Tips on how to properly configure your TV
For a start, what is the "right setting". If you have been at the electronics store at least once, you probably noticed that all the exhibited TVs are shown differently. What is the reason? Which one is better? Let's see.
I think you will agree that the TV should not only show some kind of picture, but also introduce as little distortion as possible into the original content. The content itself is always created with an eye on the standards and recommendations of the industry, and the main goal of any TV is to convey to you exactly the image that you wanted to show. Everything is important here: the skin color of the actor, and the color of the sky at sunset, and which details of the image should be visible and which parts are hidden. There are international standards that describe what should be the image on the screen of your TV. All of you, for sure, met the abbreviations PAL, NTSC, or HDTV, these are the properties of the video signal and various image parameters. With the advent of HDTV in our lives, most of the standards are immediately outdated, and, in fact, the most relevant now is the REC709 standard, which is used in high-definition television (HD) and Blu-ray video.
The general parameters of the correct image are:
- color temperature 6500K (D65)
- linear gamma, recommended value 2.22, for darkened rooms 2.4
- recommended brightness ~ 120 cd / m2
- color gamut on REC709 (similar to sRGB coverage).
Unfortunately, modern TV manufacturers customize their products frankly bad, because they are not interested in their displays matching the existing color standards, but in increasing the sales of these same displays. In an effort to sell more TVs, manufacturers are constantly trying to provide more "bright blue" and "live red" colors than their competitors. They specifically enhance the brightness of some colors, so that the products look more seductive on the shelves compared to their counterparts from other companies. On counters with apparently identical products, the buyer will choose the brightest TV set, or the one whose colors appear deeper. If manufacturers paid enough attention to the correct setting of their products, then all the TVs on the counter would show a very similar image.
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The only right way to get the right image on the TV screen is hardware calibration. It lies in the fact that reference images are fed to the TV input, and measurements are taken from the screen. Next, adjust the TV settings until the image parameters are as close as possible to what is required by the standard. But this setting is quite laborious, requires knowledge, and above all equipment.
Is it possible to make the image on the screen of your TV more true, without resorting to hardware configuration? I will give a few tips based on my experience in setting up various TVs.
Which image mode to choose (standard / dynamic / movie)?
On the absolute majority of televisions, the Cinema / Cinema mode is the most appropriate. Do not use the Dynamic mode for viewing: the image in it is always incorrect due to the non-linear gamut, but due to the greatly increased brightness this mode strains your eyes, especially if you are watching TV in dimmed lighting or in the dark.
Which color temperature mode to choose (cold / standard / warm)?
On the absolute majority of TVs, the Warm mode is the closest to the standard color temperature (6500K). With the choice of Warm1 / Warm2 (on Samsung TVs), determine for yourself which one is better. This is usually Warm2, but there may be exceptions.
What settings are recommended to turn off to get the best picture?
It is necessary to turn off all settings that adjust the brightness / contrast at the discretion of the TV. That is, you should disable the "dynamic contrast", "power saving mode", "light sensor", "dynamic backlight" and not use the "Dynamic" image mode.
How to set the parameter "contrast" correctly?
In fact, this parameter is incorrectly called “contrast”, since the contrast is the ratio of the maximum brightness of the white field (white level) to the black level (level of the minimum luminosity of the panel). So, the "contrast" in the TV menu changes exactly the white level, that is, the level of maximum brightness of the image.
For plasma:
- make the setting of the “contrast” parameter better in the dark;
- display an image with a white level window (100IRE) (links at the end of the article);
- set the “contrast” parameter to a value close to the maximum (90-95);
- decrease the “contrast” parameter until the picture with the white level (100IRE) ceases to “cut eyes”.
Samsung plasma TVs have a cell brightness setting (cell light), which has a big impact on the overall image brightness. You can immediately set it to a value close to the maximum (18-20), and then follow the recommendations.
LCD TVs are arranged a little differently - they have a “backlight brightness” parameter (sometimes called “backlight contrast”), which has the greatest value for the overall image brightness.
For LCD / LED:
- make the setting better in the dark;
- put the parameter "contrast" close to the maximum value (90-95);
- display an image with a white level window (100IRE) (links at the end of the article);
- set the parameter “backlight brightness” to the maximum or obviously higher value than necessary;
- decrease the “brightness of the backlight” parameter until the picture with the white level (100IRE) stops “to cut the eyes”.
I do not recommend using the maximum values ​​of the “contrast” parameter, because some TVs have non-linearity of color temperature when setting the maximum value.
An unnecessarily bright image (and the “contrast” / “brightness of the backlight” are responsible for the real brightness on the TV) strains your eyesight and leads to eye fatigue, keep this in mind when adjusting these parameters.
How to set the brightness parameter correctly?
The brightness parameter determines the black level. To install it in the correct position, you can use a special image «Pluge pattern». In this image, the leftmost vertical bar corresponds to black. To set the “brightness” parameter to the desired position, first increase it until you can clearly see all the bands, and then decrease the “brightness” parameter until the leftmost vertical bar merges with the background. In addition, you can use special adjustment discs, such as AVSHD (link at the end of the article), where in the “Basic Settings” section you will find the necessary images to adjust the basic settings of the TV.
What is "clarity"? How to install it correctly?
"Sharpness" (sharpness) - this is exactly the clarity of the image. This parameter is needed so that you receive an equally sharp image from different viewing distances. To adjust this parameter, you can use the special image “Sharpness pattern”. Technique settings "clarity" is as follows:
- sit at a viewing distance from the TV;
- display “Sharpness pattern” on the TV screen;
- increase the “clarity” parameter to the maximum, or to a value at which artifacts of excessive “clarity” will be clearly visible: light halos around objects and thickening of thin lines;
- reduce the “clarity” parameter until image artifacts disappear, such as light halos around objects and thickening of thin lines.
How to set the color / saturation parameter correctly?
It is difficult to set this parameter correctly without measurements. My recommendations are to display high-quality photos of nature with a multitude of shades of green on the TV screen (since the eye is most sensitive to it, and it is he who is overexposed on many televisions) and adjust the color / saturation parameter until the image looks as realistic as possible . Additionally, you need to check the settings on high-quality photos of people, skin tones should be natural.
My TV has white balance settings and a color management system (CMS), how do I set them up correctly?
Only with hardware calibration. Configuring these options "by eye" is useless.
Thank you for your time. Constructive criticism is welcome.
References:
Standard REC709 - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rec._709
White level (100IRE) to adjust the “contrast” - www.w6rz.net/irewindow100.zip
Disk for setting AVSHD - www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=948496
Pictures from the article in good quality:
tvcalibration.ru/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/bars_pluge.jpg
tvcalibration.ru/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/sharpness.jpg
tvcalibration.ru/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/nature2.jpg
Used materials from the site tvcalibration.ru (my site).
I think you will agree that the TV should not only show some kind of picture, but also introduce as little distortion as possible into the original content. The content itself is always created with an eye on the standards and recommendations of the industry, and the main goal of any TV is to convey to you exactly the image that you wanted to show. Everything is important here: the skin color of the actor, and the color of the sky at sunset, and which details of the image should be visible and which parts are hidden. There are international standards that describe what should be the image on the screen of your TV. All of you, for sure, met the abbreviations PAL, NTSC, or HDTV, these are the properties of the video signal and various image parameters. With the advent of HDTV in our lives, most of the standards are immediately outdated, and, in fact, the most relevant now is the REC709 standard, which is used in high-definition television (HD) and Blu-ray video.
The general parameters of the correct image are:
- color temperature 6500K (D65)
- linear gamma, recommended value 2.22, for darkened rooms 2.4
- recommended brightness ~ 120 cd / m2
- color gamut on REC709 (similar to sRGB coverage).
Unfortunately, modern TV manufacturers customize their products frankly bad, because they are not interested in their displays matching the existing color standards, but in increasing the sales of these same displays. In an effort to sell more TVs, manufacturers are constantly trying to provide more "bright blue" and "live red" colors than their competitors. They specifically enhance the brightness of some colors, so that the products look more seductive on the shelves compared to their counterparts from other companies. On counters with apparently identical products, the buyer will choose the brightest TV set, or the one whose colors appear deeper. If manufacturers paid enough attention to the correct setting of their products, then all the TVs on the counter would show a very similar image.
')
The only right way to get the right image on the TV screen is hardware calibration. It lies in the fact that reference images are fed to the TV input, and measurements are taken from the screen. Next, adjust the TV settings until the image parameters are as close as possible to what is required by the standard. But this setting is quite laborious, requires knowledge, and above all equipment.
Is it possible to make the image on the screen of your TV more true, without resorting to hardware configuration? I will give a few tips based on my experience in setting up various TVs.
Which image mode to choose (standard / dynamic / movie)?
On the absolute majority of televisions, the Cinema / Cinema mode is the most appropriate. Do not use the Dynamic mode for viewing: the image in it is always incorrect due to the non-linear gamut, but due to the greatly increased brightness this mode strains your eyes, especially if you are watching TV in dimmed lighting or in the dark.
Which color temperature mode to choose (cold / standard / warm)?
On the absolute majority of TVs, the Warm mode is the closest to the standard color temperature (6500K). With the choice of Warm1 / Warm2 (on Samsung TVs), determine for yourself which one is better. This is usually Warm2, but there may be exceptions.
What settings are recommended to turn off to get the best picture?
It is necessary to turn off all settings that adjust the brightness / contrast at the discretion of the TV. That is, you should disable the "dynamic contrast", "power saving mode", "light sensor", "dynamic backlight" and not use the "Dynamic" image mode.
How to set the parameter "contrast" correctly?
In fact, this parameter is incorrectly called “contrast”, since the contrast is the ratio of the maximum brightness of the white field (white level) to the black level (level of the minimum luminosity of the panel). So, the "contrast" in the TV menu changes exactly the white level, that is, the level of maximum brightness of the image.
For plasma:
- make the setting of the “contrast” parameter better in the dark;
- display an image with a white level window (100IRE) (links at the end of the article);
- set the “contrast” parameter to a value close to the maximum (90-95);
- decrease the “contrast” parameter until the picture with the white level (100IRE) ceases to “cut eyes”.
Samsung plasma TVs have a cell brightness setting (cell light), which has a big impact on the overall image brightness. You can immediately set it to a value close to the maximum (18-20), and then follow the recommendations.
LCD TVs are arranged a little differently - they have a “backlight brightness” parameter (sometimes called “backlight contrast”), which has the greatest value for the overall image brightness.
For LCD / LED:
- make the setting better in the dark;
- put the parameter "contrast" close to the maximum value (90-95);
- display an image with a white level window (100IRE) (links at the end of the article);
- set the parameter “backlight brightness” to the maximum or obviously higher value than necessary;
- decrease the “brightness of the backlight” parameter until the picture with the white level (100IRE) stops “to cut the eyes”.
I do not recommend using the maximum values ​​of the “contrast” parameter, because some TVs have non-linearity of color temperature when setting the maximum value.
An unnecessarily bright image (and the “contrast” / “brightness of the backlight” are responsible for the real brightness on the TV) strains your eyesight and leads to eye fatigue, keep this in mind when adjusting these parameters.
How to set the brightness parameter correctly?
The brightness parameter determines the black level. To install it in the correct position, you can use a special image «Pluge pattern». In this image, the leftmost vertical bar corresponds to black. To set the “brightness” parameter to the desired position, first increase it until you can clearly see all the bands, and then decrease the “brightness” parameter until the leftmost vertical bar merges with the background. In addition, you can use special adjustment discs, such as AVSHD (link at the end of the article), where in the “Basic Settings” section you will find the necessary images to adjust the basic settings of the TV.
What is "clarity"? How to install it correctly?
"Sharpness" (sharpness) - this is exactly the clarity of the image. This parameter is needed so that you receive an equally sharp image from different viewing distances. To adjust this parameter, you can use the special image “Sharpness pattern”. Technique settings "clarity" is as follows:
- sit at a viewing distance from the TV;
- display “Sharpness pattern” on the TV screen;
- increase the “clarity” parameter to the maximum, or to a value at which artifacts of excessive “clarity” will be clearly visible: light halos around objects and thickening of thin lines;
- reduce the “clarity” parameter until image artifacts disappear, such as light halos around objects and thickening of thin lines.
How to set the color / saturation parameter correctly?
It is difficult to set this parameter correctly without measurements. My recommendations are to display high-quality photos of nature with a multitude of shades of green on the TV screen (since the eye is most sensitive to it, and it is he who is overexposed on many televisions) and adjust the color / saturation parameter until the image looks as realistic as possible . Additionally, you need to check the settings on high-quality photos of people, skin tones should be natural.
My TV has white balance settings and a color management system (CMS), how do I set them up correctly?
Only with hardware calibration. Configuring these options "by eye" is useless.
Thank you for your time. Constructive criticism is welcome.
References:
Standard REC709 - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rec._709
White level (100IRE) to adjust the “contrast” - www.w6rz.net/irewindow100.zip
Disk for setting AVSHD - www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=948496
Pictures from the article in good quality:
tvcalibration.ru/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/bars_pluge.jpg
tvcalibration.ru/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/sharpness.jpg
tvcalibration.ru/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/nature2.jpg
Used materials from the site tvcalibration.ru (my site).
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/143512/
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