[finiscient]

1) Is a high quality direct view HDTV monitor (with DVI) supposed to

look as good as a VGA computer monitor?


I have the Panasonic CT-34WX53, and even over the DVI input, an HD

OTA feed on it does not look as good as the same HD OTA feed over

VGA to my cheapo computer monitor. I was guessing that an HDTV

monitor should rival a vga monitor.


If not, what display do you need to get VGA quality at 34 inches or

above--direct view, LCD, plasma, or otherwise?


2) Is there any issue with feeding an HDTV monitor DVI from an HTPC?


On page 12, the manual for my Panasonic CT-34WX53, says of the DVI

input, "This DVI input terminal is compliant with the EIA-861

standard and is not intended for use with personal computers."


I don't know exactly what that means. Anybody?


However, DVI input from a MyHD DVI daughtercard on a PC worked as

long as the MyHD did (I am having major issues with MyHD) except

that I was expecting it to look as good as or better than my VGA

monitor, which it did not.

 

[finiscient]

Ooops. I see that these questions are adressed just below in this thread:


DVI CRT, HTPC, Problems!


( http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...hreadid=352799 )

 

[finiscient]

Still, can anyone tell me in detail (if qualitatively) the PQ of an HDTV monitor should compare to a large screen computer monitor (such as a Monovision)?

 

[ADU]

Conventional computer monitors as a rule have a much finer dot pitch than TVs, even HDTVs. At the moment, the Sony XBR910 seems to have about the finest dot pitch of the large-screen direct-view CRTs. So its probably about as close to a CRT computer monitor as you can get at the moment.


Although the Monivision is apparently designed for a computer input, from what I've heard, it still has a coarser dot pitch than most computer monitors.


One reason TVs have a coarser dot pitch is probably to allow more light through, giving them greater contrast, and making them easier to view from a distance than a computer monitor. Also, since regular NTSC video only has about 480 interlaced scanlines, regular NSTC TVs only needed enough screen detail to resolve resolutions of ~ 640x480.


HDTV signals are 1920x1080 interlaced pixels in resolution. But there aren't many TVs yet that actually have that resolution on the screen. Many HDTV-capable CRTs can resolve all 1080 scanlines, but they typically only have a horizontal resolution of about 800-1000 dots/or stripes. The XBR910 reportedly has a horizontal resolution of about 1400 RGB stripes (Sony Trinitron TVs and computer monitors use a wire grille which makes vertical RGB stripes rather than dots used on most shadow-mask CRTs). Since CRTs are analog, the horizontal rez of HDTV (1920 pixels) is interpolated into whatever resolution the screen can display.


Fixed pixel displays (LCDs, plasmas, DLPs, etc.) work differently than CRTs though. They typically have a screen dot resolution of ~1366x768. And 1080i, 720p and 480p HDTV is digitally up- or down-converted by the display (with varying degrees of quality) to fit the ~1366x768 screen resolution. Some of the very latest FPDs may have higher resolutions though. Ideally 1920x1080 is probably what you want to resolve the fullest detail of HDTV.


Re DVI inputs, see some of the links in my signature, particularly the DVI links in Post #1 of the Computer Input thread. The main difference between between DVI on computer vs. HDTVs are the scanrates and resolutions supported. Computers support standard VESA resolutions (800x600, 1024x768, etc.) while HDTVs are designed only to support a few specific scanrates for HDTV (and resolutions like 720x480p, 1280x720p, 1920x1080i, etc.). So they cannot correctly display many typical VESA computer modes (without employing a few tricks that is). The HDTV modes fall under the EIA-861 standard, rather than the VESA standard.


With some of the tools mentioned in the Computer Input thread, it's possible to customize the modes your computer video card can display so it will work with HDTVs. This is largely the raison d'etre of AVS's HTPC (Home Theater PC) forum. It takes some care, computer and video savvy to do well though.


With such tools, it's also possible to manipulate the signal sent to the TV so it can display some other custom resolutions which are not part of the HDTV standard.

 

[finiscient]

Quote:

Originally posted by ADU Conventional computer monitors as a rule have a much finer dot pitch than ...

Very helpful to me. Thanks. I also asked this in the HTPC forum, but I was suprised that nobody answered it there. Maybe it was too basic ...


I will have to spend some time going through your links and doing more research in the HTPC forum.


But I'm getting the idea that I didn't know enough when I bought my display for my HTPC. Dizzdam ... I always learn best the hard way ....