Yurik

Hello all,

I have several questions about SONY wide screen rear projection HDTV
model KDP-57XBR2 I bought recently. First, when I connect my Apex AD-800
DVD player to it via component RGB, a movie shows black bars on top and
bottom of the screen even though the disk is clearly widescreen, DVD player
is set to 16:9 output and the TV is in full wide screen mode. Even though
the bars are much thinner than on my old 4:3 TV, they're still there - what
to do to watch a DVD move in full 16:9 wide screen?
Second, there're couple station that broadcast in HDTV here in New York.
CBS-2 for example on channel 2.1. But even though their picture is HDTV, it
doesn't fill the entire screen there're black bars on the left and right.
Even though the bars are smaller than on ordinary 4:3 broadcast, they're
still there. And the TV says it's a 16:9 signal and Zoom options are
unavailable. How come?
And finally, I'd like to be able to use firewire i.Link connection of the TV
to record video from it to my PC. When I connect TV to PC, Windows XP
recognizes the model - KDP-57XBR2, but asks for a driver for it. Do you know
where I can download one? If not, what is the work around to use i.Link in
HDTV to PC connection.

Thanks in advance for your help, I really appreciate it.

57U

Yurik. You usually only need to post your question in one thread. We'll be able to find it. Here's my answer in the other thread, regurgitated here...

1. Not all DVD movies are the same aspect ratio (ratio of width to height). The ones that are 1.85:1 will perfectly fill a widescreen TV (the ratio is amost exactly 16:9, like your screen). Movies that are 2.35:1 will leave black bars at the top and bottom.

Enhanced for Widescreen DVDs also need to be "stretched" only "horizontally", while "normal DVDs" need to be "stretched vertically and horizontally. If people are too fat or too thin, you've used the wrong stretch mode. Some DVD movies are even in 4:3 aspect ratio (same as your old TV). These will have black bars on the sides...

2. HD channels do not always broadcast actual High Definition material. When they do, it will usually fill the 16:9 screen properly, but, due to the lack of HD material, a lot of the stuff broadcast in HD is still 4:3 material (same aspect ratio as your old TV.) This material has been "upconverted" from 480i to 480P, 720P or 1080i depending on the station.

Use the following link to see what is on in HD.

http://www.hdtvgalaxy.com/broad.html

Also, search this site for "burn in", read all the posts, so that you don't ruin your TV.

__________________
57U - Toronto, Rogers Cable, SA8300HD, 500GB HDD & Hitachi 61UWX10B HDTV, Yamaha RX-V1 A/V Receiver, Martin Logan Speakers. Photos --> 57U's HT

SA8300HD, 250GB HDD & KDL40W3000 (Upstairs)

Please don't PM me with questions that can (and should) be asked in the forum, thanks. Personal Question? Fire away.

Yurik

Sorry for the crossposting, I wasn't sure where the topic belonged, I won't do it again. Thanks for the reply it explains a lot. But I am still looking for the way to connect the TV to PC via firewire. Any ideas?

zarlor

My guess is that you won't find a driver unless someone kludges one toghther. I seriously doubt Sony will do one, especially for getting information FROM that connection. Send TO that connection is probably the only application Sony was really expecting that port to be used for. Part of the reason for using the Firewire links was for copy protection encryption, so even if you could retrieve information, such as a channel tuned in by the set, it might be possibly that it would be encrypted anyway and you still wouldn't be able to record it... at least not without the right program to hack the encryption. But that's just a guess on my part.

__________________
Lenny Zimmermann
zarlor@acm.org

DISCLAIMER: I am not and have never been some kind of video expert. Take absolutely everything I post (along with anything else you read on the internet) with a HUGE grain of salt! If you really want the most complete and truthful answer, go to engineering school and find out how this stuff REALLY works.

Yurik

Strange. I've been using i.Link with PC with another SONY product for a while. I have a SONY digital camcorder DCR-TRV20 with i.Link and when I plug i.Link port in the camcorder into firewire port in the PC, XP automatically detects the model - SONY DCR-TRV20 and installs drivers for it. After that I use Pinnacle Studio 7 to capture video. SONY even describes this setup TV->Camcorder->firewire->PC in the camcorder's manual to record TV signal. I'd imagine SONY TV has similar interface, but XP doesn't have a driver for it.
Also, when I contacted SONY about i.Link use with camcorders they told me I'd be able to connect it to the TV via firewire for high quality digital playback. Well it doesnt work. The TV detects the camcorder model precisely but when I switch to it, it says "No Signal". Weird.

zarlor

The first part makes sense, I have a Sony digital camcorder as well and it is meant to output video through the "i-Link" port to be saved/shown/edited on a Firewire equipped PC. I wouldn't expect that a TV would, necessarily, ahve the same capbility to export images, only to import images to be shown.

Which is why the second part sounds a bit strange in that I would expect your set to recognize a Firewire connection, expecialy from a Sony camcorder, and be capable of playback... unless the port on the TV is expecting some kind of "header" or starting command to tell it to begin displaying the video stream being sent. I'm not sure how the Firewire-capable STBs are set-up to do that, but the answer may lie there.

__________________
Lenny Zimmermann
zarlor@acm.org

DISCLAIMER: I am not and have never been some kind of video expert. Take absolutely everything I post (along with anything else you read on the internet) with a HUGE grain of salt! If you really want the most complete and truthful answer, go to engineering school and find out how this stuff REALLY works.

50BMG

There is no reason why your cam-corder and tv (I have the exact same unit btw) both Sony products, should not talk to one another.

I would suggest you call Sony and explore it with them on the phone.

I suspect you need a firmware update or something.

Which unit is older?

As for your PC -> TV via i-Link question... I have no answers at this time.

P.S. Please read my review of my KDP57XBR2 then post one of your own. I'd like to compare notes on issues you've noticed.

__________________
Attn: FCC- Thank you for Banning importation and manufacture of NTSC-only TVs - consumers are being hurt by buying TVs that are obsolete, and this is setting back the HD movement. Spread the word... add this to your signature.

57U

Wow, you just woke up a thread that was over 3 years old!

__________________
57U - Toronto, Rogers Cable, SA8300HD, 500GB HDD & Hitachi 61UWX10B HDTV, Yamaha RX-V1 A/V Receiver, Martin Logan Speakers. Photos --> 57U's HT

SA8300HD, 250GB HDD & KDL40W3000 (Upstairs)

Please don't PM me with questions that can (and should) be asked in the forum, thanks. Personal Question? Fire away.

50BMG

Yeah, but I saw he had the same set as I, and was hoping he wuz still out there to offer his experiences as I'm having issues.

__________________
Attn: FCC- Thank you for Banning importation and manufacture of NTSC-only TVs - consumers are being hurt by buying TVs that are obsolete, and this is setting back the HD movement. Spread the word... add this to your signature.

57U

His last post was in 2002. He may still be there, but unlikely.

__________________
57U - Toronto, Rogers Cable, SA8300HD, 500GB HDD & Hitachi 61UWX10B HDTV, Yamaha RX-V1 A/V Receiver, Martin Logan Speakers. Photos --> 57U's HT

SA8300HD, 250GB HDD & KDL40W3000 (Upstairs)

Please don't PM me with questions that can (and should) be asked in the forum, thanks. Personal Question? Fire away.

Ratman

Well... Yurik joined on 6/20/02 and hasn't posted since 6/24/02.
I don't think you'll be hearing from him.

__________________
"Illegitimus non carborundum"
Please! Do not PM me with general questions which can be asked publicly on the forum.

Intimidator#3

Well 1st your TV must have a firewire port before it will work.