Video connector questions..

[Ross]

Not really wow related unless I want to play wow on my tv.. But anyways..

I had this new video card for a while now an ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 2 DVI ports , 1 Display port and 1 HDMI port. However my tv which I want to hook it up to is old and only has a svideo. Is there a connector or some sort that I can get to hook my tv to my vid card?

[Petrah]

Did you try using Google to find an svideo to DVI adapter? Maybe even call your local Radio Shack, or other similar type of store to see if they carry what you need?

[Duugu]

Originally Posted by Ross However my tv which I want to hook it up to is old and only has a svideo.

I predict disappointing results.

How old is "old"?

[Petrah]

You can find them all over the internet, if you use the proper search words. It may be easier though to call the local store instead of trying to order it over the net.
http://www.svideo.com

[Dawn]

If it's not a digital TV - I would forget about the idea. The "resolution" of an analog TV is horrible, to say the least.

[Taryble]

However, if you're watching downloaded TV or Anime, these usually look pretty good even an analog TV - unless the shows are HD, of course.

[MidgetMage55]

Originally Posted by Dawn If it's not a digital TV - I would forget about the idea. The "resolution" of an analog TV is horrible, to say the least.

Agreed. Generally (there are some variances) analog televisions run 800x600 resolution.

[Ross]

Yea I did google it for a while and didn't find any connectors for a DVI to S-Video or HDMI to S-Video. The things I did find are some 'converter boxes' but those thing run around $150 and I would just buy a new tv for that price.

[break19]

Originally Posted by MidgetMage55 Agreed. Generally (there are some variances) analog televisions run 800x600 resolution.

Actually.. standard US TV resolution is 640x480 interlaced, also called 480i

the next step up is 720p HD, then 1080p HD and then 1080i HD.

There are a -few- standard televisions, specifically those with s-video connectors that can do 480p and even fewer that can do 720p over the svideo connection.

However, technically speaking analog signals are -better- than digital signals.

The reason digital generally gives better picture quality has little to do with quality in and of itself, but rather due to something called attenuation..

Attenuation is the degradation of signal strength over distance, and happens to all signals, based on the type of signal, the frequency (if applicable) and the medium of transfer (coax, fiber, air, etc)

A digital signal is an analog signal, sampled at a certain rate, then reassembled on the other side pretty much exactly as it was sampled.

Analog signals, on the other hand, tend to degrade pretty quickly with any sort of noise or attenuation.

So, in conclusion: A studio-quality analog video signal will -always- look better than a digital video signal of similar resolution/frame rate.

Trust me, I do this for a living.

edit: however, there were also a few TV/monitor devices released during the early 90s that would support 800x600 on an svideo connection. I remember that Magnavox made one..

[Taryble]

You got the two highest resolutions reversed - 1080i is the step up from 720p, and then 1080p is the best possible resolution for HD tv's.

[break19]

Originally Posted by Taryble You got the two highest resolutions reversed - 1080i is the step up from 720p, and then 1080p is the best possible resolution for HD tv's.

*blush* You're right. I did. Our stuff only supports either 720p or 1080p for HD services. The only interlaced mode our equipment supports is 480i for SDTV/Analog.

That being said, we actually -do- have a few Motorola HD DCTs that claim to support 1080i - but since we broadcast in either 720p or 1080p for HD, it doesnt get used.

(If no one has figured it out yet, I work in CATV/Telecomm service)

[Elhana]

NTSC is 525i, actual visible picture is around 480i due to overscan. Good luck playing with that resolution.

Setting 1024x768 on driver tab doesn't make the differece in case of analog TV connection. DAC will still convert it to analog PAL/NTSC signal depending on card capabilities and only thing you will achieve is your picture will be blurred. Any resolution test drawing black and white 1 pixel wide lines will show it.

[Taryble]

Yup, break19 - 1080i is actually a copout by the hardware manufacturers on the consumer end (cable/satellite decoder box manufacturers as well as HDTV manufacturers and bluray player makers).

Most of them take what's actually a 1080p frame and interlace it - it's cheaper/easier for them to do an interlaced image than a progressive scan image. Thankfully, enough people got pissy enough that most consumer-end manufacturers are now doing proper 1080p hardware. :-)