HD Picture size

DrewF · ‎01-22-2010

Why does WBNX say that it's HD when the actual picture size only fills part of the screen? Specfically while watching the Office with the aspect ratio set to 1080i and the TV set to 16:9.

texasguy37 · ‎05-18-2009

Are you saying that all programs on that channel appear that way or only some programs?

DrewF · ‎01-22-2010

Not all shows. The Office for sure.

texasguy37 · ‎05-18-2009

Not all programs on an HD channel (channel 1000 - 1999) are broadcast in HD. If a program is broadcast in SD on an HD channel, it will appear as you described.

aviewer · ‎03-11-2010

DrewF - Just to check a couple of other things - The connection is HDMI or component - Not coax or composite.
& the little blue light is on

DrewF · ‎01-22-2010

HDMI. Yes, blue light is on. The show may fill 2/3 of the screen at the most - it's tiny, but I do adjust the picture size to fit the screen. I think I always get frustrated this time of year because the NCAA coverage looks horrible. I have a new TV on the way - going from 40" to 47" and 60Hz to 120Hz, so it's either going to look better or the poor picture quality will be more exagerrated.

aviewer · ‎03-11-2010

DrewF - You said it is only the one station. So, it should not be your setup.

I have seen what you describe & there were other similar complaints on PBS stations. It did just go away. Perhaps it ps an interim stage of upgrading the stations equipment.

Try calling the station. Can you get it OTA?

That Don Guy · ‎11-30-2010

When you say that it fills part of the screen, does it appear in a widescreen format but surrounded on all sides by black?

If so, the problem might be that somebody at the station thinks that all episodes of The Office in syndication are in 4:3 format and shows them as such. This may become a problem with a number of shows that started out 4:3 but are now 16:9.

DrewF · ‎01-22-2010

The picture only fills-up the middle part of the screen - very tiny and nowhere close to HD! I don't have an OTA. Can you actually call the station and get a human being?

aviewer · ‎03-11-2010

I checked their website. THey have plenty of contact info including e-mail here - http://www.wbnx.com/station_information.php

click the cable button & their is another opportunity for feedback

mibrnsurg · ‎07-15-2008

DrewF wrote:

The picture only fills-up the middle part of the screen - very tiny and nowhere close to HD! I don't have an OTA. Can you actually call the station and get a human being?

Is it a small 16x9 box in the middle of the 16x9 full HD screen? If so it's the SD version now used by many channels. They are no longer providing a 4X3 SD image.

Chris

Please NO SD stretch-o-vision or 480 SD HD Channels
1-800-288-2020, After he gets acct info, press # a bunch of times, get a menu from Mr. Voice recognition
Your Results May Vary, In My Humble Opinion
I Call It Like I See It, Simply a U-verse user, nothing more

DrewF · ‎01-22-2010

Hey, thanks! I emailed them and will let you know if I get a reply.

DrewF · ‎01-22-2010

Here is the response I got:

In regards to your question, the version of the program we have was letterboxed to view a 16x9 picture on a 4x3 screen. Unfortunately, it retains the 4x3 ratio in the middle of the screen when it is up-converted to HD. We hope this helps answer your question.

Thanks for watching WBNX TV!

mibrnsurg · ‎07-15-2008

What they are saying, they only have an SD version that has the same image on the HD channel. The image should be better on the HD rather than the SD channel too.

Chris

Please NO SD stretch-o-vision or 480 SD HD Channels
1-800-288-2020, After he gets acct info, press # a bunch of times, get a menu from Mr. Voice recognition
Your Results May Vary, In My Humble Opinion
I Call It Like I See It, Simply a U-verse user, nothing more

aviewer · ‎03-11-2010

DrewF - Reply back to them that they are doing it backwards - They need to put the 16:9 directly on the HD feed and crop it for the 4:3. (they probably need to buy new equipment to do it right)

That Don Guy · ‎11-30-2010

aviewer wrote:
DrewF - Reply back to them that they are doing it backwards - They need to put the 16:9 directly on the HD feed and crop it for the 4:3. (they probably need to buy new equipment to do it right)

I have a feeling they're not getting a 16:9 signal, but just a 4:3 SD that is letterboxed. The station needs to inform whoever sends them the broadcast that they need a proper HD signal (or, at the very least, a proper 16:9 SD which the station can then upconvert). A PBS station in the San Francisco area had the same problem with The McLaughlin Group for a while (it was double-letterboxed in HD, but now it's full-screen).

DrewF · ‎01-22-2010

ok - passed along your comments and aviewer's as well. Will keep you updated.

DrewF · ‎01-22-2010

Received another reply from WBNX-TV. They replied that "The way the episode was sent to us by the Distributor did not allow it to convert properly. We are trying to get it worked out with the Distributor. Thank you for your interest and bringing it to our attention". I'm interested to see if this actually gets fixed.

aviewer · ‎03-11-2010

Props to you for holding their feet to the fire and keeping us in the loop. If you see it again or a similar problem report it with the tone that they were suposed to be working on it & is still not fixed.