HD Advisor

Email:
HDanswers@gmail.com

Have technical questions about your HD home theater gear? Each Friday, our HD Advisor will answer your questions. To submit a question for consideration, send an email to HDanswers@gmail.com and we'll see if we can help you out. If you've already sent a question and don't see it answered yet, please be patient as we work our way through them.

We only request that you please don't ask, "When will Movie XYZ be released on Blu-ray?" Those decisions are totally up to the movie studios' discretion, and we have no more insight into the process of what gets chosen than you do.

When sending questions to the HD Advisor box, please attempt to word your questions as clearly and concisely as possible. If I'm not sure exactly what you're asking, I may not be able to provide an answer. Keep in mind that, if I choose to use your question in this column, it will be posted for the benefit of our other readers. If you can ask the question in a few sentences rather than a few paragraphs, that will make the selection process much easier. Also, the correct spelling of the format's name is "Blu-ray." Clear spelling and grammar in your questions will save us a great deal of time in the editing of the column prior to posting, and will help to ensure that we actually provide the information you're looking for. Thank you.

Answers by Joshua Zyber.

HD Advisor Columns:

Our HD Advisor Answers Your Questions (Feb 6, 2009)

• Expensive HDMI Cables
• 1080p24
• HD Audio Hookup
• PS3 vs. Standalone Players

HD Advisor 2: Advise Harder (Feb 13 , 2009)

• "3-D Pop"
• HD Audio
• 4k Video on Blu-ray?
• Blu-ray Pricing
• Blu-ray Recorders

Return of the HD Advisor (Feb 20, 2009)

• Frame Rates
• 1080i vs. 1080p
• Frame Interpolation
• Audio Sync
• Player Load Times

HD Advisor: Episode IV – A New Hope (Feb 27, 2009)

• HD Audio Hookup
• HD Audio Format Comparisons
• Subtitles
• 1080p24

HD Advisor v5.0 (Mar 6, 2009)

• 1080p Content on a 720p HDTV
• HD Audio – PCM vs. Bitstream
• Dynamic Range Compression
• 5.1 Audio vs. 7.1
• Replacement Remotes

HD Advisor VI: The Undiscovered Country (Mar 13, 2009)

• Film-to-Video
• 3:2 Pulldown
• Brand Loyalty
• HD Audio and 7.1
• Lossless Audio and HDMI
• 3-D
• Homework: A/V Receiver Recommendations

HD Advisor Number Slevin (Mar 20, 2009)

• Calibration
• Lossy vs. Lossless Audio
• HDMI vs. DVI
• Speaker Not Working Properly
• Switching Resolutions
• Homework: Samsung Blu-ray Player Setup

HD Advisor 8 ½ (Mar 27, 2009)

• 1080i on a 1080p Display, and HDMI Splitters
• Using Component Video and HDMI Audio Simultaneously
• HDMI Handshaking Woes
• Playing Non-Anamorphic DVDs in a PS3
• Lens Cleaning Discs
• Homework: Streaming Video from Computer to PS3

The Whole Nine HD Advisors (Apr 3, 2009)

• PS3 Upconversion
• Resume Play
• Audio Delay
• U-Control
• High-Def Audio on HD DVD
• PCM Audio
• Speakers
• Burn-in
• Beyond Blu-ray
• Homework: HDMI Sinks

HD Advisor X (Apr 10, 2009)

• Widescreen Photography Formats
• Homework: Onkyo Receiver Setup

HD Advisor's 11 (Apr 17, 2009)

• Edge Enhancement
• Firmware Updates
• Native Resolution and Jaggies
• 7.1 Soundtracks
• Homework: Speaker Recommendations

HD Advisors by the Dozen (May 1, 2009)

• Dynamic Contrast
• DTS-HD Master Audio on 'Die Hard 2'
• HDMI Switchers
• Film-to-Video Transfers
• Dust Blobs & Stuck Pixels
• Homework: Blu-ray Burner Recommendations

HD Advisor the 13th (May 8, 2009)

• Older TV Shows on Blu-ray
• Power Conditioning vs. More Power
• HD Audio Decoding
• Where to Perform Upconversion?
• Lossless Audio and Headphones
• Homework: Flash Card Recommendations

HD Advisor XIV (May 22, 2009)

• Broadcast HD Quality
• Remastering Old TV Shows
• HD DVD Players
• To Bose or Not to Bose

HD Advisor XV (May 29, 2009)

• Comparing Blu-ray to DVD
• 1080p24
• 30 fps
• 720p24
• DVD Upconversion
• Homework: Streaming Video via PS3

HD Advisor's Super Sweet 16 (Jun 4, 2009)

• PS3 vs. Standalone Blu-ray Players
• PS3 Settings
• DTS vs. DTS-HD
• Homework: HDTV Recommendations

HD Advisor 17 (Jun 12, 2009)

• Digitally Photographed Movies
• DVD Upconversion
• RS-232 Interface
• Homework: Budget A/V Receiver Recommendations

HD Advisor 17 Again [OK, Really 18] (Jun 19, 2009)

• Video Bit Rates
• PCM Audio over S/PDIF
• 720p vs. 1080p HDTVs
• 2k vs. 4k Resolution Revisited
• Homework: Surround Speaker Placement

K-19: The HD Advisor (Jun 26, 2009)

• Overscan
• 24 fps on a 720p Projector
• Color Temperature
• Homework: Toslink Switcher Recommendations

20th Century HD Advisor (Jul 2, 2009)

• IMAX Digital Theaters
• Region-Free Blu-ray Playback
• DTS-HD Master Audio on 'Terminator 2'
• Homework: CCFL Backlights in LCD TVs

The HD Advisor Needs You! (Jul 10, 2009)

• Subtitle Placement Poll

The HD Advisor Turns 21 (Jul 17, 2009)

• Projection Screens
• Dolby Digital Plus on Blu-ray
• Region Coding on Warner Blu-ray Discs
• Homework: Home-Theater-in-a-Box Recommendations

The HD Advisor's Catch-22 (Jul 24, 2009)

• Projection Screens Revisited
• Who Picks What Movies Get Released on Blu-ray?
• Movies on HD Cable
• Homework: Blu-ray Laptop Recommendations

The HD Advisor Number 23 (Jul 31, 2009)

• Bitstream vs. PCM
• Moving Supplements to BD-Live
• Connecting a Blu-ray Player to a Standard-Def TV
• A Blu-ray Player Region-Free for DVD?
• Homework: Downmixing Lossless Multi-Channel Audio to Stereo PCM

24 Hour HD Advisor People (Aug 14, 2009)

• HD Audio Through Analog Outputs
• HDMI Handshaking Issues
• Why Do Some Blu-rays Not Get Reviewed on This Site?
• Homework: Smaller HDTV Recommendations

HD Advisor in the 25th Century (Aug 21, 2009)

• HDMI 1.3
• Backwards Compatibility of HD Audio
• Is BD-Live Worth Upgrading For?
• Homework: Soundbar Recommendations

The 26th HD Advisor (Aug 28, 2009)

• HD Movies from Sources Other than Blu-ray
• Timelines and Other Gimmicks
• Why Both Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio?
• Homework: Digital Cinematography

HD Advisor Flashback (Sept 11, 2009)

• Betamax vs. VHS
• Antenna Input on TV
• "Letterbox" Bars
• How to Get a CED out of the Case?
• Digital Audio on Laserdisc
• Homework: Cable TV Remote Control Boxes

28 HD Advisors Later (Sept 18, 2009)

• HD Audio Decoding
• TV Calibration
• Service Menu Adjustments
• Homework: Subwoofer Placement

HD Advisor 29 (Sept 25, 2009)

• Digital Editing in Filmmaking
• Watching 'The Dark Knight' on a 2.35:1 Screen
• PAL Content on Blu-ray
• Homework: Blu-ray Playback on a PC

30 Days of HD Advisor (Oct 2, 2009)

• PS3 Audio Decoding Revisited
• Disc Incompatibility Issues / Firmware Updates
• Upconverted Standard-Def Content on Blu-ray
• Homework: Surge Protector Recommendations

HD Advisor 31st (Oct 9, 2009)

• Is Film "HD"?
• Lossless 7.1 Soundtracks from Older Blu-ray/HD DVD Players
• Connecting Old Video Sources to an HDTV
• Homework: How to Recognize a Bootleg Blu-ray?

32 Short Films About HD Advisor (Oct 16, 2009)

• 192 kHz Audio
• Lossless Video Compression
• Power Conditioners
• Homework: Computer / Multi-Media Speakers with a TV?

HD Advisor 33 1/3 (Oct 23, 2009)

• Deep Color and 36-Bit Playback
• Zoom on a Blu-ray Player
• Calibration Discs vs. THX Optimizer
• Audio Bit Depth and Sampling Rates
• Homework: Rear Speaker Popping Sound

HD Advisor on 34th Street (Oct 30, 2009)

• THX Optimizer Revisited
• Dolby TrueHD on 'Akira' Revisited
• Dolby TrueHD vs. DTS-HD Master Audio Revisited
• Homework: Blu-ray Players with Netflix Streaming

HD Advisor 35 Up (Nov 6, 2009)

• Restoring Older Movies
• Squeaking Noise from TV Speakers
• Projector Zooming
• Homework: Speaker Feedbac

Other Related Articles:
High-Def FAQ: Why Don't the Black Bars Go Away?
High-Def FAQ: Is HDMI 1.3 Really Necessary?
High-Def FAQ: What's the Big Deal About 1080p24?
High-Def FAQ: Blu-ray and HD DVD Audio Explained
High-Def FAQ: Blu-ray Profiles Explained
High-Def FAQ: Uncompressed vs. Lossless Audio
2.35:1 Constant Image Height Tutorial