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Plasma TV Pros has created this tutorial to help you understand the reasons for and benefits of HDTV technology.
HIGHLIGHTS OF PLASMA MONITORS
Higher resolution
Plasma display devices have higher resolution than conventional
TV sets, and are capable of displaying full HDTV and DTV signals
as well as XGA, SVGA and VGA signals from a computer. For example,
you can get plasma displays with a 1024 x 1024 pixel high-resolution
that can display images at true 1080i and 720p HDTV resolution,
as well as 480i and 480p HD signals.
No scan lines
Conventional CRTs use an electron beam to scan the picture tube
from top to bottom at regular intervals, lighting the phosphors
to create the image. In the case of standard (NTSC) TV, visible
scan lines can be seen. Most plasma displays include built-in line
doubling to further improve image quality when viewing standard
analog video sources such as TV broadcasts and VCR tapes.
Exceptional color accuracy
High-end plasma displays are capable of displaying 16.77 million
colors -- providing superb color realism with exceptionally subtle
gradations between colors.
Widescreen aspect ratio
Plasma display devices have a widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio, the
relationship between the screen's width and height. This is the
proper aspect ratio for HDTV, and also allows many DVD-Video movies
to be viewed in widescreen format, as originally seen in the theater.
Perfectly flat screen
Plasma display monitors have screens that are perfectly flat, with
no curvature whatsoever. This eliminates the edge distortion that
can occur in CRT displays.
Uniform screen brightness
Unlike some rear and front projection televisions that suffer from
uneven screen brightness -- seen as "hot spots" in the
middle of the screen or a darkening near the edges and especially
corners -- plasma displays illuminate all pixels evenly across the
screen.
Slim, space-saving design
Plasma display monitors are only a few inches thin-providing installation
options never before possible. In addition to stand mounting, they
can be hung on a wall or from a ceiling, allowing you to enjoy big-screen
home theater impact from a component that doesn't dominate floor
space. Conventional TVs and front projectors by comparison take
up far more real estate and are much more limited in placement flexibility.
Plasma monitors have an elegant, understated "picture frame"
appearance that blends inconspicuously with any dŽcor; with
a chassis not much wider than the display screen itself.
Because they eliminate the need for a front projection unit and
a projection screen, plasma display monitors are also ideal for
use in a wide variety of business and commercial applications where
the use of a front projector would not be feasible.
Wide viewing angle
Plasma displays offer a viewing angle of 160 degrees (top to bottom
and left to right) -- much better than rear projection TVs and LCD
displays. This allows a larger number of viewers to enjoy proper
image reproduction from a wider variety of locations throughout
the room.
Universal display capability
Most plasma monitors can accept any video format formats. Typically,
they will include composite video (NTSC, PAL SECAM) (standard RCA
jacks), S-video and component video inputs, plus one or more RGB
inputs to accept the video output from a computer.
Whether you want to view a sporting event on HDTV, a DVD-Video movie,
a satellite broadcast or even surf the Internet with incredible
big screen impact, chances are a plasma monitor will accommodate
your needs.
Immunity from magnetic fields
Because plasma displays do not use electron beams, as conventional
CRT displays do, they are immune to the effects of magnetic fields.
Components such as loudspeakers that contain strong magnets can
distort the picture if placed too close a standard TV (which has
a CRT). On the other hand, plasma displays can be placed in close
proximity to any type of loudspeaker and not experience image distortion.
What is
high definition television (HDTV) all about?
Imagine while watching the Masters Tournament, you
are able to “read the green” while Tiger is putting….
Imagine a picture is so clear that you can actually
see the blades of grass of Pasadena’s Rose Bowl….
This is the essence of high definition and digital television broadcasting
which is becoming the new standard throughout the United States.Of
course in order to display the signal of digital broadcasting in
high definition you need to have equipment capable of handling high
definition.This is where the technology of plasma, LCD, DLP, and
certain other mediums of high definition reception have been competing.
Changing the standards….
The usual National Television Standards Committee (NTSC) analog
TV screen in the U.S. has 525 scan lines, with 480 actually visible.
The usual TV has an effective picture resolution of about 210,000
pixels. In the highest resolution digital TV formats, each picture
contains about 2 million pixels. This means about 10 times more
picture detail on the HDTV screen!
DTV may be in either 4:3 or 16:9, as shown in the following figure:
The typical TV show uses 35-mm film (or is recorded direct-to-video
using NTSC equipment). In the case of film, the broadcaster converts
it to an analog TV signal for broadcasting. Standard 35-mm film
has an aspect ratio of 1.37:1, meaning it is 1.37 times as wide
is it high. A conventional TV screen has a 4:3 (1.33:1) aspect ratio,
so the conversion is easy.
To deal with HDTV's new standards, broadcasters are upgrading to
all new equipment, such as cameras, remote broadcast units, control
rooms, cables, and sound equipment. This is because digital TV has:
- Wider images
- Much more detailed pictures
- 5.1 channel CD-quality Dolby Digital (AC-3) surround sound
The aspect ratio (width to height) of digital TV is 16:9
(1.78:1), which is closer to the ratios used in theatrical movies,
typically 1.85:1 or 2.35:1. Currently broadcasters must either pan
or scan the image (crop the full picture of the film down to
4:3, eliminating part of every scene in the process) or letterbox
it (present the full picture only on the middle part of the screen,
with black bars above and below it). With a 16:9 screen, panning
and scanning a theatrical movie doesn't remove so much from the
original picture and letterboxing doesn't block out so much of your
screen.
Common Myths:
As published by the National Association of Broadcasters….
Myth : I already have Digital
Television because I have digital cable.
Fact: Fact: Maybe yes, maybe no. Digital cable is not necessarily
Digital TV (DTV) from broadcasters. DTV is received via free over-the-air
digital signals. Digital TV has the capability to offer consumers
five times the resolution than that of the current analog signal,
and only a few premium cable channels offer this.
Myth : High-definition Television
(HDTV) means "Digital Television."
Fact: While HDTV signals deliver the highest quality of DTV visually
and aurally, it is only one benefit to DTV. In addition to HDTV,
Digital TV can offer a second type of signal, Standard-Definition
Television (SDTV). The magic of SDTV is that it gives broadcasters
the flexibility to multicast programming, bringing viewers three
times more over-the-air content. Digital TV's multicasting ability
gives viewers expanded choice in television programs broadcast from
the same station at the same time. For example, with multicasting,
viewers can choose to watch the news, sports, a sitcom or children's
programming coming from the same station at 5 p.m.
Myth:Once broadcasters’ transition
from analog to digital, analog televisions will be obsolete.
Fact:No. Set-top boxes are available now and will continue to be
available to consumers after the transition is complete. However,
to reap the full benefits of Digital TV, including superior sound
and clarity, you must own a Digital TV set. An analog television,
with the addition of a set-top box, will still allow viewers to
enjoy all of the programming they have always enjoyed in addition
to the benefits of Digital TV including multicasting, enhanced sound
quality and data casting available through digital broadcasting.
Myth:You can't see a big difference
between analog TV and DTV.
Fact: Viewers can't ignore the dramatic improvements offered by
the digital television conversion. Visually, HDTV captures viewers
with crystal clear resolution and razor sharp detail. Individual
hairs, labels on footballs and the subtle effect of wind blowing
through grass are all clearly visible through HDTV. Also, the resolution
provides an image akin to movie-theater screens. Combined with the
capacity to deliver enhanced Dolby Digital surround sound, HDTV
produces an advanced home theater effect. Digital TV automatically
provides viewers with sharper images, better sound, and more viewing
options than have ever been available over the air.
DLP Home Theater Options – Re-creating the cinema at home
So you are thinking building a personal
home theater, HDTV or A/V room but you don’t want to be limited
to the size of plasmas or LCD’s.If you have the space and want
to experience the ultimate cinema feel, there is no better choice
than DLP (Digital
Light Processing) front end projection technology.
Going beyond the plasma and LCD
flat panel size barriers of 65 inches requires the right building
conditions, (which is essentially space) and when done properly
it will make you forget about your local cinema chain forever.
The latest technologies in DLP projectors
easily handle the highest in HDTV resolution on screen sizes that
can range from 80 inches to 30 feet wide.
This is exactly how the technology works:
(Copyright Texas Instruments DLP Technology Center)
THE SEMICONDUCTOR THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
At the heart of every
DLP™ projection system is an optical semiconductor known as the
Digital Micromirror Device, or DMD chip, which was invented by
Dr.
Larry Hornbeck of Texas Instruments in 1987.
The DMD chip is probably the world's most sophisticated light switch.
It contains a rectangular array of up to 1.3 million hinge-mounted
microscopic mirrors; each of these micromirrors
measures less than one-fifth the width of a human hair, and corresponds
to one pixel in a projected image.
When a DMD chip is coordinated with a digital video or graphic
signal, a light source, and a projection lens, its mirrors can
reflect an
all-digital image onto a screen or other surface. The DMD and the
sophisticated electronics that surround it are what we call Digital
Light Processing™ technology
.
DIGITAL LIGHT PROCESSING
I: THE GRAYSCALE IMAGE
A DMD panel's micromirrors
are mounted on tiny hinges that enable them to tilt either toward
the light source in a DLP™ projection system (ON) or away from
it (OFF)-creating a light or dark pixel on the projection surface.
The bit-streamed image code entering the semiconductor directs
each mirror to switch on and off up to several thousand times
per second.
When a mirror is switched on more frequently than off, it reflects
a light gray pixel; a mirror that's switched off more frequently
reflects a darker gray pixel.
In this way, the mirrors in a DLP™ projection system can reflect
pixels in up to 1,024 shades of gray to convert thevideo or graphic
signal entering the DMD into a highly detailed grayscale image.
DIGITAL LIGHT PROCESSING
II: ADDING COLOR
The white light generated by the lamp in a DLP™
projection system passes through a color wheel as it travels to
the surface of the DMD panel. The color wheel filters the
light into red, green, and blue, from which a single-chip DLP™ projection
system can create at least 16.7 million colors. And the 3-DMD
chip system found in DLP Cinema™ projection systems is capable of
producing no fewer than 35 trillion colors.
The on and off states of each micromirror
are coordinated with these three basic building blocks of color.
For example, a mirror responsible for projecting a purple pixel
will only reflect red and blue light to the projection surface;
our eyes then blend these rapidly alternating flashes to see the
intended hue in a projected image.
APPLICATIONS AND
CONFIGURATIONS
1-CHIP DLP™ PROJECTION SYSTEM
Televisions, home theater systems and business
projectors using DLP™ technology rely on a single DMD chip configuration
like the one described above.
White light passes through a color wheel filter, causing red, green
and blue light to be shone in sequence on the surface of the DMD.
The switching of the mirrors and the proportion of time they are
'on' or 'off' is coordinated according to the color shining on them.
The human visual system integrates the sequential color and sees
a full-color image.
3-CHIP DLP™ PROJECTION SYSTEM
DLP™ technology-enabled projectors for very high
image quality or high brightness applications such as cinema and
large venue displays rely on a 3-DMD-chip configuration to produce
stunning images, whether moving or still.
In a 3-chip system, the white light generated by the lamp passes
through a prism that divides it into red, green and blue. Each DMD
chip is dedicated to one of these three colors; the colored light
that each micromirror reflects is then
combined and passed through the projection lens to form a single
pixel in the image.
For more information about Signature
AV – DLP installations
or for a free site survey, please call and schedule an appointment. Or click
here to view the Signature AV home page.
Technology
and Custom Installations
The technology of recent years has been an amazing vehicle propelling
us into the 21st century at light speeds. Of course coming along
with it has been the sophistication levels of complexity of audio
and visual equipment and their overall capabilities.
True custom installation is very much considered an art form. Generally,
custom installation involves several layers of craftsmanship, each
having a vital role in creating the perfect home or business a/v
environment. Signature AV employs the most talented audio visual/network
engineers, interior designers, architects and master craftsman to
be able to offer our customers the most expansive array of options
when considering an a/v solution.
The business of custom a/v installation is very different from
what local “superstores” and their “nationwide
installation network” are offering in an inexpensive installation
package. Usually these services offer very little beyond having
equipment delivered to your home and set up in a purely operational
fashion.
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