New Syntax Olevia TV models - Page 8

nope, still a ways off...

After reading the positive reviews on this forum, I bought Olevia 532H from MicroCenter yesterday.

I have Comcast basic cable service. The 532H detected all the available analog channels as well as the digital channels. The picture quality is great when showing the analog channels. However, when changed to digital channels, the picture became corrupted and there were lots of lost frames. The audio was also corrupted.

Not clear whether the problem was caused by the poor signal or the 532H itself, I borrowed a Sharp Aquos LCD TV from friend. The Sharp TV can recieve all the digital channels without problem although it did complain one of digital channels too weak (only one channel). So the problem is indeed caused by 532H.

BTW, the PQ of 532H is better than Sharp and the flexible zoom capability is much better.

I really like 532H if not for the QAM problem. BrotherChao, can this problem be fixed through firmware?

Does anybody else see the same problem?

ca_bigwolf

I would harass comcast since it's probably a signal level problem that they can fix. I know TW will work with you to make sure that signal levels are high enough to properly receive channels.

Hi Snowmoon,

At the beginning I thought the picture corruptions and lost frames may be caused by the low signal level from the cable. But since the Sharp Aquos LCD TV can receive the digital channels w/o any problem, I am thinking the problem may be with the QAM tuner in the Olevia 532H. At the minimum, the 532H QAM tuner may not be as sensitive as the one in Sharp Aquos.

I made the buy decision based on info from this forum that there is QAM support in 532H in addition to all the other nice features. But now I am wondering why Syntax does not officially claim the support of clear QAM. Is it possible the QAM tuner does not work as well as it should?

Other than QAM, 532H works great, especially the picture quality and the flexible zoom options. Unfortunately, QAM is a deal breaker for me and I may have to return the TV to MicroCenter if there is no easy fix for the QAM problem (through the firmware update). It is quite disappointing indeed since I have been waiting for the 532H from MicroCenter for several weeks and rushed to the store once it's in.

ca_bigwolf

ca_bigwolf, I can just say that when I hooked my cable directly into my 532H and used the Auto tune feature here in Central florida with BrightHouse cable, I was surprised at the amount of channels found. I had only attempted this one other time with a different set, a Philips CRT Widescreeen claiming QAM support and the results were pathetic. That said, I do not use that feature at the moment as I have a few days left on my Free trial 1 month HD cable box left. When thats done, I will be using QAM all the time and will report back if I see the issues you are experiencing. Could very well be a sensitivity and or signal strength issue.

ca_bigwolf,

Get 10 TV's and hook them up to a marginal signal and you will get 10 results. Examine the cable and get comcast involved before writing off the TV. Your signal may very well be substandard and need work, you may be splitting it too many time, or the signal at the demark might be poor too.

Call Comcast. You are paying for a full powered signal, so get it and be happy.

I agree with this completely and wish that I had know to do it more aggressively, story as follows:

I moved into a new house that had marginal inside the walls wiring (or so I was told). No problem if you are a subscriber to HBO (and/or maybe CineMax and others...) you have CableGuard (just like the stuff you get from the phone company, LineBacker?). They are supposed to make it work with no cost to you....

It started with a separate new line from the "pedestal" for broadband, all good here.

HD channels were hit or miss at best, some worked some of the time, this was blamed on faulty equipment, fortunately it was their Moto 6412 PIII that was replaced, twice!

However after three trips with less intelligent "contractors" with the last one involving a "roof pen" (roof penetration) to run a new line from the pedestal that worked while they were there and did not work at night, I had to escalate, again. They finally sent a real Comcast employee out who did what should have been done the first call: Meter out the signal at the pedestal taking into account that HD signals are more demanding. He found a "bad splice" about 30 yards away in the submerged RG-2 that feeds my house. He fixed it, and ever since I have had NO HD problems, the 6412 still locks up for fun every couple of weeks, but that is a different thread. :-)

Bottom line, make them fix it, make them send a real Comcast person, one who gets paid no matter how long it takes as opposed to a contractor who is only thinking about how to get to the next job....

I did get several days worth of credit, that I had to call and request several times since they disappeared off my account after they were promised.

I received my 532H last Friday. Set it up like any other TV but get no power. I tried different outlets, differnet power cables and nothing. I called Syntax tech suport and they said make sure the power switch next to the plug-in on the back of the unit (for the power cable) is switched to on? Huh? I am at work now and don't have the LCD in front of me, can anyone with one easily check to see if there indeed is such a switch. Again, not the power on the front, but supposedly some switch on the back. I don't recall seeing such a switch and the manual says nothing about it. Thanks in advance.

Hi justlearnin,

The Syntax tech support is correct. There is indeed a power switch on 532H. The switch is next to the plug-in on the back of the unit. When turned off, the switch will shut down the 532H completely (remote or the power-on button in the front of the TV will no longer work). After turning on the switch, the 532H will work as other TVs.

Thanks very much. Well they must have shipped that with that off. Of course the manual has nothing about the switch.

Thanks again.

Ya, I think they should put some sort of Huge note about that switch on front of the protective plastic which covers up the LCD screen. I did the exact same thing when I received my 532H. Plugged it in, thought I turned it on and nothing. I about died. Then I thought to look around the back and accidentally found that main power switch - just like on an external computer drive.

How much was the 532H at Microcenter? I can't find it on their website.

Thanks!

I am deciding between the new 532 for a very good price, the old 37" (LT37) for about $200 more or the new 37" (537) for $200 more then the old. The new 532 is at a very good price. I will mainly be using it for TV (HD and SD) and DVDs. Is the new 537 that much better than the old 37"? Is the new MTK chip and better zoom functions in the 537 worth the extra money over the old LT37 and new 532 (with ATI chip)? Even though I'm fine with the 32" size, since I plan on keeping it for several years, I'm thinking of the 37", but not sure if it's worth the extra $400 to get the latest 37".

Thanks for your advice!

i've said it before, and i'll say it again. don't touch the old stuff.

here's some news for you guys :
i'm now officially a syntax customer. i've owned an HP3200N (repadged sharp) for several months now. but i was finally able to score a good deal, so i decided to take the 532. i've never been on this side of the product before, so i'm keeping my fingers crossed

I got the 532H for [EDIT] from MicroCenter's Santa Clara, CA store. [EDIT]

Hi BroChaos,

Do you have info on whether the QAM tuner in 537H is the same as in 532H?

Thanks,

ca_bigwolf

hi guys,
i've been using comcast cable for years and i've decided to switch to directv. my question is: does the 532H need a HD receiver from directv for it to have HD picture or will a regular receive give HD picture as well ?
thx guys.

Regards the 747i, how can a set slated for September release still be "a ways off", as indicated by one insider?

The Samsung 4096 was slated for June release and it was postponed at least until August and possibly til September, lol.

@tulong: any time you are using satellite and you want HD, you need a box.

@badself: they are being very picky about the 7 series. you don't just put an HQV chipset in a tv and toss it out into the market. the fine tuning of the set is going a little slower than they probably expected. but when a set has 5 video processors, it takes a while to make sure they are each doing the same thing the right way.

@ca_bigwolf: the tuners should be the same. i believe the tuners are done by philips.

BroChaos,

Speaking of HQV - I just though of something.


Do you know what level of control the user will have with regards to turning features on and off? For example, I know that the SD noise reduction with HQV is the best - however, it also is slow.

Will the user be able to turn off the noise reduction for use with a 480p game console (such as X-box or gamecube)? If not, console games may end up being 'unplayable' in terms of response time.

Another question for BroChaos:

Any chance of adding a SPDIF output to the 532H via a firmware update?

Lack of a digital audio output is the only reason I haven't ordered the 532H yet.

BroChaos,

I am dying to get my hands on the 537, but I can't seem to find them beyond a few e-tailers. Would you happen to know when other retailers might be getting them in stock? Thanks!

Just got my 537H from datavision. So far I am very impressed. I know it's comparing apples to oranges, but much nicer than my "last gen???" LT26HVX.

Watching SD in Full Screen mode actually looks good. This must be the Big Picture tech.

I am amazed at how good plain old SD looks with my 42" Syntax (last years model.) I usually use panoramic mode, but any of them look good, including 4:3. Given that there is still a ton of SD programming, this can't be underrated in an HDTV. There are plenty of HDTVs that are terrible with SD. Hats off to Syntax. Even my plain jane TIVO is totally watchable.

Believe me, I'm not knocking the set. I believe it may be worth the wait. Any idea what the mass of the 747i will be, at a guess?

@raistlin as far as i know you should have a pretty good deal of control. i haven't messed with them too much, but i know there is an "idea" menu, where you would control those things. i'll try to remember to take a look tomorrow.

@n4fw i coulda sworn the 532 had digital optical out, but i guess i'm wrong? are the jacks there?

@hdtv2b the sets are available in quantity. we had just pushed out all of our old inventory, so i'm sure the retailers are trying to get rid of that. as soon as they do, the new stuff should be on its way. i know office depot has the 4 series in stock. the 4 series will be like the 5, with a few "advanced" features removed. i know other places have them too, just can't think of any names right now...but most of the retail stores on our "where to buy" list should be getting them at some point.

@badself i'm guessing it's gonna be heavy. i would prolly take the weight of the lt42hvi, and add about 15lbs to that. that glass is thick stuff.

Has anyone bought the 542i yet?

Questions:

1) Does it have audio optical out so I can listen to HDTV through the built in tuner with 5.1 surround sound?
2) Does it have a QAM tuner?
3) Does the picture quality beat the lt42 last years model.
4) How is the SD quality, this is very important to me.

My 537H arrived yesterday. Ordered from DataVision on Monday, shipped on Wednesday via 5-day ground. Customer service was helpful when I called to get the tracking number for the TV (wasn't on the shipping confirmation e-mail). Took a few attempts but they called the supplier (item is drop-shipped from CA) whilst I was on hold and got all the details.

Anyway, I'm very pleased with the set. It found all of the over the air HD channels available here - more than my Tosh 56MX195 gets. SD channels are poor - as with the Tosh and the HD channels seem slightly affected by the bad weather we had last night. All OK now though. Channel and input switching is much faster than the Tosh.

The picture from my SD DVD and TiVo boxes looks good. The 1:1 aspect setting shows how much work the TV is actually doing in filling the screen from such a small input image!

The remote control is also good. Lights-up when you press a key but the lettering isn't illuminated! Nice feel though. I was able to set it up to work with my Apex DVD but not with the TiVo Series 1. Anyone have the code for that?

Minor gripes

• you have to scroll through all of the inputs to get to the one you want
• same with devices on the remote control
• the osd revolving cylindrical hexagon thing is a nice idea but often difficult to see against the tv picture. Could be made a bit larger? Its good the have the picture there so you can see changes dynamically but it does get in the way of the text. I guess it will take some getting used to....