Like several of you perhaps, I bought the D2/CalMAN DIY license bundle from SpectraCal a few weeks ago. I participated in SpectraCal's Video Calibration webinar last week, I've read through the DIY workflow overview posted in this forum several times, and I've gone through the Standard workflow three times now. However, each time I start the CMS calibration I get different initial readings, with greatly out of whack Delta L and Delta H values. This morning (the third time) was the worst. (Example: This morning, getting green to a Delta L < 3 resulted in a Delta C of nearly 100, and green is pegged near white on the CIE chart. Same with magenta. I wasn't seeing anything like this yesterday.) I'm beginning to think I may have a bad meter.
It's well established that the D2 is not the greatest meter, but I don't have the budget for the Pro, so I need to figure out a way to work with what I have. If SpectraCal sells the D2, they must have some confidence in the meter, right?
Before I formally conclude that my meter is bad, I want to make sure I'm using it correctly.
These are my initial questions for now. The monitor I'm calibrating is an LG 42LW450 plasma. I was hoping to calibrate ISF Expert 2 for lights on, and ISF Expert 1 for lights off.
It's well established that the D2 is not the greatest meter, but I don't have the budget for the Pro, so I need to figure out a way to work with what I have. If SpectraCal sells the D2, they must have some confidence in the meter, right?
Before I formally conclude that my meter is bad, I want to make sure I'm using it correctly.
- Does this meter need to be initialized every 15 minutes? The DIY workflow overview posted here says "yes," but CalMAN has never prompted me to initialize it. When I go through the initialization steps in the program, clicking Initialize brings up a small blink-and-you'll-miss-it pop-up window. I assume it's initialized, but the same thing happens regardless of whether I have the meter against a neutral dark background or a bright-colored one.
- How does one measure ambient light with this meter? I assume what's what the ambient light shield is for, but when I use it my luminance readings plummet from ~45 fL (appropriate for my dimly-lit room) to around 7 fL or so. This is true regardless of whether the lights are on or off.
These are my initial questions for now. The monitor I'm calibrating is an LG 42LW450 plasma. I was hoping to calibrate ISF Expert 2 for lights on, and ISF Expert 1 for lights off.