TEST BENCH
By David Ranada

DVD VIDEO PERFORMANCE
All results are for the component-video output set to progresssive-scan format. Test patterns were widescreen (16:9) except for onscreen resolution.
Vertical luminance response (re level at 100 lines)
200/300/400 lines: ±0/±0/±0 dB
Horizontal luminance response (re level at 2 MHz)
6/8/10 MHz: ±0/±0/+0.3 dB
12/13.5 MHz: ±0/–0.1 dB
Onscreen resolution: 540 lines (4:3 image)
In-player letterboxing: good

CD AUDIO PERFORMANCE
Output level (with –20-dBFS input at 1 kHz): 195 mV
Noise level (re –20-dBFS output): –74.6 dB
Excess noise (with/without sine tone)
16-bit: +0.65/+0.65 dB
quasi-20-bit: +10.9/+10.5 dB
Noise modulation: <0.5 dB
Frequency response: 20 Hz to 20 kHz +0, –0.085 dB

As a DVD player, the LG’s progressive-component output was typical, which means good on film-based material but showing jagged diagonal edges with programs made from interlaced-video sources. Vertical progressive-scan resolution was fine, however. Several test patterns produced very jerky motion, but this was not visible in movies. CD playback was unusually clean for a DVD recorder.

As usual, recording performance was excellent at the two top recording modes (XP and SP). The recorder takes the preserve-resolution-at-all-costs approach so that static resolution test patterns produced full DVD horizontal resolution (540 lines) in all recording modes. However, as soon as there was image motion in the longer LP and EP modes, the usual artifacts (blocking and mosquito noise) kicked in, to a distracting degree in EP mode. The deck did produce unusually sharp EP recordings — as long as hardly anything moved.

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