The Official Pioneer 9G Elite KURO Owner's Discussion Thread - Page 369

More on David Evans , (copied from a post of his in another thread.)

Interesting. This caught my attention: DataColor - ISF C3 interface for Pioneer Elite.
I wonder if this is a competitor for ControlCAL or if it's ControlCAL under another name.

Jim, ive emailed David and asked him if he could look at this thread and perhaps answer your question.

Good point, but then consider that a lot of stuff costs that much and *isn't* supported. I mean, you have to get an extended warranty with a lot of multi-thousand-dollar displays. Why is that? Why aren't they simply backed by the manufacturer?


Agreed.

And McIntosh equipment has an infinite warranty by being built so well it never needs service!

Thanks .... dang I misread that LOL next time I wont drink and read. I swear I thought that said free not fee HAHA.

LOL guys, I aint rich. I was and still am just so impressed with my Kuro that I almost feel like I stole it.
If it was $9000 I could not have afforded it however I have seen ALOT of HDTVs in action and the Kuro absolutely blows away any HDTV that I have ever seen. All I am saying is I could see a $9000 price tag on it and all id be able to do is wish I could afford such a performer...but no , the 151 can be had for much less. The odds are is that it is gonna be used until I die or it dies.

They have no support for the 9G's and their application had been discontinued some time ago. In fact, their 'Main' Calibration application has as well to my understanding...

Well its not that expensive for a calibration, I think the average cost is $300-$400 .. so pretty far from free but not crazy expensive.

David has a lot of experience and was one of the early Professionals to get ControlCAL and uses it for all 8G and 9G Models... See this LIST

He does cover Washington State and does so several times a year.....

I just spoke to him, he's been very busy (he does the calibrations for many Dealers as well) so he doesn't get time to Post on Forums....

I have been wondering about something similar. I presume that the number of people who truly "cash in" on extended warranties after the 2 years is limited. However, I presume that the scope of the extended warranties is greater. That was always my experience on the few occasions that I bought warranties from consumer electronics chains. Heck, at Best Buy, my experience has been that they will allow a return no questions asked on many products, and refund an amount equivalent to the balance of your warranty.

So, my question is what sort of things have people had covered by extended warranties like Mack, etc. that might have been within the 2 years even. I am worried about things like my daughter damaging the screen by throwing something at it, drawing on it, etc.

I know this is a tad off-topic, but since people are discussing it, I just wanted to ask.

Be sure and read David's........

"Why Should I Have My Video Display Device Professionally Calibrated?"

http://www.21stcenturycalibrations.com/custom3.html

No warranty is going to cover that , including Pioneer's.

Sometimes your homeowner's policy will, though.

I agree that it it's built so well that it never needs service, but my McIntosh gear only came with a 3 year limited warranty. That was almost 9 years ago and I've never had a problem with it, however.

That information posted is outdated.. he has a Minolta CS200 (high end meter).

He will be touring Washington the last week in February and his slots are filling up.. Call him if you want an appointment during his next Washington Tour.

Maybe there is some kind of failure to disclose technicality you can pursue. In the manual, it states that several or so dead pixel is within tolerance. However, no consumer would know this unless they purchased it first and then opened the manual. Consumers buy on the belief that a "warranty" should meet their satisfaction and should cover this defect. Therefore, I don't believe Pioneer properly disclosed their dead pixel tolerance policy prior to the point of sale. Try going through the Pioneer mediation process. Not to harp on Pioneer since they have been fair to resolve several of my issues, but I think they should be better at disclosing this type of defect, especially for the "premium" we pay for their products.

Although I do not intend to spot for a dead pixel, each has their own tolerance level. If I noticed it somehow, it would bother me also.

I wonder if it would cover you if it's your child...I know it would otherwise..
You would likely have a very large deductible, at least I would..
Sonny

Hey, you might consider getting a Protective Film for the screen,
Photodon has a number of different films and I am pretty sure you can
get a custom cut piece , though I cannot find that link right now.

http://photodon.com/

Absolutely agree with you. I will hear from Pioneer in a day or two and have to tell them exactly what you said. Settling on anything less than perfect wouldn't justify the premium.

UMR traveled to CA to see all of his gadget loving clients and was able to squeeze me and my PDP-111FD, SC-07 and BDP-05 into the mix on 1/24. He spent about 5 and 1/2 hours here and provided lots of helpful tips on my system.

I did my own basic DVE BD calibration and tried to mirror many of the members settings here - including those from DNice (Thank you for your continued input DNice you are an asset to the forum).

I can say I am greatly pleased by the results. Overall on the video side
for my 111FD the changes are dramatic:

1) the panel is much brighter:
- with ISF Day and (surprisingly) ISF Night (powersave disabled),
- it's almost XBR LCD like it's so much more impressive now;

2) the colors Pop like never before:
- pre calibration some colors in Pure mode seemed a bit dull to me (Especially compared with other modes);
- I would describe it now as akin to some LCDs I have seen in many stores with the contrast and color cooking, except this is a plasma as close to D65 as it can get,
- UMR uses Disney Pixars' Cars as a demo post calibration - I have never seen the Pixar animation - particularly the Gas Station and main street scenes so clear, so bold and the black pavement so detailed. Even on my basically calibrated front projector at 106".
- UMR also used a scene from another movie with a couple in bed (you can see the outline of the woman's exposed back and neck and the front of the man's chest face and upper arms) to check fleshtones and intermediate colors. - This was [update] Charlotte Grey on DVD and through the Pioneer BDP-05 on Auto (internal scaling applied (firmware 1.21)) the image is near BD quality and the skintones are virtually perfect.
- when I watch the DirecTV feed of NBC's Tonight Show with Jay Leno (a recent episode this week featured Howie Mandel - who is shaved bald) you can tell where the pankake makeup fades out midway across his scalp.
- at first the colors seemed a bit unnatural to me but after watching various sources you can start to see what directors intended and what TV stations do to get your attention by pumping up colors on some feeds and transistions. It's very revealing.

3) the black level is much improved (again if that was possible):
-In a recent Tonight Show episode (another one this week with a Zookeeper and Marissa Tomei) Jay is wearing a black suit with fine two colored pinstriping. You can not only see the pinstripes clearly but you can differentiate the fine white/beige in those same stripes now.
- Comparing the BD "The Dark Night" (with my reference being the IMAX stills taken when Batman first arrives in Hong Kong. The scenes were used to make the jump from the building across to the Chinese Investor's building) as pre/post calibration reference the difference is also apparent. The glass on the blue windows of the exterior is a bit less cool and the reflections are more detailed. Even the makeup on the Joker is clearly more vibrant whereas it was more muted (more purpley grey and cranberry vs white and crimson),
- Even the smoke in the first Bank robbery scene comming from the smoke grenade left in the managers mouth is more green vs gray green before calibration,
- The color from the fluroescent lighting over the teller line in the bank (opening scene) is clearly distinguishable from the natural daylight and other artificial lights in the scene when the camera pans from the teller windows, across the teller line toward the manager's office.

Overall:

It is an amazing set. The difference in pre vs post Calibration results - even on this set - is worth every penny spent on getting it professionally done. You can see my Audio calibration comments on the SC-05/SC-07 owners thread and with that UMR did an equally fantistic job (now I realize it may be soon time to upgrade or add (As UMR recommends) to my sub compliment in my large space) but my system is much clearer and less fatiguing.

I would highly recommend UMR. No matter who you chose pick someone who knows what they are doing and (post break-in) get the panel calibrated. You will kick yourself when you see what you were missing pre-calibration.

who is UMR, please advise

Jeff Meier. Highly-recommended around here, but his circuit is limited to specific areas of the country.

Thanks for the calibration report -- Part II.


That scene is in "Charlotte Gray" which is, as you indicated, SD.

There are several other outstanding examples in the same movie.

I've added your "Part II -- video" to the flat panel (Post#2) list that's linked at the bottom of my post. (Also, see Part I -- audio in the same location.)

Enjoy.

I see he is coming to NYC I think :-)

Yea Im gonna get it done in the spring sometime. Since I just sold my 50" Samsung Plasma to a friend for $500 Ill just save that money for the calibration. I was going to keep that tv since it be good for another room but since I dont live in a house its not worth keeping another 50" tv around if Im not using it.

Anyone no of anyone good around the Chicagoland area to get a calibration done.

"Da Man"

"Hmmm... first off, how do you know me? Yes I did live in Bellingham, though I bought a house in Birch Bay , so I am now in Blaine."

Oh I thought I remembered you mentioning on the forum some time ago that you were in the area. Yes, Birch Bay is nice.
I don't think I can have all my ducks in a row that soon (Feb) but I will certainly keep him in mind when I get ready to have a pro do it, thanks.

BTW I left the Bellingham area in 1972, I imagine it has grown considerably since then.

The serial port in the back of the kuro, where it says service only, is that where you connect a pc?? The hdmi is not quite working out for me because of my video card, the image is nice but stretched...

Can someone chime in?

Coming from not only an Authorized Independent service center for over 30 brands (as well as being authorized Pioneer/Elite sales)...we stress that wherever and whatever u purchase from us and the box stores that u purchase the optional 5 year warranty. They (all brands & display types) r all failing within 18-24 months.
The repairs are comprised of entire board replacements not individual ic's and resistors as what we were all used to up to 5 years ago. Average parts prices are 250-300. instead of 30-50. Labor of 150-250 remains the same + service call fee.
Buy the warranty!
alan in cc,tx 78411

No, you connect a PC to the PC input, which is analog RGB. The service only input is serial, which supports RS-232 for software like ControlCAL, which enables the ISFccc interface.