Home Theater Calibration

[Jcenzo]

I’ve been using my new 61 inch HDTV (JVC HD 61Z575) addition to my oldish HK AVR 40 receiver and Cambridge Soundworks surround speakers for a few days now and I’m really enjoying the system. It was a major hit at last nights New Year’s Eve party! The question is: Should I go for the “do it yourself” Avia calibration exercise or contact a professional or do nothing and wait till I can afford to replace the HK?
Everything looks and sounds great to me now, but maybe I'm missing out some potetial improvments!
Any input form someone with more experience would be appreciated since the bank account is empty (the JVC was a big investment) and I don't want to waste any money.

 

[Leprkon]

DIY is the best choice.. you'll learn how and won't have to be paying a professional every time the furniture gets moved around, since that will change the acoustics.

 

[ebough]

I would strongly recommend that you do it yourself first. These pages and other forums are loaded with the perfectionism of hobbyists run amuk. Using AVIA or Video Essentials will give you a very good picture. Some people actually don't like a highly tuned picture, actually preferring something brighter and more vibrant than a "perfect" setting. Before laying out serious money for a technician, see what you can accomplish yourself and how you like it. With even a modicum of expertise, you will do far better than what you see in most stores. For setting up the sound system, consider buying an SPL meter from Radio Shack. It will be a significant improvement over your ear. Good luck! If you managed to find this forum, you should have sufficient skill to do a good job.

 

[Duffinator]

I would strongly recommend that you do it yourself first. These pages and other forums are loaded with the perfectionism of hobbyists run amuk. Using AVIA or Video Essentials will give you a very good picture. Some people actually don't like a highly tuned picture, actually preferring something brighter and more vibrant than a "perfect" setting. Before laying out serious money for a technician, see what you can accomplish yourself and how you like it. With even a modicum of expertise, you will do far better than what you see in most stores. For setting up the sound system, consider buying an SPL meter from Radio Shack. It will be a significant improvement over your ear. Good luck! If you managed to find this forum, you should have sufficient skill to do a good job.

Exactly. For less than $100 for a display disc and SPL meter you can't go wrong and you will learn a lot. Then you can go over to your friends homes and adjust their systems for free beer and pizza and they will think you are an expert.

If you are not satisfied after your adjustments then bring in the professionals. You should be able to do the adjustments yourself and notice a difference. Good luck!

 

[RLA]

Hi
Avia and VE are good calibration disks for basic calibration I use both
But there is much more that can be done with a crt display device than user or
service mode settings spot beam size,center and edge focus,raster centering,
G-2 gain pot and screen pot adjustments and mechanical geometry are just a
few that Avia or VE do not discuss for good reason If you want a high performance calibration the above must be included

 

[ebough]

There you have it: a perfect example of perfectionism run amuk. There are always people who will sell you as much perfection as you can afford. This forum frequently discusses claimed audio benefits that the human ear can't hear. Next will be discussions of video benefits the human eye can't see.

 

[RLA]

Do you have any clue what you are talking about? How many CRT's have you set up exactly? Its not about perfection it about proper calibration and if you think you can achieve that with your user controls and AVIA you are sadly mistaken or you have never seen a calibrated CRT display

 

[Jcenzo]

?

My TV is not a CRT (See original post). Does that change your opinion about the do it yourself approach?

 

[RLA]

Hi
I did not say you cant do it your self I have encouraged many to get AVIA and VE and set up there monitors because out of the box they are
way out of calibration. It was my mistake I re read your post and realized that you have a DLP Your set can benefit from a good ISF certified calibration as well It is painstakingly hard to get correct Grey scale tracking
and set you set up for correct color temp of D 6500k Most think that with a simple copy of AVAI they can get close but for the most part this is incorrect they can make there set better than out of the box and with a simple adjustment of contrast, brightness and sharpness it will be much better but for accurate calibration there is no substitute for a color analyzer
getting a properly calibrated set is even more important that getting a perfectly tuned audio system The reason is that our eyes are much more sensitive to errors and flaws when viewing images
please read this Audioholics link for more info I am not trying to sell anything here I am just trying to provide you with information so you can make an informed decision about your calibration
http://www.audioholics.com/techtips/setup/avhardware/Grayscalecalibration1.html

Cheers Ray

 

[mtrycrafts]

Hi
I did not say you cant do it your self I have encouraged many to get AVIA and VE and set up there monitors because out of the box they are
way out of calibration. It was my mistake I re read your post and realized that you have a DLP Your set can benefit from a good ISF certified calibration as well It is painstakingly hard to get correct Grey scale tracking
and set you set up for correct color temp of D 6500k Most think that with a simple copy of AVAI they can get close but for the most part this is incorrect they can make there set better than out of the box and with a simple adjustment of contrast, brightness and sharpness it will be much better but for accurate calibration there is no substitute for a color analyzer
getting a properly calibrated set is even more important that getting a perfectly tuned audio system The reason is that our eyes are much more sensitive to errors and flaws when viewing images
please read this Audioholics link for more info I am not trying to sell anything here I am just trying to provide you with information so you can make an informed decision about your calibration
http://www.audioholics.com/techtips/setup/avhardware/Grayscalecalibration1.html

Cheers Ray

Thanks, Ray. Indeed you are correct. There is no better way than an expert taught by industry experts on how to set up a TV as there are many hidden menues that only a train tech should touch or a novice will be in a world of hurt. What if the grid is out of focus? How will one know unless you check it?
On it goes. Thanks.

 

[Audioholics]

Our stance is that, regarding video calibration, there will most CERTAINLY be a distinct difference between using service level menus (i.e. a full ISF calibration) and what you can accomplish as a home user with AVIA.

Remember people, we're talking about ~$300 worth of calibration (the amount varies) not $1200 speaker cables...

By all means, buy the disc and do what you can in the user menus, but don't think for a second that you can compete with a trained calibrator who has a Milori or Sencore Triluminous sensor and software package. You can ballpark it, but an ISF certified technician can get it even better - visually so.

If your TV supports comprehensive presets, they can even show you the 'before' and 'after'. This is measurable and demonstrable - no magic.

 

[BMXTRIX]

Next will be discussions of video benefits the human eye can't see.

People are gung ho on 1080p (1920x1080) HDTV displays in the sub 50" size that they view at 15 feet away. At that size a 42" EDTV (853x480) display will look identical to the human eye. People don't want to hear that, they WANT to spend all they possibly can on a display for the perceived value of more resolution.

Perhaps more discussion on what the human eye can't see need to take place.

As for calibrating: Avia is gold, but ISF is platinum, diamond, and a whole lot more. A lot of people are happy with gold though - I am.