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Monitoring for Interlacing over 720p LCD HDTV
I’m planning to get an HDTV for monitoring – not for color-critical monitoring but more for interlacing & field issues. Color-wise, I’m doing pretty okay [non-broadcast work so far; mainly web/DVD] but there have been more than enough occasions when I end up discovering there were some field/interlacing issues only when previewing my DVD [eg. when I add certain Magic Bullet filters].
Working on a budget here and after reading through the Cow and googling about, I had the following combi in mind: BlackMagic Intensity Pro to the Mac Pro and out to a ‘HD-ready’ 720p LCD TV.
But wait… then it dawned upon me: if the LCD TV is 720p… does it mean I won’t be able to check for interlacing anyhow? Which defeats the purpose of this entire exercise?!
So a few clarifications needed as these ideas float about in my mind:
1) Essentially 720p is not appropriate? I should be looking at 1080i HDTVs instead?2) Any difference when it comes to LCD vs Plasma?
3) Any specific tech specs I should look out for when shopping for the HDTV?
4) Is the BlackMagic Intensity Pro card adequate for my needs? ie. DV/DV50 work, some HDV>ProRes, some DVCProHD?
[I’ve been reading this: https://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/blackmagic_intensity_pro_douglas.html – and apparently it works with ProRes (HQ) but not ProRes?]In a better-budgeted world, I’ll probably be looking at a Matrox MXO2 and a Broadcast Monitor. That time shall come… ;]
Kai
FCP Editor / Producer with Intuitive Films
https://kai-fcp-editor.blogspot.com
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At Intuitive Films, We Create: TV Commercials, Documentaries, Corporate Videos and Feature Films
Visit us @ https://www.intuitivefilms.com
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MacBook Pro 2.4GHz | 4GB RAM | FCP 5.1.4 | Mac OS X 10.5.2 -
7 Replies
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Kai,
Maybe you can`t get the Matrox MXO2… BUT they just announced the MXO2 LE… and if $995 is still out of your price range go for the MXO2 Mini @$450 it could drive an HDMI monitor and you get their calibaration tools.
I have an MXO2 and I punp it`s HDMI to the Sharp Aquos for monitoring and I love the quality.An Artist At Heart.
Life is made of moments… -
Thanks, Mario. The MXO2 Mini is looking mighty tempting, too. And the portability is also a plus point – being able to do mobile editing with it and my MacBook Pro!
After some more intensive research, this Plasma TV seems to come highly recommended by our forum leader, Walter:
https://panasonic.com.sg/web/pid/439/SpecKai
FCP Editor / Producer with Intuitive Films
https://kai-fcp-editor.blogspot.com
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Now ‘LIVE’! Check Out The Intuitive Films Blog @ https://intuitive-films.blogspot.com
At Intuitive Films, We Create: TV Commercials, Documentaries, Corporate Videos and Feature Films
Visit us @ https://www.intuitivefilms.com
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MacBook Pro 2.4GHz | 4GB RAM | FCP 5.1.4 | Mac OS X 10.5.2 -
It’s hard to really spot interlacing issues on a consumer level LCD HD monitor in my experience. Sometimes it’s just the monitor itself can’t reproduce interlaced footage very well and all you see is a mess of jaggies regardless of if your fields are set correctly or not in the original footage.
That’s definitely where the pro monitors shine and the main reason I went with the FSI’s for our primary broadcast monitors. They reproduce SD interlacing perfectly so we can clearly see where interlacing issues appear.
Now if you’re talking about 1080i viewing on a 720p HD monitor, I’ve never seen an issue with this on a high quality HDTV whether it’s consumer or pro.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Editor, Colorist, Director, Writer, Consultant, Author.
Credits include multiple Emmy, Telly, Aurora and Peabody Awards.
Owner, Biscardi Creative Media featuring HD Post
Biscardi Creative MediaCreative Cow Forum Host:
Apple Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion, Apple Color, AJA Kona, Business & Marketing, Maxx Digital. -
Hi Walter, thanks for your tips. Just to find out a little bit more about your last paragraph… Does it mean the Panny pro monitors (am looking at the 37″) would make a fairly decent preview HDTV for interlacing checking?
Budget is one thing but not so much as to scrimp on a fistful of dollars to buy a dubiously cheap HDTV that doesn’t do the job. Looking at a few Phillips & Samsungs now, so a Panasonic is definitely within good company.
Kai
FCP Editor / Producer with Intuitive Films
https://kai-fcp-editor.blogspot.com
—
Now ‘LIVE’! Check Out The Intuitive Films Blog @ https://intuitive-films.blogspot.com
At Intuitive Films, We Create: TV Commercials, Documentaries, Corporate Videos and Feature Films
Visit us @ https://www.intuitivefilms.com
—
MacBook Pro 2.4GHz | 4GB RAM | FCP 5.1.4 | Mac OS X 10.5.2 -
[Kai Cheong] “Hi Walter, thanks for your tips. Just to find out a little bit more about your last paragraph… Does it mean the Panny pro monitors (am looking at the 37”) would make a fairly decent preview HDTV for interlacing checking? “
For HD absolutely. For SD, the monitors are decent so long as you leave them in pillarbox and don’t stretch the video to widescreen.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Editor, Colorist, Director, Writer, Consultant, Author.
Credits include multiple Emmy, Telly, Aurora and Peabody Awards.
Owner, Biscardi Creative Media featuring HD Post
Biscardi Creative MediaCreative Cow Forum Host:
Apple Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion, Apple Color, AJA Kona, Business & Marketing, Maxx Digital. -
What about hooking a glass SD monitor to the analog outputs just to monitor interlacing?
John
MacPro 8-core 2.8GHz 8 GB RAM OS 10.5.5 QT7.5.5 Kona 3 Dual Cinema 23 ATI Radeon HD 3870, 24″ TV-Logic Monitor, ATTO ExpressSAS R380 RAID Adapter, PDE enclosure with 8-drive 6TB RAID 5
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[John Fishback] “What about hooking a glass SD monitor to the analog outputs just to monitor interlacing?”
That will work. If there are any interlacing issues, whether 1080i or 480i, they’ll show up on the analog output.
Chris Linke
PRC Digital Media
http://www.prcdigital.com
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