HDTV Question

[TwelfthAG]

So, I'll have a HDTV by T+1, but not the proper digital cable stuff to back it up. Will it still come in HD since it's on an over the air station, or am I SOL. :huh:

[jagowar]

in houston (im assuming) your local should be on the air in HD. you will need some sort of a tuner to actually get the signal. your tv might (depends on the tv model you get)

[Pflugerville Ag]

If you have an HD receiver or if your TV has a built in HD tuner (not just HD ready), you can get a pair of amplified HD "rabbit ears" and get it in HD. These are under $50 and can be bought at Best Buy or Circuit City. When you hook it up, you will get all the local stations in HD.

I have an HD TV with the HD satellite package in Austin. However, local stations in Austin are not HD through Dish Network. I hooked up the rabbit ears to mine and get all local stations in HD now. Easy as can be.

[TwelfthAG]

Just found out TW will take care of everything by thurday, so I'm all set. Thanks for y'alls help :rep:

[TwelfthAG]

What a great first game to see in HD :flag:

[jagowar]

so did it look good? and now you know why watching sports in HD you cant take having to watch them in SD (or non HD) ;)

even though abc in houston kinda in hd terms sucks but thats a different topic.

[TwelfthAG]

It truely is amazing how much better it is. I never really realized how fuzzy standard def was untill now.

[jagowar]

It truely is amazing how much better it is. I never really realized how fuzzy standard def was untill now.

exactly.... and abc probably does the worst job overall of producing hd football. wait till you see fox and cbs tomorrow for the nfl games.

[Kyle98]

exactly.... and abc probably does the worst job overall of producing hd football. wait till you see fox and cbs tomorrow for the nfl games.

My brother has a 50" HDTV. Watched both the Cowboys game and the Ags on the TV, CBS was alot better. They make up for it, though, by having absolutely horrid announcers and presentation.

Phil Simms has to be the dumbest announcer covering NFL games, and that's saying alot. At one point, he said it was benefiting the Cowboys having Terrance Newman on the sidelines because it was creating matchup problems for the Colts.

I'm sorry, but how is having the best corner on the team (and maybe in the league) on the bench?

To get back on topic, HDTV ROCKS! :)

[TwelfthAG]

I just wish I could've seen Kyle in HD when it was in HD a few weeks ago.

How big do you have your tv projecting jag? You have a projector, right?

[jagowar]

i had a 106 but downgraded slightly to 92 inches diagonal now because the 106 was a bit too big for "optimal" viewing distances in my room (ie playing some xbox 360 games sucked when things are too big... ie you get mad headaches because you are sitting too close to the screen for fast action).

In jan Im getting a new projector though and part of the 92 inch downgrade was for that (so I could make more projectors fit in my room). Moving from a lcd based pj to dlp.

[TwelfthAG]

Always nice when 92" is a downgrade. I'm assuming you really like the quality since you are buying a new one, but how does it compare to rear projection? Does it get "washed out" if there is too much light in the room?

[jagowar]

yeah you need to be able to make the room almost dark to get a good picture but it can look as colorful and bright as plasma or any top of the line tv out there. you would be suprised how little quality you lose in hd on a 92 inch screen.

the real reason im getting a new one in jan is my lcd one is on its last legs (one of the lcd panels is semi broken) so im gonna sell it while i can as used for parts and the bulb is still very good. reason for jan is im going to ces in vegas this jan and i have it down to 2 projectors im going to get to compare in person there so right after i get home im going to order my new one.

already have my hd-dvd player ready (on my xbox360) so i cant wait to see how good it looks on a new pj.

[TwelfthAG]

360 plays dvd-hd?

[jagowar]

yup... with a 199 addon (but you can get them much cheaper if you look). got mine for 149. a great way to get into the hd game w/o breaking the bank (provided you have a 360).

and the device works suprisingly well.... very quick to boot (compared to the other hd-dvd/bluray players) and looks great (it comes with king kong hd-dvd). ive added a ton of movies at blockbuster to my queue and look forward to seeing more movies in hd-dvd.

[Kyle98]

Have you gotten to compare HD-DVD to BluRay at all? I've read all the tech articles, but nothing subsititutes for real world usage.

[jagowar]

nope... only bluray player i would consider is the ps3 and honestly i doubt ill get one anytime soon (because the 360 will have the superior games for the next year or so)

but i will say this bluray cant look any better than king kong does. king kong is perfect. and from the things ive read hd-dvd quality is a better right now and much cheaper. i just got it friday so i havent had the chance to view anything past king kong.

[Kyle98]

I've heard that the quality is a little better on BluRay, but the price is the prohibitive part. Since they both use the same laser technology, I don't see why they can't come to some kind of compromise. Then again, VHS and Betamax weren't all that different either.

Of course, who cares about the consumer.

The only reason I'm rooting for BluRay is because I'm a Playstation homer. I'm only a Playstation homer for one game. Gran Turismo. If Xbox had Gran Turismo, I'd have gotten a 360 a long ass time ago.

Well, that and the controller. PS controllers kick Xbox controllers asses! :)

[jagowar]

Well, that and the controller. PS controllers kick Xbox controllers asses! :)

the new 360 controller beats the crap out of the sixaxis pos... :)

and actually if you go read avsforum hd-dvd is all the rage over there and those guys are crazy about pq stuff.

and hd-dvd is selling better than bluray right now according to this site: http://www.thedvdwars.com/index.cfm (but this is using just amazon but should be somewhat close to the real figures)

[Kyle98]

Yeah, but what about Gran Turismo?!?!?!?!?!?!? :D

[TwelfthAG]

HD-DVD has a way more friendly name for the no-nothing consumer. I bet it could win the whole dvd format war based on that.

[jagowar]

Yeah, but what about Gran Turismo?!?!?!?!?!?!? :D

pgr3 is good enough for me ;) then again i never was a gt fan. and teh 360 has forza 2 coming (although neither are the same game as gt)

[Kyle98]

I'm not a big car guy at all, but I've been hooked on GT since the first one. Its pretty sad, I buy a Playstation for 3-4 games a year. Gran Turismo, NCAA, Tiger Woods, and well, that's pretty much it. Maybe a Grand Theft Auto game, too.

[jagowar]

well the 360 has the rest of those games covered... was very nice playing at kyle in sorta hd last year (same as tiger woods) ;)

and gears of war is amazing (and im not much of a shooter fan). i wouldnt consider gears a traditional shooter.... its just amazing.

[Kyle98]

I can't play shooters on console. Not even close to the same as on PC.

I don't even play that many shooters on PC anymore. I am pissed that Call of Duty 3 is console only, though. Gonna have to get my Kraut-killing fix with Medal of Honor: Airborne, I guess.

[jagowar]

youd be surpised with gears.... its not like the traditional shooters and is also the reason it works on a console. since everything about this game is about cover it works. i am a much bigger shooter on the pc fan (use to be a huge tribes series fan with a little unreal tourny) than console but gears is different.

[Kyle98]

Well, maybe I'll check it out, then. I just can't imagine playing any kind of shooter without a keyboard and mouse.

Playing a shooter with a console controller is like playing a flight sim with just the keyboard.

[jagowar]

Well, maybe I'll check it out, then. I just can't imagine playing any kind of shooter without a keyboard and mouse.

Playing a shooter with a console controller is like playing a flight sim with just the keyboard.

like i said... try it and i think gears will suprise you. and i agree i never thought i would play a shooter sans kb/mouse.

[Kyle98]

Is that a 360 only game?

[jagowar]

yup.