In which order would you rank these in pic and sound quality

From best to worst, I'd probably say:

Blu-Ray
Sky broadcast (HD)
MKV downloads (1080p)
MKV downloads (720p)
Netflix
Amazon
Sky on demand (HD)
MKV downloads (480p)
Sky broadcast (SD)
Sky On Demand (SD)


You'll notice I've added in some other options ;)
 
The resolution of MKV downloads doesn't have any effect on the audio quality. You can get 720p or even 480p stuff with DTSHD audio. In such cases the audio is identical to the Blu-ray they came from...
 
dbmzk1 said:
The resolution of MKV downloads doesn't have any effect on the audio quality. You can get 720p or even 480p stuff with DTSHD audio. In such cases the audio is identical to the Blu-ray they came from...
Click to expand...

Similarly, the pixel count (width x height) normally referred to in shorthand as resolutions (eg 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p) has little bearing on the actual picture quality. There's nothing to prevent a 720p MKV download looking far better than a 1080p MKV download where the image is full of blockiness.
 
Confused said:
From best to worst, I'd probably say:

Blu-Ray
Sky broadcast (HD)
MKV downloads (1080p)
MKV downloads (720p)
Netflix
Amazon
Sky on demand (HD)
MKV downloads (480p)
Sky broadcast (SD)
Sky On Demand (SD)


You'll notice I've added in some other options ;)
Click to expand...

Blu-Ray
MKV - 1080p
MKV - 720p
Sky HD On Demand
Netflix - Sky HD broadcast

On demand is a perfect copy HD broadcast can have interference in it there is no way I would put a broadcast higher than a download of the same thing.
 
Psycho Sonny said:
Blu-Ray
MKV - 1080p
MKV - 720p
Sky HD On Demand
Netflix - Sky HD broadcast

On demand is a perfect copy HD broadcast can have interference in it there is no way I would put a broadcast higher than a download of the same thing.
Click to expand...

I agree. I recently compared Sky broadcast to on demand using the opening court scene of POTC: OST as the test. The download was cleaner, colours were fuller and motion was better.

However, I also compared the download to a HD netflix stream via the Samsung 6400 (48 inch) smart hub app. For me the stream won out over Sky. My list actually goes

Blu Ray
Netflix
Amazon
Sky OD
Sky broadcast

Mind you, a good part of it is how you set your TV up as well.
 
Sky On Demand is worse than Broadcast. Even many people say Netflix is better than Sky due to the compression.

The other problem is, Sky On Demand is never the same quality to the next one. Some are really blurry and dancing blotches in the shadows. It's a bit of a lottery. I've always found the recording better than the downloads. That and it's usually a bigger file size.
 
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Sky on Demand is a lot worse than broadcast in terms of picture quality. But it's pretty similar for audio. Netflix is miles better, especially if you get one of the better HD streams.

All Sky HD content is broadcast/downloaded at 1080i.
 
welshboy said:
i thought sky was only 720p / 1080i ?
is on demand different ?
Click to expand...

It's the bitrate that suffers drastically with On Demand. That as well as the sounds dynamic range on both broadcast and On Demand.

Some are down to 2 - 7Mb/s. I remember recordings used to take up 7 - 12% for a film. Now most are down to 1.2 - 3.3%.
 
V F said:
It's the bitrate that suffers drastically with On Demand. That as well as the sounds dynamic range on both broadcast and On Demand.

Some are down to 2 - 7Mb/s. I remember recordings used to take up 7 - 12% for a film. Now most are down to 1.2 - 3.3%.
Click to expand...

Improvements in compression technology account for most of it I'd have thought.
 
Sky HD's audio quality (especially on their own channels) is sometimes really poor. There are a few times where I've had to download MKVs of missed episodes and the sound quality is far better on them. Then you get channels like Syfy who still broadcast a lot of stuff stereo rather than DD 5.1.
 
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