[mythtv-users] resolution discussion

[John Morris]

On Mon, 8 Sep 2003, Jeff Williams wrote:

> Is VGA really better than component?  They are both high-resolution
> analog connections, but what are the technical differences?  My
> understanding was that if you really wanted better quality than
> component on a TV, you need to just go all-digital through DVI to an LCD
> or plasma set with real digital pixels (as opposed to a CRT-based HDTV,
> or something, where DVI would really be pretty useless since you're just
> converting to analog in the TV anyway).

It all depends.  All current display devices are RGB at the point where
they actually emit light.  So in a perfect world RGB input would be best
on any tube based set and DVI best for the flat panels.  It would be a
little bad to convert VGA to component and then have the set translate
back to RGB internally but it is a fairly simple and low loss translation
and in the end it all comes down to what connectors your set has unless
you are still shopping for a set like I am.

Component does make a kind of sense for the uses it was designed for,
HiDef TV and DVD since both use MPEG compression and have the video
readily available in YUV already.  Since Hollywood forbade any sort of
digital output until encryption could be assured as close to the tube's
electron guns/display drivers as possible, component was a reasonable
compromise since it really doesn't matter whether the YUV -> RGV
conversion happens in the settop box/DVD player or in the TV.

-- 
John M.      http://www.beau.org/~jmorris        This post is 100% M$ Free!
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