Samsung PNXXc550 Owners Thread *NO PRICE TALK* - Page 86

I notice a grainy pattern appear on my XBOX main menu screen. When I scroll through the menu horizontally, anything solid white shows a moving, grainy pattern appear. If I stop scrolling, then it goes back to solid white color. Really odd. Not sure if it's xbox or tv doing it. I only notice it on the XBOX main menu, because a lot of the large menu tiles are white. Maybe dithering going on?

That sounds like it might be the banding issue. Bring up the scrolling bars in the menu and see if you notice any horizontal lines that span the sceen. The will be faint, most visable in the light grey bars, they are pretty obvious. If you have them, then I would sit on it for a few months, and then call for service. Good chance you will get upgraded to the new model, as it is a hard to fix problem. It can be caused by a wide variety of problems, from bad ribbon cables (there are alot of them), to a bad main motherboard.

I have a pn58c550.

I love my picture but I have slight banding too....almost thinking of calling in to get it switched with the d series. But one thing scares me...on amazon it show the d series only having 2 HDMI ports while my c550 has four. Is this true?

Is there any banding at all on the D series so far...is picture better..worst?

There is a lot of wrong info for the D series on the internet.

There are 4 HDMI ports. 2 on the back and 2 on the side. There are 2 USB ports 2 on the side.

D series has 3D and cinema smooth.

The picture is excellent. No banding at all. Image retention is nearly non-existent on a brand new TV (I hope it completely disappears), also I there is no line-bleed. My C series had some bad line bleed also. Black lettering on a white background used to have faint black lines across the picture.

I am extremely happy with the D series. The picture is nearly flawless.

One thing that is worse that a lot of people have complained about is that it is more reflective. This is true. I see reflections a lot more.

Good luck.

hmmm... I might be mixing up line bleeding with banding?

with the c550, I changed it to a 590 for cinema smooth.

On the D series is the cinemas smooth the same? Or is it a true 24 p?

Seems to me that the only extra added benefit would be 1 extra inch of tv and 3-d.

My 550 is not a buzzer..I'm half afraid to pull the trigger and trade up for minor line bleeding...


Thanks!

Cinema smooth is the same. I'd just keep that tv if you are happy with it.

Hello good people! Just got a PN50C540 and have a quick housekeeping-type "?". they included a dinky little blue cloth for cleaning the screen and also state emphatically NOT to use anything other than water to clean the screen. I also have a screen cleaner from BELKIN specifically designed for flat screens - ie; no ammonia in it. Has anyone used anything stronger than H2O to clean the screen? Has anyone scratched their panels by using one of these screen-cleaner formulas?

Perspiring minds need to know!!

I use 0 TDS water (deionized water) to clean everything from computer monitors to windows, and have discovered it works better then even windex on the windows. I have a good supply of such filtered water as I keep a saltwater reef aquarium and have a nice filter to make purified water.

For the average person a 1 gallon jug of distilled water will acomplish the same. The key is because the water is devoid of any inpurities there is nothing to cause streaks. I believe windex works so well because it is mainly just just purified water, a small bit of chemicals, and some blue coloring.

Windex contains ammonia and other detergents according to the label. I would not use it to clean any computer or TV screen. Some plasma TV's have a anti-reflective coating that may be damaged. I haven't bought Windex in years, because I find it leaves streaks, especially on car windows. All of my local car washes know better, they use only microfiber cloths to clean windows. On TV and computer screens, just use a larger microfiber cloth.

Got a question for the technical experts...Why is it that the overall panel brightness in Movie/Standard mode is less than in Dynamic mode, even when Cell Light is set to 20 for each mode? What hidden settings does Samsung tweak in the background?

I've been using Movie Mode and Warm2, calibrated with Spears&Munsil. A couple of recent Blu-Ray movies I watched looked really bad. (Harry Potter & new Star Trek). Very, very dull, not bright enough even with no lights on in the room. Nothing like what I saw in the theater. I tried calibrating Movie Mode again with S&M disc in my Oppo player but got same light output.

It looks like Samsung is limiting the cell light output in Movie and Standard modes, compared to Dynamic. This is not necessarily correct though, given what I'm seeing with a lot of newer movie releases. Either that, or my panel was badly setup from the factory. Any thoughts? Is there a service menu setting to turn up cell light output in Movie Mode?

Adding to the above, I actually use a synthetic chamois because I find that even microfibre leaves streaks... but only dampened with water.

Do you notice any black levels rising with Cinema Smooth engaged? For example...do black bars on wide screen movies get any lighter when if CS off and then turned on?

newbie here! read through the 83 pages whoo! No buzzing yet! HD Hockey on this TV is a pure delight.

Few questions hope you techies can help:

1- Do I need DLNA on my laptop to be able to stream to the TV? Can't seem to connect.
2- I connected my Ipod (touch) to the TV but cannot play music, any clues?
3- Is there a way to hook up the TV to my onkyo receiver to be able to control sound with the TV remote?
4- My GF wants to know if there is a way to get the "samsung" logo to light up. I know. LOL

Thanks for any insights.

1. DLNA is a standard, you wouldn't actually install it on your laptop, depending on what OS it has it and if it is in the same subnet it should be seen by the TV when searching for new devices...
2. sorry, I know very little about the i-world!
3. There is right/left audio out and optical out for connection to an AVR but IIRC these are both line level, hence the AVR controls the volume.
4. The GF wants to know this, observant girl! But, no it doesn't light up on this model.

BTW, welcome to forum!

To add to Al's good answers:

1- once my panel was networked, if I go to my pc and right click on a video or jpg or mp3, select PlayTo and you should see the model number of your Samsung. You can also search and play content on your PC using AllShare, which should see your networed PC.

2- Try an app called iMediaShare- I use it with a droid to play media on the panel.

3-Too many variables here to answer decisively, but be sure you're panel's audio setting is set for External Speaker. I'm not sure, but you may need a universal remote because the Samsung one isn't programmable for other devices' codes.

4- Hehe.

2. TV only plays .mp3 format for music. You would need to convert to mp3 and put the music files on your laptop or usb stick

2. +1 for imedia share. Streams videos/pics/music all from my phone as well as streaming YouTube and several other internet sites such as Facebook and stuff.

3. Via HDMI make sure CEC is supported by the receiver and turn it on. Then turn on anynet on the TV. Integration is not standardized but should yield dome of what you ask. I have a denon 1611 which I can turn on from the TV, control the volume and get feedback on screen every other 1/2 volume step. It also switches to optical in when tuner / media play/ dlna is selected on the TV. Last but not least it auto switches video sorces and turns off everything else when power is turned off by the TV.

The only issue I have is if I try to turn off the receiver from anynet it does not work and I lose all sound.

5. You did not ask this but there is an android app called TV notify that will show you calls and txt messages on screen. You can only read them in TV mode but the notice pops up in all sources.

Thanks everyone! Amazed by your quick answers!

regarding #3, forgot to add, my onkyo receiver doesn't have HDMI. Should I get a converter device?

I guess I could get a programmable remote and select external speaker...

For the price just get a new receiver. Uncompressed audio really does make a difference as well as auddessey

If you use a Harmony remote, you want to disable CEC on all devices. Otherwise there will be a conflict between the two ways of controlling your devices.

No, not banding. I don't see banding in the scrolling bars test. I looked more closely, and it looks like an animated dithering effect. I've only noticed it on my XBOX menu, when moving it left/right, or when a large solid color is on screen and slides left/right. It's most noticeable on solid white color, but happens on other colors too. I have MPEG Noise reduction and all other enhancement options turned OFF. Maybe the TV is doing some kind of motion interpolation on moving objects, since the screen is 600Hz divided into 10 areas, (10x60Hz).

Now, I do notice some slight line bleeding, but it is only noticeable when I bring up the TV Setup Menu, or my Blu-ray player Menu screens. Not bad enough to worry about it.

Hi from a small city North of Toronto (Newmarket).

I'll start off with a thanks to all the people who have contributed to this thread, its made for some great reading over the last few evenings, and I cant think of a single question I could ask that hasnt already been answered multiple times (so far).

I am coming from a 36" JVC tube which was rather cutting edge at the time, and have had a few small panels here and there, but never took the plunge on anything as large as the C550 I just purchased, although I do use 24" to 30" monitors on my computers.

Decided to start researching a few days ago. Checked out BB, FS, Tiger, Newegg, and Wally . Could NOT find a NIB 550 anywhere, except online of course, so I chose floor (wall actually) model. I hunted down the best looking unit I could find. I chose one that looked excellent, was mounted over 6ft high on the wall on the 2nd tier, asked the tech-savvy sales guy to run a few tests to check for burn in, etc., then bought it. No box, but remote, base, manuals, screws, everything was still in original plastic bags when he brought it out

Being last years model, they have gone to heavy discounting, WM had them for 777CAD (none left), but since I had no option other than the display model which had some light scratchs on the bezel, he took 20% off the sale price, so all in, it was around 700. Interestingly, there is a sticker on the back stating 1198 .

Manufacture date is April 2010, in Mexico.

I also purchased a Samsung BD-D5300 player along with the TV. Looks like a nice unit. Currently I watch BluRays on my gaming PC with an SLI setup and the best monitor Ive ever owned, a NEC EA261WM-BK. It is 1900x1200 (WUXGA), but hunched over my keyboard watching a movie was quickly losing its appeal.

Although I have digital cable, compressed like crazy of course, I dont remember the last time I watched it, except for sports. I would say 99% of this new TV's time will be spent watching movies in a near dark room in the evening.

At the moment I'm vacuuming out the dust, cleaning it up, etc and will light it up this coming weekend. I have a 14 day return policy with WM, then reverts to Samsung, but I'm hoping for the best. Sales guy said it was hanging on wall for 8 or 9 months and I beleive him.

Anyway, wish me luck

Pete

EDIT: My 550 is the 50" version, secondly, I read early on about discussing price in this post, however I simply thought people may be interested in what this model is currently selling for.

Welcome, Toronto! I'm from Ottawa, so we ain't that far apart.

I bought my C540 a coupla weeks ago from LEON's - again, heavily discounted, but a new one. I had a professional calibration done on it shortly after purchase and am blown out of the water by it's performance. Example: if you have the bluray of the 2nd Pirates of the Caribbean flick, check out the beginning of it with the shot showing the ocean.

I want to set this beast on the wall, but am dealing with a lathing and plaster set-up - century old house, with all it's warts and faults. Not sure how best to anchor it. I might end up installing it on a backboard that could be attached to the entertainment unit I plan on building.

Anyway, just wanted to welcome a fellow frostback from north of the 49th parallel!

Thanks Frost 147, been skating there a few times

I do have a question here with this TV though, and I cant find a simple answer...

I've gotten the TV to do full screen with the digital cable no problem, although commercials show up with top/bottom black bars, but no matter what setting I try I still get the the top and bottom black bars when playing my first blu ray (Watchmen) on this TV.

I suspect it may be related to my Samsung BD player? I've been in the players menu and told it to do full screen, been in the TV's menu and tried everything I've read here with no luck.

This BD player talks to the TV from the looks of things, and even turns the TV on automagically when you turn on the BD player.

It almost seems like some sort of "auto commands" from the player are overriding whatever I try and do.

Or is it possible some movies are going to do the top and bottom black bars no matter what I do?

Would killing the "smart auto" feature on the BD player let me set (and hold) my preferences? I think I read that earlier somewhere.

Feel silly asking what I know is a noob question, but its been frustrating me now for a few hours.

EDIT: I should mention a few other strange things....I have PIP mode available....also, as soon as I did the Blu Ray it said 24FPS on screen which I found intersting....I thought you had to turn the 550 into a 590 to enable that stuff...my actual model number is PN50 PL C550G1



Thanks

PCD: some movies are filmed in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio. Nothing you can do about it. Might be able to zoom in. But important thing to watch is the resolution. If it states its at 1920 by 1080 then you are getting full resolution. Do you have any other BDs to test?

On to the 24Hz thing. The output from the player is 24 and that is what the TV is receiving, but it is not what the TV is putting out. It converts it to a 3:2 pull down.

Hope that helps and someone please correct me if I was wrong here.

Scoobdude: Thanks for the reply, I have set the output from the BD to 1920 x 1080 rather than "auto" so no doubt it was just that movie, strange thing is I tried all the "fill screen" or "stretch" settings on both the TV and player with no luck. Didnt try the zoom though. The menu will do full screen, then back to the bars when I restart the movie.

I have quite a few Blu Rays so I'll just experiment.

What should I look for on the case as far as how the movie was filmed (such as NOT buying ones filmed in 2.35:1 aspect ratio)?

I can live with the bars, but dont really like them, so if I can avoid buying movies like that, I will.

Unrelated, there was a firmware update available (TV & BD player are both connected to my router) and I went for it. I wrote down the version but cant find it atm, though I remember it was 1600 or something similar. It reset everything of course, but Im not experienced enough to say if it changed anything.

Even with all the information in this thread I still have a lot to learn and was up half the night playing around . Even stuck a cool 6500 CFL behind the TV but that particular wall is light blue (should be 18% grey I read) and it didnt work out.

Ran an HDMI out from one of my video cards to the TV and tried a few games (Bioshock 2, Fallout 3, etc)....spectacular is all I can say.

Very happy with black levels and skin tones on this set, I've never liked the over saturated look (to MY eyes) of the LCDs and prefer the more subdued look of plasma. If I had a bright room and watched in daytime things may be different, but thats not my case so I'm quite happy.

After the firmware update came down, it stayed on movie mode but I do know my settings changed and it doesnt look half bad with "stock" settings although I can hear the chuckles from the more experienced people already

Why would you stretch and ruin a perfect blu ray picture. Please, don't do that. In the menu, select screen fit or just scan or what ever it is. I can't remember. 16:9 is a stupid size that should have never been standardized because movies are usually 2.4:1. So you'll get the bars. Please live with it and don't ruin the picture.

The TV wouldnt let me do it anyway. I have screen fit selected and thats where its been staying lately. Watchmen happens to display the bars no matter WHAT settings I choose on the player or the TV, which is what I was curious about. Its almost like the units are protecting me from ruining the picture

To be clear, I hate the goofy stretched picture and only played with it for a few minutes.

I'm not totally clueless here, (sys admin-medium sized company) and have been heavily involved in HT & car audio as well.For example, my suv has a 3 way active setup front stage, rear fill, 2x12" subs, 1 4 channel amp, 1 2 channel amp, 1 sub amp, (and 200lbs of 00 cabling) and of course the required HD alternator and second battery, about 2400 watts RMS. I did it all myself.

Also my first computer was an 8088.....

The above means nothing to our discussion of course, was just giving you some background.

I've let the last 5 years pass me by though on TV tech, but I am trying to catch up and half the battle is knowing how to get the answers. Give me a week or two and I should be caught up, in the meantime please bear with me.

Thanks again

Pete

PCD, if you have an IKEA store near you, go to the lighting section and look for a package that has 4 LED light strips (each approx 10" in length) - $49.95. Forget the exact name, but could get it if you can't find it in their store. The kit comes with both self adhesive and mountable clips to attach to the back edge of your TV - i recommend the self adhesive process myself. You can "build" the light strip so you have one 10" length of LEDs going up each side of the TV and 2 across the top. Install the strips just shy of the outer edge of the set so no hrdwre shows from the front. Not too much light, but is easy on the eyes in a darkened room and enhances the black levels of the TV.

Unfortunately it doesn't have a dimmer control, but you can get one of those separately from Home Depot and set the dimmer up between the LED strips and the electrical outlet.

My set-up also has a run of ropelight (48 feet or so) going around the ceiling's perimeter and it is on one of those dimmers, so I can control the output from my chair, ratcheting the light down as the credits start to roll across the screen and back up again at the end of the flick. It throws just enough light so no-one ends up stumbling around in the dark, tripping over people's feet or the dog .

FUN TIP: Put the movie "Frozen" on for your guests, leaving the lights on until you get to the scene where the actors are stranded on the chairlift and the ski run lights are shutting down one bank at a time, until the screen is completely dark - it's close to the beginning of the flick. Time it so you can plunge your own room into darkness as that last bank of lights goes out with a resounding "THUNK". Amusing, to say the least