Forum Articles
  Welcome back Join CF
You are here You are here: Home | Forum | Sky one +channel 5 problems

You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most of the discussions, articles and other free features. By joining our Virgin Media community you will have full access to all discussions, be able to view and post threads, communicate privately with other members (PM), respond to polls, upload your own images/photos, and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please join our community today.


Welcome to Cable Forum
Go Back   Cable Forum > Virgin Media Services > Virgin Media TV Service
Register FAQ Community Calendar

NTL Digital - Picture quality deteriorated..
Reply
 
Thread Tools
Old 25-04-2004, 17:27   #1
Elysium
Inactive
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Manchester
Posts: 45
Elysium is an unknown quantity at this point
NTL Digital - Picture quality deteriorated..

Recently we had one of the NTL chaps round to extend the internal cable-length to the NTL box due to some reworking of the living room / repositioning. He basically cut the cable that came from the outside wall box as it came *into* the house and appended a connector and then brought in (what he said) was not quite the same †œold fashioned (thicker.. stronger)â₠¬Â cable currently in use, but the type he had on his van.. it seemed a lot less thicker and much more bendable. †“ Job done, he left.. but then the more I looked at the picture the more I felt that the quality had deteriorated, with BBC1 / 2 in particular looking decidedly blocky and grainy in comparison to before.

I wasnââ‚ ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢t too sure whether or not he had made the connection properly or used some sub-standard cable so got in touch with CS who in-turn got another guy to come out a few days later. He in turn said he had some †˜differentâ ۉâ₠žÂ¢ cable to the one that the previous guy had used and rigged that up, but this time adding one of the small †˜silverÃƒÂ¢à ¢â€šÂ¬Ã¢â€Š¾Ã‚¢ boxes (that the previous guy had taken) at the junction point near the entry point at the wall.. job done again.

I still wasnââ‚ ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢t happy with the digital picture quality .. so he went away and brought in one of those boxes to test the signal; said he would †˜boostâà ¢â€šÂ¬Ã¢â€ŠÂ¢ it some more but it wasnââ‚ ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢t really necessary as the levels came up as GREEN (acceptable).. he also added some kind of †˜widgetÃƒÂ¢à ¢â€šÂ¬Ã¢â€Š¾Ã‚¢ prior to the IN point of the NTL box, said there was nothing else that could be done and left.

X amount of weeks later I am still not that happy with the quality of the picture being received; its not as good as it used to be, but as this is relative to the customer its impossible to convey what it was like originally.

Any ideas.. ?
Elysium is offline   Reply With Quote
Advertisement
Old 25-04-2004, 17:40   #2
wheeliebin
Inactive
 
wheeliebin's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 134
wheeliebin is a jewel in the roughwheeliebin is a jewel in the roughwheeliebin is a jewel in the roughwheeliebin is a jewel in the roughwheeliebin is a jewel in the rough
Re: NTL Digital - Picture quality deteriorated..

Quote:
Originally Posted by Elysium
Recently we had one of the NTL chaps round to extend the internal cable-length to the NTL box due to some reworking of the living room / repositioning. He basically cut the cable that came from the outside wall box as it came *into* the house and appended a connector and then brought in (what he said) was not quite the same †œold fashioned (thicker.. stronger)â₠¬Â cable currently in use, but the type he had on his van.. it seemed a lot less thicker and much more bendable. †“ Job done, he left.. but then the more I looked at the picture the more I felt that the quality had deteriorated, with BBC1 / 2 in particular looking decidedly blocky and grainy in comparison to before.

I wasnââ‚ ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢t too sure whether or not he had made the connection properly or used some sub-standard cable so got in touch with CS who in-turn got another guy to come out a few days later. He in turn said he had some †˜differentâ ۉâ₠žÂ¢ cable to the one that the previous guy had used and rigged that up, but this time adding one of the small †˜silverÃƒÂ¢à ¢â€šÂ¬Ã¢â€Š¾Ã‚¢ boxes (that the previous guy had taken) at the junction point near the entry point at the wall.. job done again.

I still wasnââ‚ ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢t happy with the digital picture quality .. so he went away and brought in one of those boxes to test the signal; said he would †˜boostâà ¢â€šÂ¬Ã¢â€ŠÂ¢ it some more but it wasnââ‚ ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢t really necessary as the levels came up as GREEN (acceptable).. he also added some kind of †˜widgetÃƒÂ¢à ¢â€šÂ¬Ã¢â€Š¾Ã‚¢ prior to the IN point of the NTL box, said there was nothing else that could be done and left.

X amount of weeks later I am still not that happy with the quality of the picture being received; its not as good as it used to be, but as this is relative to the customer its impossible to convey what it was like originally.

Any ideas.. ?
Ok
The cable that feeds the Set top box will not effect the picture quality as such. Thats the thing about a digital picture, if the signal is good the picture will be fine. If the signal is poor then you will either

A) Experience viewing problems pixelation/freezing of the picture and other problems

B) The STB wont work at all

The actual quality of the picture is not affected in the same way an analogue picture is (grainy, etc)

The only exception to what i have described above is IF you are watching the DIGITAL picture through an RF fly lead (that is a coax cable to your TV instead of a scart).
If you do have an RF fly lead i would have thought it hasnt been changed and would be surprised if this was the problem.

I bet (most respectfully) that you are simply scutinising the picture more since having the work done.
wheeliebin is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 25-04-2004, 18:38   #3
paulyoung666
Permanently Banned
 
paulyoung666's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: norton , teesside
Age: 57
Posts: 10,571
paulyoung666 has a nice shiny star
paulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny star
Re: NTL Digital - Picture quality deteriorated..

hi and to the site Elysium , i reckon wheeliebin has nailed it on the head there , but at the end of the day you are paying the bill , if you are not happy ring them back up and ask for it to be sorted again
paulyoung666 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 25-04-2004, 18:42   #4
Elysium
Inactive
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Manchester
Posts: 45
Elysium is an unknown quantity at this point
Re: NTL Digital - Picture quality deteriorated..

Quote:
Originally Posted by wheeliebin
Ok
The cable that feeds the Set top box will not effect the picture quality as such. Thats the thing about a digital picture, if the signal is good the picture will be fine. If the signal is poor then you will either

A) Experience viewing problems pixelation/freezing of the picture and other problems

B) The STB wont work at all

The actual quality of the picture is not affected in the same way an analogue picture is (grainy, etc)

The only exception to what i have described above is IF you are watching the DIGITAL picture through an RF fly lead (that is a coax cable to your TV instead of a scart).
If you do have an RF fly lead i would have thought it hasnt been changed and would be surprised if this was the problem.

I bet (most respectfully) that you are simply scutinising the picture more since having the work done.
One of the main concerns is the amount of pixilation that does seems much more pronounced since the initial work was carried out..

You could also be right about scrutinising the picture more and †˜looking for problemsââ‚ ‚¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢Ãƒ ‚¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã†Â¦ but I still feel that it was far less blocky originally.
Elysium is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 25-04-2004, 19:16   #5
paulyoung666
Permanently Banned
 
paulyoung666's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: norton , teesside
Age: 57
Posts: 10,571
paulyoung666 has a nice shiny star
paulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny starpaulyoung666 has a nice shiny star
Re: NTL Digital - Picture quality deteriorated..

Quote:
Originally Posted by Elysium
One of the main concerns is the amount of pixilation that does seems much more pronounced since the initial work was carried out..

You could also be right about scrutinising the picture more and †˜looking for problemsââ‚ ‚¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢Ãƒ ‚¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã†Â¦ but I still feel that it was far less blocky originally.

it shouldnt be blocky at all
paulyoung666 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 25-04-2004, 19:50   #6
wheeliebin
Inactive
 
wheeliebin's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 134
wheeliebin is a jewel in the roughwheeliebin is a jewel in the roughwheeliebin is a jewel in the roughwheeliebin is a jewel in the roughwheeliebin is a jewel in the rough
Re: NTL Digital - Picture quality deteriorated..

Quote:
Originally Posted by Elysium
One of the main concerns is the amount of pixilation that does seems much more pronounced since the initial work was carried out..

You could also be right about scrutinising the picture more and †˜looking for problemsââ‚ ‚¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢Ãƒ ‚¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã†Â¦ but I still feel that it was far less blocky originally.

When you say blocky what do you mean exactly ?

Us engineers use the term to descibe a digital picture that is having problems. The effect is that whole "groups" of pixels turn into blocks making the picture look all "jumbled" up. It is very obvious and would ruin any watching enjoyment.

Is this what you mean ?
wheeliebin is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 25-04-2004, 22:13   #7
Elysium
Inactive
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Manchester
Posts: 45
Elysium is an unknown quantity at this point
Re: NTL Digital - Picture quality deteriorated..

Quote:
Originally Posted by wheeliebin
When you say blocky what do you mean exactly ?

Us engineers use the term to descibe a digital picture that is having problems. The effect is that whole "groups" of pixels turn into blocks making the picture look all "jumbled" up. It is very obvious and would ruin any watching enjoyment.

Is this what you mean ?
One easy example would be something with a relatively simple screen sequence such as the World Snooker that has been on BBC recently. There seems to be two standard camera shots used; †œzoomed out" and †œclose-upâ₠¬Ãƒâ€šÃ‚ to describe the play.. with the †œzoomed outââ‚ ¬Ãƒâ€šÃ‚ camera angle showing fairly heavy pixilation (mosaic type blocks) surrounding the snooker ball(s)...

Its more noticeable depending whats happening on-screen .. if the screen is fairly busy with colours, motion etc.. then its more harder to see the problems; but in the quieter times when not a lot is happening you do get to notice it quite easily.

Something else that springs to mind (purely because its noticeable) is the title-sequence to EastEnders; often showing fairly large amounts of blocks/artefacts..

Soccer-AM (the red sofa) is amazingly blocky.. looking at ITV1 now 23:11 (The Premiership) the pitch looks horrendous .. i.e very little detail to the green with noticeable blocks.
Elysium is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT. The time now is 00:38.


Server: lithium.zmnt.uk
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2026, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
All Posts and Content are Cable Forum