Natural Re-Size
Many plasma display panels allow the user to select a screen mode best suited to the material being viewed — for example, when watching a regular 4:3 TV show on a 16:9 widescreen monitor, the image can be stretched to fill the entire screen. But with conventional plasma displays, that stretching process causes problems such as blocky, fuzzy, or over-stretched images. The Pioneer Elite plasma display panels have an exclusive Natural Re-Size function that re-shapes the picture and allows it to maintain a natural appearance without adding the artifacts that deteriorate picture quality.
Digital Chroma Decoder
Digital CTI
Conventional plasma display panels have difficulty accurately rendering a colored image laid over another — a man in a dark blue jacket standing in front of a red wall, for example. The usual result is a dithered pattern and a muddy combination of colors where the two images intersect. With the Pioneer Elite PDPs, however, Digital Color Transient Improvement (CTI) smooths out edges of colored images so that they are more distinct, offering true color fidelity and color resolution.
Selectable Screen Sizes
Whether you are watching conventional TV broadcast, wide- screen DVDs, or wide-screen movies, the Pioneer Elite PDPs
AV Mode (PRO-FHD1)
Dot by Dot | 4:3 |
CINEMA | FULL 14:9 |
ZOOM | CINEMA 14:9 |
FULL | WIDE |
AV Mode
(PRO-1540HD/PRO-1140HD/PRO-940HD)
Three Surround Modes — SRS, TruBass, and FOCUS
To expand your sound options, the
Elite PDPs feature three surround modes: SRS, for dynamic 3-D surround throughout an expansive listening area; TruBass for surprisingly big, natural
bass sound; and FOCUS, which enhances the surround effect and shifts
the sound field upward. The units also
permit simultaneous activation of TruBass and SRS.
* SRS, TruBass and FOCUS are trademarks of SRS Labs. INC.
Subwoofer Output
Color noise is another form of analog video interference — noticeable speckled imperfections seen within solid colors on your screen. The new Elite plasma display panels feature a 10- bit Digital Chroma Decoder to reduce noise and provide better frequency response, for pure, clean colors.
Dynamic HD Converter for Sharper Images
Interlaced signals of terrestrial broadcasts and DVD and PC video sources are up-converted into progressive signals for optimal viewing on the PRO-1140HD (1280 x 768-dot high- resolution) and the PRO-940HD (1024 x 768-dot high- resolution). With the number of on-screen detection points significantly increased to 84, HD converter offers sharper, more natural images free of jagged edges and distortion seen on displays with conventional converters.
Dynamic HD Converter
Conventional PDP | Pioneer Elite PDP with Dynamic HD Converter |
Natural Enhancer
have five (eight for PRO-FHD1) selectable screen modes that can handle any format. You can watch conventional broadcasts in traditional 4:3 mode, or fill in the entire screen with ZOOM or WIDE mode. When viewing DVDs and Digital TV, use the FULL mode to perfectly match these wide screen (16:9) images to your screen. When watching widescreen movies, you can use CINEMA mode.
The PRO-FHD1 additionally features a new "DOT by DOT" mode, which delivers high-resolution pictures with dot- by-dot precision from 1920 x 1080 pixel sources. The unit also comes with variations of CINEMA mode (CINEMA 14:9) and FULL mode (FULL 14:9), respectively.
All the Elite PDPs also come with a PC mode, which provides three selectable screen sizes for non-XGA signals. The PRO-1540HD and PRO-1140HD come with a PC mode for XGA signals, too.
AV Mode
Item | Description |
4:3 | For 4:3 "standard" pictures. A side mask appears on each side. |
| |
FULL 14:9* | For 14:9 squeeze pictures. A thin side mask appears on each side. |
| |
CINEMA 14:9* | For 14:9 letterbox pictures. A thin side mask appears on |
| each side, and you may also see bars on the top and |
| bottom with some programs. |
| |
WIDE | In this mode the picture is progressively stretched |
| toward each side of the screen. |
| |
FULL | For 16:9 squeeze pictures. |
| |
ZOOM | For 16:9 letterbox pictures. Bars may appear on the top and |
| bottom with some programs. |
| |
CINEMA | For 14:9 letterbox pictures. Bars may appear on the top and |
PC Mode for Non-XGA Signals | PC Mode for XGA Signals |
| (1024 x 768 input at PRO-1540HD/PRO-1140HD) |
| | | 4:3 | | | | | | | | | 4:3 | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Dot by Dot | | | | | | FULL | | FULL2 | | | | | FULL1 |
| | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Multi-Window Display
Multi-Window Display of the Pioneer Elite PDPs takes dual- material viewing to new levels, letting you display a combination of NTSC, HDTV, and PC screens either as twin images (50/50 split screen) or as picture-in-picture, which allows you to position the subscreen upper left/right or lower left/right. The units also permit "picture-out-picture" display, which shows the small subscreen on the right side of the main screen. Watch pro football on TV, for example, right alongside fantasy football on your PC.
The Elite PDPs can even display a freeze frame of a broadcast. Just press the FREEZE button at the scene you want, and the screen is split to display a still image of the scene on the right, while continuing the broadcast on the left.
Multi-Window Display
The Elite PDPs comes with a subwoofer output terminal. This lets you enjoy deeper bass with easy connection.
Speaker Systems
The optional speaker system — PDP-S50 for 50" panels — match the slim designs of the display panels, while still delivering superior sound. The speakers can be installed in two different ways:
Flush: The speakers are fixed flat against the sides of the display panel.
Air: The speakers are mounted slightly separate from the sides of the display panel, delivering a wider sound field.
An optional speaker system for 60" panels — PDP-S51* — is also available.
* This speaker system permits Flush installation only.
Conventional contour image correction technologies effectively sharpen contours, but also affect picture qualities, causing annoying noises such as jagged edges. The Natural Enhancer takes contour image correction to the next level. On any source, analog or digital, the Natural Enhancer cleans up the jagged edges and wavy "moiré" patterns, and enhances the contrast at the edges of images to reproduce clean, detailed pictures.
Natural Enhancer
Conventional Plasma Display Panel | Pioneer Elite Plasma Display Panel |
| bottom on some programs. |
Dot by Dot* | Matches input signal with same number of screen pixels. |
| Enabled only when input source comes with 1920 x 1080 pixels. |
| |
*Available with the PRO-FHD1 only |
PC Mode for Non-XGA Signals |
Item | Description |
4:3 | Fills the screen without altering the input signal aspect ratio. |
| |
FULL | Full 16:9 screen display. |
| |
Dot by Dot | Matches input signal with same number of screen pixels. |
| |
PC Mode for XGA Signals
(1024 x 768 input with PRO-1540HD and PRO-1140HD)
Item | Description |
4:3 | Matches input signal to the same number of screen pixels. |
| Optimized for 1024 x 768 display. |
| |
FULL1 | Full 16:9 screen display. Optimized for 1024 x 768 display. |
| |
FULL2 | For wide signal display. Use when displaying 1360 x 768 |
| signal resolution. |
| |
2-screen (with PC) | Picture-in-picture |
Closed Caption Compatibility
The Closed Caption works with television programs and home
videos displaying the 
logo for closed captions. Closed
captions allow the hearing-impaired to enjoy TV and videos on the PDPs through the use of subtitles displayed on screen.
The units also offer the "On If Mute" function. Choose "On If Mute" on the closed captions setup screen, and subtitles will automatically appear on the screen whenever the sound is muted. You can conveniently follow a program's story, for example, while talking on the phone.
The units deliver closed captioning from digital TV programs, too.
