# Green Blacks



## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

Guys, I need your help. I don't watch TV much, but I did purchase my first HDTV a few months ago. I bought a Vizio E550VL from Wally World and have the 90 day return policy. That policy ends this weekend.

I am not really sure that it is the TV at all. The problem is, I am getting green blotches in the blacks. I only see this when a scene is fading in or out. Anybody have any ideas why there is green in the blacks when I am watching 480p DVD's? I haven't noticed this on OTA (no cable) broadcasts. These splotches are not in the letterboxes, and when I hit pause and zoom in, the green spots zoom in as well with no changes.

I have tried different HDMI cables and different inputs on the TV, so I am down to the TV or the source. Is it the TV (Vizio E550VL) the source (a Marantz universal player with Faroudja DCDi processing)?


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## Ares (Nov 23, 2009)

From what I'm looking at it looks like the source to me, also from this picture it looks like there's a blue tint in the letterbox bars.


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

Thank you, Ares.

I am thinking (hoping) that it is the source, too. The blue tint is from my inexpensive point and shoot camera compensating with excessive ISO. The letterboxes are nice and black, the flashlighting is minimal. Although to be honest, this TV isn't the last word in blacks. It is a budget set that I purchased for well under $900 on Black Friday.


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## Zeitgeist (Apr 4, 2009)

Do you happen to have another DVD player you can use or borrow?

Might be interesting..


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## nholmes1 (Oct 7, 2010)

I would say its the source, if you don't have another source have you tried another output from the source? I know you said you tried a different HDMI cable but try component or even composite to see if the same errors occur. Of course this will introduce other variables...


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

I tried the same movie an older Sony DVD player I had, but the feed was composite instead of HDMI. I then tried the movie in my PS2 gamebox, which is composite, too. 

I wish I had another DVD player with an HDMI out. I am leaning towards it being the source, I need to dig out the Marantz manual and see if it is upsampling the SD signal. Could that be the problem? :huh: It has been mentioned that the TV is color shifting, could that be it?

I have a 3 year warranty on the TV, when I get a PS3, I'll be able to check it out again. First I have to quit buying hifi equipment. :spend: :R


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## Ares (Nov 23, 2009)

First you never want to say "I have to quit buying hifi equipment" that's a big no no.addle::bigsmile:

Second what model is your Marantz? I have a big library of AVR manuals on my external HDD so more than likely I have a copy of yours on file.


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

A moderator who is thinking about quitting buying hifi equipment...shame, shame...:foottap:


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## donnymac (Nov 6, 2009)

Sounds like the source based on your own experimenting. Do you have another tv you can hook the player to?


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## Ray3 (Feb 4, 2008)

Dennis,

This may be something as simple as green push because of the settings in the TV. Have you ever done video calibration using something like an AVIA disc?


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

Ares said:


> First you never want to say "I have to quit buying hifi equipment" that's a big no no.addle::bigsmile:
> 
> Second what model is your Marantz? I have a big library of AVR manuals on my external HDD so more than likely I have a copy of yours on file.


Oh, no no... I meant put buying audio gear on a short hiatus to secure more video gear! Is that more appropriate? :dumbcrazy:

The Marantz is a VC6001 universal player. I was told the Faroudja DCDi tends towards a "green push". 



donnymac said:


> Sounds like the source based on your own experimenting. Do you have another tv you can hook the player to?


I never did notice this on my old 27" CRT TV hooked up through an S-video cable. I am not 100%, but it appears that the source is the cause, and maybe the HDMI feed and greatly increased screen size makes it more clear. 



Ray3 said:


> Dennis,
> 
> This may be something as simple as green push because of the settings in the TV. Have you ever done video calibration using something like an AVIA disc?


I eyeballed the settings after shutting off almost all of the unnecessary processing, such as the variable backlight settings, etc. I did check last week with a "Revenge of the Sith" DVD, it had the Lucasfilm THX tests. I was pretty pleased with what I seen and made no changes.

This TV has a myriad of settings, I do need to get that AVIA disc after I get the aforementioned PS3 for Blu-Ray.


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

The #1 thing that makes me blame the source is that, when I pause the scene and then zoom in, the blotches maintain their shape and get bigger. They stay uniform.

I don't know much about these matters, but if the screen was color shifting or doing any other weird stuff, wouldn't the blotches appear different while zooming?


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## Ares (Nov 23, 2009)

I do have your manual on file so I took a look I created a PDF of the video setup for you because I know how much of a pain it can be to find a manual when you need info on one topic.


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

tesseract67 said:


> The #1 thing that makes me blame the source is that, when I pause the scene and then zoom in, the blotches maintain their shape and get bigger. They stay uniform.
> 
> I don't know much about these matters, but if the screen was color shifting or doing any other weird stuff, wouldn't the blotches appear different while zooming?


I would think it's the source as well. This more or less confirmed it in my mind. 

Also, if you're looking for a calibration disk, here are the three that I would recommend in no particular order: 


Spears & Munsil High Definition Benchmark
Disney's World of Wonder
DVE HD Basics

This assumes you have a blu-ray player. If you don't have a blu-ray player then Avia or the original DVE would be your choices.


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

Wow, lots of info here! Thanks guys for all of your help. :T

I am going to keep the TV and will rest easier doing so. With all of this info, I can start to optimize it.



Ares said:


> I do have your manual on file so I took a look I created a PDF of the video setup for you because I know how much of a pain it can be to find a manual when you need info on one topic.


Saved to my hard drive, thanks!


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