Plasma TV/Cable Question

Y

YoLaDu

Guest
Recently purchased a 42" Panasonic Plasma and ordered Grande HD digital cable. It's hooked up (HDMI cables), but the TV displays about 10 sparkly green dots, seemly random, but always the same in relationship to each other. I think and hope it is the cable that is the problem for two reasons.

1. These dots do NOT appear when i switch to (HDMI2) and my ps3 to play a dvd or play a game.

2. When watching the cable, the dots are only displayed in the actual moving images. For example, If i go to a 4:3 ratio, the green dots only display in the moving image and not in the grey blocked areas. If i go to 16:9, the green dots will fill correspondingly with the displayed images. (that is; they don't stay on the same physical spot on the TV when I switch aspect ratios).

The cable technician has scheduled a date to switch out the cable box Monday, however he kind of hinted that he think it is the TV that is the problem. I really don't want to box up this TV and return it.

Anyone have any thoughts or ideas?

I did switch/swap out my HDMI cables to see if that was it. Result was the same.
 
Sparklies (signal drop/degradation) with HDMI cable are common. Good article on the HDMI cables. The Link

It could also be a bad board on the plasma. If it is under warranty, have Panny come out and replace the board.

I would switch out the HDMI cable first, though.
 
switch it out with a audio(RedWhite) / video(RedBlueGreen) components?

Might do the trick, the article you linked says you can, and i just saw that the TV instructional book says you can and still get HD.

Thanks, Wash. I will give that a shot!
 
yeah, it's just they are friggin' expensive. I really don't want to buy another one.

I got a cheapy ($20) from my TV to the box and a expensive Monster one ($100) from the TV to the PS3. I did swap them briefly to see if hooking the "better" Monster HDMI cable to the TV would correct the problem, but it didn't.
 
Then the cable is probably not bad.

Swap where the hdmi's plug into the tv (ie, if your ps3 is in hdmi1, put it in hdmi2 and put the tv in hdmi1). (assuming you have multiple inputs. If the problem now appears on the ps3, your TV is bad. If the problem follows the cable box, your cable box is bad. Call your cable company about a new box and in the meantime switch to the component inputs.
 
Had the same problem when i first got a HD cable box 2 years ago.
I had the HDMI from cable box to TV and component from DVD to TV. I switched them and havnt had another problem with either since. Not sure why, but it worked
 
Cable boxes from both Scientific Atlanta (TWC) and Motorola (Comcast) have been notoriously buggy w/ HDMI. I had more signal loss issues w/ my HDMI cabling via my SA box to my Panny plasma than I could have imagined. After my 3rd box was installed (had numerous problems w/ the first 2) I rewired w/ component cables & have been trouble-free ever since (over 18 mos.).

My dad lives in Ft. Collins, CO and got his first HDTV a few weeks ago. He's had a number of issues w/ his Motorola box through comcast. Had 2 different boxes installed within a week. Discovered that--according to his service tech--all of their HDDVRs are refubrished/re-issued (said the first one he had looked like it had bounced around in the bed of a pickup for a month). His box (Moto DCT6416 III) has a lot of known issues but they couldn't get his new Bravia w/ HDMI 1.3 to work w/ it. The Comcast tech eventually ended up talking directly w/ Sony support to figure out a solution which was, you guessed it, use component cables.
 
UPDATE:

It was the box. Stuck with the HDMI cables. All is good.

ESPN HD is very nice.
 
Note to everyone reading this thread...

Like was witnessed above, and I have personally experienced (on my 4th cable box) - the boxes sucketh much. Don't get too worried if this happens to you. It is all too often a bad box that an exchange can easily fix (at least temporarily
wink.gif
)
 
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