Cheaper Component to S-Video Converter - Page 14

jjeff:

Did you see this converter from svideo.com? It accepts all resolutions.

http://www.svideo.com/ypbpr1080i.html

I don't know if jjeff has seen it,but i have.It looks exactly like a Lenkeng converter(rebadged).You can tell it's a Lenkeng by the rounded sides of the housing and by it's general look. Not a good choice. Iv'e seen the Lenkeng converter being sold at a lot of diff. websites for prices ranging from $43 bucks at MP to as much as $125-$150 bucks at some other sites,and they are sold under diff.names,this time it's "svideo". G.

Agree, a Lenkeng by any other name is still a Lenkeng
The other giveaway is the 1/8" audio connector on one side and the RCA audio connectors on the other. I'd steer well away
No mention of Made in the USA like the other 480i component to S-video adapter that I believe this company actually makes so my guess is it's made in China like all the rest of the Lenkeng products(and basically everything else in this world)

I almost got the one from svideo.com, but decided to give the MP one a try since they have a 30 day return.

I just got an Openbox FTA receiver. My older TV only has composite and s-video inputs, and the Openbox has a known greenish tint when using the composite output that is not present when using the component output, so I needed a converter.

The MP does get rid of the tint, and the Openbox has adjustments for Brightness, Contrast, and Saturation, so I have been able to get a very satisfactory picture.

The MP converter is actually branded with the Monoprice name, but the model is LKV-7611 and it is made in China.

Good thing you bought from MP,you saved yourself roughly $136 bucks!,and if your satisfied with the performance of that......"converter", then you got a real good deal.Be happy. The PQ i got from my Lenkeng was less than stellar,in fact it was worse than terrible. There have been a lot of people who have had issues with the Lenkeng,and there are some who are happy with it.
Whenever you see a model # LKVxxx it'll be a Lenkeng. A few mos.ago i ran across some products that had LKxxx model #. They looked like Lenkeng's because of the rounded sides of their casings,the placement of their in/outputs,and other connections(as jjeff noted),the black piano color,and the overall cheap appearance of the products.G.

True, I have an Audio Authority that I bought on eBay for $88. My problem is that occasionally, not always, it will, for a few seconds to a couple of minutes, have a weird horizontal interface line, where the top portion of the picture and the bottom portion don't line up. Sometimes it is jarring, like when it splits someone's head. It's almost like the time synch is off between the two portions of the picture.

Also, even though I have now correctly initialized the converter, when my signal is an SD source, and is letterboxed, the picture doesn't scale properly. I've learned to switch directly from a full-screen SD picture, to the LB picture, and the scaling is correct.

The problem I had with losing picture lock on very small credits on a black background, proved to be an issue with The Sundance Channel, not the converter.

I e-mailed Audio Authority about my problems. They replied quickly, but seemed unfamiliar with the problem. They suggested that it might be a bad S-Vid cable, but I have made certain that this is not true. They will repair it for $75, but I'm a bit skeptical that they will be successful, given the intermittent nature of the problem. But, I have been compiling a DVD to demo the problem, if and when I send it in. Mickinct informs me that there are internal adjustments I might try, but I have not. I'm afraid of making it worse. Right now, sometimes I have to redub to HDD a time or two, to get an acceptable copy.

This converter does deliver a very nice picture, when it has no glitches.

I have a Lenkeng, purchased directly from them. It's not great, but not awful. It's a bit dim, and a bit fuzzy, but just a bit. I use it to archive bits of news programs, and find it acceptable for that.

I bought the Monoprice version, and find the picture significantly better than the one directly from Lenkeng. I use it to copy protected PAL DVDs to NTSC, and then to DVD.

Correct. With the makes/models you and i have,we must first feed the converter a full screen pic. For an unattended timed recording i turn the converter on first(actually it's on a timer)then about 2 min.later the Sat. rec'vr comes on,then the DVDR. In the "Timer"section of the Sat.rec'vr,i first enter Fox News HD(for the full screen image)then the channel i want to record from 2nd. I set Fox News to run for 1-2 min. to allow the converter to "initialize",then the tuner changes to the channel i want to record from.If i do things in that sequence,then i don't run in to AR problems except with 2:35.1 AR,that one can be problematic(at times,other times no, i don't know why) for my converter.for an attended recording i can "play"with various settings and capture that AR too. Iv'e been thinking about calling Atlona and asking if they can disable the "auto full screen" "feature" so the converter will always show the correct AR,it would make life a little simpler.

I kinda wish i had bought a higher end converter like maybe the Audio Authority 1361 for the ability to change AR and other video settings at will. But i had to stay within my budget G.

Since I got the refund for the Ambrey device, I decided to give one of these a spin. I ordered a few days ago when they had stock (the price was $58.99 delivered). I will of course give you all a report once I receive it! It was dispatched Saturday so should be here before too long I would have thought.

Then everyone will get 2 opinions, I just ordered one last night for the same price
I was a little worried about the mention of a restocking fee on Amazon but hopefully if I'm not satisfied and return it like new they'll wave it
If I knew you were looking at it I would probably have waited but like I said it's nice for the board to get two opinions.

I see that the LKV 7611 from Monoprice has a switch for PAL/NTSC. But don't we now use ATSC? So does this converter work with my SA4250 HD cable box?

As long as you have a Component video output it should work. Just be aware that the Lenkeng converter has an "iffy" record of performance. When it comes to the Lenkeng converter, Ya plops yer money down and ya takes yer chance! lol, and if it doesn't work for you,for any reason,even if it's that you just don't like the PQ then you can return it and get your $$ back. G.

ATSC is our over the air RF standard(just like QAM is the cable standard), once it's down to baseband video(composite/component/S-video etc.) I believe it's still called NTSC. I think our OTA standard was officially NTSC 3.58 but we just called it NTSC.
I think the PAL/NTSC switch is just for 50 or 60 Hz, 50hz=PAL and 60hz =NTSC.

O.K. Here's why I was considering getting one. I have a Toshiba 430 DVR which has no tuner so I have it connected with s-video to my SA HD cable box. With the Toshiba on I get a real nice picture on my Panasonic 42" LCD TV except of course that it is letterboxed(top and bottom bands only). It records regular channels and HBO, Starz etc. with no problems. When viewing I can get rid of the letterboxing by hitting the TV's zoom function. It makes the picture very slightly less sharp but it's still nice and doesn't seem to cut off anything. When I read about the Lenkeng I thought--I can get rid of the letterboxing permanently without having to hit the zoom. But reading the comments about the Lenkeng, apparently it lowers the picture quality a bit, so I don't gain anything because the zoom does the same thing. So it seems like I would just trading one thing for another with no real benefit. What do you guys think?

I like you're thinking and while I wasn't very impressed with the MP/Lenkeng component to S-video converters quality I would say it's better than letterboxed recording and having to use your TVs zoom function.
To get a noticeable improvement in PQ you'd have to spend $200 or more(for one of the Ambrey type converters). If that's just more than you want to spend then IMO the MP converter is better than nothing.
I would have liked the MP converter to look better but for the price I guess they had to cut corners somewhere. I'd be really PO'd if I had spend $100+ for the Lenkeng that some retailers charge, at least MP is fair on the price.

Thanks for the technical info jjeff!! I didn't know some of that,i just figure that if you've got Component video out,then the converter "should" work,otherwise there would be no need for the output if it didn't pass a usable(NTSC) signal. Simple deduction. And i haven't heard of anyone coming out with ATSC converters,or anything else ATSC, except tv's, and DVDR's,or any other device with a tuner. G.

Well, I do appreciate your help but I don't think I will get the Lenkeng after all. I now find out that my SA cable box will not allow its HDMI and Component outputs to be active at the same time, so that's the end of that for me. I'll be content with the letterboxing(or using the zoom to remove it).

Ok so my new HDMI to S-Vid/Composite converter arrived yesterday.

The housing is metal and the switches seem solid for such a cheap device (although the switches are quite sharp so watch those fingers!).

Overall I'd say the quality is similar to the MonoPrice converter. I am undecided as to which actually gives the best output. The MP one is still a little softer, but the new one seems like it may be more vivid, at the expense of it being slightly blockier (most noticeable on small on-screen text).

I did take a few minutes to record the same 1080i programming through both converters from my Moto cable PVR to my Magnavox 513. When I have time this weekend I'll put a couple of video clips together and upload them somewhere so you all can see what the output looks like, if you think that would be beneficial.

This could be an interesting device should the 'analog hole' be closed.

Some commercial DVDs are/were letterboxed, such as True Lies. If I have to Zoom to watch commercial DVDs it kind of makes me feel it's OK to Zoom my own programs recorded in letterbox. Just one way to look at the situation.

Exactly!

jjeff did yours arrive yet?

Yes it did Friday, and it will be going back tomorrow
It's not that it's that terrible but just not nearly as good as I've already got.
It does do as advertised, that is take any resolution HDMI(my player doesn't output 480i from HDMI so I only tested 480p-1080p) and convert it to 480i S-video or composite, it's just I wasn't satisfied with the resolution or contrast ratio.
It's really a cool little device for keeping the analog hole open but I just wish it had better PQ. 1080p seems to be the best resolution to feed it with 1080i and 720p only a tad lower, 480p was noticeably worse. I've recorded several test titles and as soon as I can I'll import them into my PC and post screen shots.
I'm thinking many people would be perfectly happy with this device it's just with my setup I can see it's flaws. Oh and just as I though, for an added benefit it forgets to pass along any CP.... Shhhh

So this little $60 unit accomplishes what a $250+ HDFury & component->S-Video converter combo does? That's a darn good deal. I may have to pick one of these up as a backup. As a point of reference, what setup are you comparing this with?

[quote=i86time;20179052]So this little $60 unit accomplishes what a $250+ HDFury & component->S-Video converter combo does?

Not hardly. The HDFury puts out HDMI quality PQ,not Lenkeng"esque" quality PQ. So no, for $60 bucks you're not going to get anywhere near the quality of the Fury....they're not even in the same ballpark. G.

While it essentially does what Greasers setup does I'm quite sure it wouldn't be of the picture quality of his setup.
The setup I'm comparing it to may not be apples to apples but for my use it would accomplish the same thing, that is remove CP to backup protected content. I have a older Sima CT-2(S-video IN/S-video OUT) which other than slightly lightening the picture seems to be harder to beat that I would have thought. I wouldn't need the converter to preserve wide screen content since my devices already do that from S-video output although for many that would be a big benefit if not the sole reason for purchasing such a device.

As Greaser said, a Lenkeng by any other name is still a Lenkeng and I agree with him. If you're satisfied with that(as many seem to be) this would be a very nice cheap simple device to get. I like how they include all the cables you might need including S-video and even a nice HDMI cable. Heck some people probably spend half the price of this converter for a HDMI cable that's probably not any better than the included one. This converter and included cables was only $57.99 to my door I believe Greasers setup would be in excess of $400 but again of a much higher quality.

I think you may have misunderstood my point. I have no doubt that the HDFury puts out an exact (or as near as exact as perceptible by human eyes) copy of an analog HD signal by a digital HD source. However, you're not recording that signal unless you have a DVDR with component input. What you are recording is the output that your Atlona or other component->composite/s-video converter is putting out, which incurs at least some signal degradation. I know that picture quality varies from device to device (the composite out on my Sony BDP-N460 looks pretty bad), but that little bit of better analog SD PQ isn't worth the extra $200 to me, which is why I would try the unit. I understand that the PQ between may not be the same (and for Atlona's sake, I hope it isn't), but both this unit and the HDFury->component converter accomplish the same thing, the ability to make a 16:9 analog recording from a box that only outputs 16:9 over HDMI.

I guess I'm spoiled though. My box puts out 16:9 SD (though squished to a 4:3 frame), which I run through a Video Filter. I also see no perceptible loss of image quality, but that SD output is nowhere near the HD original.

[quote=i86time;20179333]I think you may have misunderstood my point. I have no doubt that the HDFuryputs out an exact (or as near as exact as perceptible by human eyes) copy of an analog HD signal by a digital HD source. However, you're not recording that signal unless you have a DVDR with component input. What you are recording is the output that your Atlona or other component->composite/s-video converter is putting out, which incurs at least some signal degradation.


Yes i'm recording the signal from the Atlona converter. There were three reasons i went the way i did. First,since i already own a Component >s video converter i thought the HDFury would compliment the Atlona converter.Secondly,i think that having separate dedicated components,each doing one job,is better than having a multiplexed unit trying to do everything by itself. Iv'e never really liked the "one box does it all" thing. Third,i want to keep the "Analog Hole"open,and my setup does that in spades!!

There is obviously some signal degradation. Down converting from HD>SD,and the conversion process from Component>s-video are the reasons.But i think that the quality of the Comp.>s-video converter itself plays an immensely huge part in the quality of the pic. i ultimately record,that's why i insist on having as high a quality Comp.>s-video converter as i can afford. If i paired a HDFury with a Lenkeng Comp.>s video converter the resulting PQ would be disasterous. The only limiting factor in PQ with a HDFury placed in front of a Comp.>s video converter, is the Comp.>s video converter itself. Total cost for both of my converters was $391.00 incl. shipping,and i think it's worth it.After all,who wants to archive crappy looking recordings? G.

#1 is a direct DVD to DVD copy(S-video) no filters in-line.
#2 is with a Sima CT-2 inline(S-video)
#3 is with the HDMI to S-video converter inline, 480p to converter.
#4 is with the HDMI to S-video converter inline, 720p to converter.
#5 is with the HDMI to S-video converter inline, 1080p to converter.

In all of the following screen shots the first image is the closest to being correct, nothing inline to effect quality of recording. Notice how much sharper #1 is and notice the weird effects on #3(480p to converter).

#1 is a direct DVD to DVD copy(S-video) no filters in-line.
#2 is with a Sima CT-2 inline(S-video)
#3 is with the HDMI to S-video converter inline, 1080p to converter.

In all of the following screen shots the first image is the closest to being correct, nothing inline to effect quality of recording. Notice how #2 has lost the ability to see the different shades of white while #3 is overall dark.

#1 is a direct DVD to DVD copy(S-video) no filters in-line.
#2 is with a Sima CT-2 inline(S-video)
#3 is with the HDMI to S-video converter inline, 1080p to converter.

In all of the following screen shots the first image is the closest to being correct, nothing inline to effect quality of recording. Both #2 and especially #3 has elevated black level.

Well, it appears that the Sima oversaturates the brightness while the new conveter is fairly dark. Otherwise it doesn't look half bad for $60. Do you happen to have a direct cap of those calibration screens from the original DVD for comparison?

EDIT: Are THX optimizers on DVD's not CP'd? I never noticed.
Also, are you sure this is a Lenkeng product? I see that all of those from different Amazon retailers have different 'vendor' names attached to them, but I never saw one listing it as a Lenkeng.

#2- looks like the Lenkeng has a bit of green push to it as well. Darn.