Best bias lighting on a budget for my 58pz850?

I have the Ideal-Lume and I think I paid $79. I know it's above the price you stated but it's a nice clean set-up. The only thing I would say is that I have a 700U that I had the Ideal-Lume set up on and I really didn't notice that much of an improvement in perceived black levels. Now with my 111 it's pretty dramatic since the blacks on the 111 are so dark. Not sure how the 850 would look but it might be a good idea to set up some cheapo bias just to see if you see a difference and then maybe buy something like the Ideal-Lume. Just my opinion of course.

Get the Ideal-Lume. They are not that expensive and work very well. It will make a big difference in night time viewing. Better blacks and no headaches. This is one area where it's better to spend the $60-$90 on something that works rather than screw around trying to save a dollar. Enjoy.

James


http://www.cinemaquestinc.com/ideal_lume.htm

One member from the Kuro Picture Thread used the LED lights from IKEA and it looks pretty good. Check this out. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...20011&page=121

Don't waste your time on cheaper solutions...I use the Idealume also and it works great. It really isn't that expensive and you only need the single light. (about $50 iirc)

I just use an aquarium flourescent light. They are rated at 6500K for about $20

I'm still not convinced that perfect D65 would matter if you didnt have a neutral gray wall.... that's my opinion.

I use the white dioder from IKEA. No FL light fixtures would fit behind my low profile wall mount. The dioder fit the bill perfectly - works great to increase contrast/lower eye strain, a lot of flexibility with placement to control the amount of light and it installed on my set up with an absolute minimal profile.

I have a pz85u, and I went to the ol' Wal-mart last night and got a cheap desktop clip-lamp for about 8 dollars. In the light bulb section they had some 6500k energy saver fluorescent light bulbs, 2 for 6. I hooked those up to the switched outlet on the back of my cable box (my Onkyo 606 doesn't have an outlet) and it worked pretty nicely.

Although I think it was a bit too bright, so I did a quick paper folding job and made a sort of dimmer for it. Since the bulb doesn't get hot, I don't think there is any chance of overheating.

The results are pretty great, for only spending 15 dollars after tax.

So now my only problem is that I have to have my cable box on if I want the lighting. I might spend the extra $20 bucks later and get a current sensing power strip.

Hope this helps..

+1

Throwing my response into the mix:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...8#post15831688

FWIW, my advice is to try a DIY option first and if you're not satisfied then proceed to more elaborate solutions, the most you'll be out is roughly $5 so I think its worth your time (the bulb is typically $5 and I don't believe you can return it, the ballast you can return).

I've had this for a few months now and my wife and I are both happy with the results. I find it most useful for being able to watch movies without any other lights on to wash away the picture.

Best of luck.

Edit: There is no such thing as the 'best' light for any condition. As mentioned by another member, the circumstances of your set-up affects many factors that should be considered (depending how deep you want to get into the subject) such as wall colour. You didn't mention in your OP if your set has been calibrated (either by a pro or a DIY, just make sure you educate yourself on the subject) but that would be my #1 advice in improving your PQ, then follow the whole bias lighting subject. As for needing 1 or 2 lights, again, it all depends on the set-up (size of room, seating position, etc). I only have one behind my set (58") but I wouldn't mind a little more light output out of it (my pictures in the referenced post are a little deceiving, its not that dark in my HT) but I would opt for a bigger tube (T12) before adding another one (currently a T8). At the end of the day, I'm in no rush as I'm plenty satisfied with it as is (it has accomplished its job for me).

This dioder? http://www.ikea.com/it/it/catalog/products/40116541

No, this one:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50119407

http://www.ikea.com/it/it/catalog/products/60116540 in all its Italian beauty. Thanks a lot. I'll keep this in mind.
I am of the opinion that, bar a neutral background (which I can't have), 6500k specification is kind of overrated for this application.

Last week I made my own DIY bias lighting setup. Lowe's had grow lamp fluorescent fixtures (think it was T5F18, 21 inches long w/ 18 inch bulb). Then I got a 6500k daylight bulb and some industrial velcro strips and mounted it behind my set horizontally. Looks as good as the Ideal-lume, it's pretty close to accurate to my eye, the cover on the grow lamp doesn't warm the light at all, which is a problem with most fluorescent fixtures. I used some electrical tape as a blind to keep the light from being too excessive up or down and it looks great. Paid less than 25 bucks, quite a savings over Ideal-lume.

smcilwaine287:

Bias lighting forces your eyes to adjust to the ambient light and this effects black level perception, much like the window behind your bedroom set.

This is most evident when viewing 2.35:1 movies with black bars on top and bottom in a dark room. Without bias lighting, the black bars were dark gray with a distinct glow. With the bias lights on, these black bars look much darker and will almost blend in with my set's (50PZ85) bezel. The difference is quite noticeable. Plus it has very high WAF, my wife loves it.

However, since your set is tightly framed in an entertainment center, the light bouncing off of the ent center may be distracting.

I did my own (gooseneck lamp / 6500k compact fluorescent bulb):

http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/8619/dsc00777f.jpg

.

i like that!

what wattage bulb?

I mounted my light like this:

{-}
|_|

The "-" is the light and the brackets are my RPTV sitting on its stand. The electrical tape was in several overlaid strips on top of the fluorescent fixture's cover, and some on the bottom of that same cover. It keeps the light mainly shining on the wall behind and not distracting the viewer by shining behind my stand or on the center speaker wall-mounted directly above it.

I'll see if I can get a shot to show what I'm talking about.

It's a little too bright but I have no choice as anything lower will make my eyes cry.

18 watt

The downside using a brighter bulb is that you lose shadow detail perception.

cool, thanks. i'm gonna stop at the despot tomorrow a pick a few different ones up, and somewhere around here i've got a couple of clamp on goosenecks. it's a nice easy solution, and if i don't like it, i'll use the cfl's in other places anyway...

thanks again.

hey ozymandis did lowes have the 6500k bulb also? home depot guy looked at me like i had 4 heads!

one more question am i wasting my time with a shot at backlighting my living room walls are a reddish(merlot color)wine color its actually called rasberry merlot and if it would help what color lite should i put up would white help me?
thanks,pat

Beyond just the 6500k bulb thing....the Ideal-lume bias light has a baffle/filter on the bulb itself that allows you to not only adjust the amount of light but also where it shines on the wall behind the tv. I have mine set fairly dim, and spreading the light fairly evenly on the wall behind the panel. This is something that will be difficult to achieve with homemade solutions..

I have my TV kitty-cornered on an entertainment center.....TV sits about 3 ft from the wall at it's furthest point......would Bias lighting add anything to my viewing experience with this kind of setup? Thanks for any response.