Official Samsung PN51E530A3FXZA Owner Thread (No Price) - Page 3

I have a 51" 530. Anyone having problems with brightness pops? I played NHL 13 on Xbox and the brightness was all over the place. It's occasionally noticeable with movies. I've gone into the service menu and turned off the Energy Star crap but it still does it (although not as bad). Anybody have any tricks on how to disable it the floating brightness?

I know there may be people interested in picture settings for the 60" model.
Here ya go!
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1434782/samsung-pn60e530-hdtv-picture-settings

I have this TV as well. Have been very impressed with the picture quality. Having an external sound system and alternative methods for apps and internet- a quality picture is all that was important to me on this set. It far exceeded those expectations. It does NOT have a swivel stand as advertised on at least one site, but was not a deal breaker for me. Being a "premier silver" member at BB, I had a free TV calibration to burn up. It sounds like the technicians are hit and miss. The guy I got seemed very experienced and thorough with his equipment. (would not have gone through BB otherwise, but gave him a shot because it was free... was impressed). Picture is amazing after calibration. Am in bed now, will post the settings in the AM.

Ok, almost forgot to post this! So got a free tv calibration for being a premier silver member. It sounds like many people have not been happy with their geek squad technicians with TV calibrations. I feel that is hit and miss. In my case, he seemed to be thorough and knew what he was doing. He explained what he was doing while he did it and I'm quite impressed with the results. I had used a couple of discs and thought I had it the best it could be- but I was wrong. I'm quite happy with the following setting calibrated by Adam Powers of Best Buy in WI.


PN51E530
Mode: Movie
Cell light: 18
Contrast 95
Brightness 42
Sharpness 30
Color 53
Tint G49/R51
Advanced Settings
-Color space Auto
-white blance
--R Offset 21
--G offset 24
--B Offset 27
--R Gain 11
--G gain 23
--B gain 25
-Dynamic contrast OFF
-Black Tone OFF
-Flesh Tone 0
Picture Options
-Color tone WARM2
-Size 16:9
Digital noise filter OFF
Film mode OFF

Enjoy.

Ok, almost forgot to post this! So got a free tv calibration for being a premier silver member. It sounds like many people have not been happy with their geek squad technicians with TV calibrations. I feel that is hit and miss. In my case, he seemed to be thorough and knew what he was doing. He explained what he was doing while he did it and I'm quite impressed with the results. I had used a couple of discs and thought I had it the best it could be- but I was wrong. I'm quite happy with the following setting calibrated by Adam Powers of Best Buy in WI.


PN51E530
Mode: Movie
Cell light: 18
Contrast 95
Brightness 42
Sharpness 30
Color 53
Tint G49/R51
Advanced Settings
-Color space Auto
-white blance
--R Offset 21
--G offset 24
--B Offset 27
--R Gain 11
--G gain 23
--B gain 25
-Dynamic contrast OFF
-Black Tone OFF
-Flesh Tone 0
Picture Options
-Color tone WARM2
-Size 16:9
Digital noise filter OFF
Film mode OFF

Enjoy.

^^Thanks for posting these. I am a tinkerer, so even though I've got an excellent picture on my 530, I'd like to see what things look like with the white balance adjustments that were made to your set. Thanks again!

Wow...I actually feel pretty dumb. Yours is the 51, mine is the 60. I have the pentile screen, you have the traditional rgb stripe, which would very likely result in different picture settings. Oh well. Guess I'll have to wait until somebody gets the 60 professionally calibrated. Thanks for your post though!!

No problem. Sorry couldn't be of help to you

Hi there, newb here, just picked up a PN60E530A3FXZA at BB and wanted the best info for any break in/adjustments/DYI out there to ensure the best picture lifespan of the new plasma, hope this is the correct thread, would the settings for the 51 be the same for the 60, thanks for any info...

ndnboy, i just started a PN60E530 thread here http://www.avsforum.com/t/1436125/samsung-pn60e530-owners-thread Waiting for other owners to reply there also.

After having this TV for a few months I have noticed a few issues. Firstly, I get a lot of motion blur. It isn't ghosting but it is blurry when there is motion. A still frame looks amazing but say, in a video game, when you turn the camera, everything gets blurry. It's kind of annoying. Second, I get the bightness pop another user mentioned. It seems to happen at random times and sometimes it doesn't seem to stop. Quite annoying. Third, it seems to randomly shut down at times. Not too often but maybe twice a week it will. I have put about 600 hours on this set between me and my roommate so it is well broken in. I have the Best Buy 4 year warranty on it. Should I see about getting it replaced or is this common on this set?

I haven't had any issues like you described what so ever. It'd be easier now to get a replacement/repair under OEM warranty rather than waiting for the extended warranty to kick in. I'd go ahead and call Samsung now about the random shut downs.

I agree. I haven't had any issues.. That said- It is an 800 dollar 50 inch 1080p tv... If you are used to a 3000 dollar version, it may not compare? Don't know if that is the case or not- and I realize that is not a very technical answer. Regardless, I too would look into getting a replacement pronto- Even if they say it's fine and give it back, at least you have a record of the issue for if it does stop working in the future.

Thanks for the settings CMonMan...I have been searching high and low for any tips, and greatly appreciate yours. My only subtle change I made was to lower the sharpness slightly, but the TV really has the look I have been missing. I find the blacks are especially better.

CMonMan what was the Gamma setting that the calibrator used? I'm going to try these settings tomorrow. I had used the AVS disc and found that anything over 88 contrast then the whites had a pinkish hue to them. Other than that they are pretty similar to what i have except for a few digits either way, i.e my color being 51 and my brightness at 45, so kudos to the AVS disc for getting close. The white balance settings are totally different mind you but i didn't calibrate them myself and hoovered them from this forum with another posters settings so looking forward to seeing what they look like. Thanks for sharing your settings.

I don't know if you had any issues with the ABL on this set but if you did do you notice any difference with these settings? My one major gripe with this tv is the auto adjusting brightness on a mainly white screen. So annoying.

thanks CMonMan the settings are great and work the best out of all the ones i tried that people posted so far.

djstevie im pretty sure it was default gamma of 0..thats what i used it looks great.

btw: i used CMonMan's settings but changed the brightness to 52 and it looks awesome on my PN51E535
Edited by XeoNoX - 11/23/12 at 9:11pm

i know its not listed in the official specs but does the Samsung PN51E535 do " cinema smooth " ??? i played some blu rays at 1080/24p and it seems to play really smooth. Have u guys tried?

I tried the settings posted today and got to say they look fab. Lowering the sharpness down to 20 from 30 was the only change i made. Great! BTW my model was a E530 but i had Samsung replace the board when i was having issues with fluctuating brightness (now know it was the aggressive ABL) and my model now shows as a E535. Think that they are the same from what i have read except the 535 is normally sold in Nordic countries. Net search didn't provide much info.

im pretty sure the pn51e535 pn51e535a3 pn51e535a3fxza are all the same TV as the PN51E530 PN51E530A3 PN51E530A3FXZA just is Retail (bestbuy etc )and the other is Wharehouse (costco sams etc)

Long time lurker, second time poster....I just got this set the other day and going from a 32" CRT to this plasma is incredible. I'm finally in the 21st century.

Does anyone know how you would go about downgrading the firmware on this model?

CMonMan, you are my hero. I'm a silver rewards member as well and completely spaced the free calibration. I was looking for a good way to calibrate this ( picked it up on Saturday from BB for $399 as an open box return) and while I'll still run AVSHD, I'm definitely going to take BB up on their offer. So far I freaking adore this thing...then again, pretty much anything would be a significant step up from my 27" SD CRT.

Audio question - will this model pass through a 5.1 audio signal? i.e., if I run an hdmi into the tv, then an optical out to a receiver - will it downsample it to 2 channels, or keep it at 5.1?

Here's a thread that gives background on what I'm asking -
http://www.avsforum.com/t/822577/hdmi-in-to-tv-optical-audio-out-to-receiver-is-this-setup-optimal

Just pulled the trigger on amazon on this, certainly not a deal killer just figuring out what cables I gotta get.

Though the user manual says that the optical signal can be used with a 5.1 surround sound system, that does not guarantee that a 5.1 signal will be sent to your receiver. I have an older LG LCD, and it does send the 5.1 signal. I also had a 58b550 series Samsung plasma, and it only sent 2 channel stereo. This model, I don't have the ability to test. But, be wary that the user manuals don't always give you the entire truth.

Hello all! First time poster and just wanted to say thanks to everyone contributing excellent info in this thread. I just purchased this tv last week for $580 and have prob put about 50 hours of hd cable/blu rays/gaming on it. I haven't messed with any picture settings yet and I'm curious if it's a good idea to play with the settings yet? Do I need more time for "break in?"

I'm a complete plasma newb but just couldn't pass this tv up for the price! Huge upgrade from my Philips 32" LCD.

no need to wait. use the settings posted above - tweak to your liking. enjoy! it'll look WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY better than the default settings.

LondonViking- No problem- Glad I could help.. Got the free calibration or otherwise know i would be looking online for a starting point as you did. Have done so in the past, so returning he favor.


DJStevie- Gamma setting was 0. I do not know what ABL even is, the more I learn about these things the more I realize how much I don't know lol. I also, do not know how to downgrade the firmware.. wish I could help more.

XeoNox- Correct- had it at 0, thanks. I do not know what "Cinema Smooth" is.

Tazz- Quite the difference right!? The room I put this had a 32 inch CRT before it, and it's incredible.

Mink-E- I know what you mean! I would suggest waiting a good few hundred hours before forking over money for calibration. Can do your own research, but my understanding is you should wait 150-200 hours minimum.

Shadowbox- Wish I could help, but really can't figure out a way to hook up my components in a way that will test that.. I do have optical for when watching cable on TV that runs from TV to a HTIB that works great... but the tv goes from box tv on co-ax as it is a good distance from the box... It works, but not in 5.1..... although if it was a 5.1 source, my best guess is that it would... sorry can't say for sure..

DCPerk- I also picked up a second unit recently because of how much I loved this set... Saw that price a couple weeks later and got reimbursed for the difference. At that price, this set is an absolute STEAL. As for playing with settings, I changed my second set to the calibration settings I posted from the first right away without issue... To my understanding, the only reason to wait is if you are paying to have it done, as the settings will change over the first 150-200 hours of use and will need to be recalibrated.... But I am by no means an expert.. Someone PLEASE correct me if there is more reason than that.

Glad I've been able to help with the settings, wish I knew more- but certainly appreciate the appreciation and will continue to periodically check in here to see if there is something I can help with.

I was also curious what you all are using for TV stands?

I started the thread below asking about the WQ60C73TB or other models- please check it out. Thanks

http://www.avsforum.com/t/1443085/walker-edison-wq60c73tb-or-other-selection#post_22656728

Sorry, CMonMan, not sure my entertainment unit matches what you are looking for, but I thought other 530A owners could post their picks of their TV set up. We obviously love our TV's and it would be great to see how everyone has their's set up. I have never posted a picture here, so hopefully this works???

I played around with the settings last night and used the one's posted by CMonMan to see if I'd like them. My initial thoughts were the whites were too washed out and bright. I had on 'The Voice' and lost some detail in the white shirts the folks were wearing, MNF looked good, and the colors/black levels looked good too. I may give it another day to see if my eyes adjust, if not I'll probably go back to what I posted on page 2. That seemed to be a good balance for my liking.

Just thought I'd share. I know everyone has their own preference.