Increasingly unhappy with SP mode quality

IF you're outputting in 1080i, try 720p?

what is your source resolution. I find that football games are acceptable when downconverted from HD, but only so-so when from an analog source.

Did you TV size also increase from the old set, that in itself would present more artifacts due to the same resolution being across a larger area.

My Sony GX-315 with a DL disc allows me to record up to 3 hrs in the normally 1.5 hour mode...I think it looks great on my Hitachi 42" plasma...

LCD's are not good at sports motion. Also sports should be viewed in p mode note the i mode. So they say. You should output at 480p for sports on at least the current lcd's.

This is my experience with my lcd. It does not do football games very well, and basketball is worse. It probably is because I have a low end hd lcd.

My answer would be yes, if you want to minimize/eliminate the digital artifacts that the recorder produces, you need to be recording at least at the 1.5 hr. mode. Here is a graph on setting the optimal bitrate for MPEG recordings:

http://www.mediachance.com/dvdlab/tutorial/bitrate.html

Notice it takes a bitrate of about 8 Mbps for the encoder to become "transparent" to the video source.


nx211

Hey gigaguy,

I know that the HX-715 has DVD+R DL recording capabilities(unlike my HX-900 which makes me record a football game at HSP to the HDD, then HIGHSPEED BURN to 2 discs. The source is an LG LST-4200A through S-video. Set that baby to 480i resolution, and the OAR[16:9 widescreen for MOST football games] is kept through the S-video line. The results have been nothing but SPECTACULAR).

I wish my unit could do DVD+R DL. I could then STILL record at HSP, but at 3 hours on one disc which would be AMPLE for a football game. Even an overtime one. Especially when the commercials are cut out.

Now, I don't know of the PLAYBACK reliability of a DVD+R DL on most DVD players.

I guess it would be pretty good on models that were made in 2004 or later. Plus recording the DVD+R DL in VIDEO mode would probably make compatible with at least 95% of the players out there.

Anyway, I know this is an old thread, but that should be the way to do it with sports(if you can of course.)

Also Gigaguy,

Does the HX-715 SUFFER from STRONGER RESTRICTIONS on recording/copying then the HX-900?

I heard that that might be the case, but if not, oopps!.

Football looks fairly crappy as an original, so no surprise it doesn't transfer to DVD all that well. I do games that matter at SP and cut commercials for 2 discs.... by halfs. And no, it isn't great quality, but watchable.

For basketball I use HQ (1hr.) mode and 2 DVDs, 1 per half, or 1 DL DVD if it is a really important game to me.

Another method I use is to record at HQ, edit and then burn to 2 DVD-RWs, and then use DVDShrink to "Shrink" them down to 1 Standard DVD. The quality is not too far off of uncompressed HQ on a DL DVD.