Panasonic PZ80/PZ85 Calibration Thread (Updated first post) - Page 73

AVCHD is a container. It holds AVC MP4 files but supports navigation and other DVD/BD conveniences.

Good to know, so without the container it would just be a collection of video clips?

Yes, the roughly 40 mp4 files in the MP4 zip file.

I spoke to Panasonic tech support today regarding two unclear details about these sets.

In case anyone was wondering, the moving picture resolution for all 1080p Panasonic Plasmas is the full 1080 lines regardless of whether it states 900 lines or more or full-time 1080 lines (on some newer models). The only catch is the source must be 1080p or true 1080i (not 540i with line doubling). So, if the TV says 1080p when you press "INFO," you're getting all 1080 lines of resolution regardless of motion. I would assume upscaled 1080p signals are treated like 1080p since the TV doesn't know the difference (says 1080p either way).

Also, Game Mode doesn't offer faster video processing so playing games on Cinema Mode won't be a compromise unless you want a brighter, more saturated picture. I'm guessing the faster video processing rate in Game Mode was a feature for LCDs only. On a side note, the Xbox 360 equipped with HDMI has a color setting feature that lets you select the Rec. 709 standard for both video and game content. This can offer better color for games and upscaled dvd's if you TV is calibrated using the AVS Disc for Rec. 709.

While I'm very happy with the picture settings I'm using now, I don't own any color filter like the THX Glasses. I don't own DVE Blu-ray and so I don't think they will sell me the filters separately. In other words, I'm asking if the THX glasses are good to use with the AVS Calibration Disc for setting color and tint in the user menu. Most likely the settings are already spot on or very close, but I want to see that for myself with the color filter. I think a blue filter should suffice since I can't adjust colors individually anyways on this set. My color and tint settings in the service menu are untouched at 3D and 03, respectively.

Should I order the THX glasses directly from the THX site? Is there a better option? I would prefer to spend the least amount of money possible as long as the filter is still good.

Yes.

When my THX glasses come in, I want to tweak HD (HDMI from PS3) via the AVS Disc but also wish to tweak SD (S-Video from SAT box). I have two questions: what's a good calibration dvd for SD and since I don't have s-video cables for my PS3, will composite video be okay?

Which dvd is the easiest to use for setting the five basic settings (white level, black level, saturation, hue, and sharpness)?

I don't want to use component or hdmi since s-video is much closer to composite video then those connection types (specifically in terms of color). I've heard that S-Video is simply sharper than composite video.

Two things:
1) The errors are mostly in your display and are independent of input type.
2) Errors that aren't in your display are in your source so adjusting your SAT input using your PS3 isn't helping in the way you think it is.

Let me rephrase my question, if I want to tweak my tv for the Rec. 601 standard (using standard pic mode to avoid clashing with my settings for Rec. 709 in cinema pic mode), what's a good dvd to use and is it okay to use composite video (fixed @ 480i) since I want to use these settings for the Video 1 input or should I just stick with my current hdmi connection and set it to output @ 480p (can't go any lower than that with hdmi)?

I know my PS3 input is not the same as my SAT input but I do wish to adjust my TV for SD in general (so that SD content is not using my Rec. 709 settings or just alternate settings by eye). I know the result will be an improvement even if it's not perfect since the current settings I'm using in standard pic mode for SD content are rather mediocre/have plenty of room for improvement.

Put simply, what's a good way to tweak my TV for SD content so that it looks as good as it can while not interfering with my HD settings?

Two things:
1) You are almost certainly on a quixotic quest.
2) You should read this.

If you want to persevere you should use the GetGray disc and a SD non-upconverting DVD player.

It occurs to me that you might be asking if SD and HD settings are independent. Not in my experience but since I normally only send 1080 to my display I don't have much experience. If that's your goal you could use separate inputs and Custom mode but then you have to live with the lesser gamma.

I plan on tweaking my HD settings with Cinema, specifically brightness, color, and tint while leaving picture at 50 and sharpness at 0 and then doing the same for SD with Standard (but with a higher picture setting, 75ish, and 50 for sharpness). I don't like the look of Custom. I'll probably rent a dvd from netflix with the THX Optimizer or just the DVE (NTSC dvd version) disc.

Did you want to soften your SD image? The neutral point for sharpness is 50.

Not SD, just HD since it helps hide grain and noise in movies. My starting point for HD settings came from JBrady's posted ISF calibration settings (with a pic of 50 and sharpness of 0).

I wasn't there but ... either there was a transcription error or there was something wrong with the panel. At 0 softening is obvious on my PZ85 and while you can probably get used to it it seems unlikely that a calibrator would consider that acceptable.

I believe the common way to denoise a plasma is to crush black just a bit.

I have been trying to adjust my set using AVS HD 709. For adjusting color and tint, I used a blue filter that came with an older Video Essentials DVD. The filter looks like a 35mm film strip except that it is blue; the only thing printed on it is "Eastman 38".

My settings after this run through AVS HD:
Mode: Cinema
Picture: 70
Brightness: 56
Color: 47
Tint: -5
Sharpness: 50
Color temp: warm
Black level: light

I'm asking because the values I get for color seems a bit high compared to other values mentioned in this thread. But so is my brightness. Maybe it's because my set is a TH-C50FD18, which is supposed to be similar to a PZ80U, but maybe it's not behaving exactly alike.

Regarding the Picture, if I base myself on the blinking white stripes test pattern, I would need to raise it to around 90-95. If I remember correctly what I read on this thread, the desired luminance for a dark room viewing environment is about 35 foot-lambert, which is achieved on these sets by using a picture value in the 55-65 range. Is that correct?

The DVE filter is considered superior to the Avia filter but they do age. That said your numbers aren't inconceivable.

White level (Picture/Contrast) is hard to set on modern displays that don't clip. Sometimes you'll see color distortions at high levels but a meter is the way to go.

To be honest, when using the DVE Blu-ray Disc to adjust sharpness (before I found this website) I couldn't see much happen as I went from 0 to 50 to 100 and back. In my SD Sat Input, 50 is significantly sharper than 0 however since the signal is 480i.

I'm guessing the reason is that a 1080p 42" screen is very sharp @ true 1080p regardless of this setting. I will try 50 versus 0 with a few of my favorite movies to see if there is a difference for me but I doubt I'll able to see it on any 1080p test pattern even if my eyes are inches away from the screen as this was the case with DVE Blu-ray.

I have asked Panasonic and they did concur that 50 is the neutral point. How big is your screen? I think that might have a significant impact on the setting since the more densely packed the pixels are, the sharper the TV will appear when displaying it's full resolution.

Can anyone with a PZ80 that has changed their service menu settings please post their before and afters? Also your user settings to go along with them.

Just want to try a few different ones...thanks.

I have a 46.

Yesterday, I tried a setting of 50 for sharpness of the Blu-ray version of The Rock. The PQ for this movie was quite high, so it was good test material.

It was sharper, but nothing drastic. That being said, I'll leave it at 50 since there is still a benefit (even if it is minor).

Use the AVSHD709 Disc to adjust brightness, color, and tint. You can do it first in the SM and then tweak in the UM or do it entirely it the UM. For contrast, use 000 in the SM and try 50 in the UM. Sharpness should be left at 50 and is only present in the UM.

For grayscale, note that I've copied JBrady's after settings but the top three values with an asterisk are two units higher since when I copied his after settings directly, my ALL-CUT went to 7E (two units below 80).

Try the following:

User Menu:

Cinema
pic: 50 fixed
bright: set 2nd
color: set 2nd
tint: set 2nd
sharp: 50 fixed
temp: warm
color management: off


Adjust

000 fixed
XX set 1st
XX set 1st
XXX set 1st


WB Adjust

7D*
80*
7B*
E4
FC
A0
80
FC

I set my brightness to 7FD in the SM and didn't have to change it from the default 58 in the UM. I'm awaiting THX glasses so I can set color and tint.

I have the UK version of this TV, Panasonic 42PZ80

I see most people use cinema mode for Blu-Ray discs, does this mean that cinema mode gives the very best PQ with HD,
also could anyone tell me why cinema mode is the best and what the differences are between all four picture modes?

Normal
Cinema
Eco
Dynamic

Regarding AVSHD709 Disc:

When using the grayscale patterns 1 and 2 under Misc. Patterns (ramp and steps), I noticed a little violet tinting on the lower left of the screen but not so much on the upper right. Since it's the same pattern, why a difference between the top one and the lower one? Are these good patterns for just checking grayscale by eye or are there better ones on this disc? I should mention on the blu-ray thx optimizer (Terminator 2), I noticed zero tinting under the monitor performance grayscale steps.

Sadly there's not a lot of information here about the various EU/PAL models but they seem different from the U version. On the US models the mode appears to be a gamma control and Cinema is the only one that yields an inflection free curve in the 2.2 +- .5 range.

I don't see this on my 46PZ85

I don't think you can check grayscale by eye but if I were going to try I'd use one of the 5% window sets or the 10% APL set (CalMAN or HCFR).

Thanks PlasmaPZ, do you have any screen shots of how your settings look?

I can take a few after I get my THX glasses and dial in color and tint. It looks great already, but I'm sure there's some room for improvement.

Looking forward to it, thanks man.

Was wondering if there was any way to reset the service menu settings or if anyone had their default numbers for cinema (warm), and custom (normal) in the service menu.


42-PZ85U