TV Shows With A Box All The Way Around

[Tom Saurus]

I am curious about some of the TV shows that have a black bars on all four sides. I noticed this on "Frosty Returns" when it was broadcast earlier in December. I also noticed this same thing on "The Forgotten Toys" and "Mr. Magoo's Christmas". I notice it on the odd commercial as well. I was hoping someone could explain why there are black bars all around the video. I understand widescreen letterboxing with the black bars at the top and bottom.

[edDV]

This happens when 4:3 SD letterbox is displayed on a wide screen HDTV which adds side pillars to the 4:3 picture. This is a display issue not a broadcast problem.

[Tom Saurus]

edDV: Thank you for the explanation and the picture. This same box all around happened our tube standard definition TV as well.

[edDV]

edDV: Thank you for the explanation and the picture. This same box all around happened our tube standard definition TV as well.

Explain how you received it.

Is the tube TV widescreen? if so it would do the same to 4:3 letterbox source*.


*Many if not most 16:9 SD TV sets receiving NTSC letterbox will respond to a vertical interval wide flag and zoom the letterbox to fill the screen. If the TV station or cable company forgot the flag, the picture will display four side black.

[Tom Saurus]

edDV: The tube TV is not widescreen. I have the television connected with composite cables to the vcr which is hooked to the Shaw Direct PVR Receiver. I have my Mom's small 480p HDTV tv hooked to this same receiver with a coaxial cable that goes to the VCR/DVD Combo then through the composite cables to that television. The programming I have watched today is on the SD Channel for CBC.

[JVRaines]

It's also possible that these titles, which originated on 35mm motion picture film, were deliberately windowboxed to keep material out of the overscan area.

[edDV]

edDV: The tube TV is not widescreen. I have the television connected with composite cables to the vcr which is hooked to the Shaw Direct PVR Receiver. I have my Mom's small 480p HDTV tv hooked to this same receiver with a coaxial cable that goes to the VCR/DVD Combo then through the composite cables to that television. The programming I have watched today is on the SD Channel for CBC.

Is the "Shaw Direct PVR Receiver" SD or HD. It would seem SD because of the way it is connected.

The four side box would result from any letterbox SD broadcast on the 16:9 HDTV, but the 4:3 TV should not be showing side bars. It could be CBC screwed up but more likely something in the path.

CBC -> Shaw -> Shaw Direct PVR -(composite)-> VCR/DVD -(composite)-> 4:3 CRT TV

[Tom Saurus]

We have a HDPVR-Model 530 and it is capable or recording in SD and HD, so it can pick both up. I have never tuned to the HD Channels, because of the way we have our equipment set up. I have been thinking of getting a new LED TV that I could use as my TV and computer monitor to see the clarity of HD media. But with times being the way the are and having a small income I have put it off.

[edDV]

We have a HDPVR-Model 530 and it is capable or recording in SD and HD, so it can pick both up. I have never tuned to the HD Channels, because of the way we have our equipment set up. I have been thinking of getting a new LED TV that I could use as my TV and computer monitor to see the clarity of HD media. But with times being the way the are and having a small income I have put it off.

It is possible the HDPVR is set to output anamorphic over composite but that would make all letterbox shows show four side black

[Tom Saurus]

edDV: It must be something specific about some of these classic shows. They showed the Christmas Parade from the Disney Parks and it was letterboxed and just the black bars at the top and bottom, "Lassie" and "Booky And The Secret Santa" and all these displayed as I have come to expect. They put on "Miracle On 34th Street" the classic black and white movie and it was surrounded on all sides by the black bars. It didn't stop me from enjoying the shows and they were commercial free today which was a nice treat to just sit there and enjoy them without commercial interruption. I just had a curiousity about it all. They didn't have these specific shows on the video on demand part of the CBC website so I wasn't able to make a comparison there.

[edDV]

Is it just that one channel?

I'm not seeing that on any station here. In the US market they prefer to chop the sides off for SD rather than go full letterbox.

[Brad]

It's a CBC thing. I saw the same thing on our Bell SD receiver last night.

They're airing 4:3 content but it would appear they're now only sending an HD feed to providers. So you get 4:3 -> pillarboxed for 16:9 HD -> downconverted to 4:3 SD with letterboxing added.

[Tom Saurus]

edDV: Thanks for all the information you provided me with. It was kind of you to take the time.

vaporeon800: Thanks for the information. Sometimes I get envious of the channels that Bell ExpressVu has that we don't have on Shaw Direct. I think you have FX Canada, I am not sure I really want that channel, but it is nice to have the option. You also have access to Comedy Gold and Russia Today which my friend recently found on his ExpressVu receiver, because we both kind of like a quirky show called the Keiser Report. It kind of hurts that they don't have Comedy Gold on Shaw Direct because I hate the reality TV stuff that is taking over these days and I find myself wanting to watch stuff like "Newhart", "The Bob Newhart Show", the list goes on.