Dolby Podcast Episode 8, February 15, 2007
Jack and Craig talk about how to choose a high definition television, including the importance of considering your home theater environment and set up when making a purchase. Plus, they answer listener Iniac’s question about how to use settings in your AV receiver to optimally place your home theater speakers.
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Mentioned in this Episode
[music]
Jack Buser: Hello and welcome to Dolbycast: the insider's guide to entertainment technology, from the experts at Dolby Laboratories. I'm Jack Buser.
Craig Eggers: And I am Craig Eggers.
Jack: And we are here to give you the straight talk on everything you need to please your ears. [echo: to please your ears].
[music ends]
Craig: And I might say, your eyes, with this particular episode.
Jack: That is exactly right. This week we will be covering video.
Craig: You know in the past Christmas season, we have seen a lot of adoptions of high-definition television sets, not just here in the United States, but globally.
Jack: Globally. I mean it really was the holiday season for high-definition.
Craig: Truly.
Jack: Those sets were flying off the shelves, it was amazing.
Craig: The pricing is incredible.
Jack: Unbelievable.
Craig: A really sharp pricing was introduced this past fall season and the adoption rates went up incredibly.
Jack: Shot up through the roof. I got to say going out to the stores, I mean, I was just watching people just pull those high definition boxes out of the store. It was just unbelievable.
Craig: You know, when I go into a store there is a part of me that just wants to jump out of me and walk up to a consumer and say: "I am in the industry."
Jack: [laughing] "Let me help you."
Craig: "Let me help you with this decision, let me help you with this decision."
Jack: You know what, Craig, that is what this podcast is all about and this week's episode is going to be all about video. If you haven't bought a high definition display yet, or if you've bought one a long time ago, as an early adopter and you are looking for a new one…
Craig: Exactly.
Jack:... then we are here to tell you everything you need to know to please your eyes; resolutions and all the terms you need to know.
Craig: But, before we go there we have another, [talking together in deep voice] listener question.
Jack: We love your listener questions, everyone. Listen, we've been overwhelmed with questions, this has been fantastic. We are going to answer as many as we can on air, so please keep them coming. What is this week's question then?
Craig: So Jack, this question comes from a gentleman by the name of Iniac and he says: "I just heard your Dolby episode about speaker placement. I have a 5.1 Dolby system in my home. I think it needs some installation information and your helpful tips."
Basically what is he asking is, question number one: "What is the distance between the left and right surround speakers?" And number two: "What is the proper distance between left main and right main?" So Jack, any advice we could give this gentleman?
Jack: This is a typical question. We covered a lot of this stuff on our first podcast...
Craig: The first two.
Jack: The first two, yes. And it sounds like, Iniac, you've been listening to these podcasts. We try not to cover too much of the same territory. Before I begin though, please do check our speaker placement diagrams on the dolby.com website.
Craig: That's a good starting point.
Jack: That's a great starting point, because it really visually lays out what we were talking about in the podcasts.
Craig: You know, a lot of people do ask this question though, "What is the proper speaker placement?'" We talked about different room environmental factors that impact that. You know when you are in a studio and talk to a producer or engineer, quite frankly they try to set up the speakers, so they are literally equidistant from the left to center, right surround and left surround. But that's not always possible in a home. So as a result we Dolby developed some technologies when we developed Dolby Digital to enable you to literally calibrate your room environment to where you're seated and where you have to actually have your speakers positioned.
Jack: That's right. In fact, almost every AV receiver on the market now, you'll be able to put in, there will be some sort of setup screen where you'll be able to put in speaker distances. A lot of people ask us, "Why do I have to put in the distance from me to the speaker?"
Craig: Why Jack, do we have to do that?
Jack: [laughs] Well, that's because not everyone lives in a recording studio and it's not always practical to have speakers that are all exactly the same distance from you. Sometimes you are closer to the surround speakers then you are to the left and right front speakers; sometimes vice versa. So what you are able to do in these receivers is, generally what they ask you is, "How far away are you from the left and right? How far away are you from center? How far away are you from left surround and right surround?"
Generally that's in feet or sometimes in meters and you'd be able to set that up even, if you want to, in most receivers. In a sense, what you do is, you make these measurements and the receiver will find the difference, it'll say, "OK, he must be closer to the surround speakers." Or, "He must be closer to the front speakers." And it'll make adjustments in the time delay.
Craig: He or she, by the way.
Jack: He or she, absolutely, he or she. It'll make adjustments in the time delay from the audio leaving the speakers to the listener and that way it will sort of adjust the sound field to compensate for the fact that you don't live in a recording studio, necessarily.
Craig: One of the questions that he did ask was, you know, "How far should my left and right fronts be from each other?"
Jack: Yes.
Craig: And that is largely a function of the actual monitor.
Jack: Right.
Craig: Two words of advice. Number one, if you got a small monitor and big room, don't position your speakers on either side of the wall.
Jack: Yes.
Craig: Because what happens is that you literally collapse the entire surround stage. The other bad side of that whole environment would be taking your speakers and putting them too close to your display.
Jack: Yes.
Craig: Because literally you got to remember that your left and right front speakers are there to do a couple of things; number one, reproduce your musical swells.
Jack: Yup.
Craig: But number two is they provide some indication of movement across that front stage.
Jack: Absolutely.
Craig: And if your left and right speakers are right on top of that monitor...
Jack: You won't get enough sound space in front of you.
Craig: Exactly. You lose that surround envelope.
Jack: Absolutely.
Craig: And the same thing is the whole thing collapses, if you've got your speakers way too far apart.
Jack: Yeah.
Craig: So, I try to start with maybe, 2 feet away from the monitor itself, and you might push them in or you might push them out just a little bit.
Jack: Absolutely. Iniac, hopefully this helps you calibrate your system. Please write us back and let us know if this solved your problem. If not, we will try to delve into this little bit deeper. We're going to go to a musical break, and when we come back we're going to be talking all about video.
Craig: [deep voice] High-definition video.
Jack: You got it. See you real soon.
[music]
Announcer: This is Dolbycast. For answers to your audio questions email dolbycast@dolby.com.
[music ends]
Craig: And we are back at Dolbycast. You know Jack, I am really excited about this segment because in the past we've talked about audio, but this is really our first opportunity to talk about video.
Jack: Video. I love video. Video really is the other element in home theater besides audio, isn't it?
Craig: There you go.
Jack: [laughs]
Craig: That's a good, yeah, that's a good segue. Excellent. So...
Jack: It was THE season of high-definition over Christmas, I mean.
Craig: Exactly. During the Christmas selling season, we saw a lot of price erosion of products. More and more people adopted high-definition television sets and here we are on the other side of the holiday season, the prices...
Jack: Oh my gosh, yeah.
Craig:... are still attractive, more aggressive than ever before. It really is easy to adopt a high-definition television set.
Jack: If you haven't gone high-definition yet, now is such a great time to pick up an HDTV display. If you have an older HDTV, now is a great time to upgrade.
Craig: So if you're just looking for an HDTV, you've just started, what we are going to give you in this session is a very, very basic overview.
Jack: The fundamentals.
Craig: The fundamentals, the things to look for, the things to ask for, and then we will follow up in a later podcast where we will really give you some depth and detail.
Jack: Absolutely. So Craig, number one thing to remember, what is it?
Craig: Number one thing: I want my HD TV.
Jack: That's right.
Craig: When you go into the store and you see a lot of widescreen television sets. For most people, widescreen means high-definition. That isn't always the case.
Jack: That isn't always the case.
Craig: There is another format out there called Extended Definition TV.
Jack: EDTV, yeah.
Craig: These television sets don't have the detail and resolution of a standard high-definition television set.
Jack: Right.
Craig: They are literally designed for people who aren't going to be sitting close to the set, who are actually going to be seated back very, very far from the set and where resolution and detail are less critical, less important.
Jack: Make sure you get HDTV.
Craig: Make sure you get HDTV, the EDTV sets are priced competitively, spend that extra couple of bucks,..
Jack: [together] That extra couple of bucks. Exactly.
Craig:... invest in an HDTV.
Jack: Absolutely. Now HDTV where does it start? HDTV starts at 720p. What does that mean?
Craig: There are three critical resolutions. 720p refers to the density of the picture, if you will. You have progressive scan pictures and you have interlace pictures. When you are out shopping for a high-definition TV, make sure it can do at least, well, it will do at least 720p.
Jack: 720p.
Craig: But, most television sets today will also do 1080i, that's the broadcast standard for our high-definition television system, globally. A lot of systems have adopted 1080i. 1080p is the new buzzword.
Jack: Yes. A lot of the new TVs are not only capable of displaying 1080p, but are able to take in 1080p signals, and this really is, sort of the holy grail of HDTV. A lot of the latest Blu-ray players coming out, there have been announcements of HD-DVD players coming out, and game consoles are now all starting to become capable of doing 1080p resolution.
Craig: And a lot of these 1080p television sets will accept a 720p signal if it is broadcast or a 1080i signal if it is broadcasting...
Jack: Yes.
Craig:... and re-purpose it, remap it into a 1080p picture.
Jack: Absolutely. And that is something you're...
Craig: These pictures are spectacular.
Jack: Absolutely. And that's something also to just keep an eye out for, you want a TV that is relatively flexible, even if you're buying a 720p display, make sure that it can still eat a 1080i signal, because sometimes that's your only option, the only thing a device will put out is 1080i, so a lot of what that's called is called scaling. So make sure that the TV is able to scale to all these different resolutions.
Craig: Exactly.
Jack: Especially Standard Definition, because you will still be watching Standard Definition content on these TVs.
Craig: Exactly. And there's, I got to be honest with you, depending on the quality of these scalers, there is some Standard Definition content that looks actually spectacular...
Jack: Oh yeah.
Craig:... on a 1080p monitor or a 1080i monitor for that matter.
Jack: Absolutely. I got to say, just plug in a normal DVD player into a nice HDTV with a nice scaler, even normal DVDs can look fabulous.
Craig: So how big should my TV be?
Jack: As big as possible. [laughs] That is my answer.
Craig: Exactly. Yes, well, that is a great answer! But the fact is, as you need to have a good awareness of where you are going to be seated in front of your television set; what I like to tell people today is that if you are buying a 1080i or a 1080p picture, generally you want to sit, have your seat at a minimum of 3 to 4 screen heights back from the television set.
Jack: I have heard that.
Craig: At that point in time, all your lines in the picture start to resolve and you get a clear distinct image that is not broken up.
Jack: The rule of thumb is, the closer you are to your TV, the higher resolution TV you should get.
Craig: Exactly.
Jack: So, if you're going to be sitting really close to a really big TV set, think a lot about 1080p.
Craig: 1080p. Exactly.
Jack: If you are going to be sitting very far back and your TV is not going to be all that big anyway, probably 720p will be OK for you. Unless, and this is the one little trick that I will throw in there, if you decide to integrate in a media center PC like we talked about in an earlier podcast. If you are planning to hook up a PC to a display, I really do recommend the higher resolutions because you will be able to resolve more of your desktop. It will look more like a computer monitor when you are using a computer.
Craig: Exactly. Now, something that is very, very critical you need to ask the salesperson. What type of connections does this television have?
Jack: And everybody who knows our podcasts knows one particular connection that we have been raving about for some episodes which is HDMI.
Craig: Exactly. Do not buy a television set if it does not have HDMI.
Jack: Really. I mean HDMI is critical. Now, there are some older TV sets that used DVI. DVI is a connection that is very similar to HDMI. In fact, the video connect, the video part, is exactly the same thing. Think of DVI as a connection that is just like HDMI except it does not carry sound. It only carries picture. So, if you have a TV that you have fallen in love with and has DVI, you can buy an adapter to adapt it to an HDMI signal. In fact, that is what I am doing at home right now. But really, I mean, moving forward buying a new TV, you should really be looking for HDMI.
Craig: Your Blu-ray players, your HD-DVD players, future set-top boxes will all have HDMI interconnects. So, if you look into the future and you want to really to process video digitally, you definitely want to have HDMI.
Jack: Also, please do not forget component video. There are some high-definition devices out there that do not have HDMI. They are only capable of doing component video. Component video is fine.
Craig: My cable set-top box - that is component video.
Jack: Absolutely! Listen, component video is fine. It is an analog connection, not a digital connection like HDMI, but you are going to resolve some great looking picture through your component cable. Most high-definition TVs, if not all high-definition TVs, will have a component video connection.
Craig: I would recommend it, if you can find it - a high-definition television set with multiple HDMI inputs,...
Jack: Yes.
Craig:... multiple component videos, at least 2.
Jack: Yes, yes.
Craig: And then, of course, you need a normal complement of standard definition connections.
Jack: Absolutely.
Craig: S-video, composite video... because who knows, maybe you still have a laser disc player.
Jack: Oh sure, sure.
Craig: Maybe you still have a VHS player.
Jack: Absolutely.
Craig: Or, you know, whatever.
Jack: Now, if you are integrating an AV receiver into your system, a lot of connectivity in your TV becomes less important because you will just connect your TV to your AV receiver and your AV receiver will be able to do a lot of your switching. So, you are going to have to, kind of map out, "OK, what will my total system going to look like? Am I going to be doing my switching on the TV?" If so, it is going to be important to have a lot of different input connectors on the back of the TV. If you are going to have a nice AV receiver with a lot of HDMI switching and component switching, maybe it is less important.
Craig: Exactly.
Jack: But there is one topic I would like to bring up. And this a topic that is near and dear to my heart, which are basically the fundamental different types of HDTVs there are out there; namely, front projectors, and these are kind of projectors that they need mount on the ceiling and shoot against a screen; there is rear projection TVs, we all know these as these big TVs with the big picture that you fall in love with.
Craig: And that's — yeah. Let us talk about that.
Jack: OK.
Craig: It is a big picture, but they are not necessarily as deep as they used to be.
Jack: Yeah, they are a lot thinner.
Craig: This is not a huge box that is taking up your home.
Jack: At CES, yeah, they have showed some really...
Craig: JVC actually has a rear projection television now that is only 6 inches deep.
Jack: I can't...You know that is just unbelievable to me. They are becoming more and more like the third category of display, which is really flat panel TV.
Craig: And that is the sexy part about this.
Jack: Yes, this is like plasma, LCD. You are seeing some new technologies coming out, like LED which make flat panel displays...
Craig: LED, which were on display at CES.
Jack: LED. Absolutely. And these flat panel displays — you know there is something about walking in to see a friend's living room and they have got one these flat panel high-definition TVs hanging on the wall that just says, "Wow!" You know what I mean?
Craig: It is very sexy. But remember, when you hang it on the wall, you better make sure you got access to the back of that television set for all your cables.
Jack: Absolutely. Or plan out your system really well [laughs] in advance... really well in advance.
Craig: Exactly. So, I mean you do not have to hang it on the wall. Some of them, a lot of TV sets, come with a really elegant stand. You put it on an armoire or something. And...
Jack: Now, I also mentioned the fourth category of TV and that is CRT. And I think a CRT TVs, you know, are kind of a dying breed. You don't see them...
Craig: Well, let us talk about CRTs. CRTs are standard picture tube type television sets that we are accustomed to in the past.
Jack: That is right. That is the TV we grew up with. Yeah, exactly.
Craig: The biggest negative that I can come up with a CRT is weight.
Jack: They are big.
Craig: They are heavy as hell.
Jack: But a lot of videophiles to this day, still swear by CRT, because they are capable of what we call 'true blacks' — meaning the contrast of these TVs is just really, really amazing.
Craig: Exactly. I have my rear projection — it's with three CRTs. I am an old-timer. And I bought it for one reason: I want real blacks.
Jack: That's right. Yes.
Craig: With CRTs, I mean, literally the CRTs go off when you are reproducing a black image. In the case of, for example, an LED or an LCD display, literally you know, you got the backlight potentially, so that is on.
Jack: I got to tell you though. With some of these layered display technologies coming out, some of these new display technologies that are coming out for flat panel TVs, rear projection TVs, even front projection systems; it is amazing the contrast this latest generation of TVs is able to put out. I mean, it really would be tough for you to look at some of these new displays and go, “Geez, is that contrast equivalent to the old CRT that, you know, I know and love?”
Craig: If I was buying a TV, the two things I would look at is: I would look at dark images in the picture first of all. Are blacks really being reproduced as solid black elements or are they actually reproduced as gray elements?
Jack: Yes.
Craig: The other thing is, as I look into the darker image, to point out the contrast. I would look into these darker images and how do they resolve. Is everything just dark?
Jack: Or is the detail still there?
Craig: Exactly.
Jack: That is exactly right.
Craig: That is really, really critical.
Jack: Now, it is very, very critical. One thing I tell everybody. Everybody, everybody. If you are going to invest in a nice, big HDTV or even a modestly-sized HDTV that is expensive... [laughs] Listen, make sure when you go in, you bring a DVD, preferably an HD-DVD or Blu-ray disk, that is a movie that you know and love. Something you have seen a million times that you can ask the retail salesman, "Please play this on this TV. I want to watch it."
There is no substitute for you actually laying your eyes on the display before you pick it up. I really recommend folks do that. Things to look for, like you said, Craig — make sure that the blacks are truly black and not gray and washed out. That there is nice, sharp detail. Try to situate yourself as far from the TV as you are going to be at home.
Craig: I want to go there again. You know, your room environment should really impact your buying decision.
Jack: That is true.
Craig: How far am I seated from the TV? Do I have a lot of ambient room light coming in?
Jack: If you have a light.
Craig: Because if I got a lot of ambient room light, I am not going to have a front projector.
Jack: You are not going to have a front projector.
Craig: I can not do that. I cannot support that.
Jack: Unless you got big, heavy blinds that you can close and really make the room dark.
Craig: Do I have lamps next to a TV? Because if I have lamps next to the TV, maybe if you have a rear projection TV with a screen, you do not want to be watching the reflection of the room in the screen.
Jack: Ah, yes.
Craig: You actually want to be watching the image on the screen.
Jack: That is very, very important.
Craig: So, you got to think about your room environment and the environment that you intend to watch your movies. Now, a lot TV sets can do double duty. They can be bright and powerful during the daytime. In the night time, you turn the lights down. You watch your movies. They can be very delicate and very communicative.
Jack: That is right. You know a lot of these TVs do give you a lot of ability to go in there and tune them, to really optimize them for a particular environment.
Craig: So, in a future podcast, what I would like to talk about, Jack, is — you know, let us talk a little bit more about that environment.
Jack: Yes.
Craig: And then let us talk about how we can take the tools that the manufacturer gives us in the television set and create a better picture.
Jack: That sounds like a great idea! Listen, if anybody out there has any questions about video, they are looking into buying a new HDTV display, please send in your questions to us. We'll be more than happy to answer your questions on air. We will be talking more about video in future podcasts. This is Jack Buser from Dolby saying, have a great week, in my part.
Craig: And I am Craig Eggers and on behalf of John, our engineer, and Scott, our producer...
Jack: We are signing off and see you next time.
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