Rosen Entertainment Systems A7 owner manual What can I do about Black Bars on the SCREEN?

Rosen A7 Owner’s Manual

WHAT CAN I DO ABOUT BLACK BARS ON THE SCREEN?

WHY ARE THE BLACK BARS STILL THERE SOMETIMES?

Motion picture film and cameras, and later television screens, were originally designed around a screen size that was almost square - it was one-third wider than it was high (another way to say this is that it had a width-to-height ratio, or aspect ratio, of 4:3. This ratio, 4:3 can also be expressed as 1.66:1.)

When widescreen movies such as Cinemascope and Panavision became popular, new aspect ratios were used for them - 1.78:1, 2.35:1, and even 2.4:1. When high-definition television was developed, a screen shape with an aspect ratio of 16:9, or 1.85:1, was selected as the best compromise for viewing widescreen images.

When you watch widescreen movies on a standard 4:3 television, there are “black bars” on the top and bottom of the screen. This is often called a “letterbox” image.

Your A7 uses a widescreen 16:9, or 1.85:1 display - the same aspect ratio as high- definition televisions. This means that when viewing widescreen DVD’s, these black bars are either non-existent, or greatly minimized.

4:3

1.66:1

16:9

1.85:1

Letterbox

Widescreen

There are three possible reasons for black bars to appear on the top and bottom of your A7 display:

1)You are watching a widescreen movie with an aspect ratio greater than 1.85:1. (For more options on dealing with this, see below). Check the disc jewel box to determine the DVD’s aspect ratio.

2)The DVD section of the A7 has been set for a 4:3 display instead of a 16:9 wide display. See the next page for how to correct this.

3)The “widescreen” DVD movie you are viewing is not “anamorphic” or “enhanced for widescreen televisions”. These films, often older DVD conversions, are not recommended for widescreen displays. You can usually determine if your DVD was produced for optimum compatibility with widescreen televisions by looking for the word “anamorphic” or the phrase “enhanced for widescreen televisions” on the box.

WHAT CAN I DO?

First, Rosen recommends that for best results you use DVD’s that say “anamorphic” or “enhanced for widescreen televisions” on the box . However, your A7 can get rid of black bars with just about any DVD using Rosen’s exclusive image-sizing features, explained below. Only Rosen gives you so many wide-screen-filling options!

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