Sharp Aquos LC60E79U -- Setting Thread

I got a Sunday delivery date myself. Thanks for starting this thread...would definitely like to see everybody's preferred settings for optimal picture. Really excited to get it setup!!

Here's a copy-and-paste from another post, would love some feedback.

Start with the Standard or User AV mode, although I don't think it matters where you start. Make sure the view mode is Dot by Dot... turn off the Power Control settings and the OPC. The backlight starts at halfway down, -8. Contrast, +26. Brightness and Sharpness at +1, Color and Tint 0.

In the advanced menu, I haven't bumped the HSV values with any real benefit (yet). The Color Temp almost has to be at Middle, Fine Motion Enhanced On, and Active Contrast off. Gamma adjustment +1, Film Mode off, Digital Noise Reduction at Low.

I think that's it. You might think it looks a little 'low' at first, but watch a variety of content with it... see what you think. I like a little more subtle brightness than some, but that might be because I spend my days retouching images in a controlled viewing environment. I've also got the lighting pretty subdued where I have the TV.

If you have bright days to contend with, there's not a lot of damage caused to the picture by just cranking the backlight up to where it feels competitive with the overall lighting in the room. I think it has a lot of 'pop' now, with maybe a little more attention to having detail in the shadows but not giving up the nice rich blacks.

Just tried it on mine. Looks pretty good! Lots more settings can be found in the L60E78 Forum.

Elfy's settings, copied from this post and this post.

* opc = off....... I have my opc off. I like having a consistant contrast / brightness,,,, but you can turn it on if you want, but would play around with opc range to maybe max0, and min-5 ish????

*backlight = std or 0

* contrast = 31

* brightness = neg 3 (find movie with black scene details, lower blacks as much as possible but with good solid details / no black crushing.

* color = plus 2

* tint = 0

* sharpness = plus 2 (might want to lower down to 0 if you have ghosting issues,,, maybe lower??)

*color temp = mid-high (if you do more gaming), or middle (if you watch more movies)... it's really your pref

* fine motion = on (play around with setting if you have ghosting issues or don't like "soap opera effect")

* active contrast = off,,,,, will crush blacks if you turn on, so turn off and play with brightness / contrast to preference.... find movie with dark scenes and you will see that active contrast will kill black dark area details

* gamma adjustment = 0

* film mode = "LOW" MODE turned ON (really need to play around with this settings to your own personal pref) Now using "LOW" film mode as it helps with any possible jutter (especially with DVD upconvert) you might experience while keeping a natural dvd movie feel (unlike the fake / soap opera effect "HIGH" mode produces)....... Film mode currently set to "LOW"

* digital noise reduction = turned off, because it causes streaking in fast action movies IMO (play around with setting, see what you think).

* power control / power savings = standard


The best way to set your brightness. Set TV to 31 contrast (maybe a tad more, but not much)...... then put in starwars3 revenge of the sith (other starwars movies might work the same???? not sure. I did this with starwars3)....... THEN, to set your brightness, actually pause the movie just seconds into the first scene as you look into the blackness of space with the white stars shimmering,,,,,, just before movie pans off to the planet and the spaceship battles. While movie is paused looking into the blackness of space with white stars, adjust the TV's brightness (might want to start brightness high and lower down) so the blackness of space just matches the widescreen black bars (above / below). BTW, don't zoom in your darn TV's people!! You are only killing your awesome 1080p resolution!!! View mode on remote should be set "dot by dot". Yes, you will see widescreen bars, live with it!! LOL...... Adjust brightness JUST enough so the washed out blackness of space matches that of the true black widescreen bars (so you can not make out the wide screen bars above / below with the black space). Don't lower brightness too much tho!! Just one click from making out the washed out blackness of space to the point that the blackness of space matches the widescreen bars above / below. Then, IMO, you will have a perfectly adjusted brightness.


NOTE, you will get the best results from a nice upconverted dvd player 1080p thru HDMI, PS3 upconverted dvd 1080p HDMI, PS3 bluray thru HDMI, or any other bluray player pumping out 1080p thru hdmi cable. If you are not doing the above (like VCR or regular DVD player using yellow composite or red/green/blue component with only 480p),,,,, then GET WITH THE TIMES PEOPLE!!! Ditch the VCR or regular DVD player,,, and go buy yourself a really nice sony bluray player with wifi already built into the darn thing,,,,,, or even better!!! A playstation 3!!!! Buy a really nice HDMI cable off monoprice.com for dirt cheap, and trash the old VCR or regular DVD player!!!! Get with the times people!! LOL

PS3 settings:

Make sure PS3 is hooked up thru HDMI obviously and pumping out 1080p. No upconvert DVD is going to be bluray, but I tell ya,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, my IRONMAN2 DVD upconverted off the PS3 is darn close to bluray in terms of video. Then again, I'm somewhat "double dipping on upconverting and filtering of video" off my upconvert DVD PS3 player going thru my once again filtered upconversion by Faroudja DCDi cinema
video Onkyo tx-sr608 reciever.


While playing the DVD in PS3, hit the green triangle on controller, and go to AV Settings. This is what my PS3 dvd upconvert is set to:

1.) frame noise = 2
2.) block noise = 2
3.) mosquito noise = 1
4.) upscale = full
5.) video output format = YPb/CbPr/Cr (IMO, don't use RGB = will crush black details especially under RGB FULL setting!!! ypb/cbpr/cr will give a much wider color and will not crush blacks IMO). The ypb/cbpr/cr setting will lighten up the picture, so you might need to turn down the brightness / contrast a bit... maybe even the backlight just a tad.
6.) super white = on

Jaxk's settings, from this post.

Color Temp: Medium -- Red Gain +6, Blue Gain 0, Green gain -5 (this setting normalizes the whites...some people like low setting but I want it more vivid)

Brightness: -9 to -12, depending on the programming. For HD movies...I use these settings but for live tv, I use -4 for brigher more vibrant pictures. Use Film Mode in High to get the best clear and vivid results....doesn't blur much because live tv frame rate is greater than movie.

Contrast: +36

Color: +1

Tint: +1

Sharpness: -1 (greater sharpness can distort)

Backlight: +5 to +6

OPC: off

CMS Hue: For live tv, I crank all of them up to +28; for movies, I increase to +8 or so

CMS Saturation: For live tv, I crank them up to +26 to +30, for movies + 5

CMS Value: For live tv, I also crank this up to +30, for movies, + 5

You can check your TV's firmware version by putting TV on "TV input" (must be on TV input for some reason), menu, digital setup, identification (thanks Elfy).

You can download firmware from Sharp's download page.
As of 2011/11/28, there are no firmware updates available for the LC-60E79U.

Mine should be coming in in a day or two. I'm pretty psyched about it! Suprised that there hasnt been more 79U users posting there feedback/setting of this unit.

Just out of curiosity, anybody that has there sets already, was x-gen listed on the box or not? Begining of this year this whole "is it an x-gen panel, or not" with the 78UN model seemed to have everybody miffed. My Dad picked one of those set when they were on sale for 1200$ at BB. It was advertisted with "High Performance LCD Panel" in the specs, but had x-gen on the box. So knows. Regardless of xgen or not, the 78un is an excellent display.

Got this TV on the way as well, thanks for starting this thread!

/subscribed

Mine will be here Sunday.

Yes. Here's a pic of my box:

My box is exactly the same. Says X Gen.

Ah! Very Nice. Thanks/

Does anyone know if this set downmixes audio using the optical out connection? I want a simple audio solution for my father in law (who just bought this set on Saturday) so he can change components just by changing the input on the TV itself so I hoped to connect it to this soundbar:

http://www.vizio.com/vht510.html

From the review I saw on CNet it said that many HDTV's downmix audio to stereo when you use the optical connection.

Any help would be appreciated. Thx.

You can set the optical output to stereo or multichannel in the "Digital Settings" menu. It will output whatever is playing on the screen (i.e. bluray, pc, dvd, tv, etc)

I tried using the Digital output from the TV to my Digital treceiver and only received a 3.1 output from my Xbox360 and PS3. Was I supposed to make a change somewhere in the audio settings of the TV?

Does anyone know for sure if it should pass through 5.1 via HDMI input?

Thanks, Mike

Your x box and ps3 need to be plugged into your receiver via hdmi to get full 5.1 or 7.1. I am assuming that your receiver has hdmi inputs as all newer equipment has. To my knowledge, the Sharp TV will not pass thru 5.1 or 7.1 sound from sources that are connected to the HDMI inputs. The only 5.1 or 7.1 output from the TV would be via the optical or coax and it will be the TV sound only.

Some TV's have an HDMI audio return channel (ARC) that will pass surround sound via HDMI both ways, but unfortunately this TV does not have the feature.

This post it to help clarify some conflicting information from Sharp regarding the panel type for the LC60E79UN. They have run the gamut from 1) X-Gen with Quattron; 2) X-Gen; and 3) High Performance. And the Sharp USA site lists it as High Performance. However, the box it ships in says X-Gen, as apparently does the demo mode when the set is turned on. I wanted verification from Sharp one way or the other so I contacted their web site and received the following email response:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
from Sharp Aquos Support aquossupport@sharpsec.com
reply-to aquossupport@sharpsec.com
to xxxxxx@xxxx.com
date Mon, Nov 28, 2011 at 5:31 PM
subject Re: A Contact Us form has been submitted [#1111111]

Dear Xxxx,

Thank you for contacting Sharp Electronics Corporation. I appreciate the inquiry about the Sharp LC-60E79U LCD television. After checking, we have come to the conclusion that it has a high performance LCD panel.

Sharp Customer Assistance Center
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

The word "concluded" didn't sound definitive so I contacted them by phone and asked how it could have a High Performance panel when the box and demo mode said X-Gen? They opened a case number that I could track for a resolution and that resulted in this reply:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
From Sharp Aquos Support aquossupport@sharpsec.com
reply-to aquossupport@sharpsec.com
to xxxxx@xxx.com
date Tue, Nov 29, 2011 at 7:25 PM
subject Re: A Contact Us form has been submitted [#1111111]

Dear Xxxx,
Thank you for contacting Sharp Electronics Corporation. I apologize for any confusion and/or inconvenience this may have caused. The LC60E79UN is confirmed to have an X-Gen panel. Again, I apologize for the confusion, but appreciate the opportunity to assist you!

Cory G.
Sharp Customer Assistance Center
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

I also posted the panel question on the Best Buy site. The first response from Sharp said the panel was High Performance. When I posted a second question detailing the inconsistencies of the site and box, Sharp posted the following response which you can also view on the Best Buy site:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for your interest in the LC60E79U Sharp television. Please disregard the previous update stating that the television does not have an X-Gen panel. It is actually the LC60E69U that does not have an X-Gen panel. The LC60E79U has been confirmed to have an X-Gen panel. Sharp's X-Gen LCD Panel is designed with advanced pixel control to minimize light leakage and a wider aperture to let more light through, providing the industry's highest contrast level.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

So I will take that as a X-Gen confirmation. Sharp currently makes four panel types: X-Gen, High Performance, Full HD, and Active Matrix. You can see the panels for each model at the Sharp USA site.

I guess I will finally believe them when they make the needed changes on their website. This discrepancy has been going on too long!

They did not notify me or anything. They were supposed to call me today, one day before the scheduled delivery, to confirm the two hour delivery appointment window. I hadn't heard from anyone, so I called them. They don't have anymore TV's available, and it could be 30 to 60 days before they have any. If I had known this, I would not have ordered the TV. I had arranged for help mounting the TV and for Comcast to install whole house DVR on Monday. This is a major inconvenience. I am going to look into a similar Sharp set being sold by HH Gregg for the same price. I probably won't do business with Best Buy again.

EDIT: So the delivery guy calls me tonight to set up a delivery for tomorrow. I say okay, sure, but check to make sure you have it because a customer service rep told me it was on backorder when I called earlier today. He looked around for a minute and sure enough...they don't have it. Could you be more dysfunctional, BestBuy? You were going to have me sitting home all day waiting on a TV that wasn't even going to come. Weak!

Hi everyone-
First off, let me make it clear that I'm a casual television watcher and I don't know a lot about technical stuff.
For the past few years, I've had a great Samsung plasma that I couldn't have been happier with. When I saw the amazing Black Friday price for the Sharp LC60E79U, I had to purchase it.
I know there's a big difference between Plasmas and LCD's, but I guess my main concern is with the sharpness of the (no pun intended) Sharp. I feel like it's quite a step down from my Plasma.
Today, I went through all of the different online tweaks and I wasn't happy so I came up with my own. The below tweaks are (in my humble opinion) the best picture I've seen so far on the TV but I'm still not 100% happy about it. Any input would be awesome!
OPC- Off
Backlight- STD
Contrast- +28
Brightness- +5
Color: +4
Tint: +4
Sharpness: +4 (I know people recommend keeping this close to 0, but I don't see any blurriness or problems in the picture at this setting... just a sharper image).
Advanced-
Only changes:
Color Temp: Middle
Fine Motion: On
Active Contrast: On
Gamma Adjustment: -2 (I've gone back and forth with this but whenever I go higher, it just looks washed out to me)

Again, I'm a complete newbie at this. I never had to adjust anything with my Samsung. I'm watching The Adjustment Bureau in HD as I write this and I guess if I had to some up my problem in one word it would be grainy. Especially in the lighter colors. But it's better than the blurriness if I decrease the sharpness... ugh.
Enlighten me!

What are your settings for OPC, Fine Motion Enhanced, Active Contrast, and Film Mode? All of these have a significant impact on picture quality. I am coming from a THX certified Panasonic 50" plasma and my picture on the Sharp is sharper and certainly not washed out.

Since u bought this based on price did you replace your plasma with it or just move the plasma somewhere else and what are your thoughts at this time. Ive had my eye on the aquos for a while because the price/size is pretty unbeatable but I am a plasma fan and see no need to switch other than I can enhance my multiple screen set up in my recroom inexpensively. (also would appreciate responses from anyone else who switched from plasma to the aquos)

Or if this is not appropriate feel free to inbox me I don't mean to start an LCD VS plasma discussion as I realize this is a settings thread.

On Nov. 24, I received an email that my delivery date was Dec 8. After reading about your delivery issues, I looked at my online order. It does not have anything about a delivery date. I plan to call Best Buy tomorrow because like you I had scheduled help with setting up the TV.

Yesterday, Best Buy had the TV listed for $999.99. Today it is listed for $899.99. I checked the delivery dates. The first date was December 11 - seems strange.

View Mode: Dot for Dot
Backlight: +8
Contrast: +28
Brightness: -4
Color: -3 (The TV has a reddish picture out of the box so I lowered the color and raise the tint).
Tint: +3
Sharpness: 0 (The higher this is, the more distortion there will be, ex: noticeable static)
Color Temp: Mid-Low
Fine Motion Enhanced: On (I found that this doesn't make near as much difference as Film Mode does).
Active Contrast: Off
Gamma Adjustment: 0 (Or +1 if you want a slightly brighter image. Try both and see what you prefer)
Film Mode: Off (This is was causes the judder. However, Advanced (Low) isn't bad for HD cable but I prefer to keep it off for movies)
Digital Noise Reduction :Off (Once again, try this or "Low" and see what you prefer)
The above settings are what I use. These settings provide an "HD" look which is a bit warmer of a color and a bit sharper.
For those who prefer a more natural color here are the changes to make. Keep in mind anything not listed below stays the same as the above settings:
Backlight: +6
Brightness: 0 (Helps shadow detail a bit).
Sharpness: 0
Color Temp: Middle (In my opinion, this settings makes the color more neutral but also makes it have a bluish tint).
Gamma Adjustment: 0
Film Mode: Off

All the NFL games I watch differ from channel to channel. Games with purple colors and blue are really staticy on the blue and the screen is brighter. If I watch a darker game it's perfect.

When I have the TV on an input to check the black level it looks like .. well when I put it on the black input there is a hint of blue picture mainly coming from the top on down.

In any event, blue backgrounds, like sportscenter or ESPN First Fake is extremely staticy looking. I don't notice this on Blu Rays or games but I notice it even on Fox for example when theres a background or a stage with blue/purple lighting. Does it sound like I have a bad TV? Really don't feel like lugging this back and getting a replacement if it's not necessary.

Move the broadcast source to another input. If u still see it it's your box or the broadcast signal. if u no longer see it, then it's that particular input on your tv. I doubt it's the tv or you would see it across all sources.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiIdwgr2wuE

Heres a video of the problem it doesn't show too well but if you look closely you can see what i'm talking about (not the smudgey orange that ones my camera lol)

Also I found an HDMI port that had no sound on it so, it's probably going back anyway

Do you mean switch the HDMI port on the TV or the HDMI in the box?