I have a headache! PTAE-100 connections

[Smurfin]

Having only just recently got back into the home cinema "groove" after 4 years, I'm getting thoroughly confused!!!!!

Some of this may be covering old ground, but I need help!

Ok, this is my problem....

I'm planning on buying a Panasonic PTAE-100E projector, and I've been reading lots of the threads on connections/DVD player/HTPCs etc.

I have a Pioneer 646a DVD player, which I only recently bought (not even thinking about LCD projection then, and my RP TV is quite old) for £300.

Now many people are saying that progressive scan makes a HUGE difference for this and other LCD projectors.

Clearly my DVD player hasn't got this feature.

Also, people are saying component video is the best way of connecting DVD player/projector.

On the back of my DVD player, I have the following:

RGB-scart out
Composite video out
S-Video out

So, given what I have, is my DVD player going to be up to the job?

I'm assuming I would need to connect S-video for the best picture? I've read that s-video on the panny gives a horrible picture.....but of course it comes down to the eye-of-the-beholder. [I'm going to try and get an audition somewhere to see for myself, but I would appreciate general views on this]. Oh and any cables I use will need to be 10m long.

The last thing I want to do is to replace my DVD player 4 weeks after getting it and wasting all that cash!!!

I'm going back to the shop tomorrow, to see if they would be willing in any shape or form to swap/part-ex this player for possibly the Toshiba 510 which I believe is progressive scan capable? [my player was ex-demo anyway which may help, even more so if I buy my projector from them].

Advice would be appreciated, this is giving me a headache!!!!

Cheers
Smurfin

PS Are the PTAE-100's still in short supply in the UK or are they easy to get hold of?

 

[Amelia]

I was using a standard DVD player via S-Video and I was more than happy with the results and so were all my friends. The DVD Player started to play up, so I asked for advice on what to go for.

PC is the best from what I can tell.

I decided I was going to go down the path of Pal Progressive DVD Player (Philips Q50). As much as the first setup was great the Progressive Scan DVD player via Component is Awesome. Colours Improved, No Colour Bleeds, Contrast as specially in Dark scenes are so much better. The image is really sharp and you see all the finer details. The motion is smooth and film like.

If I were in your shoes I would stick to your current DVD player and when you're ready, then upgrade to either ProScan DVD Player or PC.

I guess the way I would describe the difference is, standard DVD via S-Video is Really Good, ProScan DVD is mind blowing!!

As far as the "headache" part goes I know exactly what you mean

Best Regards
And Good Luck
Amelia

 

[Bert Coules]

I've read that s-video on the panny gives a horrible picture.....but of course it comes down to the eye-of-the-beholder.

Exactly. Other people's subjective opinions really aren't worth very much.

Do you have a VCR? How would you describe the quality of picture it produces on playback? Well (all other things being equal) an s-video feed from a DVD into the AE100 is better than that. If you would consider such a picture "horrible" then yes, I suppose you ought to consider doing something about it.

Remember though that an awful lot of other factors have a bearing on perceived picture quality: the screen, the ambient light, the colour of the walls, the settings on the projector.

There really is no substitute for trying things for yourelf. If you're going to get the AE100 anyway, why not do so, connect up your existing DVD player and just seeing whether or not you like the result?

Bert
www.bertcoules.co.uk

 

[Smurfin]

Originally posted by Amelia

As far as the "headache" part goes I know exactly what you mean

Best Regards
And Good Luck
Amelia [/B]

Glad I'm not the only one!!!

 

[xander]

Adding a Pro-V between your existing S-Video DVD player and the AE100 should give you a pretty good picture.

 

[richard plumb]

can I jump in here to save another post? I have a couple of related questions that would help me and perhaps Smrufin too:

My DVD player is on its last legs, so needs replacing. Should I:

1) buy a nice s-video outputting multiregion one and a ProV inputting XGA into an AE100

2) buy a progressive scan PAL & NTSC DVD player inputting component into the AE100

the projector is supposed to be better when fed via VGA, and the ProV is deinterlacing, so has anyone done a comparison between the two options above?

Two other quick questions

1) can the AE100 display 50Hz images, or does it convert everything to 60Hz?

2) Does the ProV convert PAL to 60Hz before sending it on, or does it pass on 50Hz? I'm a bit prone to noticing juddery pans.

this might make the difference between deciding on a ProV and waiting for a progressive PAL player (assuming the projector can refresh at 50Hz)