calibrating tv - wish i had known this...

[ratso]

correct alex. as i said in another thread, if it was as simple as just copying someone elses settings, no one would actually have to pay for it would they?

 

[ChrisW123]

The experienced people here at AH say that TV's come off the line with their base settings so varied that a proper calibration will result in widely varied values rendering the values from a different TV worse than useless unless you have a Pioneer as has been pointed out a few pages back.

Alex, are you saying that the settings that CNet determines as "optimal", may not be optimal for my TV because the TV they calibrated is physically different from my TV? I hope that isn't what you are saying.

 

[jonnythan]

I dunno how it is for digital display technologies like plasma, but I know that every CRT TV and monitor I've owned has had hardware knobs or dials on the inside somewhere that change brightness and something else. It's perfectly conceivable that there is variation in the baseline settings of the panels coming off the production line.

It's also conceivable that there are slight, but significant, variations on the brightness or color of the backlight bulbs for LCDs.

Also, color rendition and brightness vary by source. I had to change my plasma's picture settings quite a bit when I upgraded my HD cable box to a DVR.

 

[bandphan]

Alex, are you saying that the settings that CNet determines as "optimal", may not be optimal for my TV because the TV they calibrated is physically different from my TV? I hope that isn't what you are saying.

Yes, almost every display made has variance, so there isnt "optimal" , can it look good, yes, is it optimal, maybe not.

 

[Alex2507]

Alex, are you saying that the settings that CNet determines as "optimal", may not be optimal for my TV because the TV they calibrated is physically different from my TV? I hope that isn't what you are saying.

I am slowly but surely getting out of my depth here so I may as well go all in. I'm not sure what physically different in bold letters means to you. What I mean is that if you take two Vizio TV's of the same model right from the factory and run a pluge pattern on them, they will look different even though the numerical value for contrast is the same. Likewise the black bars used in the brightness calibration will look different even though the numbers match. After getting both sets adjusted for optimal contrast and brightness the two TV's will look the same but will have different numerical values (numbers) for each of those two settings. Now if you go to adjust the red/green/blue business to make white and calibrate them the same way I understand from doing my reading here in this thread that the numbers would have absolutely no chance of matching.

Maybe what cNet is suggesting is a very general set of settings like turning on/off certain filters, using Standard Mode as opposed to Vivid Mode and maybe even giving you a static image with which to set the brightness with. I really don't know but if you go back to the first post in this thread and read all the way down to where that link is provided for the site mentioned by ratso (nice name ) you can see that there is in fact a lot more to this than a quick search is going to uncover. In fact that is way out of my depth but recently I discovered that you can get the highly recommended Avia II disc for less than ever:

http://www.onecall.com/ProductDetails.aspx?id=86611

Man, I am all typed out. I hope it was worth it.

Edit: cNet has no idea what our lighting conditions are.
Maybe I'm a cellar dweller and you're in a penthouse with windows everywhere.

 

[Midcow2]

I just bought the Avia 2 and SPL

i got an AVIA II calibration disc from SVS (free) ... it was empty (save for the colored films)

and because it was free - i didn't have the heart to complain

ARRRG _ I just bought an SVS and didn't get the Avia II.

I just bought an Avia 2 for $30 and a Radio Shack SPL digital meter which should arrive later this week or next.

I really like my SVS sub , but it is too subtle right now and I decided it is time to tune things beyond the Audessy.

Later,

MidCow2

 

[mike c]

ARRRG _ I just bought an SVS and didn't get the Avia II.

i ordered ultras ... 2-4 of them

 

[bandphan]

Do i dare say Pioneer Elite??

Ps gen 9 on the way gen 8 to the bedroom

 

[Nemo128]

So, should I go with this very involved method or pick up Avia II and call it a day?

I don't have lots of hours to sit around playing with calibration.

 

[bandphan]

So, should I go with this very involved method or pick up Avia II and call it a day?

I don't have lots of hours to sit around playing with calibration.

Avia will give good results, not as accurate but close. After 100-500 hrs check and redo

 

[Nemo128]

Avia will give good results, not as accurate but close. After 100-500 hrs check and redo

Nice. I keep looking for the thread I saw on a Avia II sale. Know where that was?

 

[annunaki]

I would say it depends on the individual and the set in question Nemo. Avia or Avia II can usually get someone within 5% (or better depending upon the set) of a full ISF calibration when properly used. By properly used, I mean really paying attention to the included tutorials and going from there or having a trained calibration buddy run the disc for you.

If a set's greyscale is way off, obviously the only option is a full ISF. However, with a well done set, Avia get one very very close if done correctly.

My Sony 34" XBR is done with Avia, sure the colors are slightly oversaturated (mainly red and a bit of green), but it is not worth the $300-$500 for a 5% or less increase in accuracy. Of course, I do have some limited calibration experience.

I may pick up a device (light meter/colormeter) when I have some extra cash, but for now what I have is close enough.

For a person with some of the new Samsungs, 650 series on up, movie mode is essentially an ISF set up from any of the reviews I have seen. Run the Avia disc for small fine tuning and you would be all set.

 

[Nemo128]

I would say it depends on the individual and the set in question Nemo. Avia or Avia II can usually get someone within 5% (or better depending upon the set) of a full ISF calibration when properly used. By properly used, I mean really paying attention to the included tutorials and going from there or having a trained calibration buddy run the disc for you.

Sounds good. Right now, I only have the XBox360 as a disc source. Is that a problem?

TV is a Pana 50PZ850. I hope it has the proper adjustments for this.

 

[annunaki]

Baseline measurements in Standard mode for color temp/grey scale are usually fairly good with the Panasonic sets. The PZ850 will allow one to bring the color saturation pretty close with the Avia disc if one understands how to use it correctly.

The grey scale deviations will require equipment but they are typically fairly good with the Panasonic sets.

The 850 has the most amount of adjustment out of any of the Panny plasmas.

 

[Phil Taylor]

I borrowed a friend's calibration disc and gels.

Ended up changing the contrast by 1. Brightness stayed the same, and the colors stayed about the same.

You can eyeball it pretty well if you pay attention.

I was a video engineer for TV production for 18 years prior to starting my home theater biz and I developed the ability to set-up cameras, tape (yes tape) decks and, later on in my career, digital media playback devices to within a fine blonde hair of true by eyeballing the signal. Of course I'd check them against our waveform and vectorscope monitors for final reference but I was always right there and often dead-nuts-on. If you know what to look for you can get it very, VERY close without paying for calibration. But of course I've had many years of experience training my eyes what to look for... It's kind of a curse in a way as when I go out to a bar or to eat and the place has TVs they never look right to me... and I can't help but nitpick the signal... and it bothers me... and when I go to a B&M store to check out new models of TVs I'm really bemused at their signal quality and settings... but I try not to lose sleep over it...

Anyways - sorry for the rant - if you feel it must be absolutely perfect then by all means pay for the calibration gear and software or hire a pro to do it for you.

 

[annunaki]

It's kind of a curse in a way as when I go out to a bar or to eat and the place has TVs they never look right to me... and I can't help but nitpick the signal... and it bothers me... and when I go to a B&M store to check out new models of TVs I'm really bemused at their signal quality and settings... but I try not to lose sleep over it...

I feel your pain. I do not like looking at overly bright and saturated displays, I get frustrated that someone made such a good purchase and then dropped the ball on not having it operate at optimum.

 

[Alex2507]

Nice. I keep looking for the thread I saw on a Avia II sale. Know where that was?

Avia II disc for less than ever:

http://www.onecall.com/ProductDetails.aspx?id=86611

That may be what you're looking for but Amazon has always had them for around $40.

 

[Nemo128]

Ordered, thanks!

Is the XBox 360 fine to use for Avia?

 

[annunaki]

Ordered, thanks!

Is the XBox 360 fine to use for Avia?

It will work fine, especially if it is the highest quality source you have.

 

[Fowl]

Ok Guys, here is the predicament. I bought a 50" Pioneer Kuro about 3 months ago and although I have fiddled with it somewhat I don’t think the setting is correct. I went and bought a disc, but it was designed for older sets, not a very good disc, so I chucked it.

I live in the Cayman Islands so I have never seen the Avia II disc you guys mention, I would have to order that from the states. I really do not wish to spend over US$3K on a TV and not have it display picture properly.

So what do you guys suggest? Do I order the Avia II disc or Google for a suggested calibration?
If I order the disc I would have to wait about two weeks for it to get here. Any good suggestion from Bandphan or any of you other members that have had success calibrating the Kuro is more than welcome.

Today is a good day to go fiddling with the set as it is a holiday. I await your suggestions.