Free to air Picture Dimensions

Fozzie Bear

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This may seem a daft question but have the FTA broadcasts changed recently in their screen ratio format?
I have fairly recently changed my antenna to a Labgear log periodic from a Televes DAT 75. I am getting a much better picture from London (Crystal Palace??) now. However I have noticed recently that there are black bars at the top and bottom of the picture indicating that the whole screen is not being used. This applies to all channels including Channel 4 but not when they are transmitting Super Nanny or American soaps like Frazier? In this case the whole of the screen is used. At first I thought it was my new antenna/distributiona amp setup, but dismissed this because of the Ch4 sitcom difference above. I even have the issue on my new Sense 26" lcd, and changing from 4.3 to 14.9 or 16.9 makes no difference to the blank area top and bottom of the picture.
It only appears to be on the analogue channels not the digital ones as my Sony 32" widescreen CRT tv with built in digital tuner is fine on digital and so are the pictures from my Wharfdale STB on the Sense.

It is most annoyiong on my Sharp LC20SH1E in the kitchen as there is no way in the setup to change the picture format. Unless anyone knows how to hack the OSD :smashin:.

Am I missing something or is this something I will have to put up with?

Fozzie
 
I don't entirely follow what you say, but I think most if not all digital are now broadcast 16:9, so if you have a 4:3 TV you must chose between a letterbox with black lines, a centre cutout without the sides, or, if offered, a distorted picture.

To make life fun you can adjust these on both tv and stb, and for current viewing or default.

There was a recent thread on this topic.
 
For as long as I have had a 16:9 TV I seem to remember that all analogue broadcasts have had black bars top & bottom of the picture (not that I often watch analogue now). My only analogue source on my main setup was an old VCR and that definately shows the black bars, but that is via my video processor so that could be the cause. My LCD TV in the bedroom does always have the bars though on the analogue tuner.
I would assume that UK programs on analogue TV are not transmitted in 16:9, but perhaps the US programs are!

Mark.
 
For as long as I have had a 16:9 TV I seem to remember that all analogue broadcasts have had black bars top & bottom of the picture (not that I often watch analogue now). My only analogue source on my main setup was an old VCR and that definately shows the black bars, but that is via my video processor so that could be the cause. My LCD TV in the bedroom does always have the bars though on the analogue tuner.
I would assume that UK programs on analogue TV are not transmitted in 16:9, but perhaps the US programs are!

Mark.
I'm not calling you a liar, but can't see how that makes sense!

Surely if you display a 4:3 pic on a 16:9 set the blank space should be at the sides?, because 4:3 is same as 12:9 so you fill the 9 height but have 4 width blank?

Just as if you put 16:9 on 4:3 you either use 12:9 with 4 width chopped off, or 16:12 with black lines because you only have 9 height to fit into 12 screen?
 
I was only talking about widescreen broadcasts (which is just about everything these days except old TV programs) - not 4:3 as they will obviously have the bars at the side.

Mark.
 
Ah! - as in films type widescreen, which I think are even more than 16:9 wide:high, so have to have bars unless they actually broadcast them sides chopped off.

I think they used to actually edit films for TV use according to the scene, but not sure they bother now!
 
The Sharp LC20SH1E is a 4:3 TV and will possibly have a menu setting as to how to display widescreen material or you could be stuck with Letterbox like the Technika sets from Tesco used to be. Having said that, as far as I know analogue transmissions are only 4:3 Centre Cut-Out.
 
Ah! - as in films type widescreen, which I think are even more than 16:9 wide:high
Standard widescreen TV is 16:9 or 1.78:1 but films are often 1.85:1 giving the extra width and hence black bars with many DVD's watched on a standard 16:9 TV screen.

Mark.
 
The Sharp LC20SH1E is a 4:3 TV and will possibly have a menu setting as to how to display widescreen material or you could be stuck with Letterbox like the Technika sets from Tesco used to be. Having said that, as far as I know analogue transmissions are only 4:3 Centre Cut-Out.

Unfortunately there does not appear to be a widescreen option or infact any alternative picture dimension options in the menu. Must be a very basic set. Not my choice won it in a raffle ;)
fozzie
 
On analogue some programs fill the screen where if you view the same program on freeview it has the black bars for eg (emmerdale) now i remember that the bklack bars where present on the analogue but i cant say when it changed but iv'e quite a few programs recenlty.
On my asda cheapie freeview box there's a button called (wide) and pressing that makes it fill the screen obviously it cuts the side off,I would check the menu settings.

andy
 

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