I'm curious

Yesterday I bought 300 on Blu-ray and was watching it on my ps3 connected to a Samsung 61inch DLP. Now the problem I've run into is that while the character most the time is pretty nice the background seems grainy almost all the time. It's connected through a HDMI cable and I haven't messed with any settings or anything. It did the same thing when I was watching Planet Earth on Blu-Ray. Is that how it's supposed to be? I'm actually a little disappointed.

I'm curious

Yesterday I bought 300 on Blu-ray and was watching it on my ps3 connected to a Samsung 61inch DLP. Now the problem I've run into is that while the character most the time is pretty nice the background seems grainy almost all the time. It's connected through a HDMI cable and I haven't messed with any settings or anything. It did the same thing when I was watching Planet Earth on Blu-Ray. Is that how it's supposed to be? I'm actually a little disappointed.
What resolution is the Samsung set up to display? On some TVs, just because they are capable of displaying high-def doesn't mean they will until you go into a menu and set it for such.

It's set to automatically pick up what's being played

I don't want to insult you so please forgive me if this stuff is all obvious to you. You say it's connected through a HDMI cable. Is that HDMI going directly from the PS3 to the TV or is it routed through your receiver? If it is, do you have a second HDMI cable for Video Out from the receiver to the TV?

its the movie itself.. 300 is meant to have that grainy look, goes with the strange color of it too.. gives it that comic book look.. looked nearly the same as the original comic book.. if you notice the grain looks a little different then any other movie.. you can still notice the detail with the HD blue-ray.. sometimes you can even see the pores on the faces..

at our places we have a Samsung 61" 1080p Slim-Depth LED Engine DLP HDTV .. we see every little thing.. you can tell the grain is meant to be there..

its the movie itself.. 300 is meant to have that grainy look...
That was my first thought too until he said that it looks the same for Planet Earth on Blu-Ray.

I don't want to insult you so please forgive me if this stuff is all obvious to you. You say it's connected through a HDMI cable. Is that HDMI going directly from the PS3 to the TV or is it routed through your receiver? If it is, do you have a second HDMI cable for Video Out from the receiver to the TV?

Just one HDMI cable from the PS3 right to the TV. Could it also be a difference in the quality of the HDMI cable itself?

Also I thought about that with the grainy supposed to be in 300 but then it's doing the same thing in Planet Earth so that's what concerns me more.

Just one HDMI cable from the PS3 right to the TV. Could it also be a difference in the quality of the HDMI cable itself?
It could be, but I kinda doubt it unless you bought a totally crap HDMI cable.

have you tried any other movies?

i would say try other movies because the PS3 has a very good reputation for being a great Blu Ray player.

You could have just gotten ripped and been sold a bad hdmi cable or a tv that cannot produce TRUE hi-def pictures.

dont forget, with it being high def means that it will bring out any artifacts in the source..... but it could be the cable, what brand HDMI cable are you using? what length?

You could have just gotten ripped and been sold a bad hdmi cable or a tv that cannot produce TRUE hi-def pictures.

If this TV can't produce True Hi-Def then I'm defiantly going to get my money back :nope:

The cable is around 8 ft long and brand I'm not sure but can look into it.

If this TV can't produce True Hi-Def then I'm defiantly going to get my money back :nope:
Look at the specs to your TV (should be listed in owner's manual or on website). To be considered a HD TV it needs to be able to display at least 1080i. Movies and TV at 1080i look pretty amazing, but TRUE high def is 1080p. To get the most out of Blu-Ray, you need a TV that can display 1080p.

If this TV can't produce True Hi-Def then I'm defiantly going to get my money back :nope:
Look at the specs to your TV (should be listed in owner's manual or on website). To be considered a HD TV it needs to be able to display at least 1080i. Movies and TV at 1080i look pretty amazing, but TRUE high def is 1080p. To get the most out of Blu-Ray, you need a TV that can display 1080p.

I looked into it last night and it is a True high def with 1080p. I just bought a new HDMI cable which will be here soon so I'll see if that was it. I watched Planet Earth again last night and it was so bad even my fiancee said wow you actually paid extra for this crap.

I watched Planet Earth again last night and it was so bad even my fiancee said wow you actually paid extra for this crap.
Oh man...that's like the ultimate insult. She may as well have said that you have a little weiner. :doh: I would take that as a personal challenge to get it figured out and looking great. If you're playing a Blu-Ray disc through a PS3, connected by HDMI directly to a HD TV capable of displaying 1080p...it should look phenomenal. I would try the new cable and see what you get.

I watched Planet Earth again last night and it was so bad even my fiancee said wow you actually paid extra for this crap.
Oh man...that's like the ultimate insult. She may as well have said that you have a little weiner. :doh:

Damn Dude that's pretty harsh!


I'm definately interested to see what happens though. That's the exact same setup I was going to get when get back to the states. Let us know what happens.

Damn Dude that's pretty harsh!
Who's being harsh...me or his fiancee? I wasn't trying to be. I just know how personal most guys get about their home theatre stuff. Especially if you've invested in expensive HD equipment. Hearing that from his lady had to hurt.

Damn Dude that's pretty harsh!
Who's being harsh...me or his fiancee? I wasn't trying to be. I just know how personal most guys get about their home theatre stuff. Especially if you've invested in expensive HD equipment. Hearing that from his lady had to hurt.

Good point. Just one more reason why I don't have one. :clap:

Damn Dude that's pretty harsh!
Who's being harsh...me or his fiancee? I wasn't trying to be. I just know how personal most guys get about their home theatre stuff. Especially if you've invested in expensive HD equipment. Hearing that from his lady had to hurt.

Good point. Just one more reason why I don't have one. :clap:
Don't have a girl or don't have HDTV? :P

Damn Dude that's pretty harsh!
Who's being harsh...me or his fiancee? I wasn't trying to be. I just know how personal most guys get about their home theatre stuff. Especially if you've invested in expensive HD equipment. Hearing that from his lady had to hurt.

Good point. Just one more reason why I don't have one. :clap:
Don't have a girl or don't have HDTV? :P

A fiancee/wife. Any body can get a girl. :no:

it cant be the hdmi cable, the hdmi cable is a digital connection, so if there was anything wrong with the hdmi cable it will just lose signal. never heard of an hdmi cable adding grain artifacts :)

many films purposely add grain to whether or not its cg, it has to do with a study that most film goers find grain more comforting while no grain = sterile lifeless.

I suppose its similar debate audio has with cdds versus lp.

if you take notice, even completely cg rendered films include some artificial grain.

however with blu ray, depending if its single or dual layer the grain may be compression artifacts.

compression artifacts and simulated grain are too different things.

it cant be the hdmi cable, the hdmi cable is a digital connection, so if there was anything wrong with the hdmi cable it will just lose signal. never heard of an hdmi cable adding grain artifacts :)

many films purposely add grain to whether or not its cg, it has to do with a study that most film goers find grain more comforting while no grain = sterile lifeless.

I suppose its similar debate audio has with cdds versus lp.

if you take notice, even completely cg rendered films include some artificial grain.

however with blu ray, depending if its single or dual layer the grain may be compression artifacts.

compression artifacts and simulated grain are too different things.
I don't entirely agree with those points. It is possible to have an inferior HDMI cable. Just because it's a digital connection doesn't mean that you will get only two results...no picture or perfect picture. If that were true, there wouldn't be $10 HDMI cables and $75 HDMI cables of the same length. As far as some movies adding "grain"...that may be true for 300, but not for Planet Earth. That series (when viewed in true HD) looks like you can step right in to it.

it cant be the hdmi cable, the hdmi cable is a digital connection, so if there was anything wrong with the hdmi cable it will just lose signal. never heard of an hdmi cable adding grain artifacts :)

many films purposely add grain to whether or not its cg, it has to do with a study that most film goers find grain more comforting while no grain = sterile lifeless.

I suppose its similar debate audio has with cdds versus lp.

if you take notice, even completely cg rendered films include some artificial grain.

however with blu ray, depending if its single or dual layer the grain may be compression artifacts.

compression artifacts and simulated grain are too different things.
I don't entirely agree with those points. It is possible to have an inferior HDMI cable. Just because it's a digital connection doesn't mean that you will get only two results...no picture or perfect picture. If that were true, there wouldn't be $10 HDMI cables and $75 HDMI cables of the same length. As far as some movies adding "grain"...that may be true for 300, but not for Planet Earth. That series (when viewed in true HD) looks like you can step right in to it.


generally discovery documentaries are filmed with a digital 1080i camera straight out. Thats a documentary however not a movie.

chances are.. if it was in the theater its going to have grain nartural or artificially imposed.

in regards to hdmi, if it were an analog connection, I would understand. analog signals are affected by interference, while hdmi cables just transmit "om" "off" 010101011000011

so if there was a drop in signal it would just not show a picture, these cables are not affected by outside interference like analog cabing.
However I suppose the build quality and bandwidth will affect the performance, but again the difference you would see is a picture or no picture, not a picture but with added grain or compression artifacts.

I actually use some cheap $20 hdmi cables for my ps3, because I prefer thing and flexible over thick and unwieldly. hdmi connectors do not have support screws like dvi, a thick and unwieldly cable handled improperly can break your hdmi input.


the reason why there are $10 and $75 hdmi cables has to do with build quality and reliabilty, not performance. someone with a $10000 system is not going to want a $10 hdmi cable, however both cables will yield virutally identical picture performance. but the more expensive cable is built more solid.

in regards to hdmi, what it comes down too is the higher priced ones are built better.
regardless its always a good idea to make sure the cable you are purchasing is labeled 1080p bandwidth and hdcp compliant if you want to make sure you are getting a cable that promises no performance comprimise.

cheers

in regards to hdmi, if it were an analog connection, I would understand. analog signals are affected by interference, while hdmi cables just transmit "om" "off" 010101011000011

so if there was a drop in signal it would just not show a picture, these cables are not affected by outside interference like analog cabing.
Ya know...I never really thought of it in those terms. What you are saying makes sense. I'm so used to always buying high-end cables and speaker wires to get the best possible signal transmission, that I guess I was applying the same logic to HDMI. But with it being a 100% digital signal, I see your point. I'm gonna do some reading on that one!
That brings us back to the original post and his problem. If he has a HDTV that can display 1080p, a blu-ray DVD player (through a PS3), and "Planet Earth" on Blu-Ray disc, why would he have a poor picture? He claims he's connected straight from the PS3 to the TV via HDMI. That picture should be pristine. Any ideas?

Could it be the PS3 and just a bad blu-ray?

in regards to hdmi, if it were an analog connection, I would understand. analog signals are affected by interference, while hdmi cables just transmit "om" "off" 010101011000011

so if there was a drop in signal it would just not show a picture, these cables are not affected by outside interference like analog cabing.
Ya know...I never really thought of it in those terms. What you are saying makes sense. I'm so used to always buying high-end cables and speaker wires to get the best possible signal transmission, that I guess I was applying the same logic to HDMI. But with it being a 100% digital signal, I see your point. I'm gonna do some reading on that one!
That brings us back to the original post and his problem. If he has a HDTV that can display 1080p, a blu-ray DVD player (through a PS3), and "Planet Earth" on Blu-Ray disc, why would he have a poor picture? He claims he's connected straight from the PS3 to the TV via HDMI. That picture should be pristine. Any ideas?

well I think the movie in question is 300 and not planet earth?

I have yet to get 300 since I need to replace my projector bulb, so no movies until I can afford the replacement.

there are several factors that contribute to the graininess... if all movies but 300 look fine, than its the movie.

if all movies look grainy than there are some things to look into. Make sure the tv is a native 1080p display. if it is, than look into the tvc settings. Make sure that you have noise reduction setting turned off.

other factors may be that you need to have the tv set to pixel for pixel map, so you dont have an additional scaling in between. blu ray transfers are not as good as hd dvd btw, I use both formats and notice that hd dvd transfers as a whole look better than blu ray. Many blu ray movies seem to suffer from more digital artifacts while hd dvd has none.

so it could just be the transfer.

but honestly what I think you just need to do is as set up the tv, and calibrate the settings. i.e. adjusting the sharpness, brightness and contrast will help minimize the artifacting you see.

btw what tv are you using?

here is a pic I snapped a while back from the hd dvd aeon flux, you can see where there is subtle grain which is normal

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/188/413433895_792a24aeb1_o.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/174/413433900_c3d0dc33d2_o.jpg

heres a snapshot of some blu ray and ps3 hd demos

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/179/428300475_6f1be54ba9_o.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/178/419788234_3b8016a441_o.jpg

and just for kicks 360 :D

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1425/959496476_08bcbeb3f0_o.jpg

pic is straight snapshot, unaltered only resized.[/img]

It's a Samsung 5076 slim DLP 61 inch

that tv is full 1080 native.

is 300 the only one thats giving you problems?

try to turn off digital noise reduction, that may help.

that tv is full 1080 native.

is 300 the only one thats giving you problems?

try to turn off digital noise reduction, that may help.

i'm a home theater nut, i was on hi def back in 2000, i 'm curious to see if you have solved this problem.

its the movie itself.. 300 is meant to have that grainy look...
That was my first thought too until he said that it looks the same for Planet Earth on Blu-Ray.

not all of planet earth was shot in HD.... is it all of PE that's "grainy"?

and do you have a quality 1.2 or 1.3/a HDMI cable?

the difference betwen 1.2 and 1.3 is deep color
not grain :)

any updates?