Super Quick Question about HBO

[OrangeCounty]

Is HBO in full HD on Dish? What i mean is, that if its being down converted or compressed like other Hd channels or if its in pristine non touched conditions.
(HBO package)

 

[KAB]

Is HBO in full HD on Dish? What i mean is, that if its being down converted or compressed like other Hd channels or if its in pristine non touched conditions.
(HBO package)

Well, my definition of untouched is when they show movies in original aspect ratio. But failing that, yes it is good quality. And sure, it is compressed. There is nothing that is not...even OTA.

 

[r_childress]

I don't think they down res any of the premiums. I might be wrong, but I don't think so.

 

[OrangeCounty]

Cool, thanks you guys, im getting that after i get the free hd channels thing on june 3rd! Whoo!

 

[kstuart]

Cool, thanks you guys, im getting that after i get the free hd channels thing on june 3rd! Whoo!

The June 3rd "Free HD for Life" does not include HBO, if you do not already subscribe to HBO.

If you do subscribe to HBO, then already you get the HD versions automatically today, even if you do not subscribe to any other HD package.

PS HBO HD channels are now uplinked by HBO in MPEG4. The high bitrate MPEG2 versions found on FIOS and other MPEG2 systems are actually upconverted, technically speaking.

The bitrate that is uplinked by HBO itself is not remotely comparable to Blu-Ray, so it is acknowledged to be a compromise for the purposes of TV broadcast. If you are a fanatic with a 108 inch screen, you will want to wait for the Blu-Ray releases of the HBO programs.

That said, HBO HD looks as good or better than anything on Dish Network. And, all channels on Dish Network are part of the statistical multiplexing system that uses bitrate unused by boring talking-heads channels like CNN and gives it to sports and movie channels, on a moment-by-moment basis.

 

[OrangeCounty]

Kstuart: No I meant to say I will cancel my platinum HD, which will save me 10 bucks. Then I will subscribe to HBO which will cost 15$.so overall, my bill will only go up 5$...

 

[allargon]

That said, HBO HD looks as good or better than anything on Dish Network. And, all channels on Dish Network are part of the statistical multiplexing system that uses bitrate unused by boring talking-heads channels like CNN and gives it to sports and movie channels, on a moment-by-moment basis.

IMHO, the Epix channels look way better than HBO or Showtime.

 

[KAB]

IMHO, the Epix channels look way better than HBO or Showtime.

FYI, Epix=720p. HBO=1080i.

 

[Dish97]

IMHO, the Epix channels look way better than HBO or Showtime.

Don't know if I'd go that far, but they do look good. Now if they ALL would work on that pesky OAR.....

 

[JWKessler]

Nothing beats HBO HD on my old and now retired C-Band system. They only offered a few channels, but they looked really great. Every signal reseller takes that fantastic pristine signal and modifies it to fit their bandwidth requirements so none of us see the signal as HBO supplies it.

 

[kstuart]

Nothing beats HBO HD on my old and now retired C-Band system. They only offered a few channels, but they looked really great. Every signal reseller takes that fantastic pristine signal and modifies it to fit their bandwidth requirements so none of us see the signal as HBO supplies it.

That all changed.

About a year ago, HBO changed to MPEG4, and Dish is actually one of the few providers to supply that signal relatively unchanged.

 

[DishSubLA]

As per the point an earlier post: All signals for use on OTA or even satellite to cable or to satellite is NOT "non-touched", but can certainly look as "pristine" as HBO or others send it out . The question is not if the signal is just relayed absolutely unmodified or unprocessed to the viewer, but if the result that the viewer enjoys is either virtually identical to the what HBO is sending out or just looks great by its own merits even with processing and necessary re-encoding. Even for OTA, it has to be re-encoded by the local station's MPEG 2 encoder, and NOT all encoders are created equally, but it can look just as good as what was sent to the local stations on the satellite. Don't forget, many GREAT looking sports events are bounced up and down a few satellites being processed, re-encoded, etc, before New York or Los Angeles sends it out to your local station where it performs its own processing and re-encoding for broadcast to your HDTV, and the results can still be spectacular PQ.

All that said, the Dish PQ for HBO's is very good. I wouldn't worry about it. However, while Dish can state that they pass along the HD channels to you in the providers original 720P or 1080i resolution, it is not necessarily 1920 x 1080, and that is where the notion of "HD Lite" come in. It can be often less than 1920 so that Dish can accommodate more channels. However, a downrezed PQ of less than 1920 can still look great, if handled properly.