3d tv

[SebC]

So as promised, now that I have set up my 3D TV, I'm inviting those who are interested to come see it. Just send me a PM to make arrangements. Edit: or head to MemoryExpress... didn't notice they had test centres in Calgary now when I made the thread.

As an earlier adopter, the more people get on board the more content I'll have in the future, so I want to promote it.

My setup is:

Samsung HL61A750 (3D DLP)
nVidia graphics card
nVidia geForce 3D glasses

What it's useful for:

3D photos (you can also look at these just by crossing your eyes, but with the TV as long as you see 3D in the real world, you'll see 3D on the TV)
3D movies (not much content available - side-by-side format can be viewed cross-eyed just like photos)
3D gaming (the main driver behind 3D at the moment, some games work better than others, but the driver works to some extent for anything that's DirectX - what makes the difference is if objects are programmed with depth information or not)

So if you'd like to see some 3D photos, short 3D videos (not really movies), and play some 3D games, give me a shout. Edit: or head to MemoryExpress... didn't notice they had demo centres in Calgary now when I made the thread.
Some games I have installed:

Call of Duty 4 (probably the best one)
Burnout Paradise
Race Driver: GRID
Orange Box
Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts

[bluejays]

I'm in Toronto, so it speaks for itself for me coming over, but is it like the video on the nVidia site, or different? Either way, the concept is really cool.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by fleury

I'm in Toronto, so it speaks for itself for me coming over, but is it like the video on the nVidia site, or different? Either way, the concept is really cool.

Not really... it's pretty tough to convey what sterescopic 3D looks like on peoples' regular 2D monitors unless you have them view stuff cross-eyed or parallel-view (which is like magic eye). nVidia has tried to convey it by having stuff come outside the frame of the monitor. That doesn't happen, even if you move your head. Also, it shows stuff coming out of the screen at you, which also doesn't happen. All the depth is behind the screen. That's because it uses the z-depth data from directX. In directX this is the distance from the camera, so a negative value would be behind the camera and thus would not render on screen. The nVidia driver puts zero depth stuff at screen depth, so there's nothing in front of the screen. I believe this is different with the iz3d driver.

Bah... just noticed that they've got test centres in Calgary now, so this thread is pretty much useless. Apparently you can just go to MemoryExpress and check it out.

[Russic]

I've heard a lot of 3d gaming news out of the Sony camp lately. It seems like it would be distracting to play a long gaming session with 3d glasses on ... no?

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Russic

I've heard a lot of 3d gaming news out of the Sony camp lately. It seems like it would be distracting to play a long gaming session with 3d glasses on ... no?

They're pretty light, you hardly notice them when you're wearing them, and they have three different nosepieces so you can get a good fit. Definately lighter than regular prescription glasses (which they also fit over). Sony's doing 3D... as in for the PS3/Blu-ray? I believe that's almost a certainty that they'll be doing stuff on the content side. Haven't heard any Sony news for hardware, but I've already made my investment.

[Russic]

Originally Posted by SebC

They're pretty light, you hardly notice them when you're wearing them, and they have three different nosepieces so you can get a good fit. Definately lighter than regular prescription glasses (which they also fit over). Sony's doing 3D... as in for the PS3/Blu-ray? I believe that's almost a certainty that they'll be doing stuff on the content side. Haven't heard any Sony news for hardware, but I've already made my investment.

Ya I don't understand it completely, but it would be software driven. You would need a certain kind of tv I know ... something tells me it has to be 120 hz? My apologies if I'm talking out my ass, I only heard it in a podcast. The guy mentioning it said it was pretty cool though. I think they may be pushing Gran Turismo 5 towards 3-D.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Russic

Ya I don't understand it completely, but it would be software driven. You would need a certain kind of tv I know ... something tells me it has to be 120 hz? My apologies if I'm talking out my ass, I only heard it in a podcast. The guy mentioning it said it was pretty cool though. I think they may be pushing Gran Turismo 5 towards 3-D.

Right now, the TVs that would support it are the 3D-ready DLPs and 720p plasmas from Samsung would work. Apparently Sharp has some 3D LCDs, which I don't know much about.

[Galakanokis]

We have been messing around with 3D tv for the better part of a year now. It can look pretty amazing and if done right the images will come right out at you the same as the movies. The trick is the size of the screen and how close you are to it. Sitting 10-15 ft back from a 50" tv will just not work for 3D. You need to be within a few feet.

The tv's will most likely use a circular polirizer and than another polarizer on the glass you wear. There is also the shutter glasses that are powered and therefore much heavier. It also requires you to be close to the transmitter to control the shutters.

Real D seems to be leading in the 3D department these days but there are other sytems out there that are decent.

We have been working on Tron for 3D projection and so far it looks pretty cool.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Galakanokis

We have been messing around with 3D tv for the better part of a year now. It can look pretty amazing and if done right the images will come right out at you the same as the movies. The trick is the size of the screen and how close you are to it. Sitting 10-15 ft back from a 50" tv will just not work for 3D. You need to be within a few feet.

The tv's will most likely use a circular polirizer and than another polarizer on the glass you wear. There is also the shutter glasses that are powered and therefore much heavier. It also requires you to be close to the transmitter to control the shutters.

Real D seems to be leading in the 3D department these days but there are other sytems out there that are decent.

We have been working on Tron for 3D projection and so far it looks pretty cool.

Sorry, may I ask who is "we"? Or is that confidential?

Does RealD have anything for home use? I know their theatre technology is a single projector that changes the polarizing filter for each frame.

A few feet from a 50" screen? Mine is 61", I'm usually about 9' away. THX home theatre spec.

If you need to sit too close to the TV, then the content doesn't have enough separation. Not an issue for gaming, where the separation is adjustable.

I don't think 3DTV will become popular until it becomes glasses free. The good news is that there's already a glasses free 42" TV with multiple, wide viewing zones. The bad new is that it costs over 10,000 and has been discontinued for now. Like other electronics though, I'm sure the price will come down eventually.

http://www.inition.co.uk/inition/pro...%3bSubCatID_=0

[Galakanokis]

I work in post production for Technicolor. Must of the test we were doing were for Tron and My Bloody Valentine before that.

In general 3D is meant for large screens, from the lectures we have done nothing under 20 feet wide is very good. Longer the focal lengths the better it will look.

If it is shot right the image will look like it is coming right out of the screen even on 50" monitors but the farther back you get the less the 3D effect works. That's why I mentioned it is better to be up close as you can get more of the being in the picture feel.

RealD is mainly a theatre screen thing but they claim to have some home theatre stuff hitting the market soon, possibly after NAB. They do have a monitor but it is quite pricey.

Where did you find the THX specs? I have been unable to dig them up on the net...

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Galakanokis

Where did you find the THX specs? I have been unable to dig them up on the net...

"-Maximum and Recommended THX viewing distances: THX also publishes standards for movie theaters to adhere to for THX certification. THX requires that the back row of seats in a theater have at least a 26 degree viewing angle and recommends a 36 degree viewing angle."

from: http://myhometheater.homestead.com/v...alculator.html