Official Samsung LNxxD630 Owner's Thread - Page 13

Well if you turn off AMP and send the TV a 24 fps source, then press the INFO button on the remote, what do you get? I get a response showing 24 fps. Ditto with AMP set to Clear, where I get no stuttering or other artifacts.

Yes it does say 1080p@24hz but I think it's just displaying the signal that it is receiving and not actually displaying 24p properly if it's set to Off instead of Custom with the mentioned settings. If set to Custom with those settings then it would be properly displaying 24p (based on CNET's review) and not just displaying the signal being received.

According to CNET (they have the only other review that mentions 24p playback):


Not exactly the best of both worlds if the image has very noticeable frame skipping. I wonder how CNET could have missed this, it was the first thing I noticed after setting it up.

I don't know if CNET is 100% reliable on audio-video stuff. But putting CNET aside for the moment, what do you think YOU would see on your TV if the INFO button told you 1080px24 and it was actually displaying a 24fps picture and not a 60fps picture? In other words, what would the visual difference be?

When I had it set to Custom with the mentioned settings, things looked a bit sharper/clearer than Off but that's probably because AMP was still engaged to an extent.

The thing is, if I set it to Off, then how do I know for sure that the TV is properly displaying 24p content? That's what I'm trying to figure out. It does say 1080p@24Hz but that is what it's receiving, just like my smaller Samsung 720p LCD displays 1080i@60Hz when watching Cable TV. Unfortunately Samsung doesn't say anything about 24p in their specs unlike LG which mentions a "Real Cinema" mode for 24p content.

What gives you the idea that it's receiving 24fps (not 24p!) and displaying something else, or are you just suspicious?

My real question is whether you, personally know what you would actually see on the TV that would tell you that the picture was being shown at 24fps instead of at some other rate. I mean, is this a purely academic discussion, or is there some key attribute you would see in a 24 fps mode that you don't think you're seeing on this TV.

I'm a little "suspicious" I guess you could say that it is displaying 24p correctly because I'm no longer using the settings suggested to achieve 24p playback according to CNET (one of the few reviews to mention 24p playback and that's why I keep mentioning CNET). Although like you mentioned CNET could be wrong regarding those settings.

I was looking at another thread here from a while ago, as well as other threads here and other forums and the posters said that if the TV is 120Hz it will use 5:5 pulldown, repeating each frame 5 times. I already know that, I just can't determine if the TV is actually doing that, but since it says 1080p@24Hz, it would appear to be doing just that.

The reason I am "suspicious" is that there are very few reviews of this TV that go into 24p playback and the CNET review is the only one I have seen that has in depth information regarding 1080p/24 playback and since I am no longer using their settings due to the frame skipping, I don't know for sure if the TV is displaying it correctly.

I'm not trying to annoy you or anything, I just like to be sure about things.

I'm not annoyed, just puzzled. Since you got rid of the frame skipping problem, is there anything else you don't like about the picture quality, and if not, what makes you think you're missing out on something?

You are getting and viewing 24fps no matter what AMP setting you have it on. It looked "clearer" to you because the AMP was creating frames that did not exist before and taking out some of the blur. As in this thread and other threads on the web about AMP, it rarely works for all video sources all the time and it is a matter of viewing taste if you like how it looks or not. To get the true image the bluray is supposed to be showing you should have AMP off anyway. I find that I kinda like it on Standard for some action movies but usually just leave it off.

Out of curiosity, does any other manufacturer's version of the AMP feature work better than Samsung's?

They're all the same. I really thought, when buying this set, that it would support a 120hz input. Now I'm more informed and disappointed with this market lol.

The thing about 24fps, AMP, 120HZ, etc is a curious thing to me. Why?

Well, when you used to go to the theater to view a film, it was loaded with blur and judder because of the 24fps. Horizontal panning was horrible at times. Yet some people "want" that? Not sure I get it.

As many view points on this subject as there are opinions for others things.

Well, fast forward to now. Have you noticed with the new digital projectors in movies houses that the "video" is now pretty rock stable? Little or no motion artifacts at all. So one has to ask themselves about what a true "movie experience" is anymore and will that now change?

Oh. . .. that and I have already noticed gray scale is off on some projectors so much that tint can be seen in B&W shots.

Well that may be true, but comparing it vs other 60Hz televisions this set's picture quality is still superior. I have a Samsung LN32A550 that I bought 3 years ago and although I still love it, it's picture isn't nearly as beautiful as the LN40D630's. I actually paid about $300 more for the A550 3 years ago than I did on the D630 last summer. I also bought the BB product protection plan that I never needed on the A550, and I didn't bother with the D630 that I bought on sale on Amazon.

Granted that technology drops in price periodically, but do we really need the higher frame rate? I argue that we don't. At least not now, but it is nice that we have the feature available. I have shut off the AMP feature and I am still extremely happy with the quality, and I have compared the two TV's side by side. They are both calibrated and both look good while playing Blu Rays, but the D630 is just a more breathtaking picture.

I don't know that 120Hz (or 240Hz) is really that beneficial and it could just end up making movies less believable by making the image too smooth. You can’t add detail beyond what is in the source footage. I believe it is really just a marketing tool to get people to spend the extra money on the "more advanced" or so called top of the line sets. As we have seen with this set the extra frames cause more problems and make the material less realistic. Fortunately most of us didn't pay substantially more for this feature and we still got a great TV.

In response to pbarach, I have an LG 42 inch 120 hz. LED with LG's TruMotion interpolation feature, and it works much better than Samsung's AMP. No frame skipping, ghosting, blurring or other artifacts, even on the highest setting, and it is customizable like AMP. It does introduce soap opera effect, but I anticipated that, and I actually like the effect for some video based content and sports.. I just bought the LN40D630 for the bedroom, and I am disappointed by AMP's performance. It's very buggy and not nearly as good as LG's version, and, IMO, it is not worth the price premium you pay for it. In addition to that, I feel that this set has fairly poor viewing angles and the picture washes out pretty quickly when moving off center. With all that said, though, this set does have a gorgeous picture when viewed dead on, with virtually no flashlighting, and the black levels are like nothing I've ever seen before on an LCD TV. Having gotten used to watching the LG TV for a couple of years, with it's notoriously weak black levels, I had forgotten what real black looks like on a TV, and I was pleasantly stunned. So, all in all, I think this set is a keeper. For those who are interested, my panel is version SN02, manufactured November 2011.

Has anyone had any problems getting their cable remote to work? I'm getting picture, sound, etc. fine, but can't change the channel. Oddly, I'm only having this problem when the cable box is plugged into the HDMI 2 port. If I plug it into any other port it's fine.

Not the biggest problem in the world, but it's annoying.

After I read your comment, I found the CNET review of this set and tried all of the picture settings they recommended. The result was a much better picture than I got with the Spears and Munsil disc, except that I turned up the sharpness somewhat (I think CNET wanted it at zero). Much better detail in the dark areas, better white balance. As for the AMP, I'm happy when it's set to CLEAR or OFF; otherwise I get noticeable frame skipping on many sources.

Can you customize the settings and save it as a profile so if you screw it up you can go back to your default settings?

I can't find the settings you mention in the cnet review. could you please post them here or provide a URL?

Thanks.

I've had the 40d630 for a week now, and a couple of things are really bothering me. First, the viewing angles on this set are horrible. I can't move more than a foot to the left or right of center without experiencing severe washout. I have four LCD TV's and this one has by far the worst viewing angles of them all. Heck, even my cheapie Insignia 37" is better in this respect. Is it just me, or are some of you guys and gals bummed out about this too? The other thing is that Auto Motion Plus, as mentioned often in this thread, just does not work properly on all settings. On anything other than "Clear" or "Off", there is that annoying and random frame skipping every 10 seconds or so. I feel like I paid a one hundred dollar premium over the d550 for a feature that is basically useless. I know I said before that I thought this set was a keeper, but now I'm having second thoughts about it. Luckily, I still have a couple of weeks to return it and will use that time to explore some other options.

Just received a Samsung LN46D550 for our museum's introductory video which is approximately seven minutes long. I am curious about the USB input. Does anyone know if I put the video on a Flash Drive (at one of the acceptable formats) whether the TV is capable of playing it in a repeat mode?

No, but there is a way to reset the TV to its default settings. What I did before trying the cnet settings was to take digital photos of all of the TV setup screens as I had them, so I could reset to what I'd been using. It only takes 10 minutes or so to go through every setting.

Here ya go:
http://forums.cnet.com/7723-19410_10...ateThreadPopup

I didn't like their decision to set the Sharpness to zero, so I used the Spears and Munsil calibration disc and found the somewhere in the low 40s was as high as I could go without aliasing. Also, I liked the backlight 1 or 2 numbers higher than CNET did. I found, as others have, that their recommended settings for AutoMotion caused frame-skipping, so I use that feature set tp either Clear or Off.

How bright is your viewing room? Mine is rather dark (i.e., a single 40-watt light behind the TV, lighting up the wall behind the set. With viewing angles of up to 35 degrees or so from center, I see no washout.

I have this TV in my bedroom and lighting varies depending on time of day. In daytime, I typically have a 100 watt incandescent and a 60 watt equivalent compact fluorescent on. When I watch TV at night, I reduce this to a pair of 25 watt incandescents. In any case, I see significant washout in any lighting condition, even in complete darkness. Maybe I just got unlucky and received a lousy panel, except that the picture looks beautiful when viewed dead on. This, and the fact that the TV has a fantastic (for an LCD) black level lead me to believe that it is probably a VA panel which as we know don't have the best viewing angles. Thanks for your input.

Edit: When I clicked on the link to the cnet settings provided by pbarach, I read that the "SN" panels are apparently made by Chi Mei Optoelectronics, whereas the "SQ" panels are made by Samsung. Mine is an "SN". Perhaps this is the reason for the sub-standard viewing angles. In any case, I am at home watching this TV now as I write this, and I think I just fell in love with it all over again. This set has a completely uniform inky black screen with no flashlighting or clouding at all. I've never experienced that before with an LCD, and I don't think I'd want to part with it now. And since I do all of my critical viewing dead on anyway, I guess I can live with the viewing angle problem.

Yes it will play in repeat mode.
You should use this thread for your model
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1325412

My Samsung has an SN panel and the viewing angle is pretty good compared to the typical LCD. Not sure why yours is so bad. I haven't really tinkered with the settings other than adjusting brightness and backlight level.

Maybe I am overstating the case about the viewing angles, after all, all LCD TV's suffer from this problem to one extent or another. It just seems that the LN40D630 is a little worse in this respect than other LCD/LED TV's that I have, or have had. And, looking through this thread, I have seen that I am not the only one who has commented on this. From SEMIjim on page 2... "It does very well in a very brightly-lit room. Better than our old Philips 37PF7320A. Off-axis viewing is not as good as our old Philips was." Italics are mine. Anyway, I am so thrilled with the picture on this TV in all other respects that I am willing to overlook the weak viewing angles and give it a permanent home in my bedroom.

other subject: samsung hdmi input

why the HDMI/DVI (for PC) input can not handle sound like other's hdmi input

alll my hdmi inputs are connected...so i have to pass a long audio cable SPDF (optical )from my PC to my amplifier..............

or next to the the HDMI/DVI (for PC) input ,a little cable in the 1/8'' input.

hdmi input with no sound :what is the purpose?

thanks

A couple of observations. One thing is that you are watching in a bedroom which could mean you are closer to the tv than if it were in a larger room. Second, in addition to having satellite I also have a rooftop antenna. Last night I was watching some of the Daytona 500 using the Samsung tuner. I noticed practically no washout when viewing from about a 30 deg angle and only a little at about 40 deg. My point is that the washout may have a lot to do with the quality of the signal you ate getting. The ota signal is uncompressed or compressed very little so it is higher quality. Just a thought.

Mine has terrible side viewing angles as well. My 5 year old low end Vizio doesn't washout as bad as the Samsung! On upside is that the picture is amazing when not viewing at an angle! I also was watching the Daytona 500 last night but started watching it on my old Vizio and later on went downstairs and watched the rest on the Samsung and man what a difference!

When I watch TV in the bedroom, it is usually sitting at my computer desk which is about 6 feet from the TV. But I swivel the TV so I am viewing dead center and the picture is incredible. I only notice the washout if I get up and move about the room in which case the picture deteriorates pretty quickly. Good point you make about OTA vs. cable/satellite though as I too have noticed that I get a cleaner picture OTA with a rabbit ear antenna than with my cable box, which is also a Samsung lol. Unfortunately, OTA reception in my bedroom is terrible. I live in a ground floor apartment and cannot have a rooftop antenna. The only way I can get any reception at all is to connect a long extension cable from the antenna to the RF jack on the TV, and then hang the antenna out the window. And, I live in New York City, about ten miles from the Empire State Building where the television transmitting towers are located!! Still, it is sometimes preferable to do this for the superior picture quality I get OTA.