The following was taken from a different thread as I couldn't understand why everyone prefers Cinema Mode instead of Standard Mode when Standard looks much better to me personally.

Question, why do most recommend using the different Cinema/Movie modes? The colors look much more accurate on my PN42B450 on Standard than they do on Cinema.

Most tv sets cinema mode are setup closer to the d65k standard. I recommend you watch it in cinema mode for a couple of days, then switch to standard and tell us if you think it still looks better in standard mode.

yes, movie mode is the way to go. at first i wasn't so sure, but it is definitely the best. especially if you're watching in very low light conditions.

First off, what is d65k standard? I have said it before that I am new to all of this and I do not plan on having any professional calibration done so the only thing I have to go by is my eyes. Hopefully there are enough PN**B450 owners here to contribute to this. If you can all share your picture settings and maybe give a brief description of your setup and viewing style (cable stb/satellite, dvd/Blu-ray, Standard Mode/Cinema, day/night, standard definition/hd and such)

I am interested to read some replies and see what everyone prefers. Thanks

Glad to see another PN**B450 owner. Hope we can get an owners thread going. I am new to all this HD stuff too. I just got my tv about 2 weeks ago and started reading up on HD a few weeks before that. I have read a lot of information but it is still an open question as to how much better informed I am. Disclaimer: I am new to this hd stuff and merely express my opinion and point of view. I have no expertise and will be wrong often. There are many experts in this forum and they should be taken seriously.

To your first point about Modes; from my point of view there are 2 main camps when it comes to adjusting the settings. One says the proper setting is the one that will reproduce the most accurate representation of what the original author intended. The other is "I want what looks best to me and my eyes and the original author be damned, "accuracy" is not important to me". They both have merits and everyone has to decide where they stand.

The d65k standard is what the "video engineers" have decided is the proper light level for all shades of grayscale. It seems to be the "holy grail" of settings. This link explains it much better than I can. cavx.blogspot.com/2008/09/d6500k-and-why-it-is-so-important.html. (Sorry for the poor URL I am not yet permitted to post URLs.)

I don't plan on having a professional cal done either. It would cost about half of the price of the tv, and my picture may not be perfect but it looks very good to me.

There are many ways to cal your own set. You could buy a cal disk and use it to cal your set. There are several and the Digital Video Essential (DVE) and Avia seem to be the most popular. Both are available on amazon and many other places. I have used the DVE disk and would suggest that if you are not the type of person who will RTFM and spend a couple hours preparing to do the cal you would probably be happier with the avia disk. I have not used the avia disk. I have seen links to some free downloadable disks but don't have the link right now. You can also use the THX optimizer that is on most/all pixar disks.

I have a stb (SA explorer3250HD), blu ray dvd.
My settings at the current time (subject to change)
Mode: Standard
Cell Light: 5
Contrast: 75
Brightness: 49
Sharpness: 0
Color: 49
Tint: 49/51
Advanced:
Black Tone: Off
Dynamic Contrast: Off
Gamma: 0
Color Space: Auto
White Balance : all set to default (25)
Flesh Tone: 0
Edge Enhancement: Off
Picture Options:
Color Tone: Normal
Size: 16:9
Digital NR: Low
HDMI Black Level: Normal
Film Mode: Off
Screen Burn Protection: On 2sec pixel shift
I am not married to most of those settings but seem to work for now and will change if I find a good rationale.

The room where I have the tv is fairly dark with no direct light on the screen. There is some indirect light from the other rooms.

Hope we get a lot of owners to contribute to the conversation.

Thanks for the d65k info. I've read about the various cal disks on here but as of right now I have no plans to purchase one because the picture looks pretty darn good to me.

zspec1, I did watch several different sources in Cinema Mode lastnight and now during the day and I still think that it looks better and significantly more natural in Standard.

I'm not sure which model it is but I've got a Motorola HDMI stb from Comcast, Panasonic dvd player using Y,Pr,Pb/Y,Cr,Cb components (also set Tint G/R to normal or 50/50 on this source only) and I'm running everything through a Yamaha receiver.

Picture Settings

Mode: Standard
Cell Light: 10
Contrast: 77
Brightness: 44
Sharpness: 29
Color: 56
Tint (G/R): G53/R47

Advanced Settings

Black Tone: Off
Dynamic Contrast: Off
Gamma: 0
Color Space: Native
White Balance: -----
Flesh Tone: 0
Edge Enhancement: Off

Picture Options

Color Tone: Normal
Size: 16:9
Digital NR: Auto
HDMI Black Level: Normal
Film Mode: Off

Screen Burn Protection

Pixel Shift: On / Horizontal 2 / Vertical 2 / Time 2 min.
Scrolling
Side Gray: Light

x2 the last part of what you said. I am not married to most of those settings either LOL My room is fairly dark with no direct light on the screen but there is some indirect light from the other rooms.

Thanks for posting your settings.

I have my B450 set to Standard now, and it has been for about a week or so. I switched around to Movie mode but didn't like it. The colors didn't seem better at all. All it did was like dim the image to be "better" viewed in low light conditions... apparently.

I don't think it's a better mode at all necessarily.

Hey guys just got the PN42B450 today. Haven't set it up yet(gonna wait until later when it gets a little cooler in my room because it's too hot in here) but i was wondering something. Is it ok for the sun to be beaming on the plasma whether it's off or on? Just wanted to know if the sun beaming on a plasma will damage it in anyway.

Well, I've been experimenting and I've learned that by changing the default Color Tone setting in Movie Mode from Warm2 to Normal it makes the color much more accurate atleast to my eyes and appears to be very close to my Standard Mode settings. I still prefer my Standard Mode settings because the blacks seem blacker but there does appear to be slightly better shadow detail in the blacks on Movie Mode which does use a higher brightness.

Hey guys just got the PN42B450 today. Haven't set it up yet(gonna wait until later when it gets a little cooler in my room because it's too hot in here) but i was wondering something. Is it ok for the sun to be beaming on the plasma whether it's off or on? Just wanted to know if the sun beaming on a plasma will damage it in anyway.

I'm not sure. If you start a new thread I'm sure that someone will definitely be able to give you the correct answer.

the 4 series must be a totally different animal. when i set my 560 to any of the settings you guys listed my eyeballs start to hurt. either the set is just very different or i just like a darker picture.

my 560 on movie move with contrast in the high 60's/low 70's, and brightness in the low 50's(on my cable STB input) and low 40's(on my ps3 hdmi input) looks very accurate to me. anything i watch feels like it just looks right. my set looks very good right out of the box. i set my contrast and brightness to those levels, sharpness at 0 gamma at -1 and all enhancements are off, and that's it. i feel no need to mess with any of the color settings.

i didn't want to post here since i have a b5 series and not a b4 series, but you quoted me in your original post. :)

zspec1, I did watch several different sources in Cinema Mode lastnight and now during the day and I still think that it looks better and significantly more natural in Standard.

I have my B450 set to Standard now, and it has been for about a week or so. I switched around to Movie mode but didn't like it. The colors didn't seem better at all. All it did was like dim the image to be "better" viewed in low light conditions... apparently.

I don't think it's a better mode at all necessarily.

That's ok, some people prefer the standard mode as opposed to the more accurate movie mode. In the end it's up to what you like best.

Feel free to post mcjasonb. This thread ain't getting much other traffic. LOL

Hey zspec1,

If you read post #6 I do agree with you now. The problem was that the default Color Tone setting in Movie Mode is set at Warm2 which has horrible color in my opinion but when you switch from Warm2 to Normal the colors are really natural and very close to the picture of my Standard Mode settings.

Mode- Movie
Cell light-5
Contrast-90
Brightness-50
Sharpness-0
Color-50
Tint-G50/R50

Advanced
Black tone- off
Dynamic-off
Gamma+1
Color space-auto

White valence
R offset 21
G offset 25
B offset 19
R gain 23
G gain 25
B gain 30

Flesh tone- 0
Edge enhancement- off

Picture options
Color tone- warm2
Size- 16:9
Digital NR- auto
HDMI black level- low
Film mode- auto

My 450B is not professionly calibrated. I do have a Pioneer Elite 151 and Sammy 650 LCD that is professionaly calibrated. These settings I use on my B is as close as I can get them to the other two. The blacks on the B are no where close but the color is pretty close to both the Pioneer and the other Sammy.

That's ok, some people prefer the standard mode as opposed to the more accurate movie mode. In the end it's up to what you like best.

Given that this thread alone already has mutliple people with different settings resulting in different (accurate) calibration I think it's pretty rude and well, asinine of you to make a statement like that.

Is it ok to have a contrast of 75 even though the plasma is new? Any other number lower than that results in a dim picture.

Is it ok to have a contrast of 75 even though the plasma is new? Any other number lower than that results in a dim picture.

It's probably ok but I did keep all of my settings at 50 for the first 100 hours.

hey all, I have the 42a450 that has that pink hue problem on the whites, well after 2 panel replacements and still have the problem, samsung decided to replace my tv with the 42b450 and I was wondering if they fixed the problem on these. I dont what anyone to look real hard for it because I dont want you to notice anything that you didnt notice before, so in casual looking say when there is a comercial like verizon that has a all white background do you notice and pink hue in the whites. besides that the a450 had a nice picture so Im sure the b450 looks even better:), thanks

As per "Super Calibrator" Doug Blackburn in many Sammy threads the only proper setting for Cell is 10. Anything lower than that does weird thing to the gamma curve and throws thing off. He explains it's a hold over from the LCD line so they can use the same menu and all it does is limit how bright the cell can get.

If you search Cell Light I'm sure it will come up.

hey all, I have the 42a450 that has that pink hue problem on the whites, well after 2 panel replacements and still have the problem, samsung decided to replace my tv with the 42b450 and I was wondering if they fixed the problem on these. I dont what anyone to look real hard for it because I dont want you to notice anything that you didnt notice before, so in casual looking say when there is a comercial like verizon that has a all white background do you notice and pink hue in the whites. besides that the a450 had a nice picture so Im sure the b450 looks even better:), thanks

Hi kanpol,

First off, I think that you will really like your new set. Secondly, I am by no means a videophile so take this for what it's worth but I have seen alot of
A450's and have been able to see better blacks and really nice color on the
B450's. I don't think that I've seen the Verizon commercial you mention or I just don't remember it but I do watch alot of hockey and the ice looks white white to me. I can clearly see the differences between the pinks and blues from arena light reflections and other parts of the rink where the ice is white white.

Hey tigerfan33,

You definitely prefer a darker picture than I do. I tried your settings and everything looks green to me (which I notice on all Warm2 settings so far) also the blacks are way too much and I lost all shadow detail. What is your viewing area like?

thank you plasma donor for the replay, I really liked a A450 picture was just the pink that got to me and since you say its not there and the blacks are even darker yahoo cant wait:D
Do you know if its has the 3d capability that the A450 did. On the back of the tv where all the hdmi and the rest of inputs are there is a input that looks like a "s" cable goes there and it says "3d sync out". just wondering because on the website it doesnt mention it but half the stuff on it is wrong:) thnaks

Please don't ask me what it does LOL but there is a 3D SYNC OUT below the HDMI's.

cool it has it, I know what it does, if you want to know I can explain it

Sure.

the a450 and now the b450 have 3d capability, its the samething samsungs dlp had with the 3d. You have to buy the unit which comes with special 3d glasses. You need a pc. you hook your pc to your tv except the cable from your graphics card connects to the unit and then the unit plugs into the 3d sync input you play the game or movie on your pc put on the glasses and walah 3d on your tv.Supposedly you can hook up two glasses and play 2 people but its not split screen you each get your own screen. If you goto nvidias website you can find more information on it. from what I've seen it looks pretty cool especially if you are a gamer
link to nvidia http://www.nvidia.com/object/GeForce_3D_Vision_Main.html

Hey tigerfan33,

You definitely prefer a darker picture than I do. I tried your settings and everything looks green to me (which I notice on all Warm2 settings so far) also the blacks are way too much and I lost all shadow detail. What is your viewing area like?


My tv is in my bedroom about 12ft. viewing distance with one lamp with a 40w bulb. Only watch this tv at night.
I should add that copying settings is pointless because no panel is the same.

I have been reading posts in AVS and saw this post. I wonder how other people feel about setting the cell at 10 and never changing it. Cell 10 is the only setting that should EVER be used!

"Cell Light is a bogus setting Samsung added to fill an empty hole in their Menu system. Like all LCD panels, Samsung LCDs have a Backlight control that changes the brightness of the illumination behind the LCD panel. Plasma TVs don't have a backlight. Samsung wanted to use the same menu system in their LCDs and plasmas for simplicity's sake. So they dreamed up Cell Light. Which does nothing useful... at all.

As you increase the Cell Light setting, you stretch out the grayscale steps in below 25% white or so, and above 75% white or so, you compress grayscale steps so you end up losing both shadow and highlight detail. The Luminance curve becomes "S" shaped the lower you set Cell Light and "3" is a VERY low setting.

Samsung appparently realized that they screwed this up as early production panels had very large, very negative amounts of change between Cell Light = 10 and Cell Light = 0. At some point during production, they changed something and the later models have a much less pronounced change in response to altering the Cell Light setting... but STILL, the Cell Light setting DAMAGES the response of the panel even in newer production units. The only setting that give the correct response from the panel is "10" which is where Cell Light should be set and left forever."
The poster is Doug Blackburn and a certified ISF tech. This is his website. dbtheatrical.com
I am not qualified to evaluate his position but have never seen ANYONE recommend that the Cell 10 is the ONLY proper setting.

I've been watching everything in movie mode, with temp of normal for about a week.

Was messing with some HD trailers tonight and started switching back and forth between my slightly custom Movie mode and Standard mode. I would pause at scenes with skin tone that would be easy to tell and scenes with color.

By FAR, Standard has better color. I find it hard to believe that anyone could see it differently. Movie mode seems to have the same color, but it's dimmed or something. With Standard you get the "pop" of color that I think is actually intended by the "filmmakers" or CGI people, whoever you want to point at.

So I think from this point forth I'll be sticking with Standard until I try some calibrating.

Mode- Movie
Cell light-5
Contrast-90
Brightness-50
Sharpness-0
Color-50
Tint-G50/R50

Advanced
Black tone- off
Dynamic-off
Gamma+1
Color space-auto

White valence
R offset 21
G offset 25
B offset 19
R gain 23
G gain 25
B gain 30

Flesh tone- 0
Edge enhancement- off

Picture options
Color tone- warm2
Size- 16:9
Digital NR- auto
HDMI black level- low
Film mode- auto

My 450B is not professionly calibrated. I do have a Pioneer Elite 151 and Sammy 650 LCD that is professionaly calibrated. These settings I use on my B is as close as I can get them to the other two. The blacks on the B are no where close but the color is pretty close to both the Pioneer and the other Sammy.

Where'd you get the White Valence options from?

I suggest you set the Dynamic Contrast to Medium. It'll help your blacks. I noticed with it off, my dark scenes were much more gray.

Well, I don't know who Doug Blackburn is (cool name though kinda sounds like a pirate argHhhHH!!!) but I definitely prefer Cell Light set at 10 for my Standard Mode settings. Cell Light default in Cinema Mode is 7 and I think it looks alright there too.

anyone wants to share more settings?:)

Just got my PN42B450 mounted today and IMO games look like crap compared to an LCD. Although HDTV seems to have more detail and contrast, it seems to be gone while gaming. Everything just looks flat, and text (in CODWaW Menu's for example) is a lot grainier than LCD. Is there any fix for this, or is this the trade off for having 1024 x 768 vs 1366 x 768 on the bigger model. Any suggested settings for gaming?

Just got my PN42B450 mounted today and IMO games look like crap compared to an LCD. Although HDTV seems to have more detail and contrast, it seems to be gone while gaming. Everything just looks flat, and text (in CODWaW Menu's for example) is a lot grainier than LCD. Is there any fix for this, or is this the trade off for having 1024 x 768 vs 1366 x 768 on the bigger model. Any suggested settings for gaming?

are you using a computer or a game console to game on?

I have both Xbox360 and PS3. I wouldn't run a PC from my plasma without a 1 minute screensaver due to the risk of IR. Although I played TDM on COD5 for 3 hours last night with contrast set somewhat low, and experienced no IR.

On Xbox360, using a gamestop brand (probably really madcatz) component cable everything is flat. There is a major lack of detail. Pixels look big, and text fonts are grainy with component. After trying my Mad Catz HDMI adapter on Xbox360, and HDMI on PS3 I can safely say everything looks a lot better. Still not quite LCD sharpness but definitely playable.

I have both Xbox360 and PS3. I wouldn't run a PC from my plasma without a 1 minute screensaver due to the risk of IR. Although I played TDM on COD5 for 3 hours last night with contrast set somewhat low, and experienced no IR.

On Xbox360, using a gamestop brand (probably really madcatz) component cable everything is flat. There is a major lack of detail. Pixels look big, and text fonts are grainy with component. After trying my Mad Catz HDMI adapter on Xbox360, and HDMI on PS3 I can safely say everything looks a lot better. Still not quite LCD sharpness but definitely playable.

You set the consoles to the proper output resolution in settings menu right? On the 360 you shouldn't notice too much of a difference between hdmi and component. Can't speak for the ps3.

You set the consoles to the proper output resolution in settings menu right? On the 360 you shouldn't notice too much of a difference between hdmi and component. Can't speak for the ps3.

I'm assuming you mean 720p? If so, then yes, both are set to 720p. On the 360, with component, it almost looks like theres stuff moving behind the screen. It could just be a crappy quality component cable (noise). Mad Catz has had some hits, and some big misses when it comes to accessories.

Also interesting to note. I'm having audio dropouts playing xbox 360 over HDMI. It's through the above mentioned Mad Catz adapter, as my Xbox is an older model that has no onboard HDMI. I never had this problem on my Sony LCD, with the same adapter, and I don't experience it on PS3. The cable is a new, 10FT cable from monoprice. I guess it could be to blame. I haven't tried it on the PS3 yet but will definitely do that.

Alright. I picked up the DVE Blu Ray disc for like $15 bucks and tried to go through the calibration. I'm a novice to this so it seemed a little confusing. It wasn't easy to have the guy talk, and then try to calibrate to what he said. Sometimes his explanation seemed more complicated than they needed to be. Either way.

I tried to calibrate both Standard and Movie at the same time, to see what would happen. Standard still looks better than Movie. Movie gives everything a yellowish tint it seems. Whites aren't white, etc.

I'm not home so I'm going off memory for my settings. I'll fix anything that needs to be later.

Couple notes:
No Reciever
My PS3 runs HDMI to my tv, that's for games/movies.
My Cable runs HDMI to my tv, some SD watching, mostly HD channels.

I didn't really understand the contrast test. I couldn't get the top to be clipped as he stated. I always saw individual steps of white to the edge even at 100. 95 was the Standard mode default.

The color test confused me as well. I wasn't sure how to use the filters (call me an idiot, k). I used their test image, held the filter up to my eye and tried to tell if the Blue on the tv blended with the color filter. It seemed too... soo, k.

The Gamma setting I'm confused on as well. After I calibrated I threw in a movie and kept going back and forth from -2 to 0 and -2 looked a little better, but there was nothing on the calib. disc to help me understand what it should be set at.

For what it's worth it was a very basic disc it seemed, but maybe that's its intention.

Picture Settings

Mode: Standard
Cell Light: 10
Contrast: 95 - I didn't understand the contrast calib. I tried to put it all the way up until the image was clipped, but it never happened.
Brightness: 43
Sharpness: 0 - The DVE test image didn't seem to be affected when I changed this.
Color: 50
Tint (G/R): G50/R50

Advanced Settings

Black Tone: Off
Dynamic Contrast: Off
Gamma: 0
Color Space: Native
White Balance: -----
Flesh Tone: 0
Edge Enhancement: Off

Picture Options

Color Tone: Normal
Size: 16:9
Digital NR: Off
HDMI Black Level: Low
Film Mode: Off

Just got my PN42B450 mounted today and IMO games look like crap compared to an LCD. Although HDTV seems to have more detail and contrast, it seems to be gone while gaming. Everything just looks flat, and text (in CODWaW Menu's for example) is a lot grainier than LCD. Is there any fix for this, or is this the trade off for having 1024 x 768 vs 1366 x 768 on the bigger model. Any suggested settings for gaming?


I just got this TV last night, and i plugged my PC into via HDMI. The windows background / fonts / and fine detailed things looked grainy and i was a little upset. Then i played an HD video and it looked fantastic. I was puzzled, i tried world of warcraft, that looked good too.

I unhooked the HDMI cable and put my desktop PC back in its room. Then i plugged a laptop into the PN42B450 via VGA cable and the background / font/ everything was SUPER crisp! i tried multiple resolutions over HDMI but they all seemed noisy/grainy on font and such. over VGA is really crisp.


I think this requires more troubleshooting, an HDMI cable should have equal if not better display IMHO. Im so happy with my "out of the box" settings i dont plan on tinkering with the TV until this winter when im stuck inside and bored.

I just got this TV last night, and i plugged my PC into via HDMI. The windows background / fonts / and fine detailed things looked grainy and i was a little upset. Then i played an HD video and it looked fantastic. I was puzzled, i tried world of warcraft, that looked good too.

I unhooked the HDMI cable and put my desktop PC back in its room. Then i plugged a laptop into the PN42B450 via VGA cable and the background / font/ everything was SUPER crisp! i tried multiple resolutions over HDMI but they all seemed noisy/grainy on font and such. over VGA is really crisp.


I think this requires more troubleshooting, an HDMI cable should have equal if not better display IMHO. Im so happy with my "out of the box" settings i dont plan on tinkering with the TV until this winter when im stuck inside and bored.

I haven't tried this with mine because well... not really needed. What resolutions were you using? I might try this tonight just for kicks.

I haven't tried this with mine because well... not really needed. What resolutions were you using? I might try this tonight just for kicks.

I tried several resolutions over HDMI and while it shrunk/stretched my picture it did nothing for picture quality. I played HD videos at 1280x720 over hdmi which looked great. just the font/text looked grainy/noisey.

Over the VGA cable i tried multiple resolutions and every single one was crisp and clear. I think the HDMI PC issues should be something we can fix with video driver tweaks?

far as the guy with an XBOX i dont know...

I tried several resolutions over HDMI and while it shrunk/stretched my picture it did nothing for picture quality. I played HD videos at 1280x720 over hdmi which looked great. just the font/text looked grainy/noisey.

Over the VGA cable i tried multiple resolutions and every single one was crisp and clear. I think the HDMI PC issues should be something we can fix with video driver tweaks?

far as the guy with an XBOX i dont know...

Damn I didn't try it last night, forgot sorry.

But I think I overlooked a small detail. You're going from your pc through HDMI to the tv. I'm not really sure how text is supposed to look. Most of the time I think people use VGA or DVI. I'd do some searching to see if you can find any comparisons.

What video card do you having in the computer with the HDMI/out?

My PC has two hdmi, two dvi, two vga outs. It has an onboard ATI 3300 with its own VGA,HDMI,DVI, then my video card an ATI 4650 has a VGA,DVI,HDMI out.

I prefer the HDMI because its suppose to be the highest quality while also passing sound reducing the amount of cabling required. My panasonic plasma did excellent with HDMI from the same PC. This samsung though only looks good with VGA cable. I mean the picture is really crisp with VGA while its somewhat irritating to look at using HDMI.

I'll be calibrating my 42B450 tonight or tomorrow and will report back with my results. I'll show the gamma curves, Color Gamut, and Greyscale tracking after my calibration is done.

Dan

I'll be calibrating my 42B450 tonight or tomorrow and will report back with my results. I'll show the gamma curves, Color Gamut, and Greyscale tracking after my calibration is done.

Dan

What tools are you using for the calibration?

I'll be calibrating my 42B450 tonight or tomorrow and will report back with my results. I'll show the gamma curves, Color Gamut, and Greyscale tracking after my calibration is done.

Dan

Nice....Looking forward to your results.

What tools are you using for the calibration?

Eye-One LT meter and HCFR software.

Dan

stereomandan think you could post all your settings also, would really appriciate it, thanks

I'll be working on it in a little bit. Not sure if I'll get the whole thing done tonight. We got home late, and we still want to watch "Taken" on the projector tonight also.

The first calibration will be with a DVD 480P source through component video. After that, I'll try to get my PS3 unhooked from my Epson 1080UB projector and hook it up to the Samsung to calibrate the higher resolutions thru the HDMI input. The PS3 calibration might take a day or two before I get a chance to mess with it. I'll post up the full settings when I'm done.

Dan

sounds good to me, be looking forward to it. great movie

EDIT, These settings are outdated now. Please refer to my post #362 for a better setting. 8-31-09 The link is here:http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=17091636#post17091636

My meter was not measuring correctly for the settings I listed in this post...

Dan

Here's what I have so far. I fully expect these settings to change as I measure the effect of all the odd settings like black tone and dynamic contrast. Keep in mind that my B450 has about 10 hours on it total. These settings gave a VERY good greyscale.

Cell - 10
Contrast - 75
Brightness - 52
Sharpness - 20
Color - 40
Tint - 0

Advanced:
Everything off or zero
Colorspace set to auto (I haven't checked into how this impacts calibration yet)
Gamma +1
Red Offset: 15
Green Offset: 25
Blue Offset: 8
Red Gain: 25
Green Gain 0
Blue Gain: 16

This gives an average gamma of 2.4 and 29 ft lamberts of brightness. I calibrate in a completely dark room. I'm interested to see how this looks with bright light. It might look slightly dim with these settings, as I normally shoot for 32 ft lamberts, and this was 28-29. Looking at the picture now, the skintones are fantastic, and colors seem natural. The settings may change as the set ages another 100 hours or so... I'll update this post as I get more familiar with the set and the results.

Dan

Dan, appreciate the time with the calibration and posting of settings.

Does "Tint - 0" mean G50/R50?

I thought gamma was supposed to be about 2.2?

I'm curious to how you reached the 20 sharpness. Using the DVE test I saw no impact when I changed the slider.

No impact as in the image didn't change at all to my eyes.

Thanks

Dan, appreciate the time with the calibration and posting of settings.

Does "Tint - 0" mean G50/R50?

I thought gamma was supposed to be about 2.2?

I'm curious to how you reached the 20 sharpness. Using the DVE test I saw impact when I changed the slider.

No impact as in the image didn't change at all to my eyes.

Thanks

I updated my post a little now.

Yes, "Tint - 0" mean G50/R50

I left sharpness at the default. I didn't get a chance to mess with sharpness all that much, but I saw edge enhancement all the way down to zero sharpness, so I need to play around with it and get a better understanding of where sharpness needs to be set.

Dan

I updated my post a little now.

Yes, "Tint - 0" mean G50/R50

I left sharpness at the default. I didn't get a chance to mess with sharpness all that much, but I saw edge enhancement all the way down to zero sharpness, so I need to play around with it and get a better understanding of where sharpness needs to be set.

Dan

Roger.

I'm going to try and keep my posts constructive. I tried your current settings on my display and when I checked the DVE color calibration screen with the color filter they provide, it was off.

I understand all sets might not be the same (even same model) and viewing conditions, plus break in all apply. So I've adjusted a little (gamma helped a lot I think) and we'll go from there.

Thanks again and I look forward to your updates on your friends calibration.

Thanks for taking the time to post your settings after calibraton, now these were done with component cables and 480p right? Will be interesting to see the difference using hdmi and also after your set has a couple hundred hours on it, if and how much settings change. I was wondering if when you have an all black screen up(like at end of movie before credits appear)does it seem like the back light goes off or tv appear to be in stand by mode and then as soon as color changes or anything appears on screen it comes back on. it only does this in movie mode on mine. Standard and dynamic mode are fine, only happens in movie mode. Once again thank you for taking time to post after calibration settings

Roger.

I'm going to try and keep my posts constructive. I tried your current settings on my display and when I checked the DVE color calibration screen with the color filter they provide, it was off.

I understand all sets might not be the same (even same model) and viewing conditions, plus break in all apply. So I've adjusted a little (gamma helped a lot I think) and we'll go from there.

Thanks again and I look forward to your updates on your friends calibration.

That may very well be the case. Using a blue filter to adjust Hue and color only tells you one thing, blue tint (Hue) and blue color. :) You don't get to see what that does to the rest of the color gamut. I spent most of my time on the greyscale tracking, and didn't get to spend much time with the color and tint setting yet. This is mainly due to the fact that the primary and secondary colors (except yellow) were overly saturated, even after reducing the color setting. Tint wise, the blue and red looked fairly good to begin as well as yellow. Swinging the color setting up and down in fairly large steps didn't seem to impact the saturation as much as I hoped. It seems that it may be impacting the color brightness more than color saturation.

On my display, there is a marked improvement from my previous settings, but I do need to understand the color management of the Samsung a little more before I share a calibration that I take as "best case". Like I said this is only the beginning and a quick first pass. I'll provide updated calibrations as we go. Did the settings look off on your display to your eye?

As far as gamma is concerned, 2.22 is targeted in many occasions, and it is what I use for my 1080UB projector, but on a very bright display like these plasmas a higher gamma can be utilized. At a gamma of -1 on the Samsung, the gamma was up around 2.6! Too high. CRT tube TV's gamma is typically in the 2.5 range just to give you a reference. On this plasma, with the 28-32 ft-L of brightness, a 2.4 is more pleasing, and less washed out looking while still retaining shadow detail. I'll look into this more as well on the Samsung as I try out different settings.

Thanks for taking the time to post your settings after calibraton, now these were done with component cables and 480p right? Will be interesting to see the difference using hdmi and also after your set has a couple hundred hours on it, if and how much settings change. I was wondering if when you have an all black screen up(like at end of movie before credits appear)does it seem like the back light goes off or tv appear to be in stand by mode and then as soon as color changes or anything appears on screen it comes back on. it only does this in movie mode on mine. Standard and dynamic mode are fine, only happens in movie mode. Once again thank you for taking time to post after calibration settings

I'll try to check on the movie mode "stand-by" mode anomaly tonight and see if I notice the same thing.

Dan

Hello, back to you regarding my 50B650, running ok to 150h on the Break in DVD "and I look nice information on the calibration of this beautiful screen, because in France, with me there (very) few user of this set ...... Your forum m'ayant good progress during the calibration of my old plasma (Panasonic 46PZ81) I turn to you for my new "baby "......
Regards, Sédric.

I just wanted to give an update to my PC HDMI -> tv picture quality. Last night i sold my ati 4650 and started using my onboard ATI 3300 over HDMI. My issue is fixed, i have no idea if it was a driver issue , or something wron with that ATI card, but over HDMI my text/fonts etc look crisp now.

This is all over a 480P DVD signal, so I haven't had a chance with DVD or Blu-ray over HDMI. There are about 30-40 hours on the TV at this point:

O.k., so I spent more time with the TV last night, and my gains and offsets above in post #49 still provide a very good greyscale.

However, I'm not too thrilled with how the Samsung handles color. All of the primary colors (red, green and blue) are oversaturated, and the saturation can't be fixed with the color control. The hue(tint) of red and blue is pretty good though, and green had a slight blue hue but not terrible. The tint setting only seems to affect the secondary colors to any significant degree, but you can't get all three secondary colors to line up properly. You either get yellow looking correct, and cyan and magenta will be off. Or you can get cyan and magenta correct, but yellow will have a red tint.

The problem with the color setting is that it's not adjusting the saturation of the colors, it's adjusting the brightness of the color. Getting technical, color is made up of three components. Saturation, Hue(tint), and brightness. The color setting should adjust saturation if it is working correctly, but on the Samsung it adjust brightness much more than it does saturation.

Does this mean that the picture will always look bad or incorrect? Not necessarily. To correct for oversaturation of a color you can reduce it's brightness. This fools the eye into thinking that the color is desaturated. The settings I posted above are the best comprimise I could come up with for color and tint. This will have everything looking o.k. except for cyan and magenta, which will have hue off a little. (probably not noticeable to a lot of folks)

If you want magenta and cyan to look correct, but have yellow with a red tinge, you can try this setting also:
In the advanced menu, turn colorspace to Native, and then set the main tint control to G26/R74.

Those are the two options, but keep the color setting around 40 to help tame the oversaturated colors in general.

EDIT I've included charts above with my measurement results to show what I've been describing.

Dan

This is all over a 480P DVD signal, so I haven't had a chance with DVD or Blu-ray over HDMI. There are about 30-40 hours on the TV at this point:


However, I'm not too thrilled with how the Samsung handles color. All of the primary colors (red, green and blue) are oversaturated, and the saturation can't be fixed with the color control. The hue(tint) of red and blue is pretty good though, and green had a slight blue hue but not terrible. The tint setting only seems to affect the secondary colors to any significant degree, but you can't get all three secondary colors to line up properly. You either get yellow looking correct, and cyan and magenta will be off. Or you can get cyan and magenta correct, but yellow will have a red tint.

The problem with the color setting is that it's not adjusting the saturation of the colors, it's adjusting the brightness of the color. Getting technical, color is made up of three components. Saturation, Hue(tint), and brightness. The color setting should adjust saturation if it is working correctly, but on the Samsung it adjust brightness much more than it does saturation.



Dan

I am a total noob when it comes to calibrating but would changing the color temp to something other than WARM2 have an effect on improving the color issues?

In another thread folks really liked the NORMAL setting but I thought the colors looked a little too washed out and settled on WARM1

Does callibrating on anything other than WARM2 screw everything else up?

I am a total noob when it comes to calibrating but would changing the color temp to something other than WARM2 have an effect on improving the color issues?

In another thread folks really liked the NORMAL setting but I thought the colors looked a little too washed out and settled on WARM1

Does callibrating on anything other than WARM2 screw everything else up?

Typically the color temp only affects the greyscale, and not the gamut. That is a great suggestion though. I'll check into it when I get a chance. Who knows, maybe the color temp on these Samsungs will impact color saturation and hue in some way.

Dan

stereomandan last years model A450 had custom in color space so you can set all your colors (red, green,blue, yellow, cyan and magenta). I think those would be secondary colors right? for some reason they left that mode out this year. not sure why maybe cutting cost. I had the A450 but it had the pink hue issue so they gave me the B450 I think the pq and blacks are much better this year but the user menu lacks. I noticed in the A450 also when smeg36 calabrated his using component it was different from hdmi settings, so maybe that will even the colors out. On the A450 33ft.L gave the best settings. Oh did you check out the all black screen in movie mode yet?

Dan do you have any info on the Black Tone and the Dynamic Contrast? Everyone seems to be saying to leave these off, but when you increase them, the PQ changes dramatically. I can't seem to match it with just using the calibration software from DVE.

Thanks.

Dan thanks for your settings, was wondering if you have made any other adjustments.

I have not had a chance to try any other modes yet.

The black tone adjustment seems to impact the very dark areas of the picture like those less then 10% brightness. The "darker" you go with this setting, the more you lose black detail. The darker settings do give a "pop" factor to the picture, but at the expense of shadow detail. It is more of a preference setting. Choose whatever you prefer, but for now I'll stay with the off setting.

The dynamic contrast made some very intense, unwanted adjustments to the picture, so I left that off as well.

Dan

Can anyone please check to see if while on movie mode at the end of a movie, all black screen before the credits roll, if your screen appears to shut off like in standby mode. I'm trying to see if its normal or if I have a bad panel, thanks

Here's what I have so far. I fully expect these settings to change as I measure the effect of all the odd settings like black tone and dynamic contrast. There are about 30-40 hours on the TV at this point. These settings gave a VERY good greyscale.

Movie Mode. Warm 2 setting.

Cell - 10
Contrast - 75
Brightness - 52
Sharpness - 20 (didn't check this out too much yet)
Color - 40
Tint - G50/R50

Advanced:
Everything off or zero
Colorspace set to auto
Gamma +1
Red Offset: 15
Green Offset: 25
Blue Offset: 7
Red Gain: 25
Green Gain 0
Blue Gain: 16

EDIT The settings above allow yellow to be very accurate, but cyan and magenta are off (cyan with a slight green tint, and magenta with a slight red tint) If you want Magenta and Cyan to be accurate, but yellow to be off(yellow with a red tint), try this instead:
Colorspace: set to native
Tint: G26/R74

This gives an average gamma of 2.4 and 29 ft lamberts of brightness. I calibrate in a completely dark room. I'm interested to see how this looks with bright light. It might look slightly dim with these settings, as I normally shoot for 32 ft lamberts, and this was 28-29. Looking at the picture now, the skintones are fantastic, and colors seem natural. The settings may change as the set ages another 100 hours or so... I'll update this post as I get more familiar with the set and the results.

Dan

Dan, I tried your settings but on standard mode with the contrast at 100, and the dynamic contrast at medium. I must say it's by far the best picture I've gotten so far. I was somewhat unhappy with the way the yellows looked before, but this really cleared that up, along with the whites.

Also, I turned the flesh tone to -2 and the edge enhancements on.

Thanks!

Dan, I tried your settings but on standard mode with the contrast at 100, and the dynamic contrast at medium. I must say it's by far the best picture I've gotten so far. I was somewhat unhappy with the way the yellows looked before, but this really cleared that up, along with the whites.

Also, I turned the flesh tone to -2 and the edge enhancements on.

Thanks!


wouldn't turning the contrast to 100 be a bad thing?

not for me. I like the high contrast.

Dan, I tried your settings but on standard mode with the contrast at 100, and the dynamic contrast at medium. I must say it's by far the best picture I've gotten so far. I was somewhat unhappy with the way the yellows looked before, but this really cleared that up, along with the whites.

Also, I turned the flesh tone to -2 and the edge enhancements on.

Thanks!

Glad to help. At least it gives you a good starting point, and then you can go from there with whatever preferences you like. I've watched my DVD, SD Tivo, and HD antenna sources with these settings, and so far they seem very nice. I'll keep them until about 100-150 hours and then check again. Maybe they won't change, but I'll provide an update then...

I still need to check the HDMI input as well, but haven't had a chance to check it yet.

Dan

Can anyone please check to see if while on movie mode at the end of a movie, all black screen before the credits roll, if your screen appears to shut off like in standby mode. I'm trying to see if its normal or if I have a bad panel, thanks

Sorry kanpol, I haven't had a chance to check it out. I highly doubt you have a defective panel if it looks fine other that this occurance.

Dan

Dan have you checked your tv out yet on an all white screen(jpeg image)if you get a chance let me know if the ar coating is even, mine looks like its missing in some places. The reason I ask is because when I 1st got it, there were finger prints on the panel. The panel I'm referring to is the one behind the glass. Repairman came and opened up tv and cleaned them off. So being that they were sloppy while putting tv together maybe same person was sloppy with coating. Thats also why I was curious about the shut off on black screen. At 1st it didnt shut off instead it would flicker, then after repairman cleaned off prints it stoped flickering and a few days later it started to do the shutoff instead. sort of wierd how it did one thing stoped and then did something else. thats why I ask. thanks

Dan have you checked your tv out yet on an all white screen(jpeg image)if you get a chance let me know if the ar coating is even, mine looks like its missing in some places. The reason I ask is because when I 1st got it, there were finger prints on the panel. The panel I'm referring to is the one behind the glass. Repairman came and opened up tv and cleaned them off. So being that they were sloppy while putting tv together maybe same person was sloppy with coating. Thats also why I was curious about the shut off on black screen. At 1st it didnt shut off instead it would flicker, then after repairman cleaned off prints it stoped flickering and a few days later it started to do the shutoff instead. sort of wierd how it did one thing stoped and then did something else. thats why I ask. thanks

Pretty sure my tv does this on both standard and movie modes

Pretty sure my tv does this on both standard and movie modes
thanks for replaying dallows, is that the flicker or the seeming to shut off? Wierd how mine only does does it in movie mode hmm, the good news is the picture is beautiful:D

thanks for replaying dallows, is that the flicker or the seeming to shut off? Wierd how mine only does does it in movie mode hmm, the good news is the picture is beautiful:D

Agreed, this Samsung Plasma does produce a fantastic image! For the price, it's a no brainer. Yesterday, I was watching some golf and the Indy 500 on HD over the air and it was beautiful.

Even though the primary and secondary points are a little oversaturated, when the color is turned down to about 40, everything looks natural and accurate. Skin tones are excellent. I thought the greyscale was o.k. out of the box, but once I measured it and made the adjustments to the gains and offsets, it took it to another level.

Dan

I'm using Dan's white balance settings but I've calibrated the color and tint with the DVE disc and filter. For Movie I'm at 50 color (I think) and G49/R51.

For Movie mode I left it at Warm2.

With Standard I calibrated with dynamic contrast set to medium. The grayscale test image looks about the same with it it off.

For that I think I'm at 51 brightness, 75 contrast, 40 color, tint is either G49/R51 or 50/50.

I don't know if I'm just not used to watching in Movie/Warm2 but the picture still looks like "cloudy." Sometimes the colors look good, but the overall image still looks very unclear, if you follow.

In a very bright room, my picture gets washed out, but in a dark room the contrast and image depth look great.

Dynamic contrast was too extreme for me, even in the low setting.

Just a warning using DVE to set color ant tint. It doesn't take into account the brightness setting of the colors. (this is seperate from the main brightness setting). Using DVE and the filters will most likely cause the colors to be too strong.

Dan

In a very bright room, my picture gets washed out, but in a dark room the contrast and image depth look great.

Dynamic contrast was too extreme for me, even in the low setting.

Just a warning using DVE to set color ant tint. It doesn't take into account the brightness setting of the colors. (this is seperate from the main brightness setting). Using DVE and the filters will most likely cause the colors to be too strong.

Dan

So I should ignore that the blue doesn't blend with the white background using the color filter based on your settings?

I'm inclined to believe you based on the fact that you're using actual software and a meter. But I don't know why it would be so off.

You can use the color filters, but it is a limited view of the overall color performance.

If a TV is set up correctly, you can use the blue filters with no problems and the other colors would be inherantly correct. This Samsung has oversaturated colors, and the secondary colors are affected greatly by the tint (hue) settings. So you might be setting the hue for blue correctly, but cyan, magenta and yellow will be off. Changing the color setting doesn't impact color saturation as much as it changes color brightness on this display, and because of this you need to compensate for it. That is why the color is more accurate near 40.

If you use the color filter, and color looks fine to you, then you can leave it there. If it appears too strong, then I would back it down somewhere between 40 and 50.

Dan

Dan have you had a chance yet to calibrate your using your ps3 and hdmi. I checked out an all white screen using break in images and noticed a pink hue but if I changed the white balance I can make it go away. In the A450 model no matter how much I changed the white balance I could not make that pink hue go away. Im using your settings Dan and they look great but if I change the w/b to make pink hue go away I'm sure it messes up the colors greyscale correct.
These were settings I was using before (they were from the A550 owners thread,pbc calabrated his a550.Didnt look good on my A450 but looked good on the B450)

Movie Mode
C 80
B 53
Col 45
Tint G45/R55
Gamma -2
White Balance
24
24
26
28
25
23

Can anyone please check to see if while on movie mode at the end of a movie, all black screen before the credits roll, if your screen appears to shut off like in standby mode. I'm trying to see if its normal or if I have a bad panel, thanks

O.k., so I had a chance to check this out while watching a DVD. I was able to replicate what you are referring to, but it was in Standard mode. It did not occur in my calibrated Movie mode.

In standard mode, the screen would flicker a little right before the credits when the image turned black, and the display seemed to shut off. Then when the credits started to roll, the image came back.

Seems to be a common occurance, and your panel is not bad.

Dan

I wish mine did it in standard mode instead of movie mode because all I use is movie mode. It's funny though how mine only does it in movie mode and your does it only in standard mode:confused: thanks for checking for me. Did you ever do your calibration using the ps3 and hdmi yet?

No not yet. It's a pain for me to move it from the projector downstairs because the power cord is in a wall chase. Maybe I can find a similar power cord around the house so moving the PS3 will be easier.

I was looking at the Samsung last night, and it seems as the set ages that I might need to bump up the color slightly from 40. The pink tint you see with my settings might just be unit to unit variation, or possibly as the set ages the reds are more pronounced versus Green and Blue. I'll keep an eye on it, and update the calibration as I get more hours on the set, and post the results.

Dan

I agree. I think we need to wait until the set you're working on gets more hours on it. Mine has probably around 200 hours. When I started calibrating I was about 150 hours.

Im sorry Dan, I guess I should've explained it a little different, your settings didnt cause the pink hue, it was already there when I first turned on the tv before changing any settings. It just that I can make it almost go away by changing w/b settings.

Ok, gotcha. I'll be recalibrating again in about a week or two after the set has broken in for 100+ hours and will report back. Still need to check HDMI as well. I can get a much better handle on the color management system with HDMI because I can use the AVS REC.709 blu-ray downloadable disk that has much better, and more extensive patterns than the DVD I have used so far.

Dan

Dan,I saw on the other thread you did the hdmi calabration on your set, if you get a chance do you think you could post your new settings, also whats your opinion on the difference from component to hdmi

EDIT, These settings are outdated now. Please refer to my post #362 for a better setting. 8-31-09 The link is here:http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=17091636#post17091636

Dan

wouldn't having contrast and brightness above 50 for the first 200 hours be bad Dan?

wouldn't having contrast and brightness above 50 for the first 200 hours be bad Dan?

Only if you are going to display static images for extended periods, maybe. Burn in isn't an issue with new plasma's from what I've gathered, but you may get some image retention (IR) in the first few hundred hours if you have static images displayed.

Image retention goes away, so I'm not concerned about it. If you want to play it safe, then by all means stay under 50 for contrast.

I'm not worried about it. I saw IR when I had my test patterns up for so long during calibration, but it was gone this morning.

Dan

Calibration Settings HDMI 1080P input:
Cell Light: 10
Contrast: 80
Brightness: 52 (51 would also work, but you might crush blacks slightly)
Sharpness: 20 (I did check this, and found the default of 20 to be very good at not producing excess edge effects. Any higher, like 30 or 40 and edge effect were easily visible to me)
Color: 44
Tint: G34/R66

Advanced: Everything off or zero except:
Gamma: +1
Color Space: Native
White Balance:
Red Offset: 12
Green Offset: 24
Blue Offset: 6
Red Gain: 25
Green Gain: 0
Blue Gain: 17

Enjoy!

I’ve found these settings to be stunning on my display. Of course, there is unit to unit variation, but this will give you a very good starting point.

Dan

You're in Movie/Warm2 I'm assuming? Couldn't you calibrate Standard mode to be at or near 6500k? What might the differences be between the two modes?

Thanks

You're in Movie/Warm2 I'm assuming? Couldn't you calibrate Standard mode to be at or near 6500k? What might the differences be between the two modes?

Thanks

Yes, movie, warm2.

I could check standard mode, but not sure what the benefit would be. I'm able to achieve my desired brightness (32 ftL) in movie mode, and track 6500K very well, and have the gamma I want.

The only advantage to standard mode might be the primary and secondary color locations. If they are located better, then it would be better to calibrate in standard than movie mode. I have no reason to believe it will be different, but I might check it just in case.

Dan

Yes, movie, warm2.

I could check standard mode, but not sure what the benefit would be. I'm able to achieve my desired brightness (32 ftL) in movie mode, and track 6500K very well, and have the gamma I want.

The only advantage to standard mode might be the primary and secondary color locations. If they are located better, then it would be better to calibrate in standard than movie mode. I have no reason to believe it will be different, but I might check it just in case.

Dan

I just don't understand how the two modes could be different even though both were calibrated. To me they should be the same.

you the man dan:D, thank you for taking the time to do thisfor us, so glad you are decideing to keep it also. Need your opinion on this, I have over 300 hours on this tv and I get Ir very easily, If I put up the menu for just a few sec it will live Ir, it does go away very quickly with the scrolling feature. But is it normal to get it so quickly even after 300 hrs. See on the A450 with the 3 different panels I never got IR once. Even gaming after 80hrs and nothing. This one I was babying using break in images and running scrolling everynight for like 20 mins. It doesnt really bother me since it goes right away, just wondering if its noraml, thanks

Glad to help. I figure if I'm going through the effort to calibrate the display for myself, I may as well share my findings so that others can see what this TV can do.

I'm pretty new to plasma display, but I don't consider IR a problem. To me, it's inherent to the technology. Plasmas have IR, period, but some seem to get it easier than others. From what many here on the forums say, the Samsungs tend to get it easier than some other brands. I have seen no data to back this up though.

It's one of the issues that I've decided not to be fussy about as long as I don't notice it during normal viewing, which I don't. This Samsung throws a fantastic picture, period. I have IR too, and it doesn't take long for it to show up, but I only notice it if I intentionally put up a black or very dark screen right after I've had something bright showing, like white text or the menu.

I watched Ratatoulli(spelling?) last night with the black bars showing on top and bottom and didn't notice IR after I was done watching the whole movie. I don't look for IR though, like I said. It may have been there, but I switched to over-the-air HD programming right after that so it probably got washed away right away. If you don't notice it during casual viewing, I wouldn't get worked up about it.

Dan

it doesnt really bother me either just wanted to make sure it was normal, I guess I got lucky with the Ir on the A450, by the way I think you really would've liked that ones(A450) menu better. In color space there was custom also which let you tweak the RGB of all 6 colors(red, blue, green, yellow, cyan and magenta)Thats all this Tv needed to be perfect. You probaly would've been able to get all the colors spot on perfect;).Did you try messing with the cell light during calabration? I know with the A series 10 was the right one as far as the gamma curve was concerned(I think thats what it was:confused:)but since the B series seems like a different beast all together, I wonder if that change. I wish Doug Blackburn would chime in on this matter, Since he is the expert here on those matters

I just don't understand how the two modes could be different even though both were calibrated. To me they should be the same.

dallows,

Which two modes are you referring to? I've only calibrated one mode, Movie mode. Can you explain what you are asking again?

Dan

Dan your settings ROCK!!!!
I can't tell you how much I appreciate you taking the time to share your tweaks with us!
Props 2 you brutha!!!

Thanks! Yeah, I was surprised myself last night when I got a chance to watch material in a dark room. I took my settings listed above, but bumped gamma to zero. Wow! Dyanamic, beautiful picture, with lots of detail.(including shadow detail.) It made the black bars on the movie (2.35 format) almost disappear.

Dan

dallows,

Which two modes are you referring to? I've only calibrated one mode, Movie mode. Can you explain what you are asking again?

Dan

If you calibrate Movie and Standard, shouldn't they be the same? Does the temp setting affect it that much?

If you changed the gamma wouldn't you have to recalibrate?

Yes, if I calibrate movie and standard I would guess that the final result would be the same. The final result should be the same, but the contrast, brightness, probably the white balance, and maybe the color and tint settings will be different. I mapped my movie, warm2 settings to standard mode, and it did not look the same at all.

For instance, to achieve 32 ftL brightness in movie/warm2 mode I need to set the contrast to 80, but in standard mode to get 32 ftL the contrast setting will be lower because standard mode already boosts contrast versus movie mode.

No gamma only affects how brightness is handled between black, and 100% white. It does not change how dark 0% black is, or how bright 100% white is, only the brightness in between. It does not affect color saturation, hue, or greyscale tracking.

Dan

Yes, if I calibrate movie and standard I would guess that the final result would be the same. The final result should be the same, but the contrast, brightness, probably the white balance, and maybe the color and tint settings will be different. I mapped my movie, warm2 settings to standard mode, and it did not look the same at all.

For instance, to achieve 32 ftL brightness in movie/warm2 mode I need to set the contrast to 80, but in standard mode to get 32 ftL the contrast setting will be lower because standard mode already boosts contrast versus movie mode.

No gamma only affects how brightness is handled between black, and 100% white. It does not change how dark 0% black is, or how bright 100% white is, only the brightness in between. It does not affect color saturation, hue, or greyscale tracking.

Dan


Yeah I don't think you'd be able to use the same settings, but with both calibrated the same way, they should look the same, right? Or does the color temp change that? That seems to be the real deciding factor here.

I've used your settings for movie mode, but my standard settings still look better (imo). The one thing that I keep coming back to is the fact that to my eyes, bright scenes, that are intended bright, don't look bright in movie mode. IMO not as intended.

also, when I go back and forth on a paused image the movie mode doesn't seem as clear (imo), that bothers me as well.

But anyway. Thanks for all your input.

Got mine over a week ago, and have probably less than 50 hours on it, but decided to play with these settings anyway.

Thanks a ton for the calibration Dan, your settings look fabulous on mine. I thought the default normal mode looked pretty good, and wasn't thrilled about the default movie mode. It had more natural color, but really seemed to fog over the image compared to normal.

Your settings looked incredible last night watching up streamed DVD's over hdmi and 720p content from an htpc.
Switching back and forth between movie mode (w/ your settings) and normal, and it is definitely a large improvement in color accuracy and detail. Skin tone is amazing looking.

I preferred to leave the gamma at 1 though, as the image seemed to begin to lack brightness at lvl 0. I view in a pretty dark room, seating more than 12' away. I was thinking of upping the brightness a notch leaving the gamma at 0, but from what i took from the thread, I assume this will change the color intensity rather then just the brightness level of the screen, such as a backlight would in an LCD? Sorry, this is my first plasma, but i'm lovin it.

dallows,

That's often the case. A properly calibrated display often doesn't have the impact of other modes. It could also be variation from one display to another. My settings may not transfer over well to your display.

Use whichever you prefer. Enjoy! I've been very happy with this Samsung, and I hope that it continues to perform for many years to come.

Dan

Got mine over a week ago, and have probably less than 50 hours on it, but decided to play with these settings anyway.

Thanks a ton for the calibration Dan, your settings look fabulous on mine. I thought the default normal mode looked pretty good, and wasn't thrilled about the default movie mode. It had more natural color, but really seemed to fog over the image compared to normal.

Your settings looked incredible last night watching up streamed DVD's over hdmi and 720p content from an htpc.
Switching back and forth between movie mode (w/ your settings) and normal, and it is definitely a large improvement in color accuracy and detail. Skin tone is amazing looking.

I preferred to leave the gamma at 1 though, as the image seemed to begin to lack brightness at lvl 0. I view in a pretty dark room, seating more than 12' away. I was thinking of upping the brightness a notch leaving the gamma at 0, but from what i took from the thread, I assume this will change the color intensity rather then just the brightness level of the screen, such as a backlight would in an LCD? Sorry, this is my first plasma, but i'm lovin it.

Glad it worked out well for you. This display is amazing in a dark room. You really need to check these settings in a darkened room, like you did, to really appreciate this tv. It's just too hard to judge when there is a lot of ambient light and the picture gets a little washed out.

Brightness will not impact color saturation, but it will start to wash out the picture as you turn it up. Your better option is to use the gamma of 1 rather than zero if the picture is looking to dark.

You could also try bumping up the brightness like you said. There is a fine line for brightness. I wouldn't try bumping it more than one notch though. Maybe 53 is proper for your DVD player. On mine, it's 52.

Dan

The other day I was watching tv must've been about 5 pm (southern california) and there was only a little light coming in, so it wasnt completely dark about like an overcast day. I am using your settings( which are great) and The tv looked absolutely amazing in that light, to me even better then when its completely dark(and that looks great). I cant explain it but the colors and black just poped:):). Dan I now you've done alot for us already but if I can ask a favor and that if you get some free time can you calibrate in standard mode. The reason I ask is with my A450 I found during the day especially when a lot of light was coming in standard looked a little better because it was brighter. That was only time I use standard. Only if you have some free time and dont mind doing it for us, once again thanks for all your work:)

dallows,

That's often the case. A properly calibrated display often doesn't have the impact of other modes. It could also be variation from one display to another. My settings may not transfer over well to your display.

Use whichever you prefer. Enjoy! I've been very happy with this Samsung, and I hope that it continues to perform for many years to come.

Dan

It's either my eyes or the tv then. Because you guys talk about great color and black levels with those settings but I just don't see it.

What I get is a cloudy overcast and gray blacks.

Shrug.

The other day I was watching tv must've been about 5 pm (southern california) and there was only a little light coming in, so it wasnt completely dark about like an overcast day. I am using your settings( which are great) and The tv looked absolutely amazing in that light, to me even better then when its completely dark(and that looks great). I cant explain it but the colors and black just poped:):). Dan I now you've done alot for us already but if I can ask a favor and that if you get some free time can you calibrate in standard mode. The reason I ask is with my A450 I found during the day especially when a lot of light was coming in standard looked a little better because it was brighter. That was only time I use standard. Only if you have some free time and dont mind doing it for us, once again thanks for all your work:)

Sure, when I get around to it, I'll do standard mode as well.

It's either my eyes or the tv then. Because you guys talk about great color and black levels with those settings but I just don't see it.

What I get is a cloudy overcast and gray blacks.

Shrug.

dallows, that sounds like brightness being set incorrectly. What are your equipment sources for blu-ray or DVD?

Dan

Sure, when I get around to it, I'll do standard mode as well.



dallows, that sounds like brightness being set incorrectly. What are your equipment sources for blu-ray or DVD?

Dan

PS3 right to TV via HDMI for blu-ray and dvd (don't watch many of those! haha).

I've been using the DVE disc for calibrating everything. Should I use this instead?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=948496

Dan, think you can post any of your set in action? Thanks.

[QUOTE=stereomandan;16560033]Sure, when I get around to it, I'll do standard mode as well.

Sounds good to me, thanks Dan I really appriciate:)

PS3 right to TV via HDMI for blu-ray and dvd (don't watch many of those! haha).

I've been using the DVE disc for calibrating everything. Should I use this instead?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=948496

Dan, think you can post any of your set in action? Thanks.

YES! I've found the AVS REC.709 download to be much better than DVE, especially if you are playing it through the PS3.

On the PS3, how do you have the Super White, and RGB settings? (this makes a big difference in brightness and contrast settings)

...and yes, absolutely. I was thinking of taking some screenshots. Can't promise them right away, but I'll be glad to.

[QUOTE=stereomandan;16560033]Sure, when I get around to it, I'll do standard mode as well.

Sounds good to me, thanks Dan I really appriciate:)

No prob.

Dan

YES! I've found the AVS REC.709 download to be much better than DVE, especially if you are playing it through the PS3.

On the PS3, how do you have the Super White, and RGB settings? (this makes a big difference in brightness and contrast settings)

...and yes, absolutely. I was thinking of taking some screenshots. Can't promise them right away, but I'll be glad to.



No sweat on the screenshots. Thanks.

I went through the avs disc and calibrated again tonight in a completely dark room with my newly installed ambient light (boosh!) and here's what I have for Standard.

Contrast: 70 (My hardest setting to understand. The last 2-3 higher bars I can't really seeing flashing but if I go down to like 60-ish they start to appear, I might redo calibration later messing with a lower contrast.)

Brightness: 51 (52 gives a little more visibility to bar 17 but bar 16 starts to show)

Sharpness: 50 (default)
Color: 40
Tint: 47/53

White balance: Default

I'm watching harry potter right now on tv and these settings give a little like washing out in some dark areas so I bumped the gamma down to -1 to test with. I really need to test these settings with a nice blu ray movie to be sure. We can't really base a display on a tv signal/image.

I calibrated these settings with black tone at off and dynamic contrast at medium, I used a bunch of test images and didn't really seem to affect black levels and crushing once the black level was set. Going back and forth to your settings give basically the same result concerning black levels.

Dan I forgot to address your other question.
Super White is on and the RGB both full and limited yield the same results(pretty sure. i was on limited and switched to full, saw no apparent change)

Stereomandan I figured out why in movie mode on all black screen it seems to shut off. I use my ps3 for movies and I had it set to RGB Full and HDMI Black Level to low. For some reason those settings make it happen. I can have rgb full and black level normal and it wont happen or rgb limited and black level low and it wont happen either. So it is full and low that cause it. I forget how is it supposed to be with rgb and hdmi black level. If you get a chance give it a try for me to see if its like that all around. just in case someone else has same problem we might have a fix for it:) thanks

Stereomandan I figured out why in movie mode on all black screen it seems to shut off. I use my ps3 for movies and I had it set to RGB Full and HDMI Black Level to low. For some reason those settings make it happen. I can have rgb full and black level normal and it wont happen or rgb limited and black level low and it wont happen either. So it is full and low that cause it. I forget how is it supposed to be with rgb and hdmi black level. If you get a chance give it a try for me to see if its like that all around. just in case someone else has same problem we might have a fix for it:) thanks

I don't think that's it. When I ran movies through the ps3 with RGB at limited it did it, same with Full. I believe when you run an actual blu ray movie (the physical disc) through ps3 it locks the hdmi black level to low.

Im not watching a BR I have a external hard drive pluged in the usb and use that for my movies(works like a media box). I think what happens with rgb full and hdmi black level low it makes the blacks to dark so screen shut off, maybe or could be maybe:confused:.

Any of you guys with the B450 know if the headphone jack volume can be controlled by the tv remote? I plan on hooking some computer speakers to it that really rock and am wondering if I will have to get up and mess with the volume. Thanks

Any of you guys with the B450 know if the headphone jack volume can be controlled by the tv remote? I plan on hooking some computer speakers to it that really rock and am wondering if I will have to get up and mess with the volume. Thanks

No headphone jack.

No headphone jack.

glad i did not see this before I went and bought it! I would have been in the decision zone again. I was disappointed since their website said it had a headphone jack. I called Samsung and they said it was a mistake on the website and only the 42" model has the headphone jack. I found an audio Y cable and was able to hook up my pc speakers anyway. Now I just have to get up to turn the volume up or down.

Actually they lied again cause the 42 doesn't have a head phone jack either the 42a450 did but not the 42b450

Hey I recently got this TV and have been running the Break in DVD for a few hours. I just had a few questions

My settings for the Break in are
Contrast at 50%
Brightness at 50%
Dynamic contrast off
Pixel Shift at 4-4-1

I will run the Break In DVD for the next 2 weeks for 8-10 hours a night

Are these the correct settings for the Break in process?

yup those settings are fine. Then after that check out stereomandans calibrated settings on the 3rd page of this thread. He did a great job

Just a quick question guys. Would it be ok to run the break-in slides in the "dynamic" setting? I noticed alot of the Panny guys break-in their sets in "vivid" so I figured this would be the closest thing on a Sammy to kinda speed up the phosphor aging process. I don't plan to do any normal viewing during the first 100 or so hours, just the slides. Thanks in advance for any input

The only concern I would have is heat, and abnormal stress to the plasma cells. The burn-in images are pretty severe in cases. I wouldn't want to have strong images on my display for hours on end with high voltages(brightness).

Personally, I don't use burn-in images. Full screen content, for similar hours will accomplish the desired break-in.

Dan

Sounds good man, thanks for the advice

Just got the 50B450 tonight. Is the screen supposed to have the red touch of color to it too? I Thought that only the frame was supposed to have this. It is only noticeable on black areas when the room is lit.

Not a showstopper, but I find it odd that they would tint the screen like that for no reason.

Also, I must have to let this thing break in a good amount before trying Dan's settings. I used them in a completely black room and the picture was very, VERY foggy, terrible black level (pure grey), and the colors looked VERY washed out. I had my old Pannys on warm and am accustomed to the calibrated "proper" look using D-nice's settings, but this looks terrible. I'm hoping for the break in to change things, but I'm not counting on it.

No the screen is not supposed to have the touch of red to it only the bottom of frame. Sound like you have something wrong with your tv:( Just by the way you discribe the image sounds like something is very wrong.

Well I have been burning in for about 35 hours with about half of the time at 50% contrast and brightness then bumped both to 70%. I have 100 hours left to go now!

No the screen is not supposed to have the touch of red to it only the bottom of frame. Sound like you have something wrong with your tv:( Just by the way you discribe the image sounds like something is very wrong.

REALLY?! Oh sh*t.

Looks like I'll be taking another trip to sears tomorrow. I'm gonna take a look at the one on display and turn it off to see.

Can anyone else confirm that this TV is NOT supposed to have a reddish screen? I can't imagine how that could get sent out like that. WTF. I'm ordering a Panasonic P50S1 and calling it a day. :mad:

Sears better not charge me a restocking fee for this crap.

Ok now how red are we talking about? I just shut mine off and turned on the lights to get it brighter in here and it may have a very tiny redinsh tint hard to say really looks more blackish then anything. I'll check tomorrow in the daytime to see how it looks then. I have the 42 but it shouldn't make a difference. I love my tv I think it has a awesome picture(especially with stereomandans settings). Now as far as samsungs quality control well I cant call that one especially being that mine had a whole palm print on the actual panel:confused: Had to have a tech come down and remove the panel to clean it. I have heard people mention how bad there CS is but all I can is goodthings bout that, had pink issue with A450 and they replaced 3 panels then swapped it with this B450 no hassles at all. If you can post a picture I can tell you if mine looks like yours or not but either way after work tomorrow I check it out for you

We're talking red like a dark metallic red christmas ornament. I've got a few pics on my cell phone but that's it ATM. Digital cam is lent out currently. But the red tint is IMMEDIATELY noticeable and obvious. The second we took the TV out of the box, it was the first thing we noticed. I tried peeling off what I thought was a red film over the screen only to find out that it was the screen itself.

It is noticeable on any dark/black areas of the screen when the set is on, giving it a chocolate raspberry flavored appearance.

The anti reflective coating has a purplish/red hue to it. I only notice it when the TV is off, which doesn't bother me. If it is a deal killer for you, then there is nothing you can do because the coating is always going to be there.

I'm surprised that my settings would look so off on your display. Are you evaluating it in a very bright room? That will make these sets look washed out. What is your video source for evaluation? A brightness settings of 52 should not look grey at all. If you have a source that is passing blacker than black and whiter than white content to the TV, then you will need ot reduce your brightness, and increase the contrast from my settings.

Dan

Here's a shot of my screen:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3643/3660144632_9e7c639aa6_o.jpg

I was in a totally dark room with an HTPC connected with RGB color space being used via HDMI.

Help please. My friend just bought the PN50B450. He loves the picture but he watches a lot of foreign films and old films that are 4:3 aspect ratio. The bars on the side of the image are white instead of black. Is there a setting in the menu that he can change to make the white bars black?

Mikeinnj where my tv is I dont have any sun reflecting of it but looking at it in the daytime I dont not see anything like I see on your picture. Now mine is only a 42" so the 50's may have more tinting but mine doesnt look like yours, sorry.
Dice9 your friend can change the side bars to a dark grey but that is it, no black, I believe they do it to keep from getting burn in while watching the 4:3 content.

Dark grey would be fine but the white is distracting. Can you tell me where to go in the menu to change it to dark grey?

He can also stretch it out sideways (full mode), or use one of the zoom modes to get rid of the bars altogether. That's what I'd do.

Dan

He does not like the stretch mode or zoom (nor do I). Is there no way to make the white bars dark grey?

He does not like the stretch mode or zoom (nor do I). Is there no way to make the white bars dark grey?

This is an excerpt taken from the user's manual. Hope it helps:)

Side Gray: When you watch TV with the screen ratio of 4:3, the screen is prevented from any damage by adjusting the white balance on both extreme left and right sides. To prevent the screen burn from happening, select Dark or Light.
Dark: When you set the screen ratio to 4:3, it darkens the left and right sides.
Light: When you set the screen ratio to 4:3, it brightens the left and right sides.

That pic you posted is what the filter looks like on the cheaper entry-level Samsungs. My A450 from last year has a similar purplish coating to the screen. I nicknamed my TV 'Jimi' because of the "purple haze".

Just out of curiousity, what is the manufacture date on your B450? I did see a B450 at Sears that had a really purplish looking AR filter, and then I went across the street to another store that had a B450, and it looked blacker, and didn't seem as purplish. Anyway they looked different to my eyes.

Perhaps on the very early B450's (the first of the '09 models to be released I might add), they were still using the same filter left over from the A450's, but then they switched over on some of the later production runs. I wouldn't rule this out, since I have noticed some other peculiarities on some of the sets I have seen at Sears, with the picture controls on the front of the TV in different places on the same model. I think I saw one A450 at Sears that had the picture controls down on the bottom right (horizontally), whereas on my A450 the controls are arrayed vertical on the right hand side of the bezel.

I wouldn't put it past Samsung to use some leftovers glass/coatings from the A models on their early run of B450s.

So all those who have a very noticable purplish tint to theirs, tell us what month it was manufactured.

Sorry, I can no longer tell when my Samsung was manufactured. I just got done returning it to Sears. No restocking fee though, which was nice considering the display model also had the red tint to it.

Time to order up the G10.

mines april 2009 and it looks more like that dark type also mine the 42"

never mind figured it out :)

Regarding the AR coating, I was looking at mine and saw that at certain viewing angles you see the purple/red tint more. At some angles, it looks black, and some you see it. This is all with the TV off though. I don't notice it whith normal viewing, but if there was a large enough black portion in the picture, I might if I'm at the right viewing angle to see it.

Mine was built March 09, and at some angles it might look close to mikeinnj's picture.

It's a non issue to me.

Dan

Sorry, I can no longer tell when my Samsung was manufactured. I just got done returning it to Sears. No restocking fee though, which was nice considering the display model also had the red tint to it.

Time to order up the G10.

You returned your set based on that? It's perfectly normal for Samsungs, it's their coating. It doesn't affect viewing in the slightest, and is only viewable when the screen is off.

Are you going to return your G10 right away if you notice a greenish push to the colors?

I have the B650, same screen, absolutely no problems with screen quality.

You returned your set based on that? It's perfectly normal for Samsungs, it's their coating. It doesn't affect viewing in the slightest, and is only viewable when the screen is off.

Are you going to return your G10 right away if you notice a greenish push to the colors?

I have the B650, same screen, absolutely no problems with screen quality.

I view from several angles in the room depending on where I am sitting, at various lighting levels from very bright to pitch black depending on the time of day. From my bed or the desk, purple tint could be seen on any dark/black areas during the daytime or if I had my lights on at night.

Before this, I had a Panny 42PZ700U that I absolutely LOVED, but just wanted a 50". If it was a 50", I would have never gotten rid of it. After that I got the Panny P50X1, LOVED the color, black levels, but was close enough at my main viewing spot (About 6 feet) to notice the faint diagonal lines on bright areas. The same lines that C-net mentioned in the review that I read after noticing the lines myself. I use an HTPC and could see the lines a lot on any still album arts/photos in media center. I then took a chance with the Samsung plasma.

The colors were great, black levels were pretty good (not quite as deep as the X1, but I was willing to take it as a trade off to diagonal lines), and I would have kept it if not for the purple screen. I was trying to decide whether to return it or not, then came across the Panny 50G10 for $1250 free shipping, no tax and with a free-after-rebate bluray player, which I will be reselling for $200 to a friend. So I paid $962 for the Sammy after tax and got all of it back after refund. The Panny will be $1050 said and done. That for me was a no brainer. Less than $100 more for some of the deepest black levels available, accurate color out of the box with THX modes, Viera cast FWIW, no purple screen, no diagonal lines, and 1080p FWIW with HTPC.

I'm not going to be against Samsung or anything. They make a great TV and was about to return the B450 to get the B550 if not for the Panasonic deal. The B550 has the grey touch of color, great black levels, but was going to be $200+ more than the G10.

I just can not understand why the need to tint the screen a color. If I was in a dedicated dark viewing room, it would not be an issue, but this is used at a variety of viewpoints at all times day and night. There was just too many times when I would be at just the right angle or lighting condition and see it during credits, black bars, scenes in black space, and even some darker colors in general. Still don't see why the need to tint the screen a color. Does it help improve contrast? Is it purely cosmetic?

As for the green push, Cnet said the same thing about my PZ700U, and seem to say "innaccurate green" on every Panasonic review. Luckily we have D-nice's service menu offsets to counter that. I won't be returning the G10. I never would have gotten rid of the X1 if not for the diagonal lines.

Does anyone know what Samsung's warranty policy is concerning dead pixels, I have one on my 42B450 (I believe it was probably there since the beginning, tho I only noticed it a few weeks ago, I've had it a couple of months now). I only noticed it once I got a Wii which has the white menu and when I was actually up close. It doesn't effect my daily viewing, tho it is annoying to know that I have it there. It is situated almost in the middle of the screen horizontally and about 2 inches from the bottom vertically. Is it worth a warranty call, or do they consider a certain number of dead pixels acceptable?

Does anyone know what Samsung's warranty policy is concerning dead pixels, I have one on my 42B450 (I believe it was probably there since the beginning, tho I only noticed it a few weeks ago, I've had it a couple of months now). I only noticed it once I got a Wii which has the white menu and when I was actually up close. It doesn't effect my daily viewing, tho it is annoying to know that I have it there. It is situated almost in the middle of the screen horizontally and about 2 inches from the bottom vertically. Is it worth a warranty call, or do they consider a certain number of dead pixels acceptable?

Welcome jake, from Samsung's support FAQ:
What is your policy on defective pixels?

One or two dead pixels out of the approximately 300,000 to 1.3 million pixels on a typical LCD television is normal. Generally, then, if you have only a few dead pixels, service is not an option.

With that said, what we do about an LCD TV with dead pixels depends on:

The number of dead pixels
The location of the dead pixels
The color of the dead pixels
The size of the LCD TV screen
If you are having a serious problem with dead pixels, gather the information listed above and call Samsung Customer Care at 1-800-Samsung (1-800-726-7864). Have the model number and serial number of your TV on hand when you call.

Also here is an answer given from Samsung to a member disorganizer:
samsung gave me a stuck-pixel answer for my 46":
>2 defective full-pixels
or
>8 dark subpixels
are "needed" for replacement. well at least thats what the support guy on the phone told me.
as far as he told me a permanently lit pixel (in my case a green one) counts as full pixel, whereas a pixel which only shows when one of the subpixel colors are displayed counts as subpixel.
so to count you need to display the main colors and see whether your pixel is always there or not.
in my case its a full pixel because it exists on all colors :-)

Thanks, that seems to pertain to more to LCDs, I did find this regarding plasmas, seems pretty similar.
"Dead Pixel Policy

One or two dead pixels out of the approximately 2 million pixels on this PDP (plasma display panel) is acceptable. Generally, then, if you have only a few dead pixels, service is not an option.

With that said, Samsung does have a Dead Pixel Policy. Receiving warranty service depends on:

* The number of dead pixels
* The location of the dead pixels
* The color of the dead pixels
* The size of the screen.

Please gather the above information and follow the instructions below to contact us."

So I am assuming with 2 or less dead pixels it isn't even worth a call, as anyone had similar issues and tried calling? Also I did hear/read that Samsung had a zero defective pixel policy, but I believe that was more for LCD computer monitors. Also on closer inspection it seems like only one of the sub pixels is dead and not the whole thing (I believe it's the green part, since it the rest of the pixel gives off a purplish color on a white screen and only 1/3 of it looks black) this is probably why it is only really noticeable on a white screen.

Upon finding this site and thread quite by accident, I just had to register and submit my findings. First, since my model is the PN42B430, what I write may or may not even apply to the 450, but assuming it does it may be of interest. Secondly, thank you stereomandan for I have combined your Tint and White Balance settings with the ones I had been using, and most certainly any issue I may have had with flesh tone in particular has diminished.

I have applied your settings verbatim AFTER watching "Defiance" on Blu-Ray (having not found this site at the time) and have been very impressed with the result as I have replayed certain chapters of the film. Unfortunately I rent movies seldom but am looking forward to the experience in the future.

Now for HDTV channel programming I find that I must revert to the settings I had, but implemented your Tint and White Balance findings. Again, it is likely enough that the models are different that I do so. However if the models are in common I would be interested to know what some opinions are of them. Again, this is strictly for watching television. Sorry for babbling on, and thank you!

SOURCE HDMI/DVI

Mode = Movie
Cell Light = 6
Contrast = 77
Brightness = 52
Sharpness = 100
Color = 37
Tint = G34/R66


Black Tone = Dark
Dynamic Contrast = Med
Gamma = 0
Color Space = Native
White Balance:
Red Offset = 12
Green Offset = 24
Blue Offset = 6
Red Gain = 25
Green Gain = 0
Blue Gain = 17
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = On


Color Tone = Warm2
Size = 16:9
Digital NR = Auto
HDMI Black Level = Normal

Is there a way on this Plasma to tell the number of hours watched?

to check panel hours you have to go into the service menu.

to check panel hours you have to go into the service menu.

How do I go about doing that.


Edit: never mind I found out

let me know if you cant find the panel hours it took me a while to figure out where they are

I found the service menu, but cant find the hours. Where do you look?

Now remember going into service menu will reset your settings and be careful. to find panel hours in service menu go into "control" then "sub option" panel hours will be in there:)

thanks! It resets it everytime I open the service menu?

thanks! It resets it everytime I open the service menu?

That is correct

Upon finding this site and thread quite by accident, I just had to register and submit my findings. First, since my model is the PN42B430, what I write may or may not even apply to the 450, but assuming it does it may be of interest. Secondly, thank you stereomandan for I have combined your Tint and White Balance settings with the ones I had been using, and most certainly any issue I may have had with flesh tone in particular has diminished.

I have applied your settings verbatim AFTER watching "Defiance" on Blu-Ray (having not found this site at the time) and have been very impressed with the result as I have replayed certain chapters of the film. Unfortunately I rent movies seldom but am looking forward to the experience in the future.

Now for HDTV channel programming I find that I must revert to the settings I had, but implemented your Tint and White Balance findings. Again, it is likely enough that the models are different that I do so. However if the models are in common I would be interested to know what some opinions are of them. Again, this is strictly for watching television. Sorry for babbling on, and thank you!

SOURCE HDMI/DVI

Mode = Movie
Cell Light = 6
Contrast = 77
Brightness = 52
Sharpness = 100
Color = 37
Tint = G34/R66


Black Tone = Dark
Dynamic Contrast = Med
Gamma = 0
Color Space = Native
White Balance:
Red Offset = 12
Green Offset = 24
Blue Offset = 6
Red Gain = 25
Green Gain = 0
Blue Gain = 17
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = On


Color Tone = Warm2
Size = 16:9
Digital NR = Auto
HDMI Black Level = Normal

So glad to help WSenkow! When I get a chance, I will try your settings on HDTV programming and provide my feedback.

Dan

Well, after a few days of this I must admit I'm confused! I like the Blu-Ray settings (a lot) as they are beyond what I had calibrated or anticipated, but now I reverted to my original settings for HDTV viewing. Needless to say this is agonizing. For some reason (may be the difference in model after all) I seem to have a greater palette with the 'White Balance' at default. Here is what I had before, and went back to for television viewing.

Mode = Movie
Cell Light = 6
Contrast = 77
Brightness = 52
Sharpness = 100
Color = 37
Tint = G44/R56


Black Tone = Dark
Dynamic Contrast = Med
Gamma = 0
Color Space = Native
White Balance = default
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = On


Color Tone = Warm2
Size = 16:9
Digital NR = Auto
HDMI Black Level = Normal

stereomandan, how I wish you had the 430 series or I the 450! I am going to follow this thread some more with interest.

Warmest;
WS

Well, after a few days of this I must admit I'm confused! I like the Blu-Ray settings (a lot) as they are beyond what I had calibrated or anticipated, but now I reverted to my original settings for HDTV viewing. Needless to say this is agonizing. For some reason (may be the difference in model after all) I seem to have a greater palette with the 'White Balance' at default. Here is what I had before, and went back to for television viewing.

Mode = Movie
Cell Light = 6
Contrast = 77
Brightness = 52
Sharpness = 100
Color = 37
Tint = G44/R56


Black Tone = Dark
Dynamic Contrast = Med
Gamma = 0
Color Space = Native
White Balance = default
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = On


Color Tone = Warm2
Size = 16:9
Digital NR = Auto
HDMI Black Level = Normal

stereomandan, how I wish you had the 430 series or I the 450! I am going to follow this thread some more with interest.

Warmest;
WS

Aren't there many posts on how cell light = 10 is the only setting to be used with the samsungs?

WSenkow can you post any pics of your set in action?

Aren't there many posts on how cell light = 10 is the only setting to be used with the samsungs?

WSenkow can you post any pics of your set in action?

dallows, I really know not what to tell you. If 10 is the ONLY setting for cell light, than the next argument will be, what are the other CORRECT settings for viewing television? After all, the Blu-Ray or the film industry for that matter, conform to a narrower but higher band of standards than those of televison programming. In that mode there may be a correct setting(s).

Using ALL of the settings I have indicated for televison, gives me the best possible picture show in, show out, channel in, channel out. The sales-manager from whom I purchased the set was over yesterday, and he has NEVER seen a set of any brand or price range calibrated to such realism and clarity, and I'm using a cable feed, not a dish. Sorry for bragging, that's just the way it is. I'm not going to convice anyone anyways unless they try it out for themselves.

dallows, I really know not what to tell you. If 10 is the ONLY setting for cell light, than the next argument will be, what are the other CORRECT settings for viewing television? After all, the Blu-Ray or the film industry for that matter, conform to a narrower but higher band of standards than those of televison programming. In that mode there may be a correct setting(s).

Using ALL of the settings I have indicated for televison, gives me the best possible picture show in, show out, channel in, channel out. The sales-manager from whom I purchased the set was over yesterday, and he has NEVER seen a set of any brand or price range calibrated to such realism and clarity, and I'm using a cable feed, not a dish. Sorry for bragging, that's just the way it is. I'm not going to convice anyone anyways unless they try it out for themselves.

I'm not trying to argue you're settings don't look good ( which is why I asked for pics). but all I can tell you is if you do a search (I'll do one in a bit maybe, at work) for samsung cell light you'll see posts from pro calibrators about how samsung had this setting as a left over from LCDs and that 10 would be the proper setting.

I know what you are saying dallows, and sorry for jumping on you. I'll feel better when I watch tv tonight. With all the variables involved, it is likely there are enough starting points that could attain near the same results. A pro calibrator and I are at odds on another site and we will NEVER agree on many things I talk about. First I say Dynamic Contrast IS an absolute must. The trade-offs with Edge Enhancement and Sharpness at a 100 are worth their usage as well. This drives me nuts as he doesn't have the tv in front of him and is basing his argument on past experience, and he can't get it through his head that I shut down these features for watching Blu-Ray. I will go as far to say his ego will prevent him from even trying my settings. Gee, we take things so personal!

Anyways, great to communicate with you and thanks sincerely for your interest.

I'm lousy with cameras, and attachments for that matter, but took this one today. The date on bottom left is incorrect.

146929

Wsenkow gooday to you, I have the 42b450 and use stereomandans settings but tonight I will give your settings a try while watching Tv. Also how did you come across your settings? Did you use any tools or just by your eyes:) it doesnt matter but just curious, give me a few hours and I'll post up my opinion.

kanpol, done all by trial and error, I've been all over the settings for a while. I'm beginning to think the model PN42B430 is rare, and I have no one to play with. Hope it works for your model, and thanks!

Wsenkow ok got your settings in, they look good but then again so did stereomandans. Gonna leave yours in for the night to get used to it but you did a good job, they do look good.

Just got a PN42B450 and it is also my first plasma, I have been reading a lot of the posts here and can't wait to try some of the settings. I was hoping to just get some straight answers to a couple questions.

1. Should I use the pixel shift and at what settings?

2. What is an adequate break in period, is it necessary to use a break in DVD/slideshow?

Thanks.

1. Should I use the pixel shift and at what settings?

There should be a section in your manual called "Preventing Screen Burn-in" near the end of PICTURE CONTROL>Picture Options. Go with the settings they suggest, our models may have different settings so it's unfair to tell you what they are.

Good-luck with your set, you made a wise choice.

2. What is an adequate break in period, is it necessary to use a break in DVD/slideshow?

Thanks.

A break-in DVD is not necessary. My recommendation is to run full screen content for the first 100 hours or so, and then you are all set. That's all I did and I play letterboxed DVD's now with no problem with IR. You can even start right off the bat with my settings, just give it time to break-in by using full screen content.

Dan

Thanks for the quick replies. The settings Dan posted look amazing.

I'm lousy with cameras, and attachments for that matter, but took this one today. The date on bottom left is incorrect.

146929

I'll take some pics tonight of like Dark Knight and maybe another pretty common movie. It'll be hard for me to take shots of a regular cable channel but I'll try.

kanpol, done all by trial and error, I've been all over the settings for a while. I'm beginning to think the model PN42B430 is rare, and I have no one to play with. Hope it works for your model, and thanks!

Your B430 shouldn't be that far off from the B450. I think your model just lacks some inputs is all. Should be basically the same.


To note. I've tried many other settings for movie/warm2 including Dan's and nothing comes close to my Standard mode calibration. Maybe it's my set or my eyes. Movie/Warm2 just looks cloudy, out of focus/blurry and just not right.

little off topic but since this has the most active talk--

Has anyone used this tv with the stand and had one side leaning more than the other? Picked this up and need to use the stand but it leans to the left about a 1/4 inch and I cannot get it to level. Any body else?

I noticed at least a handful of people here are using ps3's what are your settings for the RGB and the others in the display menu?

Well, after a few days of this I must admit I'm confused! I like the Blu-Ray settings (a lot) as they are beyond what I had calibrated or anticipated, but now I reverted to my original settings for HDTV viewing. Needless to say this is agonizing. For some reason (may be the difference in model after all) I seem to have a greater palette with the 'White Balance' at default. Here is what I had before, and went back to for television viewing.

Mode = Movie
Cell Light = 6
Contrast = 77
Brightness = 52
Sharpness = 100
Color = 37
Tint = G44/R56


Black Tone = Dark
Dynamic Contrast = Med
Gamma = 0
Color Space = Native
White Balance = default
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = On


Color Tone = Warm2
Size = 16:9
Digital NR = Auto
HDMI Black Level = Normal

stereomandan, how I wish you had the 430 series or I the 450! I am going to follow this thread some more with interest.

Warmest;
WS

I helped my parents buy a pn50b450 and i'll be calibrating it next weekend....but, why would you have the dark tone and dynamic contrast to anything other than "off"??
Also, sharpness at 100??
And...with cell light at 6 and bright at 52 i think you are losing some detail, ofcourse there are panel variances, but that seems too low.

I helped my parents buy a pn50b450 and i'll be calibrating it next weekend....but, why would you have the dark tone and dynamic contrast to anything other than "off"??
Also, sharpness at 100??
And...with cell light at 6 and bright at 52 i think you are losing some detail, ofcourse there are panel variances, but that seems too low.

From what I've seen with my set and after all my calibrations Dynamic Contrast at Medium (dark tone off), gives the best picture without losing detail. Once calibrated you won't get any black crush or lose the black detail(however you want to say it).

I used the AVSD (can't remember the name) Calibration Disc from this forum and they have a test pattern that cycles through different brightness levels. The scale doesn't change drastically enough to lose that black detail.

After calibrating both modes with those settings off, the picture just doesn't look as good.

Tell me why it should be off?

I am only going by past experience with prior years sets. Perhaps you are correct, I wont know until next weekend.
But...my thought would be that you are crushing blacks and possibly losing some shadow detail.
But panels do vary and sometimes much more than many might think.

I am only going by past experience with prior years sets. Perhaps you are correct, I wont know until next weekend.
But...my thought would be that you are crushing blacks and possibly losing some shadow detail.
But panels do vary and sometimes much more than many might think.

I believe it. I spent a lot of time going through the different settings. I'm happy where it is. Let us know how your calibration turns out.

I helped my parents buy a pn50b450 and i'll be calibrating it next weekend....but, why would you have the dark tone and dynamic contrast to anything other than "off"??
Also, sharpness at 100??
And...with cell light at 6 and bright at 52 i think you are losing some detail, ofcourse there are panel variances, but that seems too low.

I haven't posted the settings I use for Blu-Ray viewing, the dark tone and dynamic contrast are off for that source. Instead of me defending my usage of these features for watching tv, perhaps give them a try for a day or two and then get back to me.

I haven't posted the settings I use for Blu-Ray viewing, the dark tone and dynamic contrast are off for that source. Instead of me defending my usage of these features for watching tv, perhaps give them a try for a day or two and then get back to me.

What are your settings for blu-ray? Do you use a ps3?

dallows, these are my settings for watching Blu-Ray. I have the Samsung BD-P1600 player with HDMI cable. I have only seen three movies so this is what I use so far....

Source HDMI (Blu-Ray)

Mode = Movie
Cell Light = 7
Contrast = 77
Brightness = 52
Sharpness = 20
Color = 46
Tint = G50/R50

Black Tone = Off
Dynamic Contrast = Off
Gamma = 0
Color Space = Native
White Balance = Default
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = Off

Color Tone = Warm2
Size = 16:9
Digital NR = Auto

Okay, since this thread is chock-full of suggestions, I have reduced my Sharpness to 20, turned off Edge Enhancement, Black Tone, and Dynamic Contrast, turned up the Cell Light to 10, and everyone has left my living-room because they no longer feel like watching tv.

Are there more adjustments I can make to keep the door-to-door salesmen away too? Is the answer in the audio settings by chance?

Lol. I know the shot was from a camera and just tv, but it was nothing to brag about. I'm going to try and shoot some pics tonight.

[QUOTE=WSenkow;16780240]Okay, since this thread is chock-full of suggestions, I have reduced my Sharpness to 20, turned off Edge Enhancement, Black Tone, and Dynamic Contrast, turned up the Cell Light to 10, and everyone has left my living-room because they no longer feel like watching tv.

LMAOROF:D:D
Put it back to what it was originally on, its your set and your eyes you chose whats best. I did try your settings and I liked them but I just happen to like Dans better but that my opinion. Dans did his with tools and you did yours with eyes and you did a great job also. The most important thing is that you are happy with your tv. Now for the bright side of everyone leaveing the room is you get to watch what you want to watch;)

What member is Dan?

that would be stereomandan would be "Dan", sorry bout that.

Standard Mode - Calibrated using combo DVE and AVSHD Disc
Cell Light = 10
Contrast = 70
Brightness = 47
Sharpness = 50
Color = 40
Tint = G47/R53

Black Tone = Off
Dynamic Contrast = Medium
Gamma = -1
Color Space = Auto
White Balance = Default
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = Off

Pics below are using my above Standard mode and Dan's settings. I won't say which are which at this point. They're just numbered. 1's are all the same mode, as are the 2's. Pics kinda suck but its the best I could do at the moment. You can pretty much tell the differences though.

EDIT: I'm pretty sure these first two are supposed to be based on a gray image. It was from the AVSHD.

1
http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/5362/dsc07606.jpg (http://img237.imageshack.us/i/dsc07606.jpg/)

2
http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/9052/dsc07608.jpg (http://img237.imageshack.us/i/dsc07608.jpg/)



1
http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/9813/dsc07610i.jpg (http://img36.imageshack.us/i/dsc07610i.jpg/)

2
http://img269.imageshack.us/img269/1333/dsc07612.jpg (http://img269.imageshack.us/i/dsc07612.jpg/)



1
http://img33.imageshack.us/img33/8343/dsc07613n.jpg (http://img33.imageshack.us/i/dsc07613n.jpg/)


2
http://img269.imageshack.us/img269/7748/dsc07616e.jpg (http://img269.imageshack.us/i/dsc07616e.jpg/)


1
http://img33.imageshack.us/img33/2922/dsc07638e.jpg (http://img33.imageshack.us/i/dsc07638e.jpg/)

2
http://img31.imageshack.us/img31/2585/dsc07639crm.jpg (http://img31.imageshack.us/i/dsc07639crm.jpg/)


1
http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/474/dsc07642.jpg (http://img237.imageshack.us/i/dsc07642.jpg/)

2
http://img29.imageshack.us/img29/9936/dsc07646f.jpg (http://img29.imageshack.us/i/dsc07646f.jpg/)



1
http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/6540/dsc07660m.jpg (http://img36.imageshack.us/i/dsc07660m.jpg/)

2
http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/3844/dsc07662.jpg (http://img237.imageshack.us/i/dsc07662.jpg/)



1
http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/4960/dsc07671w.jpg (http://img36.imageshack.us/i/dsc07671w.jpg/)

2
http://img188.imageshack.us/img188/4118/dsc07673.jpg (http://img188.imageshack.us/i/dsc07673.jpg/)

I also question sometimes when people talk about "black detail" and stuff. I mean in some cases how can you be so sure that what you're seeing is what was intended to be seen? We all know alterations are made to movies/scenes on the editing floor for certain effects.

Know what I mean?

Wow picture 1 def. looks better. Also, I now have about 120 Hours on the Plasma. Is it safe to game now and should I keep my Brightness and Contrast at 50%. I think it looks better when the contrast and brightness are turned up, but I also don't want to kill my Plasma

Wow picture 1 def. looks better. Also, I now have about 120 Hours on the Plasma. Is it safe to game now and should I keep my Brightness and Contrast at 50%. I think it looks better when the contrast and brightness are turned up, but I also don't want to kill my Plasma

If you have the same pn42b450 panel I can tell you not to really worry. I adjusted the settings a little bit during my like 150hr break in, but I basically used Standard Mode the whole time, then calibrated after. I wouldn't worry so much about burn-in and IR. It's rare that you'll actually get IR that won't clear.

I would go ahead and calibrate your set how you see fit and then enjoy. There's the pixel shift which by default is set to 2x2 pixels every 2 minutes (I think) and you can use the scrolling feature to clear any small stuff that might pop up.

I can tell you that in the almost 4 months owning it I haven't seen any burn-in. And I've just left images on the screen for a bit too.

This is the camera I used. If anyone has suggestions on how to get some better pictures I'm all ears. I plan to do some researching tonight.

http://www.amazon.com/Sony-Cybershot-DSCP200-Digital-Optical/dp/tech-data/B0007CZ70Y/ref=de_a_smtd

I've found that using a tripod and setting the timer helps get a very stable clear picture. Also, using the daylight mode helps get the correct color temperature, since it tends to reference 6500K, or closer to how our TV's are calibrated.

Just make sure you use the same settings for all pics.

I have a Canon and a Samsung digital camera, and I have a MUCH easier time with the Canon getting it to take pictures that actually match what I see on the screen. Problem is, it's an old 2MP A60, and I think it just died last week. :(

Dan

I've found that using a tripod and setting the timer helps get a very stable clear picture. Also, using the daylight mode helps get the correct color temperature, since it tends to reference 6500K, or closer to how our TV's are calibrated.

Just make sure you use the same settings for all pics.

I have a Canon and a Samsung digital camera, and I have a MUCH easier time with the Canon getting it to take pictures that actually match what I see on the screen. Problem is, it's an old 2MP A60, and I think it just died last week. :(

Dan

What do you think of the shots? They're pretty close to what I was seeing. I'll fiddle with it more. Not sure what my daylight mode is but I'll check it out. No tripod though. I was trying to steady it on my knee, haha.

I can tell you that the camera's Auto mode made a heavy, heavy blue image.

What do you think of the shots? They're pretty close to what I was seeing.

Oh they are absolutely stunning dallows, the finest I have ever seen, or even imagined! I'd swear that pret' near DVD quality. Great job!!!

Oh they are absolutely stunning dallows, the finest I have ever seen, or even imagined! I'd swear that pret' near DVD quality. Great job!!!

Don't get upset just because mine looks better.

What do you think of the shots? They're pretty close to what I was seeing. I'll fiddle with it more. Not sure what my daylight mode is but I'll check it out. No tripod though. I was trying to steady it on my knee, haha.

I can tell you that the camera's Auto mode made a heavy, heavy blue image.

I was holding off saying which I like better because I'm travelling and am looking at the pics with a so-so laptop monitor. The #1 pictures look much better, more natural, on this computer. The #2 have a red tint on this monitor. I'll have to make sure to take pictures of my B450 with my settings for comparison.

Are you going to give in and say which is which? :)

Dan

I was holding off saying which I like better because I'm travelling and am looking at the pics with a so-so laptop monitor. The #1 pictures look much better, more natural, on this computer. The #2 have a red tint on this monitor. I'll have to make sure to take pictures of my B450 with my settings for comparison.

Are you going to give in and say which is which? :)

Dan

Going to take a few more from a different movie tonight. Trying to get this camera down. Probably tell you guys tomorrow.

How long are you traveling for?

Guys, I'm scared crapless to game on my Plasma! I want to play some Gears of War 2 for around 3 hours, But I'm to scared of Burn in!!!!!!!. I wish I could just enjoy my purchased PN42B450B1D. I have around 125 Hours on it and about 70 of those with the break in DVD.

Guys, I'm scared crapless to game on my Plasma! I want to play some Gears of War 2 for around 3 hours, But I'm to scared of Burn in!!!!!!!. I wish I could just enjoy my purchased PN42B450B1D. I have around 125 Hours on it and about 70 of those with the break in DVD.

You have nothing to worry about. Half of my B450's usage is gaming, both ps3 and xbox360. No issues. Don't worry so much!

More Pics. Same settings. Some are a bit worse though. Still fairly accurate. Obviously not as I see it though. Also not optimal viewing. Had the kitchen light on for the girlfriend.

1
http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/7743/dsc07690.jpg (http://img17.imageshack.us/i/dsc07690.jpg/)

2
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/4223/dsc07693b.jpg (http://img13.imageshack.us/i/dsc07693b.jpg/)



1
http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/8518/dsc07698h.jpg (http://img6.imageshack.us/i/dsc07698h.jpg/)

2
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/8479/dsc07700k.jpg (http://img13.imageshack.us/i/dsc07700k.jpg/)



1
http://img368.imageshack.us/img368/5492/dsc07705w.jpg (http://img368.imageshack.us/i/dsc07705w.jpg/)

2
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/9964/dsc07706.jpg (http://img32.imageshack.us/i/dsc07706.jpg/)



1
http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/6258/dsc07708t.jpg (http://img12.imageshack.us/i/dsc07708t.jpg/)

2
http://img368.imageshack.us/img368/1151/dsc07709.jpg (http://img368.imageshack.us/i/dsc07709.jpg/)



1
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/633/dsc07721.jpg (http://img13.imageshack.us/i/dsc07721.jpg/)

2
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/7733/dsc07722.jpg (http://img212.imageshack.us/i/dsc07722.jpg/)



1
http://img368.imageshack.us/img368/8514/dsc07730.jpg (http://img368.imageshack.us/i/dsc07730.jpg/)

2
http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/9188/dsc07732.jpg (http://img6.imageshack.us/i/dsc07732.jpg/)



1
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/7249/dsc07735.jpg (http://img13.imageshack.us/i/dsc07735.jpg/)

2
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/8747/dsc07739p.jpg (http://img32.imageshack.us/i/dsc07739p.jpg/)



1
http://img368.imageshack.us/img368/2324/dsc07741.jpg (http://img368.imageshack.us/i/dsc07741.jpg/)

2
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/8103/dsc07743r.jpg (http://img13.imageshack.us/i/dsc07743r.jpg/)

Im going to take a wild guess and say #1 is standard mode. I say that because I remember Dallows saying that in movie mode with warm2 it has a more yellowish tinge. I notice that myself in my tv when switching from normal to warm2. You dont even have to switch between satandard and movie, it basically just the color tone. With that being said I still prefer warm2 and movie using Dans settings. once again thank you Dan absolutely stunning

Couple questions and notes that I'm not sure I mentioned(others I probably have).

When I take Dan's settings and then look at the calibration discs, the colors are off. Doesn't make sense to me. I know he used actual equip and a color-meter, butto me it should match, no?

If you're seeing too much blue it's either you monitor, OR the camera. I would lean more towards the camera because it takes very blue pictures using the auto mode and I think it carries over into the other modes. Without heavy adjustments I found a mode that worked okay, but it's not going to match exactly with what I see in person obviously.

Lastly, when switching back and forth from my Standard to Dan's Movie mode there is very little difference in the colors. Only the brightness and clarity of the image. I wish I could take out Dynamic so switching back and forth would be easier, lol.

I still can't get passed the overall cloudy and overcast look to Movie/Warm2 Nothing looks as clear as it should. You take a movie like bolt or wall-e and those are obviously very clear, crisp movies. You just don't get that picture in Movie mode.

Im going to take a wild guess and say #1 is standard mode. I say that because I remember Dallows saying that in movie mode with warm2 it has a more yellowish tinge. I notice that myself in my tv when switching from normal to warm2. You dont even have to switch between satandard and movie, it basically just the color tone. With that being said I still prefer warm2 and movie using Dans settings. once again thank you Dan absolutely stunning

Sorry, just figured I'd pop in here as a B650 owner, but I have the same feeling about his shots. The second picture in each set is probably warm2, and I definitely notice an unnatural red overcast to the entire screen.

My warm2 mode definitely doesn't experience this. Here is my photo album where you can see everything is in warm2 mode (although taken with a crappy camera):

http://s835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/sconan2/

Now obviously the B650 is different than the B450, but it IS weird that dallows first picture in each set mirrors my warm2 mode pictures.

Sorry, just figured I'd pop in here as a B650 owner, but I have the same feeling about his shots. The second picture in each set is probably warm2, and I definitely notice an unnatural red overcast to the entire screen.

My warm2 mode definitely doesn't experience this. Here is my photo album where you can see everything is in warm2 mode (although taken with a crappy camera):

http://s835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/sconan2/

Now obviously the B650 is different than the B450, but it IS weird that dallows first picture in each set mirrors my warm2 mode pictures.

Yes, 1 is Standard calibrated and 2 is Dan's Movie/Warm2 settings.

Aeonus mine is the 42b450 and mine doesnt do that either. Like I said I notice a difference between normal and warm2 but not that bad. I have the day off today and I'll try to take some flicks but like many others camera aint so great and photos arent my thing:( but I'll do my best

Wonder if there's something up with my set.

Kanpol, can you get the revision number off the side? On mine the sticker is located on the right side.

Kanpol, can you get the revision number off the side? On mine the sticker is located on the right side.


I got the version # if thats what you are talking bout (SK08)

dallows, your series of shots in Standard mode are very good, in fact to me it seems to make more sense that way then in Movie mode which is like painting on a brown canvas.

However if the Movie mode has several symptoms, background color and clarity for starters, you may consider resetting display options to default which is done off your menu, or, a global reset of all settings (back to factory default) by holding the EXIT button for a length of time. The manual also says to unplug the tv for 30 seconds or more, but I don't know if you do this first or last.

I hope it gets resolved as we do love this line of tv.

I got the version # if thats what you are talking bout (SK08)

Mine was manufactured in April 2009 and the # is SC04.


dallows, your series of shots in Standard mode are very good, in fact to me it seems to make more sense that way then in Movie mode which is like painting on a brown canvas.

However if the Movie mode has several symptoms, background color and clarity for starters, you may consider resetting display options to default which is done off your menu, or, a global reset of all settings (back to factory default) by holding the EXIT button for a length of time. The manual also says to unplug the tv for 30 seconds or more, but I don't know if you do this first or last.

I hope it gets resolved as we do love this line of tv.

I'll check the manual and try resetting it both ways. I don't think resetting to the defaults in the user menu will do anything.

Dallows, I am loving Picture #1. Could you kindly give me your settings!

Well, now that I've had a chance to see the photos on a decent monitor, I can say without a doubt that my plasma looks nothing like the #2 photos. I don't have the red tint, the fuzzy picture, the lack of "pop" as seen in the #2 photos. Mine has neutral greys, a very clear picture, and good shadow detail while maintaining good dynamics.

I'm surprised that some see such a large "degradation" in Movie, warm 2 mode.

Either there is significant unit to unit variation with these plasmas, or dallows camera is having a major impact on the orignal image. My guess is that dallows B450 just doesn't calibrate the same as mine. If this is true, then it is a major bummer since our settings won't be universal.

I will take photos of my settings, on my plasma, and once I post them, we can discuss further.

dallows, if you are using my settings, change the gamma to -1, like you have in your standard mode, and it may help significanly with any "cloudy" look you may be seeing.

Dan

Well, now that I've had a chance to see the photos on a decent monitor, I can say without a doubt that my plasma looks nothing like the #2 photos. I don't have the red tint, the fuzzy picture, the lack of "pop" as seen in the #2 photos. Mine has neutral greys, a very clear picture, and good shadow detail while maintaining good dynamics.

I'm surprised that some see such a large "degradation" in Movie, warm 2 mode.

Either there is significant unit to unit variation with these plasmas, or dallows camera is having a major impact on the orignal image. My guess is that dallows B450 just doesn't calibrate the same as mine. If this is true, then it is a major bummer since our settings won't be universal.

I will take photos of my settings, on my plasma, and once I post them, we can discuss further.

dallows, if you are using my settings, change the gamma to -1, like you have in your standard mode, and it may help significanly with any "cloudy" look you may be seeing.

Dan

Well at least I feel a bit better now that I'm not insane. I don't think it's the camera as they're fairly close to what I see on the display. If anything it helped a little, haha.

Last night I tried a couple resets including a factory reset (I'm almost afraid now that the standard calibrated image isn't like it was, but that could just be me or the channels I was watching - didn't use blu-ray yet), but it didn't improve the movie mode.

The image looked basically the same even after using a calibration disc, so I'm pretty sure it's something with the panel, maybe in the service menu (if there are even more controls there).

I might try to hit up Samsung support to see if they can shed any light. While I know there can be differences even within the same model line, I don't know if they should be as drastic.

Dan, I've tried messing with the gamma as well, didn't really do much.

Thanks guys.

dallows;

Sorry to see that the issues persist. I know that with some of the tv programs in movie mode warm2 the brownish background is troublesome. What I cannot understand is the the difference in focus or clarity between your two modes.

I checked upon the FAQ's for your model on Samsung's USA site but there is little there that can help. I hope that direct communication with them will solve this issue quickly in your favor even if it means an exchange.

Best of luck, and am looking forward to some better news.

stereomandan what is your tv's version # its on the rightside under sn# mines sk08. Just wondering because dallows is different then mine and my tvs pq from the sound of it looks just like yours. Maybe that has something to do with it:confused:

Blew up my settings for watching HD channels. Going with the Standard Mode, may still be a work in progress. Ordered Digital Video Essentials from Amazon Canada, getting it in a week. Blue-ray settings will certainly be a work in progress.

I feel better.

Source HDMI/DVI (Television)

Mode = Standard
Cell Light = 8
Contrast = 62
Brightness = 38
Sharpness = 20
Color = 44
Tint = G46/R54


Black Tone = Off
Dynamic Contrast = Off
Gamma = 0
Color Space = Native
White Balance = Default
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = Off


Color Tone = Normal
Size = 16:9
Digital NR = Off
HDMI Black Level = Normal

So here are some screen shots of The Dark Knight, using my calibration settings from post #86. Sorry about the "screen door" look to the pictures. It is not really in the picture. It is a Moire affect from the mismatch in the resolution of my camera, versus the resolution of the TV.

I simply resized these pictures, that's it. The camera is a little point and shoot Samsung S860 8MP set to auto mode, auto color temp, with the flash off. Looks pretty close to what I see on my screen. A couple of the shots are a little overexposed it looks, but still close. I wish my old 2MP Canon A60 didn't die, because I could get that thing to match what I see on the screen almost excatly.

http://www.geocities.com/stereomandan/projector/tdk1.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/stereomandan/projector/tdk2.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/stereomandan/projector/tdk3.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/stereomandan/projector/tdk4.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/stereomandan/projector/tdk5.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/stereomandan/projector/tdk6.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/stereomandan/projector/tdk8.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/stereomandan/projector/tdk9.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/stereomandan/projector/tdk10.jpg

Dan

Thanks for posting the shots Dan. That's just about what I see in Standard. Movie looks nothing close to it.

I still plan to contact Samsung this weekend and see what they have to say.

I just noticed after looking at all of your pictures that when i play blu rays on my screen through a ps3 there are still black bars on the top and bottom how do i get them to go away...

Thanks so much.

I just noticed after looking at all of your pictures that when i play blu rays on my screen through a ps3 there are still black bars on the top and bottom how do i get them to go away...

Thanks so much.Please read my post from this page....
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1155693&highlight=

Nice pictures Dan, those are bout what my tv look like using your settings, beautiful. Oh by the way did you ever find out your version# for me?

Nice pictures Dan, those are bout what my tv look like using your settings, beautiful. Oh by the way did you ever find out your version# for me?

Thanks kanpol. Mine is SC04, and it was manufactured in March 09. I did download and install the latest firmware, but it made no difference to the calibration.

Dan

well so much for that therory, Dallows version# is the same as yours sc04 but i believe his was april 09. mine is sk08 and april 09. I thought maybe ours were the same and dallows was different but not the case. hey dan in last years model we were able to do custom color space like the 650 and above this year. so I'm wondering if there is something in service menu to activate the CSM on our model. No idea why they would do that to this years model, maybe to cut cost. That was a very good feature. You know how in your calibration certain colors are a little off, if we had that I know you would get them spot on;)

hey dan in last years model we were able to do custom color space like the 650 and above this year. so I'm wondering if there is something in service menu to activate the CSM on our model. No idea why they would do that to this years model, maybe to cut cost. That was a very good feature. You know how in your calibration certain colors are a little off, if we had that I know you would get them spot on;)

If I had that, I KNOW I could get them spot on. My Epson 1080UB projector has full CMS control, and I'm able to tweak that thing to near perfection. To be honest, this PN42B450 is my casual TV for the kids and family every day watching. If someone is able to go into the service menu and figure out the locations for previous years full CMS control, I'll be glad to check it out and calibrate. I just don't have the time (or desire with all my other hobbies and priorities) to go check it out.

Dan

Whats your opinion on that dan, do you think the cms is a software thingy:confused: or a hardware thingy. I'll give it a shot at least look for it in the service menu. I remember seeing something that said gamma but never hit it. I know thats not it but what do you think that does or is for. I know you have the colors near perfect but can the human eye detect the difference that its off or is it just something that you know is off but you cant really tell besides from the instraments

Hey is there a lot of input lag on this set? If no one knows could one of you guys that own it do an input lag test.

I have the 50b430 and ps3 as blu-ray player. Is it possible to zoom 2.35:1 ar movies to fit whole screen while keeping ar (i.e. cut off sides of movie). Seems the Sammy zoom modes' only way to fill screen is a vertical stretch.

I put in a ticket to Samsung about my TV to see if they thing it's normal or what, but no response yet.

I'll keep you guys posted.

Seeing as there doesn't appear to be an official B450 thread and I don't want to make a new thread just to ask this question, I'm just gonna post my question here.

Can someone tell me how wide the base is on the PN50B450?

seeing as there doesn't appear to be an official b450 thread and i don't want to make a new thread just to ask this question, i'm just gonna post my question here.

Can someone tell me how wide the base is on the pn50b450?

26-1/8"

26-1/8"
Thank you.

Can someone post pictures of some xbox 360 in action? COD4 and Halo 3 if any of you guys have it.

Can someone post pictures of some xbox 360 in action? COD4 and Halo 3 if any of you guys have it.

I can post some Fable 2 pics later. That's the only game I have right now... that and Ghostbusters (which looks pretty good actually)

After about 3 years of waiting for just the right set of circumstances, I'm anxiously awaiting Saturday delivery of my 50b450. Can't wait to test out some of the settings here.

I'd also like to submit my vote that we turn this into an owner's forum.

I bought the 42" model about ten days ago when Fry's had it on a one-day sale for $599. I was impressed by how vivid the colors were on things like David Letterman's set, and by how crisp and detailed the overall image was on an episode of "America's Got Talent" (it is taped in a theater setting which is very visually complex, and which is lit up like a Christmas tree), but anytime I looked at a ball game or golf match or anything with grass, the green was like Day-Glo paint, and skin tones in most programming were very odd looking (almost like embalmed corpses or Wax Museum figures). I was considering returning the set and getting an LED model instead, but I found this thread through a Google search.

I gave Dan's settings from post #86 a try, and I am now much happier with the unit. The colors seem to be very well balanced, and skin tones are much improved. Thanks for taking the time to do the calibration and post the settings, Dan.

I do occasionally have the impression that there is a very slight muted, brown-gray overlay, somewhat like a much less exaggerated version of what polarized sunglasses make things look like. (I remember noticing this in particular in a car race telecast that had a lot of long shots with lots of blue sky/white clouds in the picture.) Is there likely to be any change in the picture with more hours of use (I am just putting the set to normal use, not doing anything special to "break it in"), or is there a particular one of Dan's settings that might be tweaked to eliminate this overlay, but without messing everything else up?

(I'm basing most of my impressions on watching over-the-air network TV HD broadcasting. I have an old, cheap DVD player and an even older Dish TV box; I need to upgrade both.)

Thanks to all who have contributed to this thread so far.

HP

I figure it's time to update now that I have used the Digital Video Essentials 'kit'. As it turns out, there is NO way that my settings considered for watching Blu-Ray can be used for HDTV viewing, IMPOSSIBLE. Nowhere close. So the mindset I must have is to try to get the Blu-Ray viewing to BE correct, as near as I can, and HDTV viewing to LOOK correct, completely by eyeballing for this mode.

I have not tried an actual Blu-Ray movie yet as I had only completed my settings last night, but I will post the settings for both modes anyway. Just to add, this has been a remarkable thread, filled with great ideas, and intended to help each other out. Thanks everyone as well for keeping it both instructive and interesting.

Source HDMI/DVI (Television)

Mode = Standard
Cell Light = 8
Contrast = 66
Brightness = 39
Sharpness = 0
Color = 44
Tint = G46/R54


Black Tone = Off
Dynamic Contrast = Off
Gamma = 0
Color Space = Native
White Balance = Default
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = Off


Color Tone = Normal
Size = 16:9
Digital NR = Auto
HDMI Black Level = Normal
--------------------------
Source HDMI (Blu-Ray)

Mode = Movie
Cell Light = 8
Contrast = 95
Brightness = 54
Sharpness = 0
Color = 46
Tint = G45/R55


Black Tone = Off
Dynamic Contrast = Off
Gamma = 0
Color Space = Native
White Balance = Default
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = Off


Color Tone = Warm2
Size = 16:9
Digital NR = Off
HDMI Black Level = Low


A feature I would love to have working correctly is the Dynamic Contrast. Too bad it takes flesh tones with it when it kicks in. If it left them alone the display would really be exciting. In return though I have noticed that by engaging the 'Black Tone' at its lowest level the user can afford to have a brighter picture, which in turn allows a modest increase in the 'Color' settings. So I guess one can have it both ways sometimes.

I bought the 42" model about ten days ago when Fry's had it on a one-day sale for $599. I was impressed by how vivid the colors were on things like David Letterman's set, and by how crisp and detailed the overall image was on an episode of "America's Got Talent" (it is taped in a theater setting which is very visually complex, and which is lit up like a Christmas tree), but anytime I looked at a ball game or golf match or anything with grass, the green was like Day-Glo paint, and skin tones in most programming were very odd looking (almost like embalmed corpses or Wax Museum figures). I was considering returning the set and getting an LED model instead, but I found this thread through a Google search.

I gave Dan's settings from post #86 a try, and I am now much happier with the unit. The colors seem to be very well balanced, and skin tones are much improved. Thanks for taking the time to do the calibration and post the settings, Dan.

I do occasionally have the impression that there is a very slight muted, brown-gray overlay, somewhat like a much less exaggerated version of what polarized sunglasses make things look like. (I remember noticing this in particular in a car race telecast that had a lot of long shots with lots of blue sky/white clouds in the picture.) Is there likely to be any change in the picture with more hours of use (I am just putting the set to normal use, not doing anything special to "break it in"), or is there a particular one of Dan's settings that might be tweaked to eliminate this overlay, but without messing everything else up?

(I'm basing most of my impressions on watching over-the-air network TV HD broadcasting. I have an old, cheap DVD player and an even older Dish TV box; I need to upgrade both.)

Thanks to all who have contributed to this thread so far.

HP

One quick thing I can say is that it's hard to judge based on regular tv viewing. Even HD channels. I noticed it can vary a bit between channels and shows, etc.

You need to get yourself a blu-ray player now to really show off the set.

Thanks for posting the shots Dan. That's just about what I see in Standard. Movie looks nothing close to it.

I have a possibly similar issue on my a450, the previous generation of this set: I've gone back and forth many times between Standard and Movie modes, and Standard is clearly more natural. Movie mode using Warm2 is yellowish and ugly. I have read hundreds of postings in the a450 calibration threads (as well as all of this thread), and while a minority of users report this yellowish cast in Movie/Warm2, most people don't see that, and get their best pictures with the Movie/Warm2 setting.

So my theory is that there is substantial variation among individual sets in the a450/b450 series. For most people, Movie mode gives best results, but a few of us have sets that need to be in Standard mode.

I won't get my b450 delivered for a week, and when it comes, I expect the usual Movie/Warm2 setting to work best, probably, but I sure am going to try Standard, as well.

Still no word fro Samsung. Bastards.

Dallows if you have a ticket#, call this number 1-800-522-7341 then hit 2. Its Samsungs ECR. Then ask them whats going on with your ticket, also you can have them transfer you to tech support

Is there likely to be any change in the picture with more hours of use (I am just putting the set to normal use, not doing anything special to "break it in"), or is there a particular one of Dan's settings that might be tweaked to eliminate this overlay, but without messing everything else up?

(I'm basing most of my impressions on watching over-the-air network TV HD broadcasting. I have an old, cheap DVD player and an even older Dish TV box; I need to upgrade both.)

Thanks to all who have contributed to this thread so far.

HP

If you have a brown overlay, you may want to reduce your R-gain and R-Offset a couple of notches to see if it improves. Or you can bump up the B-Gain and B-offset to see if that helps.

Yes, the TV does change slightly with age. I'll provide an updated calibration soon, now that I must have 1000+ hours on the set.

Dan

If you have a brown overlay, you may want to reduce your R-gain and R-Offset a couple of notches to see if it improves. Or you can bump up the B-Gain and B-offset to see if that helps.

Yes, the TV does change slightly with age. I'll provide an updated calibration soon, now that I must have 1000+ hours on the set.

Dan

I'll be eagerly awaiting your update:)

My set arrived today and looks fantastic! Dan, your settings (with very minor tweaking) look gorgeous. I'm only running in cable HD right now. Can't wait to see DVD and BluRay

Post your settings

I'm out of town for the week, but I'll post the settings when I get back. In the meantime, does anyone know the code to use a universal remote with this panel?

What settings should my TV be on for the first 100 hours? Trying to break it in since I will be gaming on it.

I've tried Dan's settings, but also dont look good on my display. Everything has yellow tint, and picture dont look sharp.

I dont have any calibrating discs/equipment so have to trust my eyes. Played around with contrast/brightness/colour/tint, but on all settings the yellows seems to bright, green also (your eye will keep on catching yellow objects while watching movie. How do I change/adjust this?

Use Ps3 as BD player.

I've tried Dan's settings, but also dont look good on my display. Everything has yellow tint, and picture dont look sharp.

I dont have any calibrating discs/equipment so have to trust my eyes. Played around with contrast/brightness/colour/tint, but on all settings the yellows seems to bright, green also (your eye will keep on catching yellow objects while watching movie. How do I change/adjust this?

Use Ps3 as BD player.

I use these because I think we're experiencing the same thing in Movie/Warm2 mode.

I still have no idea how to calibrate contrast, lol.

Standard Mode - Calibrated using combo DVE and AVSHD Disc
Cell Light = 10
Contrast = 70
Brightness = 47
Sharpness = 50
Color = 40
Tint = G47/R53

Black Tone = Off
Dynamic Contrast = Medium
Gamma = -1
Color Space = Auto
White Balance = Default
Flesh Tone = 0
Edge Enhancement = Off

Help! I'm not getting sound through HDMI. I have tried all three ports and on each one I am only getting picture without sound. I even tried hooking up a different cable box and used a different HDMI cable and still no luck. My cable box is a Scientific Atlanta 4250 HDC box.

So for right now I'm using component cables until someone can help me figure this out or if I need to get a brand new set.

ghostfacekilla I found this link it might help, maybe:confused:

http://www.highdefforum.com/high-definition-lounge/64713-sci-atl-4250hdc-hdmi-surround-sound-issue.html

I googled "Scientific Atlanta 4250 HDC box no sound hdmi". give it a try you might find something that way, just in case none of us here have your cable box. I have DirectTV sorry

Thanks for your help but I found that site as well using google and it didn't really help out at all. I made sure the sound was set to HDMI on my cable box and nothing happened.

I've tried Dan's settings, but also dont look good on my display. Everything has yellow tint, and picture dont look sharp.

I dont have any calibrating discs/equipment so have to trust my eyes. Played around with contrast/brightness/colour/tint, but on all settings the yellows seems to bright, green also (your eye will keep on catching yellow objects while watching movie. How do I change/adjust this?

Use Ps3 as BD player.

Must be unit to unit variation. There really should be no difference in sharpness from movie mode to standard mode, but I do notice excess edge enhancement at a setting of 50. 20 works well for me. Make sure you aren't seeing an overly sharpened image with the default of 50 in the standard mode. I think the default is 20 in movie mode.

What are your white balance settings for green? Reducing the color setting a couple of notches may help your problem a little.

Dan