Do non-HD digital channels look better on a PC than on a LCD TV?

ruby34

Member
Jun 14, 2014
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Hello

I am thinking about building a HTPC and using that for TV needs etc.. I have had TV cards in the past (Hauppauge 4400) and when you use a digital satellite/aerial signal the picture is perfect.

I was wondering about something the other day and I wanted your opinions and views please?

I recall watching digital terrestial channels on a TV card on the PC.. for example I was watching E4 which was a digital channel but it was NOT HD.. and it looked PERFECT.. very clear and crips.. not distorted or stretched as it is shown in it's original resolution in a window.

This is the thing.. when I got a Samsung TV (good quality) and I watch the SAME E4 digital channel (non HD) it is being shown on a 1080P LCD TV and it's taking up ALL of the screen and not in a small window.

I can see that when I watch the E4 channel on the LCD TV it looks BAD.. a lot worse than when I viewed it using a PC/LCD Monitor/Digital TV card.

I can look at HD channels on the LCD TV and they look stunning.. and oh when I say non HD (are they called SD channels?) they do not look awful but they don't look as good as they did on the PC setup.

I have a theory and I want your views on it.. when you view a non HD channel on a LCD TV it is somehow changed or stretched to fit a higer resolution than what it is... and THAT is why it looks bad.. but on the PC the same non HD digital E4 channel is shown at it's ORIGINAL size/dimensions in a windows and that is why it looks perfect?

Am I correct , has anyone experienced the same thing?

Thanks in advance.
 

poofyhairguy

Lifer
Nov 20, 2005
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What you are dealing with is differences in scaling (and MAYBE deinterlacing).

As you note, a SD source when played on a HD display doesn't have the pixels to fill that entire display. If it is just showing what pixels are in the actual source, then it would be a window. To make that windowed picture fill the screen, the system has to basically make up the data (based on what is there) to fill the rest of the space.

With the HD channel there is no scaling needed, the TV just has to show the content that the source has with nothing made up. That is why 1080p is such a big deal as its pixel perfect on a 1080p TV.

That is a VERY basic way of putting it, but suffice to say scalers can be HUGELY different from from system or TV to another. Good scaling we call "upscaling" because it maintains a clear picture. Poor scaling can bring in artifacts and a fuzzy picture.

The scalers in a TV can be all over the map. For a high-end TV they should be nice, but for midrange or lowend they can be pretty terrible. People pay hundreds of dollars to buy good hardware scalers to be used instead of the ones in their TV.

Software scalers (aka on a computer in a program) are often even better than all but the best hardware upscalers. Because it has all that computer hardware to throw at the problem, it can do a better job making up the data that isn't there.

In fact in the PC world there is a movement of people trying to get the best scaling possible period- that is what drives the MadVR community.

What maybe you can do is hook the PC to the TV (and watch the channel in a full screen version of your software) so the PC does the scaling and not the TV. I bet it does a better job, hence why I have an army of HTPCs.

Note that this is also why SD content often looks better on a SD TV (no scaling needed), and why people who are into older content (whether video or old game consoles) will seek out 720p TVs to use (because that involves less scaling than a 1080p TV does).
 
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ruby34

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Jun 14, 2014
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Thanks poofy.

I had a feeling it was to do with scaling etc.. I think with XBox One etc it's not a big thing cause these consoles have high resolution outputs anyway.. but back to the SD digital channels thing.

If you have have a non-HD channel like digital E4 is that referred to as SD (Standard Definition)?

I recall viewing digital E4 in a window on a PC (via TV card) and it was PERFECT is this your experience too?

Are you saying that if a LCD TV also displayed non-HD digital channels in a windows at ORIGINAL pixel size.. it would look perfect?

The other thing is if I do get a HTCP in the future what graphics card would be best.. ie would help a TV card if that makes sense.. what features should I look for.. you mentioned a scaler BUT if you're viewing digital channels at original size in a box no scaler is needed?

Thanks for the explanation anyway.
 

poofyhairguy

Lifer
Nov 20, 2005
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If you have have a non-HD channel like digital E4 is that referred to as SD (Standard Definition)?

Yes.

I recall viewing digital E4 in a window on a PC (via TV card) and it was PERFECT is this your experience too?

Yes, no scaling going on.

Are you saying that if a LCD TV also displayed non-HD digital channels in a windows at ORIGINAL pixel size.. it would look perfect?

Sure, but it might be hard to see across a room.

The other thing is if I do get a HTCP in the future what graphics card would be best.. ie would help a TV card if that makes sense.. what features should I look for

Any Nvidia card GT 2xx or greater, and AMD card from the 6000 series or better. I like the GT 430 and the AMD 6450 for cheap HTPC cards personally.
 

ruby34

Member
Jun 14, 2014
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Thanks for the response.

I'm shocked there is someone on the Internet who is not rude for nothing.. but HELPS others.

You have answered every question I had and things are very clear.. cheers :thumbsup: