Panasonic PZ80/PZ85 Calibration Thread (Updated first post) - Page 37

Sooo.... I took the plung and ordered the DVE HD Basics package (hope that was the right one) to calibrate my PZ85. http://www.dvdinternational.com/pd-d...cs-blu-ray.cfm

Pretty sure I am damn close to 100+ hours now. Or will be by the time it arrives.

C.

And just what are yours BTW...

Forgive me if I missed them.

C.

Cinema
Picture is 65
Bright is 53
Color is 37
Tint is 5
Sharp is 50
Color temp is Normal.
Everything else is off.

I left the settings at 34 for now. Wanted to get my sons perspective on the colors in Finding Nemo. We both thought they looked pretty vibrant. It was the Shrek 3 Blueray that I thought looked kind of dull but I was using a completely different set of settings at that stage. Oddly enough these weird settings from TweakTV are providing some great detail and colors. I am thinking though that 42" versus 50" might be different stories in terms of calibration to be sure but that is just a Hypothesis.

C.

I'm also at 34 with Tint at +2...it's killed off most of the red push that I get from D*TV but doesn't push the yellow too much. I might play around with it a bit more, but am pretty happy with it so far.

I might opt to get a calibration next year if there is any spare cash left from tax return.

I went the Lowes route over a month or so ago and it's made a big diff. I, like Elway had liked a totally "black" room, but the backlight makes the black levels THAT much better.

Whats the color of your wall? My TV is about 8" from the wall (being that it is on a stand) and the walls in this room are a very light brown or beige kind of color almost like a rawhide. Will that work well?

C.

BINGO! My walls are the same color...a light beige. I find it works quite well. The back of my set is about the same distance from the wall and I have my "Econo-Lowes" light taped off as Elway Lite has pictured...

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...00479&page=180

My lite is sitting on the back of the TV stand, facing up, unlike Elway, who has his IDEAL LUME hanging from the TV, about halfway up and facing the wall (mine is shooting straight up). I have no problem with the amount of light, as this seems to work for me and I don't have to worry about trying to successfully hang the light.

Good luck and let me know how you make out!

What are you guys configs on the PS3? i set 24p on, RGB Limited and Super White on
Do you guys think that the "Vivid" mode is more apropriate for games then the "cinema" mode?

Where are you guys getting the service manual or instructions for navigating the service menu?

Why do the specs from the first page make my tv look like crap? Blu Ray looks horrible. Link me to some specs I should be using.

Cinema
Warm
Pic of 65
Bright around 52-54
Color 37-41

Thats about the best you are gonna get without a calibration. If your tv looks bad like that, its one of three things:

1) Tv is damaged
2) Input source is faulty
3) Your eyes are damaged

Is it okay to use these settings if the tv only has around 40 hours?

Read the Break-in FAQ then ask these questions, ummm............or don't.

Just reduce the picture (contrast) setting to 50 for the first 100 or so hours, then you can start moving it up. I use 58-65 range now after over 200 hours of use, but kept it at 50 the first 100 hours.

Yeah. that's how my PS3 is set.

Cinema for all modes...OTA HD, BD, and gaming.

My 46 sits in the corner of my living room, with two windows behind it. Explains why the picture contrast has so much more pop when daylight viewing, than in a darkened room. I'll have to look into the backlight luminance.

Before Service Menu adjustments:

Rcut 80
Gcut 80
Bcut 80

Rdr F9
Gdr FC
Bdr D7


After:

Rcut 79
Gcut 79
Bcut 80

Rdr F6
Gdr F3
Bdr A3

Allcut 80
All drive F6


For anyone that wants to know.

Looks like yours was pretty accurate to begin with, those are pretty minor tweaks for the most part.

My grayscale was close and the blue was the main one that needed adjustment. Just goes to show you that one size doesnt fit all.

Yeah, I noticed that your blue was tweaked more than the others. I'll eventually get mine calibrated too. Can't seem to find a Texas - Dallas/Fort Worth area calibrator (other than BB Geek Squad -- and hell will have to have froze over before I use those guys).

LionAv services Texas.

I concure...

I am using TweakTV's settings for my 42" PZ85U and they are fantastic. They are almost right on the numbers you state there.

The colors and contrast seem to get more striking every few days just leaving it there. There are details in movies I did not see before. Like in instrument pannels in Starwars titles that I thought were lights now show activity and grids that were originally pushed out in one bright color but now are apparent yet the colors are still eye catching! Finding Nemo is vibrant and has a depth of field to it that I did not have on the set's "out of the box" settings.

These numbers are for the TH-42PZ85U (they have slightly different numbers for the other sizes)...

Picture Mode : Cinema
Color Temperature : Warm
Aspect Ratio : Full
Picture Settings
Picture (Contrast) : +60
Brightness : +52
Color : +34
Tint : -6
Sharpness : +18
Color Temperature : Warm
Color Mgmt : Off
x.v.Color : Off
C.A.T.S. : Off
Advanced Picture
Video NR : Off
MPEG NR : Off
Black Level : Light
HD Size : Size 1

I know that 34 seems low for color as far as the number goes but seems to give me the most natural colors and they still seem to pop for me. But 37 seems good too. I am sticking with 34 for now though.

C.

Question for the Guru's...

X.V Color (apparently a feature simular to Deep Color HD but from Sony I seem to recall) is perhaps included on Blueray movies to open up the color field and all that.

Why not leave that on Auto? So if it is in fact encoded in a given movie, you reap the benefits? Are there benefits?

C.

Nothing really yet uses Deep Color to my knowledge.

http://blog.ultimateavmag.com/shanebuettner/52407hype/

your after settings look close to what I am using now. The only difference would be the cuts so I will try yours out and see if they make a difference. Thanks a lot. What is All cut and All drive? was that setting changed too?

I'll repeat my question... does anyone actually have the service manual, or are you just going by experience with prior models?

I tried sending some messages to both Panasonic asking for the service manual and also some vendors who sell service manuals, but I haven't heard anything back from anyone yet.

If anyone actually has a service manual for a PZ850 set, I'd be very interested in hearing the avenue you used to obtain it.

Even if I don't fully need it, I really have a better comfort level with doing anything in the service menu when I physically have a copy of the actual service manual.

Tom and others have posted how to get into the service menu and from there it pretty much tells you what keys on the remote you have to press to change anything. The reason why no one tells you how to navigate the SM is that you can pretty much turn your TV into pile of garbage if you change the wrong settings and going into the service menu voids the warranty so it is not covered if you mess up. If you do go into the SM then write down every setting before changing anything that way if for some reason you make a mistake you have the defaults. With that said It's not really hard to go in there and make some changes IF you are comfortable with it then you can go in there without fear.. If you have any doubts then DO NOT even try.

I cant remember where, but I downloaded a service manual off the net a few mo's back.

I just tried your settings Elway and I think they make the image pop more than it used too. I think that it made the TV a little less brighter though so right now with the sun shining through the blinds it makes it a little unwatchable so I will have to wait till dark to see if it improves the pic.

Exactly why I want the service manual.