Highly doubt it's your cables.
First thing to do is to calibrate your screen w/ a DVD like Avia or DVE (Digital Video Essentials, I think). Check Amazon. It's likely that each tv was calibrated differently, so when you introduce the same source material via the same type of input (component), it'd look different.
It's analagous to getting the Axioms. Because they are detailed speakers, you may notice things that you didn't hear before, which can be good AND bad. Good recordings will sound great, but bad recordings will sound worse.
It may be also that your DVD player is so-so, or at the least, the source material (DVD) is so-so.
