Calibrating TV? H/T Installers please

[Unregistered]

I am having difficulty calibrateing my tv to the various set up discs on the market. I am using a RGB Componenet video connection from my DVD to my TV and am having trouble getting the color, Contrast and tint to adjust.

Wondering if I should or need to use a composite hook-up to make the set up discs effective??

Any help appreciated-

 

[jeffsg4mac]

Have you read this ? what is the exact issue you are having?

 

[Unregistered]

It won't do any good to use composite video cables for calibration if you intend to use component for actual viewing.

Keep in mind that when you calibrate you won't necessarily see all of the things the disc talks about. For example, they say to turn the contrast up until you notice 'blooming' and then back it off a bit. I never did see any blooming even when I cranked the contrast to the max. So I just went on to the brightness and turned it down to around 50% and then revisited the contrast setting (because brightness and contrast interact and slight changes in one affect the other to some extent).

Likewise for sharpness. They tell you that zero is the best setting for most tvs. When I set it to zero, the lines in the test pattern got blurry. My actual setting ended up lower than the factory default but nowhere near zero.

Bottom line is to use the calibration disc as a guideline but don't take everything literally.

 

[hopjohn]

Pluge

I have question for clint about the DVE disc. I've read the DVE write up and have a question about the pluge patterns. You said something about it including a third bar where the first VE on the first DVD only used two bars. Using the older VE version I can calibrate my TV to not bloom and meet the blacker than black requirements and still be at various overall compensated levels each time I adjust my set (usually all less than 50%), so I then have to choose a setting that meet both requirements and then doesn't appear to look too dark when the room isn't completely void of light. My point being that there seem to be no definitive adjustment using these two patterns, rather some contrast/ brightness adjustments that meet the requirements and some that don't. The rest is up to you decide what is actually too bright or dark in the end while also meeting the test pattern requirements. So does this newer disc improve in that way, using the "third bar"?

 

[jeffsg4mac]

Hopjohn, one minor correction, Clint didn't write that article, I did In answer to your question the black bars are used only for adjusting black level and the gray blocks are used for the white level. The addition of the third bar is because some DVD players can not pass the blacker than black signal. The outer bar is blacker than black and the middle bar is not. You can use two techniques with the three bars depending on your equipment. Like I mentioned in the article black level is easy to get correct it is white level that can sometimes be problematic.

 

[Audioholics]

Hey, I get credit for everything around here - cool!

 

[Redbone]

I did use the Brightness and contrast advice and it worked well. However I cannot get any response from the blue color filter when adjusting color. I hear that tint does not work through component hook ups so I had no luck adjusting that either.

It is very confusing to think that a disc that is stated as being so simple to use is really quite complicated. I had to guess at setting the Contrast as was suggested and am still not sure if it is set correctly. Brightness was the only foolproof setting.

Though I only paid $18 for the disc at Amazon and the sound set up was worth that price alone.

Hmmm, I need help on color and tint??? My Toshiba 27AF41 is not responding accordingly.

 

[Unregistered]

Redbone,
It sounds like you are seeking perfection and I know the feeling. However, its not possible unless you pay for a professional ISF calibration. When you use AVIA or DVE for calibration, you are only using 'user level' controls. To get perfection, one must use the 'service menu' and if you don't know what you are doing, you can really screw it up! So the goal is to get it as good as you can. I have a Toshiba CRT too, so my experience with calibration may give you some hints. I'm not a video expert, but I think my results were quite satisfactory.

Like most TVs, the Toshiba default is 'torch mode'; ie contrast set to max and brightness about half way. That looks good in a bright showroom but will drastically reduce the life of the tv.

1. Change the color temperature to 'warm'. Thats close to the 6500K color temperature that is recommended.
2. Leave the brightness at its default of 50%.
3. Turn the contrast down to around 50%.
4. Now use DVE to set the brightness until you can barely see the 3rd black bar. May have to go back and forth with brightness and contrast, but ideally you want contrast far lower than its default of max.
5. After brightness and contrast look ok based on the test patterns, do the sharpness. Mine ended up slightly lower than half. Just mess with it until the lines are as sharp as possible.
6. It is impossible to get R, *, and B color filters to match perfectly without using the service menu. Changing one affects the others. Toshiba tvs seem to have 'red push' - the reds are slightly pronounced. The goal is simply to get all of the colors as close as possible. I can get blue to be about perfect but then the red and green are off. You have to go through each a few times and find the best compromise.

In the end its what looks good to you anyway. Anything you do will be better than leaving the tv in torch mode.

 

[Redbone]

Thanks for the tips I will give it a try. They never tell you that certain TV's will not respond as well to the DVD.

 

[djoxygen]

I did use the Brightness and contrast advice and it worked well. However I cannot get any response from the blue color filter when adjusting color. I hear that tint does not work through component hook ups so I had no luck adjusting that either.

It is very confusing to think that a disc that is stated as being so simple to use is really quite complicated. I had to guess at setting the Contrast as was suggested and am still not sure if it is set correctly. Brightness was the only foolproof setting.

I, too, have the DVE DVD, and had some trouble setting things up at first. When listening to their descriptions and directions, it is critical to pay attention to words like "most" or "many". I have a Hitachi 43UWX10B that absolutely will not bloom no matter how high I crank it, and responds to tint adjust on the component input as much as S- or composite.

Here's a trick for setting Contrast that is referenced elsewhere on Audiohoics. I haven't tried yet, but will soon: http://www.keohi.com/keohihdtv/experttips/guykuo/contrast.html

Sounds like a reasonable thing as a pure chemical will burn with consistent brightness (provided you don't live at the top of Everest or in a hyperbaric chamber). Paper brightness can vary, but as long as you're not using a manilla folder, probably not enough to make too much difference. At any rate, it'll be closer than your unaided eyeball, and probably as close as you'll get without a calibration equipment.

I can also say that running through DVE with lights on, off, curtains open, closed, alternating between DVE and movies, and doing it all multiple times will train your eye and brain to see things that you never noticed before. You'll start to relate changes in the numbers to changes in the test patterns, and the effect on actual program material. Eventually you'll get the hang of it, and if you see your same model completely uncalibrated you won't believe you could ever watch it that way.