We have heard, and read, countless stories about listeners, and their friends, ordering HD only to find out that their service was not properly set up. Today we are going to give you a check list of things to ask your installer to Make sure you you get all the HD you pay for!

Also, we throw a bunch of terms around when talking about Home Theater receivers, and, based on some of the emails we have received, it has come to our attention that a few of you may not understand some of them. We thought it might be time for a review.  

Make sure you you get all the HD you pay for!

We have heard, and read, countless stories about listeners, and their friends, ordering HD only to find out that their service was not properly set up. Today we are going to give you a check list of things to ask your installer while he or she is at your place to ensure you have HD service after he or she leaves your home. If you already have HD service, this list can still be helpful in that you can help friends and family who are just signing up for the service. For this installation we are connecting the set top box directly to the TV. For simplicity there is no receiver in the set up.

How is the Set Top Box (STB) being connected to the TV? - There are three cable types that can carry an HD signal to the TV.

• Component Cables - This type of setup requires three cables. One for Red, Blue, and Green. They are even color coded that way. Component cables do not carry audio so you will need two RCA cables for sound. A component cable setup requires five distinct cables to bring both picture and sound to the TV.
• DVI - This is a digital cable that has screws on the sides. This cable does not provide audio. To get the audio you need the same RCA cables as component cable set up.
• HDMI - This is also a digital cable but this cable also includes audio. its the simplest cable to use. It does not lock into place with screws so if the fit is tight the connection may come loose when you move your components around.

If the cable guy does not use one of the afore mentioned cables your TV will not be able to receive an HD picture. Ask him in passing, "What type of cable are you using". Also its important to know before hand what kind of connections your TV uses. Newer TVs use HDMI but they also have inputs for component, S-Video, and RCA. You may want to have an HDMI cable ready for the installer in case he does not have one. You should not spend more than $20 for a two meter HDMI cable. You can get these online at monoprice.com or the HT Guys online store. Final thought on this topic. If the installer says he is using an S-Video, RCA, or composite cable tell him to stop what he is doing and tell him that those cables do not provide enough bandwidth for HD.

Is the Set Top Box outputting HD? - If your STB is connected properly it still may not output HD. All STBs need to be told to output an HD signal. This is usually done in the service menu. The service menu is usually not accessible by the consumer. In this menu you tell the STB that the TV is 16:9 and that it should output an HD resolution (720p or 1080i). Make sure the installer does this. Our recommendation is if you have a 720p TV have the installer set the STB to output 720p. If you have a 1080p TV have the STB output at 1080i. This can be debatable but here in the homes of the HT Guys we do 1080i for our 1080p TVs. This part is important! We have seen TVs properly connected but the STBs were left in SD mode and the format was left in 4:3. More on the aspect ratio in the next tip.

Watch some HD! - Before you let the installer leave make he or she show you HD on your TV. You should have an HD service, otherwise why get the HD STB right. Tune to a 24 hour HD channel and look for a few things. If you are watching something on Discovery HD you should not see any black bars on the sides or top of the picture. This will make sure that the aspect ratio is set up properly on the STB. No black bars at the top and bottom of the picture is only true for channels like Discovery HD. Movie channels that run programming shot in its original aspect ratio may have black bars at the top and bottom of the picture. This is normal. Still some may have black bars on the sides. This is true if a HD channel is broadcasting SD material. That's why we recommend looking at Discovery HD 99% of their programming is in HD and is full 16:9. Most TVs have in info button that will help in this step as well. If you press info you should see the resolution and aspect ratio that the TV is receiving. In the case where you set the STB to output 720p and 16:9 pressing the info button should should say the same thing. Some TVs may say wide screen instead of 16:9.

That's it. If you get the right answers to the above three questions you can be assured that when the installer leaves you will be watching HDTV!

 

Home Theater Receiver Terms

We throw a bunch of terms around when talking about Home Theater receivers, and, based on some of the emails we have received, it has come to our attention that a few of you may not understand some of them. We thought it might be time for a review. Some of you may find this a bit rudimentary so you may want to tune out. For you its time to go watch some HDTV. For the rest of you here we go.

Video Switching - This means that the receiver can accept multiple video sources as inputs and route them to one output.

Three in one out - This ties in with the Video Switching. This is our lazy way of saying three inputs and one output.

Analog Conversion - Many receivers will take analog video formats like S-Video, Composite, and HD Component and convert them to digital and then route them out the HDMI output.

HDMI 1.3 - HDMI is a A/V format that has evolved. Each version is given a revision number. The latest version of HDMI is 1.3. You may see 1.1, 1.2, and 1.2a. Its important to note that for multi track audio over HDMI you need version 1.1 or later.

Multi Track Audio - Audio that contains more than one channel of sound. Typically used for digital audio. Multi track audio refers to more than a stereo pair.

Audio Processing - When the multi track audio reaches the receiver it must be decoded. The receiver will "Process" the data and create the sound. Today's receivers will also apply sophisticated DSP (Digital Signal Processor) algorithms to create different types of sound like "Live", "Rock Concert", or "Night Theater"

Video Processing - This is the process required to convert the analog video to digital as well as scaling and de-interlacing.

Auto Calibration - To properly setup a receiver you must calibrate the speakers. This is done by activating a test tone and measuring the response with a sound pressure meter for each speaker. With auto calibration you plug a microphone into the front of the receiver and place it where you will be sitting. The receiver will output the test tone and measure the response and then adjust the settings.