Jim is entirely correct. As a baseline to tailor your display, using your source gear and signal path, and in your viewing environment, these serve as a perfect barometer to start "fine tuning".
On some technologies, what would be affected with larger screen sizes is Black level settings, and Color Saturation (the richness and penetrating lustre of the image due to the amount of light output the device can muster}.
In CRT days, using the same size CRTs but progressively larger screen sizes, there would be a disparity among settings due to the finite amount of light produced being asked to illuminate progressively more surface area while keeping all other parameters in check.
LCD backlighting negates this to a great degree with proportionately more available light output to correspond to the increase in LCD panel size.
In addition, with "localized" backlighting starting to appear on prototypical sets this past year, screens can grow to sizes once though imaginable yet still retain all the splendor their 32" cousins possess.
thanks but i tried these settings and it made my tv look worse. are u sure the 42" settings also apply for the 37"? if not can u get me the 37" settings. PLEASE!
Yes, we are sure that these settings should be a good starting point. However, there are many variables that could be at work here. Keep in mind that they only apply to an HDMI input and no others. Also, LCDs black level appearence changes drastically with viewing angle. When we are collecting the data for the suggested starting point settings we are viewing the test patterns from directly in front of the TV because that is the most common viewing position.
The only way we are going to obtain data specifically for the 37" model is if someone hires one of us to do an in-home calibration. If your picture quality is very important to you it is well worth the money to have it professionally calibrated. Nothing, including our suggested settings, compares to having an expert calibrate your set on site.
Most TweakTV calibrators charge between $300.00 and $400.00 to calibrate flat panel sets.
We all have been doing calibrations for many years, most of us with 15 years experience, and have yet to see any set or system that was properly set up upon arrival. Most are way off and require service menu adjustments to fully calibrate the perfomance. The settings we are suggesting here are a big step in the right direction, however, the only way to truly calibrate a system is to have it professionally calibrated by an experienced technician.
As a minor supplement to what Jim says, I add that a manufacturer can take input from professional calibrators (many of the moderators here work contractually with manufacturers to assist in the fine tuning of their designs) to ensure the Service Menu has the parameters, adjustment range, and accomplishes the proper net result without creating other errors. When signed off, the product is produced and adjustments made on the assembly line, one of which, might be a "clinically perfect" mode that says, oh, "FLAT". That is to mean, in the proper environment, with the best associated consumer equipment, the factory default may be very close to ideal.
Now, factor in the parts tolerances of consumer grade equipment. Some parts may have a +/- acceptable deviation of as much as 15%. Additionally, the manufacturer can't possibly anticipate what environment or how that environment will be controlled for proper viewing. Nor can they gauge what equipment and cabling may be in the signal chain. With all these factors combined, the "precision" setting may look atrocious in some circumstances. Professional calibration (only analogously) is akin to the difference in feeling ill and matching your symptoms on Web MD or going to a physician and being accordingly treated. A true professional like Jim at the helm will critically match the viewing environment and your signal path using costly precision instrumentation to make sure the image you see is as perfect as the device is capable of producing.
I was talking with the CEO of an up and coming LCD manufacturer the other day who cited that the contract assembler for their product (you would be stunned to learn who assembles thier own products and who has them assembled for them) wanted to charge nearly $20 additionally for each unit, as it took nearly 20 minutes more to make all the factory adjustments and verify them on the line. They are considered, presently, a "boutique" manufacturer making a high quality product with novel features that address the custom integration channel. As a result of their requirements, the assembly time was delaying the next vendor's contracted production time and high demand products were slower to come into the pipeline raising some ire.
While we realize that it's "just TV - nobody dies", getting acclimated to and watching a precisely tuned image will definitely spoil you. The only downside is the pain in the kiester you become to family and friends when you constantly complain how terrible their TV's look when visiting. Sorry, we can't help with that!
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