How to do HDTV Calibration

If you’ve purchased that brand new HDTV but the picture just doesn’t seem to look right, it’s time to Calibrate. While this may seem intimidating, we are here to offer you a few tips and tricks when it comes to your HDTV Calibration.

No matter how much you’ve spent on a TV, you are not going to get the best picture your TV has to offer right out of the box. While this may seem frustrating, there’s a reason for this. HDTV factory settings are set in a way that will make them shine while in the store. Typically, the brightness and contrast are turned way up to get a stunning picture that stands out from the rest of the TVs in the store. Another thing to keep in mind is the lighting within a store. Stores are very bright and in order to give the viewing experience the customers are looking for, that best shows off the TVs capabilities; the setting are different than what someone would need at home.

Before going any other route, check your HDTV’s manual for calibration instructions. Going online and watching tutorial videos is another great way to get your TV calibrated for your individual needs. The process is tedious but well worth it when you get to see what your HDTV truly has to offer.

If you’re looking for some help calibrating your TV, you can purchase a calibration DVD from your favorite technology store. Most stores that sell HDTVs should have them. Be sure the DVD is compatible with your set. These DVDs work by showing various displays on your screen and giving you instructions on what to adjust and when. Examples are given and such during the process. It’s like getting one on one advice from an expert, but on your own timeframe. You can pause and rewind to make sure you got it right.

Another route many individuals decide to take is hiring a Calibration Technician. These professionals are great for a few reasons: one, they have tools to help them in getting your TV Calibrated to fit your viewing needs. Two, they can also help you figure out the best place to set your TV for the best viewing experience. These technicians are not cheap, typically costing you a few hundred dollars; but something worth mentioning.

Here are a few tips for those of you calibrating on your own. Right out of the box, brightness and contrast need to be turned down to about one half what they were. Sometimes more, but this will make more sense once we tweak with a few other settings.

Next up, is your Contrast. Contrast adjusts white levels. If the contrast is too high, you’re going to see bleeding; meaning areas throughout the picture are going to be overtaken by white. If the contrast is too low, your whites are going to seem dull instead of the true-white they are meant to be.

Now that your white levels are in check, it’s time to move on to brightness. Brightness affects how much black you see on the screen. If the brightness is too low, dark scenes are going to be very hard to distinguish. If you have a scene from a scary movie, or something else on hand that has a dark scene; this would be really helpful.

Sharpness adjusts the fine details of the picture. If sharpness is turned up too high, there will be outlines around objects instead of distinct boundaries that should exist between two objects.

Of course, color is a must. If color is too low, things are going to be black or gray. If colors are too high, everything is going to bleed together.

Finally, it’s time to adjust the tint. The tint affects the red and green of the picture. Tint is probably the toughest feature to adjust but we have a trick. Look at someone’s skin tone and base the tint off of that. You want the skin to look normal, not overly red.

Calibrating isn’t an easy process and it may take you a few times of running through each feature to get it right but once you do; you’ll be glad you took the time. Your picture is going to look much better than you probably expected it could.