HDD recorder with lower quality than non-HDD?

[NES_Master]

Not really a problem, just confused. I was working with something from my dad's DVD-Recorder with a hard drive when I realized the video was 704x480. I have the same device, but without a hard drive(just a DVD-Recorder) and the videos I get are 720x480. I just fine this strange... Both were suppose to be recorded on SP. Both devices are Panasonic. I forgot the model right off, but his has a 100GB HD in it.

[FulciLives]

Almost all Pansonic DVD recorders do 704x480 for NTSC Full D1 resolution. However I do think that there was at least one model by Panasonic that used the LSI chipset and that model did 720x480 for NTSC Full D1 resolution.

I'm not sure about the very newest models but if the "tradition" is being continued then they should be using 704x480 yet again.

My guess ... you happen to have that one "oddball" model that used the LSI chipset and therefore used 720x480 instead of the "standard" Panasonic 704x480 method. I do recall that the LSI model was a non-HDD model although of course I can't remember the model number off the top of my head.

BTW there really is nothing wrong with 704x480 as it is a supported resolution as is 720x480 and both will look the same on a TV (i.e., aspect ratio). Remember that due to TV OVERSCAN you can't see the extreme edges anyways. I've found that most televisions show, at best, about the middle 688 pixels and some much less than that so you aren't missing anything with 704x480 as you are only missing 8 pixels on either side which is well within the TV OVERSCAN region.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[trhouse]

All the latest Panasonics, ES15, ES25, ES35V, etc. are 720 by 480. The ES10 which came out about two years ago, was I believe the last generation to be 704 by 480. Since then there have been two newer generations which added DV inputs. The in between generation had the ES20 and ES40V ( combo ) with the LSI processor but the hdd model EH50, which was the same generation as the ES10, was not updated, skipped that generation and was 704 by 480.

[edDV]

704x480/576 is correct for broadcast digital video (4:3 or 16:9). Analog 4:3 also maps to 704. DV camcorders and DVD can use all 720 for video.

When you capture 720x480 you are just adding 8 black pixels left and right. If you resample digital broadcast to 720 you are degrading quality. Panasonic is doing you a favor by capturing to 704 without the black edge pixels.