OK.
I have a very simple question. Is it worth it for me to have my Sony 34XBR800 professionally calibrated. A while ago I did the Avia thing myself. I am pretty pleased with the results. But, I am a person who wants to get the most of what I have. If a pro calibration will bring even more out of this tv, I would do it.
FYI, I do not have HI DEF cable and my DVD player is an Esoteric DV50S running a DVI cable.
Thanks

Yes! I am astounded by the improvement in my picture! I also used Avia and I thought I had the right settings. I can't believe how far off I was! My picture is much better now that I had it done. Colors are better and my contrast is way improved

you wasted to much time posting this when you could have been finding someone to calibrate your set.................................without a doubt its worth it.

Greetings

More to calibration on a pro level than just a test disc. A traveling calibrator like Gregg Loewen for instance will also do significant work on your geometry to fine tune that and have the proper instrumentation to get the tv image as accurate as possible for that tv.

If image accuracy is the goal, then you can either spent more time learning how to do it all yourself ... or you seek out a skilled pro to do it.

It's also an education process too ... so ask lots of questions too.

Regards

I used a disk I bought and just thought I would do it because everyone else did it. I really see a BIG difference from the factory settings and now.

Then I had a person I know play with it and I was shocked what someone who knows what they are doing can make the difference they make.

OK. It seems like even for a small 34in TV calibration can be a plus. I will be moving my TV in the room. When it is in its new, more central location, I will look to get it Calibrated by a professional.
Now, I went to the ISF website, which I assume is the right place.
http://www.imagingscience.com/
I clicked on Dealer/Tech Locator and put in my state.
A place called Bob and Rons Stereo came up. On their site the have this:
http://www.wwstereo.com/#/Support/ISF/
Does that mean that they are equipped to come out to my house? I am wondering if they would do that even
though I did not buy the TV from them. Or do I need to find an individual calibrator to do the job.

Spencer's Sight and Sound in Telford PA, right down the road from Bob and Ron's is ISF calibrated and he has worked on my set and another AVS member. We both highly recommend them. Send me a PM and I will give you details.

Also suggest the search function, there have been a few previous threads that go along these lines.

I suggest get a HD source first. After that, if you are still satisfied with the screen size, then get it calibrated.

If I could afford it, I would get mine professionally calibrated.

I am glad I found this. I was considering asking the same question myself in a new thread. Now I wont have to.

Ok. I was talking to an in law about this today. I was a little shocked by what he said. He said that it is not worth it and that he told the person to take it back to the way it was. Then he said he refused to pay for it since it was so bad. Now, he also had that done to a 65" Mitsu CRT. I dont know if that would make a difference or not...

He said that the blacks and other colors were way off when after it was calibrated.

I dont know. Personally I think he is full of sh..well, you know what I mean.

Yes, he is crazy or the guy who did his didn't do it right. It makes HUGE difference in a positive way. Grayscale adjustment alone is worth having it done. It's amazing the details that come out when the grayscale has been properly adjusted. I myself actually picked up a SpyderTV Pro Platinum colorimeter and used HCFR to adjust my tv and even my wife who could care less about HD was like "WOW!". I've even done a couple of my friends TVs here in town and they even offered me some money after they saw how much the pic was improved. I refused of course. ;-)

I will do this for sure. But I want to wait until I get my new racks. When I get them, I will see if I can move the TV more towards the middle of the room. The TV really put out a nice picture as it is. But If I can more out of it, I would be even happier.

I am glad I found this. I was considering asking the same question myself in a new thread. Now I wont have to.

Ok. I was talking to an in law about this today. I was a little shocked by what he said. He said that it is not worth it and that he told the person to take it back to the way it was. Then he said he refused to pay for it since it was so bad. Now, he also had that done to a 65" Mitsu CRT. I dont know if that would make a difference or not...

He said that the blacks and other colors were way off when after it was calibrated.

I dont know. Personally I think he is full of sh..well, you know what I mean.

Surprisingly, some people do feel that way after they've had their sets calibrated. Either the person doing the job screwed it up, or more likely the owner has become used to the cartoony colors, blinding contrast, and too-blue grayscale that nearly all displays ship with these days, and uses that as their standard for comparison.

I have see two poorly calibrated sets where the blacks had either a green or red tint to them. This was done by a very reputable ISF calibrator that posts regularly to this site

I guess that is the trick. You hope that the person you get knows what they are doing. I was just searching and I a guy who has my area as place he operates in. I found some of his posts on this site. From the posts, it seems like he is pretty good at what he does. So with this one, plus another name that I have, I now have 2 names to consider.

I replaced my RPTV with an LCD a few months ago. I had calibrated my RP with the DVE disc and thought it looked pretty good. I adjusted my Samsung LN5265T to the specs given in the thread about that TV on this site before having a guy come and do the ISF calibration.

I'll admit I wasn't hugely impressed. After he was done, I thought the TV was MUCH too dark. I ended up turning up the gamma and brightness up a bit so that I could live with it. So was it worth it? Dunno. Not really.

It's funny that every time you hear someone complaining about their calibration, the response it always the same, "you're just not used to TV the way it's supposed to look." Well while watching POTC-At World's End, the dark scenes are sssoooooooo dark that you can hardly see anything. You can't tell me that that is how the director intended the film to look.

So after a couple of months, I'm pretty much used to the picture now, but I still feel it's too dark sometimes.

Hi,

I have a small editing suite with HD YUV - Output. I would attach this onto a used DVDO VP30. I would monitor the edited footage either on a 24" Eizo computer monitor or - later - on a new Sharp-FullHD LCD (22"). I need a small sized LCD because of the little distance ...

What about calibration?

I think it is pretty usefull. Because of the editing itself I must see what I edit.

Do you have any experience in "broadcast" area?

Can you suggest any calibration-CD/DVD allowing me to make it alone?

Thanks.

Regards,

Istvan

Here's my story. I won't mention the tech here, if anyone is interested they can PM me. I have a 57" RPTV that was purchased back in 2004. It uses two main sources, an HD STB and DVD player. I used Avia to calibrate it myself plus tips and techniques gleamed from sites like this one after the break in period. Over all I was satisfied with the results, the picture quality looked good to my untrained eye and much better than the out of the box settings. I've always wanted to get the display professionally calibrated but I couldn't convince myself that the expense would be worth it. Last week, after four plus years of owning this TV, I decided I would go ahead and splurge and have it done. Call it an impulse decision. My expectations weren't that great after speaking with the tech. He told me that the results were very subjective and not to expect a night and day difference. Add to that my wife was extremely p*ssed that I was, in her opinion, "wasting money" on such a frivolous endeavor.

The tech spent 6+ hours at my home calibrating for both sources. The results were simply amazing and I was extremely pleased with the end result. Black level now looks perfect and the picture now has the color vibrancy and accuracy that was missing before. It was almost a night and day difference. My set had multiple issues, the predominate one being the gray scale was way, way off, heavy on blue. Was it money well spent? I'll tell you after my wife gets home in a few hours....:)

I definitly want to have a ISF calibration performed on my 50PZ700U, but I'm wondering if I need to wait until I purchase a blu-ray player before I dish out the money to have it calibrated.

Does it matter if I get it calibrated now and then later buy a blu ray player?Will I not have the dvd player optimized to its potential?

Thanks

It doesn't matter if you have it calibrated now or later with a blu ray player. Yes, each component offers a slightly different picture but it shouldn't be that far off. I had my 50PZ700U calibrated and the difference is night and day.

So, would you recommend separate calibrations for day and night viewing? My Plasma sits in a corner, at an angle, with 3 windows just to the right. This makes the room quite bright during the daytime. However, at night, there is only one floor lamp that illuminates the room.

Did you guys have the calibrations done during daylight only? If so, how much difference is the PQ between daytime and nighttime?

Programs are mastered in darkened rooms. High ambient lighting seriously contaminates, interferes with, and alters the image. If you want a reference picture from your display, it will have to be viewed in a darkened room and calibrated for that viewing condition. This link explains more and includes graphical representations of these issues: http://www.cinemaquestinc.com/ive.htm . Having both day and night modes provided by a calibrator simply optimizes the display for less than ideal viewing conditions (day). Best practices recommend tight control of the viewing environment. The true goal of display calibration is image fidelity. This encompasses much more than just device linearity.

Best regards and beautiful pictures,
G. Alan Brown, President
CinemaQuest, Inc.

"Advancing the art and science of electronic imaging"

Hello all,
I am a newbie here, and this is my first post. I am in Warwick, NY (10990-Orange County- Orange County Choppers Territory) I have been wanting to get my Plasma calibrated ever since I purchased it almost a year ago. I just don't know who to use in this area for a professional calibration. My only option around here is Best Buy, and everyone knows that story already. Can anyone offer me some reliable people or companies, that aren't too far from here, that can do a good job, and not hit me too hard over the head? In case it makes a difference, my Plasma is a Samsung FP-T6374 HDTV.
Thank you for any help, that any of you can offer. Joe B. :D

I suggest getting in on a possible Lion AV tour or consider one of these service providers in NY: http://www.isfforum.com/sobi2/ISF-Forum-Calibrators/Americas/United-States/New-York.html

Newbie here. Please help me with this calibration thing.

Is picture quality not in the eye of the beholder like speaker sound quality is in the ear of the beholder? I can't imagine that after a set is calibrated to a particular standard or whatever, that everyone would think they now have a better picture. What if you prefer more or less contrast, brightness, tint, etc., etc. versus the claibration settings?

Newbie here. Please help me with this calibration thing.

Is picture quality not in the eye of the beholder like speaker sound quality is in the ear of the beholder? I can't imagine that after a set is calibrated to a particular standard or whatever, that everyone would think they now have a better picture. What if you prefer more or less contrast, brightness, tint, etc., etc. versus the claibration settings?

You might want to read some peoples perspectives who have had this type of thing done. http://www.accucalhd.com/service-testimonials.htm

Personal preference can be a factor, but many of these changes are improvements that everyone will like.

Still thinking about this. I really like the picture I have now with my Esoteric via DVI cable. I am moving the TV in about 2 months to a more center location in the room. I will at least wait until then before I decide if I want to do this.

Is picture quality not in the eye of the beholder
Yours is an unfortunately far too common misunderstanding. Film and video are mass communication mediums governed by industry standards, engineering guidelines, and recommended practices. Image fidelity is a concept seldom taught in the consumer electronics world. The more common phrase you refer to is, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." by William Shakespeare. I seriously doubt that Shakespeare was referring to television pictures. You may consider a displayed video program undesirable (ugly) in some aspect, but only with image accuracy will you have any confidence that you are beholding the program as its originator intended his audience to experience it.

The objective of communication is to convey an original message without alteration or distortion. Video standards are intended to preserve the integrity of the original program. Monitor calibration insures the faithful reproduction of the originator's art. Anyone who understands this would no sooner alter the reference color palette of a video program than they would attempt to change a Rembrandt, or watch a movie with colored glasses on, etc.

like speaker sound quality is in the ear of the beholder
The "holy grail" of audiophile speaker design is to build a speaker that is completely neutral, adding no coloration/resonance/emphasis/distortion of its own. Audio fidelity has the same goal as video: to faithfully convey the original performance without alteration or distortion. It might help you to understand monitor calibration in comparison to an analog turntable. Would you want to listen to a vinyl LP recording of a piano solo that was recorded (or rather, designed to be played back) at 33 1/3 RPM at 33 1/3 or 30? How about 65 RPM? Video picture quality standards work the same way.

What if you prefer more or less contrast, brightness, tint, etc., etc. versus the claibration settings?
Then you would be preferring a distorted picture, rather than image fidelity. It takes all kinds of people to make up a human race. Each person is entitled to their own opinions, values, priorities. If you don't value image fidelity or artistic integrity, don't spend the money on video display calibration. It's just that simple.

"It's all about the art." Joe Kane

"Nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public." H. L. Mencken

Best regards and beautiful pictures,
G. Alan Brown, President
CinemaQuest, Inc.

"Advancing the art and science of electronic imaging"

Yours is an unfortunately far too common misunderstanding. Film and video are mass communication mediums governed by industry standards, engineering guidelines, and recommended practices. Image fidelity is a concept seldom taught in the consumer electronics world. The more common phrase you refer to is, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." by William Shakespeare. I seriously doubt that Shakespeare was referring to television pictures. You may consider a displayed video program undesirable (ugly) in some aspect, but only with image accuracy will you have any confidence that you are beholding the program as its originator intended his audience to experience it.

The objective of communication is to convey an original message without alteration or distortion. Video standards are intended to preserve the integrity of the original program. Monitor calibration insures the faithful reproduction of the originator's art. Anyone who understands this would no sooner alter the reference color palette of a video program than they would attempt to change a Rembrandt, or watch a movie with colored glasses on, etc.


The "holy grail" of audiophile speaker design is to build a speaker that is completely neutral, adding no coloration/resonance/emphasis/distortion of its own. Audio fidelity has the same goal as video: to faithfully convey the original performance without alteration or distortion. It might help you to understand monitor calibration in comparison to an analog turntable. Would you want to listen to a vinyl LP recording of a piano solo that was recorded at 33 1/3 RPM at 33 1/3 or 30? How about 65 RPM? Video picture quality standards work the same way.


Then you would be preferring a distorted picture, rather than image fidelity. It takes all kinds of people to make up a human race. Each person is entitled to their own opinions, values, priorities. If you don't value image fidelity or artistic integrity, don't spend the money on video display calibration. It's just that simple.

"It's all about the art." Joe Kane

"Nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public." H. L. Mencken

Best regards and beautiful pictures,
G. Alan Brown, President
CinemaQuest, Inc.

"Advancing the art and science of electronic imaging"

WOW!!

Great explanations. Thanks Mr. Brown

Video professionals and consumers without a correct understanding of what "picture quality" really is will ever be confused and erratic about identifying and /or achieving it.

Well ve seen it first hand tonight so now i can finally comment on this thread .

I own a 60inch LG plasma and have had it from new for about 6 months . Yes im happy with it but in comparrison to LCD ive always noticed a true whiter screen on the LCDs esp the Bravias but at the end of the day it was size i was after as i have my Sony G70 for proper movie watching .

A few weeks ago i bought a progressive labs CA-6X just for personal use for the odd setup and check up of my projector and plasma to work on every few months .

Now i have absolutely NO EXPERIENCE in using this machine and i mean when i opened the software i was lost but 1 thing i gathered is that as long as the setting was set to D65 , all i had to do was play with my RGB setting on my plasma till both the target and test square blended in so as i played with each colour on the scale ( it shows if your more or less ) i actually managed to get it solidly into the target square . I did this on high and low light . Before i actually did set anything i wrote down my original values so if i stuffed up i could go back and let me tell you , out of factory it was WAY OFF .

When i got out of the internal full white test pattern screen on my LG ( Menu on TV and menu on remote for 5 seconds ) my white was bloody white , gone was the washed out rosy picture i had . Also on the dark scenes , the faces on the screens were greeny tinge through them , well guess what ... gone .

This is an example of someone who doesntknow what he is doing playing on it for an hour or so and bringing a picture of a ( lets face it ) average brand LG straight out of factory to something comparible to a Pana nd im even going to go as far as saying a sony in terms of colour and vibrancy .

1 thing to remember is that i only played with grey scale settings , a callibrator will set more than the basic settings ive done so i can only imagine when either a: i work out what the rest of this stuff does in this program or b: i do pay someone to come out ( and i might as im happy to pay to actually learn ) .

Anyway , this machine cost me $700 and personally after seeing how my plasmas come up i would have been happy to spend that anyway to get the picture where it is . What actually upsets me is the fact that i pad allot of money for my plasma , why cant a basic thing like a grey scale callibration be done from the factory . If this pissy adjustment took me an hour with NO EXPERIENCE , they could knock it over in under 20 minutes and this doesnt only go for LG , im talking all companies and we know its true otherwise we wouldnt all be callibrating them .

Anyway , this machine cost me $700 and personally after seeing how my plasmas come up i would have been happy to spend that anyway to get the picture where it is . What actually upsets me is the fact that i pad allot of money for my plasma , why cant a basic thing like a grey scale callibration be done from the factory . If this pissy adjustment took me an hour with NO EXPERIENCE , they could knock it over in under 20 minutes and this doesnt only go for LG , im talking all companies and we know its true otherwise we wouldnt all be callibrating them .The link below will largely answer your question.

But adding to it, even if factory calibration took only 20 minutes per panel, that adds to the cost for every single panel sold, when the overriding majority of consumers are happy with what they get now. Not saying that's right, but that's the bottom-line reality...

http://www.isfforum.com/FAQs/view/ISF-Video-Calibration/But-I-Was-Told-My-HDTV-Was-Calibrated-at-the-Factory.../33.html

Indeed! Large corporations, like the ones manufacturing video displays, are much more influenced by consumer focus group testing and market surveys than they are by imaging industry standards of accuracy. The bean counters have the loudest voices when the execs are concentrated upon spread sheets, stockholder expectations, and stock market analysts. The side of their industry that produces reference broadcast displays exercises much more time and care in the design and manufacturing process. This results in lower unit production numbers, dramatically higher device prices; and that without installing tuners, numerous inputs, and other consumer-related, cosmetics, features and functions.