ALL HDTV's scale (up, down or none, as required) on all inputs, including HDMI.

Mine doesn't.

If you feed the 'original' resolution from the Humax into my plasma via HDMI there is no option anywhere in the TV's settings that i can change or upscale the resolution. It tells me on screen that it is still 576i (or 1080i if i was watching BBCHD). The same with my AV amp. Both units are new. But i do have options to upscale to various resolutions if i used a component input (RGB). Whether there is a difference of options in resolution settings in HD LCD TVs and Plasmas, i don't know as this is my first HD TV. But definitely cannot upscale via HDMI.


Panasonic TH-42PZ81B
Yamaha RX-V1900
Humax Foxsat HDR

Of course it does


If it didn't upscale it you would have a small picture in the middle of the screen.

The on-screen display fairly obviously tells you what the incoming signal is, there would be no point displays what the display is, as it would never change.

HDTV's scale ALL inputs - it's not an option.

Hes correct, if it was showing anything under its resolution without scaling, there would be black all around a small picture in the middle.

Ok. So how do i know what resolution it has upscaled the picture to? And why do i not get a choice of resolution, i.e 576p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p like i do with Component?

It scales to the resolution of the screen (whatever that is), you don't get a choice because your screen is a fixed resolution (as are all screens).

I fail to see how you get a choice with Component?, any such choice would be on the source device, not the TV.

If your TV has 1080 lines then it scales to 1080p. If it has 768 lines then it scales to 768p. It's not like a CRT TV, the pixel count is fixed so it has to scale if the input is not in the TV's native resolution.

Inputs can be 576i, 720i, 720p, 1080i, 1080p etc depending on what you set the external box to.

Broadcast resolutions are fixed at 576i for SD and 1080i for HD. Ideally, the input resolution should match the TV's native resolution, however the input resolution can vary whereas the TV resolution is fixed, so some scaling must be done somewhere.

If you set the external box to 576i then it will transfer SD broadcasts untouched but scale HD broadcasts down. In either case the TV will then upscale the incoming 576i to 1080. This would only be sensible if you've not got HD and the TV has a better scaler than the external box, but you might as well use Original - see below.

If you set the external box to 1080i then it will transfer HD broadcasts untouched but the box will scale SD broadcasts from 576i to 1080i. This is the best option if the external box has a better scaler than the TV.

If you set the external box to original, it will transfer all broadcasts untouched. The TV will then upscale 576i to 1080 but will not need to do anything for HD. This is the best option if the TV has a better scaler than the external box.

Thanks for the explanation.

I have found that if i set the resolution to 'original' the text and graphics do not look as sharp as the resolution than when i set it to '1080i'. Does this mean that the Humax has a better scaler than my £1000 plasma?

No. It means that, when the box is outputting 567i, the text and graphics are also being output at 576i. If the box is outputting 1080i, the text and graphics are generated and output at 1080i (whatever resolution the currently tuned channel is at). For a similar reason, inset pictures in the red button services will also have much higher resolution if the box is outputting 1080i.

Am i missing something here?!!

If the TV upscales the picture from 576i to 1080i, why isn't the text and graphics (from the Menu, Guide, information, List, etc) getting upscaled too?

Yes they'll both be upscaled, but upscaled graphics won't look as good as graphics produced in HD resolution.

If your LCD PC monitor has a native resolution of 1280x1024 and you've got your graphics card set at that resolution, try changing your graphics card to 800x600 instead and see if the text looks as sharp. The same thing is happening to the actual broadcast picture - anything that's scaled will suffer.

If you are watching an SD broadcast at 576i and you set the box to Original, the box will output at 576i and generate its menus at 576i, and the TV will be scaling both the picture and the menus to 1080 and both will suffer.

If you set the box to 1080i, the box is scaling an SD picture to 1080i (and leaving HD alone) and generating its menus at 1080. The TV won't have to do anything (except de-interlace). However, the SD picture suffers cos the box is upscaling it, but the menus are as sharp as they can be because the box is generating them at 1080 in the first place, not 576 and then upscaling.

Has anyone successfully got the Humax outputting at 576i over HDMI? This is the standard SD resolution in the UK so it seems very strange that screens sold here won't accept it. Flicking through the v-format's last night I could get 576p, 720p and 1080i but not 576i (screen is a Pioneer 4280 via a Sony hdmi switching amp)

My telly accepts 576i over HDMI Ok

Yep my Sony does too. At least some of the Samsung range do not and judging by the posting neither do some Pioneers.
In practice it does not matter very much as you can get 576i from the scart and many say that gives a better picture anyway.

When the humax is setup the resolution is set and original is not an option.
When you can scroll through the v settings (on the remote)from what I have read in these posts am I right to assume:
1 that original is not the setting you put in during the initial installation?
2 It is generally the best to leave as the default?
Thanks

Original simply means that the signal that comes in is the same as sent out over hdmi. ie 576i in 576i out, 1080i in 1080i out. If the foxsat identifies that your TV won't work with a 576i output on hdmi you don't get original as an option if you are viewing SD, only those that your TV will work with will be displayed

Original is the resolution that the programme was broadcast at - 576i for SD, 1080i for HD.

Whatever looks best to you is best. Picture quality is subjective and results with different settings vary with different TVs. If you can't see enough difference to bother you, or if you can't make up your mind which you prefer, 1080i is arguably better. It gives smoother transitions when switching between SD and HD channels, and will display the HDR's graphics and inset pictures when using the red button at a higher resolution.

That is certainly my experience. The HDR and Guide look awful on my Tosh on the "orginal" setting. The colours are pale and there is ghosting around text which would mean that the sharpness needs a serious decrease. I would really need different settings on the TV for the different resolutions. For watching programmes I use the 1080i ( it is default for me) and use "original" if the picture quality looks odd. A good example would be the Simpsons, which looks a bit jagged on 1080i so I use "original" for that, but the trade off if the yellows of the characters have a slight greenish bias. Having spent much time setting the TV up for the best image for HD. Like this all is well on the PQ front here!

Thanks guys,
That clarifies my understanding of earlier posts in this thread.