The Official Pioneer 9G non-Elite KURO Owner's Discussion Thread - Page 402

[quote=KCinWhitby;16854665]
Very helpful post KCinWhitby, links, instructions and all.

I would add that there is a pretty useful alternate way to approach the calibration of the Non-Elite's 2 Video Mode grayscales of 72Hz and 60Hz ( as opposed to the HDMI PC modes ). That would be to calibrate both refresh rates to 6500K but use different A/V modes as the basis of the calibration.

I describe that a little here.

What I like about that approach is it gives you very distinct looks for flexibility but both calibrated. Using the grayscale calibrated for Movie Mode will still leave with high temp "blue" settings on all your A/V modes.

Using a grayscale calibrated for Standard A/V mode on the other hand will bring the temperature down and much closer to accurate for all the other A/V modes.

A grayscale calibrated for Standard/Performance can also give you a significantly brighter mode than movie mode that is still calibrated. Personally with this setting I no longer feel I'm missing much from not having ISF modes like the Elite models.

For one set and forget mode though I agree, it has to be movie mode and it still looks quite good with almost any source content I can throw at it.

Had my 5020 calibrated on Friday by Doug Weil. Just wanted to say that I am totally stoked at his work. He is very thorough and was very patient with all my stupid questions. He comes highly recommended. His user name is DroptheRemote

I've added your report to the flat panel(Post#2) list that's linked at the bottom of my post.

Does Doug Weil have a user name at AVS? If so, use the edit button to add it to your post.

I had Chad from hdtvbychadb.com calibrate my 6020 last Friday, and he did a great job! Plus, he got my audio to sound alot better. Do not look down upon calibrating a non-Elite, it is worth it. One thing I want to mention is the necessity of having backlighting. I purchased the Ideal Lume Pro from Cinemaquestinc.com, and it was worth every penny. Even if you go with a cheaper backlight from Cinemaquestinc.com, you can't go wrong. I used to think it was no big deal watching tv in the dark, but the backlighting really makes the picture look so much better. My father was impressed, and he usually doesn't pay much attention to the picture on a tv. Finally, I continue to use Purosol to clean my plasma and no problems at all.

Mark

Thanks for your calibration report. I've included it in the flat panel (Post#2) list that's linked at the bottom of my post.

Thank you KCinWhitby and Dahlsim, including all the links, you have given me a treasure trove of information!


KCinWhitby:

My Ps3 also did it on it's own, but don't like that it is running harder that usual (fan). I may buy a cheap DVD player just to burn on the 150 Hr continuous break-in.


The Word document you refer too looks very helpful, but again I want to calibrate my TV in "Advance" [no "d" at the end of this word] mode, not "Off". What exactly do I have to do different than the Word doc. to accomplish this?

Who is TURBE and when and how will he be 'running me through the rest?'




One proble I may have is that I don't own a laptop, and I don't think I'm willing to move my PC to the living room... that means I have to find a frien who will lend me a laptop right?


Anyhoo, thanks again, but right now my head is spinning, from info overload!




P.S. My TV arrives in 2 days!!!!!!!!

What do you guys use to clean your Kuro?

I am specifically looking for the same kind of micro fiber cloth that Pioneer provided with the set. I'm afraid to get any other micro-fiber cloth because of the potential the manufacturers might have chemicals in it to "help" you clean what you want to clean or the cloth might have a terrible texture that isn't viable for cleaning the TV.

I'm looking to have two or three micro-fiber cloths. I plan on using one and dipping it in distilled water, wringing it out, and cleaning the screen. The screen was in a warehouse for about a year so there is some what I believe gunk on the screen. I then plan on using the other cloths to dry the screen.

Anyone know of any good place to get cloths like the ones pioneer provides?

Thought of something unrelated that I need to ask.

Does anyone have the dimensions for the Pio 5020 Box?

(i.e. Hight, Width, Depth.)

I need it to fit in a mini van and I want to keep the box upright.

you can check a local camera shop or a web store like photodon.com for good quality micro fiber cloths

did you check online at pioneers website. i think they have the box dimensions as part of the documents or online sales brochures

Didn't think of that, thanks!

From the Pioneer website:

I think that will fit just fine!


One question though, it seems that 20" height implys that the TV is meant to ship on it's front or back rather than head up (which would be the 38-3/8" number I would assume).

I always thought that it was better to keep plasmas upright. Is that true.

If not which is better: lying on it's face or lying on it's back?

Thanks for the link. Unfortunately I don't believe I have a camera store near by.

I'm not home right now so I can't look at the kuro cloth at home, what do you think looks to be the same on that site?

I once saw a micro-fiber cloth that came with a laptop that had these ridges on it. I would be terrified to use that on this beautiful screen.

Yes, the box is upright, and you pull the cover off with the base keeping the plasma standing. You may need to lay it slightly off vertical in your van, but that should be fine. The stand is attached on a 5020, so you don't need to mess with that.

From the Pioneer website:

Quote:
52-7/8 x 20 x 38-3/8" (W x H x D)

It's actually W x D x H, 20" is the depth.

I'd keep it upright. If box is too tall to fit door opening you can remove top/outside box. 50" tv comes w/ stand attached so you can safely transport it using just the bottom box or even w/o box if necessary, just make sure it's stable or have someone sit in the back to hold it, screen covered, padded on bottom to absorb any road shock.

the ~38" should be the height.

you can mount and use it in any position it does not effect how it operates overall.

as for transporting ..YES it should be transported in the upright position. but actually you can transport it in any manner you please it is just a matter of risk to cracking the glass. upright is preferred/smartest/least risky.

good luck with it.

This may seem like a weird suggestion to some on this forum, but some of the best quality micro-fibre towels are sold through specialty car detailing sites. These guys (the detailers that is) re-define the term compulsive/obsessive (and I should know!! )

Here's a couple I think would be worth consideration:

http://www.dftowel.com/ordertowels.html

http://www.pakshak.com/ultra-edgeles...l-16x16-1.html

Trust me, none of this is that confusing once you're looking at it. I had a ton of questions to get it done, but I ended up throwing caution to the wind, getting ControlCal and the cables and diving in. But make sure you read and re-read the instructions.

Here is a link to where you can purchase ControlCal:

http://www.controlcal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=173

I think there is a link on the step by step word document. TURBE is the person's screen name that sells it. You'll see his name on the left side of the above link and can message him.

The changes are within the screens of ControlCal and I don't have them in front of me but from memory you would choose what Pure Cinema mode to calibrate. If I remember correctly, you'll need to set the offsets for Pure Cinema: OFF first, as this is the only one where you can get the original settings for R,G,B,. You need the original settings to know what to change them to. I don't think we can get the original settings for Pure Cinema: Advanced yet. People using the offsets will simply use the same settings they ended up with for Pure Cinema: OFF.

Once "Advance" is calibrated, then you have calibrated any Pure Cinema mode that can give you 72hz. Just calibrate (or enter offsets) for both and then if you only want to use Advance so be it.

If you are borrowing a laptop, make sure you can have it for a few days. Once you are in the Service Menu, some things may not make sense and you may want to come back to the Forums for information. It can take days for some people to get back to you as we are not always on. Once you buy it you'll have TURBE actual e-mail and he was great in getting back to me as I had questions.

It's a bit overwhelming at first. Here is what I would do:

I'd break it in and see what the pictuer looks like before I go ordering anything. If you don't like the whites and pinks then definitely try the Offsets. Once you know you want ControlCal, figure out if you are getting the cables with it or getting the cables on your own. Make sure you can borrow a laptop.

As far as the breakin goes, you can also try the USB method but I did not use it. As for 150 hours, there was no way I could not watch anything for 150 hours and I was not going to run it continuously. So I'd run it for 4-6 hours a day, watch TV in full screen at night and I did not worry about it too much. Once I was at about 200 hours of total viewing I considered it broken in.

It's probably best that I don't try to walk you through this any further until you are really ready to be walked through it.

might be a dumb question but what does the film mode really do, whether on advance or off. what changes?

KCinWhitby: Thank you for the words of encouragement, right now I am leaning toward getting ControlCal (with the hardware bundle) right away [I already know that the whites will bother me at least a little... remember I did already own this model used for a while]. This way I won't have as much wait time after break-in... I want to get into calibration ASAP... provided I can track down a laptop.

Regarding the break-in period: I purchased a cheap upconverting DVD player ($37) for the express purpose of doing this break-in. I hope to do 150 Hrs straight on the DVD and I don't care if it fries this player.

My only concerns are:

1) Is it bad for the TV to run 150 Hrs straight? Should I give it periodic breaks/cool down periods?

2)Will I go insane with the constant glow/buzz!? That will remain to be seen.


On a related note, I live in an apartment and because of the layout (and for reasons of cross ventilation) There will only be a hallway between me (and my wife) and the glowing Pioneer at night; i.e. no closed doors. From running the Video Pattern on my used 5020 I know that this will be bright in our bedroom.

My question is: would it be OK to rig something up with cardboard or something to shield the screen at night, as long as I don't cover the back of the TV?

If not I can probably hang up a sheet across the hallway to kill some of the glow.

I would not put anything (cardboard or other) in front of the TV. Especially when using the break-in settings these TVs are HOT. If you don't want to run at night, then don't, just take your time.

ControlCal is fun. I really enjoyed playing with it before I got a real calibration by DNice. You'll be able to see a real difference, but even after applying offsets the real calibration results from DNice were very different than the offset numbers.

I can't really answer but I've heard of people that ran the 150 hours straight. Personally I find this TV runs really hot so I'd give it a break every 10 hours or so. Like I said, I didn't hesitate to watch some TV. Your wife is very patient. Mine would have freaked out if I bought a $3000.00 TV we could not watch for a couple of weeks.

I would go with the sheet idea. I wouldn't want to stop any airflow to the TV.

I can't comment on the buzz as mine literally has no noticeable screen buzz.

Have you considered a professional calibration? Sounds like you'll end up getting one done.

I've played the breakin DVD on 4 panels 150 straight hours and it has been fine. Personally I like the idea of stress testing the set early on. Make sure you have good ventilation and like has been said, don't put anything in front of it.

You can also take breaks - leave it off while you sleep if the glow bothers you.

There are many opinions on the subject, but IMO it is well worth it, as I've never experienced any blotchiness or some of the other issues that people have reported. The picture is fantastic!

Enjoy your toy!

Can anyone recommend someone in new jersey to calabrate the 5020, I would like to hear from someone who has used this person and get their input on him..i know there is a list of people who do this but would just like to hear from someone who has actually used this person..

I would strongly recommend that you do not put anything whatsoever in front of the screen; particularly if you plan on using D-Nice's break-in settings (which cause it to run abnormally hot).

One of the design characteristics of this set calls for it to dissipate a greater proportion of its heat through the front panel, as apposed to the top. Impeding this process can result in damage to the panel!

A_C

Nuf said! I will put nothing in front of the screen!

I thought that would be the answer. I'll try hanging up a sheet in the hallway.

Anyway, a quick update:

I picked the 5020 up today. It fit perfectly in the Mini van I was using [Toyota]. I didn't have to remove the box or anything. Had it home and running on the Break in DVD by 2:00 pm. That brings me almost to 6 Hrs already!

I am happy to report that there is no significant hum and no dead pixels that I can see!

Still haven't decided if I will let the TV/DVD player rest from time to time. I want to do the entire 150 hours as fast as possible, but I am leaning towards brief rests, like an hour every 24 hours or so.

Also, I am in contact with TURBE and will be ordering the ControlCal bundle soon.

I highly recommend you that you take DNice up on his offer to calibrate your new Kuro. DNice was nice enough to visit me in Birmingham a few months ago to calibrate my TV and it was like getting a new TV. You will be amazed at the improvement of your picture and DNice will take the time to explain and answer any questions you may have. You can't go wrong - I would go as far to personally guarantee your satisfaction - that's how strongly I feel about his work/expertise. DNice, great to see you posting on this thread again. Steve

Sounds like you got a good one this time.

ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You can read about D-Nice's work using the link at the bottom of my post. Go to post number two. You can also check out the following calibrators. D-Nice and any of these people do good work.

Jeff's tour schedule is on his web site. He also does audio.

Jeff Meier (UMR at AVS)
http://www.accucalhd.com/
jeff@accucal.org

Eliab is in your area.

Eliab Alvarez de la Campa (Eliab)
http://www.avical.com/
eliab@avical.com
Eliab at 908-531-7028

Gregg does tours.

Gregg Loewen
http://www.lionav.com/services.php
gregg@lionav.com

anyone