What's the deal with these new hd channels?

[StonesCat]

You have to remember that just by visiting here, let alone posting, people are pegging the geek-o-meter pretty hard, and I don't exclude myself. Not exactly the typical TV customers here.

 

[psychicmind]

It does feel like their is an HD earthquake in progress.

First the rush for a channel to go HD, next a rush to produce HD content (I think it took 4 years for A&E HD to produce it's first HD feature).

Unfortunately, seems like too many channels are going HD using the cheap route. I could understand that with cheap commercial channels, but not premiums like MGM.

I would imagine in 2001, what was HD was really HD. Today was are getting tricked with compression and upconversion.

Seems to me today, the mainstream doesn't really know what HD is and therefore, networks are totally taking advantage of that.

But today is 2008 and there is no excuse for cheap HD transfer without DD. MGM is the first HD channel without DD (If there are others, I haven't watch them).

 

[KKlare]

I thought I was happy with replacing some HDNet Movie MPEG-2 recordings with MGM MPEG-4 ones. This reduced their size by a third or more and cursory viewing looked OK.

Space is important even with four WD750 drives. One for series and specials and the others with IMDB ratings 8.2 and more, 8.1 to 7.9, and 7.8 to 7.6. A few 7.5 and down are on the main drive. (Think IMDB 8 = 4 star.) Of course, my 921 cannot record any MPEG-4 not can it use the external drives. But it can do OTA for now.
-Ken

 

[M Sparks]

Space is important even with four WD750 drives. One for series and specials and the others with IMDB ratings 8.2 and more, 8.1 to 7.9, and 7.8 to 7.6. A few 7.5 and down are on the main drive.

people are pegging the geek-o-meter pretty hard

 

[kvnfl]

But today is 2008 and there is no excuse for cheap HD transfer without DD. MGM is the first HD channel without DD (If there are others, I haven't watch them).

Many other HD channels broadcast without DD. During the Starz freevue, some of the content was SD video with HD (Dolby Digital) sound. That was a first.

 

[8bitbytes]

Many other HD channels broadcast without DD. During the Starz freevue, some of the content was SD video with HD (Dolby Digital) sound. That was a first.

Actually, Dolby Digital Plus is HD audio. DD is fairly standard on most DVDs.

 

[wase4711]

I remember in 2001 when I bought my 65 inch HDTV, the only HD was the PBS 4 hour loop that they replayed over and over. AND now everyone complains about the lack of HD or real HD. How many of you even had HDTVs back then. If you did you would appreciate the abundant supply of HD that there is now, even if it is mostly reruns.

+1
From a fool who had hd in 2000..

what is really sick now, is that sometimes I watch TWC, just to see a decent HD picture...

I need help....