Is there really that much left

I think that is subjective, personally I think calibration is worth it, just to know you are eeeking out every last bit of performance out of your set is worth it to me. The VT30 has lots of great cal controls so I would think it could be improved significantly. $450 seems a little steep to me tho, have you checked out Chad B ? He charges less than that and does an excellent job. Does calibration tours all the time. I will tell you once you do a good diy or get a pro cal there is no going back, you just wont be satisfied with anything less and will notice lots of things you never noticed before.

That is about as Subjective of a question as can be asked - and would expect the replies to range from "Don't waste the money," to "Best $$ you'll ever spend!"

Obvious question: What is it about your panel that you currently do NOT like?

Am assuming here that you must be seeing SOME "FLAW" that you think / hope might be addressed by a Pro Calibration - ?
Since, in the absence of such a Flaw, why would you even think about spending the money?

Cannot recall reading a post-calibration review from anyone who did NOT think it (calibration) made a dramatic improvement in overall PQ.

OTOH, with our 60ST50, and a quick-and-dirty "adjustment" (won't claim "calibration!") using the AVS HD709 disk, cannot imagine the set achieving a sufficiently More Pleasing picture to justify spending any additional $$. (Although we do have the DVE blu-ray in house - but have not tried it on this particular panel yet. Too Darn Happy with PQ now...)

Now, would NOT argue against an assertion that a Pro Cal would result in a More "ACCURATE" picture - or one that perhaps hews closer to some Standard or another. Am simply stating that we are Very Pleased with the current PQ, believe that it is reasonably Adjusted (according to visual use of HD709 disk), and therefore see no reason to spend additional $$.

Or time, for that matter: again, DVE disk, with its fancy filters, is here - but to date there has been insufficient motivation to take the time to run through it.

To be certain, if we had a $4,000 HDTV - and the $$ to burn - would be more open to the idea of giving a Pro Cal a try, especially noting the overall positive reviews from other owners.

Your $$. Your Call....

You might be better off selling your VT30 and using that money plus the money you were going to shell out for calibration to buy a 65ST50 or 65GT50. The picture will be better than the VT30 even after calibration

Thats another option for sure

Except then those sets still would not be calibrated, so they may look worse than what he has now, depending on person tastes.

$450 would typically be considered a bit high for a calibration.

Calibration cost varies depending on what needs to be done. The VT30 has extensive picture controls and takes much longer than say, an ST30 or GT30. You could calibrate a VT30 the same way as the ST30/GT30 and not use the extensive picture controls, but that negates one of the main benefits of the VT30.

I have recently "calibrated" a 65VT30 set for an acquaitance using CNET's calibration settings as the base point.

 

The set is hung over a fireplace in a large living room over a fireplace and is at least 15 feet away from the couch. The room has large windows that are tinted and properly curtained but it is still a somewhat bright room. Nonetheless, I applied CNET's settings but I did enable pixel orbiter. The client used to have the set in a Ciinema mode but I guess he wanted a little more from the TV.

 

Anyway, once I applied these settings I went through a Disney WOW! BD disk steps and made a little adjustments here and there as well to make sure that the client understood what I have done and what a "reference point" should look like. He then proceeded to try every source that he using on that TV, BD movies, cable box (sports, news and movies) and AppleTV streaming. He was very pleased with the result. He even remarked that now the picture looked far more natural and tones and colors were less harsh on eyes than before.

 

So you may want to give CNET's settings a try and use them as your reference point and then tinker a bit to make PQ to your liking.
 

Doubtful even the VT30 will not have the blacks the new ST has and the new VT has those beat by a slight margin and with settings posted he would be in the ballpark.

Only you can answer that remember most calibrators don't live where you are and schedule several at a location to make it cost effective and it is time consuming not to mention the money they spent in equipment and training but the ones in high regard will set it up the best it can be.
If it is not in your budget then study the set up discs the best you can most will walk you through it and show you what to look for, will this match an ISF Calibrator no but it will get you in the ballpark.

There are 2 things I found about a calibration. Does the screen have some sort of anomaly that you are unable or incapable of dialing out (because of not owning meters and such)? And you might not like the calibrated result.

Our first plasma 5 years ago had what I always described as 3/8 inch watery circles covering the screen. You couldn't see it 12 feet away, the picture looked fine, but get within 3 feet and they were there. Kind of like looking out your windshield with rain running down it. A calibration fixed that and made the picture smooth and clear like it should be, for which I was very grateful.

BUT, the calibration made the picture a lot darker than it was. According to the meter, the picture (brightness, contrast, colors, etc.) were set where the meter said they should be, but my eyeballs aren't calibrated, so it looked very dark to me. A lot of people have noted that here and set the TV back where it was after paying for the calibration. They just couldn't adjust to the difference? I did, but that's because I'm cheap and if I pay for a calibration, then I'm going to use it! The TV is still set to the calibration now and it looks great!

Since then I have bought 2 other plasmas and an LCD and never had any of them calibrated because to our eyes there's nothing wrong with any of the pictures.
Edited by Straybeat - 9/7/12 at 2:50pm