Star Trek (Both Original And Next Generation)

[blu-ray_girl_fan]

Originally Posted by Spottedfeather

The blu-ray player was a birthday present 4 years ago. Money isn't tight for me. It's non existant. My tv is, I think, 27 inches. The image controls are for stuff like contrast, brightness, sharpness, and tone. I don't know anything about a hidden service menu.

You've mentioned that Pinocchio has black bars on all four sides.

1) How does Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs appear on your set-up?

2) Have you tried playing with your BD player's video output? It probably has two different settings for 4:3. Try both to see which one gives you the best results.

(By the way, I think Pinocchio has borders on all four sides for the same reason as Star Trek TOS -- the PIP video commentary is framed for 16:9 TVs.)

[Spottedfeather]

Originally Posted by blu-ray_girl_fan

The answer to the OP's question is not that obvious. There are many factors to consider.

The OP says that he has a 4:3 TV.

1) Is the TV an SDTV or HDTV? Yes, there were HDTVs with 4:3 dimensions.

2) Does the OP have a Blu-ray player that allows him to change how a video signal is sent to the TV? Some BD players let you choose between widescreen (i.e. the player is hooked up to a 16:9 TV) or "letterboxed" (i.e. the player is hooked up to a 4:3 TV).

3) Depending on what option the OP picks in Part 2 and depending on whether or not the video signal is flagged for playback in a 4:3 TV, a Blu-ray of a movie/TV show in 1.33:1 may fill up the screen or may have black bars all around.

For a long while, my parents had a Blu-ray player hooked up to their old 4:3 SDTV. We were able to watch 1.33:1 programs, such as Casablanca, w/o black borders. You just have to get the right settings for your set-up.

1. it's an SD tv.
2. my blu-ray player can choose either 4:3 letterbox, 16:9 Wide, 4:3 pan and scan, or 16:9 squeeze.
3. using the blu-ray of Rocketeer, I set the player for 4:3 pan and scan, and it didn't change anything that I could see. 16:9 Squeeze just slightly stretched the picture on top and bottom. 16:9 Wide did the same thing.

I guess if I ever got the blu-rays, I'd have to watch them on my laptop. I could watch them on the main tv in the front room, but my mom hates Star Trek, so....

[Blu-21]

Speaking of non-HD CRT TVs and Blu-Ray, would anyone see any difference at all on such a set up in terms of PQ? I myself have never tried it but I would assume it would look the same as DVD no better, no worse...

[Spottedfeather]

Yeah, you see a difference. It's not what you'd see if it was an HDTV, but it's definately better than regular dvd. A lot clearer and sharper, for sure. And a lot more detail.

[blu-ray_girl_fan]

Originally Posted by Spottedfeather

1. it's an SD tv.
2. my blu-ray player can choose either 4:3 letterbox, 16:9 Wide, 4:3 pan and scan, or 16:9 squeeze.
3. using the blu-ray of Rocketeer, I set the player for 4:3 pan and scan, and it didn't change anything that I could see. 16:9 Squeeze just slightly stretched the picture on top and bottom. 16:9 Wide did the same thing.

I guess if I ever got the blu-rays, I'd have to watch them on my laptop. I could watch them on the main tv in the front room, but my mom hates Star Trek, so....

Choose 4:3 letterbox or 4:3 Pan and Scan. Try Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Do you have any other movies, such as Casablanca, Gone With the Wind, or The Wizard of Oz, in 1.33:1?

[Spottedfeather]

Originally Posted by blu-ray_girl_fan

You've mentioned that Pinocchio has black bars on all four sides.

1) How does Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs appear on your set-up?

2) Have you tried playing with your BD player's video output? It probably has two different settings for 4:3. Try both to see which one gives you the best results.

(By the way, I think Pinocchio has borders on all four sides for the same reason as Star Trek TOS -- the PIP video commentary is framed for 16:9 TVs.)

Snow White was a little square in the middle of the screen. I tried 4:3 Pan and Scan and it did nothing. I guess I just have to wait until HDtv are extremely cheap....

[Spottedfeather]

Originally Posted by blu-ray_girl_fan

Choose 4:3 letterbox or 4:3 Pan and Scan. Try Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Do you have any other movies, such as Casablanca, Gone With the Wind, or The Wizard of Oz, in 1.33:1?

Not on blu-ray. I've watched Wizard on dvd and it filled the screen. Don't have the others you mentioned. I DO have a tv movie on blu-ray, A Christmas Visitor. That movie fills the 4:3 tv. I don't see why Star Trek is hard formatted to a 16:9 shape when it doesn't need to be. It would work just as well on an HDtv as it would on a 4:3 tv...

[blu-ray_girl_fan]

Originally Posted by Spottedfeather

Not on blu-ray. I've watched Wizard on dvd and it filled the screen. Don't have the others you mentioned. I DO have a tv movie on blu-ray, A Christmas Visitor. That movie fills the 4:3 tv. I don't see why Star Trek is hard formatted to a 16:9 shape when it doesn't need to be. It would work just as well on an HDtv as it would on a 4:3 tv...

A Christmas Visitor should have black bars at the top and bottom, so you should probably go with 4:3 letterbox instead of 4:3 Pan and Scan.

You should not be using either of the 16:9 options until you get a 16:9 HDTV.

[Spottedfeather]

Originally Posted by blu-ray_girl_fan

A Christmas Visitor should have black bars at the top and bottom, so you should probably go with 4:3 letterbox instead of 4:3 Pan and Scan.

You should not be using either of the 16:9 options until you get a 16:9 HDTV.

A Christmas Visitor is a tv movie made in 4:3 in 2003. It's not a widescreen movie.

[blu-ray_girl_fan]

Originally Posted by Spottedfeather

A Christmas Visitor is a tv movie made in 4:3 in 2003. It's not a widescreen movie.

https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/A-Chr...-Blu-ray/1032/

[Spottedfeather]

Guess I was thinking of when they show it on tv. I just looked and the blu-ray covers says widescreen.

[Blu-21]

Originally Posted by Spottedfeather

Yeah, you see a difference. It's not what you'd see if it was an HDTV, but it's definately better than regular dvd. A lot clearer and sharper, for sure. And a lot more detail.

Fair enough, I'll take your word for it.

[Maxwell Everett]

Originally Posted by Spottedfeather

The blu-ray player was a birthday present 4 years ago. Money isn't tight for me. It's non existant. My tv is, I think, 27 inches. The image controls are for stuff like contrast, brightness, sharpness, and tone. I don't know anything about a hidden service menu.

Once you get the 16:9 image to fill your screen with the correct setting on your player (with the image stretched vertically -- no letterboxing) you may be able to get rid of the black pillar bars on the sides by adjusting the horizontal stretch of the CRT via the service menu (with the proper remote code). Do a Google search for the TV brand and model number and "service menu." If the TV isn't completely ancient, there's a possibility you'll be able to find something and get it to work. However, make sure you know what you're adjusting (write all the existing values down before you change them) because you can easily screw up your TV set.

Otherwise, once you've finally got some cash flow, you'll need about a 32" 16:9 HDTV to match the 4:3 area of your current CRT. Those run just under $200 for a refurbished 720p LED. I know you can get a 24" Full-HD LED monitor with HDMI input at Amazon for about $150 used (or the price of 3 Star Trek Blu-ray sets).