[hoops10]

I posted this question in another section but have yet to get a response so I am thinking this might be the better, more logical place to post. Anyway, I have about 270 hrs on my Panasonic AX100 so I know its about time for another calibration. I have been doing a lot of reading about using calibration equipment, such as the Eye-One LT that is very popular. I also know that the AX100 has advanced settings like High, Mid and Low Gamma settings as well as R,G, and B Contrast and Brightness settings which can really benefit from the Eye-One LT. My question is, are there any AX100 owners out there that have used the Eye-One or something similiar and if so, how well did it work for you? Thanks.

 

[Kelvin1965S]

Well I've just got an I1-LT for Christmas and I used it with HFCR to calibrate my AE3000, which has similar controls to your AX100 and I believe similar colour modes. It was widely reported that 'Colour 1' mode was just about spot on D65 out of the box, but that wasn't my finding, so don't neccesarily expect everything to be spot on without a fair amount of adjustment.


Make sure you perform the initial sensor calibration properly, ie make sure the room is completely dark. It's recommended to use the inside of a black DVD case to put the sensor on during this calibration, but I also cover the whole area with a bit of spare black velvet.


I left the gamma controls at default for the initial adjustments, thinking that I could correct the gamma response later.However, I needed to use them to get my RGB chart flat. It actually seems with the AE3000 (and I'd assume the same for the AX100) that the 'gamma' controls are actually only Blue gamma controls and I just needed a small adjustment to help flatten the blue 'hump' in the 50/60IRE range, plus changing the low gamma by +1 helped at the bottom end.


I managed to get 30 to 100 IRE within a delta of 3 (some being less than 2), but I didn't get very good readings below 30 IRE, but I believe this is a limitation of the I1 sensor. Since making these adjustments I've watched a few films and it's so nice to watch and know that I've got the settings as close as I can with my equipment, so I don't need to fiddle with any settings and just enjoy the film.

 

[hoops10]

Kelvin, thanks for the response. Right now, I am running my AX100 in Normal mode with the lamp set to Eco-Mode. I calibrated with AVIA. My question is should I start calibrating from here or set everthing back to 0 or default and then start the calibration for there? Also do you think that I should bump the do the 'small adjustment' you did to the gamma controls before calibrating or after? Thanks again.

 

[Kelvin1965S]

I'd start with everything at default and do a run, just to see where you are. Then (if you follow the dummies guide) setup your brightness and contrast, then finally try getting the RGBs right at 30 and 80 IRE (some recommend 90IRE). I wouldn't use the gamma controls unless you need them. Your room, screen, lamp, etc might give quite different results to mine, let alone that it is a totally different model of Panasonic PJ. Everything interacts, so you need a 'base' to start from. Also I use the 'comments' box in HFCR to put the settings used for each run, you can copy and paste from previous runs and have multiple runs open at the same time to compare BTW.


It's quite a learning process. I did lots of runs only changing one setting by a value of 1 to see what it did to the overall result. Sometimes getting 30 IRE spot on meant that 50 & 60 IRE were further out, so it might be a matter of choosing the best compromise: I managed to get my 100 IRE pretty close, but only by pulling the main contrast down a bit further than I'd had it before calibration. In practice, not many films have 100IRE scenes, so maybe I could revisit that setting and just make sure 90 IRE is good and allow (in my case) the slight drop off on blue with the increased main contrast setting, to give a slightly brighter overall picture.


EDIT: I did a run with mine in 'Normal' and found it was a long way off and not possible to get it as close as my 'Cinema 1' mode, so be prepared for a struggle. It will appear dimmer once you've balanced the RGBs, especially if you are used to seeing it in that mode (I used to use Colour 1 or Cinema 1 before the calibration).

 

[hoops10]

My room is totally light controlled so ambient light is not a problem. I am using a 107" Wilsonart DW screen also. So do you think the calibrated picture on Cinema 1 will be too dim but a better looking picture than say Normal, which would be a brighter, but not as good picture? Hope that is not too confusing.

 

[Kelvin1965S]

Cinema 1 will likely give a more accurate result, but only you can say if it is bright enough for you. I have a 1.8 gain screen so that helps, plus I was previously using an ND2 filter so I'm used to the dimmer picture/better blacks.


All you can do is try I suppose.