Calibration Tools

[Anthony]

A thread about my new HD-DVD player rekindled my interest in DIY projector calibration.

A long time ago (2000) I had a Mitsubishi RPTV ISF calibrated by Chuck Williams here in the D.C. area. I don't know if he's still around or what, but he did a fantastic job and the performance of the TV was great. All I ever had to do was tweak the brightness, contrast, and geometry twice a year and it was great. So I got a taste of what a well calibrated set should look like.

However, I've since sold that TV and moved on to a new projector: Sanyo PLV-Z4.

Out of the box, it looks great, but I've always been itching to get it dialed in just right. However, I'm invested in a lot of HT projects right now, so I'd rather not spend $500, when I can get the DIY tools for about that price and at the very least do my and some of my friend's projectors.

When I last stopped shopping around for calibration tools, the best was a Colormeter SpyderXXX (not sure if it was 2, pro, 2pro, or what), for around $600 and there were plenty of lower cost options underneath that.

I searched their site and apparently they've abandoned that price point. Now it's regular TV's for $200 or pro-caliber for $1200. Yikes!

So I figured I'd search some more. Anyone here have experience with some of these tools and software packages? If so, please share.

In the meantime, I'll search the jungle over at AVS and google and see what I can dig up.

Thanks,
Anthony

[Sonnie]

I have the Z4 as well and JimP helped me with mine and did a good job for not accessing the service menu. Of course the Z4 has lots of adjustments in the user menu. I can't remember exactly what it was that he used, but it was expensive. I'd be interested in learning what is available as well... maybe less expensive options.

[lcaillo]

Don't bother with a Spyder. You will spend more than a calibration to get good enough equipment and software to do a respectable job, and it will take you a lot of reading to get the right info to do it. If you are serious about DIY calibration you should do some reading on the CalMAn forum. Don't invest until you ask around over there.

[lcaillo]

I have created a sticky with a few calibraton resources that I have bookmarked. Hope this helps.

http://www.hometheatershack.com/foru...libration.html

[Bear5K]

I'm not sure I agree that we're more expensive than an ISF visit, but it is close. As if someone planned it that way...

Seriously, the learning curve is the biggest part of it. If you are a dedicated DIYer, then it can be rewarding to learn about the color science and understand how the controls affect each other. Where the tools definitely start to become cost effective is if you have more than one display to calibrate. That has tended to be where the tipping point for most people lies.

For hardware, the EyeOne Display LT is really the best bang for the buck, but there are some open questions for plasma owners with this meter. That being said, if you have a CRT-based TV, then you ought to be able to get by with the Spyder2. No matter which meter you get, though, definitely take care of it. For filter-based meters, humidity is the big enemy, so sandwich bags and dessicant packs are your friends.

Bill

[Anthony]

which colorimeter would you recommend for LCD front projection?

over at avs, I've had a hard time figuring out what hardware is best for that application.

it seems FP is a lot more picky

thanks for the input all.

[Bear5K]

Anthony wrote:

which colorimeter would you recommend for LCD front projection?

over at avs, I've had a hard time figuring out what hardware is best for that application.

it seems FP is a lot more picky

thanks for the input all.

Easy question! DisplayLT if you have the budget for it ($110 - $150). The Spyder2 would be viable in this use, but I've had too many issues with S2s that miss their specs to recommend this meter anymore.

Bill

[Anthony]

Thanks for the response, Bill.

I've read many of your posts over at AVS and appreciate you coming over here to share.

While I understand its necessity for some subjects, I've never been a big fan of AVS's MEGA-THREAD format for popular topics. It makes answering questions like the one I had difficult, or you have to read 100 pages to figure it out. Searching inside a thread helps, but usually not by much unless you are looking for a very specific answer.

So again, I appreciate you answering over here. I will probably get a DisplayLT later this year. That's not too bad a price. I was budgeting for the $600 SypderTV pro kit, until I started reading about the free software, CalMAN, and others. Definitely don't need to spend that much to calibrate displays. I have a speaker project to finish first, but after that, it's on to the projector!

[Bear5K]

Anthony wrote:

So again, I appreciate you answering over here. I will probably get a DisplayLT later this year. That's not too bad a price. I was budgeting for the $600 SypderTV pro kit, until I started reading about the free software, CalMAN, and others. Definitely don't need to spend that much to calibrate displays. I have a speaker project to finish first, but after that, it's on to the projector!

Definitely keep an eye out for our upcoming version. It is targeted at beginners, and should be very easy to use (as easy as this area gets....).

[<^..^>Smokey Joe]

I've recently had the chance to play with the various different software packages. The Free stuff, Colorfacts, Sencore and now Calman.
I have played with the Free software quite a bit before trying out the payfor options and must say there is issues with the free stuff.

Although the free stuff is great for learning about how to do grey scale balances and to get an overall understanding of measurement infomation.
The issue is accuracy of a few functions, I found myself constantly not happy with the result.

Now using the Calman 2.1, a bit trickier to use than the free stuff, although I believe the new Calman version is really good. But the main thing is the results are accurate. You do need excel though to run 2.1, but I believe the new version is stand alone.

Don't forget about reference material that matches your output type. SDTV or HDTV. Without this you won't be accurate.

[mechman]

Smokey are you certified yet?

mech

[<^..^>Smokey Joe]

Still working on my certification in that I'm trying to decipher the American english and ambiguous questions and answers, add to that the uncertainty in some areas of my knowledge base.

All part of the learning curve though. Like to think I will have it all sorted by the end of August.

I have bigger concerns with hardware, It's difficult to get gear in this part of the globe at any sort of reasonble cost, thats if I even get a response from a supplier.

I have to say this though, Bill of Calman has been very good to deal with. The fact there is distance between us and I'm not in the USA had very little bearing on the service which has been friendly and trouble free.