Silly question about upscaling

[admin_exported]

Hi all. (and hopefully some WHF folks.)

In What HiFi TV reviews the equipments ability with upscaling / processing is commented on all the time and sometimes seems to have an effect on a review rating. - I can understand that a review should examine total ability as a stand alone TV and it has started me thinking....

What is TV processing / upscaling like in comparison to that found in a Blu Ray deck or an AVR? Without digging around the back of my elderly Panny PZ80 I should think that my Denon 2310 or Sony BDP-S360 would probably handle all upscaling a fair bit better....or am I missing something here? Should the TV handle the upscaling? I it supposed to do it better?

As I'm on the verge of the next stage of upgraditis and all my video sources are 1080p native I wonder can I disregard any negative comment in reviews that concerns a panels ability or lack of when upscaling?

Seasons greetings to you all. 🙂

Martin.

(46 inch Panny over time has shrunk to about 42 inches...then I saw a 63 inch Samsung in a shop window...got home and my poor TV had shrunk to about 32 inches.)

 

[kinda]

I don't think there's really a rule of thumb on which is better to be honest.

But if all you sources are 1080P I wouldn't worry about it too much.

 

[The_Lhc]

somethingbrite:all my video sources are 1080p native

You don't watch broadcast TV then?

 

[professorhat]

Well, he may only watch it through the TV's internal tuner, in which case the question on where to upscale is a mute point.

 

[Clare Newsome]

As the_lhc rather brusquely suggests, upscaling also refers to how a TV handles standard-definition (and indeed HD) TV signals received on its own tuners, as well as external sources.

We do both test for upscaling ability and consider it in our ratings - but it's rare that it would be a single factor in a set's success (or lack of), as there are alternative ways of upscaling content.

Hope that clarifies things!

Incidentally, in a test we did a few years' back, only the late, great Pioneer Kuro offered better upscaling than an external source. It might be worth repeating that test, as today's flatscreens have improved a lot, as have sources, as have receivers.....

 

[The_Lhc]

Clare Newsome:As the_lhc rather brusquely suggests,

Ack! It's NOT brusque! It's economical...

I was asking the question first and then, if he'd said yes, I'd have followed up with something along the lines of:
upscaling also refers to how a TV handles standard-definition (and indeed HD) TV signals received on its own tuners, as well as external sources.

but if he'd said "no" then I wouldn't have worried and have saved myself at least ten seconds of typing. Economical, as I said...

Incidentally, in a test we did a few years' back, only the late, great Pioneer Kuro offered better upscaling than an external source.

Still does, especially compared to Sky...

 

[Anonymous]

well thanks all for your responses. It was after all a silly question I could probably answer for myself if I faced up to the dust bunnies round the back of the TV and spent an afternoon with tea and my "Comparitive Study" head on.

But they are probably quite big those dust bunnies!

Clare, a comparitive test of processing in TV's and external kit would be really interesting. I'll keep my eyes peeled.

As for Standard Definition TV (broadcast TV)? actually, no, I don't really watch it. There is rarely anything on it that I would like to see.