# Which DISH or VOOM HD Channel Has Best PQ?



## leegart (Dec 18, 2004)

I find that HGTV consistently has the best picture quality. My second choice would be DICOVERY-HD. What do you think?


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## Jeff P (May 10, 2006)

I think that's hard to say, because in a lot of cases, you're talking an apples-to-oranges comparison.

For example, something shot on HD cameras is going to look better on ANY network, as opposed to something shot on regular video or SD film and then upconverted to HD.

That said, my general impressions of the ones that stand out are:

*HBO-HD:* always solid, even when they are changin the OAR on films (!)... Revenge of the Sith was breathtaking in HD, and their original shows also look great.

*ESPN-HD & ESPN2-HD:* their MLB games look fantastic. Can't wait to see what they do with Monday Night Football and College basketball.

*HDNet Movies*: Like HBO, their stuff looks consistently great and they get bonus points for ALWAYS showing films in OAR.

I've actually been a bit disapointed in *Discovery-HD*. To me, their HD looks a bit "soft" when compared to the stuff on HBO or *HGTV-HD*.


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## dbconsultant (Sep 13, 2005)

We've been watching the Little League Baseball world series on ESPNHD and ESPN2HD and the picture is outrageously good! I'd watch it even if I wasn't interested in the game!!!!:hurah:

I also like equator cuz I like the travelogue stuff and HDNet's movies. Discover is always fun in HD!


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## leegart (Dec 18, 2004)

dbconsultant said:


> I also like equator cuz I like the travelogue


Rudy Maxa's Smart Travels in HD on Equator is such good quality that you almost feel like you're actually there with him. :joy: All that without the hassles of getting on a plane! He also sometimes shows up on HDNet and the PBS-HD OTA channel.


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## dbconsultant (Sep 13, 2005)

leegart said:


> Rudy Maxa's Smart Travels in HD on Equator is such good quality that you almost feel like you're actually there with him. :joy: All that without the hassles of getting on a plane! He also sometimes shows up on HDNet and the PBS-HD OTA channel.


Thanks, leegart, I'll watch for it!:jump3:


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## mkpolley (Dec 8, 2003)

national feed of fox sports look not as good as networks,come on fox


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## Darrell (Jul 30, 2006)

leegart said:


> I find that HGTV consistently has the best picture quality. My second choice would be DICOVERY-HD. What do you think?


Equator has the best PQ, IMO. Not bad content either. I love Smart Travels not only for the great PQ but because I've visited many of the places.

By far, NG has the worst PQ. Very grainy. Looks like everything is just upconverted from 480 then recompressed as hell.


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## leegart (Dec 18, 2004)

mkpolley said:


> national feed of fox sports look not as good as networks,come on fox


And the Saturday FOX baseball games are in 16 x 9 SD! Why no HD?


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## Presence (Mar 14, 2004)

If you are just talking about picture quality alone: RaveHD. Fantastic.


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## bulldog200024 (Jan 27, 2006)

leegart said:


> And the Saturday FOX baseball games are in 16 x 9 SD! Why no HD?


I have noticed that the picture quality of these games is not good, at least for HD.


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## WilliamC (Jun 18, 2006)

Showtime HD and they show in OAR
HDNET, Truly Amazing
HBOHD, I really wish they would show things in OAR
MonstersHD, even though its HDlite it still looks great.


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## Rick J (Aug 18, 2006)

Hi, I'm deciding between Dish HD and DirecTV HD and the main channel I'd watch on Dish that DirecTV doesn't offer is Kung Fu Channel. Does anyone here have an opinion on content and PQ? 

I'm a long time DirecTV subscriber due to Sunday Ticket but am moving and I can get more bang for the buck by switching to Dish. Other HD channels sound interesting but are not deal breakers.

Thanks,

Rick.


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## Lyle_JP (Apr 22, 2002)

> the main channel I'd watch on Dish that DirecTV doesn't offer is Kung Fu Channel. Does anyone here have an opinion on content and PQ?


The quality on this channel is excellent. The content... needs work. Sure, they schedule good movies, but too often (for me, anyway) they seem to use the American re-cuts created by Miramax, New Line, and the like and also sometimes use English dub versions. I imagine this is a "rights" issue, but it is still disappointing.

The same thing happens on sister station Monsters HD. I was stoked that Osorio's "Blind Dead" films would be in HD. Little did I know they would be the censored, English-dubbed versions. *sigh*

Lastly, OAR seems to matter little to the Voom channels. I have already seen two films shot in 1.33:1 that were cropped top and bottom to fill a 16:9 screen. They haven't cropped a 2.35:1 feature yet to my knowledge, but I wouldn't put it past them.


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## RobR7 (Jan 23, 2006)

I'm a newbie to E* but so far it looks like Voom channels look the best too me. 

The most disappointing is National Geographic HD... such a mixed bag and it was the HD channel I was looking forward to the most. Figured Discovery was so good, NGHD would be great... oh well, guess I can get one of the cheaper HD packages afterall...


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## Rick J (Aug 18, 2006)

Thanks Lyle_JP. I was directed to the programming schedule in another thread and the Kung Fu channel seems to show a good mix of old and more recent movies. 

Rick.


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