Standard Displays

When watching a standard (1.37:1) film on a standard (1.33:1) display, we can see virtually the full image without adjustments. Again, the film is presented in the same way as it would be in a movie theater.

However if we watch a widescreen (1.85:1) film, we have a new problem. The picture will be distorted as the wide image is squeezed to fit the standard display.

Again, this distorted image is unacceptable. A few high-quality standard video displays will allow for the vertical size of the picture to be decreased, restoring the proper image geometry. But since nearly all standard displays lack any type of “Aspect Ratio” control, this capability is instead built into all DVD players.

By selecting “4:3 (Letterbox)” for the “TV Screen” setting in the on-screen setup menus (see page 53), when a widescreen disc is played the player will automatically squeeze the image vertically to restore the correct geometry while adding black bars at the top and bottom.

Additional Factors

So far everything has been relatively straightforward. However, there are a few more cases to consider that introduce some complexity to the situation.

36

Page 38
Image 38
Ayre Acoustics DX-7 owner manual Additional Factors, Standard Displays