Quote:
Originally Posted by
progprog 
Nice idea, but it wouldn't make any difference. If you scan through a bit, you'll see that many (if not most) new posters don't search the threads or even read back a little before asking their questions. I've seen long detailed discussions about something in the morning and then, that evening, someone will ask the same question as if it's never come up before.
Happens all the time.
Also, when it comes to break-in, there is no
right way to do it, or even consensus on
whether to do it, so any attempt at a definitive exposition would just lead to more debate and discussion. That's just kinda what we do here.
As long as it stays civil, it's all good.
(PS: You get pretty good at skimming over the redundant stuff....)
Well, my idea was basically to write up FAQ that was as neutral and factual as possible. Then if enough of the regular posters would get in the habit of just posting links to that, there would be less in the way of redundant responses (Basically, we don't need to re-hash the debate every time someone asks a question).
A few items might be:
Why should I "break-in" my Kuro?
The two main stated purposes of a "break-in" procedure are to avoid "burn-in" and to evenly and predictably age the phosphors in the set. The reason most people care about predictably aging phosphors is to use D-Nice's ISF settings.
Will I destroy my expensive new Kuro if I don't perform the "break-in" procedure?:
There is no consensus, even amongst AV enthusiasts as to whether this process continues to be useful to avoid "burn-in". Many will take a better safe-than-sorry approach due to the cost of these sets, even though there are virtually no reports of "burn-in" on Kuros, even with video games.
Does it matter whether I watch TV and movies before or during the break-in process?
It depends:
1) If you are intending to use any of the settings posted by D-Nice: D-Nice's procedure is designed to control as many variables as possible. It is not a magic procedure which makes your Kuro better. It is a procedure that helps make sure that your Kuro is as similar to the one he calibrated as you can without making your own measurements.
He advises that you follow the posted procedure to the letter if you want the best results from his settings, and he says that he has observed worse results on sets which have not followed this procedure. That said, many are perfectly happy with the results without following the break-in procedure.
Whether you use the DVD or the thumb-drive is considered irrelevant in terms of the results achieved.
2) If you are intending to calibrate your set either professionally or on your own: If you are going to get the set calibrated professionally, just put 150+ hours of usage on the set, which can include the break-in DVD or not. Most would suggest avoiding a LOT of 4:3 or letter-boxed content during this stage, but watching several letter-boxed blu-rays to appreciate the picture on your new toy will not hurt anything if you are mixing in plenty of full-screen content. The "break-in" DVD or thumb-drive used in D-Nice's procedure are relatively safe and easy ways to put more hours of usage on your Kuro when you aren't watching it, but you don't have to use it.
Some calibrators have different numbers of target hours that they ask for, as it is not an exact science. Very few will care whether you followed any particular "break-in" process. Since they have precise calibration tools, they will calibrate YOUR panel, and whether they achieve great results will depend primarily on their tools and abilities, not how you used your Kuro before the calibration.
3) If you are just going to enjoy your set without worrying about all this calibration stuff: Enjoy your TV and just make sure to watch a good deal of full-screen programming, especially in the first 150 hours.
"Burn-in": Plasma technology has historically had problems with screen "burn-in" from static images or excessive viewing with images that fill less than the entire screen. Because many people have seen an old ruined plasma screen, or because some guy at an electronics store told them that plasmas have this problem, people generally worry about this more than they need to. While such problems can still occur, they are exceptionally rare on the latest Kuros (even with video games, but 1000 hours straight of Guitar Hero will probably hurt your screen, not to mention your brain and your social life).
Note that many AVS Forum members will mock you if you use "burn-in" to refer to the previously mentioned "break-in" process.
), you need to change the HDMI type to PC, then hit the DISPLAY button. To do this, you go to MENU>SETUP>OPTION>HDMI INPUT. Be sure to change it back after you're done.
