View Full Version : 1 hour calibration?
killedkenny
07-01-2004, 12:37 PM
The other day I mentioned to my father that he needs to have his 50" Sony properly calibrated for it to look the way it is supposed to. He went back to the store he bought he from (DuMoulin) and was told that they provided that for free because he had purchased the extended warranty. A tech came over and spent about an hour in the service menu. I told him that this was NOT the same as what I was referring to. My impression has been that a real calibration would take much longer, and would not be included with an extended warranty. Was I correct? DId his one hour callibration do anything similar to what a real ISF tech would do?
Ratman
07-01-2004, 12:57 PM
No...
Typically, an ISF calibration will cost approx. $400 (and/or more) for an RPTV.
The average time spent is approx 3-4 hours. An ISF tech will have plenty of test gear to calibrate properly.
The 'tech' that 'calibrated' your Dad's set probably performed some convergence and geometry adjustments (which is good!). And perhaps some other tweaks here and there. But it was by no means an 'ISF calibration'.
If he got someone to do that since he bought an extended warranty, he's fortunate. There are many folks that were told by a salesperson that calibration is included only to find out later that it wasn't.
kevinw
07-01-2004, 12:58 PM
All depends upon what he did. An ISF calibration is great but not a MUST. A free hour of adjusting the Service mode geometry and convergence is not all bad.
An ISF wuld do things like gray scale,geometry and focus as well.
Hippie
07-01-2004, 10:58 PM
The other day I mentioned to my father that he needs to have his 50" Sony properly calibrated for it to look the way it is supposed to. Was I correct? DId his one hour callibration do anything similar to what a real ISF tech would do?
My ISF was here for almost 7 1/2 hours.
killedkenny
07-03-2004, 12:06 PM
Thx everybody, looks like my suspicions were correct.
daharleyrdr
11-17-2004, 03:29 PM
My ISF was here for almost 7 1/2 hours.
I see you live in NJ who did you use? how did it turn out and if you dont mind me asking what was the cost Thanks Bill
Hippie
11-17-2004, 03:40 PM
I see you live in NJ who did you use? how did it turn out and if you dont mind me asking what was the cost Thanks Bill
I went with Eliab at Avical.
He is supposed to be one of the best in the business.
He travels the U.S. doing his thing so you have to schedule with him well in advance. (He is based in NJ which makes it a little easier, but still you must set up an appontment well in advance.)
I thought my TV picutre was nice before he got here... After he did his thing.. WOW.....
He was here for over 7 hours. He explains every step of what he is doing.. He even had my head inside the TV looking down the CRT guns to understand what it was he was doing..
I HIGHLY recommend him.
As for price.. It varies on what "Package" you get and the type of TV you have.
The prices are listed on his web site. Again, it may look a bit pricey, but I feel it was a well worthwhile investment..
If you go with him, tell him John J from Bergenfield sent ya.. :)
Here is his web site.
http://www.avical.com/
ToXicChiLL
11-17-2004, 04:31 PM
i'm considering getting my tv calibrated by the guy Hippie suggeested. Is 375 a lot to pay for. I try using the THX optimizer that comes w/ Pirates of the Carribean, and I don't think I did it correctly. Since I shell out so much for the tv, I rather get this professionally done.
ToXicChiLL
11-17-2004, 04:33 PM
am i suppose to tip the guy? and what is an appropropiate tip?
kevinw
11-17-2004, 05:11 PM
http://www.keohi.com/keohihdtv/isf/isf_calibrators.html
read some of this to get an idea what a ISF does and what to expect.
Hippie
11-17-2004, 05:15 PM
am i suppose to tip the guy? and what is an appropropiate tip?
I didn't...
Its his own company..
Hippie
11-17-2004, 05:17 PM
i'm considering getting my tv calibrated by the guy Hippie suggeested. Is 375 a lot to pay for. I try using the THX optimizer that comes w/ Pirates of the Carribean, and I don't think I did it correctly. Since I shell out so much for the tv, I rather get this professionally done.
my 2nd tier package for a RPTV was 500$.
Money well spent in my mind
kevinw
11-17-2004, 05:19 PM
Most reports from calibrators who spend a long time it is nice when beverages and meals are offered. Not expected, but if a guy spent 7 hours turning my tv into video nirvana, whats a celebratory steak dinner with a couple of cold ones. :drool11:
Hippie
11-17-2004, 05:22 PM
Most reports from calibrators who spend a long time it is nice when beverages and meals are offered. Not expected, but if a guy spent 7 hours turning my tv into video nirvana, whats a celebratory steak dinner with a couple of cold ones. :drool11:
I gave him a couple soda's.
Was gonna order a pizza or something but he was meeting someone for dinner after he left my place so he declined.
kevinw
11-17-2004, 05:22 PM
I have heard nothing but great things about Eliab from Avical. Same with Greg Loewen at Lion AV
http://66.201.107.3/services.html
ToXicChiLL
11-17-2004, 05:26 PM
well, i live in ny, so i'll probably look for Eliab from Avical since he's in jersey. on his website, calibration for plasma's is 375.. throw in 25 for pizza and beer and it'll cost me 400.. i guess it'll be money will spent. thanks you for your input.
Splicer
11-30-2004, 12:15 AM
Make sure the calibration is finished before serving the beer :hah33: ... (joke)
eklektique1
11-30-2004, 12:41 AM
Is there a site you can go to to find a tech in your area. I live in the boondocks.
This site provided in an earlier post might help:
http://www.keohi.com/keohihdtv/isf/isf_calibrators.html
And this one.
http://www.imagingscience.com/
eklektique1
11-30-2004, 01:00 AM
Thanks a lot 57U. Found one a hop skip and a jump away.
saccorator
02-10-2005, 03:34 PM
I gave him a couple soda's.
Was gonna order a pizza or something but he was meeting someone for dinner after he left my place so he declined.
Hey Hippie,
I have a Hitachi 57F500 and did the DVE adjustments. How much of a difference is your TV now that it has been calibrated by Avical? How would you compare the picture to a plasma or high end picture? I have been debating getting the calibration done. I like to hear the difference from people who have had it done. How would you describe the before and after?
Thanks!
Matt27
02-11-2005, 02:38 AM
I would say absolutely, the results could be 70% or more increase in picture quality.
Espeacially if they do any focuss adjustments, the clarity of detail and overall picture quality will increase too by at least 10%
lancejustice
12-06-2005, 01:37 PM
What about a crt. I have the xs955 that I got for just over 600. Would a calibration make sense. It just doesn't look as good as I know it can. It doesn't look as good as the hf85 toshiba that we have at work, so I know something needs to be done. I see mostly talk about rp and dlp, etc. Do they do them on crt's and would it help? Thanks for any advice.
If you spent $600 for a TV, then spending $3-500 say for a calibration may not make much sense.
Have you read the HDTV FAQ "What you need to do to your new HDTV?".
lancejustice
12-06-2005, 03:03 PM
Some. I have done some service menu tweaks, and it did look a little better, but I keep hearing that this tv should be amazing, and it really doesn't seem that way to me. I should probably get the set up disc, invest in a dvd player and go that route first. Is there any chance that I could get a ISF tec to just do some work for like $100 instead of the full treatment? I should mention this is a display model from BB which is why I feel it needs so much help.
Unlikely you'll get much for $100. Most people charge that much just to come to your door.
lancejustice
12-06-2005, 04:12 PM
Would it be silly of me to call BB and ask them to send a tech out to look at the t.v just to verify that it does not look any where near as good as it should look?
