Insignia NS-30HTV... Anyone?

[bounty29]

Alright so I'm looking at getting a HDTV for my xbox 360. I have $150 best buy bucks, so I'd prefer to get the television at Best Buy. I've seen plenty of threads around about the NS-27HTV, but none about this. Why is that? I really want the 16:9, because the primary purpose of this set will be to play Xbox 360, and I want it to fit right. I would get the ESP, without a doubt, but I was just wondering if anyone had any experience or insight about it.

Edit: I'd like to run 720p, if that matters.

[steinhenge]

I've had one for a few months now. The price makes it difficult to pass up, and while I think it more than does the job for what you pay, there are some annoying things about it.

Your set will almost certainly have some geometry issues; if it's too noticeable take it back to the store and replace it and you'll probably end up with one that's not too hard to stand. Also, black has a tendency to tint slightly green. That's been bearable for me up until last week when I got the HD-DVD drive for the 360. HD video images show the "greening" of the black levels more prominently than anything else (I rarely notice it in games, for instance) and it's starting to bug me considerably. King Kong does not live in the freaking Matrix!

Hopefully both of these issues will be solvable to an acceptable degree if someone can find a way into the service menu for me. Even if I can't work around these things, I don't regret buying this tv. I think you would really enjoy it for gaming. Oh, and 720p will run fine, but the set will convert it to 1080i so I'd recommend just setting the 360 to 1080i in the first place. the detail improvement in the games that run in 1080 is considerable (to me).

[d6500k]

Not sure if Bruzzi has it listed. His site is down for some reason.

Also, black has a tendency to tint slightly green

This is most assuredly a grayscale bias issue. Without measurement you a kinda shooting in the dark here (oops, a pun). If and when you decide to DIY. increasing the R/B bias one stp at at time with a decrease in the green should help to reduce the offensive green tint. Phase controls will not help (tint).

I'll keep my eyes open for a service entry code. I do not get calls to ISF the Insignia brand which is kind of a shame as even less expensive displays can be made to render accurate images if they have the controls necessary.

Doug k

[steinhenge]

Thanks for the tips, Doug. I eagerly await the day that I can actually fix this issue.

[Crazybob]

I wonder if the ns-30htv is the same as the ns-27htv with a bigger tube? What do you mean when you talk about geometry issues? Whats it do to the pic?

If the software is the same you can get to the service menu by hitting Menu, then Pre.ch 5 times, then hit 1 through 8 for the menu pages. As others have said write down all numbers on items you change first! There could be a warranty void issue about going in there though.

My ns-27htv's tuner just started having intermittent problems with digital channels losing all the signal & analog channels getting lines through them. Lucky I got Best Buy's ESP so they delivered a replacement to me. The service tech said they can't get parts to insignia's(there own brand!).

Oh ya, do you use the analog audio output in the back of the set? Mine has a slight pop in the audio when switching between two analog channels. Just wondering if the ns-30htv does the same thing.

Bob
:wow:

[steinhenge]

What do you mean when you talk about geometry issues? Whats it do to the pic?
The picture has a distinct warp to it, specifically it narrows from bottom to top and has a very slight rotation to the over all image. This is livable, but sometimes noticeable.

If the software is the same you can get to the service menu by hitting Menu, then Pre.ch 5 times, then hit 1 through 8 for the menu pages.
Unfortunately, this won't work for me as my remote has no "Pre.ch" button. Nevertheless, thanks for the info.

My ns-27htv's tuner just started having intermittent problems with digital channels losing all the signal & analog channels getting lines through them.
Hmm, haven't had that issue.

Oh ya, do you use the analog audio output in the back of the set? Mine has a slight pop in the audio when switching between two analog channels. Just wondering if the ns-30htv does the same thing.
Sorry, don't use that output so I can't comment.

[Crazybob]

So it's got like a linearity problem then. If you could get into the service menu there's probably something for that. By the slight rotation you mean a kind of angled picture? I had that and the Rotate(Geomagnetic Correction) function on the remote fixed that.
I looked up your TV on Best Buys site. I see you have the widescreen 16:9 tube! Mine has the 4:3 so any HD channels are in letterbox. I have a feeling the ns-27htv might turn out to be a poorly manufactured & aligned set. Did you get Best Buys ESP? That would be on site service so maybe they can get into the service menu to correct it.

Bob

[steinhenge]

Did you get Best Buys ESP? That would be on site service so maybe they can get into the service menu to correct it.

Bob
Nope, didn't get it. My main goal with this television was to spend as little money on it as possible. If I don't get the geometry issue solved, that won't bother me; it's noticeable but I can live with it. I can even live with the green tinting if I have to, but it is much more something that I'm keen to do something about.

I'm a very DIY kind of guy, and the idea of accessing the service menu and fixing this stuff myself is very appealing.

[gruss]

wow, came in going to ask a question but think I have it answered, I noticed the probs stein mentioned and wanted to know if it was just my set or all of them, must be all them ;) The green tint isnt real noticable after messing with the settings a bit.
For the OP the probs are livable, well for me anyway, I know some would find it unacceptable but for the price I dont think there is a cheaper way right now, and I'm usually more concerned with the audio parts of my rig. Considering I got out the door for well under 500 w/ a service plan (didnt trust Insignia/BB;) )
I might give them a ring and see if a service call corrects the geometry issues, hopefully I get a decent tech and can pass along the info.

[steinhenge]

I might give them a ring and see if a service call corrects the geometry issues, hopefully I get a decent tech and can pass along the info.
Best of luck, for your sake and mine!

[steinhenge]

Thanks to the awesome BruZZi in another topic, we now have a working method of accessing the service menu on this thing:

Turn the TV on.
Press and hold the {VOL-} button on the TV.
Press and hold the {9} button on the remote.
The Service Menu will be displayed.


Use the {CH+} or {CH-} buttons to select the item
Use the {VOL+} and {VOL -} buttons to adjust the value.
Turn the set off to exit the Service Menu.

This works, except for the fact that the {CH} buttons actually adjust the value, and the {VOL} buttons scroll through the various functions.

There are 59 pages of options to scroll through, and other than some of the more obvious ones, I'm not sure what many of these exactly mean. I'm sure that experimentation (after I've written down the default settings!) should clear up a lot of the confusion. As it stands, I've tweaked the green bias down five notches and that seems to all but eliminate the black/green issue, but any increases in the red and blue bias seem to kick the color red into more of a vibrant violet.

Would anyone like me to post my (pending) documentation of all the default settings? I'd love it if someone here could enlighten me on what some of it means.

[gruss]

I would be very interested!

[Naolin]

Hi everyone, I have a question for anyone who has the NS-27HTV and uses their 360 on it. I understand that 360 game devs have a choice when it comes to 4:3, either they can use letterbox or make it fullscreen. My question is that when your using the 1080i on the tv and xbox, does it use the letterbox form for the games same as hdtv programming? I'm getting this tv for my xbox and I'd really like to know if when playing my games they'll letterbox and not squash and stretch to fit the 16:9 ratio into this box. I'm pretty worried about this so any help would be really appreciated. Thanks.

[TheColter]

Okay... here is a list of all the options in the service menu along with factory settings. Labeled by page.

00---OSD H--------4
01---*NO VALUE*
02---H. POSI--------72
03---V. POSI--------1
04---H. SIZE-------- 50
05---V. SIZE-------- 16
06---V. LIN-------- 27
07---V-EHT-------- 4
08---H-EHT-------- 7
09---V-BLK P-------- 0
10---V-BLK S-------- 0
11---V. CENT-------- 30
12---V. LIMIT-------- 0
13---V. ORR-------- 10
14---V.S. CORR-------- 35
15---EW PARA-------- 16
16---TRAPEZIUM --------52
17---COR. TOP --------26
18---COR. BTM --------14
19---S. CORR --------10
20---CORNER --------17
21---C. PARA --------8
22---C. SAW --------9
23---V. SYMM --------128
24---R. BIAS --------121
25---G. BIAS --------133
26---B. BIAS --------127
27---R/G. DRV --------75
28---B/R. DRV --------64
29---R. BIAS (C) --------134
30---G. BIAS (C) --------143
31---B. BIAS (C) --------127
32---R/G. DRV (C) --------68
33---B/R. DRV (C) --------69
34---R. BIAS (W) --------101
35---G. BIAS (W) --------129
36---B. BIAS (W) --------127
37---R/G. DRV (W) --------86
38---B/R. DRV (W) --------57
39---R-Y GAIN --------7
40---R-Y PHASE --------0
41---G-Y GAIN --------0
42---G-Y PHASE --------0
43---BRI. CENT --------142
44---BRI. MAX --------240
45---BRI. MIN --------70
46---CONT. CENT --------75
47---CONT. MAX --------100
48---CONT. MIN --------50
49---COL. CENT --------88
50---COL. MAX --------100
51---COL. MIN --------0
52---SUB CONT --------16
53---TINT --------63
54---SHARP. CENT --------55
55---SHARP. MAX --------127
56---SHARP. MIN --------0
57---TILT. CENT --------128
58---TEST STEREO --------0
59---TEST AUDIO --------0



I haven't messed with any of the settings seeing how I have no idea what I'm doing. Can anyone chime in to what some of the less obvious values mean?

[steinhenge]

Okay... here is a list of all the options in the service menu along with factory settings.
Wow, I have a few drastically different default settings. Here's my differences:

04 H. Size - 42
06 V. Lin - 25
11 V. Cent - 29
15 EW PARA - 17
16 Trapezium - 46
17 Cor. Top - 24
18 Cor. BTM - 16
24 R. Bias - 127
25 G. Bias - 179
26 B. Bias - 150
27 R/G DRV - 80
28 B/R DRV - 72
29 R. Bias (C) - 127
30 G. Bias (C) - 175
31 B. Bias (C) - 140
32 R/G DRV (C) - 73
33 B/R DRV (C) - 79
34 R. Bias (W) - 127
35 G. Bias (W) - 185
36 B. Bias (W) - 162
37 R/G DRV (W) - 91
38 B/R DRV (W) - 64
43 Bri. Cent - 111
44 Bri. Max - 210
49 Col. Cent - 72
50 Col. Max - 95
52 Sub Cont - 15
53 Tint - 60

As you can see, we have a pretty huge disparity in our color controls. It'll be interesting to see what my set looks like with some of your settings. How does yours look to you?

Thanks for posting these!

[Ratman]

No two sets will have the same settings.Be forewarned, using someone elses settings could make your set unwatchable or worse.

[Crazybob]

I agree with Ratman!

I suggest writing down the number on paper before changing anything.

I know how to get into my service menu, but am a little worried about changing anything due to the possibility of voiding the warranty. If there is a problem have the service tech come out & adjust it. He probably has the service manual.

Bob

[Daedalus]

bumping an aincent thread:

I bought one of these used (dirt cheap) recently and everything's great except the picture rotation (a few degrees ccw). Which of these service menu options (if any) can fix that?

[57U]

I would think that would be TILT. Please heed the warnings in the following:

http://www.hdtvoice.com/voice/showthread.php?t=25980

[Daedalus]

You mean TILT CENT? I thought so too at first, but it's the weirdest thing: modifying that option doesn't seem to do anything at all.

[gruss]

Well I'd hoped to get mine working good and reporting but they dont take lighting strikes well ;)
After fighting with BB to get it fixed (shoulda just claimed in on insurance) wound up dragging it back in (yup literally dragging it) and putting the money toward a different tv. Everytime the tech came out it got worse and the part I neede dthey dont make. So good luck to everyone if you need to service it.
I just got another middle of the road tv but its worlds above the Insignia, really folks I know what I said and it really is a good deal for the coin, but spend an extra couple hundred and you'll be happier in the long run.