HDX1000 picture quality

[longmanjon]

hi,
i have just recently received my hdx-1000 and have so far ripped about half my library to .mkv files. i have setup the hdx1000 to my tv with my hdd linked only by the usb until i finish ripping. but to be honest i have just checked to see what it looks like and i am not impressed with the picture quality. it is much worse than the dvd original picture. very blocky and blotchy.
can someone help to make sure i have set it up correct or that i should convert the dvd to something else like maybe iso?
also would having the hdd wired by usb make that much difference at the moment until im finished.
the other issue i had was converting to mkv using dvdfab has the advertising on the screen for aboout 10 seconds, which is a bit annoying.

help please..

[longmanjon]

ok i have just copied the iso of the same film over and thats a lot better.
so can anyone advise if .iso is my only option to maintain the dvd quality, but obviously take a hit on disc space. unless there is a conversion which holds the quality with less disc space???

[BanditRider]

Any attempt to compress the video will cause a decrease in picture quality. The higher the compression ratio, the lower the quality. Some codecs are better than others. I prefer h264 in an mkv container.
There is a free tool, Handbrake, that allows you to adjust the various settings of the codec plus you can strip out any audio tracks and subtitles you don't need. It also has some pre-defined presets to get you started.

You should be able to get a 2-hour movie down to 1.5 - 2 GB with acceptable picture quality.