I just bought my TH-42PX60U today from bb. Can someone explain what I should do about the burn in period. Please explain.

I need a good surge protector. Does anyone know about J&R "HT1010SAT3?

The DVI-HMDI cables. Do you use them from the cable companies digital converter box to your plasma? and from your DVD player to your plasma?

Does someone have the initial settings for this model?

this thread is 42 pages. Can someone point me to the break in procedure...is there one that is better than the 2nd post in this thread? I am debating plasma vs. LCD still, so I wanted to read up on break in because i am about 99% sure I am getting a Panasonic plasma later this month.

Hi, I am new here ! I have few question about plasma TV. I just bought a new plasma TV LG 42px4rv

1. I prepare this Plasma TV for playing next gen console (well gamespot recommend a HDTV for next gen console) , but then I read article about "burn in" effect and I should not playing games in plasma TV, is that true ?
2. when I in mood I can play about 3-4 hour a day usualy when playing RPG type games, but sometimes only 2 hour everydays, is it safe for me from "burn in" effect ???
3. Then what about wacthing sports channel maybe about 2 hour (if I watch a sports channel I do not play a game) ? is it safe ??
4. when I set the ratio from 16x9 to 4x3 I can see idle screen in both side, its has a possibility to suffer burn effect to ??
5. are the orbital mode to prevent burn in is useful ??
6. Can I forget all the worry about "burn in" with my wacthing habit ?

sorry for my bad english,
regards

Hi, I am new here ! I have few question about plasma TV. I just bought a new plasma TV LG 42px4rv

1. I prepare this Plasma TV for playing next gen console (well gamespot recommend a HDTV for next gen console) , but then I read article about "burn in" effect and I should not playing games in plasma TV, is that true ?
2. when I in mood I can play about 3-4 hour a day usualy when playing RPG type games, but sometimes only 2 hour everydays, is it safe for me from "burn in" effect ???
3. Then what about wacthing sports channel maybe about 2 hour (if I watch a sports channel I do not play a game) ? is it safe ??
4. when I set the ratio from 16x9 to 4x3 I can see idle screen in both side, its has a possibility to suffer burn effect to ??
5. are the orbital mode to prevent burn in is useful ??
6. Can I forget all the worry about "burn in" with my wacthing habit ?

sorry for my bad english,
regards

Well, I'm sure you'll find after reading through the various posts on this forum and thread in general that burn-in is an extremely rare occurrence with the latest generation PDPs.

With that said, I have modest gaming habits (maybe 1-2 hours every other day) mostly playing Halo 2 and have not ever noticed any problems with my plasma. I will add that I have committed myself to watching almost an equal amount of 16:9 programing (mostly Disc-HD) after any gaming session, or even after watching ESPN-HD (man I hate that static symbol).

I am not neurotic about the TV, I figure that if burn-in was as serious as people worry about, that Panasonic would have included break-in recommendations for their most current displays. Yes, I acknowledge Panny's 2004 White Paper on breaking in PDPs...but it is already 2 years later with 2 generations of PDPs and presumeably increased resistance to burn-in. Bottom line for me is that unless you have your display in "torch" mode (vivid for Pannys), you should be okay once you adjust the Picture setting.

Lastly, I will add that I have noticed occaisional image retention if I turn the TV off after watching 4:3 content. The first time I saw this I was scared sh!tless and promptly turned the TV back on and watched Disc-HD for about 30 minutes. After I turned the TV off, there was no image retention. So for me, I make it a habit to always turn the channel to either PBS-HD or DISC-HD prior to turning off my TV. Since doing this I have not noticed image retention and hey, the last thing I see is a beautiful image, too! :D

One final note, I have NEVER seen any evidence of burn-in or image retention following a Halo 2 gaming session.

Well, I'm sure you'll find after reading through the various posts on this forum and thread in general that burn-in is an extremely rare occurrence with the latest generation PDPs.

With that said, I have modest gaming habits (maybe 1-2 hours every other day) mostly playing Halo 2 and have not ever noticed any problems with my plasma. I will add that I have committed myself to watching almost an equal amount of 16:9 programing (mostly Disc-HD) after any gaming session, or even after watching ESPN-HD (man I hate that static symbol).

I am not neurotic about the TV, I figure that if burn-in was as serious as people worry about, that Panasonic would have included break-in recommendations for their most current displays. Yes, I acknowledge Panny's 2004 White Paper on breaking in PDPs...but it is already 2 years later with 2 generations of PDPs and presumeably increased resistance to burn-in. Bottom line for me is that unless you have your display in "torch" mode (vivid for Pannys), you should be okay once you adjust the Picture setting.

Lastly, I will add that I have noticed occaisional image retention if I turn the TV off after watching 4:3 content. The first time I saw this I was scared sh!tless and promptly turned the TV back on and watched Disc-HD for about 30 minutes. After I turned the TV off, there was no image retention. So for me, I make it a habit to always turn the channel to either PBS-HD or DISC-HD prior to turning off my TV. Since doing this I have not noticed image retention and hey, the last thing I see is a beautiful image, too! :D

One final note, I have NEVER seen any evidence of burn-in or image retention following a Halo 2 gaming session. I played a DVD film maybe about 1,5 non stop with theatherical view there is a black bar on the top and the bottom still there is no sign of image retention, but still I am afraid of it. about ratio 4x3 when I set this ratio, the bars between side is a gray not a black (I heard that gray color is save even its can cure burn in), is that true ??? its safe ??

I played a DVD film maybe about 1,5 non stop with theatherical view there is a black bar on the top and the bottom still there is no sign of image retention, but still I am afraid of it. about ratio 4x3 when I set this ratio, the bars between side is a gray not a black (I heard that gray color is save even its can cure burn in), is that true ??? its safe ??

Well, you haven't mentioned how new your display is, but since you're a new member I'll assume your display is also new (<100 hours). Like most people here, I abstained from watching ANY content that did not take up the full screen (ie, use stretch, or just modes on 4:3 content and zoom on 2.35:1 scope aspect ratios) for the first 100 hours with contrast tuned to 50%. After that period, I haven't really worried about it.

Some people will be a little more retentive about what they watch and how they watch it, but it's a freakin' TV in the end...it's meant to be watched! Don't be a dumb-ass and leave the same thing on for hours on end with the contrast and brightness turned all the way up, and you should be fine. As the manufacturers themselves say, use common sense. If your body starts getting tense from all the gaming or lack of movement from watching your TV...take it as a sign you're not only abusing your TV but your body too! Turn it off and go outside!!! :D

I wouldn't worry too much about image retention. The plasma is most susceptible during it first few 100 to 1000 hours. You can reduce the susceptibility by calibrating your set with AVIA to reduce the brightness levels. But even if you do see some image retention, you just run some normal TV fully stretched for a few minutes and it will go away.

I"m hoping someone can suggest a solution to my situation.
My set seems to still be relatively new since image retention happens quite frequently. However, the previous owner did a brilliant job of watching 4:3 programming all the time so the set has a slight "mark" of a line that extends vertically where the original 4:3 programming picture ended and the grey/black area began.
I've been told by Pioneer that if I watch enough full screen programming that this will eventually go away.
Any other suggestions? This is definitely not ordinary image retention and seems to be more of a "burn in" type of effect.
Thanks!

When I called Fujitsu support, they are saying that I sould "never" watch dvd in widescreen letterbox format because it will cause burn in. That doesn't make any sense to me. A $5000 Tv is cannot handle widescreen dvd's?? Also, Do you really think 100 hours of break in period is necessary?

When I called Fujitsu support, they are saying that I sould "never" watch dvd in widescreen letterbox format because it will cause burn in. That doesn't make any sense to me. A $5000 Tv is cannot handle widescreen dvd's?? Also, Do you really think 100 hours of break in period is necessary?

Fujitsu tech support stated that you should never watch widescreen movies. I wonder what they were smoking? If that is indeed the case, maybe Hollywood should stop making widescreen movies. I am sure that all of the major studios will stop everything at once and change. That sounds like a lot of BS to me (IMHO, of course).

I receive this email today from Panasonic regarding the burn in period

Thank you for your inquiry. If you are trying to avoid burn in please be
aware that times may vary depending on contrast, picture, brightness, and
color settings. Any static image that is displayed on the screen for an
extended period of time (extended meaning more than 15% of the total
viewing time per week, or an hour of viewing time per day using the
maximum settings) has the potential to cause burn-in. Burn in can be
easily avoided so long as you use common sense when it comes to your
plasma TV. Don't pause video games or watch TV stations with station
logos on-screen for long periods of time, and use one of the many display
calibration DVDs available today for properly setting brightness and
contrast.

Thank You,
Panasonic Consumer Support

Any chance of burning in on one of these sets?im a heavygamer, and love to use my pc as a display aswell.

im really scared of burnin, myonly other option is a sony rear pro lcd,though id rather go the plasma, please give me some advise

any plasma will have the risk of burn in. supposedly the newer ones are a bit better but still advise you not to leave an image on screen for extended periods. so if you're using it as a pc monitor you are taking a risk. you can be diligent and always time your sessions and then rotate type of material being displayed to prevent burn in.

if you plan on major pc time,game time and watching any type of programming without worry of burn in lcd would be the ticket. there are some really good lcd's on the market and better one's coming down the pike.

why is the sony model your only other choice?

threads merged

thanks but im really liking the new sets,thus the reaosn why i dont want to go lcd, plus plasma viewing angles, and blacks still are better to me.....

I will now only use the pc for gaming,, and watching movies, no desktop for extended periods, and also the 360/pd3 when it arrives........like i said i games alot, but from what others have said, hardcore gamers still hardly have any issues nowadays?

Hi, I am hoping someone can please help me with a problem with our plasma tv. We have a year old phillips plasma tv that is suddenly displaying a horizontal flickering black line approximately halfway down the screen. This happened after the tv had been on a while, and when we turn it off and let it rest, and turn it back on it does not appear until the tv has been on a while and it appears again, a horizontal black line that is flickering. We tried unplugging and plugging back in all the connections, with and without the cable box, the dvd player, etc. Any info would be greatly appreciated! Thank you -

TV Question; there are many things that could be, it could be on the video boards shorting when it warms up, it could actually be the electrodes on the glass itself....either way, it is not going to go away and it is not going to get better. I would get it serviced as soon as possible.

Phillips contact info: Consumer Contact: For more information, contact Philips at (888) PHILIPS [888-744-5477] anytime. When you call this number, an automated voice attendant will ask you to say or enter a “Priority PIN number.” Please enter the numbers “4445” and you will be put in contact with a Philips representative who will assist you. Consumers also can go to the firm’s Web site at www.philips.com, or write to Philips’ at V.P. Service, Philips Consumer Electronics North America, 64 Perimeter Center East, Atlanta, GA 30346

Hi I bought a Pio 5060 HD three months ago, just recently I have burn-in on the screen this week, was wondering how I can fix it? I had a tv show paused for 5 minutes tops and it burned it into the screen :( . Please help. thank you

Can someone please explain what an ISF calibration is and how do u do one by yourself?

Can someone please explain what an ISF calibration is and how do u do one by yourself?
For more information on this you should look through the calibration section of the forum and search for things in there. As far as I know an isf calibration is done through the service menu with a variety of tools that measure color, grayscale, and other stuff I guess. It takes good knowledge of your TV's service menu and I'm guessing the tools and time it takes to learn how to use them and navigate the TV service menu would cost much more than just hiring someone to calibrate it. I have never had one done, as my TV isn't good enough to bother. But when I do get a nice TV I would think that it would be worth it. Although if it's too much money you could always try to calibrate as much as you can through your TV's menus with the help of a calibration dvd. Though I found my calibration dvd to be mostly over my head it really helped me adjust brightness, contrast, red push, and sharpness on my direct-view crt (I also did a few hours of studying and made some minor adjustments to the sets geometry in the service menu which you don't have to worry about since you have a plasma). DVD's look much much better after even that simple adjustment. I think that since you are spending a lot of money on the plasma why not get it calibrated?

Hi I bought a Pio 5060 HD three months ago, just recently I have burn-in on the screen this week, was wondering how I can fix it? I had a tv show paused for 5 minutes tops and it burned it into the screen :( . Please help. thank you

Try turning your set onto snow for a period of time, sometimes it takes 10 minutes sometimes it takes an hour, but that should cancel out slight IR

I've had a Pioneer 4360 HD since Feb. and after watching the NCAA basketball tourney ONE night in March in 4:3 ratio I had lines where the side bars had been. Very frustrating to say the least. And its there forever. Had warranty guys pick it up and do a white screen on it or whatever and it still didnt work. Pio said no way on replacement of course so now im stuck with it. Not sure if burn-in would have helped but my question is should I still do the burn in for 100 hrs with that burn-in DVD via that link on this site?

Heres what I don't get, and its sort of ticking me off.

You guys with Plasmas sit there and say "You'll be fine as long as you don't abuse it."

Playing Halo (static HUD) is NOT abuse. All night gaming sessions while drunk with your buddies is NOT abuse. Thats what TVs are made for. To sit there and respond to reports of video game burn in "Oh, you'll only get burn in if you abuse it" is obnoxiously stupid.

I am a gamer. I don't watch much TV except House, Lost, and Survivor. Other than that, when the TV is on it is playing my Xbox 360.

The humor in that post on like page 6 or 7 with regards to buying a Ferrari and being told only to drive it over 50 mph 20% of the time seemed spot on to me, despite there seeming to be some over-my-head sarcasm.

If I pay $3,000 for a television, I don't want to worry that the Madden scoreboard is going to burn into the screen or that the Halo life bar is going to burn in.

I love the look of the 37" Panasonic Plasma, and was going to buy it, but all this "If you get burn in while gaming, don't game so much" is scaring me off.

Once and for all: Is gaming on a plasma for extended periods time workable or not? I don't want a "If you do a little dance and a backflip, reset your TV, take it back to manufacturer to get breast implants, and then bring it home and continue your game" crap. I don't want to be told that I have to wait to view my TV for 100 hours before I can play games.

Out of the box can I game or not? Its simple.

Heres what I don't get, and its sort of ticking me off.

You guys with Plasmas sit there and say "You'll be fine as long as you don't abuse it."

Playing Halo (static HUD) is NOT abuse. All night gaming sessions while drunk with your buddies is NOT abuse. Thats what TVs are made for. To sit there and respond to reports of video game burn in "Oh, you'll only get burn in if you abuse it" is obnoxiously stupid.

I am a gamer. I don't watch much TV except House, Lost, and Survivor. Other than that, when the TV is on it is playing my Xbox 360.

The humor in that post on like page 6 or 7 with regards to buying a Ferrari and being told only to drive it over 50 mph 20% of the time seemed spot on to me, despite there seeming to be some over-my-head sarcasm.

If I pay $3,000 for a television, I don't want to worry that the Madden scoreboard is going to burn into the screen or that the Halo life bar is going to burn in.

I love the look of the 37" Panasonic Plasma, and was going to buy it, but all this "If you get burn in while gaming, don't game so much" is scaring me off.

Once and for all: Is gaming on a plasma for extended periods time workable or not? I don't want a "If you do a little dance and a backflip, reset your TV, take it back to manufacturer to get breast implants, and then bring it home and continue your game" crap. I don't want to be told that I have to wait to view my TV for 100 hours before I can play games.

Out of the box can I game or not? Its simple.

Your post is interesting in that it seems you've read through most of this thread, going so far as to cite pages from the thread. That being the case, you should have gathered the basic feel for the thread, namely that burn-in happens, but is a rare occurrence. Or at least that's my feel from this thread.

Can you game on it out of the box? Sure.

Will you risk burn-in? Maybe.

I agree, playing Halo is not abuse, but if you don't understand how the technology works, don't buy it. It seems to me that properly aging the phosphors when the set is new is critical. Is waiting 100 hours too much for you to take without playing Halo? Only you can answer that.

Is it worth properly aging your phosphors? Yes, it's that simple.

Can you cheat and play Halo right out of the box without worrying about burn-in? YES!!! If you're as avid a Halo player as you claim, then your alternative is to find the "blind" skull on Outskirts.

I have a panny plasma and love it. I game on it without problems. I watch DVDs without problems (with 2.35:1 aspect). As has been repeated ad nauseum, don't use the "vivid" aka torch setting, turn down the Picture and Brightness and you'll be fine.

In the end if you can't live with the uncertainty, buy an LCD.

Some games HAVE static images and thats unavoidable. From what I'm seeing, 2-3 hours is the max recommended time for "static" images at once. If you understand the mindset of a Halo addict, 2-3 hours is nothing. Depending on my homework load or work schedule in the evening, or even on a boring Friday night, its not unreasonable to put 5 or 6 hours at once into multiplayer. Thats 5-6 of static images.

From reading through this thread, it seems that even AFTER the 100 hour break in time, 5-6 hours of static images will cause burn in.

I mean, I loved the look of the Panny 37". But I'm 19 years old; I'm not made of money. I don't want to buy a $2,000 piece of equipment only to be told that I can only game at certain times when the moon is in alignment with Mars and the Werewolves destroy Seattle. I don't want to be so happy playing my Xbox 360 on my new $2,000 TV only to turn the 360 off and find that the score board of the Madden CPU blowing me out 42-0 is burnt in.

I still think the Ferrari analogy is a good one: Would you want to buy a Ferrari if you were told that theres a good chance the car will blow up everytime you hit 75 mph for an extended period of time?

What am I missing here? Are Plasmas not the ideal choice for gaming?

What am I missing here? Are Plasmas not the ideal choice for gaming?

Plasmas are not ideal for gaming. Go with LCD for hard-core gaming.

Hi ,
I'm a newbie to plasmas and Hd. I posted in another thread. The incorrect one. I'm hoping for a little advice. I've been reading through this and various threads and learning quite a bit.
I am leaning toward getting a 50" plasma tv. Either a Panasonic or Samsung. I liked the Panasonice better because it seemed to have better stretch modes. Anyway, I don't really play that many video games. I do watch a lot of SD tv and DVD's. Of course I will watch some HD too. I am concerned about the bars in dvd movies and the bars in SD modes when not stretched. Is the risk of burn in really that bad? I have to admit I'm more of a turn on the tv and watch than a maintenence kind of person. If I have to really watch myself with the tv I may be better suited for just a 36" regular tube tv at this time. Usually if I put on a dvd late then I'll put in on repeat so it doesn't get stuck on the menu.
Thanks in advance!! :)

Plasmas are not ideal for gaming. Go with LCD for hard-core gaming.

I agree 100%, get an LCD if you want to just turn it on and game your brains out without worrying about burn-in.

But to Cutty I wanted to comment that you claim to game for 5-6 hours straight playing halo matchmaking. Certainly I agree with you that is not uncommon for halo players, but you are wrong about having 5-6 hours of static images (HUD, and reticle). Remember, unless you are a level 50 or something you DO die (quite often likely), and during those 5-15 second respawn times the HUD and reticle disappear. Pay attention next time to the postgame carnage stats to your average life stat. For a 10-15 minute match you WILL die and thus your average life is likely to max out at 2 minutes.

And don't forget those times when you are waiting for a matchmaking to happen (sometimes this can be excruciatingly long...) when there is no HUD or aiming reticle. Of course for those times you do have other static images, don't get me wrong...but I combat them by changing the channel and turning back when the match is ready to start.

In the end, if all you want is a gaming monitor...your best bet is to go LCD and you won't have to bat an eye at burn-in concerns.

I WILL watch high def programming on it, but sometimes when I don't have any homework (rare in college) and don't feel like going out, I just want to boot up my Xbox 360 and play. I love my FPS and TPS (Halo and GRAW) and RPGs and meh...

I guess I'll just go with the Samsung LNS3251D. The quality is damn good and I won't have to worry about burn in.

Although the picture on that Panny was f'ing beautiful...grrrrr. Decisions!

Cutwolf,

Oh, how times have changed! When I was in college, I was mostly concerned with getting drunk (usually successful) and getting laid (rarely successful).

Now that I am older and have more $, I have spent over $10K on my plasma and other A/V equipment. Problem is, with two kids under two years old, I have about 1/2 hour a day to my self to enjoy it!

Go with the LCD and put your mind at ease. Oh, and please have a beer and a couple hours of HALO for me.

Although I'm curious...we currently have an older 61" projection TV in our living room at my parents house. How likely is a plasma to burn in relative to those older projections (this one does support HD, but its not as good of quality)? I'd venture to say the set is 5-6 years old.

I gamed a lot on that, but the only burn in on it is from leaving the DVD logo on the screen overnight.

If the plasma is less likely to burn in than those older TVs, that would put me mind at ease.

Blue, if you are a casual TV user, plasma may not be for you. Don't blow your money but buy what is right for you. The guy who watched a NCAA basketball game in 4:3 and have those permanent lines is a perfect example. Plasma TV requires proper maintanence. One salesman told me that burn is not an issue anymore, but then why are people still reporting problems? Like one guy said, Plasma is a technology that must be understood before a purchase. It is not for everybody. We are still few years away from making the full HDTV transition. What we have now is an intermittent technology. Buy an LCD tv and you won't have any burn in. If you don't care for the thin panel, get a regular tube, which is "mature" technology with no problems.

whats up guys im new to this board as member but have visited a million times before making my purchase last week i was worried about burn in im a gamer i play the fps on the xbox anyways after all the reading on this board about plasmas lcds dlps and going to the local cc looking at these things i decided to go with the plasma i got the samsung hps 4253 with the burn in protection feature and although im in my break in period this tv makes me smile every time i turn it on i am a gamer and watch more sports than anybody i know 2 things that may cause burn hoping with proper break in and anti burn protection of samsung i wont experience any burn in.....i donk know...i hope...

whats up guys im new to this board as member but have visited a million times before making my purchase last week i was worried about burn in im a gamer i play the fps on the xbox anyways after all the reading on this board about plasmas lcds dlps and going to the local cc looking at these things i decided to go with the plasma i got the samsung hps 4253 with the burn in protection feature and although im in my break in period this tv makes me smile every time i turn it on i am a gamer and watch more sports than anybody i know 2 things that may cause burn hoping with proper break in and anti burn protection of samsung i wont experience any burn in.....i donk know...i hope...

proper break-in is good, but don't overlook calibrating your set to reduce risk of burn-in even more. Enjoy your new plasma goodness :D

proper break-in is good, but don't overlook calibrating your set to reduce risk of burn-in even more. Enjoy your new plasma goodness :D
I just swapped out a Sony 50XBR1 that had numerous color problems for the Samsung HP-S5053 from CC. The questions I have (and they have probably been answered elsewhere on this thread), but since Im new to plasma, please bear with me. My questions concern Station Logos that stay on for the length of the movie being broadcast (for instance History Channel, spike tv, etc). How do you watch a 2 hour movie and avoid burn-in? In HD if the movie or program is letterbox how do you avoid burn-in of the top and bottom black bars? Any thoughts or previous experience would be helpful as the set is to be delived on Tuesday 5/23. Thanks, Jim

I just swapped out a Sony 50XBR1 that had numerous color problems for the Samsung HP-S5053 from CC. The questions I have (and they have probably been answered elsewhere on this thread), but since Im new to plasma, please bear with me. My questions concern Station Logos that stay on for the length of the movie being broadcast (for instance History Channel, spike tv, etc). How do you watch a 2 hour movie and avoid burn-in? In HD if the movie or program is letterbox how do you avoid burn-in of the top and bottom black bars? Any thoughts or previous experience would be helpful as the set is to be delived on Tuesday 5/23. Thanks, Jim

Pray

I just swapped out a Sony 50XBR1 that had numerous color problems for the Samsung HP-S5053 from CC. The questions I have (and they have probably been answered elsewhere on this thread), but since Im new to plasma, please bear with me. My questions concern Station Logos that stay on for the length of the movie being broadcast (for instance History Channel, spike tv, etc). How do you watch a 2 hour movie and avoid burn-in? In HD if the movie or program is letterbox how do you avoid burn-in of the top and bottom black bars? Any thoughts or previous experience would be helpful as the set is to be delived on Tuesday 5/23. Thanks, Jim

Honestly, I was also worried about channel logos before my Panasonic plasma arrived. However, after logging over 200 hours on my plasma, I think the risk of channel logo burn-in is low, especially with the HP5053 since it has pixel shift technology. I pretty much watch any channel I want and don't worry about logos and I've had zero problems with image retention of any kind. I watch DVD movies with bars top and bottom and have not seen any IR either. But I would not watch 4.3 programming all day without stretching or zooming the image. I also would not connect my PC to it all day without a screen saver. But other than that, I would stop worrying and enjoy the beautiful picture that plasma provides. You won't regret it, unless you do one of the things mentioned above that I would not do. :)

Light, translucent logos are OK, especially when they are over the picture. However, it seems to me that some channels want a very white, opaque logo; and when those logos are over the dark portion of the screen (when one is watching a letterboxed movie), I can see the potential for burn in. Too bad the plasma manufacturers can't (or won't) appeal to the channels to tune down (or even eliminate) those white, opaque logos. And as much as I would hate to see the feds involved, I wonder if the FCC could step in? I am probably going to drop a few $$$ on the 50" NEC next month, and I really don't want to even think of burning a logo onto the screen.

Honestly, I was also worried about channel logos before my Panasonic plasma arrived. However, after logging over 200 hours on my plasma, I think the risk of channel logo burn-in is low, especially with the HP5053 since it has pixel shift technology. I pretty much watch any channel I want and don't worry about logos and I've had zero problems with image retention of any kind. I watch DVD movies with bars top and bottom and have not seen any IR either. But I would not watch 4.3 programming all day without stretching or zooming the image. I also would not connect my PC to it all day without a screen saver. But other than that, I would stop worrying and enjoy the beautiful picture that plasma provides. You won't regret it, unless you do one of the things mentioned above that I would not do. :)
Thanks for the reply and information. Jim

Hello, I have a Panasonic TH-37PX60U with over 100 hours use, probably around 300 now. I did the normal 100 hour break-in period with contrast and brightness at 0 (realize now that I probably should of went lower). I noticed some image retention recenly when I first powered on my TV, but it would go away almost immediately. After further research, I turned on my TV w/o any signals, in a very dark room and I could see the manufacturer's input logo was retained in the upper left hand corner, "Comp. 1 CABLE" in this case. I then pressed the menu button and the menu image was retained after only 2 seconds on the screen. I've searched the forums and realize this is common/normal to a certain extent, but I have a couple comments/questions:

1. I realize that once I watch normal TV, this will go away, but is image retention supposed to be that obvious (in a dark room) and instantaneous?

2. Should I be worried? I have my contrast and brightness set at 8 and 12 respectively. I downloaded the break-in DVD, should I be so concerned that I should run that at this point?

3. Hopefully I being overly paranoid. This is my first plasma and I want to give it a fair chance. If this is normal, then ok, just climbing the learning curve.

Thanks.

Plasmas are not ideal for gaming. Go with LCD for hard-core gaming.

Nonsense. I'm as hardcore as they come gaming wise. I'm a gaming writer and I play my 360 and other consoles for hours upon hours daily. I have the Panny PX50U plasma display for almost a year now and I have ZERO burn-in. Absolutely no problems whatsoever.

Go for the plasma. There'll always be paranoid folks around to tell you how bad a decision a plasma is for gaming, but I'm living proof that it's complete horseshit. :D Not to mention you can find 20 gamers here right off the bat who have gamed on their plasmas for years with no issues.

Some games HAVE static images and thats unavoidable. From what I'm seeing, 2-3 hours is the max recommended time for "static" images at once. If you understand the mindset of a Halo addict, 2-3 hours is nothing. Depending on my homework load or work schedule in the evening, or even on a boring Friday night, its not unreasonable to put 5 or 6 hours at once into multiplayer. Thats 5-6 of static images.

From reading through this thread, it seems that even AFTER the 100 hour break in time, 5-6 hours of static images will cause burn in.

I mean, I loved the look of the Panny 37". But I'm 19 years old; I'm not made of money. I don't want to buy a $2,000 piece of equipment only to be told that I can only game at certain times when the moon is in alignment with Mars and the Werewolves destroy Seattle. I don't want to be so happy playing my Xbox 360 on my new $2,000 TV only to turn the 360 off and find that the score board of the Madden CPU blowing me out 42-0 is burnt in.

I still think the Ferrari analogy is a good one: Would you want to buy a Ferrari if you were told that theres a good chance the car will blow up everytime you hit 75 mph for an extended period of time?

What am I missing here? Are Plasmas not the ideal choice for gaming?

Don't listen to alarmists and their idiocy. I've seen it on this board a million times. If you read this board and don't actually own a plasma you'd think they were made of duct-tape and old tissues - honestly, I bought a 5,000 dollar display - I wouldn't do that if I thought it was so poorly designed that 5 minutes of watching a station logo was going to destroy it. People like the guy with the Pio who burned it after ONE night of the NCAA tourney? I have no idea how that could happen. I'll tell you this much - I've played Halo 2 for 6 - 8 hours straight on my Panny and NO BURN-IN -NONE!!! So, I can tell you from experience that Panasonic plasmas are incredibly well made. Other manufacturers - I can't speak from experience - but as for my Panny - hours and hours of gaming bliss - no burn in at all. :cool:

Oh, and no matter what anyone says about competing technology - nothing looks as good as plasma. It's got that little something extra that makes your eyes pop out of your head. Play Oblivion on my 50" PDP and you'll flip at the PQ.

Hello, I have a Panasonic TH-37PX60U with over 100 hours use, probably around 300 now. I did the normal 100 hour break-in period with contrast and brightness at 0 (realize now that I probably should of went lower). I noticed some image retention recenly when I first powered on my TV, but it would go away almost immediately. After further research, I turned on my TV w/o any signals, in a very dark room and I could see the manufacturer's input logo was retained in the upper left hand corner, "Comp. 1 CABLE" in this case. I then pressed the menu button and the menu image was retained after only 2 seconds on the screen. I've searched the forums and realize this is common/normal to a certain extent, but I have a couple comments/questions:

1. I realize that once I watch normal TV, this will go away, but is image retention supposed to be that obvious (in a dark room) and instantaneous?

2. Should I be worried? I have my contrast and brightness set at 8 and 12 respectively. I downloaded the break-in DVD, should I be so concerned that I should run that at this point?

3. Hopefully I being overly paranoid. This is my first plasma and I want to give it a fair chance. If this is normal, then ok, just climbing the learning curve.

Thanks.


Its posts like this that worry me.


Don't listen to alarmists and their idiocy. I've seen it on this board a million times. If you read this board and don't actually own a plasma you'd think they were made of duct-tape and old tissues - honestly, I bought a 5,000 dollar display - I wouldn't do that if I thought it was so poorly designed that 5 minutes of watching a station logo was going to destroy it. People like the guy with the Pio who burned it after ONE night of the NCAA tourney? I have no idea how that could happen. I'll tell you this much - I've played Halo 2 for 6 - 8 hours straight on my Panny and NO BURN-IN -NONE!!! So, I can tell you from experience that Panasonic plasmas are incredibly well made. Other manufacturers - I can't speak from experience - but as for my Panny - hours and hours of gaming bliss - no burn in at all.

Oh, and no matter what anyone says about competing technology - nothing looks as good as plasma. It's got that little something extra that makes your eyes pop out of your head. Play Oblivion on my 50" PDP and you'll flip at the PQ.

Will the lower resolution on the 37" and 42" make much of a difference when it comes to how games look?

Its posts like this that worry me. Will the lower resolution on the 37" and 42" make much of a difference when it comes to how games look?

First of all, again I'm amazed at that. Never happened to me - there is little to no IR at all on my TV and certainly no permanent burn-in. As I said I can only speak for my make and model, but I've had ZERO problems with my PX50U and I game all the time on it.

And yes, lower resolution will noticeably affect how your games look, but without a side by side comparison I can't say exactly how noticeable...

Hello, I have a Panasonic TH-37PX60U with over 100 hours use, probably around 300 now. I did the normal 100 hour break-in period with contrast and brightness at 0 (realize now that I probably should of went lower). I noticed some image retention recenly when I first powered on my TV, but it would go away almost immediately. After further research, I turned on my TV w/o any signals, in a very dark room and I could see the manufacturer's input logo was retained in the upper left hand corner, "Comp. 1 CABLE" in this case. I then pressed the menu button and the menu image was retained after only 2 seconds on the screen. I've searched the forums and realize this is common/normal to a certain extent, but I have a couple comments/questions:

1. I realize that once I watch normal TV, this will go away, but is image retention supposed to be that obvious (in a dark room) and instantaneous?

2. Should I be worried? I have my contrast and brightness set at 8 and 12 respectively. I downloaded the break-in DVD, should I be so concerned that I should run that at this point?

3. Hopefully I being overly paranoid. This is my first plasma and I want to give it a fair chance. If this is normal, then ok, just climbing the learning curve.

Thanks.

Let me elaborate by saying that I saw the above phenomenon at 10pm with all lights off, completely dark, I literally sat 7ft away and saw it. I checked it this morning and with minimum ambient light, it's hardly noticeable...but noticeable close up. I haven't done anything about it, like turn the TV on or anything (I will as soon as I get home today), but I'm assuming once I do it'll go away. I'm not trying to scare anyone nor am I panicing, at least not yet, I'm just getting it out there to see if I should panic. Like I said this is my first plasma so I'm learning as I go.

Let me also say that as far as I know, I did everything right; 100 hour break-in, stretch all 4:3 signals, used the DVE disk to calibrate contrast and brightness. And I don't play video games, my viewing habits are normal. As of now, I have no reason to think this is anything but normal.

Thanks for listening.

Hello everyone. I just purchased a Pioneer 5060 a couple days ago and have a couple of questions and concerns.

1)The set has less than 100 hours on it, what do you recommend for contrast settings and what not for a 5060. I searched and found 30 contrast so that is what I've been running it on.
2) I can see the Little Nemo Menu screen when i go to a light background , I am wondering if this is image retention or Burn In, How do i tell the difference. I fell asleep while trying to break in my TV while watching this movie.
3) Which Burner software should be used besides Nero to burn the break in disc?


I agree with alot of others in this thread who think its ridiculous to have to baby sit a 4k tv. I am considering taking this tv back and getting an LCD. I love the picture on it though so its hard for me :(

Does anyone know how to get to a plain white screen on a Pioneer 5060, so I can take a picture of this screen burn/image retention, whatever it is. Its really getting me upset.

Does anyone know how to get to a plain white screen on a Pioneer 5060, so I can take a picture of this screen burn/image retention, whatever it is. Its really getting me upset.

The break-in disk at the beginning of this thread has a white background. I decided to run it, and it just cycles through various solid color backgrounds in various increments.

Hello All,
I Need some help...
My family recently bought a ~42"Hitachi Plasma TV, and we have owned it for a few weeks, but I am not sure if it has reached the 100hr break in period yet...
-Yesterday I was playing a Gamecube game for about 2 hours
-Today I played the same game for about 2 hours as well... This game has the controls displayed statically on the TV about 95% of the time...
-I went to shut it off today, and left for about an hour or so.
-I then returned to the TV, and needed to disconect the console, and change input modes back to cable....so i was scroling through the menus to change input back to cable (so right now screen is all black with menu in the middle) And I notice at the top of the screen I can vaguely see outlines of those controls. I didnt notice it yesterday, but today I did.

So, can some one tell me if these are going to be permanent, or will they ever go away/is there anyway to get rid of them??!! They are not visible when the TV is turned off, only when on and the screen is all black...

Any help I can get will be amazing, This is my father's new $2,500 TV, and if I ruined it, I may as well kill myself, lol! Thanks so much in advanced!

EDIT After leaving it off over night, and letting it run today on various channels, I can't see the images anymore, so I assume it weas image retention... the "Image Temperature" is set at high, contrast/brightness etc set to ~50%, and as stated, total of two 2 hour sessions caused as stated above.
Thank you for replying to my post, it was just a very long image retention... at least I think... I have yet to look at it again durring night hours/dark-no (day)light.
Thanks Again!!

Hello All,
I Need some help...
My family recently bought a ~42"Hitachi Plasma TV, and we have owned it for a few weeks, but I am not sure if it has reached the 100hr break in period yet...
-Yesterday I was playing a Gamecube game for about 2 hours
-Today I played the same game for about 2 hours as well... This game has the controls displayed statically on the TV about 95% of the time...
-I went to shut it off today, and left for about an hour or so.
-I then returned to the TV, and needed to disconect the console, and change input modes back to cable....so i was scroling through the menus to change input back to cable (so right now screen is all black with menu in the middle) And I notice at the top of the screen I can vaguely see outlines of those controls. I didnt notice it yesterday, but today I did.

So, can some one tell me if these are going to be permanent, or will they ever go away/is there anyway to get rid of them??!! They are not visible when the TV is turned off, only when on and the screen is all black...

Any help I can get will be amazing, This is my father's new $2,500 TV, and if I ruined it, I may as well kill myself, lol! Thanks so much in advanced!

May be image retention. It is basically the same thing I'm seeing, TV on but no signal. It has to be fairly dark to see it though. My TV essentially retains the last image that was on there before being powered down, and it stays there until you watch TV again, so it's kind of a catch-22. But I downloaded the break-in disc at the beginning of this thread, burned it to a DVD-R (the Nero version), ran it for a while and all looked good.

I plan on running that DVD each night for a few minutes, at least for a while. I'd run it if I were you, then check if the images are still there. My happiness with my plasma wanes each day because I haven't gotten a conclusive answer on whether or not this is normal.

Good luck

UPDATE: I ran the break in dvd for 10 hours straight, and image is still there. Is there anything I need to do before running the dvd i.e. shutting the TV down for a while or anything? I hope I didn't just ruin my 4k TV. :(

Try turning your set onto snow for a period of time, sometimes it takes 10 minutes sometimes it takes an hour, but that should cancel out slight IR

Where can I find something in the settings on a 5060 to set it to snow? I've ran the break in dvd for 10 hours straight my image retention or burn in will not go away. Please help !!!

this thread is 42 pages. Can someone point me to the break in procedure...is there one that is better than the 2nd post in this thread? I am debating plasma vs. LCD still, so I wanted to read up on break in because i am about 99% sure I am getting a Panasonic plasma later this month.

Anyone? Bueller? The 2nd post says to turn down the settings...but how do I know how low to go?

I went ahead and ordered my TH42PX60U...

Here are the pics, please post your opinions!

http://img371.imageshack.us/img371/6058/nemo15xq.jpg (http://imageshack.us)



http://img371.imageshack.us/img371/518/nemo23fl.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Here are the pics, please post your opinions!

http://img371.imageshack.us/img371/6058/nemo15xq.jpg (http://imageshack.us)



http://img371.imageshack.us/img371/518/nemo23fl.jpg (http://imageshack.us)


You need to use the screen wash feature in the Service Menu. Goto the display calibration forum and look at the Bruzzi thread for details on how to access the menu.

BE VERY CAREFUL IN THE SERVICE MENU AS ONE WRONG ADJUSTMENT CAN RENDER YOUR PLASMA WORTHLESS

Uh...what the hell are we supposed to be seeing in that pic?


Edit: Oh, wow, I see it. Thats burn in? LOL. Wow, talk about overblown. I had to use similar technique to those magic eye puzzles to see it. I still can't see it in the first pic.

But still, that COULD get annoying I guess, once you know its there.

You need to use the screen wash feature in the Service Menu. Goto the display calibration forum and look at the Bruzzi thread for details on how to access the menu.

BE VERY CAREFUL IN THE SERVICE MENU AS ONE WRONG ADJUSTMENT CAN RENDER YOUR PLASMA WORTHLESS
Thank you for the fast reply. I found the service menu access code in the bruzzi thread but cannot find anything about a "screen wash". I used the search function and turned up 5 posts but nothing of any help.

Uh...what the hell are we supposed to be seeing in that pic?


Edit: Oh, wow, I see it. Thats burn in? LOL. Wow, talk about overblown. I had to use similar technique to those magic eye puzzles to see it. I still can't see it in the first pic.

But still, that COULD get annoying I guess, once you know its there.

Yes my fault, I should have circled or done something to show where they were. I didn't say it was burn in, I said i didnt know and wanted opinions. Im super glad if its NOT burn in.

Gents - need your thoughts on my burn-in(?) problem. My 4360 is less than 3 months old but when viewing any light colored image (TV or DVD) in stretch mode, the areas on the left & right (where the gray bars would be in 4:3 mode) are lighter in color than the rest of the screen. It is subtle, but you can definitely see the decreased brightness. This TV is only viewed about 2 hours per day and it is rarely, if ever, in 4:3 mode. And when it is in 4:3 mode it is only for a few minutes at a time.

The Pioneer repair guy said it is definitely burn-in and that there is nothing Pioneer will do about it. WTF? I also have a nearly 2 year old Pio 5045 and it has no problems whatsoever. Contrast and brightness on the 4360 were dialed-down when it was new. Hard to believe that despite babying the TV I already have a burn-in issue. Thoughts?

Is there any pioneer owners not having IR or burn in problems. It seems this is all I am seeing. I get mine next Monday and I am already worried. Hopefully it is just the minority having such problems but most people that are having the problems are dialing the settings down and not abusing their sets.

Also is there anyone that could send me a copy of the break in dvd-r I will pay ofcourse through paypal. I only have a set top dvd recorder. For some reason I am having trouble even downloading the file. Also what are some calibration dvd's I can get online or can someone point me in a direction on them.

thanks for your reply

Gents - need your thoughts on my burn-in(?) problem. My 4360 is less than 3 months old but when viewing any light colored image (TV or DVD) in stretch mode, the areas on the left & right (where the gray bars would be in 4:3 mode) are lighter in color than the rest of the screen. It is subtle, but you can definitely see the decreased brightness. This TV is only viewed about 2 hours per day and it is rarely, if ever, in 4:3 mode. And when it is in 4:3 mode it is only for a few minutes at a time.


Shouldn't 4:3 content burnin result in the center of the screen being lighter than that pillars bars on the left and right? Also, it sounds like you viewed all your 4:3 material with the grey bars and not the black bars. So, you should not have any 4:3 burnin in the first place.

If you are really seeing the pillar bars lighter than the rest of the image, it sounds to me like you were watching 4:3 content and at some point the signal went away leaving just black in the center and the grey bars on the left/right. If the TV was in this state for a long time (overnight, maybe), I can see it having the kind of burnin you describe.

I may be completely wrong, though :)

Shouldn't 4:3 content burnin result in the center of the screen being lighter than that pillars bars on the left and right? Also, it sounds like you viewed all your 4:3 material with the grey bars and not the black bars. So, you should not have any 4:3 burnin in the first place.

If you are really seeing the pillar bars lighter than the rest of the image, it sounds to me like you were watching 4:3 content and at some point the signal went away leaving just black in the center and the grey bars on the left/right. If the TV was in this state for a long time (overnight, maybe), I can see it having the kind of burnin you describe.

I may be completely wrong, though :)

When a pixel is black, it is essentially "turned off", or not being used. That's why 4:3 burn-in results in the pillar bar area being lighter, that area has gotten less use (or conversely the center area has gotten more use and is therefore more worn and dimmer). It is also why they tell you to use gray pillar bars, to give that area some use in 4:3 mode.

Picked this up from a friend and am wondering about its validity? It SOUNDS pretty easy!!

ski

<<hi guys!

To break in a plasma:

Immediately use AVIA to set contrast and brightness, then put on a 100 IRE FIELD (full screen pattern) and LEAVE IT ON for 50 hours.

By doing the above you will be burning off a small outer layer of phosphor and in the long run will help against burn in / image retention.

Happy viewing!!>>

What confounds me is that we NEVER watch 4:3 material, and the TV has never been left on overnight with ANY signal, let alone a 4:3 signal. Given the TV's low mileage, how in the hell can I be getting burn-in on the "pillars?" I have an open case with Pioneer regarding the problem so I will provide the forum with an update when I have something to report.

When a pixel is black, it is essentially "turned off", or not being used. That's why 4:3 burn-in results in the pillar bar area being lighter, that area has gotten less use (or conversely the center area has gotten more use and is therefore more worn and dimmer). It is also why they tell you to use gray pillar bars, to give that area some use in 4:3 mode.

Ah. NJow I see where I was confused. The terminology Brighter & Dimmer makes it much clearer. I was writing with the notion that lighter=dimmer. Oops :)

Is pioneer more prone to image retention or burn in.


Can anyone burn me a copy of the break in dvd.


?

Immediately use AVIA to set contrast and brightness, then put on a 100 IRE FIELD (full screen pattern) and LEAVE IT ON for 50 hours.

what is IRE? i was wondering if the old fashioned antenna snow was also considered a full screen break-in candidate? why not?

Nonsense. I'm as hardcore as they come gaming wise. I'm a gaming writer and I play my 360 and other consoles for hours upon hours daily. I have the Panny PX50U plasma display for almost a year now and I have ZERO burn-in. Absolutely no problems whatsoever.

Go for the plasma. There'll always be paranoid folks around to tell you how bad a decision a plasma is for gaming, but I'm living proof that it's complete horseshit. :D Not to mention you can find 20 gamers here right off the bat who have gamed on their plasmas for years with no issues

I am an owner of a Panny 50PX60U and I am not an alarmist. Cutwolf wanted a straight answer so I game him one IMO. Now I too have not seen any IR or burn-in on my 60U, but the Pio guy has definitely seen it and others have posted that they have seen it as well, so it can't be horsesh*t. Maybe Panny plasmas are less likely to burn-in than Pio, I don't know, but it does happen so you can't totally dismiss the possibility. Even the FAQ on the Panasonic website and the manuals mention the possibility of burn-in. So I still say that for hard-core gamers, meaning those that game more than a few hours a day, plasma is not ideal but I feel good knowing that gamers like you have not seen any burn-in.

I Have A Pioneer Pdp-505hd, About 4 Years Old. Im Getting A Bright Red Spot In The Upper Middle. External Fan Helped For A While. On Start Up Or Cool Down,no Problems.pio Replaced The Power Board, Same Problem. All Inputs Except For Black (no Input). Any Ideas ? OH THE BURST IS APROX 3 INCHES ROUND AT WORST. THANKS MIKE

Pray
Great reply. My wife thought it was hilarious. Anyway, we got the tv set-up and the HD is stunning and the SD is not bad at all. Some channels better than others. I called Samsung support and their words were exactly "Dont be paranoid over possible burn-in and enjoy the tv. So far with the brightness and contrast reduced to an acceptable viewing level we have not restricted our viewing. So far, No IR or burn-in. The set has pixel shift (which is on) and also has white screen and signal pattern to prevent burn-in. Hopefully I wont screw up the tv at some future date.

I had purchased this plasma for almost a year now. Tonight, I noticed large sections (bottom half) would look distored, and show the burn-in images of the stations I watch most...I went through some settings on the remote no change. I tried a DVD, and that had the same issue as the satellite. I powered off the Plasma no change. I then powered off the pioneer media box, and that seemed to clear it up for about 10 minutes, then it started to come back.

Is this some what common? Is the media box going out? Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

No comments? I guess, what I describe, is there a "term" for it? To help me do a search on.

Thanks,

nick

hey there guys im a noobie when it comes to plasmas but here is my question and i appoligize if it has been asked before. i have a samsung hps4253 love the tv and im just going through the initial break in period and wondered about widescreen dvd's could this cause a burn in the screen or i r just wondering if you guys get widescreen or fullscreen versions of dvd's and if you do get the fullscreen on a 16.9 is displayed in widescreen format just filling up the whole screen???

I have a 4340 and have never seen anything like this on mine.

It sounds like burn-in or image retention. Especially since you say you still see the image while on other inputs, watching dvd's, etc. BUT, you then said you were able to make it go away.

Hard to tell what's really wrong.

If it is burn-in, what can you do about it? Just try to continue to enjoy the tv. Adjust the picture settings and see if you can minimize it.

Maybe others will chime in.

It might be best to view only full screen for the first 100 or 200 hours.
Better safe then sorry.

i recently bought a Samsung LCD tv for my xbox 360, when i play some games on it (halo for example) it has black borders at each side because they dont support widescreen, can this damage my display if i play for too long?

i recently bought a Samsung LCD tv for my xbox 360, when i play some games on it (halo for example) it has black borders at each side because they dont support widescreen, can this damage my display if i play for too long?

lcd doesn't get burn in.

lcd doesn't get burn in.
LCD's can have burn in but its almost non existant.

i recently bought a Samsung LCD tv for my xbox 360, when i play some games on it (halo for example) it has black borders at each side because they dont support widescreen, can this damage my display if i play for too long?
I wouldnt worry about burn in from gaming on a LCD to answer your question.

Just got my new Samsung HP-S4253 and running the "Break in DvD" provided in this thread. Just wondering what kind of settings should I have the contrast and brightness at. I have them both set at 20 for now.

Thanks in advance and awsome forums btw.

Just got my new Samsung HP-S4253 and running the "Break in DvD" provided in this thread. Just wondering what kind of settings should I have the contrast and brightness at. I have them both set at 20 for now.

Thanks in advance and awsome forums btw.
Those are pretty low settings, won't hurt anything, just slow down the process a little.

Well, I know there is some burn-in, but don't really notice it while on.....usually notice it when turn-off. It is odd, because it will be the bottom half of the screen, only. A very disctictive line...and it seems almost 3D movie ish....I might see the greens or reds really dominate in that area.

I guess is there any maintenance that is supposed to be performed on the plasma or the media box. (I can't recall what it is called).

Is Cambryn still working at tvauthority? I got it from her, I'll try giving a call tomorrow, see what the reccomend. Thought I'd try here over the weekend, since it just started happening the last couple days. BTW it is about 11 months old.

Any reccomendations on which extended service to get? That covers the Plasma and the media box.

Negative. Read the burn in master thread.

I'd do two things. First, calibrate your set. Your brightness settings are probably on torch mode which means that the light colored tv logo is bright enough to burn an image into your eyeballs and is leaving some image retention. Proper calibration will prevent image retention.

Second, I'd run regular TV on a channel that doesn't use a logo on a fully stretched screen for several hours to even everything out. Then I would go back and look for evidence of image retention.

Yeah, I have calibrated it, and from day one, hasn't been on "brightness" mode. I have used both Avia and DVE....I'm ok with some of the retention, I do xbox and tend to watch law in order much of the time...so I get the USA logo...

The new thing, seems to be more of a 3D looking haze usaully affecting the lower half of the plasma....not the whole screen but from about midway down. It is almost like looking at one of those 3D images, without the 3D glasses on.

I'll have to see if I can capture it with the digital cam....and see if I can upload a pic, so you can see what I'm talking about.

Hi Everyone -

I'm all set to buy a 50px60u this week, but reading the last 30 pages of this thread is a bit scary!

It seems to be very split with people either getting burn in after watching an hour of TV.. or seeming to be able to do anything without a hint of image retention.

I've learned a lot and definitely plan to 'follow the rules' (break in DVD, no 4:3 or static images during the first 100h, very low contrast, brightness, sharpness).

However, in reading these posts I'm seeing "The CBS logo is burned in", "The FOX Logo is burned in", "The ABC Logo is burned in", "The FOOD NETWORK logo is burned in", "The ..." well, you get the point :p

I don't plan on watching TV on the.. TV.

I really only plan on using it for Movies and occasion videogames (maybe a few hours a week - definitely not more than an hour or two at a time).

Is "TV Logo" burn-in the primary cause of burn in, or should I be worried about any signal coming into the tv?

One issue that has me worried now, the majority of my DVDs are 2.35:1 and would leave some form of 'black bars'. Since I'll mostly be using it for movies (probably 90-95% of the time), is this going to be a big issue? I will definitely use other ratios (4:3 stretched, 1.85:1, etc..), but going through my collection, most are 2.35:1.

I also see people saying theyre seeing burn in from the TV input display (the "Video 1") - is this display something that can be disabled/turned off on the Panasonic line?

Maybe I'm just getting paranoid here - It's a big purchase, and I will definitely take care and follow all precautions, but I just want to make sure that this won't be a mistake I'm making.

I had purchased this plasma for almost a year now. Tonight, I noticed large sections (bottom half) would look distored, and show the burn-in images of the stations I watch most...I went through some settings on the remote no change. I tried a DVD, and that had the same issue as the satellite. I powered off the Plasma no change. I then powered off the pioneer media box, and that seemed to clear it up for about 10 minutes, then it started to come back.
That doesn't sound like burn-in, burn-in would still be there as soon as you turn it on again rather than showing up 10 minutes down the line.

Could anyone send me a copy of the break in disc. I would compensate for the trouble to send it to me. My computer don't have a burner I only have a stand alone one. Please let me know I am getting my 5060 today.

Also I am getting both Avia and the new Digital Calibration disc, should I calibrate it right out of the box with the disc. When is the best time to use both of these. I was going to go with D-Nices break in settings but let me know.

thanks

However, in reading these posts I'm seeing "The CBS logo is burned in", "The FOX Logo is burned in", "The ABC Logo is burned in", "The FOOD NETWORK logo is burned in", "The ..." well, you get the point :p.
I've had the same set for about seven weeks. I used reduced "standard" settings for the first 100 hours, used "Just" mode for SD content...no logo image retention at all. I'm still using "standard" settings, but have adjusted the picture more to my liking. It's a great set, don't worry about something that'll probably never happen...

thanks for all the replies :) i just wanted to be sure before i started playing 4:3 games on it

i have the burn in dvd and a quick question - there are black bars at the top and bottom when i play the dvd back on my dvd player -

is this the way it should be played on my panasonic 60u plasma for the burn in period ?? - i do not want to do this the wrong way

thanks in advance for your help...

dan
No, you should fill the screen using tv aspect adjustments.

Could anyone send me a copy of the break in disc. I would compensate for the trouble to send it to me. My computer don't have a burner I only have a stand alone one. Please let me know I am getting my 5060 today.

Also I am getting both Avia and the new Digital Calibration disc, should I calibrate it right out of the box with the disc. When is the best time to use both of these. I was going to go with D-Nices break in settings but let me know.

thanks
You won't need that break-in disc, as far as calibration, I would suggest you wait for a couple hundred hours leaving your contrast and brightness turned down to where it is still watchable, this will act as break-in period. I do have the break-in disc, but I only used it once, hust to see if it would work.

Its a wierd question I know, but my PDP is new and Im still in the babying it stage.
I left my Pio 4360 on for about 2.5 hourswith no signal (ie my cable box was off and so was my reciever) the TV was not in stand buy mode ..it was "on"..

will this produce "burn in" or with no signal with nothing being sent to the screen I am ok? (ie not making the screen darker or something)

Thanks for any help

You should be ok.

you must understand burn-in, in order not to to fear it grasshopper.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=608677

i guess "burn in" wasnt the fear so much as the initial break in period and didnt want to affect the "black/dark" phospurs so they would be more prevalent on the screen.
But i hope its just the lamp thats illuminating the screen and not the phosphors...

But i hope its just the lamp thats illuminating the screen and not the phosphors...

Plasmas don't have a lamp that's illuminating the screen. You're thinking of LCDs. In a plasma, the screen generates its own light. Think of it as an array of tiny fluorescent lights.

I've tried Evangelo's DVD and the one on dvdshrink for plasma break-in. I have a Panasonic 50PX60U. The BLUE screens do not appear to be blue while playing either disk. The pixels seem to be illuminated buy are very dark. The screens look fine on my PC. Anybody else have this problem?

Hi All,
I am picking up my first plasma (Panny 42" 8th gen) this morning.
Re: burn in and not viewing channels with logo in corner etc.

Surely 'normal' viewing of a channel with a logo in the corner (I am talking 2 hours max on the same channel before watching a different source) is not going to cause problems? Otherwise how is any new panel owner going to reasonably burn in his panel and not watch any channels with logo's at all.

Am I safe to watch these kinds of channels provided I am not sitting there for longer than a couple hours at a time without giving that channel/source a break?
I plan to use a burn in/break in DVD for the time I am not at the panel - See thread # 6230381

I've tried Evangelo's DVD ... The BLUE screens do not appear to be blue ... Anybody else have this problem?

Nope, blues look blue on my 50PX60U using the break-in DVD. I burned mine as an SVCD with Nero, and plays in my JVC DVD player without any problems.

I was at target looking at the LCD TVs and the guy working there said that he recccomends DLPs since the LCDs start to have screen burn after only 10 seconds of a still image. Is this true? I'm about to get the Phillips 32" 30XS955 which I also plan on using as a temporary computer monitor.

Thanks in advance for any help.

the sales person works at Target. there's your answer.

No. I have used my 42" philips to display still jpg artwork for hours on end. Clear as a bell when taken off the screen. Maybe he was refering to plasmas... but 10 seconds?

Well I definately won't get my TV from target, I'm best buy all the way, I just happened to be there for other **** and the guy crept up on me while i was looking at the TVs.

PS i just saw the burn-in sticky, sorry about this post!

ok thanks epluth.....thats pretty much all i needed to know......i think that guy was a jackass, like DieselClown said: the sales person works at Target.

LCD can’t get burn-in! The reason Plasma / CRT gets burn-in is because they are phosphorus-based and can retain an image permanently. DLP, SXRD, LCD, LCOS, etc… are not phosphorus-based and can’t get burn-in.

Jon.

ok im happy about that! im going to get my TV now!

thanks for the help

I have a Samsung 4252 Plasma that I got in November of last year and have used it for many purposes on fairly low settings, usually brightness is around 50 and contrast is around 50, for those that have Samsung plasmas and know what those settings are, these settings seem like a fair balance between being able to see everything on the screen and having too bright and causing burn in. I had no problems with any burn in that stayed on the screen after changing the channel for a while.

But I had my little brother come over and visit and play some video games on it and I made sure that the game wasn't left on pause or anything without any stationary objects or played for more than a couple hours at a time but ever since he left I have seen a little rectangle at the middle bottom of the screen. Its not visible when there is something on the screen but whenever the background is white in that area of the screen I could see it. Its not a solid outlined box either, its really just in the shape of a box and its a bunch of multicolored dots. I tried running the all white and signal pattern burn protection for hours trying to get rid of it but it wont go away. I also had the pixel shift feature ever since I got the plasma. If this wasnt bad enough just recently, a much larger image of multicolored dots now cover about a quarter of the screen and I don't even know where that came from, theres no reason for it that I know of.

My question to you all is, do you think there is something wrong with my television and I should call up Samsung? Its supposed to be covered under a 2 year warranty but im not sure if the warranty covers screen burn. Is there any other way that you guys know of that will get rid of it? Would running that burn-in patterns dvd now help at all? Thanks in advance for any advice.

Anyone have any suggestions? I have been running the white wash, rolling signal and the break in dvd linked on the first post of this thread but the burn is still there. Im starting to think its permanent and I need to contact Samsung cause this TV is less than 6 months old.

I'm fairly sure if you keep watching your TV the image will eventually go away. On my Pioneer, I had a pretty bad case of image retention with the side bars from the original idiot that owned the TV. Thought it was burn in but was told to just keep watching with a full screen, guess what? It's nearly gone. Yeah, it took several months but it's nearly gone. I'm guessing your's will probably go away much faster.

ever since he left I have seen a little rectangle at the middle bottom of the screen. Its not visible when there is something on the screen but whenever the background is white in that area of the screen I could see it. Its not a solid outlined box either, its really just in the shape of a box and its a bunch of multicolored dots. I tried running the all white and signal pattern burn protection for hours trying to get rid of it but it wont go away. I also had the pixel shift feature ever since I got the plasma. If this wasnt bad enough just recently, a much larger image of multicolored dots now cover about a quarter of the screen and I don't even know where that came from, theres no reason for it that I know of.

The multicolored dots might not be burn-in but rather an electrical problem. My sister had a purple colored rectangle appear on the screen and it turned out to be a bad circuit board that they were able to replace under warranty. Try and post a picture of what it looks like. I'd call for warranty service and let them tell you whether it's burn in or not.

this may have been covered already, but if you watch a dvd that does not take up the whole television screen, but leaves small, thin black bars at the tops and bottom of the tv, will they burn into the screen? how do i correct this problem?

this may have been covered already, but if you watch a dvd that does not take up the whole television screen, but leaves small, thin black bars at the tops and bottom of the tv, will they burn into the screen? how do i correct this problem?
Yes, this will burn into the screen if you watch with black bars a large percentage of the time. To be safe, make sure that you only watch stuff with black bars no more than 15% of your total viewing. The other 85% should be material that fills the whole screen. If you have burn-in from black bars, then cease watching any more black bar material. Watch only full screen material and it will eventually and slowly fade away. How long this will take depends on how much stuff you have watched with black bars.

Ideea for free:
Somebody can make a DVD with WHITE bars and BLACK middle to be played in a loop at night in order to corect the eventual burn in because of the black bars viewed during daytime TV.

The multicolored dots might not be burn-in but rather an electrical problem. My sister had a purple colored rectangle appear on the screen and it turned out to be a bad circuit board that they were able to replace under warranty. Try and post a picture of what it looks like. I'd call for warranty service and let them tell you whether it's burn in or not.

I was going to post some pictures I took with my digital camera but they were too large to include as attachments to this post so I guess I will have to retake them at a lower resolution or something. Anyways I was running the white wash and the rolling signal pattern some more and I could only see the faint outline of the little rectangular box in the center of the bottom in the first couple pictures I took and then all of a sudden the mass of multicolored dots in a weird shape showed up again just like before after a while. Its very strange I took some pictures of that too but I think your right and it may be a bad circuit board or something. I am going to call Samsung tomorrow and see what they can do.

I was going to post some pictures I took with my digital camera but they were too large to include as attachments to this post so I guess I will have to retake them at a lower resolution or something.One approach is to open the digital picture with a desktop tool like MS Paint and then save it as a JPG file which can then be displayed in an AVSF post (e.g.)

http://mysite.verizon.net/vzequg9f/underworld_blu-ray.JPG

They are already in .jpeg format but they are too large. Im going to reduce the quality settings on the camera and retake them.

They are already in .jpeg format but they are too large. Im going to reduce the quality settings on the camera and retake them.

If you are not good at using photoshop or other image programs to reduce the size of the image, make sure that you set the camera for a low resolution like 1.3 megapixel or something close.

Ideea for free:
Somebody can make a DVD with WHITE bars and BLACK middle to be played in a loop at night in order to corect the eventual burn in because of the black bars viewed during daytime TV.

I noticed that newer Pioneer plasmas default to gray bars for 4:3 viewing...a lot of people have complained, saying that they would prefer black, but it sounds like (from this thread) that the gray is much better in order to prevent burn-in.

nick916, I have just returned back from maternity leave-as of..today! I have been out for a few weeks due to the circumstance..

I'd like to reassure you that I'm here to help you out. Please do keep in mind there's nothing we can do about burn in(plus, its way past the return period), nor the manufactures or ext. warranties either. However, there are a few tricks I have learned from other experiences..not sure if it will help. But, I would like to talk to you more about this. If you have any questions please contact me. Iw ould strongly suggest to get Pioneer on it ASAP since you are on brink of your manufactures warranty ending. Hope all is well.
Cheers,
Cambryn

do these models have pixel shifting technology to prevent burn in as well as screen savers

do these models have pixel shifting technology to prevent burn in as well as screen savers

I could never understand how pixel-shifting is supposed to help prevent burnin. Unless, this "pixel-shift" moves a large portion of the full screen image around.

My understanding is that it just jitters the image by a few pixels. I can not see how this will help prevent burn-in of static image that are larger than a few pixels in size. For example, the 4:3 black bars. The pixel-shift will help reduce burnin right at the edge where the black bars end and the 4:3 image begins. But the rest of the screen is still all black even with the shifting. So, there is no gain at all, right?

What am I missing? It must have some benefit, since manufacturers are putting it on their PDPs and touting it on their boxes...

Hey guys. I barely watch TV programs and most time just watch DVDs. Most DVDs are in 2.35:1 aspect ratio and it leaves black bars on top and bottom on a 16:9 plasma. What could be done to avoid burn-in? Thx.

I just watched two for the money last night in 2.35:1 and all you have to do it change the picture size on the remote to zoom. You have like full, 4:3, cinema, and zoom. Click through and make sure it fills the screen whatever ratio you watch.

Hello All,
My roommate last night left the W5001C 50" Dell plasma tv on, and only turned off the cable box. which left just a blank screen on all night. for about 7 hours. what could that have done? any damage? is there anything i need to (or could) do now?

any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks so much.

I hate it when a uniform black image is burned into your screen.

So something bad really did happen???

Your ok. The uniform comment was in jest.

Note: There is a master burn-in sticky at the top of this forum. Lots of tips. Burn-in isn't an issue with newer plasmas along as you have enough hours on them (kinda like breaking in a new car).

So something bad really did happen???

lmao!!

I hate it when a uniform black image is burned into your screen.

Classic! ;)

Why don't /can't manufacturers pre-break-in the plasmas already?
Seems it would prevent someone from burning-in during the first 200 hours wouldn't it?
On a similar note,most stores have their display models showing some kind of loop the whole time they are on,essentially breaking them in.Would it be a good idea to purchase on of those models as they are already mostly broken in?

PANNY 600U does it have a SCREEN SAVER?????????????????????



Anyone know

I am looking to upgrade a 15 year old 50 " Pioneer RPTV to a 50" plasma TV. Based on what I have read in this forum, I still have several concerns about burn-in.
1) I use Comcast as my cable provider and listen to the music channels for several hours each day. The music channels use a fixed image which only changes the song title when a new song is played. The rest of the image remains the same. I am concerned that over time the music channel images will burn-in the phosphors.
2) I prefer to watch standard TV without the image being stretched. I am concerned that the bars on each side of the picture will burn-in over time.

Are these concerns valid? Is this going to be a serious problem for me if I buy a plasma TV? Is there a burn-in removal mode on a plasma TV? If so, how does it work? Does it work well?

Is any plasma brand less susecptible to burn-in than others?

Thanks.

search the burn-in sticky thread for your issues. It is a long thread that can probably cover any specific issue that you have.

If you have a surround system or even a 2.0 system hooked up to your tv through a receiver as opposed to using the plasma speakers then I imagine that you could tune to the music channel you want then turn the tv itself off, leaving the cable box on with its music feed to the receiver.

-Eric

Watching 4:3 format on a widescreen is not recommanded. Best thing is to use the Zoom function if you don'y want to stretch, but on Panasonics and Pioneers the Just, Justify, Panoramic or stretch modes, are pretty good and u get used to them very fast. It kind of defeats the purpose of having a widescreen tv if you still watch it in 4:3, imho....

Burnin is absolutely no concern , read the sticky on top of this page.

My wife and I listen to music through comcast all the time, Sometimes I just turn the tv off, other times I leave it on and I've not had one problem or concern with burn-in.

Is it fine to leave my LCD computer monitor for hours displaying a static image? Should I say good bye to screen savers? By the way, its an LG L1952TX screen.

Hi...

I hope someone can advise me.
I own a Pioneer PDP-436HD (in Japan) for the last 6 months and I run an X-box though the external tuner.

I just recently noticed that there are 3 vertical lines 2 on the side and 1 in the middle when there is a bright scene on TV.

I called the Pioneer tech. to come and have a look and we discovered that the lines are probably caused by the X-box menu. As I have previously mentioned the 3 vertical lines can only be seen during bright scenes.

The Pioneer tech person informed me that the burn-in will disappear over-time with normal usage if I don't display the X-box menu. He has also mentioned if I were to turn it to a channel where the screen looks like it's "snowing" and leave that for a long period of time, it will also remove the burn-in.

Is this true?

I have lowered the contrast and brightness, hoping this may help.

Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance.

pc

Ok, I have two 8UKs that I need to break in, but the search function is currently disabled and there are 47 pages here.

Is it still recommended that I burn markrubin's breakin dvd/svcd and let it run for several days?

Thanks.

You can do the break-in DVD/CD thing or you can just tone down Contrast and brightness and always fill the screen, also don't leave static images on for long. I just did the latter for a couple hundred hours and had no problems.

You can do the break-in DVD/CD thing or you can just tone down Contrast and brightness and always fill the screen, also don't leave static images on for long. I just did the latter for a couple hundred hours and had no problems.

I just turned down the contrast and brightness controls and zoomed 4:3 content for the first 100 hours and I have no burn-in problems. Now I am at 250 hours and use more normal settings but I still zoom 4:3 material and all is well.

I have the 42PD60U, and as near as I can tell, this set has no special features for preventing burn-in. I was unable to find any screen white-wipe, and the manual says nothing about pixel shifting. Does anyone know if this particular set has any goodies to save me from myself? At night I can get away with Picture 0 and Brightness 0, but during the day if I want to see anything I have to use Picture +7 and Brightness +5. That's on Standard setting.

Here's what I noticed with my old Philips 42PF7320. If I shut off the TV while the MSNBC logo was been on the screen for 5 minutes, when the TV is booting up again A DAY LATER, I see the MSNBC logo on the black screen during boot-up and on normal TV viewing. However it disapears within 10 minutes.

What i started doing is is not turning the TV off when there is a static image/logo on the screen. Just waited for a few commercials to roll, then shut off the TV. I have never seen the image retention since doing this.

The 42PF7320 has a media slot (we call it USB), and I used Photoshop to create 10 random noise patterns and saved them as JPG's. When I'm lazy and didn't want to wait for a few commercials to roll or just got done playing Xbox360 games with lots of static images, I just shoved the USB stick in TV, and set the sleep timer for 10 minutes.

I am about to purchase a plasma (Pioneer 4360), and I intend to use a break-in DVD for 100-200 hours before doing any serious viewing.

However, I watch a lot of ESPN/ESPN2, both of which constantly run a black ticker across the bottom of the screen as well as a logo in the bottom right. This ticker is NOT displayed during commercials.

If I watch these channels for several hours at a time, after the break-in period, should I expect to experience any permanent problems? I don't mind a few minutes of image retention after I switch channels, but I obviously want to avoid burn-in. I'm wondering if commercial breaks will alleviate the problem, since the ticker will never be on for more than 15 minutes at a time.

I keep hearing that burn-in after the break-in period is a non-issue for new plasmas, yet these forums seem to be full of people having problems, so I'm not sure what to think!

whiz41 if I was you I would use the Zoom function (your set will surely have one) to get rid of the black ticker along the bottom at least. That won't help with all the other logos and alerts and so on, but it will be a start. It will also help with the 90% of commercials that are for no apparent reason using black bars on the top and bottom for that cool 16x9 effect. Burn in can happen but the consensus on this forum is that it is most likely when the set is new. I had a 46in rptv for three years and I watched Fox News all the time, never had any burn in. If you have a copy of the movie Ice Age you will easily be able to check for any burn-in.

whiz41 if I was you I would use the Zoom function (your set will surely have one) to get rid of the black ticker along the bottom at least. That won't help with all the other logos and alerts and so on, but it will be a start. It will also help with the 90% of commercials that are for no apparent reason using black bars on the top and bottom for that cool 16x9 effect. Burn in can happen but the consensus on this forum is that it is most likely when the set is new. I had a 46in rptv for three years and I watched Fox News all the time, never had any burn in. If you have a copy of the movie Ice Age you will easily be able to check for any burn-in.

Thanks for the advice Jeff. I guess this is the the problem with plasma, but I hate the idea of cutting off the ticker and scoreboard, not to mention part of the picture, just so I can watch sports on my new $3000 TV...

General question about burn-in: is it caused more by the one-time duration of an image on the screen, or the percentage of the time that the image is there? In other words, which is worse for a plasma,
- Watching 6 hours of ESPN with a scoreboard and ticker, but broken up by commercials every 15 minutes, OR
- Watching a 2 hour DVD movie with black bars on the top/bottom of the screen?

(Assuming that the TV has been broken in properly). Thanks!

General question about burn-in: is it caused more by the one-time duration of an image on the screen, or the percentage of the time that the image is there? In other words, which is worse for a plasma,
- Watching 6 hours of ESPN with a scoreboard and ticker, but broken up by commercials every 15 minutes, OR
- Watching a 2 hour DVD movie with black bars on the top/bottom of the screen?

(Assuming that the TV has been broken in properly). Thanks!
to answer your question, burn-in is caused more by the percentage of the time that the image was there.

A more relevant example would be the following
2 hours of watching black bars and nothing else is worse than
4 hours of watching black bars and 12 hours of full screen content.

Bottom Line: If you watch ESPN with tickers for a couple hours, make sure you watch something else for several more hours.

OK, I've had some intermittent issues, and posted orginally on 5-29-2006. I'm still not sure what the issue is, I had the pioneer sent a service tech onsite, but the issue wouldn't happen. It's been over a week since the repair man was here, and it started happening again. mostly a gainy picture and the greens and reds will get fuzzy. I had emailed the tech a bunch of pics I took, thought I'd toss one up here, to see if anybody else has ran into this issue on a gen 5.

thanks,

Nick

a newbie question--sorry if it is already covered (this thread is just too gigantic to read)

my new panasonic-th42pwd will be hooked up on june 29. i would love to watch the remaining world cup games on it. however, since these games are on espn i am assuming it is a bad idea in the early days of the set. from what i can make out people urge easing the set in during its first 100 hours. is it feasible to do this for extended periods in the first 10 days so that i can at least watch the final? this would mean 10 hours a day at least for those first 10 days.

how would you recommend doing this? almost every tv channel seems to have fixed logos on it. after taking care of the contrast/brightness etc. would it be okay to throw in three super-long dvd's back to back with no black bars, mixed in with some hd programming every day?

Just turn down contrast and brightness and make sure screen is filled with picture. Watch other programs between games, if you do get a little image retention it will go away after watching other programming, besides ir will only be seen when there is no video being displayed.

I searched the thread and didnt find a reference to this but sorry if already mentioned.

Audioholics did a test in 2005 on various aspects of Plasma display performance, including a burn-in torture test. (link: http://www.audioholics.com/techtips/specsformats/plasmaTVperformance3.php )

Here is the good part for those too lazy to follow the link:
Test Methodology - ISF test technicians left a static video game (Half Life 2) menu image on each TV for a period of 48 hours to simulate a full weekend "burn". Post 48- hour observations were quantified and documented as: 1 = Not Visible, 2 = Barely Visible, 3 = Somewhat Visible, 4 = Easily Visible, 5 = Readily Visible and Clearly Defined. A subsequent 24-hour movie loop was then run in an attempt to "fix" any image retention caused by the static video game menu.

Test Results - After the 48-hour test, all LCD and microdisplay rear projection televisions scored a "1", as there was no indication of any image retention after the test period. Plasma, on the other hand, did show clear signs of image retention, with all displays scoring a "5" after 48-hours of displaying the video game menu. However, after running a movie loop on each plasma display for 24 hours, ISF testers could not perceive the previously retained images while watching video on the plasmas after the 24 hour "fix". As such, plasma's image retention score went back down to a "1".

I searched the thread and didnt find a reference to this but sorry if already mentioned.

Audioholics did a test in 2005 on various aspects of Plasma display performance, including a burn-in torture test. (link: http://www.audioholics.com/techtips/specsformats/plasmaTVperformance3.php )

Here is the good part for those too lazy to follow the link:
Test Methodology - ISF test technicians left a static video game (Half Life 2) menu image on each TV for a period of 48 hours to simulate a full weekend "burn". Post 48- hour observations were quantified and documented as: 1 = Not Visible, 2 = Barely Visible, 3 = Somewhat Visible, 4 = Easily Visible, 5 = Readily Visible and Clearly Defined. A subsequent 24-hour movie loop was then run in an attempt to "fix" any image retention caused by the static video game menu.

Test Results - After the 48-hour test, all LCD and microdisplay rear projection televisions scored a "1", as there was no indication of any image retention after the test period. Plasma, on the other hand, did show clear signs of image retention, with all displays scoring a "5" after 48-hours of displaying the video game menu. However, after running a movie loop on each plasma display for 24 hours, ISF testers could not perceive the previously retained images while watching video on the plasmas after the 24 hour "fix". As such, plasma's image retention score went back down to a "1".

I'm not a big believer in the burn-in hype...but posting this "test" really does little to inform the reader. Their lack of detailed methodology really prohibits any meaningful interpretation of their results. Were the TVs broken-in? What picture settings were used? Did results depend on particular manufacturer?

I understand the point you're trying to make, that image retention is real and readily corrected, while burn-in is exaggerated....but citing a poorly described experiment doesn't serve to support such a claim. Had this experiment actually performed a real burn-in torture test, i.e. burning in an image on a new PDP should have been an endpoint in the experiment with the variables being picture settings and time. This would certainly be more meaningful to all of us.

I got my citation wrong. Pioneer paid for the test and IDC conducted it. As far as I know IDC is reputable.

If you read the introduction of the paper they state that they went to national electronics stores and purchased TV's for testing. Results of all tests were averaged across display technologies tested.

The image retention test was only one aspect of the entire range of tests they performed.

Heres the link to the pdf file published by IDC:
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/pio/pe/images/portal/cit_3424/273087528Pioneer%20DTV%20White%20Paper%20-%20FINAL.pdf

I created my own break-in DVD (since I have a Mac and it seems none of these files will burn on a Mac). Basically, it's a DVD that displays the whole spectrum of the rainbow for a few seconds each, then loops. I made the resolution of the images 1024 x 720, so they fit the aspect ratio of my TV.

It displays, in order: black, grey, purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, red, and white, then loops back. Hopefully this works as a break-in solution because other solutions for Mac users are non-existant. :mad:

If it works, I'll upload it in an easy-to-burn format for all users.
I just burned a DVD from the ISO version of the file on my iMac with Disk Utility. It works just fine.

My Pioneer 503cmx, has the new york one, news logo, burned into the lower left hand side of my screen. my plasma is hooked to my PC, and i only noticed it when i swithed the PC desktop screen to a solid white. I am trying now to remove it.
on a second note, i pc and video game for hours and have never noticed that to be a problem.

I bought my 42" Plasma last July, and must have at least 1,000 hours. I have been careful about burned in. Is it OK now to treat it like any CRT or LCD and forget about burn in after all this hours. Thanks

Is burn in really a reality these days?? Is the 'break in'period still needed? I just got a panny pd60u and am curious how careful I need to be....(I read the FAQ, just want to know experiences of people who did not follow a strict break in period!)
See the pic from panny...
THanks

Is burn in really a reality these days?? Is the 'break in'period still needed? I just got a panny pd60u and am curious how careful I need to be....(I read the FAQ, just want to know experiences of people who did not follow a strict break in period!)
See the pic from panny...
THanks

Unfortunately (for me), it's a reality. I put parental control on my Cable Box, and the message blocking the show was left on for a couple of hours. It's now burned into the screen. BRAND NEW PANNY 60U!! :(

I just suffered burn-in on my 50" Panny 60u, so it's not a myth ;)

I set Parental control on my Cable Box, and the kids must have tried to watch a show that was not for them. The message stating that the show was blocked stayed on for a couple of hours, so now I see it on all white images.

I'm actually quite surprised this would happen after 90 hours of use, and only sitting on that image for 2. Oh well, I only have to look at that flaw in the middle of the screen for another 15 years.

Burn in..... real or myth? :p

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1963735,00.asp

"Burn-in," or permanent image retention: Mostly false The earliest generations of plasma TVs were prone to phosphor "burn-in," or permanent image retention, if a static image such as a network logo was continuously displayed for long periods. Recent tests reveal that today's plasma TVs can display static imagery for days with no sign of permanent damage. :rolleyes:

I found it interesting last night while watching Walt Disney's "Lady and the Tramp" (http://disney.go.com/disneyvideos/animatedfilms/ladyandthetramp/) on ABC HD, the network displayed a phosphor friendly (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phosphor_burn-in) station logo, :) which was nearly invisible during some of the more brightly lit scenes. There may be hope yet. ;)

Try running your panel for a few hours, with any source content that fills the screen and has no static images, to see if this mitigates the damage. Be sure to set your contrast, brightness and sharpness settings to a reasonable level.

Unfortunately (for me), it's a reality. I put parental control on my Cable Box, and the message blocking the show was left on for a couple of hours. It's now burned into the screen. BRAND NEW PANNY 60U!! :(Try running your panel for a few hours, with any source content that fills the screen and has no static images, to see if this mitigates the damage. Be sure to set your contrast, brightness and sharpness settings to a reasonable level.

Is burn in really a reality these days?? Is the 'break in'period still needed? I just got a panny pd60u and am curious how careful I need to be....(I read the FAQ, just want to know experiences of people who did not follow a strict break in period!)
See the pic from panny...
THanksI never followed a break-in period with my HP PL5000U (same as Panasonic 50PX500U) except for watching SD in 'Just' mode and varying my material. Almost since new I've run the set in Standard mode with the Brightness at +9, Picture (contrast) at +24, and the Sharpness at -15 (DVE calibration levels). I've had the TV since last October and have never had any issues at all. I have left static images on-screen for 15 minutes or so with no effect. I've never used it for gaming, etc.
My friend has a 60U and the picture is brighter than last year's 50U/500U series. It's possible that they get that by driving the screen a little harder which could make it slightly more prone to image-retention than it's predecessor, but I still wouldn't worry about it. I'm sure even halfempty, who left a menu on-screen for 'a couple of hours' will be Ok in time (not that I'd recommend this). Enjoy your new TV!

I just suffered burn-in on my 50" Panny 60u, so it's not a myth ;)

I set Parental control on my Cable Box, and the kids must have tried to watch a show that was not for them. The message stating that the show was blocked stayed on for a couple of hours, so now I see it on all white images.

I'm actually quite surprised this would happen after 90 hours of use, and only sitting on that image for 2. Oh well, I only have to look at that flaw in the middle of the screen for another 15 years.

wow...that is really too bad. My condolences.

My friend has a 60U and the picture is brighter than last year's 50U/500U series. It's possible that they get that by driving the screen a little harder which could make it slightly more prone to image-retention than it's predecessorWith their higher contrast ratio and given the 60/600U phosphors have the same life expectancy as their predecessors, it seems all too easy to run these panels with too high a contrast setting and increase the risk for potential image retention.

I never followed a break-in period with my HP PL5000U (same as Panasonic 50PX500U) except for watching SD in 'Just' mode and varying my material. Almost since new I've run the set in Standard mode with the Brightness at +9, Picture (contrast) at +24, and the Sharpness at -15 (DVE calibration levels). I've had the TV since last October and have never had any issues at all. I have left static images on-screen for 15 minutes or so with no effect. I've never used it for gaming, etc.Since you have watched your PDP using a very reasonable approach, it makes sense that you see no evidence of image retention on your display.

That's terrible news I was considering the Panny 58" 600!!
I think I'll go for the Sammy 57" LCD, for the extra 3000.00-3500.00 at least I don't have worry about burn-in issues!
Tim sc430.

I actually have the Contrast (Picture) set to anywhere between 4 and 12, which I consider low. I'm surprised that could happen in a couple of hours.

@Optivity... I'm playing the World Cup right now in HD, so hopefully things will get better.

BTW, how would I know whether I have burn-in or just image retention issues?

halfempty,

there is no way you could cause burn in with just 2 hours of use. I linked a test on teh previous page where they left a static image for 24 hours and were able to clear the image retention with 48hours of continuous use. Watching the world cup yesterday i got some serious image retention of the scoreboard on top that cleared up with just an hour or so of watching somethign else. same story after watching brazils match today. dont worry it will go away.

I'm actually quite surprised this would happen after 90 hours of use, and only sitting on that image for 2. Oh well, I only have to look at that flaw in the middle of the screen for another 15 years.

It will fade away and it won't take 15 years. I will probably take more like 15 hours of full screen usage.

You probably don't even notice it when you watch regular TV. It's probably only visibile when you have a full solid color screen.

Just relax and ignore that it's there. In a few months you probably won't be able to see it anymore.

Just got a Pioneer Pro-930HD last Friday, first day of the World Cup. I've probably watched about 2-3 hours of games each night, but have also watched other TV and a couple of movies. I just noticed today, while watching Mickleson blow the Open, that there is a faint ghost of the ABC/ESPN World Cup score bar near the top of the picture. Should I be inclined to think this is burn-in or image retention, the definitions of the two are still a little fuzzy to me.

Thanks,
Jon

I read so many of the old posts, but didn't read the recent ones to see that someone else has the same World Cup problem and it went away...sorry.

Is it advised to put a channel on that has no static image, and leave the tv on overnight to work on the 100 hours???

Also, what is a good setting for all the brightness and color stuff for the break in period (panny pd60U?

I have a question - I am looking at buying a used plasma tv and the description indicates

"There is burn-in on the screen as a result of a static image being displayed for a long period of time. The screen burn runs horizontally across the top of the screen and vertically down the left and right side of the screen. The screen burn is in the shape of a "bar" and is approximately 3-4 inches in width. The screen burn is evident when viewing a picture with a "light" colored background."

What are the chances of fixing this burn in or at least making it tolerable? Its a PIONEER PDP-42A3HD 42. Obviously i am looking at getting this "cheap"

I have a question - I am looking at buying a used plasma tv and the description indicates

"There is burn-in on the screen as a result of a static image being displayed for a long period of time. The screen burn runs horizontally across the top of the screen and vertically down the left and right side of the screen. The screen burn is in the shape of a "bar" and is approximately 3-4 inches in width. The screen burn is evident when viewing a picture with a "light" colored background."

What are the chances of fixing this burn in or at least making it tolerable? Its a PIONEER PDP-42A3HD 42. Obviously i am looking at getting this "cheap"

I would say that you might reduce the burn in a little if the TV has a white out setting, that turns the screen white and evens out the burn in, however, doing this would reduce the life of the screen and b/c this sounds like heavy burned in you will never be able to even it out completely. It all depends on what price you are paying for the TV.

Is it advised to put a channel on that has no static image, and leave the tv on overnight to work on the 100 hours???

Also, what is a good setting for all the brightness and color stuff for the break in period (panny pd60U?

i'd like to know the answer to the first question as well. and also for the second but for a panasonic 42thpwduk. the tv arrives on the 29th and i need it broken in for the world cup final!

I would say that you might reduce the burn in a little if the TV has a white out setting, that turns the screen white and evens out the burn in, however, doing this would reduce the life of the screen and b/c this sounds like heavy burned in you will never be able to even it out completely. It all depends on what price you are paying for the TV.

I appreciate the response. Its an auction on ebay so I have to determine how much I am willing to pay, was thinking a couple hundred but I wanted to see how workable it would be.

I appreciate the response. Its an auction on ebay so I have to determine how much I am willing to pay, was thinking a couple hundred but I wanted to see how workable it would be.
Whether or not the burn in will go away depends on how bad the burn-in is and also how many hours the panel has been on. If the panel is relatively new (< 1000 hours) than there is a good chance the burn in will fade away completely or enough to the point that you don't notice it when watching normal content. The more hours the TV has on it, the less of a chance the burn in will fade away.

I don't know exactly how on these pioneers to display the hours used.

How much to bid also depends on your personal tolerance to the amount of burn in. YMMV

Did the seller post any pictures of the TV with a white image displayed? That might show you how bad it is.

That's terrible news I was considering the Panny 58" 600!!
I think I'll go for the Sammy 57" LCD, for the extra 3000.00-3500.00 at least I don't have worry about burn-in issues!
Tim sc430.This is pure speculation on my part, there is no need to worry about burn in if you watch your PDP normally.

This is pure speculation on my part, there is no need to worry about burn in if you watch your PDP normally.

Why speculate???????..paying anywhere from 6000-10000$$ for a t.v I want it to last more then 5 years!!
Sammy 57" lcd (July/06) or Sony 52" LCD (Sept/06) is my choice.....
cheers Tim sc430.

halfempty,

there is no way you could cause burn in with just 2 hours of use. I linked a test on teh previous page where they left a static image for 24 hours and were able to clear the image retention with 48hours of continuous use. Watching the world cup yesterday i got some serious image retention of the scoreboard on top that cleared up with just an hour or so of watching somethign else. same story after watching brazils match today. dont worry it will go away.

I watched TV (HD & SD on JUST mode) and this morning it was still there:
KOR 1- FRA 1... it had faded greatly, but will it go away totally? I had my settings a little bright and adjusted them as soon as I noticed. Is there any remedy? Should I make a whitewash DVD? Or just continue normal usage and it will disappear normally? It's not permanent though, correct?

PS: gear- Panasonic TH-42PX60U

Funky,

I have the same TV (42px60u) and I watched the world cup triple header on sunday afternoon. The scoreboard was barely visible on my TV when i watched the news this morning but dont worry, it will definitely go away. There is no way you can cause burn in with just a few hours of a static image, but it may take a bit to fade.

If you switch your TV to an input that has no signal going to it and turn out all the lights you will be able to clearly see all the image retention that hasn't completely faded. For example, the HUD in GRAW was pretty clearly visible after a long session one weekend and that took almost a week to completely disapear from the 'no input' test.

I have about 180-200hrs on my TV by now and have it at +13pic and +5bright.

Funky,

I have the same TV (42px60u) and I watched the world cup triple header on sunday afternoon. The scoreboard was barely visible on my TV when i watched the news this morning but dont worry, it will definitely go away. There is no way you can cause burn in with just a few hours of a static image, but it may take a bit to fade.

If you switch your TV to an input that has no signal going to it and turn out all the lights you will be able to clearly see all the image retention that hasn't completely faded. For example, the HUD in GRAW was pretty clearly visible after a long session one weekend and that took almost a week to completely disapear from the 'no input' test.

I have about 180-200hrs on my TV by now and have it at +13pic and +5bright.

That's the best news I've heard all day! Thanks for the reply! Should I continue normal usage?

Whether or not the burn in will go away depends on how bad the burn-in is and also how many hours the panel has been on. If the panel is relatively new (< 1000 hours) than there is a good chance the burn in will fade away completely or enough to the point that you don't notice it when watching normal content. The more hours the TV has on it, the less of a chance the burn in will fade away.

I don't know exactly how on these pioneers to display the hours used.

How much to bid also depends on your personal tolerance to the amount of burn in. YMMV

Did the seller post any pictures of the TV with a white image displayed? That might show you how bad it is.

No pictures of the burnout so I am in the dark a little on that. From what I gathered from this thread it sounds like it could be possible that it would either go away, or not be very noticable - and the tv has a whiteout feature that might help. I am not too worried about it, I have the ESPN HD logo burned on RPTV and it dosen't bother me.

I know, the new Plasma sets are not as prone to image retention. However, I am going to be playing a LOT of xbox 360 on my new Plasma. I know, I know, then get an LCD. However, we watch a LOT of TV and movies, its our favorite thing to do. So, I want the best image quality and in my opinion, Plasma blows away LCDs, especially with the fact that I am getting a 60" TV.

So, with that said, I was wondering, if I am playing a 360 game for awhile and I do not want to switch the game out, could I do something like turn on the PIP that is built into the TV. This would cause the image to be only on half of the screen (I am assuming split screen PIP) which would shrink huds down, static bars, etc. and put them in a different area of the screen and a different size.

Also, my cable box has PIP. If I pop it up I can place the box in one of the 4 corners of the TV. If I put this box over a hud or something, would that help reduce image retention too?

If you think these would help, how long would it have to be up, is it like equal amount of time of playing. Probably once or twice a week I get on with a group of friends from around the country and we play one game for like 3 or 4 hours and I want to still do that on the Plasma. I don't have funds to buy another LCD monitor and again, its only once or twice a month, the rest of it is TV/movie watching and that is also a few hours a night (except for the game nights).

Thoughts appreciated!!

I know, the new Plasma sets are not as prone to image retention. However, I am going to be playing a LOT of xbox 360 on my new Plasma. I know, I know, then get an LCD. However, we watch a LOT of TV and movies, its our favorite thing to do. So, I want the best image quality and in my opinion, Plasma blows away LCDs, especially with the fact that I am getting a 60" TV.

So, with that said, I was wondering, if I am playing a 360 game for awhile and I do not want to switch the game out, could I do something like turn on the PIP that is built into the TV. This would cause the image to be only on half of the screen (I am assuming split screen PIP) which would shrink huds down, static bars, etc. and put them in a different area of the screen and a different size.

Also, my cable box has PIP. If I pop it up I can place the box in one of the 4 corners of the TV. If I put this box over a hud or something, would that help reduce image retention too?

If you think these would help, how long would it have to be up, is it like equal amount of time of playing. Probably once or twice a week I get on with a group of friends from around the country and we play one game for like 3 or 4 hours and I want to still do that on the Plasma. I don't have funds to buy another LCD monitor and again, its only once or twice a month, the rest of it is TV/movie watching and that is also a few hours a night (except for the game nights).

Thoughts appreciated!!

These tricks would help but you have to ask yourself, how much would doing these things compromise your gaming experience on the plasma.

You mention that you will be playing a lot of xbox, but it's also relative.

Bottom line: The magic number is 15% as stated in the panasonic white paper. If you play 4 hours per week of the game, make sure you watch other stuff for 26 hours per week. The other 26 hours doesn't mean just movies, it could be a combination of movies, tv and different games. Just don't make one game more than 15% of the total usage.

Hi.

I think I burned the Burn-In correctly (made a VCD out of it). Does it start with white slightly changing to whitish-gray?

I've been checking it every 10 minutes, and I thought I saw it pure green at one point, but that's the only color I've seen other than white.

Is my VCD operating correctly? Shouldn't I see black at some point? How often does it change colors?

The FAQ said it runs for 16 hours. How to I make it play as a continous loop?

Thanks.

P.S. My DVD player says it's in PBC, or playback control mode. Is that an issue?

HI ALL,

This is part of a post of mine in another thread about getting my new 50" 600U on Saturday:
One problem, though! No internet access in the new place yet so I cannot download and burn the break-in DVD myself. I did do it at work last week and it seemed to work on my work laptop, but it will not play in the Denon. Could some kind person here PLEASE mail me a copy of the break-in DVD? I would greatly appreciate it! I will gladly reimburse for postage, of course. Please email me at wpartridge@orbitz.com
THANK YOU!!!

And a related question:
Would running something likea "Coral Reef Adventure" DVD with no black bars displayed for the first 100 hours work in lieu of the actual break-in DVD? I have my 600U on standard with settings on zero but would like to expedite getting to 100 hours. Any suggestions? Thanks,

BILL

I have run HBO and Discovery HD totally for the first 100 hours and watched the fight Saturday with the round box up on the tv for 3 minutes at a time. No image retention at all. I will keep watching HBO til the end of June and that should be enough break in time. I am running it about 10 hours or more a day. You don't have to use the break in DVD just loop any dvd that will fill the picture and turn down the settings. Works great

I have run HBO and Discovery HD totally for the first 100 hours and watched the fight Saturday with the round box up on the tv for 3 minutes at a time. No image retention at all. I will keep watching HBO til the end of June and that should be enough break in time. I am running it about 10 hours or more a day. You don't have to use the break in DVD just loop any dvd that will fill the picture and turn down the settings. Works great

Excuse my ignorance but how do you loop a standard DVD?

Excuse my ignorance but how do you loop a standard DVD?
Most DVD players have a function called A-B repeat. A is the start point, B is the end point, and it just loops indefinitely until you stop it.

Hi. Can anyone confirm if it sounds like my burn-in VCD is working properly?

Thanks.

Hi.

I think I burned the Burn-In correctly (made a VCD out of it). Does it start with white slightly changing to whitish-gray?

I've been checking it every 10 minutes, and I thought I saw it pure green at one point, but that's the only color I've seen other than white.

Is my VCD operating correctly? Shouldn't I see black at some point? How often does it change colors?

The FAQ said it runs for 16 hours. How to I make it play as a continous loop?

Thanks.

P.S. My DVD player says it's in PBC, or playback control mode. Is that an issue?

So what im getting from this thread so far is that when i get my panny 50px60u is to leave a full screen moving image on there for 24 hours a day for almost a week to get over that break in phase then would it be ok to play video games with my 360?

I just purchased a Panny plasma (beautiful :D ) and I need to start the "break-in" or "run-in" period.

I am using a Rogers HD box and it comes with an HD preview channel. It just loops a certain number of short programs from different HD channels over and over. I figure it's the perfect channel to break this new plasma in on, but I have one concern.

There is a little "Rogers" logo in red that is displayd on the top left corner of the screen, however it isn't constantly being displayed. It is displayed for say 3 seconds, then it fades away for 2 seconds, fades back in for another 3 seconds, gone for 2, back for 3... you get the idea. My question is, is there any chance this Rogers logo will cause burn-in? Or does the logo fade in and out for the very reason of preventing burn in?

Also, is it alright to leave the TV on during the day while I'm at work, to speed up the break-in period? I really want to start gaming on this thing.

Leave it running 24 hours a day with your dvd player. Just loop a full screen dvd and turn down your settings. Works like a gem........ or HBO not HBOHD but just the regular HBO channels that's what I have been using

Hi. Can anyone confirm if it sounds like my burn-in VCD is working properly?

Thanks.

No black,but should be shades of red,green,blue.

I have seen multiple threads with a different number of "break in" hours listed. Some say 100, some say 200, some say its not until 1000 hrs until the plasma is broken in. Is there any place that specifically states a number or do people just guesstimate? I am about to hit 100 hours on my Panasonic 42PX600U and I am wondering if 100 hours is enough before I calibrate with Avia? I know Panasonic claims you dont have to worry about burn in or break in on their new plasma with pixel shift technology, but I would rather be on the cautious side with my new toy.

I have seen multiple threads with a different number of "break in" hours listed. Some say 100, some say 200, some say its not until 1000 hrs until the plasma is broken in. Is there any place that specifically states a number or do people just guesstimate? I am about to hit 100 hours on my Panasonic 42PX600U and I am wondering if 100 hours is enough before I calibrate with Avia? I know Panasonic claims you dont have to worry about burn in or break in on their new plasma with pixel shift technology, but I would rather be on the cautious side with my new toy.Plasma Facts and Myths Panasonic Presents Advice From the Video Purist Perspective (http://www.dynamicdigital.ca/documents/Plasma%20Facts%20and%20Myths.pdf)

Panasonic's Plasma Facts and Myths advice recommends setting contrast at 50% or less for one thousand hours. That is a long time to have contrast set that low. Since Panasonic's scale is -30 to +30, 50% would be 0. A thousand hours at zero, when +7 looks just about right, is a bit of a bummer. I had convinced myself that after 100 hours it would be party time. Guess I will have to temper my settings for just a while longer.

That fact and myths white paper was written in 2004 so I wonder if it still applies as Plasma panels and technology have gotten better. I assume the current 60/600 series is 1 or 2 generations from what was out in november 2004. Also, does anyone know how to access the "white scroll" function w/o having to call Panny support?

It doesn't exist on my 60U, I think it is only on the commercial versions. Bummer.

Panasonic's Plasma Facts and Myths advice recommends setting contrast at 50% or less for one thousand hours. That is a long time to have contrast set that low. Since Panasonic's scale is -30 to +30, 50% would be 0. A thousand hours at zero, when +7 looks just about right, is a bit of a bummer. I had convinced myself that after 100 hours it would be party time. Guess I will have to temper my settings for just a while longer.For the PX60U I'd recommend using Standard or Cinema with Picture set to ~+12 & Sharpness ~0.That fact and myths white paper was written in 2004 so I wonder if it still applies as Plasma panels and technology have gotten better. I assume the current 60/600 series is 1 or 2 generations from what was out in november 2004.Phosphor life is still rated to be 60,000 hours; which is essentially the same technology, the main advances have been primarily with video processing, etc.

Is there any site where Brands are rank as to how easily or not they burn in?

I just recently noticed burn in ony my Panny 4260u. I've been playing Hitman Blood Money on my Xbox360 and now the huds are burned in. I can only really see them on solid colours or very light scenes but they are definetely there. I've never had burn in before. Maybe it's the bold solid white lines that Hitman uses in it's HUDS. Now my question is will it go away or is it permanent. I think I'm still in the 30 return window. I've only been playing the game 2-3 hours per night and I watch lots of other stuff inbetween like DVDs and TV. My contrast is +10 and my brightness is -6. I am close to the 100 hour mark on the TV. Maybe I should go LCD? The burn in has been there for 2 days now and is starting to freak me out.

All these people saying burn in is not a serious problem anymore convinced me to buy a plasma. Even though I love the picture. The burn in will be unaceptable if I can't play the same game for a few hours per night. Or, if I play a couple of hours I have to watch 20 hours of other stuff. Should the plasma go back?

I just recently noticed burn in ony my Panny 4260u. I've been playing Hitman Blood Money on my Xbox360 and now the huds are burned in. I can only really see them on solid colours or very light scenes but they are definetely there. I've never had burn in before. Maybe it's the bold solid white lines that Hitman uses in it's HUDS. Now my question is will it go away or is it permanent. I think I'm still in the 30 return window. I've only been playing the game 2-3 hours per night and I watch lots of other stuff inbetween like DVDs and TV. My contrast is +10 and my brightness is -6. I am close to the 100 hour mark on the TV. Maybe I should go LCD? The burn in has been there for 2 days now and is starting to freak me out.

All these people saying burn in is not a serious problem anymore convinced me to buy a plasma. Even though I love the picture. The burn in will be unaceptable if I can't play the same game for a few hours per night. Or, if I play a couple of hours I have to watch 20 hours of other stuff. Should the plasma go back?

"When the plasma is initially installed, videophiles say it is best to do the following:

Make sure the display is in a viewing mode (aspect ratio) that completely fills the screen (there are often three or more settings from which to choose). The panel is shipped in this condition, in what is called the “Just” mode.

Turn down the picture control (contrast) to 50% or less.

Briefly engage the 4:3 mode to confirm the side bars are set to mid-gray (there is usually an adjustment in the Set Up menu that takes the sidebars from black to gray) to minimize the chance of burn-in.

Return the set to a “full screen” (Just, Zoom, Full) position during the first hundred hours of use.

During the first hundred hours of use it is best not to view the same channel for extended periods. This should prevent channel logos and other fixed images found on some channels from being retained.

Avoid any static images (video games, computer images, DVD title screens, etc.) during the hundred-hour break-in. After the hundred-hour break-in period, during the next nine-hundred hours:

Continue to retain the picture setting at 50% or less.

Limit the use of 4:3 aspect ratio mode (traditional picture size that does not fill the entire screen) to 15% of viewing time.

Limit the use of static images (computer, video games, etc.) to less than 10% of viewing time.

After one-thousand viewing hours, panels are much less likely to experience image burn-in."

All these people saying burn in is not a serious problem anymore convinced me to buy a plasma. Even though I love the picture. The burn in will be unaceptable if I can't play the same game for a few hours per night. Or, if I play a couple of hours I have to watch 20 hours of other stuff. Should the plasma go back?

You can play the same game for a few hours a night, but you will have to watch 9 hours of other shows or other games for ever hour you play the game if you want to comply with the 10% rule posted by Optivity above.

10% is a litte conservative to me unless your HUD's are very intensely bright white. I would say that 15% is safe also which means that you have to watch 6-7 hours of other stuff for every hour of the game you play.

You can play the same game for a few hours a night, but you will have to watch 9 hours of other shows or other games for ever hour you play the game if you want to comply with the 10% rule posted by Optivity above.

10% is a litte conservative to me unless your HUD's are very intensely bright white. I would say that 15% is safe also which means that you have to watch 6-7 hours of other stuff for every hour of the game you play.Precisely, very well put. ;) My contrast is +10 and my brightness is -6. I am close to the 100 hour mark on the TVThe phosphor display technology used in Panasonic PDPs has been rated at 60,000 hours until half brightness for the past three generations. I have the Picture on my PX50U set to +12. With a contrast ratio of up to 10,000:1 for the 60U versus 3000:1 on my 50U, your panel can render a noticeably brighter (a.k.a. more bright = more phosphor wear) picture than mine. Due to the difference between the contrast ratio specification of the 50U versus the 60U, I believe if a PDP has been "abused" during its break in period... uneven phosphor wear will become evident sooner on a 60U versus the 50U. I suggest when displaying static images for prolonged periods of time; you turn down the contrast level for your panel.

So i posted a few days ago about the world cup score bar 'burned' into my brand new pio elite pro-930hd (visible when light colors are at the top of the screen).

From the reading i've done i am hopeful it will go away, but at what point (10 hours, 25 hours?) of watching other programs should i finally say, f#%k i have permanent burn in?

Appreciate any advice. Thanks.

Just run your panel using any source that fills the entire display and is devoid of station logos, static images, etc., for a few hours and check to see if the image retention becomes more evened out. Repeat this process until all evidence of image retention is gone. I'm not sure, but your panel may support a white scroll bar feature, sometimes employed to help remove image retention, which if used should be done so with extreme caution.

It sounds like you had your panel running with it's contrast, brightness and/or sharpness settings too high during the break in period which is minimally 100 hours and applies to all PDPs, I'd recommend you turn those settings down some.

Is there a hard and fast rule that it has to be a minimum of 100 hours? Any chances two days worth is enough?

;)

If anyone is in a hurry to get past the break-in hours,100,200,1000 whatever.All you need to do is play a DVD on fastforward at double or triple speed.It will cut your time in half or more. :D :D :D

I have read the Master thread regarding plasma burn in. I noticed that several people have claimed burn in, but it seems that they are posting almost immediately after the situation is noticed, and so it seems to be a retention issue. Also, these folks do not seem to follow up later, which again suggests to me that it was a retention issue that subsequently clears.

Is there anyone who has a first-hand (not "my friend" or "I heard of someone") experience with a new (2005, 2006) plasma where actual burn-in has occurred?

Note: If you are claiming burn-in, could you please mention (approximately) how many hours of viewing have taken place since the burn-in, and what steps you have taken?

Thanks

(I may post this as a separate thread if members think it is appropriate)

I have read the Master thread regarding plasma burn in. I noticed that several people have claimed burn in, but it seems that they are posting almost immediately after the situation is noticed, and so it seems to be a retention issue. Also, these folks do not seem to follow up later, which again suggests to me that it was a retention issue that subsequently clears.

Is there anyone who has a first-hand (not "my friend" or "I heard of someone") experience with a new (2005, 2006) plasma where actual burn-in has occurred?

Note: If you are claiming burn-in, could you please mention (approximately) how many hours of viewing have taken place since the burn-in, and what steps you have taken?

Thanks

(I may post this as a separate thread if members think it is appropriate)

Thie is a good point, too many people report burn in when in fact it is just IR.

Thie is a good point, too many people report burn in when in fact it is just IR.

Yes. Anyone reading this thread is likely concerned about ruining their display. We've all spent hard earned money. But I've yet to read a post from someone who has a modern display who can say that they have burn-in that is more than a few weeks old.

Anyone?

That is hilarious cause i was showing a friend this thread and he was trying to tell me that i should get an lcd instead of the px60 (because i am a gamer) and i was saying i wonder how many people come on here complaining they have burn in and then its just ghosting or image retention, then they dont come back when its all fixed clairifying the issue, cause at first had me really worried cause im gonna be getting one in about 2-4 weeks. But now that i realize this i have no worrys espesially armed with all the knowledge u guys gave me about it. Personally i like plasmas way better even for gaming so im glad no people have ever had perminent burn in.

I have minor IR on my 600U for a few minutes right as it starts up. When I turn on my TV and DVR, the DVR goes right to the default menu. As soon as I switch the channel, I get some IR for a few minutes. I literally can leave the DVR menu on for 10 seconds after the plasma turns on and I'll get IR, but within a few minutes, it goes away. Doest bother me one bit.

I have what appears to be very, very, slight burn in on my Panasonic PM50U; picture is bright as ever but if I get about 2 inches from the screen with no signal, in a dark room, I can just barely see a few faint curved red lines in the display (it is not visible in any other situation, not even on a bright white screen). I only paid $775 for the display (got an NTSC/ATSC tuner for $50 locally), totally happy with the PQ anyway; my only regret is that I could not find a CT-34WX54 locally (I really wanted to get a CRT).

I have what appears to be very, very, slight burn in on my Panasonic PM50U; picture is bright as ever but if I get about 2 inches from the screen with no signal, in a dark room, I can just barely see a few faint curved red lines in the display (it is not visible in any other situation, not even on a bright white screen). I only paid $775 for the display (got an NTSC/ATSC tuner for $50 locally), totally happy with the PQ anyway; my only regret is that I could not find a CT-34WX54 locally (I really wanted to get a CRT).

Thanks for posting. So, did you buy it used or new? Any idea how it happened, and how long ago? How old is it?

I will certainly post again once I've had a chance to run some dvds on the screen and see if the world cup score bar is indeed IR. I appreciate all the advice, I did probably have the contrast and brightness too high (the great "Dynamic" setting on the pioneer). I had not done the proper research on breaking in until I notice the faint image in the background. My fingers are crossed.

Jon

Keep us posted please.

Anyone else? 2005 or 2006 plasma with actual burn-in. How did it happen and how long ago?

Does anyone have any experience using the music channels on DirecTV? My wife has gotten hooked on two of them and likes to have them on (and seems pathologically unable to turn off the plasma while she's listening to them). The screen is filled with an even, somewhat muted gray background with no text or other colors. I'm assuming this is neutral enough to be at no risk for burn-in. Am I correct or being too optimistic? Thanks.

Does anyone have any experience using the music channels on DirecTV? My wife has gotten hooked on two of them and likes to have them on (and seems pathologically unable to turn off the plasma while she's listening to them). The screen is filled with an even, somewhat muted gray background with no text or other colors. I'm assuming this is neutral enough to be at no risk for burn-in. Am I correct or being too optimistic? Thanks.
On Directv, you can press the 'clear' button on the remote and the info display for the music channels goes away. Screen goes black. I wouldn't run a plasma with the music display on.

After the 100 hour 'break-in' is up, how careful do you really need to be with the newer models (th42pd60u)? Is it good to run the AVIA dvd and get everything set up to a nice config? AND does this tv have pixel shifting?

Thanks

I have minor IR on my 600U for a few minutes right as it starts up. When I turn on my TV and DVR, the DVR goes right to the default menu. As soon as I switch the channel, I get some IR for a few minutes. I literally can leave the DVR menu on for 10 seconds after the plasma turns on and I'll get IR, but within a few minutes, it goes away. Doest bother me one bit.

Djseto - I'm a new 600u owner (today in fact); what do you have your picture and brightness settings at? Mine are currently at -10 pic and -25 bright but this seems *really* dark and perhaps too conservative; any thoughts?

Djseto - I'm a new 600u owner (today in fact); what do you have your picture and brightness settings at? Mine are currently at -10 pic and -25 bright but this seems *really* dark and perhaps too conservative; any thoughts?


Those settings are way too conservative. Most of us have kept the picture and brightness settings in the zero range (plus or minus a few points). Panansoic recommends roughly 50% of max and the range is +30 to -30 so zero is halfway.

Jim

I have read the Master thread regarding plasma burn in. I noticed that several people have claimed burn in, but it seems that they are posting almost immediately after the situation is noticed, and so it seems to be a retention issue. Also, these folks do not seem to follow up later, which again suggests to me that it was a retention issue that subsequently clears.

Is there anyone who has a first-hand (not "my friend" or "I heard of someone") experience with a new (2005, 2006) plasma where actual burn-in has occurred?

Note: If you are claiming burn-in, could you please mention (approximately) how many hours of viewing have taken place since the burn-in, and what steps you have taken?

Thanks

(I may post this as a separate thread if members think it is appropriate)

I have a 50" 600U, purchased from Magnolia and installed on wall on 6/17/06. I have the settings on Cinema with Picture at +12 and blacks light and color temp at normal. I watched the entire NBA draft last night 7:30 - about 11:30 or 12. My screen now has the "On The Clock" image either burned or retained on the left side of the screen. It's only noticeable when a bright white screen fills that section. I'm still inside 100 hours. I'm also still inside my 30 days, so if you tell me that it's just IR and it'll be OK, then I'll hang on to it. I don't know that this model has the "white wash" feature, so please let me know if it does and if that will help. I called Panny Plasma Concierge and they told me that I'm SOL. Anybody looking to buy plasma....think again....there's too much "babying" of these things to really enjoy them. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Haven't looked at the timer on the TV, but I'm probably sitting at around 30-40 hours of viewing time.

It is just image retention. The same thing happened to me when I watched the world cup tripleheader 2 weeks ago. The ABC Sports scoreboard summary was clearly visible for a bit after watching the game. It will clear up pretty quick so dont worry about it.

I have a 50" 600U, purchased from Magnolia and installed on wall on 6/17/06. I have the settings on Cinema with Picture at +12 and blacks light and color temp at normal. I watched the entire NBA draft last night 7:30 - about 11:30 or 12. My screen now has the "On The Clock" image either burned or retained on the left side of the screen. It's only noticeable when a bright white screen fills that section. I'm still inside 100 hours. I'm also still inside my 30 days, so if you tell me that it's just IR and it'll be OK, then I'll hang on to it. I don't know that this model has the "white wash" feature, so please let me know if it does and if that will help. I called Panny Plasma Concierge and they told me that I'm SOL. Anybody looking to buy plasma....think again....there's too much "babying" of these things to really enjoy them. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Haven't looked at the timer on the TV, but I'm probably sitting at around 30-40 hours of viewing time.
Relax. Follow the 15% rule and your IR should be gone.

You watched 4 hours of the NBA draft. No commercial breaks either since the "on the clock" ticker was on even during commercials. So watch 27 hours of non "on the clock" shows and check if your IR is still there. Likely it will be gone. If it's not, then feel free to return it.

Reminder, Don't watch 27 hours of stuff with static images. Your "on the clock" ticker will be gone, but you might get IR from something else. Follow the 15% for all static images.

thanks guys, for the bit of relief. I currently have the TV on Discovery HD which is pretty good about not having static logos and it's usually in 16:9 all the time. I can tell where some of the lettering from "On The Clock" is gradually disappearing. I will post back after about 20-25 hours or if I notice that it's completely gone. Thanks again!

Now that I think about it, that was the only thing I watched last night and I turned the TV off when the draft was over, and I noticed it this morning when I turned the TV on...so really it didn't have time to disappear before I noticed it because there had been no other signals to "wash" out the IR. That make sense or am I thinking wrong on that too?

Just to break it in, I leave it on HBO in zoom mode with the contrast and color turned way down overnight, I am at 107 hous now, guess I can use avia and enjoy it more.....

Just to break it in, I leave it on HBO in zoom mode with the contrast and color turned way down overnight, I am at 107 hous now, guess I can use avia and enjoy it more.....

Nixie21 I have the same set as you, with 180 hours on it now. I have relaxed my settings somewhat as well, currently using +8 Picture and +5 Brightness, -21 Sharpness. I used the free THX Optimizer that comes with many movies, such as the Star Wars movies, Pirates of the Carribean, Finding Nemo, etc... Panasonic recommends keeping Picture as close to 50% as you can for 1000 hours. For me +8 is good enough. I'm still afraid to play 2.35:1 DVDs just yet, maybe after 200 hours.

thanks guys, for the bit of relief. I currently have the TV on Discovery HD which is pretty good about not having static logos and it's usually in 16:9 all the time. I can tell where some of the lettering from "On The Clock" is gradually disappearing. I will post back after about 20-25 hours or if I notice that it's completely gone. Thanks again!

Now that I think about it, that was the only thing I watched last night and I turned the TV off when the draft was over, and I noticed it this morning when I turned the TV on...so really it didn't have time to disappear before I noticed it because there had been no other signals to "wash" out the IR. That make sense or am I thinking wrong on that too?

Keep us posted bbonds. So far, you and magicjon are the only people who have something that they think might be burn-in.

Anyone else with a 2005 or 2006 plasma that has actual burn-in? How did it happen and how long ago?

I guess I'm curious why I don't hear of more people breaking in their first 100 hours by just leaving their new plasma on something like Discovery HD or HBO for 24-hours a day for several days. Anything wrong with that as long as the settings are turned down and it is fullscreen??? You could just mute it overnight.

I get my Panny 600U delivered on Saturday and would like to give this a shot for a fast break-in unless there is something risky about it.

Those settings are way too conservative. Most of us have kept the picture and brightness settings in the zero range (plus or minus a few points). Panansoic recommends roughly 50% of max and the range is +30 to -30 so zero is halfway.

Jim

Thanks for the tips; I was really paranoid about the whole thing and I'm greatful to those of you who came before me!

Bean66

Apparently it was just IR because as I watched the TV more and more last night I did not notice the remnants of Wednesday night's NBA draft anymore in the left hand corner ("On The Clock") I'll continue to look for it, but I think it's fine now. The sad thing is as I was watching the draft I noticed that static image and looked at how long the draft was supposed to last and didn't even think twice about watching something else. Only way to learn a lesson is to make a mistake. Just glad it wasn't a $4k mistake! OBTW, I've got 83 hours so far...so much more than the 30-40 I originally thought it was.

Thanks alot for updating us... that just leaves magicjon11.

Feeling better every day about these new displays. Not ready to say modern-day burn-in is a myth, but....

So will one EVER be able to watch a movie with top/side bars or something with a logo and NOT have image retention? I have had my display well over the break in period and still if i watch something with a logo or side/top bars for more than just a few minuntes I get IR. I am too scared to let it go in fear it will burn-in. Will I ever be able to fully enjoy my plasma?

HELP! :-\

So will one EVER be able to watch a movie with top/side bars or something with a logo and NOT have image retention? I have had my display well over the break in period and still if i watch something with a logo or side/top bars for more than just a few minuntes I get IR. I am too scared to let it go in fear it will burn-in. Will I ever be able to fully enjoy my plasma?

HELP! :-\

Out of curiosity, which model do you have, and how long have you owned it?

After you watch something with a logo for "more than just a few minutes" how long does it take to go away?

Thanks!

Do LCDs require or go through any kind of break in period? My manual didn't mention anything about it, but I would be interested to know if the first so and so hours are supposed to be "so and so" and etc.

I have had my Pioneer 1130-HD for about four months now. I would say it has about 150-200 hrs on it. I do play Xbox 360 on it and played Call Of Duty last week. One of the Scoreboards showed some IR after I played but I really had to look for it on a white screen. It has faded within the last week but is not completely gone on a white screen. I would say I have run mixed content for the last week for about 20hrs.

Call Of Duty is the only game I play so I wonder if I had IR before and did not notice. I always ran the display on normal t.v. after playing. Since it's fading can I assume it will completely go away? I see postings about a white wash feature, can I just play Avia's white test screen to accomplish the same thing?

I am probably going to buy a cheap tube HDTV and move the Xbox, not worth the chance.

Out of curiosity, which model do you have, and how long have you owned it?

After you watch something with a logo for "more than just a few minutes" how long does it take to go away?

Thanks!


I have the NEC 50XR5. I have had it for a few months or about 400 hrs. I know the break in period is about 100 hrs, so I figured by now I could at least watch a full movie with bars or a logo, but no way. After I watch something with bars for about 5 minutes I already have IR. I had a movie on for 1 hour with the bars and it took a full day to go away with the screen wiper on. If I watch something with a logo for a few minutes, it takes about 1 hour or so to go away, which is why I am scared to go any longer.

Is this normal for how long I have had the display? Will it ever get better? :(

I have the NEC 50XR5. I have had it for a few months or about 400 hrs. I know the break in period is about 100 hrs, so I figured by now I could at least watch a full movie with bars or a logo, but no way. After I watch something with bars for about 5 minutes I already have IR. I had a movie on for 1 hour with the bars and it took a full day to go away with the screen wiper on. If I watch something with a logo for a few minutes, it takes about 1 hour or so to go away, which is why I am scared to go any longer.

Is this normal for how long I have had the display? Will it ever get better? :(

I wish I could advise you, but I really don't have the expertise, and I fear that the ones that do don't bother with this thread. My Sammy Ed is less than a month old and I have had almost no issues with IR, in fact in the last two weeks none whatsoever. Therefore I'm not sure what to say as it seems the behavior of the NEC is very different.

hltr

I wish I could advise you, but I really don't have the expertise, and I fear that the ones that do don't bother with this thread. My Sammy Ed is less than a month old and I have had almost no issues with IR, in fact in the last two weeks none whatsoever. Therefore I'm not sure what to say as it seems the behavior of the NEC is very different.

hltr


Thanks anyway, I appreciate the input. :) I will try another thread maybe.

In terms of IR / burn-in, how do the semi-transparent station logos (such as IN HD, TNT HD, CBS HD) compare to opaque static images like scoreboards and stock tickers?

They seem like they would be less of a threat, and the 15% rule may not apply to them...

I have had my Panasonic 60U since mid-March 2006 (i.e., well past the 100 hour mark). Yesterday, for the first time, I experienced what I think is IR after watching the Mets/Yankees baseball game on Fox (at least I hope it is only IR). On very light (white and off white) screens, I can see the remnants of Fox Sports banner that lines the top of the screen during baseball games. I am wondering if anyone else has experienced similar issues. I am very concerned and hope that, with time, the IR will fade away; I truly hope this is not a permanent "burn-in" situation. Like I said, it is not visible on darker screens - just ones with very light images. Is this likely just a case of IR that may correct itself over time? Thanks in advance to anyone offering information.

I have had my Panasonic 60U since mid-March 2006 .....

I think you'll be alright, definitely sounds like IR.

Check out posts 1478 (similar problem) and 1487 (solution) to put your mind at ease...

In terms of IR / burn-in, how do the semi-transparent station logos (such as IN HD, TNT HD, CBS HD) compare to opaque static images like scoreboards and stock tickers?

They seem like they would be less of a threat, and the 15% rule may not apply to them...

My experience is that they are significantly less of a threat. I have no carefully gathered data to support this, but after owning my plasma for a few weeks, I have never seen a transparent logo lead to image retention. On the other hand, sometimes I do see the solid logos for a few seconds after changing the channel. It's only temporary, but they're there for a few seconds or so. I have the S5053 by Samsung.

I have had my Panasonic 60U since mid-March 2006 (i.e., well past the 100 hour mark). Yesterday, for the first time, I experienced what I think is IR after watching the Mets/Yankees baseball game on Fox (at least I hope it is only IR). On very light (white and off white) screens, I can see the remnants of Fox Sports banner that lines the top of the screen during baseball games. I am wondering if anyone else has experienced similar issues. I am very concerned and hope that, with time, the IR will fade away; I truly hope this is not a permanent "burn-in" situation. Like I said, it is not visible on darker screens - just ones with very light images. Is this likely just a case of IR that may correct itself over time? Thanks in advance to anyone offering information.

I have had my 60U since the beginning of March and experienced the same exact scoreboard banner IR from yesterday's 2 world cup games on ABC and ESPN. I was freaking out since the first thing that came to mind was Burn in! I am glad to say, 24 hours later it is practically gone and can only barely see it against a white background. Try to find a static (snow) channel that the 60u doesn't block out as "channel not available". The IR seemed to reduce greatly after leaving on a snow signal for an hour.

Hey guys,

I fell asleep watching MiB last night (TNTHD). I woke up at 1:30 am and figured I would have some IR with that semi transparent logo. However, not a thing. :-)

I own a Panasonic TH-42PX50U that I've had for about 10 months. I have been watching the World Cup, yesterday for about 5 - 6 hours consecutively and now have image of the ABC/ESPN banner apparently is burned in. (It's real obvious because any scene with sky shows the contrasting image clearly).

I've talked to Panasonic CS and have been told they feel 4 hours of the same image is enough to burn in and of course it's not covered by warranty.

I've run the TV for about 3 hours consecutively so far with no fading of the image. I'll update it further if there's improvement, but Panasonic isn't optimistic.

BTW, there's an advertisement on Google for a DVD based product that will remove burn out. Anybody have any experience with that?