[Doc Tonic]

Okay now my plv 70 displays 1366 x 768, and using powerstrip I can get the full resolution. But when I play DVDs I get those black bars on the top and bottom. I can zoom in using the aspect ratio on TheaterTek but then I lose some of the image. Same with my set top DVD player...black bars on top and bottom.


Do you all just live with these black bars?? And, then buy screens that mask out the black bar area?? Am I just missing something. 1366 x 768 should be 16:9 so I'm just not understanding why I can't fill the screen.

 

[James Thorne]

What DVD are you using to judge this by? Not all DVDs are 16:9. In fact few are exactly that ratio. On any other ratio there will be black bars on either the top/bottom or sides to fill in unused area as the image is 'best fit' to the available display area. Many DVDs are 2.35 which will still show black bars top/bottom of your display. There are many available aspect ratios and the DVD indication of widescreen just means they are using a wider screen than a 4:3 and displaying the original film aspect ratio. You will never get rid of ALL the black bars for every source with out cutting off some of the material or distorting the image.


James

 

[Brandon B]

As James says, the disks will be different.


Put on Spiderman. No black bars. Put on LOTR, large black bars.


If you don't want them, you need to make some sort of masking system, or have multiple screens.


I have a 16x9 screen. IMO the best all around compromise.


BB

 

[amillians]

Doc,


As James said, very few DVDs are actually presented in a 1.78 (16:9) aspect ratio, so even if you have a 1.78 screen, you'll have bars on just about every DVD you view (large side bars for 1.33 material, tiny side bars for 1.66 material, tiny top/bottom bars for 1.85 material, large top/bottom bars for 2.35 material, giant top/bottom bars for Ben Hur, etc.).


If you want to watch a film without altering the image aspect ratio to "fit" your screen, you'll need to get used to the black bars or buy/build a self-masking screen. Most people just live with the bars.


Here's an example of a screen that masks from 1.33 (4:3) all the way to 2.70:

http://www.stewartfilm.com/engineeri...ions/4way.html


I use the "baby brother" of this screen with my setup--it gives me everything from 1.78 to 2.70 (I don't watch any 4:3 on my setup, and I use TT to blow up the rare 1.66 to fit 1.78):

http://www.stewartfilm.com/engineeri...ns/hzswem.html


I have to say that I love my Horizontal ScreenWall ElectriMask, but it's not a cheap investment...it basically doubled the the price of my original screen choice. Given the high cost of turnkey masking solutions, a number of people on this forum have devised their own masking systems using everything from detachable styrofoam boards wrapped in black velvet to motorized curtain-based retractable masks. Do a search on "DIY mask" to see some examples.

 

[Doc Tonic]

Thank you all very much, going to call AVS for a 16:9 screen then. I just was wondering if I was missing something or not. And, I never realized that all DVDs used different widescreen numbers.

 

[amillians]

Doc,


As a follow-up, one of the confusing things about DVDs are aspect ratios is that anamorphically enhanced DVDs (most these day are, which is a good thing) are typically labeled as "Enhanced for 16:9 Widescreen Displays" or something close to that, leading many to believe that if they play the DVD on a 16:9 widescreen setup, they won't have any bars. For new releases, about half of all DVDs are 1.85 (which will show up as tiny bars top and bottom on a 1.78 display, or possibly even no bars depending upon your PJ overscan); the other half are 2.35 or so, which will show bigger bars.