Do upscaling DVD's upscale everything ?

magpieant

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Quick question ....

Would an upscaling dvd player (in this case a very cheap (but decent enough) ONN one from Asda)) upscale a divx file that is being played via the usb input ?

Or do they only upscale DVD ?

Just asking as I have been playing a divx file and the quality seems very good!

Cheers

Anth
 
If the player is connected to a HD Ready flat panel TV via HDMI then it doesn't really matter as the TV itself will upscale/downscale to its own native resolution anyway.
 
Ok - now I'm confused.

If that was the case, would it not be that there would be no need for upscaling dvd players as the TV would do it all anyway ?

Also, there would be no noticeable difference between BBC and BBC HD (which there is) when played through the V+ Box (also connected via HDMI).

I know that the dvd player upscales DVD - and you can see this - but just wondered if it also did this with divx and xvid files played from usb stick.

Any offers?

Cheers.

Anth
 
Ok - now I'm confused.

If that was the case, would it not be that there would be no need for upscaling dvd players as the TV would do it all anyway ?

Nevertheless, it is correct.
In most cases the scaler in the tv is of lower quality than the one in a decent dvd player. That's why a lot of people prefer to let the player do the upscaling.

I know that the dvd player upscales DVD - and you can see this - but just wondered if it also did this with divx and xvid files played from usb stick.

Depends what you set the player to output, typically you can choose 576p, 720p, 1080i and 1080p.
The screen will always scale to its native resolution.
 
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I've always been a bit confused by this... if the DVD player and the display are both scaling the picture, what exactly is shown on screen? Do you have to disable the display from upscaling, or does this happen automatically if it's receiving an upscaled signal?
 
In general terms, the screen will do the final scaling (to it's best or native resolution). So if you feed it a low res signal, it will upscale. If you feed it a signal that is scaled to it's native resolution, it will do no scaling. If you feed it a signal higher than its native resolution, it will downscale.

So, for example, my Panasonic 37 inch plasma has a native resolution of 720p. It will accept and play sources up to and including 1080p. However, the pixels just aren't there on the screen to show this resolution so it actually downscales 1080p to 720p. Every scaling operation can potentially degrade the signal so (in my case) it is best to set my DVD to output 720p so that only one scaing operation takes place (in this case, in the player).

Whether the DVD or TV should do the scaling depends entirely on which does the best job. It could be that with a very cheap DVD player, the TV will do a better job so the DVD output should be set to "low res" and let the TV handle it. Conversely, an expensive DVD player may do a better job of scaling than the TV. In which case, set the DVD to scale up to the native resolution of the screen.

Try both methods and see which is best on your screen and DVD combination.
 
so (in my case) it is best to set my DVD to output 720p so that only one scaing operation takes place (in this case, in the player).

Normally yes, but the px80 is a special case (if that's what you have).
It appears this set scales everything to 1080p before downscaling to 720p. Panasonic is said to have used the same scaler in all their current plasma screens to cut costs.
 
So, for example, my Panasonic 37 inch plasma has a native resolution of 720p. It will accept and play sources up to and including 1080p. However, the pixels just aren't there on the screen to show this resolution so it actually downscales 1080p to 720p. Every scaling operation can potentially degrade the signal so (in my case) it is best to set my DVD to output 720p so that only one scaing operation takes place (in this case, in the player).

IIRC 720p output is 720x1280 resolution but some panels often called 720p are 720x1024 native. So depending on the native resolution of the panel further processing will still take place i.e. 576i>576x720p>720x1280p>720x1024p.

The least processing steps is 576i>720x1024p but this assumes the player will allow 576i over HDMI and that the processing i.e. deinterlacing etc is decent quality in the display.

AVI
 
Right ...

So ... I also have the Pano 37px80b .... Am I best leaving the dvd player on standard output and letting the TV upscale, or will it be better to let the dvd upscale to 720p and leave the telly ?

I would imagine a £500 telly would upscale better than a £20 dvd player - but then I don't understand the point of buying upscaling DVD players! Help.

Anth
 
Also, if my telly is upscaling, then what is the advantage of buying an upscaling dvd player over a standard one that connects through HDMI ?

Cheers

Anth
 
Also, if my telly is upscaling, then what is the advantage of buying an upscaling dvd player over a standard one that connects through HDMI ?

Cheers

Anth

If the tv has a good upscaler then there is none.
 
Ok - so does anyone know what the upscaler in the Px80b is like?

Anth
 
I would imagine a £500 telly would upscale better than a £20 dvd player - but then I don't understand the point of buying upscaling DVD players!

Also, if my telly is upscaling, then what is the advantage of buying an upscaling dvd player over a standard one that connects through HDMI ?

£500 tv - £20 dvd player = tv is probably better at upscaling? Yes.

£500 tv - £100 dvd player = tv is better? Forget it.
 
Normally yes, but the px80 is a special case (if that's what you have).
It appears this set scales everything to 1080p before downscaling to 720p. Panasonic is said to have used the same scaler in all their current plasma screens to cut costs.

That's interesting, I didn't know that (I have the px80b). For info, I have a Yamaha DVD-S2700 which can output either 480p/576p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p or "Auto" which, it is claimed will set the best resolution automatically based on the monitor. I tend to just use "Auto" which, when played through my Yamaha RX -V3800 shows 720p. I've played around with the output settings available on the DVD player and TBH, I can't really see any noticeable differences between them. I guess that means that he screen is doing a pretty good job of whatever is thrown at it.
 
That's interesting, I didn't know that (I have the px80b). For info, I have a Yamaha DVD-S2700 which can output either 480p/576p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p or "Auto" which, it is claimed will set the best resolution automatically based on the monitor. I tend to just use "Auto" which, when played through my Yamaha RX -V3800 shows 720p. I've played around with the output settings available on the DVD player and TBH, I can't really see any noticeable differences between them. I guess that means that he screen is doing a pretty good job of whatever is thrown at it.


I also heard that about the Panosonic scaling up and then down - but then read somewhere on this forum that it's not true!!! Confusing or what.

I'm off to have a play with the output settings and see if there is any difference between the dvd player doing it and the TV doing it.

Not too worried as I only spent £20, but if I'd spent more on an upscaling dvd player, only to find out the TV did it anyway, I'd have been one unhappy bunny! Guess I should have read up on these things first!

Either way, I am very happy with both the 37PX80B and the £20 ONN player - both very nice and picture qaulity is fantastic!

Cheers for the input everyone.

Anth
 
I also heard that about the Panosonic scaling up and then down - but then read somewhere on this forum that it's not true!!!

Panasonic says it is.
All PX80 processing is done at 1080p. I asked panasonic and they confirmed it.



Thank you for your e-mail enquiry.

In response, I would explain that all input signals are converted to 1080p for processing because of the same FHD chip set used in all 2008 TV sets (both HD and FHD sets). The 1080p signal is then reduced for 720 or 768 line screens i.e. HD Ready PX80 sets.

The PZ8* models would display the signal at 1080p since this is their native resolution; the use of a universal 1080p chipset helps to maintain an affordable price for our products. The up/ down conversion process (on PX80) does not degrade the image quality.

I trust that the above information will be of assistance to you. However, of course, if you should have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact us by either emailing us at [email protected], by fax on 01344 853213, or by telephoning our Customer Care Centre on 0844 844 3852.

Kind Regards
Anthony Clarke
Administrator
Dealer Support / Correspondence Team
Panasonic UK Ltd
 
Ok, im still a tiny bit confused... so.... just to clarify... i also have the 37px80 - but currently still have my old SD connected Sony dvd player... if the TV is upscaling to 1080p and then downscaling back down to 720p....

Would i get a better picture and see a noticable benefit with an upscaling dvd player connected through a HD cable? If so, would it be better regalrdless of which upscaling DVD player it was... or would i have to spend a certian amount on a decent upscaling DVD player to get the benefit? Or would i notice no difference as the TV is doing the work anyways?

:confused:
 
:) nice and simple answers... lol

I notice you have the Sony DVP-N78,so if i bought one of these, would that be likely to result in a better picture than my current old sony? i cant remember the model number as im at work... but it was probably a top end of the budget range player....

or would i be having to spend alot more than that to notice a difference?
 
:) nice and simple answers... lol

I notice you have the Sony DVP-N78,so if i bought one of these, would that be likely to result in a better picture than my current old sony? i cant remember the model number as im at work... but it was probably a top end of the budget range player....

or would i be having to spend alot more than that to notice a difference?

It's a nice player, but I don't use it anymore because I bought a Pana BD player and that also upscales nicely.
However, for its price the Sony would certainly be a good option.
The Toshiba XD-E500 is also a popular contender (some say it is incredible and near HD, others say it is not very good).
Most would say the Oppo is the best SD upscaler, but then we're talking at least about £200 and up to almost £400.
 
How about this .
My pioneer kuro 5090 1080p tv
connected to my pioneer lx01 upscalling dvd player.

I have the dvd set to 1080p but also have lower display optiond listed.

What is recomended ?
 
Try both and see which looks best to you. The Pioneer is a high end TV so the chances are that it's scaler could be better or equal to the DVD player.

I have an Oppo 981 and a Panasonic PZ80 and the Oppo's upscaling is vastly superior. Edges are much sharper and diagonal lines are smooth.
 
there would be no noticeable difference between BBC and BBC HD (which there is) when played through the V+ Box (also connected via HDMI).

I know that the dvd player upscales DVD - and you can see this - but just wondered if it also did this with divx and xvid files played from usb stick.
 
I have a Panosonic 720p lcd and a Phillips upscalling DVD player. The best picture i get is either via the HDMI with the resolution set at 1080p or through the component leads set at 576p which suggest if i leave a little bit for the tv to do i get a better picture. I also tried it through the scart on RGB to leave it all to the tv but the pic quality was far inferior.
 

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