i dont get what ur saying, they can or cant fix it? lol?

ive noticed the 5%-10% overscan as a major problem as well, esp with next gen gaming. Honestly though, why should there be any overscan issues to begin with, alot of hard work went into capturing the image on film, and who the hell is sony to tell us we dont deserve to see part of it?

Infact that and some minor geometry issues are my few beefs with this tv. infact it seems that everything the LCD tv i had before this did right, this does wrong, and visa versa! Its almost anoying, i have to trade deep rich blacks that arent crushed for washed out greys , backlight leakage, or ghosting and dead pixels.

Atleat the LCD showed all the image. Aggh.

I mean, with ajusting ive improved the image, but its still not perfect, and idk, im not aking for much, but, cant i just have a HD tv that shows all the image and no defects with the imaging process what so ever?

Or maby im just over picky. Yes i know nothings perfect, but, it drives u insane, because, when u know somthings off, no matter how minor it is, it distracts you, (for me atleast) intill i can fix it, its just my nature.

Oh well, better then nothing, right. Intill i somehow win the lotto, or get a really good job and buy a 1080p 60 inch plasma (and even then they only last 2 years), it will have to do!


ISF calibration anyone? THEN, you're TV will be "perfect" in almost every way, AND you have the beautiful picture the 970 produces.

That's the route I'm going. Then, my 970 will be as close to perfect as it will ever be! :)

ISF? dont that cost more money then the tv itself? money i dont have, lol.

Maby ill have a tech come out and adjust it, that way, its good, and its covered in my extended warentee!

But, im just tossing this out, what tv is the best one to get, period? Plasma, im guessing,

ISF? dont that cost more money then the tv itself? money i dont have, lol.

Maby ill have a tech come out and adjust it, that way, its good, and its covered in my extended warentee!

But, im just tossing this out, what tv is the best one to get, period? Plasma, im guessing,

IMO, and many, many others, CRT is STILL the way to go.

ISF calibration costs around $225. It's worth every penny.



I'll take my XBR970 and ISF calibrated over many TV's out there. Not many/any TV's out there under $1,500, if not more that could touch the PQ and overall experience, like a professionally calibrated 970.

A good CRT like the Sony blows flat panel TVs away in picture quality. Flat panels don't have the problems that CRTs have, convergence, geometry, but they don't have the PQ either. Take a DVD that you've watched on the Sony to an electronics store and compare on their TVs, none of the flat panel TVs compare to the Sony, at least none I looked at, LCD or plasma.

A good CRT like the Sony blows flat panel TVs away in picture quality. Flat panels don't have the problems that CRTs have, convergence, geometry, but they don't have the PQ either. Take a DVD that you've watched on the Sony to an electronics store and compare on their TVs, none of the flat panel TVs compare to the Sony, at least none I looked at, LCD or plasma.

But with professional calibration, those things CAN be fixed. Once fixed, the 970 is really... absolutely astonishing.

Now, the CRT no longer has any convergence, geometry, or overscan issues, AND has the PQ of high-end plasma's. I won't lie.. I wouldn't trade my 970 for anything out there right now..

Not sure if the geometry on a CRT can ever be made "perfect" Not sure if all calibrators take the back off the sets and do converegnce adjustments with the magnets?

Not sure if the geometry on a CRT can ever be made "perfect" Not sure if all calibrators take the back off the sets and do converegnce adjustments with the magnets?

Barry, the guy who's doing mine, takes off the back of the TV, if I remember correctly. Or he talked about it..

Oh good deal then Uwisconsin!

I think once i get tired of tinkering with the service menu myself i'm gonna eventually get my set calibrated once i realize i can't get it any better, geometry wise, convergence wise. Also would be nice to have my Grey Scale done, not sure how off it is from the factory on these sets. Thing is i wouldnt know which input to get done, component or HDMI. They charge the same price as one input as the other? so if it's 200 and you get compononent done , would it be 400 for HDMi AND component?!?! nah right?

I wish I had a fast frame camera or something to where I can film the screen to try to see any scan lines. Ya know when you see a filmed computer monitor and the lines move top to bottom. That way I could change modes to see if there's any difference.
I took my digital camera with an LCD screen and pointed it at my 970. I can clearly see a scan line (horizontal bar actually) about 2 to 2.5 inches high slowly crawling downward. When I changed channels to 480i/p (SAT input), 480p (DVD), 1080i (TV), 720p (TV), the scan "bar" never changed. It was always the same height moving downward at the same speed. So I think this shows the output display frequency, what ever it is, never changes with whatever input you give it (480i/p, 1080i, 720p). Unless there's something wrong with my barbaric experiment.

Has anyone ever put a magnifying glass up to the TV to inspect the actual display? Well I just did with a little one on my multi-purpose knife. I can clearly see this TV has a vertical aperture grille. All the colors are formed vertically, where when white is displayed you'll see solid red, green, and blue vertical lines.

I counted about 32 vertical lines an inch left to right. And it's about 29.6 inches wide, so it can display about 947 red, green, or blue horizontally. My numbers are off by a little bit. My ruler does not lay flush to each color "dot", so there is a slight error in my calculations.

Vertically in progressive mode I counted about 29 "dots" of blue an inch, with about 16.6 inches total making about 481 "dots" of blue. Add the r-g-b's together and you get 3 times as many dots, but I'm only counting each individual color, like only blue. So when put into interlaced mode you get about 963 individual color dots, like blue for example.

You can see when in progressive mode there's a gap of black between all the vertical "dots". The "dots" seem to get bigger (with brightness) and more vertically rectangular and get tall or short depending on the intensity of color.

While viewing over the air TV on the tuner it looks like 480i can be displayed as progressive or interlaced depending on the option in the DRC Mode in the Menu. But it looks like 720p & 1080i are both displayed as interlaced.

I can clearly see a difference between the DRC Interlaced & Progressive modes in my Sat. Input 1 (using S-Video). CineMotion looks the same as Progressive. With progressive there's spaces between the vertical "dots", but interlaced they're all touching and you can see the alternating (interlace/strobing) effect.

I know the actual resolutions you see will differ since it is an analog display with r-g-b's making only 1 color (pixel?) of white and it can use either rgb, gbr, or brg from left to right to make that 1 color of white. But this just shows a rough idea of the actual construction of this display and what you're physically looking at.

Has anyone run some more precise measurements and calculations?
http://img79.imageshack.us/img79/5005/xbr970pity6.gif

dam, and i thought i was uptight about my gear, lol

Interesting stuff, Skram0. Thanks for posting.

Barry, the guy who's doing mine, takes off the back of the TV, if I remember correctly. Or he talked about it..

I am getting mine done by sony since it is covered still. they will be sending a guy out and taking off the back of the TV.

I know this may seem stupid, and I looked through the manual, for information on DRC.

How do you change it from interlaced to progressive and CineMotion? When I push the button, it says "feature not available". I'm using a cable box instead of satellite, which the manual uses as an example (DVD player or satellite).

I can't change it either, when I hook up my DVD player through HDMI.

I know this may seem stupid, and I looked through the manual, for information on DRC.

How do you change it from interlaced to progressive and CineMotion? When I push the button, it says "feature not available". I'm using a cable box instead of satellite, which the manual uses as an example (DVD player or satellite).

I can't change it either, when I hook up my DVD player through HDMI.Is your cable box set to output 480i for SD channels? DRC (Digital Reality Creation) is only available for 480i input signals. When 480p, 720p or 1080i is the resolution of the input signal, DRC becomes unavailable.

Raouliii's got a good point. If its beyond 480, you really dont need DRC!

Thanks guys. :)

do any of u guys know if circuit citys extended warentee covers calabration. I mean, i dont wana call them up and look stupid, ya know

Also, what are the chances, if i somehow manage to move this beast to an east west direction, it would eliminate or reduce my geometry issues?

do any of u guys know if circuit citys extended warentee covers calabration. I mean, i dont wana call them up and look stupid, ya know

Why do you think you would look stupid when asking a question about their warranty coverage? Not asking would be stupid, IMO.

well last time when i bitched and complaned about the backlighting issue on the samsung LCD, they gave an addatue that it was not a major flaw in there oppion, and service was'nt really wartented, and when they did finally take it back, they kept the thing for over 2 months sitting in the god dam store before my numerous emails to the head company and complant department got me the tv i have now!

I really dont want the headache of going through that again if i can fix it myself. I guess i'll just call them tomarow. Its not a huge problem, but i do expect streight not distorted lines!

if i move the tv facing east and west, would that solve the problem as well? its a big mother to move, but if that will fix the problem, i will do it!

anyone using a play station 3 as a blu ray player?

how is it?

i don't play games but for $600, that's pretty good if it plays blu ray movies

i only got one blue ray movie, stealth (the only one they had used at gamestop and it was only 12 bucks) but, its got a hell of a smooth picture. It is an improvement of DVD but its not a huge diffrence like vhs and DVD, but then again, ive seen blue ray played on 60 inch 1080p plasma's and its litterly like looking through a window!

My guess, Get the ps3, even if your not a gamer (athough its rumored they will drop its price soon), buy yourself some blue rays, a game or two, and you'll have a nifty little system attached to your tv that can surf the web, play bluerays, etc

Sony is introducing $500 blue ray player to the marketplace soon.

I would still buy a PS3 even if it is $100 more, but I am big fan of video games though.
Xbox360 was the reason I went HD lol. I am thinking about picking up PS3 either this summer or fall.:D

Yeah, all those dorky college kids wearing red shirts are gonna' laugh at you! "Hey get this, some guy called and asked if his T.V. could be callibrated under our protection plan..........HA HA HA!!!" Because, ya know, people that work at Circuit City are the best judges of character! Why is it that you believe they even care enough about you to have an opinion in the first place! If you think about it, it is an egocentric way of thinking that you, as a person, will have an amount of affect on another individual, that will illicit an opinion from them, of you. And, besides, if they are critics, or judges, than remember you are the one giving them their judicial powers. Screw their ignorant courtroom! Anyways, good luck with your 970!

ya know, i am going to get it serviced.

But, now theres a new problem. I pull out the sales bill to get the number to get it serviced, and guess what, THE MORONS AT THE STORE put down the wrong name on the warentee. I have some robert smith guys name on my warentee bill, who lives somewear in new jersey! GOD, ever since i went HD ive had more headaches with the dam stores then when i had a normal tv.

heres my story. first i buy the samsung LNR23 somthing, right, the same tv they use in the xbox 360 kisoks, and the dam thing has backlight leakage! Real noticable bit too, right, so i send it back for service, and IT SITS ON THE STORE SHELF FOR 2 MONTHS before they send it out. THEN THEY SAY WE DONT SEE IT, send it back, but they loose it on the way. At this point im extremley pissed, having to wate 2 months without a tv because its sitting on the store shelf awating shipment, so i bitch and moan, and i finally get some action and they want to replace my tv. SO, ok,i go with the sony, but, it takes them 2 hours in the store, to process the order, because not even the manager knows what the hell he's doing, dispite the letter and code number i got from the company's head quarters, and the guy is pushing me to except there choice of replacement, a cheep ass akira somthing LCD thats smaller then the one i had before, not widescreen, and doesnt even display in HD!

So, ok, i finally get the sony, bring it home set it up, and im happy. But over time i notice the overscan and geometry issues we all have. So i try to fix it best i can, but figure, hell its covered, leave it to the pro's to fix it. So i go to call have it serviced IN HOUSE (your out your friggen mind if you think im carrying in a 200 pound tv into the store just to have it sit there for 2 months) and now i find out they put the wrong info on the warentee!

God in heaven, the stupidity of the employees at this store! I will bet you, they will ask for everything back now too once i bring that up. !

AGGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just want to kill somebody, ya know. You begin to regret not just saving up some more and buying a 1080P plasma to begin with and spare yourself all this headache!

ya know, i am going to get it serviced.

But, now theres a new problem. I pull out the sales bill to get the number to get it serviced, and guess what, THE MORONS AT THE STORE put down the wrong name on the warentee. I have some robert smith guys name on my warentee bill, who lives somewear in new jersey! GOD, ever since i went HD ive had more headaches with the dam stores then when i had a normal tv.

heres my story. first i buy the samsung LNR23 somthing, right, the same tv they use in the xbox 360 kisoks, and the dam thing has backlight leakage! Real noticable bit too, right, so i send it back for service, and IT SITS ON THE STORE SHELF FOR 2 MONTHS before they send it out. THEN THEY SAY WE DONT SEE IT, send it back, but they loose it on the way. At this point im extremley pissed, having to wate 2 months without a tv because its sitting on the store shelf awating shipment, so i bitch and moan, and i finally get some action and they want to replace my tv. SO, ok,i go with the sony, but, it takes them 2 hours in the store, to process the order, because not even the manager knows what the hell he's doing, dispite the letter and code number i got from the company's head quarters, and the guy is pushing me to except there choice of replacement, a cheep ass akira somthing LCD thats smaller then the one i had before, not widescreen, and doesnt even display in HD!

So, ok, i finally get the sony, bring it home set it up, and im happy. But over time i notice the overscan and geometry issues we all have. So i try to fix it best i can, but figure, hell its covered, leave it to the pro's to fix it. So i go to call have it serviced IN HOUSE (your out your friggen mind if you think im carrying in a 200 pound tv into the store just to have it sit there for 2 months) and now i find out they put the wrong info on the warentee!

God in heaven, the stupidity of the employees at this store! I will bet you, they will ask for everything back now too once i bring that up. !

AGGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just want to kill somebody, ya know. You begin to regret not just saving up some more and buying a 1080P plasma to begin with and spare yourself all this headache!


If this is how you write in real life, no wonder why they made a mistake with your warranty. Spelling is horrendous. Your sure you told them how to spell your name right?

What does saving up and buying a 1080p Plasma have to do with anything? They're not perfect either. You could have the same problems, if not worse.


Sorry to hear your terrible, terrible story. Hopefully things get worked out, and you're happy.

i know my spelling is bad, but i know how to spell my own name.

idk. its just fustrating ya know! All i want is a great tv with the proper image! No distortions, no dead pixels, no overscan, deep blacks, no ghosting, proper color, etc.

i know such tvs are out there. Ive seen them! Why cant i get one? Why is it everything i get have some default in it?

am i cursed?

i tried my best with the service menu settings, still nothing of a major improvement. My best guess, once i get the address deal streghten out with circuit city (i hope to go up there tomarow and get it all sorted out properly) then ill just have to have the pros come to the house and calabrate it. I think the magnets inside the tv is throwing off the projector or somthing, cause i cant for the life of me manage to get the top right overscan and left ones fixed, so im guessing he has to make some ajustments by taking off the back of the set!

hopefully once done, everything will be streight and true, no distortions, no overscan, etc, and ill have the best tv on the market! (good, because i cant afford to buy a plasma)

Looks like i didn't miss much in my absense! Was having internets connection problems and had to have a guy from optimum come out. I haven't been in service mode in ages tho! Sounds like you got your problems all fixed tho bigpalal LOL Also not sure if you tried adding me on xbox live as i haven't been able to get on cause of the internet.

im I2I on xbl, send me an invite

i cant add u cause i dont know ur sn on xbl

is it me or is it impossible to get the side pillars totally black, they always look "hazy" no matter how much i turn down the brightness and contrast

the whole screen has some sort of "glow" to it in dark scenes

when watching bright outdoors stuff like baseball on yes hd and planet earth on discovery hd, the picture quality is incredible, even on shows like letterman and leno, beautiful picture quality

but in movies with dark scenes (and the pillars on 4x3 material), there seems to be this haze or glow, it's almost "blue-ish" but just a tad

it's hardly noticeable in the day time but at night with all the lights out, you really notice it

is it me or is it impossible to get the side pillars totally black, they always look "hazy" no matter how much i turn down the brightness and contrast

the whole screen has some sort of "glow" to it in dark scenes

when watching bright outdoors stuff like baseball on yes hd and planet earth on discovery hd, the picture quality is incredible, even on shows like letterman and leno, beautiful picture quality

but in movies with dark scenes (and the pillars on 4x3 material), there seems to be this haze or glow, it's almost "blue-ish" but just a tad

it's hardly noticeable in the day time but at night with all the lights out, you really notice it

What color temp do you have it on? It should be on Neutral.. that should help. If it already is, and you still have this "blue haze" then I have no idea what else to try.


My pillars are black by the way.

I finally caught some planet earth that you guys been talking about a few days back!! looked AMAZING! OTK tho i don't know what you mean? blue? maybe you're just seeing how much normal TV sucks now as does 480 dvds compared to HD TV? I never go to any normal channels now and just skim through the HD ones, unless it's a show i really like then i'll watch!
Plus your set top box could be the culprit like wisconsin said. Mine has options for , light, medium and dark.

Regarding bowing and or a curved image etc. how do you correct this using the service menu? I can't seem to find it in the Sony Service Menu thread. Thanks in advance.

hey claypigeon

i noticed somthing odd when trying to adjust my overscan. When i move th HPOS to the right, to adjust for that overscan, on the left, the image seems to wrap around itself behind itself, if u follow. Now, when ever i get the left portion completly free of overscan, the right has a curved back beind the image.. i thought, ok, adjust for size, and still, nothing

how do i fix this?

also, circuit city is giving me a living hell with the extended warentee. there whole system is all f'd up, and they dont even show me as owing this tv, so im guessing its going to be a while before i get a pro to calabrate it!

got any sujestions

I just purchased a floor model XBR970 from a local Sears for $509. It has a few hours on it, considering its early 2006 mfg. date, but Im overall very pleased with it. However the resolution controls between the set and my original Xbox have me totally flustered. I am primarily confused by the different output modes, and below have listed my inputs and their results. "Xbox" = Xbox output mode; "TV out"= XBR reported display mode; "PQ" = picture quality; "Bar"= presence of light colored 4:3 bar, explained below.


Xbox TVout Bar PQ

480p 480p no bad

720p 480i yes good

1080i 480i yes good

all 480p yes bad

The "bar" I refer to is a 1/8" vertical strip on the leftmost side of the 4:3 cropped picture that is brighter than the surrounding picture, similar to what another poster above described. I assume this is a scan problem rather than a mechanical defect of the tube, since it disappears in one mode. Unfortunately that is also the worst mode for picture quality. OK, here are my questions specifically...

1. Is there something in the service menu I can adjust to eliminate the lefthand 4:3 bright strip? It for some reason normalizes when I have the Xbox output set to 480p.

2. Why does interlaced/progressive input on the TV settings menu seem to have no effect on what the TV reports when I press "display" on the remote? or am I misunderstanding what the "display" function actually is telling me? I assumed it was the picture output after being processed by the TV's video cpu.

3. Why does the TV "display" 480i when I have 720p or 1080i selected as Xbox outputs, again regardless of p/i selection on the TV settings menu? And why, when I have all 3 outputs selected on the Xbox output, does the TV decide on 480p? I realize most original Xbox games were only designed for 480 resolution, but the TV outputs still mystify me.

Ok, that is some very specific stuff and I understand that question #3 may be better suited for an Xbox forum. But any accurate information is helpful to me, as I'm pretty much the typical HDTV noob right now.

I just purchased a floor model XBR970 from a local Sears for $509. ...... However the resolution controls between the set and my original Xbox have me totally flustered......How is your XBOX connected to your XBR970, composite, s-video, component, hdmi?

Regarding bowing and or a curved image etc. how do you correct this using the service menu? I can't seem to find it in the Sony Service Menu thread. Thanks in advance.

I am getting the sony tech to come out and fix it. If there is a way to fix it then I will take some pics and then post here too.

Well, I finally received my replacement XBR970 today and it's a major difference. First and foremost...NO GREEN BLOB! I knew my speakers were okay! Next, all sidebars are equal in size. Third, the color is very accurate and I find I don't have to set the picture, color and brightness as high as I did the prior one. I even see why most of you now take the color axis of default and on monitor...although, I think I'll still keep in on default and turn down the color a bit.

The difference is major. Boy, that Sears really tried to screw me over. Selling me a display model, implying it was the only one they had, not even providing a manual. But now everything is as it should be.

It's a load off my mind...I was starting to look at flat-panels as an alternative.

How is your XBOX connected to your XBR970, composite, s-video, component, hdmi?


Yep, left out the important part...component cables.

if the xbox is connected via componet cables, it should be displaying 1080i! But, acroding to u its not. Maby you dident save ur settings? Ive done that a few time, change a setting but i dident save it, so of course it would go back to the old one.

Odd

and i thought i was the only one having trouble with this tv

Hello everyone!

Ive been lurking this forum for over a year for projector information. it helped me to decide on what projector to buy ( Infocus SP 4805 awesome projector especially how well it scales to 1080).

Recently I bought my dads KD-34XBR970 from him for half the price he paid in July of 2006 (he bought the TV and stand for $1200 because he knew the dude that owned Ransoms A/V Local shop).

We have had it for almost a year. before this one we had a 14 year old Sony 27" Trinitron TV Vertically flat picture, was a unique one from sony back then at $900 MSRP. It finally died on us and HD is the new thing so we got this one.

For the past almost year we have been absolutely stunned at the PQ of it. HD OTA is all we have, but it blows away the 10 Analog (mainly 6 viewable analog) to almost 25 HD signals we can pick up.

Ive been reading this thread and at the beginning saw much bashing of the TV due to the main fact it has no SFP. Honestly 95% of people out there wouldnt be able to tell a difference. Me I would though seeing as i saw the XBR960N Side by side with the 970, the price was too high however so we decided to get this one.

Well anyway, after watching it for a year and testing out all the gadgets that are new in this household, Its excellent.... to a point.

I use the HDMI feature for my computer and notice a somewhat noticeable overscan, and geometry issue, seeing as the menu has no functions for fixing this I came here in search of finding out how to fix it.

At first I thought it was just because the glass itself was shaped that way, however after reading this thread ive learned several people had the same issue, and my question goes out to the ones who had techs come out to have it fixed,

Does the geometry and convergence look almost computer CRT (at least a decent PC CRT) good? For starters I cant see the windows task bar on the lower right and left corner at all, in the middle it curves up its like its in the shape of a sad face, also the whole overscan thing too.

I just wanted to see if its worth making use of my 1 year left on the TV's warranty, it would be nice to have a fairly even shaped picture instead of a sad face :D

Otherwise awesome TV, just too bad that they no longer make CRT's, Damn the weight they are worth the quality of the picture any day!

I just purchased a floor model XBR970 from a local Sears for $509. It has a few hours on it, considering its early 2006 mfg. date, but Im overall very pleased with it. However the resolution controls between the set and my original Xbox have me totally flustered. I am primarily confused by the different output modes, and below have listed my inputs and their results. "Xbox" = Xbox output mode; "TV out"= XBR reported display mode; "PQ" = picture quality; "Bar"= presence of light colored 4:3 bar, explained below.


Xbox TVout Bar PQ

480p 480p no bad

720p 480i yes good

1080i 480i yes good

all 480p yes bad

The "bar" I refer to is a 1/8" vertical strip on the leftmost side of the 4:3 cropped picture that is brighter than the surrounding picture, similar to what another poster above described. I assume this is a scan problem rather than a mechanical defect of the tube, since it disappears in one mode. Unfortunately that is also the worst mode for picture quality. OK, here are my questions specifically...

1. Is there something in the service menu I can adjust to eliminate the lefthand 4:3 bright strip? It for some reason normalizes when I have the Xbox output set to 480p.

2. Why does interlaced/progressive input on the TV settings menu seem to have no effect on what the TV reports when I press "display" on the remote? or am I misunderstanding what the "display" function actually is telling me? I assumed it was the picture output after being processed by the TV's video cpu.

3. Why does the TV "display" 480i when I have 720p or 1080i selected as Xbox outputs, again regardless of p/i selection on the TV settings menu? And why, when I have all 3 outputs selected on the Xbox output, does the TV decide on 480p? I realize most original Xbox games were only designed for 480 resolution, but the TV outputs still mystify me.

Ok, that is some very specific stuff and I understand that question #3 may be better suited for an Xbox forum. But any accurate information is helpful to me, as I'm pretty much the typical HDTV noob right now.
Hey, I'm new here, but I had that exact problem you're experiencing. On the bottom of the connector that actually plugs into your xbox 360, there's a switch that goes from SD to HD. Flip the switch. Turn on your xbox, and VOILA! Your TV will now receive 1080i instead of 480i. Prepare yourself to be AMAZED at how much better games will look.
-Austin

Hey, I'm new here, but I had that exact problem you're experiencing. On the bottom of the connector that actually plugs into your xbox 360, there's a switch that goes from SD to HD. Flip the switch. Turn on your xbox, and VOILA! Your TV will now receive 1080i instead of 480i. Prepare yourself to be AMAZED at how much better games will look.
-Austin

Original Xbox. Not 360. I realize the original Xbox games wont actually output in 1080i; that is not the question. I am reposting below...

I just purchased a floor model XBR970 from a local Sears for $509. It has a few hours on it, considering its early 2006 mfg. date, but Im overall very pleased with it. However the resolution controls between the set and my original Xbox (connected through component cables) have me totally flustered. I am primarily confused by the different output modes, and below have listed my inputs and their results. "Xbox" = Xbox output mode; "TV out"= XBR reported display mode; "PQ" = picture quality; "Bar"= presence of light colored 4:3 bar, explained below.


Xbox TVout Bar PQ

480p 480p no bad

720p 480i yes good

1080i 480i yes good

all 480p yes bad

The "bar" I refer to is a 1/8" vertical strip on the leftmost side of the 4:3 cropped picture that is brighter than the surrounding picture, similar to what another poster above described. I assume this is a scan problem rather than a mechanical defect of the tube, since it disappears in one mode. Unfortunately that is also the worst mode for picture quality. OK, here are my questions specifically...

1. Is there something in the service menu I can adjust to eliminate the lefthand 4:3 bright strip? It for some reason normalizes when I have the Xbox output set to 480p.

2. Why does interlaced/progressive input on the TV settings menu seem to have no effect on what the TV reports when I press "display" on the remote? or am I misunderstanding what the "display" function actually is telling me? I assumed it was the picture output after being processed by the TV's video cpu.

3. Why does the TV "display" 480i when I have 720p or 1080i selected as Xbox outputs, again regardless of p/i selection on the TV settings menu? And why, when I have all 3 outputs selected on the Xbox output, does the TV decide on 480p? I realize most original Xbox games were only designed for 480 resolution, but the TV outputs still mystify me.

Ok, that is some very specific stuff and I understand that question #3 may be better suited for an Xbox forum. But any accurate information is helpful to me, as I'm pretty much the typical HDTV noob right now.

Original Xbox. Not 360. I realize the original Xbox games wont actually output in 1080i; that is not the question. I am reposting below...I'm confused and will admit up front that I don't know the output capabilities of the original XBOX. Are you actually expecting the XBOX to output HD resolutions even though you believe that it won't? It appears that the XBOX is only capable of 480i and 480p based upon your posts.

...... I am primarily confused by the different output modes, and below have listed my inputs and their results. "Xbox" = Xbox output mode; "TV out"= XBR reported display mode; "PQ" = picture quality; "Bar"= presence of light colored 4:3 bar, explained below.


Xbox TVout Bar PQ

480p 480p no bad

720p 480i yes good

1080i 480i yes good

all 480p yes bad

The "bar" I refer to is a 1/8" vertical strip on the leftmost side of the 4:3 cropped picture that is brighter than the surrounding picture, similar to what another poster above described. I assume this is a scan problem rather than a mechanical defect of the tube, since it disappears in one mode. Unfortunately that is also the worst mode for picture quality. OK, here are my questions specifically...

1. Is there something in the service menu I can adjust to eliminate the lefthand 4:3 bright strip? It for some reason normalizes when I have the Xbox output set to 480p.......What Screen Mode are you viewing in? Does the XBOX have a setting for the type of TV, 4:3 or 16:9. If yes, then this implies that it is anamorphic video capable. When a functional anamorphic SD (480i/480p) signal is input to the set, FULL should be the appropriate screen mode. When non-anamorphic SD (480i/480p) is input the a screen mode must be chosen, Normal (with black pillars), Zoom (linear zoom with loss of top and bottom) and WideZoom (non-linear zoom with less loss of top and bottom).

2. Why does interlaced/progressive input on the TV settings menu seem to have no effect on what the TV reports when I press "display" on the remote? or am I misunderstanding what the "display" function actually is telling me? I assumed it was the picture output after being processed by the TV's video cpu....I'm not quite clear on your question or the "display" function. My HS510 does not include the resolution information when display is selected. Are you referring to the DRC selections of interlaced/progressive/cinemotion? DRC selection is ONLY available when 480i is the input resolution.

3. Why does the TV "display" 480i when I have 720p or 1080i selected as Xbox outputs, again regardless of p/i selection on the TV settings menu? And why, when I have all 3 outputs selected on the Xbox output, does the TV decide on 480p? I realize most original Xbox games were only designed for 480 resolution, but the TV outputs still mystify me.Selecting 720p or 1080i on the XBOX, by your own admission, should have no effect on what is actually being output by the XBOX or input into the set. I assume the XBOX defaults to 480i and that is what's being sent to the set. I don't quite understand why the XBOX has 720p/1080i output selections if it is not capable of outputting at that resolution.

It appears that 480i is the best XBOX output based upon your information.

I'm confused and will admit up front that I don't know the output capabilities of the original XBOX. Are you actually expecting the XBOX to output HD resolutions even though you believe that it won't? It appears that the XBOX is only capable of 480i and 480p based upon your posts....

I'm not quite clear on your question or the "display" function. My HS510 does not include the resolution information when display is selected. Are you referring to the DRC selections of interlaced/progressive/cinemotion? DRC selection is ONLY available when 480i is the input resolution.

Yes, the "Display" button on my 970 remote brings up resolution and screen size. My primary question (it's not clear in the manual) is exactly what does that display setting refer to? I assume it's the output resolution after the video processor in the TV has done it's job, yet the Progressive/Interlaced/Cinemotion inputs I select in DRC settings have no bearing. Thanks for the tip on DRC only being available on the 480i input signal, that makes sense now that I think about it and largely explains why selecting all 3 Xbox output resolutions reverts the TV back to 480p.

What Screen Mode are you viewing in? Does the XBOX have a setting for the type of TV, 4:3 or 16:9. If yes, then this implies that it is anamorphic video capable. When a functional anamorphic SD (480i/480p) signal is input to the set, FULL should be the appropriate screen mode. When non-anamorphic SD (480i/480p) is input the a screen mode must be chosen, Normal (with black pillars), Zoom (linear zoom with loss of top and bottom) and WideZoom (non-linear zoom with less loss of top and bottom).

Selecting 720p or 1080i on the XBOX, by your own admission, should have no effect on what is actually being output by the XBOX or input into the set. I assume the XBOX defaults to 480i and that is what's being sent to the set. I don't quite understand why the XBOX has 720p/1080i output selections if it is not capable of outputting at that resolution.

It appears that 480i is the best XBOX output based upon your information.

Yes, I've been careful to keep the Xbox screen size output at 4:3 and the TV output at Full. I assume that's how they "match up" best. The Xbox hardware can output up to 1080i, but the vast majority of the software (game disks) were limited to 480i. There were a select few that did 720p, but I forget what they were. I believe the 1080i output capability was installed more for DVD and HD TV recording on the Xbox, but I bet few people ever used it that way.

Thanks for the tip, that does clear up my misunderstanding of the resolution processing. I'm still curious if anyone has a solution for the white bar problem in 480i 4:3 mode, and why it isnt present in 480p.

Most xbox games are 480p. Some can do 720p or even 1080i. You have to check each game separately.

Here is useful website. I do not know how correct this information is though.

http://www.hdtvpub.com/productdb/games/index.cfm

The TV displays only 480p or 1080i naively. It can also up convert 480i signal to 960i when you select INTERLACED option in DRC menu. The TV displays the information about the resolution that is being feed into the TV when you press DISPLAY button.

I hope it helps.

Hey guys another ? here,

I bought this TV mainly for 2 reasons, A Picture quality, B the HDMI and the rest of the gizmos,

With the HDMI I use mainly at the moment my computer (only way I can utilize HD without watching OTA) Seeing as a computer video card does not obviously output sound, I am curious,

Ive read HDMI sends both audio and video signals, the closest thing I have that does that is my Sony 5 disc HDMI DVD Changer, it upconverts to 1080i (supposedly) However I see zero increase in the quality of the picture as far as detail is concerned. I know its not true HD, but you get the point (I hope).

The whole audio thing though, i dont quite remember if the audio also worked with just HDMI, I think I had to use the analog audio cables to get sound, is this normal??

Also and responses to my post about 5 xbox messages ago?

Thanks!

Hey guys another ? here,

I bought this TV mainly for 2 reasons, A Picture quality, B the HDMI and the rest of the gizmos,

With the HDMI I use mainly at the moment my computer (only way I can utilize HD without watching OTA) Seeing as a computer video card does not obviously output sound, I am curious,

Ive read HDMI sends both audio and video signals, the closest thing I have that does that is my Sony 5 disc HDMI DVD Changer, it upconverts to 1080i (supposedly) However I see zero increase in the quality of the picture as far as detail is concerned. I know its not true HD, but you get the point (I hope).

The whole audio thing though, i dont quite remember if the audio also worked with just HDMI, I think I had to use the analog audio cables to get sound, is this normal??

Also and responses to my post about 5 xbox messages ago?

Thanks!

With HDMI to HDMI connection, you do not need a separate audio cable.

If you use HDMI to DVI connection, you will need a separate audio cable.

I am entertaining an idea to use my xbr960 as computer monitor to watch some anime myself. From that I gathered, to eliminate overscan, you will need to use PowerStrip software to customize the resolution that computer outputs to the TV.

Thanks for the reply,

Id recommend using your XBR960 as a monitor, especially with the SFP Tube, I myself am pleased with how the quality is aside from the overscan and the geometry issues.

However my overscan isnt just with the HDMI, I experience the same level of geometry issue and overscan on all inputs and OTA signal.

Still a good idea to get it fixed by a tech? Since it wont cost anything it cant hurt, can it??

I find it hard to beleive that sony, of all companies actually would accept the amount of overscan and geometry issue. Sony is no bologna, not quite this case however. Our old XBR 27" had no overscan and almost perfect geometry, even after 15 years of heavy 18 hour a day use. It just wore out.

Still a Top of the line TV IMO, If i was to get an LCD I would not use it for watching movies or TV, its a good PC Monitor at best.

At least with a CRT you can have almost all the features and quality (minus the weight, but i find the weight impressive, it means the TV is a real peice of meat, not a round steak!)

If the overscan was fixed i would settle for that really, and maybe just a slight adjustment of the geometry would be good too.

Thanks for the reply,

Id recommend using your XBR960 as a monitor, especially with the SFP Tube, I myself am pleased with how the quality is aside from the overscan and the geometry issues.

However my overscan isnt just with the HDMI, I experience the same level of geometry issue and overscan on all inputs and OTA signal.

Still a good idea to get it fixed by a tech? Since it wont cost anything it cant hurt, can it??

I find it hard to beleive that sony, of all companies actually would accept the amount of overscan and geometry issue. Sony is no bologna, not quite this case however. Our old XBR 27" had no overscan and almost perfect geometry, even after 15 years of heavy 18 hour a day use. It just wore out.

Still a Top of the line TV IMO, If i was to get an LCD I would not use it for watching movies or TV, its a good PC Monitor at best.

At least with a CRT you can have almost all the features and quality (minus the weight, but i find the weight impressive, it means the TV is a real peice of meat, not a round steak!)

If the overscan was fixed i would settle for that really, and maybe just a slight adjustment of the geometry would be good too.

Most CTRs have 5-10% overscan when they come from factory. I am surprised to hear that your old TV did not have any. May be, it is due to fact that it was SD. Overscan and geometry are drawbacks of CTR technology unfortunately. My xbr970 and xbr960 both have about 5% overscan and slight geometry problems.

You can do some service menu tweaks for overscan and geometry, but I am not an expert on service menu. Keep in mind that adjusting overscan and geometry in service menu might introduce other potential problems with the PQ. Also, I do not think that you can completely eliminate overscan and geometry even with service menu, but again I am not an expert on service menu.

I hope it helps

well, good news. my war with the store got settled, all the paperwork is proper, and tomarow i just got to call the service center and arrange for a guy to come down sometime next week to fix the overscan and geometry issues, which is covered in my warentee.

Yes, geometry and Overscan are known drawbacks to tubes, but with a proper calabration they can be fixed. Sometimes the tech (who is the only person i recomend do it) will have to open up the tv for access to make slight adjustments to the unit, but hopefully that will fix it. Me, any overscan or geomery issues, or any distortions of the image, be it backlight leakage, clouding, ghosting, dead pixels, etc, will drive me up a wall! (i do say, hd tv is wonderful, but with all the technology problems that comes with it, makes me wish back to the good old days, were the only diffrence between one tv and another was size, and no matter what tv you had, you could hook up ur game or vcr into it and wouldent be confronted with all the NEW tv problems!)

Oh well, the price of progress i guess

I contacted Sony support with no help yet, so I'm asking here.

I'm trying to enable the vertical center and vertical size functions. The manual states that either zoom or wide-zoom mode has to be on to access these. However, with these modes on, vertical center and vertical size functions are still disabled.

What am I doing wrong?

Thanks in advance.

I contacted Sony support with no help yet, so I'm asking here.

I'm trying to enable the vertical center and vertical size functions. The manual states that either zoom or wide-zoom mode has to be on to access these. However, with these modes on, vertical center and vertical size functions are still disabled.

What am I doing wrong?

Thanks in advance.What manual are you referring to? Are these vertical functions in the service menu?

well, good news. my war with the store got settled, all the paperwork is proper, and tomarow i just got to call the service center and arrange for a guy to come down sometime next week to fix the overscan and geometry issues, which is covered in my warentee.

Yes, geometry and Overscan are known drawbacks to tubes, but with a proper calabration they can be fixed. Sometimes the tech (who is the only person i recomend do it) will have to open up the tv for access to make slight adjustments to the unit, but hopefully that will fix it. Me, any overscan or geomery issues, or any distortions of the image, be it backlight leakage, clouding, ghosting, dead pixels, etc, will drive me up a wall! (i do say, hd tv is wonderful, but with all the technology problems that comes with it, makes me wish back to the good old days, were the only diffrence between one tv and another was size, and no matter what tv you had, you could hook up ur game or vcr into it and wouldent be confronted with all the NEW tv problems!)

Oh well, the price of progress i guess

Let me know how it goes, this friday im calling the tech to come out and fix mine, theres no way in hell im taking a 200 pound tv across the city. In house shouldnt be a problem with this place though!

biggest issue with mine is the overscan, geometry is fairly acceptable, like most have said, just a drawback of the CRT :D

What manual are you referring to? Are these vertical functions in the service menu?

No, these are instructions from the user instruction manual.

No, these are instructions from the user instruction manual.Are you attempting this while watching a 480i source? If not, you might try that, because WideZoom is not available for 1080i/720p sources.

Are you attempting this while watching a 480i source? If not, you might try that, because WideZoom is not available for 1080i/720p sources.

Right, I do understand that, but these functions are disabled in zoom mode also. I've tried using different sources and inputs with no change. So I take it that, these vertical functions are readily available to you. Thanks.

one would think that in a store that sells high end electronics, there coporate offices would have a clue as to how to actuley use and imput and correct data into said electronics. But, apparently not.

So, after hours on the phone, trying to correct this mess, just to get a service tech to come and adjust the darn thing, the store now sees that i own the tv, which, is a steep in the right direction, but i still have the warentee on the old tv. Now, dispite me having the sales bill with the wrong address but right data on it, it shows clearly i have the warentee on the sony, but coporate keeps saying, no its on the samsung. Well, i say, ok, give me the samsung, and there like, we dont have it no more, sry, and im like, well, fix the problem or give me a complete non instore refund and send ya boys down to pick up the dam thing.

Its amazing, it really is, how fustrating this is, over shere stupidity and lack of any logic at all. Logic would tell you, ok, theres a probelm with the tv, theres a problem with the paperwork, the problem steems from circuit city itself, fix it, fix the tv, and problem solved.
But, idk, i must be half vulcan or somthing, apparently logic is lacking at the coprate offices. Brian, the store manager down at circuit city, has been more then helpful, and very polite about the whole thing, but its just....the offices are incompentent or slow or somthing.

All i want is the geometry and overscan fixed, a skilled tech should be able to hammer that out within an hour. Worse case senero, he opens the tv up, makes slight adjustments, and blam, done. But, no, thats asking to much apparently, so is asking for a complete refund, so...idk anymore. its just..headbanging on a wall!


sry for the rant guys, i just want u who bought it at circuit to be ware, cause im sure im not the only one they goofed up on!

sry for the rant guys, i just want u who bought it at circuit to be ware, cause im sure im not the only one they goofed up on!

Well Im most certainly glad that I did NOT buy mine from an electronics giant then, good ole local shops!, Plus knowing the guy that owns the store helps out too.

I hope you get your situation figured out, i understand what you mean, just want a simple problem fixed and then they have to make it a pain in the ass all the way, but what do you expect :S

well, for one, i expect a simple think like taking my name and address to be completed properly, but apparently 219 bucks for a warentee isnt enough to get my name and address correct

well, for one, i expect a simple think like taking my name and address to be completed properly, but apparently 219 bucks for a warentee isnt enough to get my name and address correct

$219? Holy smokes.. where'd you buy this from?

circuit city for 5 years.

could have gotten the xbox hd dvd drive for that price

circuit city for 5 years.

could have gotten the xbox hd dvd drive for that price


So you really paid $219 for 3 years, because you get 2 with the TV.


HOPEFULLY my TV lasts me 3 years or more, than maybe I can upgrade, since my situation will be totally different.

:| $219?! Wow... the things I could not buy with that, lol well aside from a HD DVD player, which would be nice! Im shocked you'd pay that much for the extended warranty, I have the 2 year from the place we got it at (ransoms Audio/Video) After its up its all borrowed time from there;)

Still... $219 is quite steep!

no doubt. Its just, aggervating when i gota go through all this BS just to get a guy to come out here a fix the dam thing ya know

no doubt. Its just, aggervating when i gota go through all this BS just to get a guy to come out here a fix the dam thing ya know


I understand exactly what you mean, but isnt that the way it goes with retail? :P

Also, should I have my dad call the place to get the tv warranted for its calibration? Because I know once the original owner sells something, (in some cases) if under warranty still, the new owner doesnt always get the warranty, which makes sense sort of.

Why would a company want to warrant a TV that was sold from the original owner for the new owner when the original owner could be responsible for the fault of the TV.

Im going to have him call in an hour. 4:28PM Right now my time

Hello everyone,

I need serious help to determine whether I should buy an HD CRT made by Sony.

Before starting with the issues, I need to clarify what TV I'm actually talking about. The model number, copied from the back of the chassis, is: KV-36DRC430 (http://www.sony-latin.com/corporate?page=productosDetalles&model=KV-36DRC430&top=154#). This code was assigned for distribution/sale in Latin America as the specifications are only available in Spanish. From what I have gathered, forum member Justsc affirms that the corresponding U.S. model is KV-34HS420. I would like to know if this is true, since there is a 2 inch difference and specially because the people who are able to help will most likely comment on the KV-34HS420.

The next aspect I'm not entirely sure of is the relationship between KV-24HS420 and KD-34XBR970. It seems the models are very much alike in terms of picture and sound quality, except that the 970 introduces a few more features, mainly a digital tuner. I think this is important to know, as solutions to issues with the XBR970 could also apply to the HS420.

Assuming DRC430 and HS420 are the same, here are my questions:

Does this model suffer from geometry problems and overscan? I know they're present in the XBR970 and it worries me since I live in Mexico and ISF calibration is simply not possible. In case the issue is present, is there a way to fix or at least minimize it manually?

The HS420 lacks the Super Fine Pitch Tube. However, some users agree that the difference in quality perceivable by the eye (not numbers, as in resolution) is minimal, making it a very solid and worthwhile display. Is this statement accurate or biased? Knowing how the SFP is venerated by many I'm confused. This is just to know how good the HSF420's quality actually is. SFP TVs are not available in my country.

The main uses I would be giving the TV are playing videogames and watching DVDs and videos coming from the PC though a DVI - HDMI connection. I do not have a standalone DVD player.

I want to be sure if this is a quality CRT TV. I can't take the risk of importing one from the U.S. because it would be a pain in the neck if I had to deal with warranty issues later. I would be buying it at my local Sears with a 2-year extended warranty option.

Thanks a lot !! :)

Well, I'd say it's near impossible to get a 30+ inch CRT without some sort of geometric issue. But I can speak for myself when I say the XBR970 I have is excellent! This is, of course, after the first one I bought ended up being a lemon. But the new one is about as geometrically solid as I've seen from a CRT (without a professional tinkering with it, I guess). I'm not even sure about overscan, all I know is the HD looks fantastic.

Well, I'd say it's near impossible to get a 30+ inch CRT without some sort of geometric issue. But I can speak for myself when I say the XBR970 I have is excellent! This is, of course, after the first one I bought ended up being a lemon. But the new one is about as geometrically solid as I've seen from a CRT (without a professional tinkering with it, I guess). I'm not even sure about overscan, all I know is the HD looks fantastic.


Did you tweak the user and/or service menu to achieve the picture quality you describe? Geometry or other problems like blurry edges are not always easy to judge using a movie. I think I can borrow a notebook computer and take it to the store to hook it up to the TV set.

When you do this on yours, is the picture accurate and clean? (straight horizontal taskbar at the bottom, menu bar at the top.) It would help me a lot to know in advance what to expect. Please share with me any other useful tips you know of to judge picture quality.

Thanks

Hey there Sol!

I have the 34XBR970... While I cant say how it compairs with the 34HS420 and 36DRC, I can say its the best damn quality ive ever seen on a CRT TV ever.

Yes yes its true, I have Overscan and Geometry issues with it, thats why I am getting a tech out. BUT!! If all your going to do with it is watch TV, you will most likely never notice it. Heck you might get lucky and get a good one with little overscan and almost no geometry issues!

Still the XBR970 is a great TV, you wont get that from most any other CRT TV ;)

Did you tweak the user and/or service menu to achieve the picture quality you describe? Geometry or other problems like blurry edges are not always easy to judge using a movie. I think I can borrow a notebook computer and take it to the store to hook it up to the TV set.

When you do this on yours, is the picture accurate and clean? (straight horizontal taskbar at the bottom, menu bar at the top.) It would help me a lot to know in advance what to expect. Please share with me any other useful tips you know of to judge picture quality.

Thanks
Well, I'm no expert so I don't even touch the service menu. The geomotry was pretty good on my new Sony right out of the box. That's not to say there isn't a slight bowing somewhere but it's not very noticeble (especially compared to an old Sony Wega I had about 4 years ago, which bowed quite noticeably in 2 places. The picture is very clean. I have spent several days tweaking the picture, color, brightness...hell, even the color axis (it's funny, I've determined axis should be on monitor for HD TV broadcast, but default for DVD viewing). I'm sure a tech could come right in and make some changes, but I'm satisfied.

Hello again folks, have a question. I seem to have inadvertently changed the service mode setting DHPH without writing down what the default was. I'm pretty sure its somewhere between 100 and 110, but I dunno where. Can somebody help me out?? thanks.

update - after looking at how all my inputs look in comparison to before, I settling on 96 as a setting. am still interested if this is correct, however. thanks.

Settings are different for each TV. Other people's TVs may not be the same as yours. Mine is 101. I haven't changed it.

thanks samijubal ... I certainly wouldn't mind multiple responses to see how much the setting varies from TV to the next ...

Following the previous advice, and after staring at it for a few days, I decided all the 4:3 windows were off-center to the left, so I adjusted mine to 101 as well. Wish I knew if it was correct.

Upon reflection for others education, I believe I saved this setting because I thought all the ones that started with DH were input specific settings. Now while DHHS, DHHP DHVS and DHVP appear to be that, DHPH is not.

I think my 970 just died on me.

I was watching a DVD, the set turned itself off and the little red light on the front is blinking 6 times over and over.

The set is about 3 months old. This ever happen to anyone?

I think my 970 just died on me.

I was watching a DVD, the set turned itself off and the little red light on the front is blinking 6 times over and over.

The set is about 3 months old. This ever happen to anyone?This is a overvoltage problem and you need to call for service.

:| Poor guy, almost 1 year and mine is still going strong :)

Just got this tv and I need a little help setting it up. And I'm not even talking about the picture yet.

Diagram D in the quick setup guide is the closest to what I have which is:
Motorola HD cable box (no HDMI on it);
Oppo DV-970HD DVD player (HDMI);
Denon AVR-2105 A/V receiver.

The diagram suggests I split the cable with one lead going into the HD cable box and the other going straight into the TV. The local Radio Shack guy said that wasn't necessary. So I have the cable going into the HD box then from there into the TV. I also have Component cables from the HD box to the TV. Obviously, only the coax line OR the Component cables are supplying the signal to the tv.

My wife doesn't think this is right. She has run the Auto Program a couple of times and it didn't find the channels the way she expected it to. She thinks splitting the signal is necessary.
Any help greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Barry

Okay, I assume that it didn't find channels in Auto Program since I'm using a cable box rather than going straight into the tv. This would mean my wife is wrong...wouldn't it?

Barry

Uhhh...OK let me make sure I understand. You have 1.Cable TV coax input splits 2. Coax 1 goes to digital cable box 3. Coax 2 goes to TV coax input 4.digital cable box goes to TV via component cables

Assuming thats correct, what exactly failed in the auto scan? You say she didnt find channels "the way she expected it to". Also in which mode did you run the scan, Video input (cable box) or coax input? If you scanned in coax mode (I think it displays as "TV") did you have cable selected as "on" in channel options?

Just got this tv and I need a little help setting it up. And I'm not even talking about the picture yet.

Diagram D in the quick setup guide is the closest to what I have which is:
Motorola HD cable box (no HDMI on it);
Oppo DV-970HD DVD player (HDMI);
Denon AVR-2105 A/V receiver.

The diagram suggests I split the cable with one lead going into the HD cable box and the other going straight into the TV. The local Radio Shack guy said that wasn't necessary. So I have the cable going into the HD box then from there into the TV. I also have Component cables from the HD box to the TV. Obviously, only the coax line OR the Component cables are supplying the signal to the tv.

My wife doesn't think this is right. She has run the Auto Program a couple of times and it didn't find the channels the way she expected it to. She thinks splitting the signal is necessary.
Any help greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
BarryWhat is the autoscan picking up? Please explain what your wife thinks the autoscan is not picking up?

QAM digital channels will show up with strange channel designations, such as 116-1. You should not expect any QAM encrypted (subscription required) digital channels to be found with autoscan. Subscription digital channels are only available via your cable stb or a cablecard.

Its possible that running the coax thru the moto HD stb and then to the rf input on the set may be filtering some channels. A splitter would alleviate this possiblity.

Are you receiving all of your expected channels via the Moto HD stb?

I am receiving all the channels I subscribe to. However, the tv remote doesn't seem to be working as it should navigating the cable channels even the I programmed the proper code for the moto box into it. It turns the box on and off fine.
I expect you're right about the splitter alleviating the problem. I'll try that today.
I guess my concern was that using a splitter might cause a drop in signal strength to the stb.

Does anyone know if the horizontal expand can be adjusted so it doesn't cut a few inches off the sides of the picture?

Is this TV worth $1000? I'm buying a direct-view set if my CRT projector ever sells and I can get it for $1000 on Amazon (that includes shipping) but I can pick up a 37" Olevia 537H for $800 at Newegg. I know the XBR970 is going to have better PQ but the Olevia is bigger (I figure 4-5" if you take into account the fact that every inch of a CRT isn't viewable), it's $200 less, it's much thinner and lighter (good for college), and can actually fully resolve every line of resolution in a 720p signal (something I'm concerned about on the XBR with it's oddball 853x1080 resolution). So is the PQ going to be so much better on the XBR970 that it would be worth sacrificing all the positives of the Olevia for it? Or should I go for the Olevia (which I understand looks quite good as far as budget LCDs go)?

If you can still find a Sony in a Circuit City, they were $700 last I knew. Best Buy had them for $800 last I knew. I'd check out the Olevia first. To me they blow. Blacks are dark grey at best. The entire picture looks washed out to me. It doesn't compare to the Sony in any way.

Is this TV worth $1000? I'm buying a direct-view set if my CRT projector ever sells and I can get it for $1000 on Amazon (that includes shipping) but I can pick up a 37" Olevia 537H for $800 at Newegg. I know the XBR970 is going to have better PQ but the Olevia is bigger (I figure 4-5" if you take into account the fact that every inch of a CRT isn't viewable), it's $200 less, it's much thinner and lighter (good for college), and can actually fully resolve every line of resolution in a 720p signal (something I'm concerned about on the XBR with it's oddball 853x1080 resolution). So is the PQ going to be so much better on the XBR970 that it would be worth sacrificing all the positives of the Olevia for it? Or should I go for the Olevia (which I understand looks quite good as far as budget LCDs go)?


Just for kicks, I compared a top of the line Sharp 1080p LCD to this CRT, and the LCD doesn't have anything on this set. Of course you will very likely get a biased opinion towards one technology, but I was ready to spend twice the price of the CRT for the LCD.

Despite the size, and weight, it's worth EVERY single penny. And by penny's I mean $549 delivered from CC.. the price I paid for this gorgeous TV.

I think you have the viewing area/angle wrong. LCD's have a limited viewing angle, CRT's do not. As far as I know.. In my experience, as well as others here, generally 1080i looks better than 720p, although the only difference I can tell between the two is on a few cable channels. For instance, ESPN-HD looks better in 1080i on my TV, even though it's broadcasted in 720p.


Since purchasing this set, every DLP/LCD I see, just doesn't look "as good" as it does as the 970. I am very proud of my purchase and won't/wouldn't settle for any LCD/DLP out there.. The pro's of the CRT, specifically this set, outweigh any LCD/DLP out there. Hands down.

Even more specifically PQ, and "TRUE" blacks.. I've seen quite a few LCD's that present washed out "blacks" that are actually dark grey. Although the "black" technology in DLP/LCD is getting better, it will likely never touch that capable of what the CRT can produce.

I'm entirely convinced, after ISF calibration, I will have one of the better TV's out there. I wouldn't even consider entry-level plasma's.



Just my 2 cents..




-Nick

Just for kicks, I compared a top of the line Sharp 1080p LCD to this CRT, and the LCD doesn't have anything on this set. Of course you will very likely get a biased opinion towards one technology, but I was ready to spend twice the price of the CRT for the LCD.

Despite the size, and weight, it's worth EVERY single penny. And by penny's I mean $549 delivered from CC.. the price I paid for this gorgeous TV.

I think you have the viewing area/angle wrong. LCD's have a limited viewing angle, CRT's do not. As far as I know.. In my experience, as well as others here, generally 1080i looks better than 720p, although the only difference I can tell between the two is on a few cable channels. For instance, ESPN-HD looks better in 1080i on my TV, even though it's broadcasted in 720p.


Since purchasing this set, every DLP/LCD I see, just doesn't look "as good" as it does as the 970. I am very proud of my purchase and won't/wouldn't settle for any LCD/DLP out there.. The pro's of the CRT, specifically this set, outweigh any LCD/DLP out there. Hands down.

Even more specifically PQ, and "TRUE" blacks.. I've seen quite a few LCD's that present washed out "blacks" that are actually dark grey. Although the "black" technology in DLP/LCD is getting better, it will likely never touch that capable of what the CRT can produce.

I'm entirely convinced, after ISF calibration, I will have one of the better TV's out there. I wouldn't even consider entry-level plasma's.



Just my 2 cents..




-Nick

Well it sounds like you're more of a videophile than I am but nonetheless I do appreciate a great looking set and you present a convincing argument. I think you got my concern about size wrong, I wasn't talking about the viewing angle I was referring to the fact that though the XBR may be 34" probably only 32" is viewable because CRT screen size is measured across the face of the tube, part of which extends inside the TV casing. Also I know 1080i is more detailed than 720p but the 970 has a resolution of 853x1080 so I don't see how it can come close to resolving every vertical line in 720p (1280x720) or 1080i/p (1920x1080) and because of this I've heard people say it's picture seems more like it's better than ED but just doesn't look HD. If I could find one at the CC or BB nearest me I'd pick it up but I think they sold out a while ago. Well who knows maybe my CRT projector won't even sell and I'll have to find a way to work with it in the dorm room (which may be possible given the room is 11'7" by 15'7") but if not I think I'll look more into this set despite my concerns.

I think you got my concern about size wrong, I wasn't talking about the viewing angle I was referring to the fact that though the XBR may be 34" probably only 32" is viewable because CRT screen size is measured across the face of the tube, part of which extends inside the TV casing.

Screen size is 34 inches. Actual tube size is 36 inches.

Also I know 1080i is more detailed than 720p but the 970 has a resolution of 853x1080 so I don't see how it can come close to resolving every vertical line in 720p (1280x720) or 1080i/p (1920x1080) and because of this I've heard people say it's picture seems more like it's better than ED but just doesn't look HD.

HD on this set definitely looks better than ED. Image is slightly softer than LCD and might have some small geometry problems, but pretty much about everything else color, contrast, blacks etc will be better than LCD. XBR970 gives, in my opinion, much better and natural image overall.

You're comparing a top of the line CRT to a near bottom of the line LCD, no camparison. I too looked at the Sharp LCDs. I took some DVDs to the store and watched them on a Sharp LCD, it didn't look anything like the Sony CRT. The Sharp is a near top of the line LCD, far better than Olevia. Check CC or BB for the Sony, they are gone online, but last I knew some stores still had them. If they have any left it will be cheaper than Amazon. If there's anything wrong with the TV, it will cost a fortune to ship it back to Amazon. The first TV I got had some pretty severe geometry problems that couldn't be fixed in the service menus. I swapped it for another one.

I don't believe anything or any channel looks like ED on this TV.

TNT-HD is the only channel that "lacks" HD quality, but nonetheless is still watchable. TNT-HD is more like ED+, just not QUITE HD yet..


My room is 13x9x8, and I too wanted something smaller, more like DLP, but when comparing LCD/DLP to this set, it is a little difficult to admit this TV is better than those. You think this big 'ole thing, how can it produce good PQ? It produces some of the best PQ I have seen, and mid-range ($2,000+) plasma's seem to be where it's at if you wanted something slim + PQ.

All my friends "dogged" me for buying this "HUGE" thing.. but when they sat down, watched a movie or two, played some 360, and saw the NBA playoffs in HD, they reconsidered really quickly.

Does anyone know if the horizontal expand can be adjusted so it doesn't cut a few inches off the sides of the picture?


I'm planning to buy this TV set soon. Can you explain what exactly is this problem you have?

I am considering this set. To me the image seems soft. I do have the lo-down on these sets and can get them NIB for 599 (is this a good price?). They have plenty as the manager told me their company bought all of sony's stock on these sets. Good thing I live close to the store. The stores are REX. They have stores all through Ohio, Michigan, surrounding area and in Florida. If you are close you might want to check it out... I still dont know about getting this (heavy) and not as big as I want. I am looking for a 50 or bigger DLP, LCOS, etc. Is this TV that good. I cant tell by looking at them in the store.

....I still dont know about getting this (heavy) and not as big as I want. I am looking for a 50 or bigger DLP, LCOS, etc. Is this TV that good. I cant tell by looking at them in the store.My opinion, look at the 50" 1920x1080 Plasma. If you go from a CRT to a DLP/LCD/LCoS RPTV, you will not be as happy with the picture. The new 50"/58" Panasonic 700 series is getting affordable these days.
IMO, I would prefer to watch a 1080p Plasma over a Micro-display, and yes bigger is better. I am at 110" at home.

I'm planning to buy this TV set soon. Can you explain what exactly is this problem you have?

The horizontal expand is for zooming 4:3 HDTV broadcasts to fill the screen. It crops off about 2" from the sides.

circuit city for 5 years.

could have gotten the xbox hd dvd drive for that price
Yikes -- I think I paid Sony $99 to extend it to 5 years.

I am considering this set. To me the image seems soft. I do have the lo-down on these sets and can get them NIB for 599 (is this a good price?). They have plenty as the manager told me their company bought all of sony's stock on these sets. Good thing I live close to the store. The stores are REX. They have stores all through Ohio, Michigan, surrounding area and in Florida. If you are close you might want to check it out... I still dont know about getting this (heavy) and not as big as I want. I am looking for a 50 or bigger DLP, LCOS, etc. Is this TV that good. I cant tell by looking at them in the store.

I don't know how the picture could look soft, unless they've got a poor signal or there's something wrong with the TV. That's what I paid for my TV. That's an incredible deal. I looked at HDTVs for over 2 years before buying the Sony. I'm 100% confident I bought the best TV out there. The only TVs that come close to it are the Sony SXRDs that start at 50" and about $2000.

Also I know 1080i is more detailed than 720p but the 970 has a resolution of 853x1080 so I don't see how it can come close to resolving every vertical line in 720p (1280x720) or 1080i/p (1920x1080) and because of this I've heard people say it's picture seems more like it's better than ED but just doesn't look HD.
People fixate way too much on these specs IMO. It's like the MP rating for digital still cameras. Picture quality consists of much more than just scan lines and you can't quantify everything involved to neatly fit on spec sheets for side-by-side comparison.

Compare the overall picture picture quality of both with your own eyes. I'm assuming that you intend to buy one or the other to actually watch stuff and not to sit there and go over its specs. ;)

I don't see how a bottom-of-the-line LCD could compete with the XBR970 but I guess it's entirely possible that your preferences are completely different.

I do have the lo-down on these sets and can get them NIB for 599 (is this a good price?).

Yes.

My opinion, look at the 50" 1920x1080 Plasma. If you go from a CRT to a DLP/LCD/LCoS RPTV, you will not be as happy with the picture. The new 50"/58" Panasonic 700 series is getting affordable these days.
IMO, I would prefer to watch a 1080p Plasma over a Micro-display, and yes bigger is better. I am at 110" at home.

how about this one?

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-qZ4QgoQadMl/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=146350&I=13342PZ700

This is a overvoltage problem and you need to call for service.

Thank You.

I called Sony and they set me up with a local tv service shop. He came to my home Friday, removed the chassis and left. All he said was "I hope it's not the tube because I'll have to come back with 2 men to bring it back to the shop".

He also said "this is the 3rd one this week" referring to problems with the XBR970, I'm not sure if he meant the same problem or not.

I'm starting to regret not getting the extended warranty, I never had a CRT break on me before. At least I have about 7/8 months left on the factory warranty.

I hope you guys have better luck than me.

how about this one?

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-qZ4QgoQadMl/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=146350&I=13342PZ700
Sure, but bigger is better. With a 1920x1080 display there are few situations where the 50" won't work.

If you want an extended warranty, you can get 5 years of in home service for $85 here. If you read the fine print on the warranties, this was the best one I could find. They don't knock off the price of repairs if they have to buy you out because the set isn't repairable. Most warranties knock off the cost of any repairs, so if it's been repaired a couple of times, you end up getting close to nothing instead of the price you paid.

http://www.warrantydomain.com/tv.htm

If you want an extended warranty, you can get 5 years of in home service for $85 here. If you read the fine print on the warranties, this was the best one I could find. They don't knock off the price of repairs if they have to buy you out because the set isn't repairable. Most warranties knock off the cost of any repairs, so if it's been repaired a couple of times, you end up getting close to nothing instead of the price you paid.


Is that in home service?

If I ever have to move this thing, it's only going as far as the curb.

It is in home.

hi all , my tv sony is KV-29DRC430 , I PRESS NUMBER 7 AND ENTER, HAVE PROBLEMS, WHAT IS THE MANUAL SERVICE FOR MY TV???


P.D: KV-29DRC430
KV-29HS420


THEY ARE SIMILAR ???

THX

Sure, but bigger is better. With a 1920x1080 display there are few situations where the 50" won't work.

bigger is better if you got the ca$h :D

plus my chair is only about 10 or 12 feet from the screen, i have to measure it someday, i'm bad at measuring by eye, it could be 15 feet for all i know :cool:

I think my 970 just died on me.

I was watching a DVD, the set turned itself off and the little red light on the front is blinking 6 times over and over.

The set is about 3 months old. This ever happen to anyone?

Just an update. It's fixed !!!!!!!!!!!! :D

It died Monday night and I'm back in business Monday morning.

He stopped by Friday and left with the chassis, called me this morning and asked me if I would be home. He stopped by with the chassis around 11am and 5 minutes later my TV was working again.

Very fast service guy. I could have had it all done last week but I wasn't going to be home last Wednesday when he originally wanted to come out.

Nothing to sign, all he asked for was a copy of the original bill of sale which I had ready for him, I reprinted it from the Circuit City website.

I think he said he had to replace an IC chip in the chassis.

So a strange thing happened to my 970 the other day, and I thought I'd mention it here to see if anyone else has seen anything like this.

I was changing from my cable box input to my xbox360 input, which I know from experience is three presses of the "TV/Video" button on the remote (or whatever the input selector button is labeled, I forget). So I pressed the button three times, but instead of "Input 5" I got a black screen which said "Input 0" in the corner. There is not supposed to be an "Input 0" on a XBR970. I pressed "TV/Video" again and it brought up the antenna input, and I was able to continue to cycle through to the xbox360 input without any further problems.

Has anyone else seen this "Input 0" -- I figure it's some sort of bug in the firmware, but I don't know what caused it to occur. Maybe I pressed the button too quickly or something. I've been unable to dupicate the error.

bigger is better if you got the ca$h :D

plus my chair is only about 10 or 12 feet from the screen, i have to measure it someday, i'm bad at measuring by eye, it could be 15 feet for all i know :cool:The seating distance at 1080p resolution is considered to be 1.5 times the screen width. If you are at 10' = 1.5 x SW, that would be a screen width of 80" which is a 92" 16x9 diagonal. Therefore an acceptable viewing distance for a 50" can be as small as 5.5'.

The screen resolution of the XBR970 is not the same as a 1920x1080 PDP and therefore you need much larger viewing distances, 10' or more for a 34".

Recommended distance for a 34" 16:9 HDTV is more like 4'-8'.

hi all , my tv sony is KV-29DRC430 , I PRESS NUMBER 7 AND ENTER, HAVE PROBLEMS, WHAT IS THE MANUAL SERVICE FOR MY TV???


P.D: KV-29DRC430
KV-29HS420


THEY ARE SIMILAR ???

THX

So a strange thing happened to my 970 the other day, and I thought I'd mention it here to see if anyone else has seen anything like this.

I was changing from my cable box input to my xbox360 input, which I know from experience is three presses of the "TV/Video" button on the remote (or whatever the input selector button is labeled, I forget). So I pressed the button three times, but instead of "Input 5" I got a black screen which said "Input 0" in the corner. There is not supposed to be an "Input 0" on a XBR970. I pressed "TV/Video" again and it brought up the antenna input, and I was able to continue to cycle through to the xbox360 input without any further problems.

Has anyone else seen this "Input 0" -- I figure it's some sort of bug in the firmware, but I don't know what caused it to occur. Maybe I pressed the button too quickly or something. I've been unable to dupicate the error.

Havent seen it, prolly a bug like you say.

Hey all, i just purchased an xbr970 from the lynnwood, WA circuit city for 699. I read several of the posts in this thread before doing so, and became convinced that this is the tube for me.

One question to start, though. Its seems that no matter what picture mode im in (vivid, standard, movie, or pro), the darks are really dark and the brights are really bright. In other words shadows and light to dark gradients are not showing up well.

Is this due to the tube being so new? Does it just need to be burned in? If it needs to burn in, should I speed up that process by leaving it on several hours per day?

Any other suggested input is welcome?

P.S.. for those of you considering this tv, i will try posting a review sometime soon

Raise the brightness and lower the contrast. I didn't wait for the set to " burn in first" Just go back after awhile then recalibrate it.

I've kinda lost interest in tweaking this set. haven't been in the service menu in months lol. I'm pretty happy with where i have it now tho and now if i go back in there it will become an addiction again. I been enjoying this set and just watching now :) also my cable company added more HD channels ( optimum) so i have a ton of HD channels to watch now, altho some are pretty pointless IMO, golf channel HD? No thanks!

Raise the brightness and lower the contrast. I didn't wait for the set to " burn in first" Just go back after awhile then recalibrate it.


Brightness has been raised, but where is the contrast option? The only related settings i have are, picture, brightness, and color. Is this something I need to be adjusting from the service menu?


Also, i just thought of one other question. Is it better to use the component output or the DVI output from my cable box? With the DVI, couldn't I just use an adaptor to hdmi?

Brightness has been raised, but where is the contrast option? The only related settings i have are, picture, brightness, and color. Is this something I need to be adjusting from the service menu?


Also, i just thought of one other question. Is it better to use the component output or the DVI output from my cable box? With the DVI, couldn't I just use an adaptor to hdmi?

On Sony sets, Picture setting is contrast.

Yep, you can use DVI to HDMI cable. You will need to connect separate cable for audio though since unlike HDMI, DVI only passes video signal.

Just plugged in my XBR970 at CC, and I was watching a letterboxed DVD and noticed that the area above the letterbox was not really black, just dark gray. So I started lowering the brightness, and got all the way down to zero and it was still not black.

It also looked a little uneven in darkness, being slightly lighter toward the right and left edges. The movie part of the picture got very dark, but the letterboxed area seemed lighter than the image area.

Is there a SM fix for this and is this a common problem? I was thinking maybe the gamma might be set too high.

Just plugged in my XBR970 at CC, and I was watching a letterboxed DVD and noticed that the area above the letterbox was not really black, just dark gray. So I started lowering the brightness, and got all the way down to zero and it was still not black.

It also looked a little uneven in darkness, being slightly lighter toward the right and left edges. The movie part of the picture got very dark, but the letterboxed area seemed lighter than the image area.

Is there a SM fix for this and is this a common problem? I was thinking maybe the gamma might be set too high.

Try dropping picture and brightness a few notched together. "Picture" doesnt seem to be merely contrast, or the difference between lightest and darkest colors as contrast is defined on a monitor. It seems to encompass both contrast and gamma together on this set.

Well, I guess this set is a little different from my SD Trinitron in that this non-image area is not very dark. I noticed the same thing watching a 4:3 show.

I did try lowering the Picture setting, and it did darken the non-image areas, but they still weren't very black. Oh, well maybe I can get used to it, I was just wondering if what I have described is normal for this set.

Just plugged in my XBR970 at CC, and I was watching a letterboxed DVD and noticed that the area above the letterbox was not really black, just dark gray. So I started lowering the brightness, and got all the way down to zero and it was still not black.

It also looked a little uneven in darkness, being slightly lighter toward the right and left edges. The movie part of the picture got very dark, but the letterboxed area seemed lighter than the image area.

Is there a SM fix for this and is this a common problem? I was thinking maybe the gamma might be set too high.Was the DVD a letterbox or anamorphic (enhanced for 16:9) version? There's a difference. Is you DVD player able to, and setup to, pass blacker than black (btb)?

If your watching a letterboxed DVD, the black bars are encoded on the DVD and therefore could have been encoded as something other than btb.

If your watching a >1.66 anamorphic DVD, with your player set to 16:9, then the black bars are "created" by the DVD player and could be sent to the set as varying levels of black depending on the btb settings of the DVD player.

They should be controllable by adjusting brightness (black level) and possibly picture (white level).

how about this one?

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-qZ4QgoQadMl/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=146350&I=13342PZ700

Since it's been a while since I've been on these boards.. Claypigeon was kind enough to wonder where I have been.. So, I will add a few cents of my opinion.. :)


otk, have you purchased a TV yet? Did you realize the price of that TV? If you can find the 970 locally, you're essentially paying $1,900 to have a slim TV.

I won't say they are both the same in PQ, but very close. I even have a small room, about 14x10x8 and this TV doesn't take up that much room. It's thick, yes, but it's not 50" wide. Even if you buy a mountable TV, you're still going to need a TV stand/entertainment stand regardless..

If I were buying plasma, it would be Panisonic, or Pioneer. So you're heading in the right direction for a nice TV, nonetheless.



Please don't interpret what I am/have been saying as a "biased" opinion. I, as well do all 970 owners really appreciate the PQ these set's produce. There's few TV's within reason that come close, but cost an arm and a leg.

I'm sure you've read through a few pages on this long thread, and hopefully you can make a precise decision on your own. We are here to help, but it's really up to you to make the final decision.



Lastly, it's not easy for either party (technology) to give you a "complete" answer. Both technologies and TV are different, thus both have extreme difference in pro's/con's. It's not like you're comparing this TV (970) to say a Samsung tube TV.

I have faith you will make the right decision. And going to the "store" and comparing TV's doesn't do the TV justice at all. When I bought mine at CC, it looked like CRAP! As did my first HD-tube. But when I brought it home and got it hooked up to a real HD signal, it just blew my mind how crisp, colorful and vibrant the picture is. And when I say this, I mean it! I would purchase both the 970 and the plasma (if possible) and bring them home and try them for yourself. This is the ONLY true way to make a complete decision. Your eyes will have seen both, hooked up to the identical source, not split 150 times like at BB or CC.

FWIW, If you have the space/room, get a projector. When I move out of my parents house (just turned 20, I have real reasons why I'm still at home) and buy a house, I will be buying a projector for my HT room, and use the 970 in my bedroom, like it's used now. I don't plan on getting rid of it until it out of warranty. This one's a keeper...!! :D



Take care...


-Nick

Well, I guess this set is a little different from my SD Trinitron in that this non-image area is not very dark. I noticed the same thing watching a 4:3 show.

I did try lowering the Picture setting, and it did darken the non-image areas, but they still weren't very black. Oh, well maybe I can get used to it, I was just wondering if what I have described is normal for this set."Brightness" is your "black level" control

I have faith you will make the right decision. And going to the "store" and comparing TV's doesn't do the TV justice at all. When I bought mine at CC, it looked like CRAP! -Nick

I dont understand why all these electronics stores that spend their money and floor space on these big HD sets dont use top quality cabling from the demo DVD player to the sets, AND specifically trained employees installing them. Sure, it costs a little more money up front to do it right, but isn't that preferable to having a $1,500 LCD sit on the shelf for a year with no sales because customers pass by it based on the bad picture quality? 10 years ago the display models didnt require a lot of prep because all TVs looked the same, but in the HD age it's quality of the in-store setup that sells the set.

I went back into service menu today :) wanted to see what i had some stuff set at since last time i been in there. Recalibrated color again, since for some reason it was still off?!?! wtf is going on with this set! This is like the 4th time i left everything set and next time i checked things were way off. I had RYR at 14, RYB at 14, GYR-6, GYB-4, thats what i had written in my notes also, so i know i saved it.

wayyyy off when i threw up avia color patterns. But yet this new set of numbers makes no sense to me. Now i have RYR-15 RYB-13, GYR-0, GYB-0.

why the greens at 0?!?!? even at 0 still looks like i need to go down lower to get all the bars the same shade of green across the avia patterns! I even try to compensate by changing around HUE to see what results i got. I mean i DO want all the green shades the same intensity right? how come no matter what some are still off tho? especially green.

I went back into service menu today :) wanted to see what i had some stuff set at since last time i been in there. Recalibrated color again, since for some reason it was still off?!?! wtf is going on with this set! This is like the 4th time i left everything set and next time i checked things were way off. I had RYR at 14, RYB at 14, GYR-6, GYB-4, thats what i had written in my notes also, so i know i saved it.

wayyyy off when i threw up avia color patterns. But yet this new set of numbers makes no sense to me. Now i have RYR-15 RYB-13, GYR-0, GYB-0.

why the greens at 0?!?!? even at 0 still looks like i need to go down lower to get all the bars the same shade of green across the avia patterns! I even try to compensate by changing around HUE to see what results i got. I mean i DO want all the green shades the same intensity right? how come no matter what some are still off tho? especially green.

did you make sure your color was in the middle when doing this?? doesn't surprise me really what happened to you.. for me 480p and 480i seem to have different color settings with RYR-GYB.. it seems if i get 480i RYR-GYB perfect 480p is off..and since it's a global setting i guess you have to compromise some bit.

I was going with 14-14-6-4 like you but then i think i'm going to settle with 12-14-6-4.

Greens are pretty much dead on it's just the reds seem to be off on mine for 480p.

No, my color is at 43 not the middle. Then that would knock my blue off setting it in the middle since at 43 everything is right. Don't i want blue set perfectly first before messing with the other colors? My set is on pro setting. Hmm tho , maybe i'm better off using the internal test pattern at 1080i then for the color calibration instead of using the 480 signal from the avia disc? I know when i used them last time they were way off then what i came up with with Avia.

Yea peep this now. I just re did color settings using the built in test pattern on the 970. All blocks match same intensity, same shade of color. .. but with these settings now;

RYR-15
RYB-13
GYR-14
GYB-10

? how could it be so drastic tho from using the avia color patterns?!?! from my last set of numbers?

Oh well i'm going to leave them be as is now.

Actually i just noticed something else in the internal test patterns. I saw a half blue screen, top was white. I thought i would check what my blue looks like ( since it must be to set blue intensity) It was way off and didn't blend at all. Raised color to 48 , checked it again and it's perfect :) Went and re did green and now i got GYR-6 GYB-5.

Yeah i usually do the reds and greens first before i do the blue color setting.

My XBR970 has worked extremely well for just over a year now, but just today, as I was watching a DVD, the screen started to flash with red lines. It became progressively worse over the course of a couple minutes, then the TV simply shut itself off. The standby light then blinked for a few moments. I read on this thread that one person had an issue with the TV shutting itself off and that this was due to overvoltage problems. Anyone have any information that would be useful, or should I just call for service?

My XBR970 has worked extremely well for just over a year now, but just today, as I was watching a DVD, the screen started to flash with red lines. It became progressively worse over the course of a couple minutes, then the TV simply shut itself off. The standby light then blinked for a few moments. I read on this thread that one person had an issue with the TV shutting itself off and that this was due to overvoltage problems. Anyone have any information that would be useful, or should I just call for service?

When you unplug the tv plug the tv back in, does the picture come on and then get really bright for about 5 seconds and then shut down again and then the red standby light blinks 6 times over and over?

I was watching a DVD at the time also via component video cables. I had the brightness and contrast turned up high because the DVD I was watching was very dark. I'm thinking maybe that triggered it. Not that it's bad to keep those controls jacked up when you need them, just that it was a problem waiting to happen and maybe that triggered it. I was reading back in the thread and noticed someone else had that same problem.

My tv was built in March of 2007 if that helps anyone and was brand new in the box.

It might be a good idea for people who own this tv while it's still under warranty to put a dvd in over component cables and watch a whole movie with the contrast maxed and the brightness up over 75. If it's going to blow, it might as well do it under warranty.

I've very happy the sony warranty included "in home" service because there's no way I could have brought this thing into the shop. The service man came into my home, removed the chassis and came back a week later and my tv was back up and running again. He had to replace an IC chip on the chassis.

One good thing to come out of this, my picture is so much better after the repair. The picture always had this kind of haze to it from day 1 and the black bars were never really black. Whatever they did to fix it, fixed that problem also. Now my picture quality is better than ever. I was reading back in the thread and noticed someone had that same haze problem.

Just plugged in my XBR970 at CC, and I was watching a letterboxed DVD and noticed that the area above the letterbox was not really black, just dark gray. So I started lowering the brightness, and got all the way down to zero and it was still not black.

It also looked a little uneven in darkness, being slightly lighter toward the right and left edges. The movie part of the picture got very dark, but the letterboxed area seemed lighter than the image area.

Is there a SM fix for this and is this a common problem? I was thinking maybe the gamma might be set too high.

This sounds like what my set was like just before it broke down. After the set was fixed, that problem was fixed. :)

I dont understand why all these electronics stores that spend their money and floor space on these big HD sets dont use top quality cabling from the demo DVD player to the sets, AND specifically trained employees installing them.
You should try working in one... ;) The flaw in your assumption is that competent people are in charge.

When you unplug the tv plug the tv back in, does the picture come on and then get really bright for about 5 seconds and then shut down again and then the red standby light blinks 6 times over and over?

I was watching a DVD at the time also via component video cables. I had the brightness and contrast turned up high because the DVD I was watching was very dark. I'm thinking maybe that triggered it. Not that it's bad to keep those controls jacked up when you need them, just that it was a problem waiting to happen and maybe that triggered it. I was reading back in the thread and noticed someone else had that same problem.

That is essentially the problem I had. I tried plugging the TV back in this morning and turning it back on (as suggested by the Sony customer service rep), and it lasted about 5 minutes before shutting down again with the blinking standby light. I don't remember whether I have the contrast and brightness turned way up, but I don't recall changing the settings too much.

As for the service, any opinion one way or the other whether it is better to have the Sony rep schedule a service tech to come by, or to go through one of their recommended service companies? If you go through a certified company, do you end up getting reimbursed for the repair from Sony? If so, is this a big hassel, and would I save myself trouble by letting Sony schedule the repair? (They were going to do it this morning but their system was upgrading).

This sounds like what my set was like just before it broke down. After the set was fixed, that problem was fixed. :)

I'm getting used to the blacks not being very dark, but geez, if I wanted dark gray instead of black, I would have gotten an LCD.

I saw a SM option called "environment correct switch" which I thought might be compensating for ambient light and brightening the picture, but that seemed to do nothing.

Hasn't anyone else encountered this problem?

Did you acidentally change the UBOF setting too high in service menu? Or mess with the SBRT setting? Check to see what UBOF is at. Also don't mess with the "environement correct switch" LOL nevermind i can see you already have :(

You know what i'm starting to notice with this set? sometimes ( especially on HD channels) the audio( from receiver) is not in sync with lip movement. I have my cable box going straight into my reciever with an optical cable. But if i put the volume up on the TV it's in sync! It's kinda annoying tho. I'm thinking it's either the cable box, or the TV is taking a sec processing the picture? This scientific atlanata boxes are annoying as hell tho, i hate them, especially when it switches from HD sources and 480i. Maybe i'd be better off using HDMI instead of component.

Did you acidentally change the UBOF setting too high in service menu? Or mess with the SBRT setting? Check to see what UBOF is at. Also don't mess with the "environement correct switch" LOL nevermind i can see you already have :(

UBOF is at "2". I tried "0" but it made only a tiny difference. To get the black level where I'd like to see it, I think I would need about "-7" setting, but as you know there is no such thing.

I also tried lowering SBRT to zero, but it made almost no difference. The image area loses quite a bit of detail, but the sidebars stay dark gray, and not really black. It's as if there is some sort of backlight on.

With other CRT's I'm used to being able to lower the black levels to where they go completely black, and then usually you can lower the settings a few notches lower with no visible change.

With this set, I can never get to a point where the black level is saturated, it only goes down as far as very dark gray, at least with every setting I have tried.

I got my sbrt at 28, UBOF is at 4 for 1080i and 720p

but i have it at 0 for 480i/p since i used avia to calibate black level. But my black level was too low when watching HD channels.

Something sounds wrong with your set :( Do you think you accidentally changed something? cause i noticed when dabbling in service menu some things turn the picture WAY dark when you change them, others lighten it up ( besides GAMMA and SBRT, UBOF) Write your settings down and i'll check them with mine.

Oh yeah, I have been writing down original settings for whole sections (2103-1, 2170P-1, 2170P-3, plus all the geometry settings). I spent a couple hours doing convergence this morning. The person who calibrated my set was a slightly sloppy, and I was able to eliminate several red and blue lines from showing. I doubt they have the time at the factory to spend hours getting stuff like that perfect.

Let me know if you come across any more black level settings. I seem to recall seeing some SM settings on my 2 other Sonys that would really dramatically increase the black levels, but have not been able to locate any of them.

As far as your voice-synch issue, I have one of the walmart HD receivers, and I am able to eliminate that problem by pressing the audio stream selector button to reset the audio. It seems to be a problem where the audio processor or software gets overloaded and can't keep up with the amount of audio data coming through, and so it starts to "lag" behind a few hundreths of a second or so. If changing the audio selector does not work, try rebooting the receiver.

Yea i did a convergence adjustment on my set a while back. Took a long time! I don't have any audio synch things on my HD box or home theater receiver, like i said tho maybe it's the cable box. I'll try just turning it on and off next time i notice it and see if that helps any.

You know what i'm starting to notice with this set? sometimes ( especially on HD channels) the audio( from receiver) is not in sync with lip movement. I have my cable box going straight into my reciever with an optical cable. But if i put the volume up on the TV it's in sync! It's kinda annoying tho. I'm thinking it's either the cable box, or the TV is taking a sec processing the picture? This scientific atlanata boxes are annoying as hell tho, i hate them, especially when it switches from HD sources and 480i. Maybe i'd be better off using HDMI instead of component.

I think this is true of all digital TVs. Digital TVs have a slight delay because of the processing. My Yamaha receiver has an adjustable delay and it works great for syncing audio.

I'm getting used to the blacks not being very dark, but geez, if I wanted dark gray instead of black, I would have gotten an LCD.

I saw a SM option called "environment correct switch" which I thought might be compensating for ambient light and brightening the picture, but that seemed to do nothing.

Hasn't anyone else encountered this problem?

I have no problems with blacks on my TV whatsoever. It may be your source and not the TV.

Being delivered tomorrow. I've seen the 34xs955 in action so I know how great the picture can be (even though the 970 lacks SFP). Picked it up for $699. Amazing how far the price has fallen. There were only two left in stock. An associate who saw what I was buying said, "that's a sick tv!" I'm upgrading from a 10 year old 25" Samsung. Thanks to all on the board who helped with my decision (it was either the 970 or a 32" LCD).

one more thing...i continue to be amazed at how awful all of these sets can look in the showroom with all of the settings jacked up. i adjusted a few of them in the store and was astounded at how much better they looked. makes me want to get mine professionally calibrated. to think that joe six-pack is out there picking a tv based on how it looks in torch mode.

I got mine last Friday for the same price. The CC in Fresno CA had 4 left, so if you are looking to get one, don't delay too much longer. Mine was built in April 2007, which almost certainly is the last month they were manufactured.

.

After tweaking pro mode a while ago to get rid of all edge ehancements/VM and other sharpeners i can't help but notice just how really soft my picture is compared to when i switch to vivid/movie other modes. Even tho thats how the picture is supposed to look. I pretty much have all the mid5 parameters ( MHLY all the M's or whatever they are called set to 0, some at 2. I pretty much just copied other users settings such as kentechs to disable all ehancements. I'm really thinking about going back to factory defaults for that and re-tweak everything over again to my liking. There has to be a way to have a sharp picture without adding ringing. Don't get me wrong picture looks great! it's only when i switch to another mode that i notice how dull my picture looks.

Anybody here actually take the anti-glare coating off there screen? and does it really make that much of a difference? I have no glare in my TV room whatsover so i can't even tell what it does :P I'll probably end up taking it off in a year or two or whenever my warranty runs out.

LOL wow tho bigpalal! That warranty is kinda crazy :P 5 years?!?! i could see doing that if the TV was still being manufactured and you could get a replacement easily. Hopefully nothing bad happens to the set that a full replacement would be needed a few years down the road, what would they do then? just order whatever parts needed i guess?

Somebody should make a xbr970 usergroup/fansite where we can all post our tweaks and settings and whatnot. I would do it if i had the slighest clue how to make a website. I nominate the next poster in this thread!

Just my luck. 970 was delivered today. Green glow in the upper left and lower right corners of the picture. Purple glow in the upper right corner. Had to send it back. This may be my frustration speaking, but I'm tempted to just get an lcd now instead of trying another 970.

Did you have any speakers or electronic equipment nearby that could have been generating some electrical field? I know it's too late now, but I was just curious.

Just the dvd player. And the set hasn't actually been returned yet. They're coming for it tomorrow. If you guys have any suggestions before then I'd greatly appreciate it.

Just the dvd player. And the set hasn't actually been returned yet. They're coming for it tomorrow. If you guys have any suggestions before then I'd greatly appreciate it.Try a few power-on cycles for the de-gaussing to work.

You won't like a LCD, if you bought the 970 for picture quality.

Thanks Glen. I'll do that. What the hell is de-gaussing? I'll go look it up.

Degaussing is what the TV does when you turn it on. It's that loud "honk" noise you will sometimes hear when powering up. It's to neutralize or discharge any static electricity that may have accumulated. This static can cause the screen to become discolored.

I once stupidly placed a DVD player on top my Sony CRT and it caused a red blob right above where I placed it. I thought the TV was defective until I noticed the blob went away after I took down the DVD player.

After tweaking pro mode a while ago to get rid of all edge ehancements/VM and other sharpeners i can't help but notice just how really soft my picture is compared to when i switch to vivid/movie other modes. Even tho thats how the picture is supposed to look. I pretty much have all the mid5 parameters ( MHLY all the M's or whatever they are called set to 0, some at 2. I pretty much just copied other users settings such as kentechs to disable all ehancements. I'm really thinking about going back to factory defaults for that and re-tweak everything over again to my liking. There has to be a way to have a sharp picture without adding ringing. Don't get me wrong picture looks great! it's only when i switch to another mode that i notice how dull my picture looks.

Try setting SYSM to 2 instead of 3. This will help sharpen the picture up quite a bit without adding ringing as long as all other enhancements are minimal or off.

For me SYSM=3 was just TOO soft and almost looked out of focus to my eyes even with fixing the focus parameters.

Anybody here actually take the anti-glare coating off there screen? and does it really make that much of a difference? I have no glare in my TV room whatsover so i can't even tell what it does :P I'll probably end up taking it off in a year or two or whenever my warranty runs out.

Does the 970 have an anti-glare coating? I am curious because I want to know if it is OK to use windex to clean the screen. I have always used it for my other tvs(no coating) with no problems. Does anyone know?

Try a few power-on cycles for the de-gaussing to work.

You won't like a LCD, if you bought the 970 for picture quality.

I have my 970 plugged into one of those monster clean power strips/surge protector. I am curious if the degausing works as good this way as opposed to having it plugged straight into the wall. Anybody know?

I have my 970 plugged into one of those monster clean power strips/surge protector. I am curious if the degausing works as good this way as opposed to having it plugged straight into the wall. Anybody know?It"s been well documented that the power strips/surge protectors can affect/limit the de-gaussing.

Maybe that's my problem.

It"s been well documented that the power strips/surge protectors can affect/limit the de-gaussing.

Sorry, I did not realise it was well documented. I have heard different opinions on this in the past, but never got a straight answer.

So in your opinion would you say it is better to keep it plugged straight into the wall at all times or should I leave it in the strip and occasionally put it in the wall to get a good degauss?

Thanks! :)

Does the 970 have an anti-glare coating? I am curious because I want to know if it is OK to use windex to clean the screen. I have always used it for my other tvs(no coating) with no problems. Does anyone know?


I just re-read the manual and it doesnt specifically prohibit windex on the screen. But, based on my experience with monitors, I say "play it safe" and clean with warm water and soap, then buff it with a dry cotton t-shirt.

I think it also says to unplug the set before cleaning the screen. A while back I absentmindedly wiped the dust from the screen of my 20" CRT with an acrylic sock, on a dry windy day when there was a lot of static electricity. About an hour later, the tuner burned out and the picture was all messed up for a day or so.

Coincidence? Maybe, but will be more careful cleaning CRT screens from now on.

Also, I have a couple Viewsonic CRT computer monitors that I used Windex to clean. They looked fine until the next day, when they developed a weird rainbow-type residue that I can't get rid of. May be due to the anti-glare coating getting partially dissolved, I'm not sure.

I just re-read the manual and it doesnt specifically prohibit windex on the screen. But, based on my experience with monitors, I say "play it safe" and clean with warm water and soap, then buff it with a dry cotton t-shirt.
Thank's! I will definitely play it safe as I don't want to mess up this awesome TV. I clean my computer monitor in this manner because it has anti-glare coating but I wasn't sure if this TV has it and windex works fast with streak free results on my other two TVs which definitely don't have any coating. Still, better safe than sorry :)

I think it also says to unplug the set before cleaning the screen. A while back I absentmindedly wiped the dust from the screen of my 20" CRT with an acrylic sock, on a dry windy day when there was a lot of static electricity. About an hour later, the tuner burned out and the picture was all messed up for a day or so.

Coincidence? Maybe, but will be more careful cleaning CRT screens from now on.

Also, I have a couple Viewsonic CRT computer monitors that I used Windex to clean. They looked fine until the next day, when they developed a weird rainbow-type residue that I can't get rid of. May be due to the anti-glare coating getting partially dissolved, I'm not sure.
Damn that sucks! I will unplug the set just to be safe. My computer monitor has anti-glare coating and one time my girlfriend cleaned it with windex and the same rainbow looking residue showed up. I had to buff it over and over for about an hour with a non abrasive cloth before it finally went back to normal.

Does the 970 have an anti-glare coating? I am curious because I want to know if it is OK to use windex to clean the screen. I have always used it for my other tvs(no coating) with no problems. Does anyone know?PLEASE DO NOT use windex or any other household cleaners on the tube. It WILL damage it. The Important Safegaurds Cleaning section of the owner's manual states "Do not use liquid cleaners or aerosol cleaners. Use a cloth lightly dampened with water for cleaning the exterior of the set."
I just re-read the manual and it doesnt specifically prohibit windex on the screen. But, based on my experience with monitors, I say "play it safe" and clean with warm water and soap, then buff it with a dry cotton t-shirt.I consider windex a "liquid cleaner".

I use a product from Klear Screen (http://www.klearscreen.com/). It removes fingerprints and buffs to a static free shine. I've also seen products claiming to be safe at BB and CC.

I use a home brew of distilled water and 99% isopropyl alcohol mixed in a 5 or10-1 ratio. It is used on my six year old Sony KD-34XBR2 as well as all my eyeglasses.

So what sort of a surge protector should we be using? I am not too fond of the idea of just plugging it straight into the wall, but I'd also like to give the set enough power to startup properly. I have noticed that it takes 10 flashes of the power LED before the picture turns on. Is this a sign of a problem?


I had another question about my TV. I just bought a used store demo one, and I notice that the image bends down slightly on the left and right side of the screens. Its not a problem when watching anything 4x3, but is very apparent on 16x9. Also, it can be badly seen on any straight lines, like the TV menu or my cable box guide, and especially on the Wii. Is this fixable using the service menu? I have never tried to fix a TV using the menu, but I need to know if I should return this TV if its a major problem. Here is sort of a rough image of what is happening:

__-------------__
__-------------__
__-------------__


Just imagine that, but more of a curve to it.

Thanks everyone for all of your help!

-Noise

2170D-1
VCEN

set to a lower number. May mess up top of screen so compromise between top and bottom.

Write down old setting before changing anything.

Hey guys. Proud owner of a 970 here, and I'm thinking of picking up a PS3.

Can someone please confirm for me how this TV handles PS3 games running at a native 720p (the majority of PS3 games to this day)??? I've been searching this thread for an hour, and still couldn't find an answer. I've also been reading a lot of conflicting information on other sites as well.

I know the PS3 itself is unable to upconvert to 1080i, but if the PS3 outputs at 720p, can the television itself do the conversion?

If I'm playing a 720p game on the PS3, does it output at 480p or 1080i? I will be using the HDMI connect.

Thanks for any input.

Hey guys. Proud owner of a 970 here, and I'm thinking of picking up a PS3.

Can someone please confirm for me how this TV handles PS3 games running at a native 720p (the majority of PS3 games to this day)??? I've been searching this thread for an hour, and still couldn't find an answer. I've also been reading a lot of conflicting information on other sites as well.

I know the PS3 itself is unable to upconvert to 1080i, but if the PS3 outputs at 720p, can the television itself do the conversion?

If I'm playing a 720p game on the PS3, does it output at 480p or 1080i? I will be using the HDMI connect.

Thanks for any input.

The TV will accept the 720p signal then upconvert to the TV's 853x1080i resolution so you'll be fine and get a very nice HD image. The 720p problem was with a lot of CRT rear-projection TVs that did not accept 720p so the PS3 would output 480p because of its inability to upscale the 720p signal to 1080i.

The TV will accept the 720p signal then upconvert to the TV's 853x1080i resolution so you'll be fine and get a very nice HD image. The 720p problem was with a lot of CRT rear-projection TVs that did not accept 720p so the PS3 would output 480p because of its inability to upscale the 720p signal to 1080i.

Thank you, Church. That's reassuring.

Ordering a PS3......

Thank you, Church. That's reassuring.

Ordering a PS3......

No problem, I literally spent 6 months trying to get an answer to that very question over at the CNET forums and then I found AVS and got the answer in a matter of hours.

No problem, I literally spent 6 months trying to get an answer to that very question over at the CNET forums and then I found AVS and got the answer in a matter of hours.

lol. So that was your CNET thread I read an hour ago. Yeah, even I was getting frustrated reading that. So much back and forth misinformation.....

Thanks again.

So what sort of a surge protector should we be using? I am not too fond of the idea of just plugging it straight into the wall, but I'd also like to give the set enough power to startup properly. I have noticed that it takes 10 flashes of the power LED before the picture turns on. Is this a sign of a problem?


I had another question about my TV. I just bought a used store demo one, and I notice that the image bends down slightly on the left and right side of the screens. Its not a problem when watching anything 4x3, but is very apparent on 16x9. Also, it can be badly seen on any straight lines, like the TV menu or my cable box guide, and especially on the Wii. Is this fixable using the service menu? I have never tried to fix a TV using the menu, but I need to know if I should return this TV if its a major problem. Here is sort of a rough image of what is happening:

__-------------__
__-------------__
__-------------__


Just imagine that, but more of a curve to it.

Thanks everyone for all of your help!

-Noise


I had that on my 34XS955 and the only way to fix it was with magnets. I had Chad B do some magnet work on my tube when he calibrated it awhile back. It straightened it right out.

Hello, all -

I have an opportunity to buy the last remaining display model of this tv at a local store. I'm very nervous about buying a tv that's already been molested by lord knows who, but it's the only tv that seems to meet all my requirements, and as you know they're getting hard to find. I think 10% off of $699 is a bit poor, so I may work with them on that, but does anyone have any advice for buying display models of this tv? Also, (and I have no idea how any respectable tv store could do this), they lost the remote for it. Can I purchase the actual remote for this tv somewhere? I don't want a universal remote. (Yes, I'm very anal. It's a character flaw.) D'oh!

And one last question. I'll need to be able to letterbox the sides on command and view 4:3 content whenever I want. Like for when I play last gen video games. This tv can do this, right? I couldn't seem to make it do that in the store. It must auto-sense the inputs, eh? Thanks in advance.

Check the back of the TV for its manufacturing date. I doubt it's more than six months old. If anything, they may have done you a favor by breaking in the set and making sure nothing broke early on.

If the set is over a year old, I think I would not buy it, or use that fact to get them to knock another $100 off.

The original remote kind of sucks (IMHO) but it does have an "aspect" button that allows you to go between full screen (16:9) to pillarbox (4:3). I think you would not have too much problem finding a universal remote that would do as good or a better job. Make sure you make a big issue about the missing remote with the salesperson, and don't be afraid to ask for the manager.

Check the back of the TV for its manufacturing date. I doubt it's more than six months old. If anything, they may have done you a favor by breaking in the set and making sure nothing broke early on.

If the set is over a year old, I think I would not buy it, or use that fact to get them to knock another $100 off.

The original remote kind of sucks (IMHO) but it does have an "aspect" button that allows you to go between full screen (16:9) to pillarbox (4:3). I think you would not have too much problem finding a universal remote that would do as good or a better job. Make sure you make a big issue about the missing remote with the salesperson, and don't be afraid to ask for the manager.

Cool. Thanks.

And are there any hidden expenses I need to know about for when I get it home? (Like dropping $300 for a friggin' TV stand). You guys talk about getting a tech in your home for calibration all the time, like it's your buddy from next door who can swing by at the drop of a hat for free. I'm worried that I'm not financially set to take on such a big responsibility as owning the Golden Child of all CRT HDTVs. Very intimidating. But I know if I want this tv, I gotta act fast. Ah, pressure. Yea!

Calibration is not that large of an expense really... it might run you about $300 or so, but it makes a nice improvement to an already very good set.

You could probably locate a local ISF calibrator using the list available in the Display Calibration topic, or from the ISF website. Some calibrators travel all over and so you can just put your name on their list for when they come through your area.

Also, you can get the matching TV stand for that model off eBay or Amazon pretty cheaply. I just bought a stand (new in the box!) for my older 34XBR910 off eBay for $40.

I found a very sturdy 40" wide by 24" deep table at a thrift store for $15 and painted it black. Works great! The TV is something like 39 1/2" wide and around 25" deep, and many tables and TV stands are 40" wide so this works out pretty good.

As far as calibration goes, if you are patient, write down your original settings and take your time, you can do it. Or at least you'll get to a point where you can decide if it's worth it to hire someone with all the expensive equipment and (hopefully) a lot of experience to calibrate the set for you.

Plus there are pages and pages of discussions on this site that will walk you thru the process.

Cool. Thanks.

And are there any hidden expenses I need to know about for when I get it home? (Like dropping $300 for a friggin' TV stand). You guys talk about getting a tech in your home for calibration all the time, like it's your buddy from next door who can swing by at the drop of a hat for free. I'm worried that I'm not financially set to take on such a big responsibility as owning the Golden Child of all CRT HDTVs. Very intimidating. But I know if I want this tv, I gotta act fast. Ah, pressure. Yea!

My local Big Lots has a glass and aluminum TV stand rated at 240 lbs for around $100. It may not match your decor though.

Hello, all -

I have an opportunity to buy the last remaining display model of this tv at a local store. I'm very nervous about buying a tv that's already been molested by lord knows who, but it's the only tv that seems to meet all my requirements, and as you know they're getting hard to find. I think 10% off of $699 is a bit poor, so I may work with them on that, but does anyone have any advice for buying display models of this tv? Also, (and I have no idea how any respectable tv store could do this), they lost the remote for it. Can I purchase the actual remote for this tv somewhere? I don't want a universal remote. (Yes, I'm very anal. It's a character flaw.) D'oh!
Thanks in advance.

It's not the exact original remote but it's close. It's sold by Sony so you know it will work on your tv. $14.99 and free shipping for now. http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&productId=11035360&tab=Features

If you absolutely insist on the original, you can get one for $35.63, plus shipping, at: http://www.remotes.com/remotes/servlet/rs?a=Search&o=c&m1=kd34xbr970&uid=11846840336410

Holy crap! You guys are awesome. Thanks to your support I'm going back to the store today to check it out and ask a few more questions. Soooo nervous. I get panicky when ever a buy things over a few hundred dollars. Money's tight, I'm a perfectionist, blah blah blah, etc.

I understand that if I play my video games in 4:3 mode for 2 hours at a time on this set, burn-in is a near impossibility, correct? Or watch tv in that mode for that matter.

If you keep the contrast low, burn in shouldn't be a problem. The TV comes with a 2 year warranty from Sony. I posted back on page 62 where you can get an extra 5 years of warranty for $85. That will give you 7 years of warranty since it starts when the manufacterer's warranty ends.

Holy crap! You guys are awesome. Thanks to your support I'm going back to the store today to check it out and ask a few more questions. Soooo nervous. I get panicky when ever a buy things over a few hundred dollars. Money's tight, I'm a perfectionist, blah blah blah, etc.

I understand that if I play my video games in 4:3 mode for 2 hours at a time on this set, burn-in is a near impossibility, correct? Or watch tv in that mode for that matter.

Burn in isnt a big deal on direct view CRTs. It's more of a problem with projector sets.

It's done! I'm a pround owner of a 34XBR970! Thanks so much to everyone! I ordered the original remote, went to Big Lots and got a heavy duty tv stand, got a callibration dvd, and lugged it home and hooked it up all in one day. I have many questions.

Did anyone bother to get a Circuit City coverage plan for 3 years, or did ya'll stick with the Sony warantee? Any advice in this area? (Thanks for the info to extend the Sony warantee, by the way.)

And why can't I access CineMotion in DRC Mode? It's greyed out no matter what I do. The DRC Mode is stuck on interlaced. I popped in a DVD and tried to see what this "CineMotion" was all about, but I couldn't seem to activate it.

And why can't I access CineMotion in DRC Mode? It's greyed out no matter what I do. The DRC Mode is stuck on interlaced. I popped in a DVD and tried to see what this "CineMotion" was all about, but I couldn't seem to activate it.
DRC only works in 480i. It doesn't work in HD or progressive.

The warranty link I gave is a lot better than the CC warranty. The CC warranty is $109 for three years from date of purchase, so it's only 1 extra year for over $100. The other warranty is 5 years of in home service after the Sony warranty, so for $85 you get 7 years total. Beware of extended warranties, you have to read the fine print. Most of them deduct however much has been done in repairs if they end up buying you out because they can't fix it. So if you paid $700 and you've had $450 in repairs, you'll only get $250 back if they end up buying you out of the warranty. That warranty I gave a link to doesn't deduct for prior repairs, so even if it's been fixed a couple of times, you'll still get back the full purchase price minus taxes.

DRC only works in 480i. It doesn't work in HD or progressive.

The warranty link I gave is a lot better than the CC warranty. The CC warranty is $109 for three years from date of purchase, so it's only 1 extra year for over $100. The other warranty is 5 years of in home service after the Sony warranty, so for $85 you get 7 years total. Beware of extended warranties, you have to read the fine print. Most of them deduct however much has been done in repairs if they end up buying you out because they can't fix it. So if you paid $700 and you've had $450 in repairs, you'll only get $250 back if they end up buying you out of the warranty. That warranty I gave a link to doesn't deduct for prior repairs, so even if it's been fixed a couple of times, you'll still get back the full purchase price minus taxes.

Thanks for the explanation. But as for the CC warranty, I already screwed up that one and paid the $109. If I have issues, you suggest I baypass CC and go with Sony, eh? I don't know what I was thinking. If something goes wrong I just want someone to come to my home and fix it. And speaking of something going wrong...

It seems like my plan to move the tv on my own backfired. I didn't trust the teenagers at CC with delivery, mainly because it was a display model. (They didn't even wrap it with bubblewrap until I asked nicely!) Anyhow, it got bumped and banged in transit, and now I have some obvious geometry issues. (Obvious to ME anyhow.) What's my course of action in getting this fixed? Will Sony or CC not care because it's basically my fault. And what's Sony's warrantee stance on purchased display models? This post I found on page 9 from JudsonWest gives me hope...except for the fact I have a display model.

"I previous posts here I mentioned that my out of box experience with this set was less than stellar. While probably all of the ills of my set could be fix in service mode, I felt that Sony should be on the hook to do it. So I called a local Sony Authorized shop to have them look at what I had (green push and dark image). The tech that arrived had no equipment to validate his adjustments. So the only thing he used while adjusting my set was a B/W video in a 4:3 image on my screen. And to top it off, he was falling asleep on my couch during the whole process. So, when he got it close I said fine, now get out.

A week later, Sony sent me a letter asking about my recent service experience. I emailed my response back to them and in a nice way said that I was disastisfied with my experience and felt that there was more that could have been done. To my supprise, I got a call from another local Sony Authorized Service Center saying that Sony contacted them and asked them to get involved. I was amazed that Sony really cared. These new guys will be out next week with the equipment necessary to check color, brightness, and geometry and I'm sure I will have a better experience than before. "

Hi, Everyone

First time member, long-time viewer of this thread.

It's great to have a place where us SONY TV owners can converse about our TV, help each other out with problems, etc. I have read a lot of posts here and have been able to calibrate my TV so it can run at its best. Since you all have indirectly helped me I figure I could give something back.

Some of you recently have posted the way to open the service menu for your TV as well as your own personal calibrations for it. If you actually wanted the service manual for the TV you would have to send money to SONY to get one. You actually don't have to do that since I found a link where you can download the service manual for this TV absoultely free. This service manual will give you detailed instructions for repairs as well as how to calibrate your TV with the service menu. I figure with posting this link to the service manual you SONY owners can calibrate your own TV's to solve problems and make the TV run at its best. I downloaded the menu not long ago so you should still be able to download it from the link.

Enjoy!

link to service manual for SONY KD-34BR970 TV: http://www.manualdirectory.co.uk/Detailed/21144.html

But as for the CC warranty, I already screwed up that one and paid the $109.

You should be able to get a refund on the warranty within 30 days.

Most people here go into the service menus and fix geometry themselves. Mostly only vertical problems can be fixed in the SM. I think there's only one adjustment for horizontal is all. I'm very leary of letting someone else touch my TV. From past experience, it usually ends up worse than it was.

I know the PS3 itself is unable to upconvert to 1080i, but if the PS3 outputs at 720p, can the television itself do the conversion?

If I'm playing a 720p game on the PS3, does it output at 480p or 1080i? I will be using the HDMI connect.



Just a quick update.

I finally got my PS3 set up and started playing a 720p game. I hit the 'display' button on the remote, and to my surprise the TV was actually outputting 720p. It wasn't upconverting to 1080i as I was initially hoping, nor was it downgrading to 480p which I had feared. It was just playing 720p.

Confused, I dug out the manual and double-checked the specs. In the manual it states this TV can display both 720p and 1080i, which I had no idea. On Sonys website, it doesn't list 720p at all.

Despite my personal preference for 1080i, I was glad to find out that 720p games look great on this set. And 1080p games still display in 1080i, which is nice.

Blu-ray movies look phenomenal.

And one last question. I'll need to be able to letterbox the sides on command and view 4:3 content whenever I want. Like for when I play last gen video games. This tv can do this, right? I couldn't seem to make it do that in the store. It must auto-sense the inputs, eh? Thanks in advance.

I suggest you try the Wide-Zoom setting for 4:3 content. This set does an excellent job manipulating the picture to fill the screen with minimal distortion. Especially for gaming. I love it.

Congrats on the television.

I suggest you try the Wide-Zoom setting for 4:3 content. This set does an excellent job manipulating the picture to fill the screen with minimal distortion. Especially for gaming. I love it.

Congrats on the television.

I just realized that last night! Not bad at all! Looks like I was worried for nothing. Thanks!

this is off topic but has anyone seen "Alien Insect: Praying Mantis" on discovery HD ?

breathtaking videography :eek:

I suggest you try the Wide-Zoom setting for 4:3 content. This set does an excellent job manipulating the picture to fill the screen with minimal distortion. Especially for gaming. I love it.

Congrats on the television.

I wouldnt recommend any of the zoom modes for gaming. Following are the screen size settings I've found to bring out the "smartest" results from the TV's video processor.

Antenna/Cable

Screen Mode Full
Auto Wide Off
4:3 Default Normal

Video

S.M. Normal
A.W. On
4:3 Normal

On these settings, my 970 seems to judge perfectly between various input modes through TV signal and game systems and displays the correct screen size. Although my only video test has been my original Xbox console.

I wouldnt recommend any of the zoom modes for gaming. Following are the screen size settings I've found to bring out the "smartest" results from the TV's video processor.

Antenna/Cable

Screen Mode Full
Auto Wide Off
4:3 Default Normal

Video

S.M. Normal
A.W. On
4:3 Normal

On these settings, my 970 seems to judge perfectly between various input modes through TV signal and game systems and displays the correct screen size. Although my only video test has been my original Xbox console.

Thanks for the info. I mainly bought this tv for gaming, so it IS important to me. I'm currently going over each gaming console I own with this tv. I have all the component cables on order. With my busy work schedule (uhg!) so far I've only spent time with my PS2 on it, which is my major concern simply because it's primarily a 4:3 / 480i machine. It seems I had to change the screen size and vertical "correction" with each game. (Granted, I put in three games within an hour for testing, but...) You'd think if I set my PS2 to 16:9 and also switch a game option to 16:9, the image would be great, but "Rise To Honor" had the characters all stretched out like the old Cinemascope movies of old without the proper lens in. I'll be moving on to my original Xbox next.

And speaking of all those component cables I have arriving, I'm gonna run out of tv inputs fast. Any suggestions on an affordable component switcher? And what should I look for so I don't degrade the signals of each? Did I read something about 1080i requiring 93 Mhz minimum? (Whatever THAT means!) :confused:

You're looking at around $50 for a component switcher, unless you get one on ebay.

There's a JVC at Amazon that gets good ratings.

i use "full" mode a lot for most 4x3 material, it's not that bad once you get used to it

it's good enough for watching "good eats" :D

how much longer do we have to wait till everything is switched over to HD?

(phew!) I'm up to page 58 of these forum posts. Time to take a break and ask a question or two.

I find it odd that with an HDTV, whenever I call up the regular Sony tv menu (not the service menu), the text is kinda blurry and the borders of the menu boxes aren't very straight. Is it like that for everyone? Granted, it's just a menu and won't bother you during tv watching or game playing, but I was wondering what the science is behind that weirdness. I mean it's an HDTV - you'd think the menu text would be razor sharp. (Even increasing the sharpness doesn't help.)

AND...

After reading all the links to the Sony Service Menu stuff, I'm 100% scared off! I would seriously like my geometry/overscan tuned-up, however. Is it possible (and cheaper) to hire a certified technician to just tune-up the geometry and overscan on my tv and nothing else? I'm happy with the color and stuff.

Uh...anyone have any certified tech coupons for like 30% off a visit? (heh heh) :-)

this is off topic but has anyone seen "Alien Insect: Praying Mantis" on discovery HD ?

breathtaking videography :eek:

Yes! Picture was TOO detailed for me! I had to turn it off! I hate those things LOL.

(phew!) I'm up to page 58 of these forum posts. Time to take a break and ask a question or two.

I find it odd that with an HDTV, whenever I call up the regular Sony tv menu (not the service menu), the text is kinda blurry and the borders of the menu boxes aren't very straight. Is it like that for everyone? Granted, it's just a menu and won't bother you during tv watching or game playing, but I was wondering what the science is behind that weirdness. I mean it's an HDTV - you'd think the menu text would be razor sharp. (Even increasing the sharpness doesn't help.)

AND...

After reading all the links to the Sony Service Menu stuff, I'm 100% scared off! I would seriously like my geometry/overscan tuned-up, however. Is it possible (and cheaper) to hire a certified technician to just tune-up the geometry and overscan on my tv and nothing else? I'm happy with the color and stuff.

Uh...anyone have any certified tech coupons for like 30% off a visit? (heh heh) :-)


I thought i was picky! It's only a menu, and like you said your not like your going to be spending that much time in it. I know what you mean tho about it not looking as crisp or say as "jazzy" as other high end HD sets.. I like the menu for the 970 tho alot better than any other CRT sets menu i had in the past. Very easy to navigate!

About the service menu tho, you really shouldn't be put off by it. If you do enough reading and start to understand what does what and what everything means it's real simple to work with, just takes some patience.

I thought i was picky! It's only a menu, and like you said your not like your going to be spending that much time in it. I know what you mean tho about it not looking as crisp or say as "jazzy" as other high end HD sets.. I like the menu for the 970 tho alot better than any other CRT sets menu i had in the past. Very easy to navigate!

About the service menu tho, you really shouldn't be put off by it. If you do enough reading and start to understand what does what and what everything means it's real simple to work with, just takes some patience.

Well I wouldn't return a tv set just because the menu text is blurry. I just wanted an explanation on why my 1080i stuff is really crisp, but the menu over it isn't. My god, man! It defies all logic! :eek: Run!

But seriously, folks - I'm just curious.

maybe you can get the menu ISF tuned :D

My TV doesn't look blurry at all, ever. It sounds like the focus is off. Before you have someone mess with geometry, I'd at least go into the SM and write down the geometry settings. The last time I had someone try to fix geometry, it got a lot worse. If you write down the settings before you change anything, there' s really no way you can do any harm adjusting it yourself. If you mess up, just change the settings back to where they were. There's a test pattern in the TV you can use to adjust geometry.

Ok, quick question. I've searched through this thread and didn't find the answer, so please don't bash me if the answer has already been posted.

I've hooked up my windows xp computer to the 970 using DVI ---> HDMI. My video card (nvidia 6600 gt) detetects the sony tv and says it's outputting in 1920x1080. The problem is that the start menu and other edges are cut off and not visible. I was able to correct this in the sony service menu, but then all my other inputs like cable and dvd are goofed.

Any suggestions on how to fix this?

i use "full" mode a lot for most 4x3 material, it's not that bad once you get used to it

it's good enough for watching "good eats" :D

how much longer do we have to wait till everything is switched over to HD?

Until they learn to clone the DNA of dead movie stars, raise them, and re-film all our old shows in HD. I got my shovel and a syringe, now where was it they buried Abe Vigoda? Still alive you say? Hmmm that will make the extraction slightly easier.

Thanks for the info. I mainly bought this tv for gaming, so it IS important to me. I'm currently going over each gaming console I own with this tv. I have all the component cables on order. With my busy work schedule (uhg!) so far I've only spent time with my PS2 on it, which is my major concern simply because it's primarily a 4:3 / 480i machine. It seems I had to change the screen size and vertical "correction" with each game. (Granted, I put in three games within an hour for testing, but...) You'd think if I set my PS2 to 16:9 and also switch a game option to 16:9, the image would be great, but "Rise To Honor" had the characters all stretched out like the old Cinemascope movies of old without the proper lens in. I'll be moving on to my original Xbox next.



You dont want to view any 480i/p game in widescreen. You cant do it without grossly distorting the picture. Let me know if my above settings work well on the PS2; Im pretty confident they'll do well for you on Xbox. Lord knows I spent enough time experimenting. And testing the TV too. :D

Well I wouldn't return a tv set just because the menu text is blurry. I just wanted an explanation on why my 1080i stuff is really crisp, but the menu over it isn't. My god, man! It defies all logic! :eek: Run!

But seriously, folks - I'm just curious.

Go into DRC without any input, say in an unused video mode, and switch between interlaced/progressive. See what happens. It could be a little convergence imperfection, particularly if you see color bands on the borders o f the white letters.

maybe you can get the menu ISF tuned :D

:D

You got me.

Until they learn to clone the DNA of dead movie stars, raise them, and re-film all our old shows in HD. I got my shovel and a syringe, now where was it they buried Abe Vigoda? Still alive you say? Hmmm that will make the extraction slightly easier.

there are a ton of new shows still being done in SD

the old shows are understandable obviously

but even in 4x3, old tv shows will look better in hi def also

You're looking at around $50 for a component switcher, unless you get one on ebay.

There's a JVC at Amazon that gets good ratings.

Thanks for the info. Some fella in his review said that switcher didn't have enough bandwidth to adequately pass the HD signal, and it was dropping the reds in his color. What's up with that? (Is that the "93Mhz minimum requirement for a 1080i signal" thing I read about somewhere?) I shall do more research.


About the service menu tho, you really shouldn't be put off by it. If you do enough reading and start to understand what does what and what everything means it's real simple to work with, just takes some patience.

The official Sony TV remote I ordered arrived today for my display model, so when I "grow a pair," I now have the capability to get into the service menu and fix the geometry. I find the Service Menu links in this forum to be...well let's just say it's not as simple to read as "Blah Blah Blah For Dummies" or "The Idiot's Guide To Blah Blah Blah." I'd kill for an instructional DVD showing examples of service menu tweaks. I will search for this "patience" you mention. :p

You dont want to view any 480i/p game in widescreen. You cant do it without grossly distorting the picture. Let me know if my above settings work well on the PS2; Im pretty confident they'll do well for you on Xbox. Lord knows I spent enough time experimenting. And testing the TV too. :D

It's funny. I bought this tv so I could play 4:3 games in their original size and not go under a 27" display. But after seeing some widescreen games, it's hard to go back! You're correct about picture distortion when filling the screen. With some games I can live with it, and with some it's bothersome. I guess I'll "season to taste." I'm quite happy the tv has the Wide view, where it keeps the center as normal as possible, and then slowly stretches the left and right sides. Very smart. That was one of my requirements when looking for a tv. I'm really digging this set!

Go into DRC without any input, say in an unused video mode, and switch between interlaced/progressive. See what happens. It could be a little convergence imperfection, particularly if you see color bands on the borders o f the white letters.

Oh dear. I will try this after work today. Thanks.

Ok, quick question. I've searched through this thread and didn't find the answer, so please don't bash me if the answer has already been posted.

I've hooked up my windows xp computer to the 970 using DVI ---> HDMI. My video card (nvidia 6600 gt) detetects the sony tv and says it's outputting in 1920x1080. The problem is that the start menu and other edges are cut off and not visible. I was able to correct this in the sony service menu, but then all my other inputs like cable and dvd are goofed.

Any suggestions on how to fix this?

I suppose you have tried moving the slider that controls your resolution in Display/Settings and switching to a lower resolution there? What does that do, or is it grayed-out?

there are a ton of new shows still being done in SD

the old shows are understandable obviously

but even in 4x3, old tv shows will look better in hi def also

Yeah, what is up with all the new shows in 4:3 SD? Some nights during prime time I go from NBC, to FOX, to ABC, to CBS, to the CW, and every single show is in 4:3 SD. Pathetic!

All those new copycat game/talent shows are in SD. It's bad enough that they steal the idea for a game show from another network, but then they save a few hundred bucks by producing it in 4:3 SD too?

Yeah, what is up with all the new shows in 4:3 SD? Some nights during prime time I go from NBC, to FOX, to ABC, to CBS, to the CW, and every single show is in 4:3 SD. Pathetic!

All those new copycat game/talent shows are in SD. It's bad enough that they steal the idea for a game show from another network, but then they save a few hundred bucks by producing it in 4:3 SD too?

that was my point

not digging up old movie stars and cloning their dna :D

Yeah, what is up with all the new shows in 4:3 SD? Some nights during prime time I go from NBC, to FOX, to ABC, to CBS, to the CW, and every single show is in 4:3 SD. Pathetic!

All those new copycat game/talent shows are in SD. It's bad enough that they steal the idea for a game show from another network, but then they save a few hundred bucks by producing it in 4:3 SD too?

I know here in Richmond sometimes the local stations will goof up and not switch between HD/SD. A rep from one of the channels (this was a few years ago) actually posted and apologized that the operator had forgotten to switch back to HD after a commercial. That's right they actually had a guy manully switching resolutions. I believe it's done with software now. but I still see errors occasionally.

I know here in Richmond sometimes the local stations will goof up and not switch between HD/SD. A rep from one of the channels (this was a few years ago) actually posted and apologized that the operator had forgotten to switch back to HD after a commercial. That's right they actually had a guy manully switching resolutions. I believe it's done with software now. but I still see errors occasionally.

Speaking of errors, can anyone explain why some Fox HD programming through rabbit ears only comes out my right speaker unless I switch the audio to "WOW" mode? All other channels are fine. Weak signal maybe? The picture looks great, however.

I was hesitant myself to fool around with the service menu. But after fooling around with certain functions in terms of geometry and stuff, I found the TV to look improved. Granted, it's still not 100% nor will it ever be, but I definately see improvements. If you follow the link I posted on P. 65 you can download the service manual for this TV absolutely free. It will give you instructions on how to access the service manual on your TV and gives you precise calibrations to make your TV perform at its best.

I would also look at the manual posted under the "Sony Service Codes" thread. Even though it's for a different model (XBR 910 or something) the manual posted there has descriptions for what the various SM items actually do, which is something that's missing from the XBR970 manual you refer to.

Also, if you decide to print out the XBR 970 manual, good luck, because the service menu pages are supposed to go onto 11 x 17" pages, I believe.

But, yeah, geometry is not that hard to fix, it just takes some patience and writing down your original settings. The thing to watch out for is that sometimes the changes you make for one input or resolution will mess up other inputs or resolutions. So watch out for that.

I don't think they spend more than a few seconds at the factory calibrating these things, so someone with a little more time and patience can often do a better job than someone at the factory. Sometimes, that is.

I was hesitant myself to fool around with the service menu. But after fooling around with certain functions in terms of geometry and stuff, I found the TV to look improved. Granted, it's still not 100% nor will it ever be, but I definately see improvements. If you follow the link I posted on P. 65 you can download the service manual for this TV absolutely free. It will give you instructions on how to access the service manual on your TV and gives you precise calibrations to make your TV perform at its best.

Thank you. I now have the manual. (It wouldn't download yesterday.) :mad:

I would also look at the manual posted under the "Sony Service Codes" thread. Even though it's for a different model (XBR 910 or something) the manual posted there has descriptions for what the various SM items actually do, which is something that's missing from the XBR970 manual you refer to.

Got it. Thank you.

The thing to watch out for is that sometimes the changes you make for one input or resolution will mess up other inputs or resolutions. So watch out for that.

Well I'm a bit confused on this part. I've read there are adjustments that are universal, but I've also read that each input and each resolution needs to be adjusted separately. (How many resolutions are there per input again?) Sounds like there is a general adjustment section in the service menu for all the inputs as a group, and then you can go deeper into the menu and fine tune each input and resolution from there if you want. Is that correct?

I suppose you have tried moving the slider that controls your resolution in Display/Settings and switching to a lower resolution there? What does that do, or is it grayed-out?

Yeah, I have tried other resolutions as well. 640x480 is the only one that fits within the screen with out overscan, but thats just not going to cut it.

All the other's I've tried have overscan as well. The best looking one so far is 1280x720.

I found out about a program called powerstrip. So far everysetting I've tried so far does not work at all. The screen is just black as if there's no signal. Powerstrip is supposed to be great for htpc folks. Has anybody else here tried it with the xbr970? Can you tell me what timing settings you used?

Thank you. I now have the manual. (It wouldn't download yesterday.) :mad:



Got it. Thank you.



Well I'm a bit confused on this part. I've read there are adjustments that are universal, but I've also read that each input and each resolution needs to be adjusted separately. (How many resolutions are there per input again?) Sounds like there is a general adjustment section in the service menu for all the inputs as a group, and then you can go deeper into the menu and fine tune each input and resolution from there if you want. Is that correct?

Geometry is the same for all modes and inputs. If you plan on adjusting overscan too, the horizontal in wide zoom is seperate from the other modes, vertical is the same in all modes including wide zoom. If you've got a good test pattern, you'll probably find convergence is a little off too.

Speaking of errors, can anyone explain why some Fox HD programming through rabbit ears only comes out my right speaker unless I switch the audio to "WOW" mode? All other channels are fine. Weak signal maybe? The picture looks great, however.

"WOW" indeed, lol. Thats weird. Usually video drops out before audio on a bad signal. I bet somebody is fouling up at your local Fox digital tower and broadcasting in mono instead of stereo. Just tonight my local CBS station forgot to run commercials on their digital channel, so during commercial breaks there was 4 minutes of blackness, then back to the program :D . It's freaky to see 98% signal strength and a black screen, lol.

I'll be glad when the stations drop their analogue signals so they can devote all their energy do doing the digital stuff right.

Yeah, I have tried other resolutions as well. 640x480 is the only one that fits within the screen with out overscan, but thats just not going to cut it.

All the other's I've tried have overscan as well. The best looking one so far is 1280x720.

I found out about a program called powerstrip. So far everysetting I've tried so far does not work at all. The screen is just black as if there's no signal. Powerstrip is supposed to be great for htpc folks. Has anybody else here tried it with the xbr970? Can you tell me what timing settings you used?

Yeah, I have tried other resolutions as well. 640x480 is the only one that fits within the screen with out overscan, but thats just not going to cut it.

All the other's I've tried have overscan as well. The best looking one so far is 1280x720.

I found out about a program called powerstrip. So far everysetting I've tried so far does not work at all. The screen is just black as if there's no signal. Powerstrip is supposed to be great for htpc folks. Has anybody else here tried it with the xbr970? Can you tell me what timing settings you used?

I think 1280x720 may be the best you'll do with this set. Problem is, its horizontal resolution is much lower than a 1920x1080 which is commonly considered "1080" on PC monitors. I think it's only 853. So even if you get the 1920x1080 sized correctly, it will pixelate.

I tried Powerstrip once and it seemed like malware to me, but some people love it. I doubt it will fix your problem, as you're up against the mechanical limitations of this set.

Hey, all. It's me again. I finally had a day off from work and had time to watch my 1st DVD movie on my new tv. I was psyched because I never got to see a movie in 480p at home. I had trouble following the storyline because my eyes were darting all over the tv, looking for geometry issues, messing with the different display features on the menu, changing the sound output, etc. Anyhow, the 480p looked odd when there was movement on the screen. So I switched the DVD player to 480i and used the CineMotion feature on my tv. Much much better. I suppose it only applies to 24 fps features, but I found it odd that 480i in this case was superior to 480p. Who would have thunk it? Anyone else experience this?

Hey, all. It's me again. I finally had a day off from work and had time to watch my 1st DVD movie on my new tv. I was psyched because I never got to see a movie in 480p at home. I had trouble following the storyline because my eyes were darting all over the tv, looking for geometry issues, messing with the different display features on the menu, changing the sound output, etc. Anyhow, the 480p looked odd when there was movement on the screen. So I switched the DVD player to 480i and used the CineMotion feature on my tv. Much much better. I suppose it only applies to 24 fps features, but I found it odd that 480i in this case was superior to 480p. Who would have thunk it? Anyone else experience this?

Yes, I thought I was the only one who was experiencing this. 480p looked so bad, I actually went back to 480i over S-video because it looked better, if you can believe that.

What I did to solve the problem was get an upscaling DVD player and started using HDMI instead of component. I suspect it may have been the component inputs not looking good as they should have, for some reason I never which I really figured out. My DVD's looked very awful, with all kinds of jagged lines, like I was watching a video taken on a cell phone or something.

So that would be my suggestion, try out an upscaling DVD player and an HDMI cable and see what you think. And then just return it if it you aren't happy. I got the $100 Sony DVP-NS77H at Target and DVD's look really nice now, everything I hoped for and more.

Yes, I thought I was the only one who was experiencing this. 480p looked so bad, I actually went back to 480i over S-video because it looked better, if you can believe that.

What I did to solve the problem was get an upscaling DVD player and started using HDMI instead of component. I suspect it may have been the component inputs not looking good as they should have, for some reason I never which I really figured out. My DVD's looked very awful, with all kinds of jagged lines, like I was watching a video taken on a cell phone or something.

So that would be my suggestion, try out an upscaling DVD player and an HDMI cable and see what you think. And then just return it if it you aren't happy. I got the $100 Sony DVP-NS77H at Target and DVD's look really nice now, everything I hoped for and more.

Cool! Thanks. My HDMI input is getting lonely - I have nothing for it until I get a PS3, which, thanks to a recent update, now upscales DVDs to 1080i I think. So I'll hang on to the CineMotion for a while until some PS3 money comes my way. Thanks again for confirming I'm not crazy. (Well, not entirely crazy.) :)

Cool! Thanks. My HDMI input is getting lonely - I have nothing for it until I get a PS3, which, thanks to a recent update, now upscales DVDs to 1080i I think. So I'll hang on to the CineMotion for a while until some PS3 money comes my way. Thanks again for confirming I'm not crazy. (Well, not entirely crazy.) :)

It could also be that the dvd player you are using has a poor deinterlacing chip compared to your televisons... which would account for the crappy picture quality.

Basically your tv is doing a better job at scaling to 480p than your dvd player...

You may need to change the video settings on the player. For most material I leave mine on auto, but sometimes I need to toggle between film, video active and video normal to make the picture look the best I can.

where do i get a pattern generator for my xbr 970...and what do i do with it ?

If you go to the very end of the service menu settings, you'll see some that are in a different font. Go through those and find the one thats called PATN and use the 3 and 6 on the remote to page through them.

Once you have the one you want, then use the 1 and 3 or 2 and 5 to got to the geometry section to make your changes.

Then go back to PATN and turn the pattern off before saving your settings and exiting.

thanx i'll give it a try...this is my first go at the service menu....i have a slight drop in the upper left of my XBR 970....

If you go to the very end of the service menu settings, you'll see some that are in a different font. Go through those and find the one thats called PATN and use the 3 and 6 on the remote to page through them.

Once you have the one you want, then use the 1 and 3 or 2 and 5 to got to the geometry section to make your changes.

Then go back to PATN and turn the pattern off before saving your settings and exiting.

See! Now that's written in a way I can understand! Write a full "34XBR970 Calibration for Dummies" book and I'll pay you a billion dollars! :D

has anyone had similar problems with thier 970

See! Now that's written in a way I can understand! Write a full "34XBR970 Calibration for Dummies" book and I'll pay you a billion dollars! :DSend the money first...........

Send the money first...........

Uh....er....

Gotta go now. :o

i must be stupid.....i cant find the test patterns in the service menu...can anyone help me understand the service menu any better

You can't fix horizontal problems in the SM. There's one horizontal adjustment for the middle of the screen, that's all. When you say a slight drop in the upper left, I'm guessing it's horizontal. I've had 3 of these TVs and all of them sloped down slightly in the upper corners. It's only really visable on 2.35:1 movies when looking for it.

yes you are correct.....any straight line slopes down on the upper left....especially on 2.35:1 movies...is there any way to fix this

Did you find the items that are in the different font? If you enter the service menu and use the "2" on the remote it goes through groups of settings and will get you to the end much faster. When you get to the ones in the different font, use the 1 and 3 buttons to go up and down through the items individually.

Make sure you write your original settings before you save anything.

In the thread entitled "The Sony Service Codes" there is an Exel spreadsheet file you can download. It's for another XBR model (XBR 910?) but if you print it out it's a pretty good road map, even though it's slightly different than the 970.

What's most useful is that it tells you what many of the SM items actually do.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=531494&page=1

The Excel spreadsheet link is about a quarter of the way down the page. There are also some PDF files also, but I like the Excel one better.

thank you....ill try it....i dont know why the slight bow is bothering me so much

You can't fix horizontal problems in the SM. There's one horizontal adjustment for the middle of the screen, that's all.

So is it safe to say that horizontal bowing problems can only be solved with magnets? My screen text seems to have a slight "frown" look on the top and bottom. Middle seems fine. And is "bowing" the right term?

He's talking about convergence problems, not geometry.

The "Bow" at the top or bottom of the screen can be fixed with either VCEN or HCEN, I can't remember which. Try 'em both.

If you correct the bow at the top of the screen, watch out you don't throw off the bottom of the screen too much, and vice versa.

I think there is a middle pincusion setting you can play with too.

I have the same problem, but it does not bother me too much, so I'm leaving it alone for now.

Be careful, because if you destroy your TV's geometry, I may not be have the patience to walk you through trying to fix it.

How is the picture quality when watching dvds at 480p? Theoretically, you should be able to get a brighter picture with this input. I can somewhat understand the problem getting SD to look great, but it seems that dvds ought to look very good.

For DVDs, use the Standard picture setting. Set Picture at about 75%, Brightness to 80-90%, Color & Hue to 50%, Sharpness to 40%. Use Neutral Color Temp and set ClearEdge to Low. Use DRC "CineMotion." Make sure your dvd is outputting 480p.

Please let me know how this looks.

Is there a way to program settings based on input source. I just got this set and just have the non-digital cable coming into the tv. If I had another component set up already, I could (maybe!) figure this out on my own. Otherwise, I guess I'll have to resort to sticky notes!

Via the QAM, I pick up 11 local stations in digital. Those that are 720/16:19 display with the black bars on each side. ok, I guess that's due to the 720. Can someone help me understand why 2 1080 stations display differently? One comes in and fills the entire screen. One displays the same way all the other 720 stations do with the black sidebars.