Not happy with StarzHD quality

Mark Strube

SatelliteGuys Family
Original poster
Jun 9, 2006
65
0
Wisconsin, USA
I'm glad they've added some new HD channels, but I must say I am very underwhelmed with the quality of StarzHD... perhaps this has something to do with the mpeg4?

I'm viewing this on a 50" 1080p Sony SXRD. All of the other HD channels (HBO, HDNet etc) look very nice and smooth, no major issues. I'm viewing on a ViP622 connected thru HDMI.

StarzHD just can't seem to achieve full fluid motion. Anytime there's a scene with the camera steadily moving, it's slightly choppy. Also, there's slightly jagged edges in some scenes, as if my hdtv cannot properly find the progressive frames or something (it's in CineMotion mode which has no issues producing a beautiful 1080p image from all of the other HD movie channels).

Also, in moderate to high motion, there's a good amount of "ghosting."

I don't know if these issues are due to their encoders or my box's decoding, but I've forced it to update and then rebooted, which has fixed none of these problems.

I hope these are just early issues that will be corrected soon, with an update or by fixing the encoding on their end. But if not, then mpeg4 is far from ready for prime time.

I've also sent this to Dish's picture quality control email address: dishquality@echostar.com
 
That is just starz. They don't have all of the movies they show in HD. Many are Sd upconverted...
 
Actually those they do claim to be True HD...

so then it probably is the MPEG4 and 1440 conversion
 
The picture looks nice, until you start to really watch it. I don't see how anyone with a moderate to large sized HDTV could miss these issues? Anyone?
 
I have a 57" set. I watched a few scenes of Hostage last night on Starz HD.
The picture looked pretty good to me.
 
StarzHD just can't seem to achieve full fluid motion. Anytime there's a scene with the camera steadily moving, it's slightly choppy.

I've noticed that on all of the "True" MPEG4 channels. I think it has to do with the MPEG4 encoders. Not noticable on any of the MPEG2 channels or the channels that have the headers.

Scott
 
I have to agree. I watched the Hostage and Darkness last night and both were choppy in high movement scenes. Even the wife noticed and she could care less about HD.
 
YES, it is the same thing I see with the hd local Cbs station in Houston. The mpeg 4 encoders aren't getting it right . It has something to do with the 1080i channels being downconverted to 720p or 1440i or what ever. IT NEEDS TO BE FIXED!! I encourage everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, to write an email to the dishquality folks and complain.

IF this is the future with mpeg4 I consider it a giant step backwards. IT gives me a headache to watch anything that jerks, or looks like it is missing frames on either my Cbs local , much less a PREMIUM HD Starz channel. I want quality in my hd picture not quantity in hd channels that reduces the quality of all hd channels. I wouldn't care if it was done like Voom and at least it looked fluid in movement. At this point I would rather watch the sd version than the hd version that has MTV camera effects that make me sea sick. :mad:

dishquality@echostar.com
 
I have noticed it as well on my 622. Mpeg2 looks better to me. My HD locals from E* also experience similar problems, NBC being the worst. I just barely switched from D* where I had CBS & FOX from L.A.. Thoses channels looked much better than anything I have seen in Mpeg4. I hope they fix it soon.
 
Left NFL Network HD paused for about 5 minutes while changing my son. Could not un-pause it after that. skip forward and back also did nothing. After that no video on the mpeg-4 channels until a front panel reboot. Very disappointing. 622 rev A.


Edit: same thing with Starz HD. Paused for about 5-6 minutes. No way to get it to play again. Video gone from StarZ HD and NFL Network HD until a reboot.
 
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Remember back in November, Charlie said that they were having problems with MPEG4 encoding and implied that there might be a delay in putting MPEG4 into production.

My take is that they may have improved it a bit from then and then went into production anyway, despite the gear not yet being ready for prime time.

I don't think it is due to the down-rezzing to 1440x1080i, indeed, I believe they are down-rezzing because that's the best they can do with any semblence of image quality.

I think the solution will come with the next generation of MPEG4 encoders. Whether that is a few or several months, I don't know.
 
Tom Bombadil said:
Remember back in November, Charlie said that they were having problems with MPEG4 encoding and implied that there might be a delay in putting MPEG4 into production.

My take is that they may have improved it a bit from then and then went into production anyway, despite the gear not yet being ready for prime time.

I don't think it is due to the down-rezzing to 1440x1080i, indeed, I believe they are down-rezzing because that's the best they can do with any semblence of image quality.

I think the solution will come with the next generation of MPEG4 encoders. Whether that is a few or several months, I don't know.

My thoughts exactly.

Side note on the down-rez thing. I am one of those people who continues to pester Dish and Voom about down-rezzing. But I have a dirty little secret- I keep a movie on my DVR that I use to "show off" my HDTV. That movie is Jean de Florette off the World Film channel. It simply looks stunning in the opening scenes. And that channel is down-rezzed, no? Just kind of takes a little bit of steam out of my anti-downrez campaign :p.
 
No problem on my TV. It looks equal to HBO HD and SHO HD to me. I'm watching it on a 50" Sammy DLP. HGHD has a unique look to it. I don't think it a quality issue, maybe the camera or lighting they use. All the new channels look really good to me.
 
Honeslty there doesn't appear to a real reason nfl hd and starz hd have to be mpeg4 to begin with.

They added NGC and hGTV HD as mpeg2 on a transponder

and then they went ahead and put starz and the nfl on another transponder, but in mpeg4....

no 2 channels on 2 transponders on set mpeg2, and one in mpeg4, but why???

not to mention there is still space next to espn2 and universal hd on seperate tps...
 
When VOOM had Starz HD it looked fine to me. Dwin TV3 120" screen.

If you want to see if the MP4 is what's causing it, how about looking at and reporting one of the other MP4 channels. I don't have the 622 yet so I am curious about this. 622 due to arrive the end of the month here.
 
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