Scart bad, HDMI Good??

[JQ]

Just got a new TV - Samsung UE40H6700. It gets very good reviews and replaces a 15yr old Loewe CRT which was and is superb, I just wanted a TV with SMART features hence the Loewe had to go.

Anyway, to match the Loewe we have what must be a 10yr old Sky box which does not have HMDI, and so I've connected the TV via Scart.

I've got say I'm not impressed with the picture quality - the question, is that because I'm not happy with the TV, or is connecting a Sky box via scart degarding the quality?

Cheers

[vescaegg]

Scart doesn't transmit HD; no wonder it looks awful! Is your sky box even HD? If not get one and then use HDMI.

[RobDickinson]

Scart is a nasty physical interface dreampt up by the French.

It can transmit composite, svideo or rgb. Check which Scart ports you are using and what the output is set too.

[mrmr96]

The problem will be that your new TV is HD and your old one was SD. Plus your new one is LCD and the old one CRT. The signal from your sky box (assuming it's an SD box, as you say it has no HDMI) will have been SD and analogue, but, the saving grace thus far, is that CRT TV's are a lot more forgiving on crap quality inputs. The HD LCD panel will show up every shortcoming of the picture quality from the Sky box.

TL;DR
The quality of the signal has always been crap, previously your TV masked it but the new TV shows it up.

[JQ]

Looks like we'll have to tell Sky we're cancelling and see what they come up with.

Cheers

[Luke.]

Take a look at the Humax HD boxes. A great replacement for Sky.

[talkssense]

JQ said:

Looks like we'll have to tell Sky we're cancelling and see what they come up with.

Cheers

All the sky boxes now are HD, even if you don't take an HD subscription.

They will give you a replacement box.

[ASK1974]

JQ said:

Looks like we'll have to tell Sky we're cancelling and see what they come up with.

Cheers

After ten years you'll probably be offered a free HD box in turn for another 12 month subscription. Make sure you connect your new box to your network, the on-demand features from Sky render the 'smart' features of new TVs impotent. Sky+HD with Apple TV (iTunes) and a Netflix subscription and you have access to pretty much everything.

[megaphone]

You new TV has an HD tuner built in, watch BBC1HD and see what you're missing.

[probedb]

Make sure the Sky box is set to RGB for SCART and not S-Video or Composite. It'll look worse because your old TV was doing no scaling and was displaying what is was given, i.e. a PAL signal.

You new TV is having to convert it to a format the panel can display so it's upscaling an analogue signal which will always look worse. RGB is the best you'll get out of SCART.

[Halmyre]

RobDickinson said:

Scart is a nasty physical interface dreampt up by the French.

I thought it was one of Beelzebub's more fiendish ideas. Huge clunky connector that fell out of the socket at the slightest provocation, not helped by the python-like cable that stuck out at exactly the right angle to act as a lever to further encourage plug and socket to part company if it was subjected to the lightest of touches.

[talkssense]

ASK1974 said:

After ten years you'll probably be offered a free HD box in turn for another 12 month subscription. Make sure you connect your new box to your network, the on-demand features from Sky render the 'smart' features of new TVs impotent. Sky+HD with Apple TV (iTunes) and a Netflix subscription and you have access to pretty much everything.

True. A sky box and a tablet or Apple TV and no one ever uses the "smart" features they upgraded the TV for anyway

[NorthDave]

talkssense said:

True. A sky box and a tablet or Apple TV and no one ever uses the "smart" features they upgraded the TV for anyway

As an opposing view - A decent smart TV and you dont need Sky. My Samsung has freeview and Netflix, Amazon Instant and Plex Media Server built in. Its easy to use, comprehensive and free.

[FlossyThePig]

There is a lot of posters assuming that OP has a TV aerial rather than just a $KY dish. Human do make Freest boxes as well as Freeview.

When I got my first Panasonic HD TV it came as a package with a Blu Ray player. They were connected via HDMI and the old VCR/DVD player connected via SCART. Playing a DVD via HDMI compared with the SCART connection was a revelation. I don't think the old VCR/DVD combo has been used since.

I would classify my smart TV as first generation. Yes it has numerous features but the only two I used were BBC iPlayer and Skype. FaceTime on a new iMac kicked Skype into touch and a Roku Streaming stick did the same for iPlayer (picture quality via Roku is vastly superior to the built in app).

[igiveup]

According to th blurb, the TV has Freesat and freeview built in, So as you have a SKY box unplug the cable from the box and plug it inot th TV, voila instant better picture at no cost.

[JQ]

FlossyThePig said:

There is a lot of posters assuming that OP has a TV aerial rather than just a $KY dish.

And the prize goes to FlossyThePig

[fulgurex]

Is the Sky box an early Thompson HD box? Does it have component video which consists of three sockets (red, blue, green)?

If so, can you use that connection to get an hd pic from Sky to your tv?

[JQ]

fulgurex said:

Is the Sky box an early Thompson HD box? Does it have component video which consists of three sockets (red, blue, green)?

If so, can you use that connection to get an hd pic from Sky to your tv?

It appears to be unbranded and doesn't have component video. In all honesty we'll just use this as excuse to get everything upgraded, have been meaning to for quite a while.

[igiveup]

JQ said:

It appears to be unbranded and doesn't have component video. In all honesty we'll just use this as excuse to get everything upgraded, have been meaning to for quite a while.

For now you can take the Coax from the Sky box and stick it into the Coax on the back of the TV and use FreeSat