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HTPC calibration

post #1 of 11
1/8/13 at 4:48am
Thread Starter 
I always thought that from all adjustmments you can make in a HTPC one the most critical is the brightness/ contrast one....

And to make that adjustment you have to adjust the HTPC and the display in 0-255 or 16-234 mode...

But using MADVR and LAV filters with a Radeon card this is getting too complicated as you can adjust the specific range in :

- MADVR
- LAV Video Decoder
- and the Catalyst control Center ....

So this is getting difficult to understand what to use as the correct output ....


Any help ?


PS. Maybe the main idea is to see the BTB & WTW with a smooth greyscale ramp.....
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post #2 of 11
1/8/13 at 5:24am
If i remember correctly there is a post in here somewhere on Radeon settings. If not a quick google will help you find what you need. At the end of the day you want to avoid using any contrast, colour, brightness correction etc on the HTPC (output neutral), and do any calibration on your display. Same goes for your receiver as well. You can also find a handy calibration disc image in the display sub forum which in conjunction with blue glasses will yield a pretty good picture.
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post #3 of 11
1/8/13 at 10:51am

A couple of months ago, I ran through a configuration and calibration session using the Disney WOW against Catalyst/MADVR+LAV and my Sammy Plasma.

 

Let me check my settings when I get home tonight to see how I left them IRT Full/Limited RGB, stuff like that, and I'll update this thread.

 

True to what busb0y mentioned, you'll want to disable as much stuff as possible and use your display's picture menus (black level, contrast, etc.)

 

IIRC, there was a strange combination of checks and unchecks in order to ensure I didn't experience clipping, etc.

 

The end result was a much improved picture and proper scaling.

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post #4 of 11
1/8/13 at 5:09pm

Hey ssak, in the Vision (aka Catalyst) Control Center:

 

  • Under My Digital Flat Panel, Pixel Format, I'm set to PC Standard (4:4:4 Full RGB)
  • Under Video, Color, I have Dynamic Range unchecked
  • Under Video, Color I have Brighter Whites checked (I personally like the effect)
  • Everything else is unchecked, as I'd rather tune color, brightness, etc. on my TV's input

 

Within LAV Video Configuration:

  • Under Video Settings, RGB Output Levels, I have PC (0-255) checked

 

I spent a few hours with the Disney WOW calibration BR, testing a ton of different settings and stuff, at the end I found this to be the best combination.

 

Let us know how you make out!

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post #5 of 11
1/8/13 at 5:14pm

Here's another thread concerning calibration, especially in conjunction with Vision:

 

http://www.avsforum.com/t/1431535/settings-for-catalyst-control-center-12-8#post_22712234

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post #6 of 11
1/9/13 at 12:53am
Thread Starter 
Thanks for your comments..

Haven't got the time to check in my system yet....

My keypoints are :

1) To minimize any no needed picture transformation which may affect speed or quality (for example 0-255 to 16-234 or the output from RGB to YCbCr )
2) To be able to see BTB and WTW
3) To make the brightness and contrast adjustments in the display and NOT in HTPC
4) To have a smooth greyscale ramp

Numbers 2,3,4 needs time and carefull adjustment but No1just needs knowledge...

Bizzy G.L.X

It would be nice to know the MadVR output settings (in devices folder) and your display input mode.
Can you see BTW simply by raising the brightness ?
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post #7 of 11
1/9/13 at 1:03am
I set my htpc to 16-235 and turned off all the video processing stuff. I also set the brightness and contrast levels using the test patterns from the AVS 709 disk. Checked the colors and everything looks good!
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post #8 of 11
1/9/13 at 3:29am
Thread Starter 
I believe this is a very good reading :


http://sunmaiblog.wordpress.com/2010/10/06/calibrate-htpc-for-optimal-video-output/
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post #9 of 11
1/9/13 at 9:51am
Take a look at this thread as it has a lot of info on color space, black levels & settings.
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1444859/setting-nvidia-to-full-range-rgb
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post #10 of 11
1/9/13 at 10:10am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ssak View Post

I believe this is a very good reading :
http://sunmaiblog.wordpress.com/2010/10/06/calibrate-htpc-for-optimal-video-output/

Yes I came across that one recently and tagged it myself. I have been looking on gathering some good info on HTPC video calibration as well. Seems there are a few different views on certain things. I haven't recalibrated since I went from my Oppo to my HTPC....no time.

Video still looks good but I would like to recalibrate my 55" since the switch.

Some other good posts to reference for madvr info -

http://www.homecinema-hd.com/intro_en.html - I think this one has some good info.

http://www.bishoujoproject.com/mpc-hc-playback-guide/

http://coalgirls.wakku.to/faq/playback/setup-guide-for-mpc-hc-madvr

http://azurehakua.wordpress.com/2012/02/23/mpc-hc-lav-filters-xy-vsfilter-madvr/

http://www.torrent-invites.com/audio-video/191921-mpc-hc-madvr-setup-guide.html

http://www.torrent-invites.com/audio-video/221505-setup-guide-mpc-hc-madvr.html
Edited by cburbs - 1/9/13 at 10:20am
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post #11 of 11
1/10/13 at 8:33am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ssak View Post

Thanks for your comments..

Haven't got the time to check in my system yet....

My keypoints are :

1) To minimize any no needed picture transformation which may affect speed or quality (for example 0-255 to 16-234 or the output from RGB to YCbCr )
2) To be able to see BTB and WTW
3) To make the brightness and contrast adjustments in the display and NOT in HTPC
4) To have a smooth greyscale ramp

Numbers 2,3,4 needs time and carefull adjustment but No1just needs knowledge...

Bizzy G.L.X

It would be nice to know the MadVR output settings (in devices folder) and your display input mode.
Can you see BTW simply by raising the brightness ?

ssak, I don't use MadVR, as I decided I didn't want to also use MPC-HC within my current build...good old EVR for the time being!

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