# Calibration Question



## Jre56 (Dec 29, 2010)

I had my 70in Sharp 3D Quattron Professionally calibrated & I'm having a hard time Fully adjusting to the Picture. Some HD stations look Very Good while others the skin tone is too Green,especially when I'm watching the Baseball players in the grassy fields. The picture,at times, also appear a little too Dark which takes the life out of the Picture. I want to know the Picture Quality of your Calibration? Are All of your Video sources Picture perfect(cable,Bluray,games) or do you have to take the Bad with the Good & Deal with it? I feel if I adjust for one program on DirecTv then it may mess up another beautiful picture on another station. The calibration took 45 mins. Is that a normal time frame? Thanks!!


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

You have to take the good with the bad. Calibration is only as good as the source material. If the source, be it cable/satellite/blu-ray, isn't up to spec, then the picture won't be either. Blu-ray should look fine.

All this being said, a video calibration should take a lot longer than 45 minutes. It takes me about 30-45 minutes to touch up my already calibrated sets. And the initial calibration takes around 2-3 hours most times. But I don't need to explain anything to myself. 

If I may ask, who did the calibration? And what did they calibrate? White/Black levels? Color Management System?

Michael Chen will probably chime in here soon now that I moved it to the calibration forum. The calibrator should have taken time to explain what he was doing, how he was doing it and how you should use your setup properly. And depending upon cost, he should have verified the calibration with some of the components - Blu-ray player and receiver for example. Satellite and cable boxes cannot be verified as there's no way to know how good the source material is that they are getting from the various providers - ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, TNT, etc.


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## rab-byte (Feb 1, 2011)

You're display allows for white balance, CMS, gamma, and standard color/tint/contrast/bright/sharpness adjustments. 

The sharp displays are able to produce a much brighter picture then many other displays but the blacks do not hold up to the top top of the line LED displays from Sony and Samsung.

That said. If you're not happy with the results contact the company/calibrator and request they come back out.


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## Jre56 (Dec 29, 2010)

Sorry I posted in the wrong category & Thanks for moving it to the correct one! I saw him with a Gray Scale on the screen & Color. What he was doing I have no idea. The only reference for accuracy was a picture of fruit he had on his Laptop which he sent to my Tv. He didn't use my Bluray,PS3 or Xbox 360,he didn't turn them on! I told him the skin tone was too Green but he said he can't control the source material. Yes he was in & out the door in an hour! He was from BestBuy Geek Squad. BestBuy charge $250 for a calibration. Free if you're of Premier Silver Status,which I am so it didn't cost me anything. Can you tell me which setting do I change to tone down the Green skin tone without affecting the other colors? Thanks!


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

If you have no idea what your calibrator was doing, he was not much of a professional, in my opinion. One of the most important things that a calibrator should do is to help you to understand how to get the most out of your system and exactly what is being done to it.

If you are not happy with what he did, you should ask that they explain what was done and how it relates to what you are seeing. Not likely that you will get much from geeks, however. I would start learning about how to tweak your display yourself with some of the available test disks.


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## rab-byte (Feb 1, 2011)

Having worked with best buy for the last 7 years and with geek squad for the last 3, two of which as a calibrator, I can tell you there is a commitment to quality among many of us.

Like I said, contact them and ask to have your display redone. You should have been informed about what was being done and your calibrator shouldn't have left till you were satisfied.


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## michael tlv (Jun 23, 2009)

Greetings

Dark is not how I would describe a Sharp LED/LCD set after it has been calibrated properly. 

A competent calibrator with the *right tools* can do that Sharp set in 45 minutes ... or less. Emphasis on the right tools. So even if we assume the most proficient calibrator from BB, there may be an inherent issue with their tools and the calibrator cannot over come that. It's what happens when you use a meter with the accuracy of something you can get for $150 these days and they are very erratic on LCD/LED based displays.

Of course the calibrators are not exactly taught stuff like that ... better they don't know. One probe that works on everything. Just tell them that. Too bad it does not work like that in practice.

This Article gives you an idea about what happens when a calibrator just shows up ... and doesn't talk to the client at all. Hocus pocus ... presto chango ... it is done.

This article talks about the quality of the calibration and the people behind it that you might expect from the BB's of the world.

This article gives you some tips on how you might go about evaluating the talents of the person that is about to come and play with your tv. What to look for and what to avoid.

A picture of fruit as a reference for accuracy ... speaks volumes to the knowledge of the calibrator. They are professional because they take your money. Professional does not imply knowledge or skill ... unfortunately. I am reminded of a Level 1 THX class we taught back in 2010 where 5 or 6 of the local Geek Squad guys attended. The class was discounted to $49 as an introductory thing. The GS guys effectively ignored what we were teaching all day and had to be scolded a number of times. Their most senior member talked about how he used the color of grass on the golf channel as his reference for correct color. Eyes rolled. They didn't listen ... and were not interested in listening.

If you would like an idea of the experience and knowledge level of a calibrator that you are looking at employing, have them go take that calibration challenge quiz I have set up on my site. Click here. They don't have to score 100% ... few do, but something decent like 80% or better should give you more confidence in their abilities. But tools can't overcome some things.



You may not get what you pay for ... but you always pay for what you get.

Regards


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