digital cable = the new svcd format
 

I need to ask this (though I am thinking I should probably post this over at videohelp a well), I recently aquired a cable box and upgraded from basic cable.

What I wanted to ask for those of you that have a similar device. Do the channels now have a great many macro block crappy artifacts when lets say a picture fades to black or a dark scene? Hell, in some cases it looks like instead of seeing a human face I am looking at a digitally drawn one (Ifc channel has horrible artifacting). Hooking my cable without the box and viewing some of the same channels I do not get macroblock noise at all (which is leading me to believe it has to do with the box being used).

I am on Time Warner cable. They gave me a Samsung HD cable box. I still use an older analog tv. I know the HD channels are downgraded in order for me to view them (digital channels appear fine but suffer from artifacting as well), but even on regular stations I see artifact crap.

Is this because of the particular box they gave me? Would buying a box from another company work better (I do not have premium cable with the showtime type of channels)?

Because if this is what I have to look forward to as being the "future", I must say the majority of people out there are completely blind and seem ok with SVCD quality television

There was an article about this in DV Magazine this month, I read it yesterday. I've been saying this since about 2003, when DirecTV started to overstuff transponders ("spotbeam" came on the scene), and I see it in my local Fox HD a lot too. Audio/video sync is another crappy issue I see on digital cable, HDTV and Dish Metwork.

The settings, FYI, are pretty well identical to SVCD and XVCD. They range from 480x480 to 544x480 to 640x480, but with a puny bitrate in the 2000s.

It reminds me of those guys that try to eat a 64oz steak. Something's got to give! You cannot hold a watermelon in a breadbox! [88]

thanks for the reply (here and over there). The topic also had a few comments over at videohelp.com forthose that want to read it. A lot of good info is mentioned.
http://forum.videohelp.com/topic353303.html

One step forward two steps back. I guess if cable is that poor in your neighborhood maybe switching to satellite would be better for you?

one poster(on videohelp) wired over a link from the avs forums about the particular HD box that time warner has now given out (same one I have). It appears it actually might be the box itself rather than the cable. Seems to be terrible. I can try (and it would help me in general) to switch to their dvr box which is not samsung and see if it improves. Going by the post mentioned it should.

Yes, receivers can be bad. I have an awesome Motorola in my bedroom, and an awful one in m livng room (need to go exchange the stupid thing). DISH Network had a lot of crap receivers, and the non-RCA ones from DirecTV tended to suck too (hated the Hughes ones).