4:3 HDTV with black bars!

[roll - gybe]

Hi guys, I think I have tried every setting on both my TV and my SciAtl cable box, but I still get black bars on the side of my 4:3 HDTV.

This is really frustrating. Some channels come through normally - Discovery. Some never do - major networks. Some do sometimes - ESPN ok for games, black bars for programming. ESPN can be really bad when they put boarders up to force 4:3, and I have black bars on my 4:3 - that really squishes things. It is almost unwatchable.

I swear, I have set this up the most logical way, and I have tried almost every permutation in setup. But there must be something I am missing. (I have read the AH setup guide too)

My Toshiba TV is set to 1080, my aspect on the TV is set to normal. On the cable box, my aspect is set to 4:3, automatic resolution.

The non-HD channels come through normally.

I think the HD channels are somehow being broadcast as if all HDTVs are 16:9 (btw, my 16:9 plasma is totally normal).

I need to rid myself of black bars on this TV!!!

 

[Midcow2]

Whcih SciAtl cable box do you have?

You might need to upgrade to a newer box.

Some of the older boxes assume you have 4:3 with 480p or 480i
and then jump to the conclusion that 720p or 1080i is always 16:9 and display in letterbox format. And 480p or 480i display in pillar box format on a wide-screen.

Did you go through easy setup? You probably need to do advanced setup to get the picture corrected or upgrade your cable box. The advanced allows you to toggle between HD scan rate( either 1080i or 720p) and Standard definition scan rate (either 480i or 480p).

 

[bandphan]

can you just output native resolution? Is the video feed going thru an avr? which cable box exactly? what are you refering to when you say your plasma is 16x9 and totally normal? What cables are you using?

 

[allargon]

Hi guys, I think I have tried every setting on both my TV and my SciAtl cable box, but I still get black bars on the side of my 4:3 HDTV.

This is really frustrating. Some channels come through normally - Discovery. Some never do - major networks. Some do sometimes - ESPN ok for games, black bars for programming. ESPN can be really bad when they put boarders up to force 4:3, and I have black bars on my 4:3 - that really squishes things. It is almost unwatchable.

I swear, I have set this up the most logical way, and I have tried almost every permutation in setup. But there must be something I am missing. (I have read the AH setup guide too)

My Toshiba TV is set to 1080, my aspect on the TV is set to normal. On the cable box, my aspect is set to 4:3, automatic resolution.

The non-HD channels come through normally.

I think the HD channels are somehow being broadcast as if all HDTVs are 16:9 (btw, my 16:9 plasma is totally normal).

I need to rid myself of black bars on this TV!!!

Have you tried another source? It reads like you don't have a HDTV (720p, 768p, 1080i/p) but a HD ready (1024x768) TV or (worse) an EDTV (720/854x480). Does your display have a tuner? If so, what do the other HD feeds look like. The fact that 4:3 content looks "normal" is the giveaway that your set (not the cable box) is the likely issue.