I read somewhere on here about getting a Plasma TV callibrated for the best viewing experience. I live in a regional area, where it's unlikely anybody would do this, is there a way you can set it up properly yourself? Perhaps a guide to callibrating your Plasma display?

You can use things like DVE (Digital Video Essentials), available from various DVD outlets... there's been a thread on these recently...

Of course, if you specify the model, other members can offer their settings for your perusal.

DVE is a good investment at about $30. The thing to remember about plasmas is that they do not behave like a CRT. For example, contrast set too high (which is usually the case out of the box) won't result in the bright white areas "blooming", as is the case with a CRT, but will instead affect the linearity of the transition from gray to black. The result is that areas of the picture that should be a range of light grays become one shade of white, so detail is lost.

A simple way to adjust your plasma today, (while you wait for DVE), is to freeze frame an image with a lot of bright areas, then wind down the contrast until all the detail in the bright areas can be clearly seen. Then freeze frame a dark scene, and adjust the brightness until all the black detail can be seen - without making the darkest blacks gray. You can give yourself a "black as black can be" reference by switching the plasma to 4:3 - the picture will be "squashed" but the side bars will be black, (except on plasma that have gray side bars!)

Using this technique you might need to go back and forth a few times, but eventually you'll find a happy medium. It's tricky to do by eye because the whites are brighter on scenes with a little bit of white than they are on scenes that are mostly white.

Alternatively, if you have a DVD like "Nemo", or anything else with "THX" written on the box, you can use the set-up in the disc menu. Go to "set-up" in the menu and then "THX Optimizer". The instructions are fairly clear, but remember that you're calibrating a plasma and not a CRT, so the contrast will need to be reduced to give an even gray scale.

Hope I didn't confuse you too much. But have a tweak in the user menu - you can't do any harm by reducing things like contrast - in fact it will make your plasma last longer!

you can setup your self using the THX optimiser that comes on thx discs eg on starwars etc.

It will help get the brightness and contrast and sharpness pretty right. Colour you need to set by eye to get natural looking skin tones. I did a check after that with a professional digital photo I viewed via my dvd player and via the picture viewer in my stb to make sure colours were natural.

Next step up is to get something like dve though I'm happy enough with the thx optimiser. After that the next step up is you can get someone like aaron to come around and do a pro calibrate.

edit. hehehe chris looks like you beat me to it !

Hi mcpaton

I was out at the Pioneer trade demo today with Aaron and had a good look at a display that was calibrated beside one that was not and the difference is night and day.

It is well worth the $300 odd to have your display calibrated properly and aaron knws what he is doing.

I have used DVE many times before thinking it will be as close as possible but the last time i used it Aaron came out a week later to do a proper calibration and informed me i was way off the mark using DVE.

thanks for the responses. i pick the plasma up tomorrow afternoon. I'll try using the THX feature from my Nemo DVD for starters, and go from there.

What does the calibration of a plasma actually do? ie what is concerned in 'calibrating' a plasma? I'm very uninformed about this, but is calibrating a plasma merely setting the blue/red/gree tones and brightness darkness? Wouldn't you want to calibrate it to your own likings?

This will explain it better than any of us could except Aaron of course

http://www.isfcalibration.com/Intro.htm