Stretch mode with SD playback

[aaronwt]

Is there anyway to keep the fullscreen playback setting on boxed?
On both my VUDU boxes, I want the Fullscreen playback on boxed, yet everytime I play something it switches to stretched.
So the picture is always distorted. Is there a plan to have a setting that will stay fixed instead of changing?

[RonV]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

I am kind of confused of what you are asking for? The VUDU has 3 types of playing back 4:3 content:

• Boxed
• Stretched
• Zoomed

If you selected stretched is should stay selected. If you just want to do this with SD there is no option since SD content can be 16:9 or 4:3.

[NA9D]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

I am kind of confused of what you are asking for? The VUDU has 3 types of playing back 4:3 content:

• Boxed
• Stretched
• Zoomed

If you selected stretched is should stay selected. If you just want to do this with SD there is no option since SD content can be 16:9 or 4:3.

?? Not sure what you mean, Ron in your last sentence.

Aaron, just make the setting "boxed" in Video settings. The default is stretch.

[RonV]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

From what I read into his post was that he may want SD content that is 4:3 to be streteched but no HD content that is 4:3....which is not an option.

[aaronwt]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

My problem is it won't stay on boxed. Everytime I put it on boxed and start up a title it switches back to stretched. In other words there is no way for me to view anything in boxed mode because it never stays in that mode. So any SD title I put in is always stetched becasue the setting switches to stretched by itself after I put the setting on boxed.

And I don't want it in stretched mode. I only want it in boxed mode but neither of my boxes will stick in boxed mode.

[aaronwt]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

More info. One of my VUDU boxes runs through a Gefen scaler before going to the TV. The other box runs through an Algolith HDMI flea, a VP50pro scaler, and a Denon receiver before going to the TV.
Maybe those devices cause some change, but I would expect a choice that over rides any setting the box automatically trys to put it in. My VUDU boxes are automatically putting it in stretched mode and not keeping it in boxed mode like I want.

[aaronwt]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

I just tried connecting one of the VUDU boxes directly to the TV, this is with HDMI. It still does the same thing. It switches to stretched mode. This time I also tried putting it in zoomed mode as well as boxed.
No matter what mode I put it in, the VUDU box puts itself in stretch mode as soon as I start watching a title, when I expect it to stay on the setting I choose.

It seems fine on widescreen SD content, although the fullscreen playback mode still swithces to stretched, but I guess since it isn't fullscreen content it isn't affected.
Is this a bug? The full screen content shouldn't be strteched

[NA9D]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

Can you give me a couple titles? I'll take a look at this. If it is not holding the display mode, you discovered a bug.

[aaronwt]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

Can you give me a couple titles? I'll take a look at this. If it is not holding the display mode, you discovered a bug.

The Last man on Earth is one of them. But also in my testing I found it to be inconsistent. Even though the setting would always change, shows like, The Family Guy, still showed up in the proper aspect ratio most of the times, while a couple of the times I opened that program it was stretched. Buffy The Vampire Slayer did the same thing as Family guy. The aspect ratio was usually right but a couple of times it was actually stretched. In all instances though the setting automatically changes to stretched. So even when The Family Guy and Buffy were showing on the screen the proper way, the Full screen playback setting had been changed by the VUDU box to stretched.

[NA9D]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

I'll check these movies out tonight as I've got the evening to myself.

[RonV]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

Jon is now playing donkey...."All by myself....all by myself..."

[NA9D]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

Hey, I'm finally gonna get to watch Transformers!

[VolkerS]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

I can't really reproduce your problem. My video settings stay on boxed after playing "The last man on earth" and "Buffy" Episode 1.
So when you go to the video settings after playing one of these movies the radio button is on "stretched" evben though you selected "boxed" the last time you went to this page? This would be a bug. I haven't seen this or been able to reproduce this. What is your system ID? I would like to look at the logs. It would help if you gave me the time when this happened.

What is the output format when this happens (1080p,1080i, 720p or 480p)? Could it be that the stretching that you see are done by your equipment? Or do you really see our settings change to stretched?

When you see the movie incorrectly stretched, does it look proper or is the image distorted? Or is content cut of the top and bottom?

When I watch "The last men on earth" I see no letterboxes. Just 2 very small black bars on the left and right side (pillarboxes). Buffy shows large pillarboxes on my 16:9 TV with 1080i output format which is how it should be for full screen content in boxed mode.

[NA9D]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

I'm wondering if his extra devices or his TV is trying to interpret the content? Meaning, if it's in 4:3 is the TV then doing the stretching? I know my Sharp 27" LCD will do that with 4:3 content. It has a smart stretch mode where if it's in that mode, everything that comes in as 4:3 would be stretched. Of course, I would think the Vudu would come in as pillar-boxed 16:9 so it shouldn't even appear to be a 4:3 signal, but who knows...

I'll check it out here in a couple hours...

[NA9D]

Re: Stretch mode with SD playback

Volker,

I can confirm Aaronwt's issue. I set the video setting to boxed. I then play the movie and it shows up stretched. I go back to video settings and the setting is back to stretched. It isn't holding it.

I did it 3 times. I'm filing a bug report now.

Jon