IMO, Blu-ray does not deliver it's promise [incorrect settings / mod]

[skioutwest]

I know I am going to be flamed here, but I just don't think blu-ray's picture is very good. I had very high hopes for it, especially since my Verizon FIOS provides such a great picture on the movie channels, but when watching my BR player, it just doesn't compare. Am I doing something wrong???

Here is my equipment:

Epson 1080UB projector (100" screen)
Sony STR-DA5300ES
Panasonic DMP-BD35
7 Definitive Technology speakers
HDMI 1.3a cable switched by my receiver

When running the player, I check the signal information on my projector and it is showing 1080P signal. The focus is fine, but the picture just does not compare to my 1080i cable signal....how can this be??

I am comparing my BR picture to my Oppo dvd player, which apparently does an excellent job with upscaling. To be honest, I see very little difference between my Oppo DVD and my Panasonic Blu-ray.

Any thoughts here? Should blu-ray be as good or better than my FIOS signal??

Thanks all!

-Mark

[Therickus]

I wont flame you, I will just inform you with my opinion. IMO, cable does not compare.....now that football season is over I might even scratch cable until May when baseball starts. What have you tried watching? While your equipment would lead me to beleive you know something about Home Theater, you may be watching a Blu disc that did not get a great transfer. I guess I will let you provide more information, and I am sure that my forum-mates will show you the light.

[MoPe]

Mark, I do know that FIoS is the best "technology" for regular TV. Sometimes the movies they show on HD channels looks the same as the BR version, but then there are some BR versions that look a lot better than the HD channel version. So I guess it depends on what movies you like to watch, and have seen.

I think this list just about sums up the quality of BR. If the movies I want aren't in "Blu" or "Gold", I pass on them in the BR version, usually.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=858316

[BStecke]

FIOS is probably the best for HD signal, aside from over the air, but neither are as good as Blu-ray. Is your projector calibrated properly?

[skioutwest]

Thanks for the replies thus far. I have watched about a dozen movies thus far. Most recently Jumper, The Strangers, Wall-E, Letters from Iwo Jima.....

It just seems that any movie I watch on channels like Universal HD or TBS HD look superior to my panny player. I just suspect that something is not right....just can't think of what it could be....

-Mark

[skioutwest]

BStecke:

I don't have it ISF certified, but calibrated using an Avia DVD.

[BStecke]

That should be sufficient. They have Blu-ray calibration discs, but honestly I found that my settings with the BD of Digital Video Essentials were the same as I had them with AVIA. A lot of HD material on cable/satellite/OTA is digitally scrubbed to reduce grain, and therefore will have a look more similar to video. Perhaps that's just the look you prefer. But, if you look closer, you should see a lot more detail in your Blu-rays.

Another thought . . . have you checked your player's settings? A lot of times the default on the players is not 1080p, and I think some of them even come set to 480p out of the box. I know you said your projector is showing 1080p, but it may just be converting the 480 signal to 1080p.

[Anthony P]

it is obvious that there is something wrong, but without more details it is hard to say what.

[fupduk2]

Originally Posted by BStecke

That should be sufficient. They have Blu-ray calibration discs, but honestly I found that my settings with the BD of Digital Video Essentials were the same as I had them with AVIA. A lot of HD material on cable/satellite/OTA is digitally scrubbed to reduce grain, and therefore will have a look more similar to video. Perhaps that's just the look you prefer. But, if you look closer, you should see a lot more detail in your Blu-rays.

Another thought . . . have you checked your player's settings? A lot of times the default on the players is not 1080p, and I think some of them even come set to 480p out of the box. I know you said your projector is showing 1080p, but it may just be converting the 480 signal to 1080p.

You are correct, my wife just set up her parents Panasonic DMP-BD35 the other day and she said that the default is 480.

[parsonbeast]

Yea, that is very interesting, as cable does not really compare to bd in terms of pq. Did you appreciate the audio quality tho?

I would do what they said and check the default resolution on the bd35k, I have that same model and it trumps hd cable.

[Blu3]

Sounds to me like you need to check your equipment's settings. The BD player, projector, etc. check'em all. Go through each equipment's menus and tweak for best PQ and AQ in that input channel. Don't forget to turn on features like 24fps and such. Depending on what you tweak/turn on, you may want to re-calibrate at the end. Your BD should look better than your tv, even with fios.

[mdm1699]

Originally Posted by skioutwest

I know I am going to be flamed here, but I just don't think blu-ray's picture is very good. I had very high hopes for it, especially since my Verizon FIOS provides such a great picture on the movie channels, but when watching my BR player, it just doesn't compare. Am I doing something wrong???

Here is my equipment:

Epson 1080UB projector (100" screen)
Sony STR-DA5300ES
Panasonic DMP-BD35
7 Definitive Technology speakers
HDMI 1.3a cable switched by my receiver

When running the player, I check the signal information on my projector and it is showing 1080P signal. The focus is fine, but the picture just does not compare to my 1080i cable signal....how can this be??

I am comparing my BR picture to my Oppo dvd player, which apparently does an excellent job with upscaling. To be honest, I see very little difference between my Oppo DVD and my Panasonic Blu-ray.

Any thoughts here? Should blu-ray be as good or better than my FIOS signal??

Thanks all!

-Mark

Make it simple . Get rid of your player . Also, it is a current player so ebay it before the value drops. I find it silly that people try to sell the merits of the format. If you can't see the difference then why waste your money . The last DVD I purchased was a used copy of Blood Diamond a couple of years back. I haven't watched a DVD since. I can barely enjoy the picture at the movie theaters. Some people see it, some don't. How much do you want for the player? PM me.

[PanasonicPlasmaMan]

not possible

[Sith]

Originally Posted by skioutwest

Thanks for the replies thus far. I have watched about a dozen movies thus far. Most recently Jumper, The Strangers, Wall-E, Letters from Iwo Jima.....

It just seems that any movie I watch on channels like Universal HD or TBS HD look superior to my panny player. I just suspect that something is not right....just can't think of what it could be....

-Mark

Wonder if everything is hooked up right, cause i watched Wall-e and it
definately is clearer than any HD from cable/satellite...

[Siri]

Originally Posted by PanasonicPlasmaMan

not possible

not possible whatsoever. Fios is good, but its not THAT good (yeah i have it), sure, Gladiator looked good in 'HD' today on HBO today, but nothing like watching say, Band of Brothers on blu, definitely check your player etc

[Toptube]

Blu-ray is most certainly better than any upscaled DVD, no matter how good the upscaler. So, if you think your Oppo makes DVDs look "just as good" then something is definitely wrong.


Now, the difference between HD brodcasts and Blu-ray are not going to be as dramatic. But, you should still often be able to say that yes, the Blu-ray version IS better, if not very often.

The audio side of things truly is no contest, so I won't even discuss it.

[mdm1699]

Will you folks quit frustrating the guy. Please PM me if you don't want the player.

[BACsader]

Hey There. I can say with absolute certainty something is not right. Check out some of the 106" screenshots in this thread. He is using the same projector, or one that is extremely similar. His screenshots are some of the best I have ever seen. Does yours look like this, and if it does, you have some unbelievable high standards. LoL.

Thread

[skioutwest]

Good idea.....I am going to check this setting out now.

As for the audio quality, I can recognize a noticable difference....no issues here.

It's gotta be the player setting.....will be back.

-Mark

[skioutwest]

Well...I checked and the player was set on 1080P. However the framerate was not set to 24fps. I recalibrated with the Avia disc. I did notice that my focus was a bit off, so I touched this up, too. Will see how it goes....

Thanks for the tips....