Vaio FW to HDTV

I have a FW490 laptop with a BluRay player. I would really like to watch blurays on my HDTV, however, there are two problems. I connect via HDMI cable, and the screen is does not go full screen. The laptop recognizes that the TV is 720p and it changes the resolution automatically, but there are black bars on the side as well as above and below what is displayed on the TV. The second problem is that the audio sounds awful. I turn on the 5.1 surround I have attached to the TV, but it still sounds horrible ie. the sound effects and music are much louder than the dialogue of any show I am watching.

I have this TV: http://gdgt.com/panasonic/viera/th-42px60u/

Here's a rough sketch as to what it looks like.

I think it is a problem with the Computer, but I'm not sure.

Thanks in advance!

 

For getting full screen, you need to go into the Catalyst Control Center while the TV is plugged into the laptop via HDMI. In there, your TV should have its own display options, where you can overscan or underscan the picture. Slide it until the picture fills the whole screen and click OK.

 

No such luck. I go to Desktop and Displays and click the triangle and press configure (I found the instructions online, let me know if they are incorrect), but I get a screen with links to the ATI website, like Update Drivers, Help Center, etc. Is there another way to do it or am I stuck?

 

The sound problem is a known issue. Unfortunately, its very difficult (or impossible, who knows) to get 5.1 through the HDMI at the moment. My audio is stuck at stereo, even with upgraded drivers. As for the overscan, you probably just need some updated drivers. I remember one set of drivers which locked out the overscan feature (who know why...) What you'll need to do is to download the newest catalyst drivers for the desktop 4650 (don't use the stock mobility drivers... they kinda suck) and use a program called mobility modder to mod those drivers so that they'll work on the laptop. That should get your overscan back.

 

I have a feeling I downloaded the wrong drivers. Let me get back to you.

 

Ok, so Mobility Modder worked like a charm, however, I am very disappointed that I needed to go through those steps... Anyway, there is still no fix for the sound?

My problem may be a bit different than what you may be thing of knyghtryda. I can get 5.1 through HDMI right now (although it may just be 3.1 since my two back speakers may or may not be working, idk). I would like it to just go though my TV speakers, but I need to put surround on for it to sound right.

Still no joy?

 

When you say you turn on the speakers that you have attached to the TV, do you mean you have those attached through an external audio receiver or are they connected directly to the TV? If it's an external receiver, then check the settings to make sure the surround sound mode is set to TV or Movie mode rather than Music. You may also want to check your center channel speaker to make sure it's working because that's where all of the vocals are going to come from when in 5.1 mode, and if that isn't working then that would be why the sound effects are louder than the voices.

Also, you might want to check your audio settings on your laptop to make sure that your volume is turned up and that you have it set up for 5.1 output on your HDMI connection. To do that, make sure you have the HDMI cable connected and then right-click on the volume icon on your taskbar and select "Playback Devices". Then select on "Digital Audio (HDMI)" and then click "Configure" at the bottom of that window. From there you should be able to select your speaker mode, whether it's Stereo, 5.1, etc. And you can even send a test signal to all of the speakers by clicking "Test", or click on each individual speaker in the diagram to test them individually.

 

Are you connecting the laptop directly to the TV, or are you going through an audio receiver? If you're plugging into a receiver then there is no way to make the sound come out of your TV speakers, it will just come out of the speakers attached to your receiver. To get the audio to come out of your TV you would need to plug the HDMI connection from your laptop directly into the back of the TV.

 

Thanks for the reply and tips. I'm currently away from home and will be away for some time. I'll let you know how it goes.

I'm not really sure what the system is hooked up to. I think its hooked up to the TV since i am not aware of a receiver. Keep in mind this is a Bose Lifestyle system from about 15 years ago. It still works great, the only problem is that we hardly ever use it except during the holidays at our parties. During the rest of the year it just sits.

I've been trying to use it a little more, but the biggest issue is that while watching TV the two rear speakers don't work. DVD's, however, work just fine with all five speakers working.

I have a feeling that I'm going to need to take a deeper look into it when I get back and have some time. Sounds like worst case scenario is I spend a little money.

Thanks for the help!