Topic: Does the LCD TV have better upscaling hardware against the HT?

[fernando_montalban]

I recently got a Samsung 40A650 with a home theater bundle Samsung HT-Z210...

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I understand that LCD TVs automatically upscale video sources to its native resolution, that is only if the source video is lower than its native resolution.  Given a 480 source video such as a DVD, in my case, the Sammy TV will automatically upscale it to 1920X1080.
The bundled home theatre setup also has its own upscaling capabilities up to 1080p.

I also understand that it is better for the upscaling to happen at the source, on the DVD player, so that the LCD will just display the source video without processing more data in order to upscale it.

The thing is...
There are much less artifacts when ever I let the LCD TV do the upscaling rather than the DVD player.  The picture quality looks better when the player outputs a 480p DVD video towards the LCD TV versus the player outputs an upscaled DVD to 1080p towards the LCD TV. One example is when we watched The Chronicles of Narnia, Prince Caspian; the night scene when they are aboout to raid the castle.  When the DVD player is set to upscale the video to 1080p, artifacts are all over the place (jagged edges) but when it outputs at 480p and played with the same scene, artifacts are far far less (there are still some since the source format is just SD but very much less)

Does the upscaling feature/hardware of the HT-Z210 not that good? Does the LCD TV have a better upscaler? or am I doing something wrong?

Do I have to get a better upscaling DVD player? Just a little information, as of now, most of my video collections are DVDs.

P.S.
If I do have to get a better DVD player? which one? (of course available locally)
Been reading about Oppo but availability and price makes it out of my reach. TIA.

[eksi]

bro if OPPO DVD player is beyond your budget... i suggest you audition Pioneer DVD players

[fernando_montalban]

bro if OPPO DVD player is beyond your budget... i suggest you audition Pioneer DVD players

oh... meaning I have to buy a new DVD player? Also, the upscaling feature of the HT-Z210 is indeed poor?

As much as possible, I would not want to buy a new player considering that the HT-Z210 is relatively new and was hoping na pwede daanin sa settings.  But I would not mind spending for a new player if the viewing experince will be better since I'm more focused on the upscaling capabilities due to the fact that most of my videos are DVD. Is the margin between Pioneer DVDs big against the Samsung HT-Z210? Justified ba and pagbili ng bago?

[eksi]

oh... meaning I have to buy a new DVD player? Also, the upscaling feature of the HT-Z210 is indeed poor?

As much as possible, I would not want to buy a new player considering that the HT-Z210 is relatively new and was hoping na pwede daanin sa settings.  But I would not mind spending for a new player if the viewing experince will be better since I'm more focused on the upscaling capabilities due to the fact that most of my videos are DVD. Is the margin between Pioneer DVDs big against the Samsung HT-Z210? Justified ba and pagbili ng bago?

i compared/auditioned Pioneer vs other brands (including sony, samsung, philips etc.)... my eyes loved Pioneer's video quality, so I got one. Then I saw Oppo's video quality, so I got also one (imported)

[iiinas]

oh... meaning I have to buy a new DVD player? Also, the upscaling feature of the HT-Z210 is indeed poor?

As much as possible, I would not want to buy a new player considering that the HT-Z210 is relatively new and was hoping na pwede daanin sa settings.  But I would not mind spending for a new player if the viewing experince will be better since I'm more focused on the upscaling capabilities due to the fact that most of my videos are DVD. Is the margin between Pioneer DVDs big against the Samsung HT-Z210? Justified ba and pagbili ng bago?

hard to say since i dont have experience on the samsung htib. but since you are claiming the sammy panel does better upscaling than the htib. i would say getting a pioneer upscaler would more or less be better than the htib. but as @eksi said. the oppo is right now the best in the upscaling business. but the cost is almost double that of the pioneer, 11k vs. 5-6k. but ive seen these oppos work, and they are as good as advertised. 

[fernando_montalban]

Ask ko lang ulit...
For those who might know...
May I know definitively, if the upscaler of the Samsung 40A650 is better then tha upscaler of the Samsung HT-Z210?

[bugoyskiboy]

When the DVD player is set to upscale the video to 1080p, artifacts are all over the place (jagged edges) but when it outputs at 480p and played with the same scene, artifacts are far far less (there are still some since the source format is just SD but very much less)

Sorry if I'm OT,  but how were you able to display the video to 1080p?  I also have the HT-Z210T but only a Samsung 32" series 4 LCD TV and everytime I play a DVD it always displays at 720x480.  I can't find anything in the menu about video display options (if there is?).  But when I play dvd on my PS3 it can display at 1920x1080.

[lithium_deuteride]

I recommend you get the vaunted Toshiba XD-500.  Order it from Amazon and have it shipped via JAC.  It's dirt cheap for the amount of performance you get.  Or better still, get a PS3 if you can afford it because then you have a BD player and an outstanding DVD upscaler as well, not to mention a gaming console.

[fernando_montalban]

After using the the Sammy 40A650 and the Sammy HT-Z210 for quite some time now, I can definitively say that the upscaling capabilities of the LCD TV is better than the HT-Z210.  If ever you have the same setup, I suggest that if you are using the HT-Z210, play your DVDs at 480p resolution and let the TV do the video processing.