Poor picture quality with Wally + 4K HDR TV

[comfortably_numb]

Just bought this TV the other day: TCL 55" Class 4-Series 4K HDR Roku Smart TV | Nebraska Furniture Mart

Dish picture (Wally output via HDMI) looks blurry. I've tried adjusting the TV's settings and nothing seems to help.

My brother who works at Best Buy thinks I need a $50 HDMI cable and that will supposedly fix the issue.

This is my first experiment with 4K TV's and I'm completely lost. I don't know if the issue is the TV not upscaling well or something else.

Help!

 

[TheKrell]

I have a Hisense 55" 4K/HDR Roku TV (maybe the same innards?) which looks pretty damn good on 1080i from my H3. I just wish it would do 4K without my having to unplug the HDMI cable, and plug it back in again.

 

[comfortably_numb]

Everything coming out of the Wally looks horrible. Blurry, washed out, looks stretched.

 

[DWS44]

Depending on the age of the HDMI cable, a new one might help, but you certainly don't need the $50 BestBuy special! Monoprice is a great site for high-quality cables at great prices...either direct from them or through Amazon.

Couple sanity check questions:

Have you verified that the Wally is set to output 16:9 and 1080? (Your "stretched" comment made me curious)

Not that it should make much of a difference with respect to regular HD, but have you tried a different HDMI input on the TV to see if that makes any difference?

 

[TheKrell]

I would also try a different source other than the Wally, e.g. a bluray player (but not the 4K kind).

 

[comfortably_numb]

Do some 4K TV's do a better job of upscaling than others?

 

[comfortably_numb]

Couple sanity check questions:

Have you verified that the Wally is set to output 16:9 and 1080? (Your "stretched" comment made me curious) Yes

Not that it should make much of a difference with respect to regular HD, but have you tried a different HDMI input on the TV to see if that makes any difference? Yes

 

[Tommyy2]

Do some 4K TV's do a better job of upscaling than others?

Absolutely.

 

[comfortably_numb]

The other problem is the display TV's in the stores are all being fed 4K streams. There's no way to test menus, different inputs, etc. If I do end up returning this TV, can anybody recommend a 4K HDR TV for under $500 that they know looks good with Wally output?

 

[Voyager6]

The other problem is the display TV's in the stores are all being fed 4K streams. There's no way to test menus, different inputs, etc. If I do end up returning this TV, can anybody recommend a 4K HDR TV for under $500 that they know looks good with Wally output?

You could try the Vizio or LG sets in the $500 range.
https://www.amazon.com/s/gp/search/ref=sr_nr_p_89_4?fst=asff&rh=n:172282,n:1266092011,n:172659,n:6459737011,k:4k+tv+55+inch,p_n_size_browse-bin:3578042011,p_n_feature_keywords_three_browse-bin:7688788011,p_89:VIZIO|LG|Samsung|Sony&sort=price-asc-rank&keywords=4k+tv+55+inch&ie=UTF8&qid=1550609133&rnid=2528832011

Edit: A search turned up this post by Keystone7.
Dish Network on a 4K tv

I have my 4K Samsung UN55JS7000 SUHD. Everything looks great and even better compared with my LG Plasma. I would not trade my 4K for anything that is out there right now. It up converts very well. I don;t think you will be disappointed with 4K. I use my new Dish Wally's that are 4K rated. Of course, nothing in 4K yet so they tell me. But the 1080i that I do get is very nice and clear.I also get my locals that up convert really great!

 

[Tampa8]

Do some 4K TV's do a better job of upscaling than others?

While I don't think that is your problem, yes there is a difference between top tier brands for upscaling Samsung and Sony and next tier including Vizio and then lower tier hisense etc.

You do NOT need a $50 HDMI cable. You might need a new one though not as likely as other fixes but spending $50 isn't going to give any better picture than the many around for $25 more or less. Assuming the Wally is set up correctly check other HDMI inputs on the TVs as suggested and check picture size settings on the TV. Best setting is Fit to Screen or it may be called Pixel for Pixel. Otherwise 16x9 is fine.

 

[eddie willers]

Just bought this TV the other day: TCL 55" Class 4-Series 4K HDR Roku Smart TV | Nebraska Furniture Mart
My brother who works at Best Buy thinks I need a $50 HDMI cable and that will supposedly fix the issue.

That is ludicrous.

 

[comfortably_numb]

Connected my gaming PC to this TV, set resolution to 3840x2160 and the picture looks amazing. Clearly the issue with this TV is its ability to upscale 1080i inputs. The PC feed looks amazing

 

[dishdude]

The stretched comment has me curious about settings as well, some TVs just do a lousy job upscaling lower quality video but the picture shouldn't look stretched. Are the Wally guide and menus scaled correctly? Do they look crisp and sharp?

 

[comfortably_numb]

The stretched comment has me curious about settings as well, some TVs just do a lousy job upscaling lower quality video but the picture shouldn't look stretched. Are the Wally guide and menus scaled correctly? Do they look crisp and sharp?

Not really.

 

[DWS44]

Did you check the picture size portion of the Wally settings...the screen that pops up with circles in the corners where you zoom in/out until all of the circles on the edges are showing? The Hopper has this adjustment, so I assume the Wally does as well. I know when this adjustment gets out of whack on the Hopper, it can make the picture look rough.

 

[n0qcu]

You do realize that adjustment only affects the menus and guide and does absolutely nothing to the picture.

 

[Tampa8]

You do realize that adjustment only affects the menus and guide and does absolutely nothing to the picture.

Yes. But.... if you do what n0qcu said and you can not get it "unstreched" there that is a clue something is going on more likely with the TV.

 

[Tampa8]

Another thought, try another 1080I source like a Fire Tv Stick or Roku etc. If you don't have one can you borrow one? It isn't impossible your wally has a problem but these are ways to figure that out.
Like others are saying it's the stretched look that is throwing a wrench into the problem, that isn't a symptom of not upscaling well. In fact neither is washed out colors really though when a picture is blurry colors can look more dull. Looking blurry is a symptom.

 

[comfortably_numb]

Where can I find the picture size settings in the menu?