How DO You Calibrate a New TV?

[rocketrazor]

At the end of the day doesn't it just boil down to it all being a hobby?

Some would question the merits of having a TV calibrated while others will gladly get it done and be over the moon with the results. Some will spend vast amounts of money on boy racer cars, while others say it's a waste of money. Some people like to travel while others will never leave the country they were born in.

People shouldn't have a go at other people for something that they deem worth while to spend there money on just because you don't see the point. If we were all the same it would be a boring world.

Just to say which side of the fence I sit on, Once I have a setup I'm happy with I would gladly pay to have it calibrated or tweaked to it's maximum potential, I'd never get it out of it myself! Would I think it was money weel spent, damn right. Oh and I'd gladly spend money on a boy racer car as well!

 

[Benedict_Arnold]

Fools and their money are easily parted, I suppose.

Agreed. They still believe HDMI cables make a difference.

Depends on the HDMI cable and the source and destination. And as I've said so many times before, the plugs on the ends.

Now, about those rubber bands round my CDs....

 

[bigboss]

Fools and their money are easily parted, I suppose.

Agreed. They still believe HDMI cables make a difference.

Depends on the HDMI cable and the source and destination.  And as I've said so many times before, the plugs on the ends.

Exactly.

 

[Series1boy]

I suppose if you've never experienced something, you will never miss it.

 

[Series1boy]

Benedict,

may be I'm not understanding your original point; are you saying that:

1) a Tv shouldn't be calibrated by a professional?

2) a TV shouldn't have to be calibrated using your motor vehicle analogy

3) a tv can be calibrated by you by twiddling a few knobs and as good as a professional calibrator such as Steve withers, canary jules, Vincent teoh, bumptious and any other expert tv calibrator(sorry if if missed any one off)

4) professional calibration is a waste of money and anyone can match the people in point 3?

which 1 is it or is there another reason because I'm confused by your point and I would really appreciate an informed or experienced view from you...

please enlighten me

 

[Series1boy]

Fools and their money are easily parted, I suppose.

Agreed. They still believe HDMI cables make a difference.

Depends on the HDMI cable and the source and destination. And as I've said so many times before, the plugs on the ends.

Exactly.

ditto!

 

[tele1962]

Hi Benedict,

Have you seen a calibrated TV? If not i would recommend you do as it can be an enlightening experience and take your TV viewing to a whole different level.

No more fiddling with those knobs etc, as you know you will be getting as good a picture quality as your TV can produce. But if you do not want to go down this root, well hay it's your TV at the end of the day so go with what you like. I do find it a little strange though that you are criticising something you appear to know nothing about?

 

[skippy]

Dunno whether this has been said before, but why do companies not create and package a calibration disc specific to that range of tv?

You get a Mic and inbuilt software to set up a home cinema amp which generally cost less than the majority of tv's out there.

 

[tele1962]

Dunno whether this has been said before, but why do companies not create and package a calibration disc specific to that range of tv?

You get a Mic and inbuilt software to set up a home cinema amp which generally cost less than the majority of tv's out there.

Hi Skippy, there are free calibration discs out there, the best being the AVSHD download.

http://www.avsforum.com/forum/139-display-calibration/948496-avs-hd-709-blu-ray-mp4-calibration.html

 

[tele1962]

Benidict, you there bud? Seems like you have dissapeared.

 

[strapped for cash]

Dunno whether this has been said before, but why do companies not create and package a calibration disc specific to that range of tv?

You get a Mic and inbuilt software to set up a home cinema amp which generally cost less than the majority of tv's out there.

Any meter sensitive enough is considerably more expensive than the microphones used to set up home cinema receivers (even an i1 isn't cheap). Any meter you buy would also need to be profiled, which costs more money. This is why a lot of people pay for professional calibration. It's simply less hassle and cheaper than doing it yourself.

There's also currently no automated television calibration software. You need to calibrate manually and understand what you're doing.

Packaging a good enough meter with a television to ensure the the process is more than a gimmick would add considerably to the retail price, while most consumers wouldn't be particularly interested in this feature. In short, it'd probably harm rather than encourage TV sales.

 

[tele1962]

Dunno whether this has been said before, but why do companies not create and package a calibration disc specific to that range of tv?

You get a Mic and inbuilt software to set up a home cinema amp which generally cost less than the majority of tv's out there.

Any meter sensitive enough is considerably more expensive than the microphones used to set up home cinema receivers (even an i1 isn't cheap). Any meter you buy would also need to be profiled, which costs more money. This is why a lot of people pay for professional calibration. It's simply less hassle and cheaper than doing it yourself.

There's also currently no automated television calibration software. You need to calibrate manually and understand what you're doing.

Packaging a good enough meter with a television to ensure the the process is more than a gimmick would add considerably to the retail price, while most consumers wouldn't be particularly interested in this feature. In short, it'd probably harm rather than encourage TV sales.

Well said.

 

[The_Lhc]

I also have the graphs for pre and post calibration I can send you if you have the technical experience to understand them...

Sadly, my paternal grandfather, who was a pioneer era (1936-1968) Chief Engineer at the BBC, passed away in 1976.  However, I suspect HE, whilst perfectly able to read the graphs and tell which knob to twiddle next and why, would have told you to stick your graphs somewhere rather unpleasant and tell you to look at the ****ing picture instead. *biggrin*

Oh yeah, my degree is in mechanical engineering, so I figure I can read a graph.

Yes we all know what your degree is in and who you work for and how much better your life is than the rest of us because you never cease to boast about it, but honestly, for someone with your education your lack of knowledge on all things electronic is an embarrassment, your inability to setup your new tv with your av receiver was frankly astonishing to behold and now this ********. Stick to your field, you're out of your depth anywhere else.

 

[strapped for cash]

Well said.

Thanks.

With all of that said, it would be nice to plug a packaged light meter into a television that could run through a genuinely effective automated calibration process (and I certainly didn't mean to dismiss Skippy's entirely valid question).

 

[Benedict_Arnold]

Hi Benedict,

Have you seen a calibrated TV? If not i would recommend you do as it can be an enlightening experience and take your TV viewing to a whole different level.

No more fiddling with those knobs etc, as you know you will be getting as good a picture quality as your TV can produce. But if you do not want to go down this root, well hay it's your TV at the end of the day so go with what you like. I do find it a little strange though that you are criticising something you appear to know nothing about?

Very wary of being scammed, that's all.

Sure, if some people want to part with a third of what they paid to buy their TV for someone to twiddle the knobs, fairy nuff.

I mean, I pay for two Mexicans to mow my grass, because I'm too bloody busy / lazy to do it myself, there's doggy-doo all over th back yard, and the two "little cherubs" would have a pink fit if they were asked to do anything remotely physical. But at least I can tell when my grass has been mowed.

And yes, I have seen the difference between calibrated and non-calibrated TVs, all be it in Bestbuy, and I kept thinking "Huh. All they did was twiddle the knobs. I can do that'" And I keep thinking back to those 1970s soap powder commercials where the one being advertised miraculously washed "whiter than white compared to the other leading brand". And I keep thinking "what happens when the sun comes out / goes in, or day turns into night, or...."

 

[Benedict_Arnold]

I also have the graphs for pre and post calibration I can send you if you have the technical experience to understand them...

Sadly, my paternal grandfather, who was a pioneer era (1936-1968) Chief Engineer at the BBC, passed away in 1976. However, I suspect HE, whilst perfectly able to read the graphs and tell which knob to twiddle next and why, would have told you to stick your graphs somewhere rather unpleasant and tell you to look at the ****ing picture instead. *biggrin*

Oh yeah, my degree is in mechanical engineering, so I figure I can read a graph.

Yes we all know what your degree is in and who you work for and how much better your life is than the rest of us because you never cease to boast about it, but honestly, for someone with your education your lack of knowledge on all things electronic is an embarrassment, your inability to setup your new tv with your av receiver was frankly astonishing to behold and now this ********. Stick to your field, you're out of your depth anywhere else.

There's a reason I did mechanical engineering, and it's because I frigging hate messing about with electronics. Still, if you want to shell out a couple of hundred quid to have someone else do what you could do for yourself with a little patience, go right ahead.

 

[Benedict_Arnold]

Benidict, you there bud? Seems like you have dissapeared.

Sorry, had a busy weekend putting rubber bands round the rims of all my CDs....

 

[bigboss]

And yes, I have seen the difference between calibrated and non-calibrated TVs, all be it in Bestbuy, and I kept thinking "Huh. All they did was twiddle the knobs.  I can do that'" 

At Best Buy? So you haven't seen a properly calibrated TV then.

Calibration is done by using a signal generator, a spectrophotometer, dedicated software and a laptop. The calibration equipment can cost up to £10000.

 

[Series1boy]

And yes, I have seen the difference between calibrated and non-calibrated TVs, all be it in Bestbuy, and I kept thinking "Huh. All they did was twiddle the knobs. I can do that'"

At Best Buy? So you haven't seen a properly calibrated TV then.

Calibration is done by using a signal generator, a spectrophotometer, dedicated software and a laptop. The calibration equipment can cost up to £10000.

it was probably calibrated to dynamic *biggrin*

 

[john1000000boy]

Hello,

I don't know what model of tv you are looking at benedict.. Skimmed through the thread.

I have a 65" Panasonic, I have thought about getting it pro calibrated for some time now.

What I have done is gone online and got settings for my make and model of tv and punched them in..

This is by no means reference but is quite interesting to see other peoples results on your display.

I have tried maybe 3 or 4 different settings from various sources online and also have the thx app on my iPad.

The current settings I am using have been by far the best (better than the thx app imho).

I know that these settings will not be correct for my room etc, however they have given me the best pq across sports and movies .

at the end of the day if you are happy with the picture you are getting, without damaging the screen.. Why spend the money?

If I ever got a pj I probably would get it calibrated

john

 

[bigboss]

To add to my previous post, calibrating a TV normally takes 3-4 hours.

 

[Benedict_Arnold]

And yes, I have seen the difference between calibrated and non-calibrated TVs, all be it in Bestbuy, and I kept thinking "Huh. All they did was twiddle the knobs. I can do that'"

At Best Buy? So you haven't seen a properly calibrated TV then.

Calibration is done by using a signal generator, a spectrophotometer, dedicated software and a laptop. The calibration equipment can cost up to £10000.

Geezers doing a demo, smartass.

 

[Benedict_Arnold]

it was probably calibrated to dynamic *biggrin*

So now we know what you charge 250 quid a pop for.... your secret's out.....

 

[Benedict_Arnold]

Honestly, I read one of those web pages on how to "calibrate" a TV last night.

Turn the brightness up and down. Turn the contrast up and down. Turn the colours up and down.

Jesus-H-Flaming-Christ!

Those of us old enough to remember the 1970s, let alone the 1980s, know that everyone had to do that on ALL televisions. But we didn't call it calibrating, we called it adjusting, and no-one thought of charging 250 quid for doing it for someone else.

I suppose the current generation Y is so used to things that never need adjusting or servicing or fixing (just throw them away and buy new ones) and / or are too flipping stupid (or too lazy) to do this sort of thing for themselves, so they're happy (or stupid - take your pick) to pay for someone else to do it.

No wonder slip-on shoes get more popular during a recession. People can't afford to pay someone to come round and tie up their laces for them....

 

[daveh75]

Does it take much practice, or does it come naturally to you?