AVS Forum banner

Bias lighting for your wall mounted display for only $16

3K views 9 replies 8 participants last post by  GeorgeAB 
#1 ·
Just finished my bias lighting project for my LG 60LM7200 and I’m quite pleased with the results and therefore like to share a few pictures here for whoever may be interested.


All parts were bought on E-Bay ( led strip + power adapter + dimmer with remote ) for a total of about $16.00.


I even programmed my Harmony One to turn on/off the LEDs and increase/decrease the brightness.


Hope this helps somebody looking for a cheap bias lighting solution

 
See less See more
5
#3 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by GeorgeAB  /t/1469270/bias-lighting-for-your-wall-mounted-display-for-only-16/0_60#post_23228513


They look too blue for general video use. What is the claimed and verified color temperature?

Lol, its $16 kit cobbled together from eBay parts. There's nothing to verify. I did something like this for a bedroom TV and it was significantly better than nothing. Good job OP.
 
#4 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by GeorgeAB  /t/1469270/bias-lighting-for-your-wall-mounted-display-for-only-16#post_23228513


They look too blue for general video use. What is the claimed and verified color temperature?
They don't look too blue for me at all however you can experiment with different colors. The E-bay vendor does not post the color temp and I have no means to measure that either
 
#5 ·
If I remember correctly I read about reference or lab quality led lights at consumer prices...at blurbuster com I think....?....on that site he was using those led strips to construct a full aray strobing backlight for use with pc v-sync signal. I guess it blacks out a few frames every refresh (if the monitor is 2ms or faster) mitigating the 'sample and hold' effect. I can't verify any of this. Just relating what I read on the internet....lol


Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2
 
#6 ·
They look ok but the color temp should be as close to 6500k as is possible and reflected off of a neutral wall. My bias light is around 5800k (CFL, not LED) according to the package but that is not certified and the CFI is not given either so it is at best approximate. I find the lack of light uniformity around the panel distracting but my opinion is just that, an opinion, and it's up to the OP as to what is best for him not what anyone else says. I saw an almost identical kit at Costco yesterday. BTW, using different colors, IMO, sort of defeats the purpose of a bias light.
 
#7 ·
Greetings


Generally bias lighting serves a few purposes.


1. Reduce eye fatigue

2. Make blacks look blacker


Even non d65 lights can do this ...


The downside of non d65 lights is that the color of the environment affects how we see color. Wrong lighting can prevent us from seeing what a calibrated display actually looks like regardless of how perfectly calibrated the display is. The viewer will never see it as a result of the environmental effects.


Now if the TV isn't really calibrated either, then it is all moot. No one died as a result of this.


Regards
 
#8 ·
Nice! I did the same for my Sharp Elite 70" but the LED lights I purchased said it was rated at 6500k white and does not allow change of colors. Although I know it's not going to be as correct as the Idea-Lume (I have 2 for my other TVs), it is very close. I bought an ultra slim rack mount for my Elite and it is only 0.5" away from the wall. It would have been difficult for me to squeeze the Ideal-Lume behind the TV and also to run the power wire.



For anyone else who is interested, this is what I bought...

LEDwholesalers 5050,30leds/m, Purewhite:6000-6500k,10mm white PCB,DC12V,5m/roll,Wires on one end,DC female connector on another end,2031PW
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006OVUNCE/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Dimmer with RF remote
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004X4O1NG/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1


PS. You will also need to purchase an AC/DC transformer power source for LED strips.
 
#9 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Michael TLV  /t/1469270/bias-lighting-for-your-wall-mounted-display-for-only-16#post_23229320



The downside of non d65 lights is that the color of the environment affects how we see color. Wrong lighting can prevent us from seeing what a calibrated display actually looks like regardless of how perfectly calibrated the display is. The viewer will never see it as a result of the environmental effects.

question: if the wall is not neutral colored, is there still a benefit to using D65 bias lighting in terms of color perception?
 
#10 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by PlasmaPZ80U  /t/1469270/bias-lighting-for-your-wall-mounted-display-for-only-16#post_23229434

Quote:
Originally Posted by Michael TLV  /t/1469270/bias-lighting-for-your-wall-mounted-display-for-only-16#post_23229320



The downside of non d65 lights is that the color of the environment affects how we see color. Wrong lighting can prevent us from seeing what a calibrated display actually looks like regardless of how perfectly calibrated the display is. The viewer will never see it as a result of the environmental effects.

question: if the wall is not neutral colored, is there still a benefit to using D65 bias lighting in terms of color perception?
As a general recommendation, the correct color temperature is going to align with video industry standards and best practices. Since we are in the calibration section of the forum, where picture accuracy is the dominant objective, one could assume that participants have or plan to provide the recommended neutral colored surrounding surface for the ambient lighting to reflect from. It's the illumination reflected by the wall that determines how a viewer's color perception of the display's image will be affected. These video fundamentals are discussed in the "sticky" thread section at the beginning of this area of the forum.


Education in video fundamentals is sorely lacking in the consumer video arena. Most consumers rely on a haphazard accumulation of video knowledge or just grope their way through designing their entertainment system by intuition. If intuition (what an individual viewer decides they "like") is the rule, AV science remains a foreign interest. When imaging science is the focus, a viewing experience approaching reference quality becomes attainable. Generally speaking, most consumers never get there. Their enjoyment of the beautiful images our advanced state of HDTV has enabled is minimized.


Only a cursory awareness of the purpose of video bias lighting for many hobbyists has resulted in the frequent focus on alleviating eye strain alone. When the video industry recommended practice documents are studied, it is found that the prevailing focus deals with preserving correct color perception, much more than viewing comfort. Seeing the image correctly has the profoundly greater emphasis. Seeing an authentic picture is the priority for those interested in display system calibration and proper equipment setup. Whether someone has ever died in the process rarely comes up, in my experience.


Best regards and beautiful pictures,

G. Alan Brown, President

CinemaQuest, Inc.

A Lion AV Consultants affiliate


"Advancing the art and science of electronic imaging"
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top