Thread: Best DTH for LCD TV's

Hello ppl,

I have 32" LG LCD tv[HD ready] & right now using STB from my Cable operator. 180+ channnels for 200 bucks. But flipside is its having only Composite Out. So almost all channels are stretched out.

If anyone is using Big/any other DTH with Component out(Y-Pb/Cb-Pr/Cr) on LCD tv please share your views. Snaps would be cool...:28:

Originally Posted by kaushik2512

Hello ppl,

I have 32" LG LCD tv[HD ready] & right now using STB from my Cable operator. 180+ channnels for 200 bucks. But flipside is its having only Composite Out. So almost all channels are stretched out.

If anyone is using Big/any other DTH with Component out(Y-Pb/Cb-Pr/Cr) on LCD tv please share your views. Snaps would be cool...:28:

Hello Kaushik,

You have posed some very right questions. Let me answer them to the best of my capability:

a) At the moment, BigTV is the only provider that is providing STB with component out. All others are providing composite out only.

b) OK. Correct that. Sun Direct DTH has launched HD services - the first in India. But their (Sun) hardware is expensive. The Sun HD STB alone is 10K and there are two HD channels - one Telegu movie and one Tamil movie channel. Again very expensive at Rs. 100 pm each. There are talks between Sun DTH and content providers to provide more HD channels (Discovery, NatGeo, AP, ESPN, Star Sports, etc.). But HD channels will be very expensive in the beginning.

c) It is not clear whether Sun HD will be providing Full HD (1080p or 1080i) or near HD (720p/i).

d) You have mentioned stretching of picture. But that is something you cannot help. It is not the problem of the cable wala. There is no widescreen broadcast right now. So whether you switch to DTH, the problem will remain.

e) In my opinion, BigTV provides very good picture quality (I saw it in a restaurant on large 50" LCD). But BigTV is a screwed up organization. You just have to visit the BigTV section to look at the huge list of complaints about activation, customer care, support, etc.

f) Airtel Digital is also a good option. But in my opinion, you should go with TataSky who is most likely to provide the best quality combined with service.

I am using BIG tv DTH service and i am happy with it ............ as i dont want to spend 1k rupees on component out cables as i dont have a good lcd tv

but as just4kix said its quality is really good (MPEG-4) and looks beautiful on a large screen as i myself tested that at the reliance outlet before purchasing my connection

I am considering myself lucky that i got the connection in just 2 days!!

Originally Posted by kaushik2512

Hello ppl,

But flipside is its having only Composite Out. So almost all channels are stretched out.

...:28:

I don't think the composite would matter. You can set the TV to
display 4:3 or 16:9 or stretched or zoom etc.
In which case you would have black bars on the sides.

-F

Some widescreen TV offer multiple aspect ratios:

Widescreen: (Default). The standard mode. Normal (4:3) picture gets stretched on the TV to fill the entire width and height.

4:3 : The 4:3 picture is shown in proper ratio and there are black (grey) bars on the side.

Just: This is an interesting mode. The frame is divided in three parts of 1/6 left, 2/3 centre and 1/6 right. The center 2/3 rd is picture is retained in the original aspect ratio (4:3) while the left and right 1/6 th's are stretched to fill the screen. This effect kind of gives the feeling of original aspect ratio but not having the black bars on the side.

Zoom: The 4:3 frame is zoomed in such a way that it fills the whole screen maintaining the original aspect ratio. But this means that picture is cropped out on all edges. This is the best mode for watching movies shown on TV. These movies are shown in letter box mode. So the top and bottom are already having black bars. So if you use the zoom mode, you loose some picture on the sides (not much). Here is a snapshot.

N/B: This picture is from a WS projector and not an LCD TV but the principle is the same.

Thank u guys for such quick response..:rockon:

1. I have ruled out HD ( atleast for a year) to allow some competition to develop in the market. Cannot risk it with Dish..

2. Well I'm left with Tata, Big & Airtel. So I'm going to do some quick research may be going back to my LCD TV vendor(who uses TataSky).
Also, I dont know if there is difference between Tsky & Tsky+ hardware(STB ..).

3. As for Big/Airtel , i'll check out thier retailers. Try out demo on LCD.

4. If I find big difference with Big over others, I might go with it (problems everywhere but play n win )

Anyways i'll come out with my findings in few days

Note that the picture posted above is from Dish TV. My projector is 720p and the picture quality is not too bad (obviously not DVD quality).

Also note that the picture is projected on a screen and then I snapped it using an ordinary digital camera (Kodak Z650). So it is a reflected image.

Here is a shot from a DVD:





Above pictures have been reduced in size.

My point: do not rule out DishTV. It is just as good, a shade lower in quality in comparison to TataSky. I have DishTV myself.

Agreed just4kix, I will definitely check it out. Give me a couple of days.

Hi Kaushik,

Which connection did you take? How is it working in 32" LCD? I confused to decide between BIG TV and TATA SKY?

Originally Posted by kaushik2512

Also, I dont know if there is difference between Tsky & Tsky+ hardware(STB ..).

Tata Sky+ has got comp dvd output

Got internet & USB ports also, but are currently defunct.

Originally Posted by just4kix

Note that the picture posted above is from Dish TV. My projector is 720p and the picture quality is not too bad (obviously not DVD quality).

Also note that the picture is projected on a screen and then I snapped it using an ordinary digital camera (Kodak Z650). So it is a reflected image.

Here is a shot from a DVD:





Above pictures have been reduced in size.

My point: do not rule out DishTV. It is just as good, a shade lower in quality in comparison to TataSky. I have DishTV myself.

offtopic : Enough shots of DVD bhai, get some bluray please !!

Originally Posted by rajan1310

offtopic : Enough shots of DVD bhai, get some bluray please !!

Wait till Oct. That is when I shall be home.

Hi,
Seen a lot of good posts from you.]
Any change in opinions six months down the line.
I am looking for great quality - With my Samsung 40 inch LCD TV. Maybe 50 / 100 rupees more per month may not matter much.
Thanks.

Originally Posted by venkysharma

Hi,
Seen a lot of good posts from you.]
Any change in opinions six months down the line.
I am looking for great quality - With my Samsung 40 inch LCD TV. Maybe 50 / 100 rupees more per month may not matter much.
Thanks.

If you want best quality then BigTV is the answer. But hang on! Their services are very poor in responding to complaints. One of the biggest pain point of BiGTV is the time lag when switching between channels. It is almost 3 seconds.

TataSky is the next best in terms of quality but is the most expensive of all DTH. The new TataSKY STB (Black model) also has component out. If you opt for TS, insist on this STB. DO NOT GO FOR THE NORMAL (WHITE) STB THAT HAS COMPOSITE OUT ONLY. TataSky has the best STB user interface of all.

Finally there is DishTV. It is the cheapest of all and quality is quite reasonable. I am DishTV subscriber.

What I will suggest is to go to a multi-DTH dealer and check the quality for yourself. But as you mentioned that Rs. 50/100 here are there is not going to bother you, TataSKY is your safest best.

I have written some articles on the same:

1. DishTV vs TataSky vs BigTV
2. Best DTH as per 'Living Digital' Magazine

Thanks just4kix. We value your opinion. I will probably decide in a couple of days.