Quality Problems with Z2 (1 Viewer)

[Ian_J]

Well, I didn't have time to calibrate the Z2 last night but I did install it. I watched finding Nemo with my kids and the vertical banding is still visible in a few scenes. I'll try and calibrate it tonight to develope a final conclusion. I'm beginning to wonder if the problem is with my screen though. The screen I'm using is the:


High Contrast Cinema Vision

A smooth, gray, vinyl finish surface for moderate output DLP projectors. This surface improves the perceived contrast by lowering black levels while offering moderate gain. It is a flexible unsupported vinyl fabric and may be folded or rolled. Available on all models offered with the Cinema Vision surface. Screen surface can be cleaned with mild soap and water. Flame retardant and mildew resistant.

I'm curious if the intended use of the screen (w/ DLP) is contributing to the visible VB. Any thoughts?

 

[Al L]

Ian - can you put your white screen back up to eliminate the screen being the problem?

I heard that the HCCV screens will in fact highlight any anomolies with the the projected images. One thing that concerns me, is that your machine still came back with VB. That doesn't give me much hope for mine being corrected too. Either the tech guy at Sanyo didn't see it, or it's normal with these units.

Also, since you are on firmware 1.09 - would appreciate knowing any service settings you change to improve the picture. Likewise, I will do the same. Mine was delivered today and I will be testing again tonight.

Also recheck your factory setting 14, the new firmware might have set it back to the default (which was 2 in 1.08). Set it to 0.

 

[Ian_J]

Ugh, I may have figured out my problem.

I just spoke with the screen supplier and it would appear that I'm projecting onto the BACK of my screen material. I need to turn the material over and project onto the rough side of the screen not the smooth gray side that is currently turned out. This seems very strange to me because the rough side of the screen seemed very irregular. Anyway, I hope the solution is this simple.

Ian

 

[Al L]

So I hooked up my Z2 last night. VB was a LOT worse than when I sent it out. The good thing is though, the hi power screen adds punch that diverts your attention away from the vb. With the HCMW screen, the picture was so muddy looking it was just more noticeable.

I noticed in DVE on the SMPTE color chart I was getting bad ghosting which is either caused by the player or the cable, so tonight I am going to test with a 720p DVI source to see if this improves quality.

 

[Ian_J]

I managed to troubleshoot the Z2 / Screen / Source last night. Contrary to the supplier’s suspicion, my screen wasn’t turned around in the wrong direction. VB is still present but not as apparent as it was before shipping out to Sanyo. After about 60 minutes of calibration I managed to reduce the VB considerably. Hopefully with a couple more service menu tweaks I can eliminate it completely.
Replacing the denon with an up scaling DVD made a huge difference. I’m now using a Panasonic DVD-S97S connected with a 5m HDMI / DVI cable. The black levels and color saturation are absolutely amazing. Unfortunately, I can still see artifacts from time to time (primarily during quick pans and action sequences). However, the pure impact of this image outweighs the shortcomings of the projector.

My settings with DVI input are as follows (Avia):
Contast –10
Brightness –5
Color Temp: Mid
Sharpness: -7
Gama: + 7
Red: +31
Green: +31
Blue: +31

I found that lowering the contrast from 0 to –10 helped lower VB without compromising white levels. The Panny DVD also has a noise filter and a “softening” function that helped with the VB. The only other change I’ve made is to Factory # 14 from 2 to 0. I’m going to mess with the 13,14, 15 service settings tonight.

 

[Al L]

Ian - thanks for the settings. I'm suprised to see your RGB values so high. I ran mine through DVE last night and found that little or no calibration was needed when using the preset Cinema setting. One thing though, how can you cope with your sharpness so low? I find -7 to be far too soft and takes the sharpness out of the image.

Regarding the VB, mine is still very noticeable. Actually, I recall the conversation with the Sanyo tech and he said that the pattern effect I am seeing is normal on these lower priced LCD screens. If that was the case, I'm suprised not many customers have complained about it. Maybe I'm just overly picky.

I'll post my 720p DVI results tomorrow..

 

[Ian_J]

Below are some links that will help explain the reasons for pushing RGB to the limits with a DVI connection. I've found that raising the RGB settings uniformly does not drastically alter the colors but helps with saturation, brightness, and shadowing. I calibrate with Avia and have been fine tuning with LOTR Return of the King (extended version). Adjusting the sharpness up or down has very little effect on my test patterns or images.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...hreadid=339768

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...ight=z2+tweaks