Sky SD Settings on Panasonic PX80

[admin_exported]

I am hoping that this will have been covered and someone can point me in the right direction - just set up my TH37PX80 yesterday evening - Freeview picture quality is excellent but Sky+ SD is just 'OK' - the EPG is quite fuzzy - the actual picture on Sky is not bad but not as good as Freeview - how can I improve this? Are there any settings that I should be playing with? I have fitted a new SCART lead (Cambridge Audio Premium) which should be reasonable quality, even if not really top of the range.

Any advice or pointers much appreciated.

Thanks

Mike

 

[Anonymous]

Whats the tv like?

I am getting mine Tuesday....

 

[Anonymous]

Freeview - very good

Not that impressed with Sky+ SD quality so far - benchmark is our old Loewe Aconda 32" CRT - at the moment the kids want to go back to the old TV - :-(

 

[Anonymous]

Is the SKY+ box set to RGB output?

 

[Anonymous]

I have a Panasonic PZ80, a bit different I know, but it appears the best general settings are "Cinema" & "Warm" with all the other settings (contrast, brightness) set mid way. Have seen this mentioned a few places on the web and looks good on mine with Sky+ SD via RGB Scart.

A

 

[Anonymous]

Yes - RGB output - will try others - it is the sharpness of the image that is the main problem - I have a spare SCART lead and I will swap this with the new one I bought to see if this has any impact on the picture

Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

No way should the EPG be fuzzy, plasmas do have a softer picture than the more garish LCD's but the EPG should be rock solid. The settings I use are -

CONTRAST 38 clicks from left

COLOUR 32 clicks form left

BRIGHTNESS 30 clicks from left

SHARPNESS Maximum

COLOUR BALANCE Warm

PIC NOISE REDUCTION Off (V important!)

Also my Sky is set to medium contrast. If your watching old tele it always looks poor on big screens, but something like BBC or Sky news or new Smallville should look pristine. If you can't live with the way it is there's always HD!

 

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't have thought 37 inch would count as a big screen for sd would it?

Am following thread as interesting in upgrading my crt to 37px80 in jan too.

 

[Alec]

physiochris:
I wouldn't have thought 37 inch would count as a big screen for sd would it?

Am following thread as interesting in upgrading my crt to 37px80 in jan too.

I think it is. But then, i graduated from a "28" inch CRT (really 26" then, but my current 37" only measures 36.5"). Thats quite a leap in actual viewable area.

I'm not as over the moon with my px80 as some are, but im far from unhappy too, even tho i havent used the THX thingy yet.

 

[Anonymous]

although the 37inch px80 isn't huge compared to other tv's, it still has roughly four times the number of pixels than 32 inch CRT tv's of the past and it's this as much as screen the screen size that exposes flaws in SD programmes especially older ones.

 

[northantsbloke34]

I have px80 42". We use virgin + and i have to say te picture is awsome to say the least!. The v+ box does upscale the picture tho. My mum has sky on her philips plasma and i have to say i'm not impressed at all. Perhaps its sky?? well sd sky anyway?

 

[Alec]

northantsbloke34:I have px80 42". We use virgin + and i have to say te picture is awsome to say the least!. The v+ box does upscale the picture tho. My mum has sky on her philips plasma and i have to say i'm not impressed at all. Perhaps its sky?? well sd sky anyway?

No it couldnt just be sky. We'll have less o' that thankyou, young man!

 

[northantsbloke34]

just my opinion. that is allowed!

 

[Alec]

northantsbloke34:just my opinion. that is allowed!

you didnt get teh (or the) memo did you? opinions which are anti sky and pro virgin, and which do not support the idea that i would get better SD performance by going Sky HD are most definitely not allowed.

no really.

 

[Anonymous]

Also my reference point is a Loewe CRT which is/was a pretty darn good TV...

 

[northantsbloke34]

Never said i was pro virgin or anti sky actually. The only thing i don't like about sky is the dish on the side of the house. I think the are ugly. This is the main reason i went with virgin.

 

[Anonymous]

Eh howie:

No way should the EPG be fuzzy, plasmas do have a softer picture than the more garish LCD's but the EPG should be rock solid. The settings I use are -

CONTRAST 38 clicks from left

COLOUR 32 clicks form left

BRIGHTNESS 30 clicks from left

SHARPNESS Maximum

COLOUR BALANCE Warm

PIC NOISE REDUCTION Off (V important!)

Also my Sky is set to medium contrast. If your watching old tele it always looks poor on big screens, but something like BBC or Sky news or new Smallville should look pristine. If you can't live with the way it is there's always HD!

Sharpness should never be at the maximum setting.You will be adding all sorts of extra imformation that isn't in the original source.Most 'experts' recommend sharpness to be OFF completely but I have mine set at roughly 30% with SD to compensate for the slightly soft scaling of the Panasonics.

 

[Anonymous]

Yes i've heard this before, but if i was forced to watch hd on my px80 with sharpness at zero i would want my money back as it is, to say the least, foggy. High sharpness sorts this completely and the images come into focus. Whether its my set or my eyes i don't know but i have tried it on zero and i'm not convinced. The OP was complaining about fuzziness and this could be whats required to solve his problem. Thanks for your opinion though. I'd be interested to hear what other 'non expert px80 users think after trying it both ways.