I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

[Paul678]

I just paid $40 for a Proscan model 40LC45Q (no sound or picture).

Guess what it was? Loose connector from power
supply to the main board!! WOOOHOOO!!!

That's two ultra-easy repairs in a row! Must be my lucky
week! And this one had the remote to boot!

I was a bit scared at first, because there were two very faint, but
still noticable vertical bands on both sides of the screen, where
the 4:3 screen ends. But after adjusting the brightness/contrast
down, these went away.

I hate to admit I've been living in the stone ages, but this is really
the biggest tv I've ever had, and the first thing I noticed was
how limited a DVD signal is compared to the new digital tv
over-the-air broadcasts. With just a simple UHF loop antenna,
I'm getting quite a few DTV channels, and boy are they razor
sharp and clear.

Conversely, a component DVD signal, with aspect ratio set
to "ZOOM", looks pretty blocky in comparison. You pretty
much have to be more than 10 feet away from the screen
for it to look decent (my living room is a bit small!). Set
it to 4:3, and it's much better when you are close up.
The S-video signal shouldn't be any better than the
component signal, right?

Anyhow, I'm watching 2001 right now!!!!! I told you guys
I'd get it soon!!

SWEEEEEEEET!!!!!!!!

[py3m4n]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Is that the one you were discussing in your other thread with Tom66? If it is CONGRATS!! nothing more satisfying than picking up a T.V for a great price and finding it's an easy fix!!

How much did you get it for in the end?

[tom66]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Great fix! I had a similar issue with a 32" LCD, a loose connector pin on the power supply caused by a cold joint, was very obvious, fixed that and it worked. (Previously would work for 3-5 mins then die.)

I agree about SD... the majority of content I watch is SD and it looks pretty poor on a 42" 720p (which cost £20 from the tip + £5 to fix). But plug it into a HTPC and enjoy awesome HD .

[py3m4n]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

(which cost £20 from the tip + £5 to fix

Hahaahahahaha, Brilliant!!

I have fixed a few little 19" and 20" supermarket brand T.V's from the tip, or ones people were about to send there and I got given instead for a fiver or less. They are almost always just in need of the nasty bulging crap caps on the PSU replacing. They might not be the 'best quality' little T.V's out there but for me it's all about the tinkering and that moment of magic when something that cost nothing or next to nothing bursts into life!

[Paul678]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Great fix! I had a similar issue with a 32" LCD, a loose connector pin on the power supply caused by a cold joint, was very obvious, fixed that and it worked. (Previously would work for 3-5 mins then die.)

I agree about SD... the majority of content I watch is SD and it looks pretty poor on a 42" 720p (which cost £20 from the tip + £5 to fix). But plug it into a HTPC and enjoy awesome HD .

To Py3: Yes, this was the same tv. And he wanted $50,
so I offered him $40, which is what Tom suggested. But
funny thing is, the most I've ever paid for a busted tv
was $20, so I thought it was a bit much, considering
I just bought a 42" lcd with a cracked screen. This time,
I was very careful to go over the screen with an LED
torch, to check for cracks. Of course, NOW I think $40
was a damn fair price! LOL!

To Tom: Excuse my video ignorance, but you are saying
DVD players are SDTV signals, right? That's funny, because
we were brainwashed into thinking DVDs were the ultimate
in video quality, when that's clearly not the case.
I don't own a Blueray player. Are the Blueray signals
anywhere close to the DTV over-the-air signals?

I've cancelled my cable tv, because DTV is insanely sharp!
Fewer channels, but enough for me. And you can watch
from any distance....even close up, the picture is super sharp!

It's a scam: just like they re-sold the entire music
catalog on CDs (which are going obsolete!!), they are
going to re-sell all your favorite movies on super high
definition......you're gonna give away your DVD collection!!!

BASTARDS!!!!

[py3m4n]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Bluray is far superior to DTV. DTV is usually broadcast at a resolution of 576i (interlaced) where as Bluray is full HD 1080p (progressive). Your telly is 1080p and if you watched a Bluray on it you would be impressed again by the step up in resolution.

All there is for you to do now is keep your eyes out for a 1080p 52" LCD as your next project! lol.

[tom66]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Hahaahahahaha, Brilliant!!

Had four bad caps... one of the easiest fixes ever. Four Samwha WB 2200u 10V caps, replaced them with Rubycon YXFs and it's going strong over 8 months later. Once I got it home, I didn't even bother testing it... Just replaced the caps and it fired right up.

To Tom: Excuse my video ignorance, but you are saying
DVD players are SDTV signals, right? That's funny, because
we were brainwashed into thinking DVDs were the ultimate
in video quality, when that's clearly not the case.
I don't own a Blueray player. Are the Blueray signals
anywhere close to the DTV over-the-air signals?

DVD is typically 720x480 pixels, which is higher than VHS (which has around 240 lines and poor horizontal resolution.) Composite video gives poor colour resolution (and cross luma artefacts) so using a HDMI cable with a DVD player can be beneficial (if the player supports it, of course.) Component video can be used too with identical quality.

I've cancelled my cable tv, because DTV is insanely sharp!
Fewer channels, but enough for me. And you can watch
from any distance....even close up, the picture is super sharp!

It's a scam: just like they re-sold the entire music
catalog on CDs (which are going obsolete!!), they are
going to re-sell all your favorite movies on super high
definition......you're gonna give away your DVD collection!!!

BASTARDS!!!!

Well, there *is* a difference between HD and SD, and it's quite significant. One thing though, the difference from SD to 720p is very noticeable; but 720p to 1080p is less significant. You can still tell the difference, but it doesn't really bother me.

I keep looking out for a Freesat 1080p LCD to fix soon. We have Sky but £50 a month is a rip-off. We could get all of the movies from Netflix (£6/mo) if we wanted with the HTPC, and Freeview or Freesat provides all the channels we would ever need. So it's going to be cancelled soon.

Bluray is far superior to DTV. DTV is usually broadcast at a resolution of 576i (interlaced) where as Bluray is full HD 1080p (progressive). Your telly is 1080p and if you watched a Bluray on it you would be impressed again by the step up in resolution.

It's probably 1080i in the US, like Freeview/Freesat HD. Not the same as 1080p but pretty close, and modern de-interlacing video processors can make the video look almost as good as 1080p.

[Paul678]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Bluray is far superior to DTV. DTV is usually broadcast at a resolution of 576i (interlaced) where as Bluray is full HD 1080p (progressive). Your telly is 1080p and if you watched a Bluray on it you would be impressed again by the step up in resolution.

All there is for you to do now is keep your eyes out for a 1080p 52" LCD as your next project! lol.

So here I am, all impressed with DTV, and now
you are saying Bluray is another goddamned step up?

Holy shit, this means I may have to buy all 6 goddamned
Star Wars on Bluray! Damn!

Incredible with each leap in technology, the movie
and music companies get to RESELL their whole
Mother-of-God catalog.....AGAIN AND AGAIN!!!

Crazy! But I love this picture!!!

Oh, and I'll need a bigger living room before
I need a TV bigger than this one!!! HAHA!!!

[py3m4n]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

@Paul678

How do you have your DVD player hooked up to your T.V? is it over scart or HDMI? If your DVD player has HDMI use that as DVD and DTV signals are both the same resolution 576i (I think it's different in the U.S though and it's 480) If it is over HDMI then the reason the DVD might not look as good could be a scaling issue between the T.V and the DVD player, where as the DTV tuner won't be doing any scaling as it's part of the T.V.

[tom66]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

So here I am, all impressed with DTV, and now
you are saying Bluray is another goddamned step up?

Holy shit, this means I may have to buy all 6 goddamned
Star Wars on Bluray! Damn!

Incredible with each leap in technology, the movie
and music companies get to RESELL their whole
Mother-of-God catalog.....AGAIN AND AGAIN!!!

Crazy! But I love this picture!!!

Oh, and I'll need a bigger living room before
I need a TV bigger than this one!!! HAHA!!!

Exactly. Eventually though the resolution wars must end: surely you could never need more than 1080p?

(Ahem: 4K)

George Lucas is re-releasing everything Star Wars in 3D. WTH? Also, I've seen inside 3D TVs and the only extra thing is a little board to handle communication with the glasses (most TVs don't include glasses)... this board probably costs less than £10 to make so whacking on £150 for 3D is a complete rip-off.

[Paul678]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

@Paul678

How do you have your DVD player hooked up to your T.V? is it over scart or HDMI? If your DVD player has HDMI use that as DVD and DTV signals are both the same resolution 576i (I think it's different in the U.S though and it's 480) If it is over HDMI then the reason the DVD might not look as good could be a scaling issue between the T.V and the DVD player, where as the DTV tuner won't be doing any scaling as it's part of the T.V.

My DVD player doesn't have HDMI, so I'm using the 3 component
signals, which I believe Tom said should be comparable, right?

My player also has the "s-video" output, which I don't think
would be any better than component, and also the crappy
composite signal.

I might see if I can borrow a friend's Bluray player, just to see
if I like it........Wow, I'm stoked!!

[shovenose]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Lucky!
The used 17" Emerson LCDTV I bought my mom (roughly a year ago) was an enormous upgrade from the 12" Panasonic CRT we had...
We watch Battlestar Galactica and stuff like that using Netflix (in my room) on my 23" Dell LCD monitor...

But now I want a bigger TV lol...
one of my aunts got a 40-something inch Samsung HDTV just recently and I have yet to go see her/it, but I have a feeling my next purchase is going to be a big TV (in MY room, my mom doesn't need a bigger TV for her stupid VHS tapes)... prolly something cheap and broken that I will try to fix lol...

Two questions:
-What's the resolution on a VCR?
-And a DVD player?
(both are attached using the yellow, red, white connector, whatever the heck it's called)...

[py3m4n]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Incredible with each leap in technology, the movie
and music companies get to RESELL their whole
Mother-of-God catalog.....AGAIN AND AGAIN!!!

Exactly!! It's all hype and marketing aimed at the consumer needing to have the latest and greatest desirable object that is better than the guy next door...

I am always astonished when my friends or people blabber on about '1080p this or 1080p that, yours is only 720p', or even better one 'mine T.V is 100Hz, well mine is 200Hz, then another pipping in with mine has a 600Hz sub drive' and none of them even know exactly what these different terminology's even mean (although more and more people have a better Understanding of resolutions nowadays) The whole time all they are doing is parting with their hard earned cash for bragging writes that they don't understand and to be honest differences most of them wouldn't even be able to perceive = WIN for marketing.

I could sit and debate all day on the benefits of the difference over 720p Vs 1080p resolutions at a screen size of 60" or less (depending on viewing distance of course)

[tom66]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

My DVD player doesn't have HDMI, so I'm using the 3 component
signals, which I believe Tom said should be comparable, right?

My player also has the "s-video" output, which I don't think
would be any better than component, and also the crappy
composite signal.

I might see if I can borrow a friend's Bluray player, just to see
if I like it........Wow, I'm stoked!!

Yes, component can send 1080p easily. Without the hassle of HDCP too. But you'll never find component on Blu-ray because of stupid copyright protections which don't work... I explain why here: http://www.tgohome.com/HDCP-flaws/

[tom66]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Two questions:
-What's the resolution on a VCR?
-And a DVD player?
(both are attached using the yellow, red, white connector, whatever the heck it's called)...

VHS = close to 300 x 240 pixels, but technically the horizontal has no defined resolution as it is analogue
DVD = 800 x 480

[py3m4n]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

My DVD player doesn't have HDMI, so I'm using the 3 component
signals, which I believe Tom said should be comparable, right?

My player also has the "s-video" output, which I don't think
would be any better than component, and also the crappy
composite signal.

I might see if I can borrow a friend's Bluray player, just to see
if I like it........Wow, I'm stoked!!

Simplified - you would always try to use HDMI then component, s-video,composite/scart in that order. (composite and scart are the same other than scart includes the stereo audio along with the composite signal in one adapter)

Component should be comparable as component can do up to 1080i/720p resolutions, this does depend on the maximum resolution your DVD players processor can output (which is likely 720 x 576i) but in my experience component always tends to have a washed looked compared to HDMI (it's likely the difference between an analogue signal and a digital one, whole other conversation, lol.) and not forgetting whether or not the DVD player or any other device, games console, separate DTV box, cable box, Sky etc. is doing any sort of scaling before sending the signal to the T.V. What you looking to achieve is 1:1 pixel mapping (have a google, lol)

[tom66]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Simplified - you would always try to use HDMI then component, s-video,composite/scart in that order. (composite and scart are the same other than scart includes the stereo audio along with the composite signal in one adapter)

SCART can send RGB which is identical to 576p component.

Component should be comparable as component can do up to 1080i/720p resolutions, this does depend on the maximum resolution your DVD players processor can output (which is likely 720 x 576i) but in my experience component always tends to have a washed looked compared to HDMI (it's likely the difference between an analogue signal and a digital one, whole other conversation, lol.) and not forgetting whether or not the DVD player or any other device, games console, separate DTV box, cable box, Sky etc. is doing any sort of scaling before sending the signal to the T.V. What you looking to achieve is 1:1 pixel mapping (have a google, lol)

I disagree. The difference is component sends data as YCbCr, and the LCD or plasma panel works with RGB, so there's a conversion to be done. HDMI sends digital data, as RGB, so there's no conversion. And selecting the ideal colour space conversion is difficult. But an analogue signal? That can't make anything washed out; unless a signal was being injected onto only the luma channel. Of course, five cables aren't as convenient as one HDMI cable.

[py3m4n]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Yes, component can send 1080p easily. Without the hassle of HDCP too. But you'll never find component on Blu-ray because of stupid copyright protections which don't work... I explain why here: http://www.tgohome.com/HDCP-flaws/

My bad on the 720p component part in my post. Tom is right here. It can do up to 1080p but as he says it's an HDCP related issue. I was speaking in relation to Xbox 360's only being able to do 1080i/720p over component but if I recall this was exactly for the reason Tom mentions about HDCP back when Microsoft released the failed HD DVD add on.

[py3m4n]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

SCART can send RGB which is identical to 576p component.



I disagree. The difference is component sends data as YCbCr, and the LCD or plasma panel works with RGB, so there's a conversion to be done. HDMI sends digital data, as RGB, so there's no conversion. And selecting the ideal colour space conversion is difficult. But an analogue signal? That can't make anything washed out; unless a signal was being injected onto only the luma channel. Of course, five cables aren't as convenient as one HDMI cable.

Again my experience with component is in relation to Xbox 360 the difference between component over HDMI is night and day (analogue Vs digital). washed may not be the best description but there is a clear difference in colour and sharpness with both set to 720p on the console. Would you say this is likely due towards the difference between YCbCr and RGB. I have never looked into it in great detail.

[Paul678]

Re: I've got my 40" lcd!!!! (1080p!!)

Ok, now I'm going to get really, really picky.

There is a very faint bright area in the upper
left corner of the screen here, but you can only
see it when the screen is very black. It looks
almost like the edge of the LCD glass is buckling
a tiny bit, causing a lighter area.

It not very noticeable at all, really, but I'm

just wondering if you guys have seen this.


It would probably get a "pass" at the factory,

just like a certain # of dead pixels is acceptable.