Does anyone know if game mode is intended to decrease the amount of signal processing and decrease lag time?

Does anyone know if game mode is intended to decrease the amount of signal processing and decrease lag time?

Yes, that is what it does. Please note, it only works for 480i inputs.

After three years of looking, I finally got a 6768 yesterday (no Ces for me this year, I don't want to see anything new for awhile)..I got it from a Mag in a BB. They beat power buy price and even set a time to deliver(on Sunday) not a window and were here ten minutes early. There were two of them. They carried it in and put on stand for me. Then plugged in and set up to make sure it worked. They stayed and showed me alittle how it worked and set up the user menu with some info I got from here. Could not have asked for any more. Anyone who is worried about how far back they are from set should not be worried. We sit about 12 to 13 feet back and that is more than enough. Might move closer for DVDs. I have not noticed any problems. There is a little too much green, but I plan on getting an ISF calibration done after my new DVDO VP30 comes in. I even find the SD so much better than I expected, even through s-video from D*, as well as HDMI through scaler. The other thing that I noticed was very little degradation in PQ with change in vertical viewing. I was worried that a 20" stand would be too tall and set up a temporary one. It does not seem to be near as sensative as most DLPs I have seen at CES. I am running all of my sound through DVDO, so no A/V sync problems. All is good with the world.

After three years of looking, I finally got a 6768 yesterday (no Ces for me this year, I don't want to see anything new for awhile)..I got it from a Mag in a BB. They beat power buy price and even set a time to deliver(on Sunday) not a window and were here ten minutes early. There were two of them. They carried it in and put on stand for me. Then plugged in and set up to make sure it worked. They stayed and showed me alittle how it worked and set up the user menu with some info I got from here. Could not have asked for any more. Anyone who is worried about how far back they are from set should not be worried. We sit about 12 to 13 feet back and that is more than enough. Might move closer for DVDs. I have not noticed any problems. There is a little too much green, but I plan on getting an ISF calibration done after my new DVDO VP30 comes in. I even find the SD so much better than I expected, even through s-video from D*, as well as HDMI through scaler. The other thing that I noticed was very little degradation in PQ with change in vertical viewing. I was worried that a 20" stand would be too tall and set up a temporary one. It does not seem to be near as sensative as most DLPs I have seen at CES. I am running all of my sound through DVDO, so no A/V sync problems. All is good with the world.


Holy Cow! the DVDO VP30 is almost 2 grand!
Do you attribute improved SD qualityto your DVDO, or is your SD signal coming straight from the D* box to the 6768?

The issue of stand height came up before and I have the Bello AVS-2601, which is perfect for all my gear. The 2601 is 21" (small difference bewtween reclining and upright!) high compared to 17" or so for the SS. My 6768 shoulb be delivered next week. I can't wait and keeping my fingers crossed that mine will turn out as good as yours.

I have both connections hooked up. A s-video direct from D* to TV so I can use analog audio and listen to the TV speakers and DVI in thru DVDO and send audio through amp. The SD picture is actually good through both. VP30 is alot less since I have a trade-in and got in on an early buy for AVS members.

I can only speak for the s-video.I am a contractor so I have to have a pretty good eye for details.And when I say this it blows my mind away,but quality thru the s-video on a HTPC is the same as if it was HDMI. Its the only connection i have found without paying a great deal more for a better connection I dont need.

You must only have that one "good eye" then. S-Video has a max resolution of 480 lines, and it's analog. HDMI/DVI has a max (practical with current TV's) resolution of 1920x1080, and it's digital.

There is absolutely zero chance the HTPC looks "as good" over S-Video as DVI/HDMI.

I finally got my 6768 and set it up yesterday as well.
Everything's great so far - though I am seeing a very, very subtle 'smudge' in the middle of the screen (looks like a layer of oil). It's apparent only when the background is very white/bright. I doubt a lot of people would see it, but it's fairly obvious to me. Has anyone else seen this ? It distracts somewhat from the depth of the picture. It also does not extend over the whole screen, just a big 'circle' in the middle... ?!

By the way, changing the gamma in the SM applies to all inputs, correct (i.e. HDMI 1, HDMI 2 etc.)
Are you all calibrating the set from basic standard/custom, or Movie ? There seems to be some additional processing going on in Movie mode - the picture is slightly different even if all attribs are set the same as the standard modes....

Cheers,
Dan

I have been enjoying my new HL-R5688W right out of the box with no adjustments needed. I know it can be better but that will have to wait till I have more time.

One nit though....I can't seem to activate the front panel leds. According to the manual, you touch the front panel and they should go on. The controls work fine - they just don't light up.

Anyone seen this or have any ideas?
Thanks

You must only have that one "good eye" then. S-Video has a max resolution of 480 lines, and it's analog. HDMI/DVI has a max (practical with current TV's) resolution of 1920x1080, and it's digital.

There is absolutely zero chance the HTPC looks "as good" over S-Video as DVI/HDMI.

I'd imagine viewing the same SD content over s-vid vs HDMI might appear to be the same.

I finally got my 6768 and set it up yesterday as well.
Everything's great so far - though I am seeing a very, very subtle 'smudge' in the middle of the screen It also does not extend over the whole screen, just a big 'circle' in the middle... ?!

Cheers,
Dan


Dan my smudge (or whatever it is) is upper left center. My wife cannot see it and although I find myself staring to make sure I can still see it if I relax and become involved with the show I seldom notice it. I think I will leave like it is for now as I worry that fixing one thing may wreck another.

It is kind of like I have been hanging around here to long. I will be watching a movie and not thinking about lip sync and all of a sudden I will remember that I am supposed to have a lip sync problem and for the next ten minutes I will be staring at lips and not watching the movie.

I recall that usually external scalers where connected via svideo. I forget the logic in it. An HTPC is sort of an external scaler. I'm sure someone here will come along and clear things up.

You must only have that one "good eye" then. S-Video has a max resolution of 480 lines, and it's analog. HDMI/DVI has a max (practical with current TV's) resolution of 1920x1080, and it's digital.

There is absolutely zero chance the HTPC looks "as good" over S-Video as DVI/HDMI.

I just received my 6768 last night. Before I get into the specifics, I will say that I am extremely pleased with this TV. Readers beware – long post.

I subscribe to Cablevision and have an 8300 HD DVR set top box. I have (3) connections between the STB and the TV; HDMI, component, and coax cable. In various posts, I remember reading that standard definition analog channels may look better through component than HDMI so that’s why I utilized that connection as well as HDMI. I hooked up the coax cable connection, not necessarily by design, but just because it was habit from connecting my previous standard def TVs. I also hooked up a Panasonic S97 upconverting DVD player through HDMI and a Playstation 2 through component.

What I’ve experienced is that for almost all channels (standard def analog, standard def digital, and high def) HDMI provided the best picture. There were some standard def analog channels that looked better (less noise) through component than HDMI. The coax cable connection provided the worst picture throughout although it is the only source that will allow you to “stretch” any 4:3 program to fill the entire screen. HDMI and component have options for 4:3 and 16:9 but the panorama, zoom 1, and zoom 2 options were not accessible. This was not a problem in the least bit especially with a 67” screen since 4:3 still equates into a viewing area the size of a 55” 4:3 format TV.

When I first turned on the TV, I was somewhat disappointed with the picture until I realized that the source was the coax cable. Once I changed it to HDMI and / or component, I was pretty impressed. For many channels, there wasn’t a huge difference in the video between HDMI and component, but the audio using the TV speakers in each case, was much better through HDMI. When switching to component or cable, the sound volume dropped quite a bit.

What pleasantly shocked me was the quality of the standard def analog channels. With a 67” screen barely 10’ away, I was bracing for a fairly poor picture. I had a 32” ProScan standard def TV prior and the signal on these channels was not the greatest. Believe it or not, these channels look noticeably better on the 6768 than they do on the 32”. I literally moved to a couple of feet in front of the TV and the standard def analog channels still are very good. I didn’t expect this by any means so this TV must be doing a heck of a job upconverting. If you’re experiencing poor quality standard def analog or digital channels, have your signal strength checked.

Equally as surprising was the poor quality on some of the HD channels. I don’t mean a bad picture, but there is definitely a difference between HD channels. HBO in HD was very good and Batman (whichever one has Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze) had a 3D feel to it. Monday Night Football on ABC HD and the Yankee game on YES HD were phenomenal. Other HD channels were not much better than some of the better standard def analog channels but once again, we’re at the mercy of the providers of this material.

I briefly checked out a couple of DVDs. The Incredibles looked incredible. Saving Private Ryan showed some macroblocking with the TV in standard mode. I replayed the same scene with the TV in movie mode and the macroblocking was gone. I didn’t adjust the settings on the DVD player too much yet so I’m sure I’ll be able to get a better picture out of it. I also threw in a U2 DVD and that looked quite good so as we all know, the quality of the DVD obviously has a lot to do with what’s displayed on the TV. I will be doing more testing with various DVD’s and settings.

After that, I hooked up the Playstation 2 to get a handle on the lag that I’ve read about. I wanted to get a sample of different types of games so tried sports (NHL 2K6), racing (Gran Turismo 4), and a first person shooter (Brothers In Arms). There was no lag whatsoever with NHL 2K6. It was nice to be able to see your line mates on the ice (makes it a lot easier to pass) than just passing blindly and hoping your wing is open in 4:3 format. The resolution on such a big screen was pretty darn good but you can tell that 720 and 1080 games will improve things quite a bit over the current 480i games. I tried Gran Turismo 4 next and like NHL 2K6, did not experience any lag at all. I then went into the GT4 game settings and changed the resolution to High Definition and raced the same course again. The picture was definitely better and there may or may not have been a very slight lag. The more I raced to feel if there was lag, the less I noticed it, probably because I adjusted to what was going on. If there was a lag, it was a non-issue. Lastly, I tried Brothers In Arms and there was a bit of lag. I didn’t think it was a lag in the sense that the action on the screen lagged behind my action with the controller. When I moved the controller, the image on the screen moved immediately. What I felt was more like the game slowed down a bit, like the frame rate slowed a bit. This may partially be from being used to playing on a 32” TV as compared to a 67” TV but in any case, it was not something that would prevent me from playing that game. I intend to test out SOCOM to see if there is any lag in single player and online.

In addition, I have a Denon AVR1906 but haven’t hooked it up yet because I need to get better wiring for my speakers. I am interested in checking out any lip sync issues but if I do experience any, the 1906 has a delay feature so I’m sure that will be a non-issue as well.

While waiting around for the TV to arrive, along with game lag and poor standard def viewing, my third fear was all of the unnatural images that have been reported. I have only been checking out the TV for one night (although a long one) and I have not seen any blotches, spots, smudges, smears, rainbows, flickering, or any other abnormalities that others have reported. Obviously bad hardware, loose cabling (the HDMI connections do not connect tightly like most other connections), non-ideal configuration settings on components, poor source material, etc can lead to many of the issues reported, so I am grateful to have not experienced these things. In a nutshell, I am extremely pleased with this purchase.

I just received my 6768 last night. Before I get into the specifics, I will say that I am extremely pleased with this TV. Readers beware – long post.

...
The coax cable connection provided the worst picture throughout although it is the only source that will allow you to “stretch” any 4:3 program to fill the entire screen. HDMI and component have options for 4:3 and 16:9 but the panorama, zoom 1, and zoom 2 options were not accessible. This was not a problem in the least bit especially with a 67” screen since 4:3 still equates into a viewing area the size of a 55” 4:3 format TV.


Check again. While true with HDMI, you should have access to all the zoom modes via component. Try labeling your device differently if not. Mine is set to DVD and I can access all the zoom modes via component.

Check again. While true with HDMI, you should have access to all the zoom modes via component. Try labeling your device differently if not. Mine is set to DVD and I can access all the zoom modes via component.

Thanks for the info. I will check this out tonight.

I recall that usually external scalers where connected via svideo. I forget the logic in it. An HTPC is sort of an external scaler. I'm sure someone here will come along and clear things up.Clear what up? The best way to connect any digital source is through a digital input. The only digital input available on these sets is HDMI or DVI. Unless you don't mind a useless conversion of digital sources to analog for input and then another conversion back to digital for display then HDMI or DVI inputs are the way to go.

Inputs in order of quality from worst to best are:

1. Composite
2. S-Video
3. Component
4. DVI or HDMI

VGA is analog so it would fit in either before or after Component depending on the situation.

You must only have that one "good eye" then. S-Video has a max resolution of 480 lines, and it's analog. HDMI/DVI has a max (practical with current TV's) resolution of 1920x1080, and it's digital.

There is absolutely zero chance the HTPC looks "as good" over S-Video as DVI/HDMI.

I have the s-v going into the tuner card from D* and the puter vga is goimg to the TV.And it does look that fantastic.So I have a 24" tv screen and the rest i can do my puter work.I mite also add that the dvd's I play on it are amazing.So no need to buy a DVD player.I say HTPC is the way to go to combat all the lip sync issues

I've had my HL-R6168 for about a week now and just recently noticed a couple anomalies. I'm curious to know if any other members have experienced the following and know what might be going on:

1. Turned on tv and got sound but no picture. Tried a couple times to no avail. I disconnected power from the wall for a minute and all was well.

2. While watching a DVD the picture froze on the screen. The picture was distorted and washed out like it was in the middle of a scene change and just hung there flashing. I tried switching inputs to component, antenna, and back and nothing changed -same image on all inputs. If I memory serves me, I believe I still had audio. Turned TV off and back on and it righted itself.

Any idea what is going on here?


/Jason

I've had 6168 for about 6 weeks and just started experiencing a new problem... For the past few days, whenever I initially turn on the set, I see huge black rectangular blocks that cover about 75% of the screen. They look like dark black filters (as I can see the picture image slightly behind them.) As soon as I change the channel or pull up the on-screen channel guide, they go away.

Any thoughts? Would this be the TV? Or the STB (SA 8300)?

Thanks!

I've had my HL-R6168 for about a week now and just recently noticed a couple anomalies. I'm curious to know if any other members have experienced the following and know what might be going on:

1. Turned on tv and got sound but no picture. Tried a couple times to no avail. I disconnected power from the wall for a minute and all was well.

I've had that happen twice - additionally I had no picture from my DVD player both times (only sound). I have also had the picture with no sound (quite a few times) and have to hit mute/un-mute to get the sound.

well yesterday was the original tech visit appointment, which he called and cancelled at 3pm the day of (2-6 appointment) he then scheduled another appointment at the same time for today, after waiting for 4 hours, he never showed up or even cared enough to call. Needless to say im quite ticked off. I called the service center to voice my displeasure and recieved an answering machine. anyone else deal with the NY area service center?

. . . Lastly, I tried Brothers In Arms and there was a bit of lag. I didn’t think it was a lag in the sense that the action on the screen lagged behind my action with the controller. When I moved the controller, the image on the screen moved immediately. What I felt was more like the game slowed down a bit, like the frame rate slowed a bit. This may partially be from being used to playing on a 32” TV as compared to a 67” TV but in any case, it was not something that would prevent me from playing that game. . .
Could it be the game console that's causing the lower fps? My xBox lags on Starwars Battlefront alot, especially when in splitscreen. Unless this is the TV (old 27" tube). :confused:

I've had 6168 for about 6 weeks and just started experiencing a new problem... For the past few days, whenever I initially turn on the set, I see huge black rectangular blocks that cover about 75% of the screen. They look like dark black filters (as I can see the picture image slightly behind them.) As soon as I change the channel or pull up the on-screen channel guide, they go away.

Any thoughts? Would this be the TV? Or the STB (SA 8300)?

Thanks!
Unplug both the TV and STB and let is sit for a minute or two.

Dan my smudge (or whatever it is) is upper left center. My wife cannot see it and although I find myself staring to make sure I can still see it if I relax and become involved with the show I seldom notice it. I think I will leave like it is for now as I worry that fixing one thing may wreck another.

It is kind of like I have been hanging around here to long. I will be watching a movie and not thinking about lip sync and all of a sudden I will remember that I am supposed to have a lip sync problem and for the next ten minutes I will be staring at lips and not watching the movie.

Well the 6768 smudge is getting around. I have reported about mine before. The service tech was out last Friday. After examining several possible causes, it appears to be the screen. The screen is composed of two layers, a fresnel lens on the inside and the smooth outside layer. It may be contamination between the layers or simply the two layers rubbing together. At any rate, trying to clean the inside fresnel layer modified the smudge and turned into a smudgy streak.

The Samsung tech had brought a replacement screen, but it was for a 6168. He is returning Thursday with a 6768 screen.

I will not be convinced that the screen is the problem until I have the replacement. Jhixon, I understand your reluctance to jump at the problem. In my case, the rest of the unit seems near perfect and I am certainly wary of screwing it up.

I will file a report Thursday afternoon about whether the screen replacement is "the fix" for the problem.

Jim

Can someone explain to me what is going on with HD on my 6168. I just realized what the sources are that I'm seeing a problem. When I am watching a film that is in HD, if there are diagonal lines, they are very smooth. But when the source is video, like from DiscoveryHD, diagonal lines are very jagged. It doesn't look right. IS this normal with this set? What is causing it to do this and is there any way to correct it.
The set looks excellent with a film source, but is lacking when the source is video. The sources are both being broadcast at 1080i. Does everyone else see this with their sets or is something wrong with mine?

EDIT: I just looked at the football game on ESPN. I don't see any problems with that picture and diagonal lines, isn't it a video source? Maybe it is just something with DiscoveryHD. I need to check a few other channels over the next couple of days.

Hi Aaron,

I have noticed the same issue on some HD channels like Discovery and inHD. Close ups are fine but when the picture pans a wide image like a scenery or something the picture is not as sharp. Some diagonal lines also appear jagged. Am attaching a few pics, let me know if that what you see as well. PQ from DVD is fine, no complaints there.

Rehan

Hi Aaron,

I have noticed the same issue on some HD channels like Discovery and inHD. Close ups are fine but when the picture pans a wide image like a scenery or something the picture is not as sharp. Some diagonal lines also appear jagged. Am attaching a few pics, let me know if that what you see as well. PQ from DVD is fine, no complaints there.

Rehan


I see that on the discovery channel also. If there is a mountain range in the distance it is very rough looking. I don't see it on the over the air channels. Could it be DirecTVs compression or maybe just the Discovery channel.

My theory is that not all of the footage that is used in some HD programing is actually HD. It seems to occur most often on long shots in nature shows where I think they are using some canned footage that gives them the scene they want and they don't have it in HD. Maybe someone involved in the industry can comment on how these nature shows are put together.

My theory is that not all of the footage that is used in some HD programing is actually HD.

Additionally, not all HD is the same HD. Where I work, (one of the networks) one of my fellow editors has been quoted as saying "For 50 years television was television, now it isn't." I don't know exactly, but I think I heard one of the tech guys talk about 12 different HD formats. (That may not be correct, but the point is made.) Transcoding is may sometimes be necessary between formats and artifacts can result.

J.

Well my donkey showed up Friday with my 5078 in a rainstorm and a beat up crate. Turned out it was fine and I've been enjoying the most amazing HDTV I could ever have imagined. I would go into details but as of now hurricane Rita looks like it will wreck my home. At least I was able to enjoy my first HDTV for a few days. This really sucks. :o(

I meant a sad face. Guess I don't get the right type.

I meant a sad face. Guess I don't get the right type.

Whoa! Hope everything turns out good for you and your home and the 5078!

First, the bad: Only one thing....the cooling fan is loud as hell. It is discouraging to have super expensive equipment like parasound to give the best possible sound and hear a very loud fan during every quiet moment of a movie. Does anyone else have a loud fan???? :mad:

Now the good: The picture is amazing. I am a sports fan and monday night football was amazing. I can't imagine a television picture getting much better, it is truly that good. :D

Now only if I can quiet down that damn cooling fan.........

First, the bad: Only one thing....the cooling fan is loud as hell. It is discouraging to have super expensive equipment like parasound to give the best possible sound and hear a very loud fan during every quiet moment of a movie. Does anyone else have a loud fan???? :mad:

Now the good: The picture is amazing. I am a sports fan and monday night football was amazing. I can't imagine a television picture getting much better, it is truly that good. :D

Now only if I can quiet down that damn cooling fan.........

I can't ever remember hearing the cooling fan in my HLR5668W and I run my system in mute mode often because of interruptions.

So it turns out that the optical audio output can output DD or PCM from whichever source is being viewed, which can then be looped back to an AVR.
This from the manual and confirmed from tech support.
I am now doing this and has eliminated much of the sync issue. Other advantage - don't have to switch AVR audio inputs.

When did this become possible? I know it works with PCM, but I thought it wasn't supposed to work with DD.

Well my donkey showed up Friday with my 5078 in a rainstorm and a beat up crate. Turned out it was fine and I've been enjoying the most amazing HDTV I could ever have imagined. I would go into details but as of now hurricane Rita looks like it will wreck my home. At least I was able to enjoy my first HDTV for a few days. This really sucks. :o(


I live in Dickinson, across the bay from you and Tweeter was supposed to deliver my 6768 on Thursday! I think I'll tell them to wait until Monday and see if I still have a house left. Otherwise, i would have to stay put and keep an eye on my new TV! :)
Good luck dude,

When did this become possible? I know it works with PCM, but I thought it wasn't supposed to work with DD.

clearly stipulated in the manual on the approp page (sorry cant get the manual right now to quote the page); also, I have a cablecard installed in addition to the 8300hd - switching the digital output is only doable from the cablecard source. the techs tell me that this source "locks"the output choice.
also i have done some quick a-b testing with the sammy volume on while switching between the sammy digital audio input on my avr and the direct digital input from my 8300hd. the echo disappears when I listen to the sammy and sammy digital audio input on my avr.
but.... and unfortunately my daytime responsibilities intrude so till later cant do any addtl testing ... I'm currently getting the dolby pro logic (not dd) signal lighting on my revcr; not sure why.

clearly stipulated in the manual on the approp page (sorry cant get the manual right now to quote the page); also, I have a cablecard installed in addition to the 8300hd - switching the digital output is only doable from the cablecard source. the techs tell me that this source "locks"the output choice.
also i have done some quick a-b testing with the sammy volume on while switching between the sammy digital audio input on my avr and the direct digital input from my 8300hd. the echo disappears when I listen to the sammy and sammy digital audio input on my avr.
but.... and unfortunately my daytime responsibilities intrude so till later cant do any addtl testing ... I'm currently getting the dolby pro logic (not dd) signal lighting on my revcr; not sure why.

The set will only output DD to your A/V Receiver if the source is the cable card or the antenna. If the sound is being input from a cable or sat STB to the TV via HDMI, it will not output DD to an A/V Receiver.

Sorry Rich, but it won't do 5.1 from any other source other than cable card and internal intuner.

So far I don't seem susceptible to lip sync. Only saw it once on a dvd and it went away when i restarted the dvd. of course, i've only watched 2 dvds so far.

I see that on the discovery channel also. If there is a mountain range in the distance it is very rough looking. I don't see it on the over the air channels. Could it be DirecTVs compression or maybe just the Discovery channel.

I notice the same exact thing on the Discovery HD channel using Comcast... This seems to be the only channel that does this...

First, the bad: Only one thing....the cooling fan is loud as hell. It is discouraging to have super expensive equipment like parasound to give the best possible sound and hear a very loud fan during every quiet moment of a movie. Does anyone else have a loud fan???? :mad:

Now the good: The picture is amazing. I am a sports fan and monday night football was amazing. I can't imagine a television picture getting much better, it is truly that good. :D

Now only if I can quiet down that damn cooling fan.........


I have a 6768 and the fan is extremely quiet. I can only hear it when I am close to the TV in a silent room. The fan may need to be replaced.

Hi Aaron,

I have noticed the same issue on some HD channels like Discovery and inHD. Close ups are fine but when the picture pans a wide image like a scenery or something the picture is not as sharp. Some diagonal lines also appear jagged. Am attaching a few pics, let me know if that what you see as well. PQ from DVD is fine, no complaints there.

Rehan

I can confirm the problem with Discovery. I Tivoed an episode of "Chasing Lance" in August and watching it a few days ago -- looked great. I also Tivoed an episode on September 10th and it's horrible. The picture seems to oscillate up and down, resulting in motion and jaggies. The problem is Discovery channel.

The set will only output DD to your A/V Receiver if the source is the cable card or the antenna. If the sound is being input from a cable or sat STB to the TV via HDMI, it will not output DD to an A/V Receiver.
Thats not what I heard from the techs... but even so it still solves DD sync via the cablecard source to the AVR. And boy the other night I watched the Two Towers on local WPIX/HD and what a revelation vs. the DVD. Whoda thunk it. HD is truly going to change the entertainment paradigm.

While I appreciate the deep tech discussion, I (others??) would hope to be seeing more user interface discussions. Hope people that have found these types of fixes arent scared off by the deep dives that tend to dominate.

My other issue now is my dvd choice after returning the hd950and now the oppo.
Auditioned the panny s97s and probably going that route but am not going to rush into this one - but very nice machine.
In this regard I've been trying to determine whether IEEE1394/dlink is really a decent control capability via the remote. Has anyone really used DLink? Are there any superior IEEE1394 DVD players that are command compatible with the DLink?

Note: DD is not necessarily 5.1.

I currently have a Samsung HLR5078W on layaway and I am now wondering if I should choose another tv? The two issues I am worried about are lip sync issue and the tv not accepting 1080p from the upcoming blu-ray hd format. I am keeping myself in the poor house spending every spare dollar to get this tv. Is this tv worth the cash I am spending on it? Has anyone that currently has one sitting in the home exsperienced lip sync issues? And does the tv for a fact not accept 1080p input? I am wondering if they have released updated versions of the set since it was first released earlier this year? The sales people at the store I am buying this set from said it would accept a 1080p signal.

I am seriously considering going back to the store and getting a different set. I am considering just getting a 720p set like a Samsung 720p DLP, Mitsubishi 720p DLP or a Sony 720p LCD and save some money that I can use to get a new dvd player with hdmi and or a new reciever to replace my 5.1 Yamaha RX-V995.

I have a 6768 and the fan is extremely quiet. I can only hear it when I am close to the TV in a silent room. The fan may need to be replaced.

Yes my fan is also very quiet. You definetly have a service issue.

Two questions and an observation: Concerning the Felston and AV amps in general, is the sound quality the same when using optical or coax connections or is one better than the other? And, I noticed the screen on my 6178 is not completely flat. It has a very slight concave bend in it. Hardly noticeable but I'm wondering if this is normal or a slight defect. Last night I saw the blue and red sparkles for the first time but I'm hoping it was the source......

Hi all,

I just purchased a HL-R5688W and the Oppo OPDV971H, primarily to watch movies in the best way possible!

Now I'm after a great home theater system (without the DVD player of course), to match these two puppies.

Any recommendations? My budget is in the low to middle hundreds.

Many thanks,

Unplug both the TV and STB and let is sit for a minute or two.

Bill, that worked! Thanks for your help!

The two issues I am worried about are lip sync issue and the tv not accepting 1080p from the upcoming blu-ray hd format.Don't count on blu-ray outputting 1080p at 60hz.

I am keeping myself in the poor house spending every spare dollar to get this tv.Is that a good idea with technology in this area moving so fast?

Has anyone that currently has one sitting in the home exsperienced lip sync issues?Yes they have but it's fixable.

And does the tv for a fact not accept 1080p input?It does NOT. It sounds like HP's DLP RPTV sets will to some extent but it's too early to tell for sure.

I am wondering if they have released updated versions of the set since it was first released earlier this year?No they haven't.

The sales people at the store I am buying this set from said it would accept a 1080p signal.Yes it will over analog VGA from a computer.

I am considering just getting a 720p set like a Samsung 720p DLP, Mitsubishi 720p DLP or a Sony 720p LCD and save some money that I can use to get a new dvd player with hdmi and or a new reciever to replace my 5.1 Yamaha RX-V995.You will not get the best bang for your buck from a 50" screen and a 1080p sets. 1080p's biggest advantage is in much bigger screen sizes.

If you wind up with lip sync problems you can get a Felston DD540 audio delay device and use it with your current A/V receiver.

Felston DD540 (http://www.felston.com/dd540/)

I have a HK 635 A/V receiver which I bought because it had independent audio delay for each input. It does, but what I didn't know was that it's max delay is only 80 ms which isn't quite enough. I'm waiting on a Felston right now. :o

If you buy a Sony LCD I don't think having an HDMI DVD player is much of an advantage. As far as I can tell, Sony converts everything to analog for internal processing. Their new A10 sounds like a pretty good LCD set.

Does Mitsubishi have any 2005 model 720p sets? The 2004 720p sets had some problems.

Good luck.

...is the sound quality the same when using optical or coax connections or is one better than the other?I ordered a Felston yesterday, and Nick said that for short runs where there isn't a ground loop problem he thinks coax is better. I've already had one optical cable fail on me so I think coax is more reliable. It's cheaper too.

First, the bad: Only one thing....the cooling fan is loud as hell. It is discouraging to have super expensive equipment like parasound to give the best possible sound and hear a very loud fan during every quiet moment of a movie. Does anyone else have a loud fan???? :mad:

Now the good: The picture is amazing. I am a sports fan and monday night football was amazing. I can't imagine a television picture getting much better, it is truly that good. :D

Now only if I can quiet down that damn cooling fan.........


I thought I was hearing mine the other night when I turned off the set but it was the TIVO.

I am keeping myself in the poor house spending every spare dollar to get this tv.

If it is that much of a financial stretch to buy a big ticket item like this at this time it's probably best to not make that purchase. This is just a hobby after all.

Thanks for the input I really wanted a high end set as I have never owned one. I think I will wait for a 1080p set and cancel the Samsung for now. I think I will just go with a 720p set and save for a front projection 1080p in a few years. I apreciate the input on this subject. I plan to go to the store today and to change my purchase, thanks.

The 5078 does not accept 1080p via HDMI.
I returned a 5078 to UE after a couple of weeks, primarily because of lip synch issues. Mine was not the only such TV returned for the same problem. However, as you've read in the forum, there are "fixes" to the lip synch problems through the use of an external delay device (Felston) or a DVD player with delay capability. Only you can decide if you are happy using such "fixes". I wasn't but others here obviously are.
So what did you end up getting? If anything.

Dan my smudge (or whatever it is) is upper left center. My wife cannot see it and although I find myself staring to make sure I can still see it if I relax and become involved with the show I seldom notice it. I think I will leave like it is for now as I worry that fixing one thing may wreck another.

I too, have the dreaded smudge.

HL-R6768 which is not exhibiting any of the other anomalies I've read about here, but the smudge is definitely there - two, actually. If you drew a 2' circle at the center of the screen there's a 3"x8" smudge starting at 10 o'clock and another smaller one at 1 o'clock. It appears that they somewhat follow this imaginary circle. This may be coincidence, or perhaps part of the optical path?

If it is the two parts of the screen interfering with each other, than it's just coincidence they happen to appear in somewhat of a circle.

My question - has anyone who has had this problem had it fixed to their satisfaction? With a screen replacement?

Thanks! And I very much enjoy this group.

My question - has anyone who has had this problem had it fixed to their satisfaction? With a screen replacement?Many HLP owners had to have their screens replaced for smudges. It's a very easy fix.

Jim (and jhixson),
thanks for the feedback & info.

Yes, please let us know.
THe smudge isn't bad - but I too can certainly see it somewhat clearly, especially when the background is very bright and / or white.

Other than that the TV is working and behaving perfectly, so I too am wary of touching it. Your experience will help decide though - so again, thanks in advance !

Best,
Dan

Well the 6768 smudge is getting around. I have reported about mine before. The service tech was out last Friday. After examining several possible causes, it appears to be the screen. The screen is composed of two layers, a fresnel lens on the inside and the smooth outside layer. It may be contamination between the layers or simply the two layers rubbing together. At any rate, trying to clean the inside fresnel layer modified the smudge and turned into a smudgy streak.

The Samsung tech had brought a replacement screen, but it was for a 6168. He is returning Thursday with a 6768 screen.

I will not be convinced that the screen is the problem until I have the replacement. Jhixon, I understand your reluctance to jump at the problem. In my case, the rest of the unit seems near perfect and I am certainly wary of screwing it up.

I will file a report Thursday afternoon about whether the screen replacement is "the fix" for the problem.

Jim

Ok, now I'm just confused! So can the Sammy accept 1080P via VGA, not from just a computer (when other sources become availible, of course)???

Jim (and jhixson),
thanks for the feedback & info.

Yes, please let us know.
THe smudge isn't bad - but I too can certainly see it somewhat clearly, especially when the background is very bright and / or white.

Other than that the TV is working and behaving perfectly, so I too am wary of touching it. Your experience will help decide though - so again, thanks in advance !

Best,
Dan

I had a smudge on my 6168. It was a piece of plastic shaving from when they screwed the cover on. I opened the side port and could see it laying on the lens.

/Curt

Interesting that this thread has slowed down as more people have their sets. Must not be many problems or we would have heard. I changed my gamma to 0. Great detailed instructions. Thanks to all who helped. Now my question. I changed on my HDMI input. Do I also have to change it on my s-video input or did it change on all of my inputs.
I also have the DNie not working according to their Demo. I assume when they get a fix, it will be available to those who complained. What number is best to call to make sure I am on their list?

I noticed that the TV Guide Screen right and left side edges seem to show wider at the bottom than the top. Also bottom edge seems to slope downward from left to right. Has anyone noticed this issue with their 1080p? See attached photo - sorry for the Camera Flash Bright Spot ...

I am wondering if the tv has adjustments like a computer monitor that might fix that? Or if it is just a factory defect? Have you called tech support on that yet?

I noticed that the TV Guide Screen right and left side edges seem to show wider at the bottom than the top. Also bottom edge seems to slope downward from left to right. Has anyone noticed this issue with their 1080p? See attached photo - sorry for the Camera Flash Bright Spot ...

Mine has a slight alignment issue. someone posted a link to a service manual and it is fixable. Looks like a pretty easy fix for someone to do as well.
evstar.eatsleepcode.ca/HLN_Manual/

and the saga continues..........
called samsung service center this morning and let them hear my displeasure about the tech never showing up or calling, after they apologized, they told me the part (LE) had still not arrived and they did not know when to expect it. We left it at they would call me as soon as it arrived to set up a tech visit. Fast foward to this evening, i sit down to view some (flickering) tv, and after 40 seconds, the tv turns itself off. I check my cables quickly to make sure nothing is out of wack, and turn it back on, and once again, it shuts off, this time flashing the 3 LEDS on teh power button, meaning the lamp is done. I got pissed and called the place from where i purchased it to see if they could help me out quicker than SS, fastest they could get out here would be a week, and even then they would probably not have the part on them. lets leave it at im not happy....... :mad:

Mine has a slight alignment issue. someone posted a link to a service manual and it is fixable. Looks like a pretty easy fix for someone to do as well.
evstar.eatsleepcode.ca/HLN_Manual/

Thanks for the link. The technician said there is really no keystone adjustment in the Samsung's and that the Light Engine is mounted over the DLP DMD and that there are only two adjustment screws for any type of adjustment. I'm concerned that if the technician works on it, that I may be worse off. Does anyone have any sample pictures of how their TV Guide alignment looks - not sure if what I have is within specification?

I have a HK 635 A/V receiver which I bought because it had independent audio delay for each input. It does, but what I didn't know was that it's max delay is only 80 ms which isn't quite enough. I'm waiting on a Felston right now. :o


I just bought a Denon AVR-2160 which can switch three component inputs and can rember distinct delays for each input up to a max of 200ms in 1 ms steps. It has an on screen menu (not very pretty, but is servicable). Haven't hooked it up yet.

I need another component switch and I am definitley having lip sync problems, so the trade off between yet another amplifier and a combo of a Zektor component switch and a Felston delay unit made the purchase of a new amp somewhat more palatable.

and the saga continues..........
called samsung service center this morning and let them hear my displeasure about the tech never showing up or calling, after they apologized, they told me the part (LE) had still not arrived and they did not know when to expect it. We left it at they would call me as soon as it arrived to set up a tech visit. Fast foward to this evening, i sit down to view some (flickering) tv, and after 40 seconds, the tv turns itself off. I check my cables quickly to make sure nothing is out of wack, and turn it back on, and once again, it shuts off, this time flashing the 3 LEDS on teh power button, meaning the lamp is done. I got pissed and called the place from where i purchased it to see if they could help me out quicker than SS, fastest they could get out here would be a week, and even then they would probably not have the part on them. lets leave it at im not happy....... :mad:

I am so sorry to hear your whats been happening to you Lankyleo. I am having a similar "flickering" issue along with 1/6th of my screen being brighter than the rest. I had an appt. to change the screen and this is what happened.

Tech shows up and tells me "maybe its burn-in"..."maybe its interference" after showing him the problem (which isn't easy in the morning). Subsequently, he says "maybe you should send it back" and I said "I got this from CA, you fix it". He says he will call me back on Tuesday and I wait past Tues into Thursday and call SS and the lady says "Says here on the order you are going to send it back to dealer". Can you believe this?! After a number of apologies she makes another appointment for next Tuesday. The same tech shows up and he has no screen, but he has the LE. I say "Dude, install the LE" and he says "I will wait for the screen"....wanted to kill the bastard. Either way, I am supposed to get the TV fixed this Friday....we shall see.

Thanks for the link. The technician said there is really no keystone adjustment in the Samsung's and that the Light Engine is mounted over the DLP DMD and that there are only two adjustment screws for any type of adjustment. I'm concerned that if the technician works on it, that I may be worse off. Does anyone have any sample pictures of how their TV Guide alignment looks - not sure if what I have is within specification?
All of this is quite normal for these SS sets it appears. You will see many of us discussing this on the earlier pages and throughout.

You can adjust the vertical and horizontal position via the SM. You can also slightly tweak the angle of the picture by moving the DMD on the LE chassis. I had that done the other day. It is very trial and error and takes forever since you have to adjust, look, adjust, etc.

Nothing seems to be able to be done about the bending of the image. It is quite disturbing but this seems to be the state of the art for rear projection TV's. Its probably the lens and the plastic screen geometry that has the greatest role here.

...
I say "Dude, install the LE" and he says "I will wait for the screen"....wanted to kill the bastard. Either way, I am supposed to get the TV fixed this Friday....we shall see.
Don't let them leave with your old LE until you really give it a look see. See my posts about my replacement LE. I am back to my original and I swear they must have given me a 720 LE for all the problems I had with the replacement.

I am so sorry to hear your whats been happening to you Lankyleo. I am having a similar "flickering" issue along with 1/6th of my screen being brighter than the rest. I had an appt. to change the screen and this is what happened.

Tech shows up and tells me "maybe its burn-in"..."maybe its interference" after showing him the problem (which isn't easy in the morning). Subsequently, he says "maybe you should send it back" and I said "I got this from CA, you fix it". He says he will call me back on Tuesday and I wait past Tues into Thursday and call SS and the lady says "Says here on the order you are going to send it back to dealer". Can you believe this?! After a number of apologies she makes another appointment for next Tuesday. The same tech shows up and he has no screen, but he has the LE. I say "Dude, install the LE" and he says "I will wait for the screen"....wanted to kill the bastard. Either way, I am supposed to get the TV fixed this Friday....we shall see.

if its flickering id take a guess and say ur LE is on the way out much like mine. What was his reason for not swapping it? did he just want to swap everythign in one shot? Dealing with the SS service center has been nothing but frustrating for me, and at this rate im sure there will be more problems. As for getting a new set, after reading these forums im afraid i might get a set with more problems than im dealing with now, aswell the hassle of physically moving it out and another one back in is nothign to look foward to. mine worked perfectly for 2.5 weeks. were ur problems apparent from teh get-go? Good luck to u, and ill stay tuned for ur update on the friday appointment. I'm stuck waiting for them to get off there ass, get the part and help me out.

Wonder how long till SS irons out all these issues, there seems to be a bunch

All of this is quite normal for these SS sets it appears. You will see many of us discussing this on the earlier pages and throughout.

You can adjust the vertical and horizontal position via the SM. You can also slightly tweak the angle of the picture by moving the DMD on the LE chassis. I had that done the other day. It is very trial and error and takes forever since you have to adjust, look, adjust, etc.

Nothing seems to be able to be done about the bending of the image. It is quite disturbing but this seems to be the state of the art for rear projection TV's. Its probably the lens and the plastic screen geometry that has the greatest role here.

I have adjusted the vertical and horizontal position via the SM since the black bars on 4:3 content were off however the DMD to LE adjustment worries me that it may get worse if the technician messes with this. Were you able to tweak the angle with the DMD and LE to straighten out the image better than what it was?

Interesting that this thread has slowed down as more people have their sets. Must not be many problems or we would have heard. I changed my gamma to 0. Great detailed instructions. Thanks to all who helped. Now my question. I changed on my HDMI input. Do I also have to change it on my s-video input or did it change on all of my inputs.
I also have the DNie not working according to their Demo. I assume when they get a fix, it will be available to those who complained. What number is best to call to make sure I am on their list?


It is my understanding that changing the Gamma affects all inputs.

On the DNIE issue what I think we see in the demo is a very exagerated DNIE for demo purposes and our settings are not nearly as enhanced. I could be wrong on this though.

I noticed something interesting when calibrating my 6768 - the movie mode 'does' somethign that the standard modes don't. If you set the custom mode to the same settings as movie mode, your picture is still quite a bit different. There seems to be some additional processing going on.
For example, watching the star wars intro (with all the stars in the background) gives me some MINOR blocky mpeg artifacts when the scrolling text is almost done. However, in Movie mode, this does NOT appear..... ?! BTB level is also different...

Dan

can anyone explain why on some OTA sources you get these squares (pixelation?) and some sources look perfect. I was comparing Earl and Lost, both OTA. Earl was full of blocks in the picture and Lost looked really good. Of course, Lost took place mostly at night so I don't know if that had something to do with it.

Celestial

I have the same lighter area. primarily on the left side of my 6168. even though it isn't "burn in" it is a good description of what it looks like. i can always see it when the screen is black or in darker seens. to me it looks like it is the area not displayed on 4:3 mode. I also have some serious shadow detail issues too. This isn't my first HD display, but it is my first DLP. All displays need a certain amount of calibration, and tweaking, but I am finding it hard to beleive that SS felt that they had a product ready to ship to the masses.

Expecting delivery of my 5678w tomorrow and wondered if anyone could help me out with a quick recommendation for a good stand to put it on. I'll likely end up having 4 xbox/dvd/cablebox sized components. Thanks.

can anyone explain why on some OTA sources you get these squares (pixelation?) and some sources look perfect. I was comparing Earl and Lost, both OTA. Earl was full of blocks in the picture and Lost looked really good. Of course, Lost took place mostly at night so I don't know if that had something to do with it.

I split my antennat to run to TV and D*TV TIVO. Tried to record CBS and it was very blocky. So I checked again and their is a definate difference in the quality outputed by the tuners on a weaker signal. The TV was much better it would occasionally drop for a split second but was never blocky.

ALL THIS DNIE CONFUSION!!!
Can't we just call Samsung and ask them?

First, the bad: Only one thing....the cooling fan is loud as hell. It is discouraging to have super expensive equipment like parasound to give the best possible sound and hear a very loud fan during every quiet moment of a movie. Does anyone else have a loud fan????

The fan on my Hlr5688 is loud also. My Hlp5688's fan ( which it replaced) was not nearly as loud. Do you think it's a service issue?

The fan on my Hlr5688 is loud also. My Hlp5688's fan ( which it replaced) was not nearly as loud. Do you think it's a service issue?

Probably yes.

I think I read somewhere that "movie mode" does some smoothing of DVDs

Well, I found a second smudge, or problem with the screen. I could only see it at night with no ambient light - but when the TV is 'black' or dark I can clearly see a stripe acrosse the top part of the screen. Whole bunch of pixels in a 'black' lighter than the screen black. If I lightly tap the unit, or prod the screen, the strip moves and / or vibrates :-(
I could have lived with the 'smudge' in teh middle, but this stripe is actually 'light', so it looks like I'm calling Samsung Tech today. :-(
Too bad, and what a hassle. Love the unit otherwise (when I forget about the strip during the day or during bright scenes....

Dan

Many HLP owners had to have their screens replaced for smudges. It's a very easy fix.

I split my antennat to run to TV and D*TV TIVO. Tried to record CBS and it was very blocky. So I checked again and their is a definate difference in the quality outputed by the tuners on a weaker signal. The TV was much better it would occasionally drop for a split second but was never blocky.


It might be the splitter too. Try swaping the 2 outputs and see if the TIVO quality changes.

Anyone get the Screen Replacement extended warranty from TVA? Is it worth it? Did you decide against it or buy it? I ordered it but I don't really see the need for it?

Anyone get the Screen Replacement extended warranty from TVA? Is it worth it? Did you decide against it or buy it? I ordered it but I don't really see the need for it?

I have it. I went for it basically because I have a 3 year old in the house and quite a few kids of her age in the neighbourhood who come to our house often. It gives me peace of mind everytime these kids run around the house like crazy!

ALL THIS DNIE CONFUSION!!!
Can't we just call Samsung and ask them?
Anyone who has an interest in this should make a call. Maybe if they log enough calls on it, they'll at the very least, issue a public statement on what's going on. And if there really is a problem, release some new firmware to address it.

I called them about it and was basically blown off by the tech guy stating that I had not described any problem to him. He didn't offer up an explanation of why we see what we see with the DNie demo and the DNie setting in the service menu.

Sorry to bother you with what you might consider a stupid question, but I am trying to connect my HLR5688W to my Oppo DVD player (the one that you reviewed and recommended). I need an adapter to connect the DVI cable included with the DVD player to the Samsung, right? Which one would you recommend?

Many thanks.

Anyone get the Screen Replacement extended warranty from TVA? Is it worth it? Did you decide against it or buy it? I ordered it but I don't really see the need for it?


Like ekans, I also opted for the screen replacement package. I too have a 3 year old and toys become airborne once in a while. I also have a cat and can't imagine what would happen if he thought there was enough room to jump up and stand on top of the set...


/Jason

Sorry to bother you with what you might consider a stupid question, but I am trying to connect my HLR5688W to my Oppo DVD player (the one that you reviewed and recommended). I need an adapter to connect the DVI cable included with the DVD player to the Samsung, right? Which one would you recommend?

Many thanks.

The OPPO ships with a cable of your choice. Either the DVI to DVI cable or the DVI to HDMI cable based on your order. The one you need is the DVI to HDMI cable. If you purchased the OPPO with the DVI to DVI cable and want to get it going quickly, you can pickup a DVI to HDMI (male) adapter at your local electronics store.

OPPO web site: www.oppodigital.com

Anyone get the Screen Replacement extended warranty from TVA? Is it worth it? Did you decide against it or buy it? I ordered it but I don't really see the need for it?


I got it for 2 years only added $30 to the warrantee. But now that I am thinking about it I have had the TV for 2 weeks and have not received anything for the warantees.

Many thanks. I ordered the Oppo from Amazon but did not see the option of ordering one cable or the other. It came with the DVI/DVI cable, hence my problem. Off to Radio Shack!

I have adjusted the vertical and horizontal position via the SM since the black bars on 4:3 content were off however the DMD to LE adjustment worries me that it may get worse if the technician messes with this. Were you able to tweak the angle with the DMD and LE to straighten out the image better than what it was?
First time it was off by about 3/16 inch side to side. The ST tried to fix it and spent about 1/2 hour and made it worse, got frustrated and ordered a new LE.

He replaced the LE and it was fine from the geometry standpoint but the PQ sucked. So I called him and told him I wanted my old LE back even with the angular problem. He came back, swapped the LE back out and then spent about 45 minutes doing trial and error adjustments until he could not get it any better. Got to within 1/8 side to side which is unnoticeable.

So the ST has to be patient and its not a quick fix.

Anyone get the Screen Replacement extended warranty from TVA? Is it worth it? Did you decide against it or buy it? I ordered it but I don't really see the need for it?
I decided to pass on the Screen replacement. Amex card provided I think either 30 or 90 days of damage coverage, so I had coverage during the initial install.

However, if you have kids, it would seem like something to at least consider. CRTs are certainly able to sustain "crayola attacks"better than this set.

Is it true that hdmi does not support 1080p, and if so why are they called full 1080p?

Fellow Smudgittes, Smudgeoleons, (or is it Smudgearians?):


The Samsung service tech (actually USACO, a Samsung sub for L.A. and Las Vegas) came back today.

He said that my problem had been keeping him awake at night--one conscientious dude, he is.

He said that typical "smudges" are more ill-defined than mine and appear in more than one place on the screen.

He wanted to perform an experiment. We (on the 6768 two sets of hands are needed) removed the screen, turned it sideways and then viewed a scene where the "smudge" was visible.

The "smudge" had not moved.

Looking at the LE lens with the set on--something we had not done previously when the lens was being cleaned---it was very obvious that there is a deep scratch on the lens. My smudge was coming from the scratch.

So problem defined, but not fixed. In my case it is not the screen, it's the Light Engine. And as has been reported, I believe, the LEs are backordered.

So I'll be seeing my new friend from USACO yet another time. And, OBTW, he did say that they use only Samsung parts.


Jim

I got it for 2 years only added $30 to the warrantee. But now that I am thinking about it I have had the TV for 2 weeks and have not received anything for the warantees.

It took almost 5 weeks to get mine. TVA did say it will take 4-6 weeks for the warranty stuff to arrive as it is sent by some other company. Don't worry, you are still covered even if you have not received them yet.

5668 from TVA delivered 3 days ago and I'm lovin' it!
Sammy replaces a 16 year old Pioneer 50" RPU -- it wouldn't die --
no big problems to report but I am a rank novice ...

SA830DVR - component
Oppo DVD - HDMI2
Brighthouse Tampa Cablecard - antenna2
Sony Vaio Nortebook - VGA

two burning questions questions...

1) i currently use only the built-in stereo and onboard speakers ...
Is it a reasonable first step to add a powered subwoofer connected to the back of the Sammy - seems to be "available" in all the settings menus for above sources

2)picure looks great to this novice using component cables. What improvement, if any, am i likely to observe if I substitute HDMI-HDMI cable for the SA8300HD. Any recommendations for vendor, brand and price?

finally, my sincere thanks to the many contributors to this most helpful thread, and especially to founder UCSB-Bill

I believe, the LEs are backordered.

any more info on this? guess this is why my tech hasnt called/shown up yet. Anyone get an estimated wait time? :(

Many thanks. I ordered the Oppo from Amazon but did not see the option of ordering one cable or the other. It came with the DVI/DVI cable, hence my problem. Off to Radio Shack!
I highly recommend http://www.avcable.com/
I have purchased 4 cables from them now. Affordable, great quality and easy to do business with. They will even do custom lengths for you.

any more info on this? guess this is why my tech hasnt called/shown up yet. Anyone get an estimated wait time? :(

Just spoke to Dispatch for USACO. There is, apparently, no backorder for 6768 Light Engines. I could have it tomorrow, but Monday fits into my schedule better.

J.

Does anyone know what signal formats can be passed over the iEEE 1394 interface?

I know this is a question for the remote forum but since I want to use the Harmony 880 with a 6168 I thought maybe somebody here who has used a 880 with a XX68 can answer my question. I basically want to find out if the 880 is capable of sending a discrete code for input selection (HDMI1, HDMI2, Component, etc...) or does it just cycle through the inputs like one would by repeatedly pressing the "Source" button on the Samsung remote? I really hope it is the former.

Just spoke to Dispatch for USACO. There is, apparently, no backorder for 6768 Light Engines. I could have it tomorrow, but Monday fits into my schedule better.

J.
Is there a difference in LE's across the xx68w sizes? The service center has been telling me they dont have any and have no idea when to expect them in. is there any where i could call or check availability?im watching tv through an old sony crt 20", sitting next to a a 56 inch piece of furniture :rolleyes:

The service center has been telling me they dont have any and have no idea when to expect them in. is there any where i could call or check availability?

Then why the hell are you waiting for a LE? If they can't furnish you with a LE in a reasonable amount of time, then I would demand a full replacement.

Then why the hell are you waiting for a LE? If they can't furnish you with a LE in a reasonable amount of time, then I would demand a full replacement.


haev an appointment set with the the store i bought it from next week for just htis reason, if SS doesnt get off there ass, im makign the store give me a new set, i figured repalcing the LE would be quicker as SS told me they could have it taken care of this past monday, had i forseen this happening i woulda went straight to them

Well, I've had my 6168 for almost 2 weeks now and I'm starting to get used to it. Overall, I am pleased with the set, but I think the increased resolution in these new 1080p sets is kind of a double-edged sword. More on that later... Also, this is not my first HDTV set as I also own a 3 year old Sony 65" KDP-65XBR2 rear projection set. So most of my comments/comparisons are against that beast (which I have never had calibrated BTW).

My new Setup:

Samsung 6168 DLP
OTA Antenna (Chicago digital stations)
Analog cable TV
Oppo DVD player at 1080i (HDMI2/DVI)
All viewing around 10 feet away.


The good:
--------

HD OTA - Great! Shows on CBS like David Letterman and HD football look wonderful. I really think they are more detailed and "crisp" looking then my Sony. The same goes for NBC programming like Jay Leno and HD college football I have seen. Slight edge to the Samsung 6168. As for Fox and ABC HD programming, I can't tell a big difference between it on my 6168 and my older Sony 65XBR2. But I can say that the 1080i programming from NBC, CBS, and PBS looks clearer and more detailed then the programming on 720p Fox and ABC... More specifically, the football games I have watched in HD. I guess it may have something to do with 1080 being native resolution on these TVs or something, but my eyes at least see a better PQ on 1080i source overall on this set. Though HD still looks nice on Fox and ABC.

DVD - All the movies I have watched through the Oppo have looked as good as my Sony or sometimes better. I have tried LOTR:ROTK, Toy Story, Finding Nemo and some others... So while not HD quality, it still looks really good.

Internal ATSC tuner - CBS DT-3 here in Chicago is tough to get in for me on my older Sony's built-in tuner. This sets seem to receive the signal a little better and makes it watchable more often, although not perfect. Damn you low-band VHF!


The okay:
--------

Standard Definition OTA signals are very watchable. But I have to give an edge to my Sony. Maybe I liked the "softer" look from the OTA SD broadcasts it displayed, but I feel that the image was slightly better. I think here is where the Samsung's increased 1080p detail shows more of the flaws of SD.

TV Guide - Hey, it's better then nothing! It's nice having a few days of programming displayed for you in the grid, but I can't stand that when I hit the [Info] button for a cable or OTA show, I don't see the same show description that is in the TV Guide's grid. WTF is up with that?


The bad:
-------

Analog cable signals - while watchable, are not very good. Unfortunately, my cable company doesn't offer any HD yet, and my previous satellite HD provider (Voom) went out of business a while back. So I consider myself "inbetween" satellite HD service providers waiting for the new MPEG4 rollout before I commit a couple years of payments to either D* or E*. Here again is where the source (lack of) quality really seems to get magnified on the higher resolution of this TV. So I understand this is mostly my fault for not feeding this TV the High Definition that it really needs.

Rainbows - I had never really seen rainbows before, but had read a lot about them here. While watching TV on my new set, I tried to look for them but couldn't ever really see anything that might resemble them. And then I had to go and watch 'Sin City' (a.k.a. 'Rainbow City' for me now) During that movie, I really figured out what they were and saw them throughout the whole thing. While it took away from watching that movie, I really haven't seen them anywhere else yet, so I'm not overly concerned about it.


Overall:
-------

Overall, I am very pleased with the set. I have not run into any of the reported problems others have had so far, so I keep my fingers crossed. I have also adjusted the Gamma in the SM down to 0, and it seems to make the PQ a little better. Although it made it darker then I would have liked. So I need to adjust brightness and contrast up a bit. I'll eventually break down and try to have it calibrated once I choose a satellite provider. Any Samsung 1080p owners in the Chicagoland area wanna get a group calibration together?!?

I have been following this thread since early August but there have been so many posts that I am afraid I may have missed some things. My wife and I are considering our first HD/big screen TV purchase, but we have been using an OTA HD tuner with our standard TV using component inputs to get improved picture and audio.

1. Lip sync, lots has been said, but there are still some things not clear to me. You have to admit that if the TV would accept and process and DD5.1 passing it through to its output, it would probably solve the issue. Why have HDMI inputs designed to carry DD5.1 to the TV if it is not going to do anything with it? How did Samsung think these displays were going to be used?

If an external HD tuner connects to analog TV with component video and to DD5.1 amp with optical cable now and displays no noticeable lip sync issue, does that indicate the broadcast source is good? Then how much lip sync delay can one expect with these TVs? If it varies, why? What other variables if not source?

2. There were some issues with picture quality and/or brightness when switching modes or inputs. Is Samsung fixing that? If so, how do I know if I am getting an updated model? If not, was there a for sure way to easily correct it when it happens?

3. UCSB spent a ton of time reviewing DVD players, did I miss his review of the HLR set itself (seems more relevant to thread)?

4. I have searched the web for professional reviews of these models, and I have found nothing! Anybody know of any sites or can someone site some articles from print only publications?

5. What is the general consensus for hooking up a PC? Use the VGA input and set it to what resolution and frequency? Can the family sit on the sofa and comfortably read email, do online research, play some games (not DOOM3 et al)?

6. How do digital photos look? Is it a simple thing or are there a ton of configuration settings to make them look good?

7. Does anybody watch just OTA? Does the TV guide work without cable? Any opinions on the TV guide functions?

8. Would a typical person be happy with the picture quality a typical DVD player produces on it?

9. Would a typical person be happy with the picture quality of SD broadcasts (compared to a quality SD TV and/or Analog TV with an external Digital Tuner)?

10. Remotes, why all this discussion of hex codes, etc? Are there any critical functions a learning remote cannot learn?

The fan on my Hlr5688 is loud also. My Hlp5688's fan ( which it replaced) was not nearly as loud. Do you think it's a service issue?

Mine 5688 is so quiet need stethoscope to tell its working.

Some quick answers:

I have been following this thread since early August but there have been so many posts that I am afraid I may have missed some things. My wife and I are considering our first HD/big screen TV purchase, but we have been using an OTA HD tuner with our standard TV using component inputs to get improved picture and audio.

1. Lip sync, lots has been said, but there are still some things not clear to me. You have to admit that if the TV would accept and process and DD5.1 passing it through to its output, it would probably solve the issue. Why have HDMI inputs designed to carry DD5.1 to the TV if it is not going to do anything with it? How did Samsung think these displays were going to be used?

If an external HD tuner connects to analog TV with component video and to DD5.1 amp with optical cable now and displays no noticeable lip sync issue, does that indicate the broadcast source is good? Then how much lip sync delay can one expect with these TVs? If it varies, why? What other variables if not source?
Buy an external AV sync solution (Felston or AV receiver) or live with delay. Delay, depends on source component, but can be about .1 second or 100 ms.

2. There were some issues with picture quality and/or brightness when switching modes or inputs. Is Samsung fixing that? If so, how do I know if I am getting an updated model? If not, was there a for sure way to easily correct it when it happens?
There is an easy way to correct the problem, if it is occurring. It is still an open issue with Samsung.

3. UCSB spent a ton of time reviewing DVD players, did I miss his review of the HLR set itself (seems more relevant to thread)?
I put my effort into a number of other areas besides a review. In part, because the sets were available in stores and there were thousands of posts on the TV’s by the time I was ready to write a review. In short, these are great sets. All of the problems that I have observed have been discussed in the thread.

4. I have searched the web for professional reviews of these models, and I have found nothing! Anybody know of any sites or can someone site some articles from print only publications?
We haven’t discussed any, yet.

5. What is the general consensus for hooking up a PC? Use the VGA input and set it to what resolution and frequency? Can the family sit on the sofa and comfortably read email, do online research, play some games (not DOOM3 et al)?
Yes, with the proper PC support you will get a nice image that is completely usable. It may have a little overscan/underscan depending on you exact hardware and settings.

6. How do digital photos look? Is it a simple thing or are there a ton of configuration settings to make them look good?
Digital photos look nice, but if you are going to use a DVD player to display them they are usually in 4:3 mode. But, your PC or a Roku will produce nice results at HD resolutions.

7. Does anybody watch just OTA? Does the TV guide work without cable? Any opinions on the TV guide functions?
I don’t use the OTA capabilities.

8. Would a typical person be happy with the picture quality a typical DVD player produces on it?
Buy a nice upconverting DVD player … see my reviews in POST #4. You can get by with a standard player, but after investing this much in the TV this is an area that you will want to optimize.

9. Would a typical person be happy with the picture quality of SD broadcasts (compared to a quality SD TV and/or Analog TV with an external Digital Tuner)?
Yes.

10. Remotes, why all this discussion of hex codes, etc? Are there any critical functions a learning remote cannot learn?
This is an advanced topic for people with custom remotes. You can disregard these posts if you are not using a programmable remote. Obviously, you can operate the TV with the standard remote and your learning remote can learn each of the commands on the remote. But, there are a number of nice discrete codes that are not available on the remote, such as directly going to a specific input, picture mode, or bringing up the TV’s diagnostic screens.

Just a short, general message from someone entirely new to this game of Monster TVs. I recently bought a Samsung HL-R5688W after doing quite a bit of research (I'm a researcher by profession, so why not this too?). I bought the TV from a low-cost Brooklyn outfit (saved over a grand), and I unpacked it, hooked up the Oppo miracle DVD player that everyone raves about, and popped in Lord of the Rings (no home theater system yet--that comes later; for now, I'm working off the built-in speakers). My totally noviciate, inexperienced assessment? --Truly awesome.-- Sharp picture, vivid, correct colors, no rainbows, macroblocks (whatever the hell those are), or other Gremlins--just a straight cinematic-like picture with great, if not mind-blowing, sound. I'm sure the experts could pick apart this or that, but guys and gals, from a Layman's point of view, this is one awesome TV set. I'm sure I'll up my cinematic viewing experience several more notches once I figure out how to tweak the Oppo and the TV, and have encircled myself with the obligatory boom boxes. But right now, I am one happy camper. Thank you, Samsung, and Oppo, and UCSB for telling me how to hook up the two!

Later.

I've been happily watching HD channels via built-in tuner on my HLR-6168 until today. They all disappeared, including major stations, PBS, INHD, INHD2, etc. When I key in an HD channel, I get a message that the signal is either weak or channels does not exist. I called Comcast to find out if there's been a disruption in service. After looking into my account, the Comcast rep told me that I am not paying for HD service and that I should not be able to watch HD channels until I get a set-top box and start paying them $5 a month. I then mentioned that Comcast is required by law to provide subscribers with all OTA HD channels at no additional cost, and that I've actually had such service for several weeks without problems. The rep started getting audibly annoyed and losing patience with me. I told her that I don't want their set-top box, and then requested that a technician show up to install CableCARD next week. However, given that I currently cannot see any HD channels via my built-in tuner, I just don't see how a CableCARD will get me HD channels back. The problem I am having most likely comes from either a Comcast snafu or trouble with my built-in HD tuner.

Does anyone in San Francisco Bay Area have CableCARD working with Comcast service on a 1080p set? If so, was it a hassle to get the card installed and working? Is Comcast required to transmit OTA HD channels as part of their Standard Cable service?

I've been happily watching HD channels via built-in tuner on my HLR-6168 until today. They all disappeared, including major stations, PBS, INHD, INHD2, etc. When I key in an HD channel, I get a message that the signal is either weak or channels does not exist. I called Comcast to find out if there's been a disruption in service. After looking into my account, the Comcast rep told me that I am not paying for HD service and that I should not be able to watch HD channels until I get a set-top box and start paying them $5 a month. I then mentioned that Comcast is required by law to provide subscribers with all OTA HD channels at no additional cost, and that I've actually had such service for several weeks without problems. The rep started getting audibly annoyed and losing patience with me. I told her that I don't want their set-top box, and then requested that a technician show up to install CableCARD next week. However, given that I currently cannot see any HD channels via my built-in tuner, I just don't see how a CableCARD will get me HD channels back. The problem I am having most likely comes from either a Comcast snafu or trouble with my built-in HD tuner.

Does anyone in San Francisco Bay Area have CableCARD working with Comcast service on a 1080p set? If so, was it a hassle to get the card installed and working? Is Comcast required to transmit OTA HD channels as part of their Standard Cable service?

It did seem like the free tuner based HD channels disappeared today (at least for a little while this afternoon when I was watching). I do pay for a HD DVR (which I recommend). If you get the CableCard, please post what they are charging you for it. There was some confusion about the actual charge when I called to have it installed. Two people told me that there was not going to be a charge and then the final person told me that it would be $7 / month. $7 / month seemed a little expensive since I was already paying for digital cable, HD, and the DVR.

I've been happily watching HD channels via built-in tuner on my HLR-6168 until today. They all disappeared, including major stations, PBS, INHD, INHD2, etc. When I key in an HD channel, I get a message that the signal is either weak or channels does not exist.
[...]

Wow, the same thing happened to me this morning (I'm in Santa Clara, CA). I didn't think it was a Comcast problem because I also lost the OTA digital channels. I didn't have time to look at it until this evening and the problem was still there. My HTPC's HD tuner cards were still working so it looked like a problem with the TV. Anyway, I got all the digital channels back after I entered the Service Menu.

It really looked like a problem with the TV but it seems too much of a coincidence that at least three of us saw the problem on the same day.

any more info on this? guess this is why my tech hasnt called/shown up yet. Anyone get an estimated wait time? :(

Don't wait call again....my tech said he would call and he didn't and they do have LE because I am supposed to get one today.

I've been happily watching HD channels via built-in tuner on my HLR-6168 until today. They all disappeared, including major stations, PBS, INHD, INHD2, etc. When I key in an HD channel, I get a message that the signal is either weak or channels does not exist. I called Comcast to find out if there's been a disruption in service. After looking into my account, the Comcast rep told me that I am not paying for HD service and that I should not be able to watch HD channels until I get a set-top box and start paying them $5 a month. I then mentioned that Comcast is required by law to provide subscribers with all OTA HD channels at no additional cost, and that I've actually had such service for several weeks without problems. The rep started getting audibly annoyed and losing patience with me. I told her that I don't want their set-top box, and then requested that a technician show up to install CableCARD next week. However, given that I currently cannot see any HD channels via my built-in tuner, I just don't see how a CableCARD will get me HD channels back. The problem I am having most likely comes from either a Comcast snafu or trouble with my built-in HD tuner.

Does anyone in San Francisco Bay Area have CableCARD working with Comcast service on a 1080p set? If so, was it a hassle to get the card installed and working? Is Comcast required to transmit OTA HD channels as part of their Standard Cable service?

I use an over OTA antenna and occasionally it will drop one of the weaker channels from the list. I can no longer tune directly to that station. If I go in to setup and do an auto detect the station reappears and works fine.

Don't wait call again....my tech said he would call and he didn't and they do have LE because I am supposed to get one today.

keep getting an answering machine ::bangshead:: ill be trying all day, thanks for the heads up

as i cant get in touch with the actual service center i went ahead and called the 1800-samsung # again, girl was very helpfull and gave me a new trans# and tried to get thru to the service center for me to see wtf is up, she couldnt get thru either, she then told me she left a message that they need to deal with me ASAP. i then asked her if she could check the availability of the LE, and she said it was indeed on backorder, and would be arriving anytime, she said the status on the computer shows 'coming in'. Ill be attemtping to call the service center all day today, but have a feeling they wont be picking up or contacting me either way. wish me luck

I know this is a question for the remote forum but since I want to use the Harmony 880 with a 6168 I thought maybe somebody here who has used a 880 with a XX68 can answer my question. I basically want to find out if the 880 is capable of sending a discrete code for input selection (HDMI1, HDMI2, Component, etc...) or does it just cycle through the inputs like one would by repeatedly pressing the "Source" button on the Samsung remote? I really hope it is the former.

I am using 880 and 6168. It can send discrete codes. HDMI2 was not initially working, but I think they have it now. I am not using HDMI2, so I I did not bother.

I use an over OTA antenna and occasionally it will drop one of the weaker channels from the list. I can no longer tune directly to that station. If I go in to setup and do an auto detect the station reappears and works fine.
This seems to happen periodically. My set was working great for weeks and then the other day I lost CBS, then rescanned and a few minutes later the PBS stations. Rescanned again and now they are all back and have been for four days.

This may be something to watch. I am not ready to report it yet because I don't want to screw up my TV while SS searches for a solution.

Hello Everyone, I got my replacement 6168 on Tuesday (first one arrived with a shattered mirror), and I have some questions. First of all my setup…
SS 6168W
Adelphia 8300HD via Component
HTPC w/ ATI 9600 via VGA
TiVo via S-Video
All sound routed to Sony ES Receiver

Now I want to say that when feeding this a good HD signal the PQ is AMAZING! Watching Shark Tale off HD HBO was simply stunning. Even SD channels are watchable using the 8300… Switching to the TiVo there is a noticeable loss of PQ for the SD channels but at the best quality setting it’s still watchable.
I have a major problem with Shadow Detail though… I have been unable to get the brightness set to a level that gives me any shadow detail. Dark scenes which on my old RPTV would have had a lot of detail are just big pools of black on this TV, I get almost no image at all, just black. Or even lighter scenes where just half of someones face is in shadow, I can’t see any detail.

I’ve gone into the service menu and set GAMMA to 0 and while that improved PQ a bit, it doesn’t cure my shadow detail problem. I’ve tried the different picture modes including movie and standard and stuff. Dynamic looks absolutely horrible, what the heck is going on with that mode?

Anyway, I’m hoping someone can help me out with my shadow detail issue because it’s seriously detracting from my enjoyment of this set.

Also, another odd problem is that sometimes the picture degrades from a crisp clear HD image to a much grainier image for a fraction of a second… I’ve noticed it on a few HD channels but last night watching ER it bugged me quite a few times. It usually happened at a camera change like when they swapped to a different angle in a shot and for a fraction of a second it looks like I’m watching a 910x540 resolution instead of 1920x1080… it happens VERY quick and it almost seems like a figment of my imagination but I’ve seen it so many times that I’m convinced it’s real… Does anybody else get this phenomenon? Is it a function of the signal level or of the wobulation adjusting to quick scene changes?

Anyway, thanks for any help with this…

I have been following this thread since early August but there have been so many posts that I am afraid I may have missed some things. My wife and I are considering our first HD/big screen TV purchase, but we have been using an OTA HD tuner with our standard TV using component inputs to get improved picture and audio.

{snip}

7. Does anybody watch just OTA? Does the TV guide work without cable? Any opinions on the TV guide functions?
{snip}


The TV Guide information is an OTA function that the cable system passes on. It is actually broadcast in the Vertical Blanking Interval of a local station. The short answer is yes, it works with OTA because that is what is was designed for.

Also, another odd problem is that sometimes the picture degrades from a crisp clear HD image to a much grainier image for a fraction of a second… I’ve noticed it on a few HD channels but last night watching ER it bugged me quite a few times. It usually happened at a camera change like when they swapped to a different angle in a shot and for a fraction of a second it looks like I’m watching a 910x540 resolution instead of 1920x1080… it happens VERY quick and it almost seems like a figment of my imagination but I’ve seen it so many times that I’m convinced it’s real… Does anybody else get this phenomenon? Is it a function of the signal level or of the wobulation adjusting to quick scene changes?

Anyway, thanks for any help with this…

I think this is what I saw while watching Earl OTA. It looks like a compression artifact, but I thought OTA you wouldn't get things like that. When I pause one of the scenes, you would see little blocks making up the image.

I didn't see it on Lost and I didn't see it UPN last night. I think I saw it on Invasion last night. These are all OTA. So maybe it's a factor if the show is 720p or 1080i?

Wow, the same thing happened to me this morning (I'm in Santa Clara, CA). I didn't think it was a Comcast problem because I also lost the OTA digital channels. I didn't have time to look at it until this evening and the problem was still there. My HTPC's HD tuner cards were still working so it looked like a problem with the TV. Anyway, I got all the digital channels back after I entered the Service Menu.

It really looked like a problem with the TV but it seems too much of a coincidence that at least three of us saw the problem on the same day.

Thanks for the tip. I tried re-scanning my channels last night using Auto Program feature; however, that didn't change anything. In addition, unlike previous times, the scanning would get stuck on Channel 82, and it wouldn't complete on its own. This morning, my 6168 was able to complete the channel scan on its own; however, I still did not have any HD channels.

I then entered the Service Menu (power off, then Mute, 1, 8, 2, power on) very briefly, and then powered the TV off to exit SM. This did it. I got my free HD channels back except for NBC (Channel 11-1). I'll see if it comes back later today.

So it seems that something happened yesterday with HD broadcasting that stunned Samsung built-in HD tuners in SF Bay Area. I suspect that entering and exiting Service Menu helped TV regain its functionality.

I will now call Comcast to find out what exactly CableCARD will do for my Standard Cable subscription, i.e., how many more HD channels I will be able to receive. If it's not compelling, I'll just cancel my appointment to have CableCARD installed. If it is, I'll report back on additional channels and exact pricing.

Also, another odd problem is that sometimes the picture degrades from a crisp clear HD image to a much grainier image for a fraction of a second… I’ve noticed it on a few HD channels but last night watching ER it bugged me quite a few times. It usually happened at a camera change like when they swapped to a different angle in a shot and for a fraction of a second it looks like I’m watching a 910x540 resolution instead of 1920x1080… it happens VERY quick and it almost seems like a figment of my imagination but I’ve seen it so many times that I’m convinced it’s real… Does anybody else get this phenomenon? Is it a function of the signal level or of the wobulation adjusting to quick scene changes?

Anyway, thanks for any help with this…


If this was on NBC, it think it must have been in the signal source.

Hello Everyone, I got my replacement 6168 on Tuesday (first one arrived with a shattered mirror), and I have some questions. First of all my setup…
SS 6168W
Adelphia 8300HD via Component
HTPC w/ ATI 9600 via VGA
TiVo via S-Video
All sound routed to Sony ES Receiver

Now I want to say that when feeding this a good HD signal the PQ is AMAZING! Watching Shark Tale off HD HBO was simply stunning. Even SD channels are watchable using the 8300… Switching to the TiVo there is a noticeable loss of PQ for the SD channels but at the best quality setting it’s still watchable.
I have a major problem with Shadow Detail though… I have been unable to get the brightness set to a level that gives me any shadow detail. Dark scenes which on my old RPTV would have had a lot of detail are just big pools of black on this TV, I get almost no image at all, just black. Or even lighter scenes where just half of someones face is in shadow, I can’t see any detail.

I’ve gone into the service menu and set GAMMA to 0 and while that improved PQ a bit, it doesn’t cure my shadow detail problem. I’ve tried the different picture modes including movie and standard and stuff. Dynamic looks absolutely horrible, what the heck is going on with that mode?

Anyway, I’m hoping someone can help me out with my shadow detail issue because it’s seriously detracting from my enjoyment of this set.

Also, another odd problem is that sometimes the picture degrades from a crisp clear HD image to a much grainier image for a fraction of a second… I’ve noticed it on a few HD channels but last night watching ER it bugged me quite a few times. It usually happened at a camera change like when they swapped to a different angle in a shot and for a fraction of a second it looks like I’m watching a 910x540 resolution instead of 1920x1080… it happens VERY quick and it almost seems like a figment of my imagination but I’ve seen it so many times that I’m convinced it’s real… Does anybody else get this phenomenon? Is it a function of the signal level or of the wobulation adjusting to quick scene changes?

Anyway, thanks for any help with this…


I am having a very simialr problem as well with shadow dtail. i have also noticed that when the camera zooms out detail is lost, and becomes blurry, but when the camera zooms back in it is as sharp as ever

[...]
I then entered the Service Menu (power off, then Mute, 1, 8, 2, power on) very briefly, and then powered the TV off to exit SM. This did it. I got my free HD channels back except for NBC (Channel 11-1). I'll see if it comes back later today.
[...]


I had the same problem. If you know the actual channel frequency for your area, try scanning and/or looking for it there. In my case, KNTV-DT ended up at 116-1. (I believe KNTV changed transmitter locations a few days ago and things may not have settled down yet. Maybe this is what messed up our internal tuners?)

The bonus is that the internal tuner now picks up ESPN-HD at 116-2. Previously, it had never been able to see it (my guess is that it was because it was sharing a major channel with KNTV but KNTV was previously specifying a different virtual channel).

Hello Everyone, I got my replacement 6168 on Tuesday (first one arrived with a shattered mirror), and I have some questions. First of all my setup…
SS 6168W
Adelphia 8300HD via Component
HTPC w/ ATI 9600 via VGA
TiVo via S-Video
All sound routed to Sony ES Receiver

Now I want to say that when feeding this a good HD signal the PQ is AMAZING! Watching Shark Tale off HD HBO was simply stunning. Even SD channels are watchable using the 8300… Switching to the TiVo there is a noticeable loss of PQ for the SD channels but at the best quality setting it’s still watchable.
I have a major problem with Shadow Detail though… I have been unable to get the brightness set to a level that gives me any shadow detail. Dark scenes which on my old RPTV would have had a lot of detail are just big pools of black on this TV, I get almost no image at all, just black. Or even lighter scenes where just half of someones face is in shadow, I can’t see any detail.

I’ve gone into the service menu and set GAMMA to 0 and while that improved PQ a bit, it doesn’t cure my shadow detail problem. I’ve tried the different picture modes including movie and standard and stuff. Dynamic looks absolutely horrible, what the heck is going on with that mode?

Anyway, I’m hoping someone can help me out with my shadow detail issue because it’s seriously detracting from my enjoyment of this set.

Also, another odd problem is that sometimes the picture degrades from a crisp clear HD image to a much grainier image for a fraction of a second… I’ve noticed it on a few HD channels but last night watching ER it bugged me quite a few times. It usually happened at a camera change like when they swapped to a different angle in a shot and for a fraction of a second it looks like I’m watching a 910x540 resolution instead of 1920x1080… it happens VERY quick and it almost seems like a figment of my imagination but I’ve seen it so many times that I’m convinced it’s real… Does anybody else get this phenomenon? Is it a function of the signal level or of the wobulation adjusting to quick scene changes?

Anyway, thanks for any help with this…

What picture mode are you using (dynamic, standard, cinema, custom)? Make sure you try standard and cinema.

Sorry, another TVA extended warranty question. It seems the extended warranty cards state you must register within ten days of purchase for the warranties to be valid? I just called TVA and they said my set has been shipped. I haven't heard from anyone and they just gave me a tracking number. TVA said you have up to ninety days before the manufacturer's warranty expires to register the extended warranties and that the date they use is based on the date the set has been delivered. Is this correct? Has anyone had a problem? I don't remember reading anyone having their extended warranty delivered before their set? Thanks.

Well I just called Repair Master and they said people, not necessarily TVA customers, have called several years after getting their set. The rep said they say ten days so that people register right away and not forget or misplace the registration. I'm relived that the extended warranty will still be valid and that CoPilot Air will call me back with delivery info. I'd assume to be getting the set any day since it seems it was shipped by air and not truck? I thought it was truck or donkey, but I'm not going there. Thanks.

Has anybody connected a powered subwoofer using the subwoofer jack on the TV to supplement the onboard stereo speakers?

Has anybody made close comparison of image/sound quality HDMI vs. component connections using SA8300HD?

finally got thru to the service center.....LE supposedly is coming in this afternoon, and ill have a tech here tommorow::crosses fingers::

also recieved my onkyo 5.1 HTib setup, and low and behold the front left channel is dead on the reciever, gee great, more phone tage and repairing. rest of the system seems fine though, for what it is, it seems to be pretty good. Hopefully the exchange will go smoothly.

between a nasty stomach virus, and dealing with both repair/exhchange issues im burnt out, guess i cought some bad luck this week. Thanks for the input so far

I had the same problem. If you know the actual channel frequency for your area, try scanning and/or looking for it there. In my case, KNTV-DT ended up at 116-1. (I believe KNTV changed transmitter locations a few days ago and things may not have settled down yet. Maybe this is what messed up our internal tuners?)

The bonus is that the internal tuner now picks up ESPN-HD at 116-2. Previously, it had never been able to see it (my guess is that it was because it was sharing a major channel with KNTV but KNTV was previously specifying a different virtual channel).

Too bad I don't get anything at 116-1 or 116-2 in East Bay. My KNTV used to be at 11-1 in HD but not any more. I'll keep looking and will rescan tomorrow. So far I get the following free HD channels through the built-in tuner of my 6168 set:

2-1 KTVU
5-1 KPIX
7-1 KGO
9-1 KQED
11-1 KNTV (but not any more)
78-4 (not sure what this is)
105-1 INHD
105-2 INHD2
105-3 HDSE (nothing going on here, just a static picture)
117-8 (not sure what this is)

I think this is what I saw while watching Earl OTA. It looks like a compression artifact, but I thought OTA you wouldn't get things like that. When I pause one of the scenes, you would see little blocks making up the image.

I didn't see it on Lost and I didn't see it UPN last night. I think I saw it on Invasion last night. These are all OTA. So maybe it's a factor if the show is 720p or 1080i?

Yes it will happen with OTA broadcasts. The stations usually create subchannels. With every subchannel, more bandwidth is lost. What you saw was probably compression artifacts becasue of insufficient bandwith for the material they were broadcasting.

Long time since posting. I have a shimmering effect on the edge of the 4:3 screen. Anyone else have this phenomenon?

I also have pincushioing which appears is normal based on discussion here.

I had a local ASC rep tear my TV down to its guts and try to fix the shimmering issue. New LE didn't work and the replacement screen was scratched (found out after getting my screen out). Not happy with this tech guy, so SS authorized a guy from 1 1/2 hours North to pay me a visit. Seems much sharper and understands DLPs. Hopefully he will have resolution. He thinks a digital card is bad, etc.

I have an HLR6168w in the Bay Area and Comcast. I pay the $5 a month for High Def. I started with the box and did not like the picture (occasional pixelation with high def). So I got Comcast to install the cablecard and had the same problem. Comcast siad it was poor cables in the house. So I replaced the cable with high def quality. Same problem. So then Comcast replaced the cables from the house to the pole. Still the same problem. Then I had them remove the cablecard and went back to the box. Problem solved. So the bottom line was I needed new high def cable and the box to get the result I wanted. The cablecard worked with high def just not the way I wanted it to. Hope this helps.

I have an HLR6168w in the Bay Area and Comcast. I pay the $5 a month for High Def. I started with the box and did not like the picture (occasional pixelation with high def). So I got Comcast to install the cablecard and had the same problem. Comcast siad it was poor cables in the house. So I replaced the cable with high def quality. Same problem. So then Comcast replaced the cables from the house to the pole. Still the same problem. Then I had them remove the cablecard and went back to the box. Problem solved. So the bottom line was I needed new high def cable and the box to get the result I wanted. The cablecard worked with high def just not the way I wanted it to. Hope this helps.

My cable provider here in NJ is Cablevison. My experience has been that I get a slightly better picture both for HD and SD with the cablecard versus the Scientific Atlanta 4200 HD STB. I don't need the 2-way interface of the STB, but I do not get any station names (ABC, CBS, NBC, etc) displayed or program info when changing channels on the cablecard. Also can't get TV Guide to work either. Samsung says the issue is with Cablevision and not the TV...

I have an HLR6168w in the Bay Area and Comcast. I pay the $5 a month for High Def. I started with the box and did not like the picture (occasional pixelation with high def). So I got Comcast to install the cablecard and had the same problem. Comcast siad it was poor cables in the house. So I replaced the cable with high def quality. Same problem. So then Comcast replaced the cables from the house to the pole. Still the same problem. Then I had them remove the cablecard and went back to the box. Problem solved. So the bottom line was I needed new high def cable and the box to get the result I wanted. The cablecard worked with high def just not the way I wanted it to. Hope this helps.

Thank you, this is very helpful. In terms of HD programming, what exactly did CableCARD provide that you couldn't get directly by connecting coax cable to the internal TV tuner? Did you get additional channels or did channels get remapped with CableCARD installed?

Could it be the game console that's causing the lower fps? My xBox lags on Starwars Battlefront alot, especially when in splitscreen. Unless this is the TV (old 27" tube). :confused:

I never experienced the slow down on my previous TV (32") so I'm assuming it's the 6768. It wasn't a terrible slowdown but was enough to be noticeable.

Well I was all set to pay off my Samsung 5078 1080p DLP HDTV and after hearing about lip sync and the fact that it would not actually accept a 1080p signal. I went it and sat infront of the tv again at UE. Maybe it was the way the tv was set up but the more I watched the tv the less I wanted it. Detail agourn any text was not as crisp as it should have been. Especially after viewing T2 on that set I decided I was going to cancel the purchase of the Samsung. I was also looking at the fact that I would not be able to pay off this set until late Nov or early Dec. My current tv is dead so the thought of sitting around my apartment with no entertainment for months was not very appealing :(

So I ended up after looking at other tvs including a slightly more exspensive Mitsubishi 1080p set. I ended up switching my purchase to a Sony KDFE50A10 50" LCD HDTV. I am hoping to move to a bigger place and also buy a front projection system that IMHO would give me a better picture than a rear projection set. I am just hoping that I did not make a big mistake by getting the Sony LCD instead of the Samsung 1080p DLP? :confused:

I also need to upgrade my 5.1 Yamaha RX-V995 reciever, dvd player to a Denon with HDMI, future HD disc format and upgrade speakers. Not to mention getting a front projector. I am hoping that it was not just a matter of the tv not being in movie mode that made it look kinda bad. I want the best picture that I can afford and its been a pain trying to sort through all the treads and doing alot of research trying to get a really good tv to watch movies on.

Hi all,

I just purchased a HL-R5688W and the Oppo OPDV971H, primarily to watch movies in the best way possible!

Now I'm after a great home theater system (without the DVD player of course), to match these two puppies.

Any recommendations? My budget is in the low to middle hundreds.

Many thanks,

A Denon AVR1906 is a very capable unit.

I've had the 6168 since Tuesday, and it's nice to finally have a decent contrast ratio (having suffered with a Sony 60xbr800 for a few years).

Regarding the lip sync... Fry's has the Sony 7.1 STR-DV10, and says it has an a/v delay of up to 85ms. I have a Bravo D1 set at 1080i connected by dvi/hdmi, and a Dish 811 connected component. Will 85ms be enough? (The Sony is in my budget)

I know this has been covered countless times, with the millions of messages, finding the posts covering this is very difficult.

Thanks
Dave

Thank you, this is very helpful. In terms of HD programming, what exactly did CableCARD provide that you couldn't get directly by connecting coax cable to the internal TV tuner? Did you get additional channels or did channels get remapped with CableCARD installed?
CableCARDs will descramble the premium channels that would not be viewable with a direct connection of cable coax to internal tuner. Don't know if re-maping occurs but I would expect very little differences on non-encrypted channels between direct connect coax and Cablecard. Also, I believe that you can get a true DD 5.1 signal out of the cablecard and route to an AVR. Don't know whether that is possible if you are doing a direct connect coax.

Dave Moritz, I'm no expert but I do know that most sets in stores are not set correctly. I would never decide to not purchase the Sammy without confirming that it is set right. I went to Worst Buy Mag. and found two Sammys weren't set right. I didn't bother to check any others but if it doesn't look right it probably needs to be adjusted. The other thing is I don't think LCD is as good as DLP and the other thing is if the Sony is 1080? I don't know why you say you can hardly afford the Sammy and say you bought a more expensive Sony? I would reconsider your decision.

The Mitsubishi I looked at was alittle more exspensive the Sony LCD was about $1,000 cheaper. (Sony KDFE50A10 50" LCD HDTV 720p/1080i). It was driving me crazy not having a working tv as there is not much to do where I live besides siting in front of the computer.

I make under $10/hr unfortunantly and if I buy the Samsung DLP I may not have it paid off until early December. I hopefully will work my way up to much better paying jobs but for now it keeps a roof over my head. If I follow through buying Sony LCD I can have it no later than late October. The Samsung 1080p DLP was $3149 and the Mitsubishi model that was a step up from the model costing the same as the Samsung was $3495. I wish I had the room because I would have just said to heck with it and purchased a front projector and a nice 120" screen. The Sony has a nice decent picture but I cant help but wonder if I made a big mistake by cancelling the Samsung?

two burning questions questions...

1) i currently use only the built-in stereo and onboard speakers ...
Is it a reasonable first step to add a powered subwoofer connected to the back of the Sammy - seems to be "available" in all the settings menus for above sources

2)picure looks great to this novice using component cables. What improvement, if any, am i likely to observe if I substitute HDMI-HDMI cable for the SA8300HD. Any recommendations for vendor, brand and price?


Before I purchased a new AVR, I hooked up just the powered subwoofer to the 6768 and it helped the sound tremendously.

Go for the HDMI connection. I have the 8300HD DVR and have both component and HDMI connections. In every case but one movie on one channel (noticed grainy black color in certain scenes), the video through the HDMI connection was equal or better and the audio was always better. The audio dropped of noticeably through the component connection.

I think if you look at the specs carefully first and compare them I'd guess there's a reason why the Sammy is $1k more? I'd go back to the store and check the settings again. The other thing is I wouldn't just jump into something this expensive without being sure you made the right decision. You could find some great used TVs for now and I would go that route and save up for the Sammy. I can't see spending $2k+ on a set that you might not be happy with. Check the LCD/DLP differences for starters. I'd hate to see you get the Sony and then the Sammy later. Buy one really good set when you can and get something temporary until then. Make sure the Sony is native 1080 and not 720. If it is 720 then its a mistake. Period.

I really appreciate your input on this bcvp one of the main reasons I was looking at 1080p was because of blu-ray hd. I hear that there is a delay that you can run to fix any lip sync problems but I really dont want to go that route especially since I will have enough video inputs to make this a pain (cable, dvd, laserdisc and future hd discs). The CRT big screens look horible compaired to LCD or DLP tv's. I was kinda excited about a 1080p set and the last time I revaluated the set I even brought up what I saw in the picture and the salesman said nothing about the lack of quality I was seeing. I guess I assumed that he would have checked the setting on the set to see if it was just something simple. I dont want to switch back and forth between tv's because that would suck for the salesman. I could just picture him saying to himself, dam doesn't this dummy know what he wants, lmao. But at the same time I am the one paying for it and the one that has to live with the performance of the tv. I am going to give the store a call and double check what the native resolution is on the Sony. It may have been to late to change it as far as sale prices go. By the time I can get back in the store and physically check the set and switch it back to the Samsung. If thats what I want to do the sale will be over and I will be paying a few hundred more for the same tv I formally had on layaway.

Salesman told me that the Sony did both 1080i and 720p so other than going back down to the store not sure what to do at this point

Salesman told me that the Sony did both 1080i and 720p so other than going back down to the store not sure what to do at this point

Dave Moritz: Yes the Sony will do 1080i and 720p. Thats true for all HDTVs out there. The Samsungs are 1080p TVs because they will take a 1080i/720p signal and line double it to 1080p. The Samsungs have the 1920x1080 pixels on the screen to be able to do this. In addition, they have higher contrast ratios to make a better picture...

However, all this is worthless talk if you like the picture on the Sony better. I feel for you because most times, the sets are not properly configured on the sales floor and you want to be able to tweak the settings before deciding that the picture on one is better than the other.

I would say, get the Sony because you seem to like it. See how it goes at home - and if you are dis-satisfied, go back and get the Samsung. You may even want to consider the HLR 5067 (the 720p model) because you may not see much improvement on a 50" with the 1080p technology over the HLR 5067.

The other suggestion I have is - if you can live with a smaller screen (34" or 36") and can fit a gigantic 200 pound TV in your space - look at the Sony/Panasonic CRT HDTVs. The picture on these is amazing and they cost around $1k give or take.

David, if you want to add another TV to your mix check out this thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=578765&page=1&pp=30

Also, I've been hearing that Toshiba had the best DLPs at Cedia. Another one to also research.

No offense to anyone but at this day and age and price I can't see going 720 native, not now. For that matter I wouldn't go plasma, which is even worse. More programs are being made 1080 and once you go up and not down the picture is worse. Yes even a plasma takes 1080 I think these days but you are losing the image and that is why people are getting HD in the first place. If it isn't native 1080 then that is the price difference between the Sony and Sammy, well one spec at least. I'd still save up if money is tight and cancel the whole thing until you can get the one you really want and not just afford. Also LCD has as much if not more lag than a DLP since they are usually the same speed or slower. Check out the Sony specs on their site and see what you are getting or not for that price and do the same for the Sammy. 1080 is the future and 720 is not.

I apreciate all your input as it has been very helpful. I think I will just wait for 1080p to mature and get one in a front projection model instead of rear projection. I was planing on deligating the rear projection model to mostly standard viewing anyway. And having a projection set up for movies only. And since I am upgrading from a SD 32" CRT Toshiba that only has composit and s video anyway the Sony LCD is a big jump for me for the time being. And also factoring in that I need to upgrade other things in my ht and my current wages I will be happy with the Sony and save for something better next year or the year after once an hd disc format has survived. Once again thank everyone for your input.

No offense to anyone but at this day and age and price I can't see going 720 native, not now. For that matter I wouldn't go plasma, which is even worse. More programs are being made 1080 and once you go up and not down the picture is worse. Yes even a plasma takes 1080 I think these days but you are losing the image and that is why people are getting HD in the first place. If it isn't native 1080 then that is the price difference between the Sony and Sammy, well one spec at least. I'd still save up if money is tight and cancel the whole thing until you can get the one you really want and not just afford. Also LCD has as much if not more lag than a DLP since they are usually the same speed or slower. Check out the Sony specs on their site and see what you are getting or not for that price and do the same for the Sammy. 1080 is the future and 720 is not.
As AkaStp said you make some good points. However, 1080p are new and at the moment you are paying the higher premium for being early adopter. There is nothing wrong with 720p models. The prices right now on them and the still great image you get is a great option for people.

New HL-R6178W owner, our first HDTV set! We have Metrocast cable and they set us up with a Motorola DCT6412 HD Tuner/DVR (using component inputs on the HDTV) and while the HD channels look pretty damn good, we are still trying to figure out how to improve the SDTV signals which look mediocre to bad.

We found the cable signals straight into the TV look moderately better but hate to lose the pause/rewind functionality of the DVR. After only using the DVR for one evening, THAT may be more important than the picture quality! I plan to get a DVI to HDMI cable to try that vs. the component cable. Any other ideas how to improve the SDTV signals from our HD tuner?

We hooked all our equipment up to a BrickWall (SM surge suppressor) but are still looking for a coax surge suppressor that will either never fail or fail open. I have found some online (can not include URLs since this is my first post) but can not figure out if they meet my requirements. What do you all use? Will a coax surge suppressor adversely affect my signal quality?

Thanks for any feedback!

New HL-R6178W owner, our first HDTV set! We have Metrocast cable and they set us up with a Motorola DCT6412 HD Tuner/DVR (using component inputs on the HDTV) and while the HD channels look pretty damn good, we are still trying to figure out how to improve the SDTV signals which look mediocre to bad.

We found the cable signals straight into the TV look moderately better but hate to lose the pause/rewind functionality of the DVR. After only using the DVR for one evening, THAT may be more important than the picture quality! I plan to get a DVI to HDMI cable to try that vs. the component cable. Any other ideas how to improve the SDTV signals from our HD tuner?

We hooked all our equipment up to a BrickWall (SM surge suppressor) but are still looking for a coax surge suppressor that will either never fail or fail open. I have found some online (can not include URLs since this is my first post) but can not figure out if they meet my requirements. What do you all use? Will a coax surge suppressor adversely affect my signal quality?

Thanks for any feedback!

If you search this thread for my user ID (UCSB) you will find a series of posts within the last 10 pages or so that describe how you optimize both SD on the TV and on the Motorola 6414.

ADDED: Actually, if you start with post 5439:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6210771&&#post6210771

and read my posts for the next five or so pages you should get some good ideas.

Has anyone yet received their 7178? I am really looking forward to talking with someone about this set? Is it worth the extra money over the 6768?

I am using 880 and 6168. It can send discrete codes. HDMI2 was not initially working, but I think they have it now. I am not using HDMI2, so I I did not bother.

Thanks! thats what I was hoping :)

Has anyone yet received their 7178? I am really looking forward to talking with someone about this set? Is it worth the extra money over the 6768?

7178 is not shipping yet ... but, is scheduled for Oct.

Regarding voice sync "problems" on the new Samsungs...I recently purchased the Samsung 6178 and initially feared that an ocassional few millisecond disparity was due to the TV...it was not. My miserable Scientific Atlanta 8300HD was the culprit...and I discovered this by A/B tests I did across a whole spectrum of channels, HD and non HD. If anyone experiences audio-video sync problems with the 6178, please post them here and how you went about resolving them!
I've seen lipsync problems with my upconvert DVD player and only with a couple cable channels. I've tried a few DVD players but they all exhibited the problem. I settled on the Oppo player. In my setup, I was DVI-HDMI for audio/video to the Samsung 6178 and audio direct to my surround sound. The Oppo gives you some audio delay capability but not enough for me. My Yamaha DSP-A1 is old enough that it does not have any real audio delay capability. The video was a bit behind the audio played back through the surround. I eventually was forced to purchase the Felston unit which allowed me to tweak the audio delay so lipsync was/is no longer an issue. BTW, the Felston unit works great and their support has been good thusfar.

On the cable side, i've only noticed lipsync a couple of times, and on an old rerun. The lipsync was evident on the TV itself - no surround involved. I wonder whether the source of the rerun broadcast is transmitting audio/video out of sync - perhaps from a DVD?!

I received my 6768 yesterday, and I like it so far; however, when viewing 2.35:1 materia,l the top of the picture is crooked. The black bar narrows from 4 inches on the left to 3 inches on the right. It's quite obvious. What's strange (to me anyway) is that the bottom of the picture is perfectly level. I assumed it would be uneven, as well.

Is it possible for me to correct this problem via the service menu or is this a mechanical issue, which requires Samsung's attention?

First off, my apologies if all this has been covered already. I'm new to all this, and have spent quite a while trying to sort thru the 100's of posts in search of a concise setup description for the following:

My Samsung 6178 arrives today. I will be connecting a SA8300HD via HDMI, a Denon 1920 DVD player via HDMI2, and my Xbox via component (which passes thru my Denon 3805 receiver, as does audio for all components via optical).

I guess the big question i could use help with would be all optimal settings for each component to maximize PQ on the Samsung. Step by step guidance would be SO appreciated.

Starting with the SA8300 – when i press "guide" and "info" to get the picture mode setup, can i do the easy setup to "widescreen"? Then do i go into settings and select "passthrough"? Any other settings to adjust?

For the Denon DVD, any settings i should mess with?
Same for the Xbox? I'm actually a bit confused about all the 480i, 720p, 1080i talk in regards to which component (Xbox or Samsung) should be doing the upconverting. Also, if i rename component "game" i understand that lag is minimized but i am limited to 480i?

And finally, i know that picture quality is entirely subjective. But so many of the posts here indicate that most of you are WAY more knowledgeable about all this than myself – anyone care to suggest some relatively standard settings in the setup of the Sammy that could provide some guidance?

Thanks again for any tips!

I received my 6768 yesterday, and I like it so far; however, when viewing 2.35:1 materia,l the top of the picture is crooked. The black bar narrows from 4 inches on the left to 3 inches on the right. It's quite obvious. What's strange (to me anyway) is that the bottom of the picture is perfectly level. I assumed it would be uneven, as well.

Is it possible for me to correct this problem via the service menu or is this a mechanical issue, which requires Samsung's attention?
It will have to be serviced. While this is fairly common, I have never heard of one having 1" of difference. Up to ~1/2" has been the max to date.

I had my DMD tweaked to adjust 3/8" but I can't see how you could do that for 1" unless it was not even screwed down right to begin with. You will probably need a new LE.

First off, my apologies if all this has been covered already. I'm new to all this, and have spent quite a while trying to sort thru the 100's of posts in search of a concise setup description for the following:

My Samsung 6178 arrives today. I will be connecting a SA8300HD via HDMI, a Denon 1920 DVD player via HDMI2, and my Xbox via component (which passes thru my Denon 3805 receiver, as does audio for all components via optical).

I guess the big question i could use help with would be all optimal settings for each component to maximize PQ on the Samsung. Step by step guidance would be SO appreciated.

Starting with the SA8300 – when i press "guide" and "info" to get the picture mode setup, can i do the easy setup to "widescreen"? Then do i go into settings and select "passthrough"? Any other settings to adjust?

For the Denon DVD, any settings i should mess with?
Same for the Xbox? I'm actually a bit confused about all the 480i, 720p, 1080i talk in regards to which component (Xbox or Samsung) should be doing the upconverting. Also, if i rename component "game" i understand that lag is minimized but i am limited to 480i?

And finally, i know that picture quality is entirely subjective. But so many of the posts here indicate that most of you are WAY more knowledgeable about all this than myself – anyone care to suggest some relatively standard settings in the setup of the Sammy that could provide some guidance?

Thanks again for any tips!
Go back about 10 pages and search for UCSB ID. He just helped an individual go through basic setup. You may need some help on a particular device and so if you get stuck check that area in the forum or post back here for specific device help. Good luck.

Well I have had my HLR5688 for two months now and the picture just crapped out. I initially noticed it flickering . Then it got worse. I turned it off and unplugged it. That helped for about 20 minutes and then it started up again until it was just a white screen. This set replaced a defective HLP5688 and I waited 6 months for it. Needless to say I have about had it with these dlps. A service tech will be calling me on Monday-supposedly. You can see photos of the bane of my existence HERE (http://www.villagephotos.com/pubbrowse.asp?folder_id=1464935)

I received my 6768 yesterday, and I like it so far; however, when viewing 2.35:1 materia,l the top of the picture is crooked. The black bar narrows from 4 inches on the left to 3 inches on the right. It's quite obvious. What's strange (to me anyway) is that the bottom of the picture is perfectly level. I assumed it would be uneven, as well.

Is it possible for me to correct this problem via the service menu or is this a mechanical issue, which requires Samsung's attention?

You might try double checking that the tv is perfectly level, left to right and front to back. My screen was slightly crocked and the top bar did the same thing. I had a tech look at it and tried bending the tv a little, the plastic moves easy. It seemed to help. He said that the tv was projecting a staight image but with the screen not exactly straight it gave it a little bow.

Anyways I have had my tv for over my 30 day trial period and decided to keep it. I was paying such close attention to every detail that at times I was over critical of my picture. I went back to the stores to look at my other options and realized that what I have is awesome. I did do some minor adjustments so far, like changing the gamma setting to 0, which is something I've heard about on this sight. I eventually will have this tv calibrated by a pro. For now I really love this pictue.

I want to thank everyone on this sight for their input since to me this was a very important decision. I am currently out of town on business for a couple of weeks and miss my tv badly. When I am seeing other peoples tvs on the road here, I realize how good I have it on my samsung. The black level and contrast is great and it realy makes a difference.

saw the same blocking problem last night on Ering. Decided to check which station was showing Earl and Ering and it was NBC. So I have to conclude there is something wrong with the way NBC is doing their HD. Or maybe it's my local affiliate. It looks like compression motion artificats, but this is OTA.

tech finally came today, i was hopefull.

swapped the digi/analog board, the lamp, and tinkered with some other stuff. Flickering still happend, told me my lens is no good and hed be back next week to swap that, as he didnt bring it with him. left me with a flickering, yet functioning tv, which should have tied me over to th next visit. 30 minutes later, tv goes from flickering, to flickering with a huge red bleed on eveyrthing, my entire tv is now red. Seems all the black levels are red instead. Ontop of this, the tv turns on and off by itself at random times. think its time to start demanding a brand new tv.

Have other owners also found that the height of TV for viewing is not near as sensitive as I was expecting? I was sure I would need an 18" high stand for optimum viewing, and as no nice wooden stands were available, I would have to have one custom built. I can see no difference in that couple of inches of height. In fact, I was amazed at how little degradation there is even when standing. This brings stands like the salamander triple back as a possibility.

Just got the 6178 delivered and hooked up. Wow! Florida/Kentucky game on CBS-HD looks amazing! Had some audio sync issues on Denon 1920 dvd, but i'm playing around with audio delay on the Denon 3805 receiver and that fixes it, no problem. Still messing to get exact configuration. But the picture on the few test dvds (Spiderman 2, The Incredibles, LOTR) is pretty amazing. I experienced no macroblocking or picture noise that i could detect. Also played a little Halo on Xbox and experienced no lag. But again, only played a few minutes.

Only other issue is same as others have experienced – my Harmony 880 remote won't properly go from watching tv (HDMI 1) to dvd (HDMI2) – audio and dvd player are fine, but i have to then press TV input once because of the tv not recognizing the HDMI input is active. I'm waiting for a call back from Logitech.

Oh, and I noticed some audio sync issues on our local (COX) ABC-HD. Other channels seem fine.

Just curious from any other owners as to what general picture settings they've had most success with? I know every room is different, etc. But in general, leave TV picture on Normal? Higher contrast or lower? Brightness? It all looked pretty good straight out of the box, and i'm curious what adjustments more experienced videophiles are making...

Thanks!

Have other owners also found that the height of TV for viewing is not near as sensitive as I was expecting? I was sure I would need an 18" high stand for optimum viewing, and as no nice wooden stands were available, I would have to have one custom built. I can see no difference in that couple of inches of height. In fact, I was amazed at how little degradation there is even when standing. This brings stands like the salamander triple back as a possibility.

Well I'm about to buy a 6168 and have been at Best Buy standing, sitting and putting my head almost on the floor trying to estimate the best height for a stand.

I do notice quite a varience in brightness as I move my head to different levels. This may be in part to the set up of the TV brightness. I don't know.

The optional metal stand made for the 6168 about 16 inches, but I personally find it ugly, and have been searching for furniture that'll do the job. The trouble I find is most units are in the 22 inch range or higher, however if the legs are removed I can get it down to 18 inches or so.

I'm heartened to hear you think the Salamander is viable option. How far back from the TV will you be sitting? I'm about 10 feet.

I favour this unit by BDI (http://www.bdiusa.com/avfurniture/avion_8529.shtml) at the moment. Without the legs it's 18 inches and has room for all my "stuff" and center speaker behind black cloth. They have smaller units too.

Anyway, I will probably leave the stand legs on, and try the TV that way. If I find it's a problem, I'll remove the legs so that the TV center is only slightly above eye level.

Got my 6168 on Friday, so far, Bright House has to deliver my HD STB. So I haven't experienced HD yet. Though DVD's look amazing. My set up:

(My receiver is a new Onkyo pain to look up the model number, it came in a HTIB)
DVD: Onkyo-SP502 - component to TV and optical audio to receiver
STB: Explorer 8000DVR - coaxial to TV coaxial audio to receiver
Xbox - component to TV optical to receiver

**When I get and Explorer 8300HD I will have HDMI to TV and coaxial audio to receiver**

So far, I am impressed with the PQ but not with the lag (both TV and XBox). I'm guessing that when my TV receives a SD signal, it'll have to upconvert it (therefor lag). But when it gets an HD signal, there may be no lag (because there is no need to upconvert)? I don't have my HD box yet so I'm trying to guess if there is any lag. Well, the lag is unbearable, I just have to try a DVD to see if it's the STB.

Has anyone thought that because when peoples heads are bigger (due to the large screen, of course) you can notice the lag more? Anyway, I hope I don't have to experience CNN like this...

-Andrew

Why don't you just plug the cable into the cable input on the set? It has an HDTV tuner! Do an 'autoprogram', and see what HD channels you receive.

Got my 6168 on Friday, so far, Bright House has to deliver my HD STB. So I haven't experienced HD yet. Though DVD's look amazing. My set up:

(My receiver is a new Onkyo pain to look up the model number, it came in a HTIB)
DVD: Onkyo-SP502 - component to TV and optical audio to receiver
STB: Explorer 8000DVR - coaxial to TV coaxial audio to receiver
Xbox - component to TV optical to receiver

**When I get and Explorer 8300HD I will have HDMI to TV and coaxial audio to receiver**

So far, I am impressed with the PQ but not with the lag (both TV and XBox). I'm guessing that when my TV receives a SD signal, it'll have to upconvert it (therefor lag). But when it gets an HD signal, there may be no lag (because there is no need to upconvert)? I don't have my HD box yet so I'm trying to guess if there is any lag. Well, the lag is unbearable, I just have to try a DVD to see if it's the STB.

Has anyone thought that because when peoples heads are bigger (due to the large screen, of course) you can notice the lag more? Anyway, I hope I don't have to experience CNN like this...

-Andrew

The Sony has a nice decent picture but I cant help but wonder if I made a big mistake by cancelling the Samsung?

If you like the Sony, then you didn't make a mistake. Budget is a very valid factor in deciding what to buy.

Slocko,
Have you set up your Kenwood Entre and DV5900 with your Sammy? How do the DVDs look? Is there an upconverting changer that could be configured for the Entre to see?

Or did I see a post on the Entre thread a while back that you got rid of yours?

tech finally came today, i was hopefull.

swapped the digi/analog board, the lamp, and tinkered with some other stuff. Flickering still happend, told me my lens is no good and hed be back next week to swap that.

There is no way the lens could cause flickering. It appears that you have a loss of sync between the color wheel and the DMD. did the Tech enter the SM and at least attempt to sync?

he was in the service menu, not sure what he did though, either way i plan on a getting a new set, i dont trust this one even if its fixed in the next few days, i have a feeling this will be a recurring problem

That's awful. Maybe you could send them an email now and leave a voice mail so they get right on it and figure out if they have any in stock and how long it will take?

So far, I am impressed with the PQ but not with the lag (both TV and XBox). I'm guessing that when my TV receives a SD signal, it'll have to upconvert it (therefor lag). But when it gets an HD signal, there may be no lag (because there is no need to upconvert)? I don't have my HD box yet so I'm trying to guess if there is any lag. Well, the lag is unbearable, I just have to try a DVD to see if it's the STB.

Has anyone thought that because when peoples heads are bigger (due to the large screen, of course) you can notice the lag more? Anyway, I hope I don't have to experience CNN like this...

-Andrew
Andrew,
there is a defined lag when sending the video to the set and the audio to the receiver/processor. It is present with all source types, at all resolutions I have tested and it averages between 120-130ms.
Sources used include the following:
DVD connected via component at 480p (SONY DVD Recorder)
DVD connected via HDMI/DVI at 720p (Denon Player)
SA 8300HD via HDMI at varying resolutions 480p, 720p, 1080i-video and film prerecorded and live TV
SA 4200HD Via Component 720p and 1080i video and film
Diretv SD Tivo combo box 480i connected Via SVID
HDTiVo-Connected via HDMI at 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i-Video and Film Sources.
DVHS Component connected at 1080i Film Sources only


The threshold appears to be different for different people, but it borders on ridiculous when it is over a 100ms. Once you become sensitized to the delay it will drive you a bit buggy.
If your processor provides sufficient delay, you are golden. If not, as you probably know felston makes a nice product for around 240 dollars.

I leave my Denon 3805 around 120ms for the delay.

he was in the service menu, not sure what he did though, either way i plan on a getting a new set, i dont trust this one even if its fixed in the next few days, i have a feeling this will be a recurring problem

On Friday I had a tech come out to look at my 6168. I had a "slight flickering" issue and a wierd problem where 1/6th of the screen was lighter than the other. He replaced the screen and LE and the screen was normal.

He did change the INDEX DELAY to 47. Other than that he did nothing else besides replace parts. What I did notice was after he left when I went into the service menu to check the V/H Alignment I had pincushioning and other stuff going on around the red box that shows up. My previous LE was way better than the one I got. I guess it serves me right for making him change it after I was pretty sure it was the screen.

Andrew,
there is a defined lag when sending the video to the set and the audio to the receiver/processor. It is present with all source types, at all resolutions I have tested and it averages between 120-130ms.
[...]


There is no lag when video is connected to VGA input and audio to external receiver. In this set-up, processing done by the TV is minimal. The graphics card and MPEG decoder in your HTPC are responsible for all video processing. The TV simply displays whatever is sent over the VGA input. For less than $200 one can add suitable graphics card, DVD-ROM, and MPEG decoder to a PC, and connect it to 1080p set. Picture quality is absolutely superb.

Well I am not pleased with the customer service at TVA. I had contacted them and asked a few brief questions before placing an order after hearing about their Power Buy offer here. I decided to place an order and my salesman was almost impossible to reach. I went out of my way spending a lot of time trying to reach him so that he got the credit for the sale. I ended up calling what I thought was his cell phone after he couldn't be reached. I then called TVA and placed the order using his name as the salesman. They told me that I was first or second in line for my 5678. Finally the salesman called me back and said he would check the order to be sure it was all set.

That was the last day of the PB offer. That was sixteen days ago. They said someone would contact me regarding the shipping info. No one called me from TVA or the shipping company. I didn't know how long it would take from TVA to Boston but I thought by truck it would take some time. I called my salesman two Fridays ago, a week after placing the order to check the status. He didn't bother to call me back. I went away and figured I couldn't use the set anyway but I thought he or someone would have left a message or sent an email.

I got the extended warranties in the mail sometime last week when I was away and I thought that was odd since everyone here had mentioned getting them about two weeks after delivery.

I called TVA yesterday and again I can't reach my salesman. I left him a message since I thought it was his job and then I called his cell. It turns out his cell number is his home and wondered how I got his number? I said I think he gave to me when I tried to place my order. I sort of apologized although from my end he hasn't really done anything for me so I don't feel too bad about disturbing him. I then called TVA and spoke with the order status dept. and they gave me the tracking number and the carrier and everything as far as getting the delivery contact info. They said they couldn't get me the tracking info, just the number since their computer was down? I had left a message with the salesman to call me back with the tracking info. He didn't call me back.

I called the carrier and it turns out it is a air carrier not a truck. Now I'm thinking the set had been sitting at the Boston warehouse for some time. I can't confirm that but how long could it take? I called the carrier and gave them the tracking info. They said it was in Boston but they don't deliver to my area until Tuesday. They said if I was a business that they might be able to deliver it on Monday, but since it was late Friday it was unlikely. They did offer for me to pick it up at the warehouse Sat. or Sun. I said I would shoot for Sat. if my friend was available to give me a hand.

I called today and they said I could pick up the set after 1:00. I wondered why so late but they said they had trucks there in the morning. Then they said instead of 1:00, I could get it after 11:00. I said I would be there but it turned out my friend was busy until 12:00. I think we finally got there at almost 1:00 even though the warehouse is about fifteen minutes away.

We get there but it was hard to find in a poorly marked industrial area off the main road. I see the set and the box is all scraped on one side and the grab handle cut outs are torn. The guy didn't bother to comment on the condition of the box or suggest to mark the delivery slip, I forget what the official word is, damaged. I just wrote "box damaged" and don't know what else I'm supposed to do as far as that goes.

The set in the box wouldn't fit in my Honda Element, even with the seats out. My friend's 5078 fit fine when we picked it up from Tweeter in NH. The guy suggested to remove the set from the box but after all that I've been through I thought I should keep it all intact until I am ready to set it up. At this point I was going to see about getting the set on Tuesday after all.

One of the guys at the warehouse then offered to deliver the set in his pickup truck for $20. I figured a fifteen minute trip for him each way, not having the set until Tuesday, all of the problems I've had thus far, I said "deal". I told my friend that he was driving with this guy after I saw his decaying truck. The bed was loose like it would fall off as we were driving with my set. That's why I didn't ask my friend. He didn't mind and tried to give directions home. He doesn't drive through this area much and neither do I but I had the directions and a better sense of where we were. I followed them with my headlights and flashers on.

The guy didn't have straps or anything to keep the set secure or in place. I could just picture the set tipping over, falling on the junk in the back of this guy's truck with the screen in pieces. He did a great job driving slow. Something unheard of in Boston. He went through a yellow, more like a red and I was stuck at the light. He pulled over and waited for me for the the green. I flashed my brights and we continued home. My friend got lost as we were close to home. He had to make a couple of U-turns and all I could see was the set flying out of the truck. He again did a good job and I was surprised. My friend realized where we were and got us home as I stayed behind them trying to fend off Boston drivers. At the last minute some MA-hole as they say cut in front of me and I again thought God knows what will happen to the set now that I can't see what is going on. My street is a up a steep hill off the road and I thought the set would flip as he went around the corner but it stayed up the whole time. I was surprised, glad and thankful. That was the best $20 I have spent in a long time, unless I just won the $126M lottery tonight!

I didn't have the energy to remove my old "entertainment center" and all of the gear but my friend pushed me. I couldn't have done this myself. After removing everything with stuff just everywhere I had trouble setting up the stand. We finally got the stand setup. It is the biggest, glass and metal stand with three shelves at the best price I could find in stores or online. It is a Bush VS74377-02. I got it at Worst Buy Mag. for $220 including tax. I fit that in my Element so I didn't have to pay shipping and they brought it to my car parked in front which was nice. The only thing I wish could be better was clear or frosted glass instead of smoked, but I don't think anyone can beat it for the price. It is 58"+ long and 22"+ high. I think it is a perfect height. It might be slightly higher with some couches but I think it is better to be higher than lower.

When we took the set out of the box I found a good amount of the Styrofoam was broken into small pieces and there were "crumbs" of Styrofoam all over the bottom of the box. There is no way this set was treated well in shipment. How could the Styrofoam be broken without some serious impact? I was really upset since now that I tore my living room apart, disconnected everything, I don't even know if the set works. Usually I don't bother to mention to UPS or USPS about damaged boxes, but I guess at this price of $3,500 plus $500 worth of extended warranties I figure I had better. Usually the driver is intimidating since its as though the damage is their fault. I felt the same way now but I figure if I didn't note it then I might have a hard time later.

I finally got the Comcast Moto DCT 6412 III, HD DVR with HDMI connections connected to it with composite cables Comcast provided free of charge. The pictures are amazing. I had commented on my friend's 5078 with the same STB. This 5678 is just as good but the picture just seems much bigger although there is only a difference of three inches on a side I figure or six inches total. The screen is just higher and longer overall. His stand is about the same height so I don't think that is a factor, or at least it is close enough to not make a difference I'd say.

Now for the last point on this ridiculously long post. I noticed the screen screen looks as though the sides are pushed towards the center but are straight at the corners. In other words the corners are correct but along the left and right side of the screen the picture is curved toward the center. This I don't think is pin cushioning but might be a similar issue? Now I guess I have to spend some time figuring out if there is something that I can do besides having a tech visit or worse send the set back. I had left a nasty voice mail with the TVA salesman, something I never do. I was so ticked. To my amazement he called me right back! I was shocked. I'm not sure if it was the fact he bothered to call after listening to my nasty message or the fact that I left the message just as they were closing. He basically called me after they were closed, which was great. I told him about all of this and that I hadn't turned on the set yet to test it. He said he didn't have any in stock in the event I had to replace it. That was great news. What else could happen? He told me to call him Monday either way so that he had an idea of what was going on with the set. This should be good. I told him in my message that I was really dissapointed.

I bought based on price and usually you pay for what you get but I figured people here had good experiences with TVA. I figure all they have to do is ship the sets, how difficult can it be and how much effort does it take to see that a customer, at this price point is taken care of? Now I have to see what I can do about adjusting, fixing or replacing the set.

Thank you for your time and all of the info people have provided on these sets. I'll keep everyone updated and will try to post shorter posts.

There is no lag when video is connected to VGA input and audio to external receiver. In this set-up, processing done by the TV is minimal. The graphics card and MPEG decoder in your HTPC are responsible for all video processing. The TV simply displays whatever is sent over the VGA input. For less than $200 one can add suitable graphics card, DVD-ROM, and MPEG decoder to a PC, and connect it to 1080p set. Picture quality is absolutely superb.

I have ordered a DVDO iSCAN VP30 ( video processor ) which has a vga output
and it will upconvert everything to 1080p which I will input to my Sammy on the vga input.

I can't wait...

P.S. There has got to be some processing if 1080p60fps is not inputed on the
Sammy 1080p input...

I have ordered a DVDO iSCAN VP30 ( video processor ) which has a vga output
and it will upconvert everything to 1080p which I will input to my Sammy on the vga input.

I can't wait...

P.S. There has got to be some processing if 1080p60fps is not inputed on the
Sammy 1080p input...
Holy crap that looks like an awesome unit!

Holy crap that looks like an awesome unit!

If anyone is interested, email Jason Turk, AVS Sales Manager, at
Jason@avscience.com. If you pre-order now, he can get you
one outragous price you won't believe..

It also does 4:1 HDMI switching, auto audio/video sync, and manual
audio/video sync upto 127ms and any rez to any rez conversion.

Denon used the last generation algorithms in its curent $3500 DVD player ( 5910 ).

More information can be found here:

http://www.dvdo.com/pro/pro_isvp30.php

P.S. Please do not PM me asking for the price - I have been sworn to secrecy :-)
- email Jason and he will let you know the price...

email sent.

Lots of posts in this thread. After saving money for three years, and hemming and hawing I finally purchased a Samsung 5668w. Replacing my 11yr old 27 inch Daewoo...weeeeeeee!

I noticed lots of people mentioning lip-sync. I'm not going to browse the whole darned thread, but did you try hooking your components into the television, and then running a toslink from the TV's optical-out into your receiver's optical-input?

That fixed all lip sync issues I had.

Anyway...I'll hopefully get around to browsing the threads sometime a little more in-depth.

Spass

I have ordered a DVDO iSCAN VP30 ( video processor ) which has a vga output
and it will upconvert everything to 1080p which I will input to my Sammy on the vga input.

I can't wait...

P.S. There has got to be some processing if 1080p60fps is not inputed on the
Sammy 1080p input...

But will we be able to output a 1080P signal that the TV will accept. I couldn't get the 1080P out of my iscanHD+ to be accepted by my 6168. There are different settings to change but I didn't try to play with them. In hindsight I guess I should have messed around with the settings on the first set I had since I did get it replaced for screen tilt. If someone gotit to work I never heard about it, and if they did I wish they would post the settings for the iscnaHD+.
Maybe the VP30 will have settings that will work with the 6168 without having to change any settings. Either wy the VP30 can't get here soon enough.

On Friday I had a tech come out to look at my 6168. I had a "slight flickering" issue and a wierd problem where 1/6th of the screen was lighter than the other. He replaced the screen and LE and the screen was normal.

...

My previous LE was way better than the one I got. I guess it serves me right for making him change it after I was pretty sure it was the screen.
Call him back and ask him to put the old LE back in. I had the same problem. The new LE was so bad I would have sworn it was for a 720 set. I got my old LE back from the ST and had him install it and fix the geometry problem at my house. Wasn't as perfect as the new LE on that aspect, but my PQ is much better and its close enough.

Call him back and ask him to put the old LE back in. I had the same problem. The new LE was so bad I would have sworn it was for a 720 set. I got my old LE back from the ST and had him install it and fix the geometry problem at my house. Wasn't as perfect as the new LE on that aspect, but my PQ is much better and its close enough.

I have to stay home from work to get this done....To get this TV I had to take three days (1 for the tech to look at it. another to find out he didn't have all the parts and the third for him to replace all of it).

Is there a way I can fix the geometry.

Lots of posts in this thread. After saving money for three years, and hemming and hawing I finally purchased a Samsung 5668w. Replacing my 11yr old 27 inch Daewoo...weeeeeeee!

I noticed lots of people mentioning lip-sync. I'm not going to browse the whole darned thread, but did you try hooking your components into the television, and then running a toslink from the TV's optical-out into your receiver's optical-input?

That fixed all lip sync issues I had.

Anyway...I'll hopefully get around to browsing the threads sometime a little more in-depth.

Spass
Yest this will work if you don't want DD or DTS (bitstream). It only works for PCM.

got rid of the dvd changers. using an oppo now. my viewing habits changed. i watch more netflix and hd programming i record on the hd-tivo. got an htpc to house my kids dvds.

i don't think there is any way to get the entre to work with any other changer except the kenwood ones.

Slocko,
Have you set up your Kenwood Entre and DV5900 with your Sammy? How do the DVDs look? Is there an upconverting changer that could be configured for the Entre to see?

Or did I see a post on the Entre thread a while back that you got rid of yours?

I apologize for being a little off topic.

I just read the Sony KDSR50-60XBR1 manual and it states that it accepts 1280x1024 as its highest resolution over VGA. I find this very odd that this is the case for a 1080p display. I think this is a clear advantage of the Sammies over Sony. Does anyone else think this is strange?

Some time ago I reported seeing little white flashes from time to time on my 5668. I've just finished some testing and I'm pretty sure that this is a source problem and not a TV problem (even though I've seen it with both regular television and DVDs). I have an HD TiVo and recently whenever I have seen the little white flashes I have rewound the picture and wathed it again and the exact same flash reappears. Since this is a recording, it would appear to me that this is source related and not TV related. If it were TV related, I would think that the exact same flash would not appear every time at the exact same point. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

Also, I am running two component sources to an A/V Receiver (Yamaha 2400) and then running that to my television. Is there any degradation of the signal when running it through the A/V Receiver as opposed to directly to the television. The issue is that I have 3 component sources and only 2 inputs on the TV so I need to run 2 of the inputs through the receiver. I'd like to know if there is degradation though b/c then I will have my "favorite" source run directly to the TV.

As long as the bandwidth of the receiver component inputs is high enough, you shouldn't be able to see a difference. I know when I used my INDAY switcher I couldn't see a difference. I'm using all dvd/hdmi now so I don't use the component switcher with the 6168.

Great News! I just tried making a direct connection between the TV and the cable from the wall and there is no lip sync errors at all! Actually there is some, but very minor (not noticable). Unfortunately, I did a search for channels and all of the higher DTV signal are scrambled, including the HD.
-Andrew

I have a Samsung DVD Player and HLR6768 1080p. When connected to TV via HDMI, I cannot get the TV to pass the Dolby 5.1 bitstream to the receiver, only PCM . There is a pick in the setup to change the TV optical output from PCM, but it is greyed out and I cannot figure out how to get to that setting.
If I wire the optical sound directly to the Receiver, from DVD, I nave a sync problem.

KarelC

I have a Samsung DVD Player and HLR6768 1080p. When connected to TV via HDMI, I cannot get the TV to pass the Dolby 5.1 bitstream to the receiver, only PCM . There is a pick in the setup to change the TV optical output from PCM, but it is greyed out and I cannot figure out how to get to that setting.
If I wire the optical sound directly to the Receiver, from DVD, I nave a sync problem.

KarelC
You have it connected correctly. The TV will only accept 2 channel audio over HDMI and it will only pass 2 channel audio through the optical out port (via PCM) from your DVD player. The TV will send out 5.1 audio from it's internal tuners.

WOW!

Just wired in a diplexer for my Samsung HL-R5078W and I have to say the HD on the internal tuners looks outstanding. It beats the c**p out of my Sony HD-200 Directv reciever for OTA signal.

Still dealing with the "lip sync issue" with audio delivered via my AVR.

All in all I am very impressed with this set.....beats the heck out of my old Panny 47" CRT RPTV.

Rick

Went to BB on Fri and watched the NY vs Toronto ball game on a 6168. The program WAS not in HD, showed as 4:3 setup.

BUT the ball jittered when thrown from picture to catcher. I am disappointed in the response.

So went home and saw another ball game on FSN in 4:3 format on my old TV type.
THE BALL DID NOT JITTER. Angles vs Tampa Bay.

So what do you think, on those that have 1080p?? Watch a ball game on 1080p and compare it on an old tv, and see the difference.

Now I am not sure if I should buy a new 6168 with 1080p. Maybe it is all hype that the response is better. I had heard it should be 16ms, but so far maybe over 32 ms, in my opinion. I am an Electrical Engineer with a lot of design analog/digital experience. You will note samsung NEVER mentions any thing about response in ms. They and TI only mention Resolution and Contrast Ratio, never any thing about Response time in the "spec sheet".

In my old analog design days would excite the circuit with a square wave and look at the output. Measure it from 10% to 90% using a scope and that would be the response.

Dont know how the do it in the digital world. maybe some one could measure the response time and report

Sometimes in the descriptions it says " These new-generation microdisplays have switching speeds twice as fast as previous generations and up to 1,000 times faster than competing microdisplay technologies".

BUT twice as fast of WHAT. And 1000 times is all bull!!

If some ont today could watch a ball game in HD and then compare it with a regular TV and report about this.

Hope some one will respond, before I order a 6168!!

Well my story gets even better, believe it or not. Now there are specs of black plastic, as has been reported here before, inside the screen on the top right corner. I think some here were able to have a tech. clean it up but with that and the projection issue I'm wondering if it can be fixed easily?

The other thing is my friend's Comcast HD STB crapped out on the component connections but works fine on the coax connection to his VCR. We tried everything and it is either the component cable or the STB. I don't see how the component can be a problem or we would at least see a red or green picture or something. His set has no signal at all. They are supposed to be here with a new STB Monday. I was considering going HDMI-HDMI instead of component.

I have ordered a DVDO iSCAN VP30 ( video processor ) which has a vga output
and it will upconvert everything to 1080p which I will input to my Sammy on the vga input.

I can't wait...

P.S. There has got to be some processing if 1080p60fps is not inputed on the
Sammy 1080p input...

Indeed. However, the beauty of HTPC is that the video card outputs exactly 1080 at 60 fps. If you set up your TV for 1:1 pixel mapping on the VGA input, then there is very little processing. There is certainly no scaling or deinterlacing done by the TV. Also, VGA input circumvents internal picture enhancements (DNIe, etc.).

Let us know how VP30 works out for you. If I had multiple inputs, I would probably get one myself. So far, I've been very happy with direct Comcast feed into my 6168, and HTPC for everything else (DVD, home videos, TV recording, digital pictures, music server, etc.).

Where is the best place to get a good, reasonably priced, relatively short HDMI-HDMI cable? I don't know probably three feet or shorter? I'm thinking about getting one and one for my friend. I don't know what the going rate is for them, if some can be had for less and if they are really worth the cost vs. PQ? I'd imagine they are but is the picture and sound 10% better, 25% better or just a little for a free component cable from Comcast vs. a $50 or so HDMI cable? I don't know the cost but I'd imagine they are just looking to rip people off.

Went to BB on Fri and watched the NY vs Toronto ball game on a 6168. The program WAS not in HD, showed as 4:3 setup.

BUT the ball jittered when thrown from picture to catcher. I am disappointed in the response.

So went home and saw another ball game on FSN in 4:3 format on my old TV type.
THE BALL DID NOT JITTER. Angles vs Tampa Bay.

So what do you think, on those that have 1080p?? Watch a ball game on 1080p and compare it on an old tv, and see the difference.

Now I am not sure if I should buy a new 6168 with 1080p. Maybe it is all hype that the response is better. I had heard it should be 16ms, but so far maybe over 32 ms, in my opinion. I am an Electrical Engineer with a lot of design analog/digital experience. You will note samsung NEVER mentions any thing about response in ms. They and TI only mention Resolution and Contrast Ratio, never any thing about Response time in the "spec sheet".

In my old analog design days would excite the circuit with a square wave and look at the output. Measure it from 10% to 90% using a scope and that would be the response.

Dont know how the do it in the digital world. maybe some one could measure the response time and report

Sometimes in the descriptions it says " These new-generation microdisplays have switching speeds twice as fast as previous generations and up to 1,000 times faster than competing microdisplay technologies".

BUT twice as fast of WHAT. And 1000 times is all bull!!

If some ont today could watch a ball game in HD and then compare it with a regular TV and report about this.

Hope some one will respond, before I order a 6168!!

I'm not a big baseball fan, but just went and took a look at the SF vs COL game being broadcast on INHD (HLR5668W, Comcast Motorola HD DVR 6412 via HDMI2). I checked it out from < 3 feet. Looked fine to me.

ADDED: You do understand given the speed of the pitch, that there might be a small amount of frame to frame ball movement, right?

DLP's do not suffer from the response problems of LCD sets, so you do not have to worry about 16ms or any other number.

I'm not a big baseball fan, but just went and took a look at the SF vs COL game being broadcast on INHD (HLR5668W, Comcast Motorola HD DVR 6412 via HDMI2). I checked it out from < 3 feet. Looked fine to me.


Check it out at 8-10 feet and watch the ball as thrown between pitcher and catcher. I my opinion it jitters compared to old sets.

Thanks for responding.

Check it out at 8-10 feet and watch the ball as thrown between pitcher and catcher. I my opinion it jitters compared to old sets.

Thanks for responding.
OK ... went back and watched an inning at 10 feet. No jitter. Perfect angle on the pitches from behind the pitcher to the batter. Fly ball. Hit. Looks perfect to me.

But, when you get a set like this you will realize that each broadcast can either be better or worst quality. I think what you were seeing was the result of either compression in the signal or the scaling of an SD signal to fit on a 61" screen.

But will we be able to output a 1080P signal that the TV will accept. I couldn't get the 1080P out of my iscanHD+ to be accepted by my 6168. There are different settings to change but I didn't try to play with them. In hindsight I guess I should have messed around with the settings on the first set I had since I did get it replaced for screen tilt. If someone gotit to work I never heard about it, and if they did I wish they would post the settings for the iscnaHD+.
Maybe the VP30 will have settings that will work with the 6168 without having to change any settings. Either wy the VP30 can't get here soon enough.

I don't know about the iSCANHD+, have you worked with DVDO to resolve this?

Josh at DVDO said it will work with my Samsung just fine - I will hold him to
it: -)

Should be no more than a few more weeks...

OK ... went back and watched an inning at 10 feet. No jitter. Perfect angle on the pitches from behind the pitcher to the batter. Fly ball. Hit. Looks perfect to me.

But, when you get a set like this you will realize that each broadcast can either be better or worst quality. I think what you were seeing was the result of either compression in the signal or the scaling of an SD signal to fit on a 61" screen.

Absolutely correct. The awesome thing about the 1080p Samsung is that it displays
the signal as sent to it, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Bad source and source
components look bad and great source and source components look
great. Some TVs may have more noise reduction that handles bad source
better but this softens the picture.

Check the images below on what many consider the best noise reduction
component available ( which by the way, has an m.s.r.p. of what I a paid
for my entire Samsung 6168! ).

Notice how the images, though clearer, are also defintely softer. I personally
prefer my monitor to display what I send it and I will worry about what source
material I send to it.

http://www.algolith.com/index.php?id=mosquito_hdmi

Check it out at 8-10 feet and watch the ball as thrown between pitcher and catcher. I my opinion it jitters compared to old sets.

Thanks for responding.

It must be baseball day on INHD, because Minn vs Chicago is on my other INHD channel and it fine also.

Here's a lip synch glitch that I'm experiencing with my 5668 that I don't recall having read about yet here. The 5668 is connected to a SA8300HD DVR (by HDMI to the TV and by optical audio to my preamp). The 5668 also has a CableCard and OTA antenna. The DVR is configured to output all formats except 480i, which it must convert to 480p, but that is the only video processing tasked to the DVR. Audio from the CC and OTA flows to the preamp from the 5668's optical output jack.

With that setup, I experience significant lip sync problems with almost every live program viewed with the DVR; they vanish as soon as I view the same programs with the CC or OTA.

Absolutely correct. The awesome thing about the 1080p Samsung is that it displays
the signal as sent to it, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Bad source and source
components look bad and great source and source components look
great. Some TVs may have more noise reduction that handles bad source
better but this softens the picture.

Check the images below on what many consider the best noise reduction
component available ( which by the way, has an m.s.r.p. of what I a paid
for my entire Samsung 6168! ).

Notice how the images, though clearer, are also defintely softer. I personally
prefer my monitor to display what I send it and I will worry about what source
material I send to it.

http://www.algolith.com/index.php?id=mosquito_hdmi

You can get a discount through the AVS forum. I'm still debating if I'm going to buy a Mosquito HDMI. I haven't decided yet. I guess if I'm lucky enough to get the free TV from the powerbuy(fingers crossed) I will definitely purchase the Mosquito HDMI.

Absolutely correct. The awesome thing about the 1080p Samsung is that it displays
the signal as sent to it, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Bad source and source
components look bad and great source and source components look
great. Some TVs may have more noise reduction that handles bad source
better but this softens the picture.

Check the images below on what many consider the best noise reduction
component available ( which by the way, has an m.s.r.p. of what I a paid
for my entire Samsung 6168! ).

Notice how the images, though clearer, are also defintely softer. I personally
prefer my monitor to display what I send it and I will worry about what source
material I send to it.

http://www.algolith.com/index.php?id=mosquito_hdmi

Thanks to all who responded. Guess it was a problem in the DLP's, converting from a 262.5 line (525 interlaced) system to 1080p. Seems like they all do a poor job.

Will go back to BB and see if then have HD baseball some day, I hope you all are right. So might as well order a 6178 from Vann,s as I am in Calif so when I pay ST comes out to near $4000.

Ray

You can get a discount through the AVS forum. I'm still debating if I'm going to buy a Mosquito HDMI. I haven't decided yet. I guess if I'm lucky enough to get the free TV from the powerbuy(fingers crossed) I will definitely purchase the Mosquito HDMI.

If I get a free TV, I will spend my money elsewhere :-)

I personally don't watch much compressed SD programming...

Where is the best place to get a good, reasonably priced, relatively short HDMI-HDMI cable? I don't know probably three feet or shorter? I'm thinking about getting one and one for my friend. I don't know what the going rate is for them, if some can be had for less and if they are really worth the cost vs. PQ? I'd imagine they are but is the picture and sound 10% better, 25% better or just a little for a free component cable from Comcast vs. a $50 or so HDMI cable? I don't know the cost but I'd imagine they are just looking to rip people off.
You can get a good deal at RAM electronics, a forum sponser. You can get a discount for being an AVS forum member.
Here is a link to the Ram Electronics offers AVS members a PowerBuy on quality HT connection solutions. (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=532289)
Thread in the Powerbuy section. I purchased several HDMI cables from them and they are of excellent quality and also inexpensive.

Here's a lip synch glitch that I'm experiencing with my 5668 that I don't recall having read about yet here. The 5668 is connected to a SA8300HD DVR (by HDMI to the TV and by optical audio to my preamp). The 5668 also has a CableCard and OTA antenna. The DVR is configured to output all formats except 480i, which it must convert to 480p, but that is the only video processing tasked to the DVR. Audio from the CC and OTA flows to the preamp from the 5668's optical output jack.

With that setup, I experience significant lip sync problems with almost every live program viewed with the DVR; they vanish as soon as I view the same programs with the CC or OTA.


i have the same setup as u utilizing the optical out aswell, not experiencing any lip sync issues though, i set my SA box to output only 1080 though.

I leave my Denon 3805 around 120ms for the delay.


Do you need to delay in your Denon when you send it through your DVDO HD+? Mine seems to be syncing up pretty well coming out of my HD.


lexx
I am sitting about 12' from my 6768. That looks like a nice stand, but I don't have 77". If I did I might wait for the 70+ inch sets.

Yes I do. I guess the HD+ adjusts the delay for what it's doing. I'm only using the underscan feature of the HD+ for my HD-TiVos since they tend to have alot of overscan. Although now that I think about it, I'm not running the audio from my HD-Tivos through my iscanHD. I'm using an HDMI swither for the video going to the iscanHD+ and an INDAY digital switcher for the audio, but that runs straight to the receiver. The HD+ only has 4 digital audio inputs and mine are all being used by other devices.

Thanks Aaronwt for the fast response. I tried Circuit Sucks and Tweeter and they are around $99 for the 4' ones. Monster is absurd and Tweeter only sells them, at least Circuit Sucks has Monster and some other brand to choose from. I just need 2'-3' at the most. How far away are people's components? They have 8' lengths. I'm just going from the top shelf to the TV, how far is that?

Please Help.

I am watching the Steeler game on CBSE and I notice (happens on all games & channels but some seem worse than others) that on distant shots of the crowd in the stands there is a shimmering or pulsating effect. This has been happening all along, but it bothers me more & more.

Do you think this is the TV, HR10-250 HD/Tivo, Directv or other? Any ideas to minimize it?

The HR10-250 is set to output 1080i - the tv is on std.

Thanks

You are supposed to be watching the game and not the crowd.

Aaronwt, I was hoping Ram was less expensive but this is crazy! Finally someone honest selling cables that work, which I guess are good or people here would say something. Thanks a lot! They should sell millions of them I hope.

i gave accessing the SM a try to see what the tech left some values at, but was unable to enter it, i tried the same code(mute1-8-2-power) on an old samsung crt set and it worked fine, dunno why it will not work with my 5668w. Anyways before the game starts i clicked off a few pictures to show what my set looks like now. My guess is the the color wheel is done, and that the tech during all his parts swapping messed a couple of other things up too.

http://www.theoldschoolers.com/Forums/uploads/post-11-1127694542.jpg
http://www.theoldschoolers.com/Forums/uploads/post-11-1127694154.jpg
http://www.theoldschoolers.com/Forums/uploads/post-11-1127694186.jpg

Anyone have any experience with one of these or the 250 on the SS HLR xxx8's yet?

Anyone know if the Ram PB for HDMI cables have free shipping? I thought I just saw that somewhere but when I went to order them online it had $7 S/H or something like that. Any info? I'm looking to order those first thing tomorrow morning for me and my friend. We only need the 3' cables. Thanks.

Celestial

I have the same lighter area. primarily on the left side of my 6168. even though it isn't "burn in" it is a good description of what it looks like. i can always see it when the screen is black or in darker seens. to me it looks like it is the area not displayed on 4:3 mode. I also have some serious shadow detail issues too. This isn't my first HD display, but it is my first DLP. All displays need a certain amount of calibration, and tweaking, but I am finding it hard to beleive that SS felt that they had a product ready to ship to the masses.

I have the exact same issue on the left side of my 6168. I have had my set since the first week of August and this just recently became apparent. I think there may also be a lighter area on my screen towards the middle as well.

I have the exact same issue on the left side of my 6168. I have had my set since the first week of August and this just recently became apparent. I think there may also be a lighter area on my screen towards the middle as well.


Maybe we need to be less critical and enjoy our sets. If there is a problem get it fixed but don't spend all your time trying to find problems. Not trying to be mean but I do not think most of us care if you might have a bright spot. If you do have a problem then we are definitely interested.

Anyone know if the Ram PB for HDMI cables have free shipping? I thought I just saw that somewhere but when I went to order them online it had $7 S/H or something like that. Any info? I'm looking to order those first thing tomorrow morning for me and my friend. We only need the 3' cables. Thanks.

I think it's on orders over $100. I bought several cables that came to over $100 so I got the free shipping. They shipped them the next day. They are located on the East coast, so for me that is only 1 to 2 days by ground.

Thanks. That's still a great price. I guess when you find a good price its even better if you can find free shipping! Oh well. Awesome.

Maybe we need to be less critical and enjoy our sets. If there is a problem get it fixed but don't spend all your time trying to find problems. Not trying to be mean but I do not think most of us care if you might have a bright spot. If you do have a problem then we are definitely interested.

The reason I reported this is so that others might watch out for it as well. I definitely do have a bright area on the left side of my screen. I have no doubt about that. The area in the middle is the part I'm uncertain about. This problem was not present when I first purchased the set and only developed recently. I'm really trying not to be critical and this is the first time I posted concerning problems with the 6168 in almost two months of having the set.

The reason I reported this is so that others might watch out for it as well. I definitely do have a bright area on the left side of my screen. I have no doubt about that. The area in the middle is the part I'm uncertain about. This problem was not present when I first purchased the set and only developed recently. I'm really trying not to be critical and this is the first time I posted concerning problems with the 6168 in almost two months of having the set.


Was not trying to get on you I think all of us including me spend to much time looking for problems and not enough time just enjoying our sets. I will be watching a movie and all of a sudden think about lipsync and will concentrate on that and not watching the film. I have not fixed my lipsync but it really doesn't bother me much till I start thinking about it.

I do have a question though. I popped in an old non animorphic DVD the other day and with my OPPO set for wide/squeeze the picture is the correct aspect but small in the center and the SS will not zoom the HDMI input. If I connect my old DVD to component will it allow the TV to zoom the picture to the correct size? The zoom on the OPPO did not look very good.

First, to concur with a post a while back. I continue to be absolutely amazed (as are friends who come to my house) at the quality of the 6168. Generally I try to showcase not DVD but HD.

That being said, clearly the dig audio out is only PCM unless outputting the internal tuner sound; unfortunately. Could someone explain why this PCM shows up lighting my Dolby Pro Logic indicator on my AVR? Also, I imagine that this means I am getting only a right, center, left and mono surround signal; correct?

Havent really read any posts about watching 1080p thru the VGA port. For example, I havent had a chance to watch my Terminator 2 DVD ROM which is native 1080p via WMP. Has anyone done this and perchance contrasted (not so much in quantitive - but qualititative terms) the comparison between watching both versions. I'd like to understand if its worth the hassle of moving some equipment around to look at this myself.

I had just posted here on T2 with a 1080p PC. It is unbelievable on my friend's 5078. I then played it on a cheap DVD player and it took a huge drop in quality. Not that I'm surprised, but I don't see why people here are buying new DVD players that are already obsolete? It is better to upgrade a PC than get a DVD player.

I don't see why people here are buying new DVD players that are already obsolete? It is better to upgrade a PC than get a DVD player.

I suppose the reason is that it takes a lot of research, etc., in finding out how to set up your pc (or mac in my case) to do this. Is that not correct? Can one find a simple, straight-forward prescription was what it is that one needs to do this?

I had just ordered a 15' VGA Monitor at Staples for I think $30 or less. That is really cheap. I figure besides maybe RAM now that I think of it that should work since the cheaper the more likely they work. I was surprised to see a 15', most are 6' and 10'. I had thought 10' but if I move the computer would just be that much further away from the set.

We used the Sammy speakers for T2 so I can't comment on the sound.

I build my systems. Now I have a dual Xenon workstation to edit HD. If you have worked on a computer before it shouldn't be a big deal. You could pay someone to upgrade it even and even if it cost as much as these DVD players you would be ahead since you can watch WMV HD and spend your money on having a better computer rather than these old DVD players.

There is a DVD player manufacturer that plays WMVHD and I think other similar HD formats. JVC I think has two models and they just put their name on them. The company might be in China? That to me would be the best DVD player to get if you didn't want to connect your PC.

Once you start looking into upgrading your PC it should be rather straightforward and it might even be less expensive.

I just checke Ram for VGA cables. They have a 10' for $17+ $7 S/H I think? That might be a little less than Staples but not if you get free S/H from Staples and they are "high quality" so they might not work?

Once you start looking into upgrading your PC it should be rather straightforward and it might even be less expensive.

I have a pretty new laptop (mac g4), with an internal cd, etc. I just don't know what else I need to make it function as a dvd player. It has dvi connection, there I could connect via dvi-hdmi, right? What else does one need to add?

Does anyone have any advise or suggestions with my problem?
I think is saw some similar complaints on this thread. Below is my email I have sent to Samsung support.

I have just purchased an HL-R6768W DLP TV. I have noticed that on the screen there appears to be 'smudge-like' images projected from the light engine. This is mostly apparent when the screen is a solid color and there are two major 'smudges' in the center of the screen with about 4-6 more around the screen which are less noticable. To better define the images they have a similar look to when you see something on live TV and there is water or something on the camera lense. The images do not move and are always on the screen no matter which input you use, ratio your using, or definition your viewing in.

Please advise.

USACO service replaced my Light Engine this morning on what I initially reported as a smudge. Actually it turned out to be a scratch on the lens--the smudge being better described as a "smudgy line".


Once the LE was replaced, I watched a number of prerecorded shows from the Dish DVR and spotted a new roundish spot coming from the new Light Engine. The tech wiped the new lens with what I thought was a special cloth. (I thought it was special until he later started wiping down the exterior bezel with the same cloth.) The roundish smudge was almost gone. So I asked for another pass with the cloth. Also, I hit the lens with a couple of blasts from my DustOff can.

Now, best I can tell, the new lens is clean (no smudges) and the new Light Engine looks at least as good as the old one, if not better.

Keeping my fingers crossed,
jim

look like ill have a new set to replace this bunk one tommorow, keeping my fingers crossed that it'll be problem free.

I also have two smudge marks on the bottom center, close to the Sammy logo. These are oval like a thumb print. I just left a msg with my TVA rep who works later in the day.

USACO service replaced my Light Engine this morning on what I initially reported as a smudge. Actually it turned out to be a scratch on the lens--the smudge being better described as a "smudgy line".


Once the LE was replaced, I watched a number of prerecorded shows from the Dish DVR and spotted a new roundish spot coming from the new Light Engine. The tech wiped the new lens with what I thought was a special cloth. (I thought it was special until he later started wiping down the exterior bezel with the same cloth.) The roundish smudge was almost gone. So I asked for another pass with the cloth. Also, I hit the lens with a couple of blasts from my DustOff can.

Now, best I can tell, the new lens is clean (no smudges) and the new Light Engine looks at least as good as the old one, if not better.

Keeping my fingers crossed,
jim

I have some super sensitive cleaning cloths actually used for cleaning lasers.
Is the lens hard to get to if I want to try and clean it myself? Any directions?

First, to concur with a post a while back. I continue to be absolutely amazed (as are friends who come to my house) at the quality of the 6168. Generally I try to showcase not DVD but HD.

That being said, clearly the dig audio out is only PCM unless outputting the internal tuner sound; unfortunately. Could someone explain why this PCM shows up lighting my Dolby Pro Logic indicator on my AVR? Also, I imagine that this means I am getting only a right, center, left and mono surround signal; correct?

Havent really read any posts about watching 1080p thru the VGA port. For example, I havent had a chance to watch my Terminator 2 DVD ROM which is native 1080p via WMP. Has anyone done this and perchance contrasted (not so much in quantitive - but qualititative terms) the comparison between watching both versions. I'd like to understand if its worth the hassle of moving some equipment around to look at this myself.
Prologic is compatible with PCM. Pro Logic is analog surround sound done with timings. Its not discrete SS like DD or DTS.

Millerwill, I'm not as smart as you since I have a PC, but if you can play a DVD on your Mac now on the Mac screen, you are close to getting it to work. The Sammy needs a cheap VGA monitor cable with two male pins on it, not an extension cable. First get the DVD to work and then go from there. In a nutshell the video card needs to have 1080p resolution at 60hz. You could check the specs of your Mac and see if the video card has that spec. You need a certain amount of memory and other highend specs to play the equivalent of WMVHD, QuickTime HD or something like that? Microsoft won't let Macs play with them in their sandbox so QT could be a little different as far as specs.

I have some super sensitive cleaning cloths actually used for cleaning lasers.
Is the lens hard to get to if I want to try and clean it myself? Any directions?
I think you have to take out the LE. Its mounted on that unit.

Hey guys, I know its been brought up before, but I just wanted to verify. It's has been said that hte 68 series we are discussing here doesn't take full 1080p inputs, except over the VGA input?

Can I ask why that would be? If I happen to get the DVDO VP30 unit that outputs up to 1080p images, would I be wasting the potential of this DVDO unit on a TV that won't accept that high of an input?

And for a technical reason, why would a TV with a 1920x1080 resolution NOT take 1080p signals??

Anyone know if the Ram PB for HDMI cables have free shipping? I thought I just saw that somewhere but when I went to order them online it had $7 S/H or something like that. Any info? I'm looking to order those first thing tomorrow morning for me and my friend. We only need the 3' cables. Thanks.

Where is the info on this PB?

The link is is on the previous page, post 5722 I think. The PB is still on but you need to spend $99 for free shipping or pay $7 I think for UPS ground which is reasonable. They look great, I placed an order today and they said they would ship same day.

I have some super sensitive cleaning cloths actually used for cleaning lasers.
Is the lens hard to get to if I want to try and clean it myself? Any directions?

Acting as the second set of hands, I helped the service tech remove the screen about 5 or 6 times. This should be your access to the lens. The Light Engine is removed from the back, and from what I saw, I would think you shouldn't touch it.

You probably need a second set of hands for this.

There are about 12-15 screws that hold the screen on. They are located directly behind the bezel pointing forward to the front of the set. The screen has a pop off attachment at its lower right edge. Once all the screws are out, you gently tug on the lower right part of the bezel. The screen has an electrical wire that attaches to the set in that same area. This wire is held in place by two or three plastic holders. You should try not to let the wire pop from its holder, because you'll want to get it back in later.

With the two sets of hands gently pull the screen away from the set. The lens is accessible directly at the bottom of the screen right near the front. Of course, the larger your set (or the shorter your arms), the more difficult it will be to reach the lens.

PLEASE BE CAREFUL cleaning the lens. My tech only used a cloth. NO LIQUID.

Replacing the screen is basically reversing the above steps.

Like I said, YOU DIDN'T HEAR THIS FROM ME.

J.

Does anyone notice a slight buzzing noise when up close to the 68. I hear a quiet buzzing noise, (It sound electrical), and it annoys me to death. I tried to see if it was the internal speakers, I turned the mute on and its still there. I've heard this noise ever since I pluged in an S-Video cable to the AV3 part of the TV (the slots on the side). Anyway, could this be from all of the power cable entangled up behind my TV (causing electromagnetic radiation).

When I turn the TV off, the noise stays on until the standby light turns on. Any help would be appreciated...