27" HDTV Recommendations - Page 8  

CousinJerry,

The only fallback that I can find(I have a Zenith C27V36 HDTV) is that when fed a high def signal(720p or 1080i. It only displays HD at 1080i) this TV auto compresses image into 16:9 window. Black bars on top and bottom. This cannot be changed by any aspect ratio on a set-top box or, I would assume, any HTPC. This is just the way it is. When fed any digital(480i or 480p) signal, the aspect ratio can be changed from either 4:3 or 16:9. Zenith's other model with the built in tuner, 32 inch model(C32V37) or 34 inch model(C34V37) has a built in adjustment that does change the aspect ratio, even on high def signals.

I know that Sony models (HS500 series and XBR) had a fix for this. It was called the "jump fix" and it was accomplished by entering the service menu. This "fix" allowed the viewer to watch HDTV at 4:3 and not forced to watch the 16:9 box. I have not seen anyone post a fix for the V36 series from Zenith via the service menu.

Cousin-

I can confirm that you can adjust aspect ratio with the V22. I use mine for an HTPC display. It is connected to the RGB (VGA) port from a Radeon 9000 card. For surfing and desktop work (like now), 640 x 480 @ 540p timings works well with a full screen and almost no overscan (~ 1 - 2 %). 1280 x 960i @ 1080i timings works great for DVD viewing.

dayvo,

Do you watch SD TV with your HTPC? If so, how does it look?

Without the the good linedoubler does the v22 still look decent with SDTV??

Cousin -

I do watch SD TV, both using the built in tuner in the c27v22 and using a WinPVR USB2 tuner in the HTPC. Quality for analog cable is about equivalent with either one -- some channels are better than others. The built in tuner might have a slight edge, but the HTPC lets me pause and record. Overall, SD cable is decent (better than my old 27" ProScan). I haven't tried digital cable through S-video in -- that probabley looks better than analog. I also use a MyHD 120 ATSC tuner card in the HTPC for over the air HD broadcasts -- that looks really good.

cc has the Zenith c27v36 on sale and in stock.