferably,
you would want to use that. It's the highest quality digital
connection you can make. 1 cable for video and audio versus the
4 or 5 you are probably using now. Alot of people here buy their hdmi
cables from monoprice.com for around $5.00 for 6 foot cable. Don't
let them talk you into a high dollar monster cable.

2. 16:9 people should look normal on hd channels.
4:3 people should look normal on sd channels.
Is there a zoom button on the cable remote?

With it being a plasma though you probably don't want to
have the bars up for extended periods - due to screen burn-in.
Make sure you read the manual for break-in period.

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Reply
Mar 9, 2009 4:22AM PDT

Thank you so much for your response. I will check when I get home to see if the input on the tv set is component 1 or coaxial tv -- sorry again for my ignorance - I do know that the input on the tv is on the tv side panel (if that makes sense) - and our Wii is connected via component 1 (Av1 - I think is what we change the input to when we are playing it)

The cable box (we just got a new one ) I will check to see if it has a HDMI output (the cable techs installed it so I don't know). I presume it does since it is an HD cable box ???

so I presume then that 16:9 on sd (is that standard?) channels will look short and squatty?

Is there a way to take the sidebars off when you are watching in 4:3? Or is that just the way it is?

The zoom1 and zoom2 - occur when I use the P.Size button on the remote - it is one of the picture size options.

Thank you again for all your help and answers - I really appreciate it.

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hopefully this helps
Mar 9, 2009 4:47AM PDT

"so I presume then that 16:9 on sd (is that standard?) channels will look short and squatty?" - yes

"Is there a way to take the sidebars off when you are watching in 4:3? Or is that just the way it is?" They're should be a way to
darken the side bars. I think it's a cable box setting. Only stretching or zooming will eliminate side bars on 4:3 sources.

You should probably use your cable remote to adjust screen size.
Easier than having to use 2 remotes. When watching cable you change
the tv source to a component (av#? input), right? Sometimes these installers also connect the coaxial (tv input) cable (threaded on type) as well as component or hdmi. Don't know why they do it. If that's the case than just make sure when watching cable the input
source is correct. Does your cable remote have a hd zoom button on it.
We have cox cable and the remote has an hd zoom button on it.

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thanks so much
Mar 9, 2009 4:52AM PDT

Thank you so much -- I will check when I get home on exactly how the cable tech installed everything and check the remotes also to see if we have the buttons you mentioned. Thanks again!

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A few other things to consider...
Mar 16, 2009 3:21PM PDT

Emsmom,

The advice given to you was good stuff. I might add a few more ideas.

Press the INFO button on your remote. It will bring up the incoming resolution. Can you post what the information that is coming in on a HD channel? It might be ....x480, 1080 or 1080p. It may be that the cable box isn't set up to transfer the incoming picture to your television at the best resolution.

The HDMI cables are a good idea, and so is the suggestion on where to purchase them. HDMI and Component (red blue green) are good HD connections to use. The Composite cable (Yellow, then red and white audio) are NOT good to use for HD signals. If you're using those, you've found your problem there, and your cable installer needs new glasses. Happy Your HD should look awesome, and if it doesn't, most of the time it's a setting issue.

The best signal is the native signal, so for HD channels, that would be 16x9. The gray bars are there as a protective measure, so even though you don't necessarily find them appealing, they keep your entire panel uniform. See, if there are black bars on the sides, those pixels remain dormant and unused. The pixels in the middle will be aging while the bars on the sides won't, causing a non-uniformity in the picture. Over time, this is actually bad for the panel and the resulting picture quality. So if you can tolerate it with that in the back of your mind, I would really recommend using those gray bars.

Just to clarify, none of this is "ignorance" - it's asking for help on an expensive electronic component that is likely the center of your entertainment solution. I'm happy to help explain any answers that you have, regardless of how "silly" you might think they are. My job here is to help inform people, and help them get the most out of the technology they purchased. We do that because we appreciate you choosing Samsung. Happy

Let's see what we can do to help you get this working correctly.

--HDTech