Plasma picture problem....please help (1 Viewer)

I just bought a 50" Panasonic Viera Plasma and after changing the settings, I still can't get the picture to look as crisp and vibrant as I was hoping for....the blacks are really black, but when compared to my parents LCD, it seems almost as if my contrast isn't as high as theirs....Are Plasma's generally not as clear as LCD's or is there a setting I'm not seeing that can make the picture better? Thanks for your help.

Which settings have you changed?


Sounds like you're on their default "Standard" picture setting, which is indeed pretty dim. Use the Menu or Viera buttons and try changing to "THX". (Stay away from "Vivid".)

My settings are on standard, I have my contrast at 100, my brightness at 50, my color at 45, the tint at 5 and sharpness at 65...I do not see a THX option....the black level is set to dark, and the picture is on the "cool" setting...I noticed a 3D Y/C filter setting and a color matrix setting, but it won't let me change those settings for some reason....

so if no THX then you have the S or U series.


Standard mode is fine.

Try contrast at 75

Brightness at 55

Color 45

Tint - center

Sharp -15 (or 1/4 of the scale).

Color temp on Warm1 or normal

Black level should be on lighter than


Consider trying to to use the THX Optimizer patterns to further improve your image, or you could have your display professionally calibrated to ensure 100% optimization.

I tried changing the picture settings and nothing really helps....the picture is good, just not great...everything looks bland...i guess i was expecting everything to look super high res, but maybe plasmas aren't as high res as lcd's?

What are you using to help you set these parameters? Do you have access to a calibration disc with properly authored test patterns?


Are you making these adjustments in lighting conditions that are close to your viewing conditions?


What source material are you using to judge the picture quality? SD or HD? DVD or Blu-Ray? What, exactly, is looking "bland" to you? The more specific you can be with what you are seeing, the better.


As for the plasma vs. LCD issue - resolution is resolution. A plasma with a native resolution of 1920x1080 has the same exact number of pixels as an LCD with a native resolution of 1920x1080.


Have you tried watching a Pixar Blu-Ray on the TV yet? I'll bet THAT would look incredible.

Hello all. I’m looking for answers on my brand new set too. Yesterday I hooked up my Panasonic Viera TCP58S2 TV (58-inch) and I was extremely disappointed with it right out of the box. The picture is not as crisp and clear as I was expecting after reading all the great reviews on it.

The major problem I have with it is when you look at the TV the pixels are very jittery. You can see them moving back and forth like you are jerking a flash light quickly. I sit 12 feet away from the set so the distance should be fine. I checked the picture on both my PS3 and DirectTV HD signal. I keep the room dark and I have the settings on Standard mode with the contrast and brightness both set less than 50 to “break” the set in. I’ve only had the set on for 4.5 hours so far so I may be rushing to judgement.


My questions are: (1) are the jittery pixels normal on plasma sets or are they supposed to be stationary, (2) could the set be defective or am I impatient – should I wait until it get about 150 hours on it.


Just doesn’t look right to me. All help is much appreciated! Thanks – J.