Need Help Using Avia (1 Viewer)

[David R Nguyen]

I just received the Avia Guide to Home Theater DVD. I just bought a 40" Sony Wega XBR television and was trying to calibrate the video. I don't quite understand how to take advantage of the calibration tools. Could someone give me a quick run-down of how to use the tools. For example, how should I adjust the Picture setting according to what's shown on the screen? And what do those moving lines and needles represent?

Sorry for the ignorance on this subject; I am new to home theater tweaking and calibration.

Thanks,

Dave

 

[Matt DeVillier]

David,

if you watch the video, it explains how to use the test screens for each picture control

 

[Charles J P]

Actually, I have similar questions. I've had Avia for about a year and still have problems setting the "picture" (ie white level). I have no problem setting the black level, (contrast) but on the white level, no matter how high I set it, I get no blooming on the step pattern and no bowing on the vertical lines. I can go all the way up on the "picture" setting, and the pattern doesnt give any of the indications that I'm supposed to be looking for according to the demo. FYI I have a 32" Wega.

 

[Matt DeVillier]

Charles,

if you don't get blooming or bending of the vertical lines, the next step is to examine the blocks on the upper half of the screen. From top to bottom, each rectangle should contain twice as much black as the previous one. Also make sure that the width of each rectangle is exactly the same. If the white level is set too high, the higher up rectangles will be wider than those below

 

[Dave H]

Another way to set white level if you aren't getting line bending is this (although it's a bit subjective).
Set your contrast to zero. Just look at the top block (masking out the other blocks if necessary - hold something in front of your face as u look at just the top block.) Slowly increase the level until the top block is no longer grey until you achieve a nice, "soft" white. This has worked well for me because I get little line bending or blooming on my TV.

 

[Jeremy Anderson]

Ideally, you want contrast to be at the lowest point at which the topmost square and the bottom half of the screen appear WHITE instead of gray (with your room lighting set however you normally watch movies). The tests for blooming and power supply insufficiency are used to find the MAXIMUM safe level, not necessarily the best level to leave it set to. You don't want blooming because it decreases fine detail (among other things). You don't want to run it so high that the lines bend on the side because that creates geometry distortions on bright scenes. What you're trying to do is set your TV up so that it displays ACCURATELY.

This is especially important when calibrating projection televisions, since running contrast too high on them can greatly increase the risk of screen burn-in.

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

Dave,
the advice given is the most effective. As stated start with white level down so that the bottom of the screen and the top rectangle appear grey, then as you increase white level watch those two parts of the screen, when they appear as recognizable white, that's the best place to leave it.
Also bear in mind that white level and black level interact with one another, so if you've previously set your black level, go back and check it again after setting your white level, it may need to be adjusted a notch or two.
For me the most difficult setting to adjust is the sharpness setting. My 48" HDTV's sharpness control shows very slight changes as you soften the picture detail so it's difficult to adjust it where it belongs. If yours is the same way my advice is to soften the detail until the picture appears smooth and soft, but not TOO soft.
I assume you understand how to set saturation and tint? Those are a piece of cake, but if after setting them you find that you still have too much red present in the picture, decrease saturation until it reads at around or at the +10 or +15%, 0% if you can get away with it wihout robbing the image of too much color. You can determine "red push" by the color decoder chart by looking through the red filter. If you do have to decrease saturation, leave tint at it's previously determined setting even though it will no longer read accuratly when looking through the blue filter.
If you still have question's feel free to ask me here or PM me anytime and i'll walk you through it.
Good luck.

 

[David R Nguyen]

Thanks everyone for your responses. And John, I just may take you up on that offer. When I return home from work tonite, I'm going to begin calibrating. I'm sure I'll have plenty more questions.