Buying new Plasma 3d HDTV for gaming!

[raymondjchin]

there are a few common methods for TV's, but i'm not sure if the same methods could apply to computer/laptop monitors because they usually don't come with as many advanced picture settings like a TV would.

- u can do a "quick calibrate" and google "*insert TV/monitor model* calibration settings" and use another person's settings. this is the cheapest and quickest method, but the more inaccurate method because no 2 TV's will be the same. at least u will get a much more accurate picture than compared to any of the TV's OEM presets.

- download a calibrating DVD/blu ray and basically learn how to do it yourself. sites like AVSforum.com will be very helpful if u decide to go with this method. the pros over there can provide u with in depth knowledge about how everything works, and how to use it.

- hire a professional calibrator. i would stay away from something like best buy's geek squad because they are hit or miss; more or less. look up a recommended calibrator, in your area, and schedule an appointment with him/her/them. they will come out and spend as long as it takes to get u the most accurate picture your set can provide. alot of them will have fancy equipment that helps them measure the set's color spectrum and fine tune everything.

ugh wish I wasn't lazy... I thought it was going to be like install a disk or a quick google search like 10 minutes. but thank you much.

[andros_forever]

Just got done tinkering with the TV's hidden Service Menu. It's supposed to be used only by professionals but you know me... I can't stay away from the "Advanced" settings for long

There was one thing that was SERIOUSLY bothering me with this otherwise perfect picture.

The Colors were very bright but too saturated for my tastes. Fine for movie watching but while Gaming, let's say Skyrim, it would give an unrealistic saturation to leaves and other items that made the game look a tad bit cartoonish and the overall scenery would lose detail.

What was upsetting me these last two days is that there is NO color control setting for HDMI other than Nvidia's Control panel settings, and the only things that you can change there are Brightness, Contrast, Hue and Digital Vibrance.

The result from changing the Digital Vibrance DID NOT resolve the problem with the oversaturation, which was caused by a Color Gain produced by the TV and there is no way to disable it (at least in HDMI mode, might be possible in TV mode).

I found out how to enter the TV's Service Menu and plunged into the risky territory. Had to look through many menus before I could find the White balance, Contrast and most importantly Color Gain and Offset controls that are otherwise unalterable in HDMI mode.

I lowered my Color Gain from 120ish values to 100, disabling the ugly and unrealistic oversaturated color effect that was hurting the picture quality.

I modified some other Contrast Values and Brightness values making the picture even more astonishing than otherwise achievable through the regular Picture settings.

Now I finally got the professional looking image quality I was striving for these last few days since buying this amazing TV. I knew the image quality was great when I first played Skyrim on this, but I knew it could be better and I didn't give up. Just had to go through several headaches before I could find the way to get around Samsung's "graying out" of options.

If anyone is looking for a professional Samsung Plasma TV calibrator, hit me up hah I swear it's worth it

[ntrain96]

this is really starting to sound like an "apple vs pc" argument now...

more FPS only equals better, and smoother motion resolution. i'm not sure what u're arguing about now because u're not gonna convince me that a 720p image @ max settings will look better than a 1080p image @ high/max settings. are u saying that if we broke them down, and compared them frame by frame, that the 720p image would look better just because it had more FPS???

if u do alot of home theater work then u should know that even some high end models can't do proper 24p playback and produce fast moving images with quite some pixelation.

i'm not bias against plasmas or LCD's as i have both in my house. i just like things that work well. from the sound of it, i take it that u prefer plasmas for personal use? yes, LCD technology is flawed, but so are plasmas, tubes, and DLP's. each of them have just come up with different parameters to keep the technical "draw backs" in check. for example: just a small innovation like "gaming mode" alone has made me love my TV's that much more.

LOL! So your agreeing that higher FPS ='s better MOTION RESOLUTION, which means better PQ. How often are you playing a game with a static picture?

And yes, absolutely I am saying that a 720p native display can look much better playing at a higher framerate with max settings than a native 1080p display playing at a lower framerate with less than max settings without question.

In my field, the equipment we sell, all of it does 24p just fine. We really don't do any flat panel displays(cept the 103" Panny and a few other select plasma screens), the majority of the displays we install are pj's.

And we still have some pj's that natively are only 720p that will absolutely CRUSH competing 1080p displays for detail and clarity, color accuracy etc.......resolution is not everything, and on the scale of PQ importance its about 4th or 5th on the list for what entails a great looking picture. Next time I have a LAN party at my friends, Ill post up a few videos on this thread of different calibrated displays...........see which one looks the best.

[houstoned]

LOL! So your agreeing that higher FPS ='s better MOTION RESOLUTION, which means better PQ. How often are you playing a game with a static picture?

And yes, absolutely I am saying that a 720p native display can look much better playing at a higher framerate with max settings than a native 1080p display playing at a lower framerate with less than max settings without question.

In my field, the equipment we sell, all of it does 24p just fine. We really don't do any flat panel displays(cept the 103" Panny and a few other select plasma screens), the majority of the displays we install are pj's.

And we still have some pj's that natively are only 720p that will absolutely CRUSH competing 1080p displays for detail and clarity, color accuracy etc.......resolution is not everything, and on the scale of PQ importance its about 4th or 5th on the list for what entails a great looking picture. Next time I have a LAN party at my friends, Ill post up a few videos on this thread of different calibrated displays...........see which one looks the best.

are u comparing your godly, magical (yet STILL unnamed) 720p display to some bottom of the bin $400 1080p monitor? to say a 720p display can outperform the top of the line 1080p displays is plain unfathomable. and i'm not comparing strictly pixel counts here. the best TV's on the market just happen to be 1080p...

plus, i'd rather bang my head against the wall than to have to hook my computer/laptop up to a big (40"-50"+) 720p display. to each his own i guess...

@andros_forever: glad it all worked out, brother! yes, 10-point white balance is one of the most important calibrating settings. u HAVE to unlock that to tune for color accuracy.

[jrwingate6]

I would bet that whatever tech people go with will end up best picture for least power used. My ancient 36" JVC used 97 Watts. Some of the older plasmas were flat ovens as one of my 52" LCD cold cathode back lit at 260W!

Watts the sticker say on the back of yours?

I'm also hearing Samsung and Sony may be wanting to dump the LCD to other manufactures due to quality problems. Lots of class action suits out their if you google due to bad expensive sets.

Samsung is not dumping their LCD's to another manufacturer. They are simply shutting down their LCD division (Samsung LCD) and combining it with Plasma/OLED under one moniker (Samsung Display). When it comes to Sony, they never manufactured their own LCD's. They purchased their panels from someone else.

A quick Google search reveals tons of class action lawsuits against all major brand TV manufacturers. No brand is free from problems and any TV can be hit or miss. It is always wise to purchase an extended warranty with any TV. Sticking with a one year manufacturers warranty is rolling the dice.

I just did a quick Google searches on 3 other popular manufacturers and took the first link of each search.

Sharp Electronics 32-inch LCD TV Television Sets Class Action Recalls - Lawsuit

LG Electronics LCD & Plasma TV Class Action Lawsuit

Vizio Refuses To Repair Defective Televisions | Class Action Blog

[jrwingate6]

In regards to the 720 vs 1080 argument, I can see both sides of the story. If it's being used as a full time computer monitor which I don't advise due to various issues, I can see how 1080 would be better for web browsing/reading. However, if your just using the monitor for gaming purposes, I'd much rather look at high/max settings running at a higher frame rate at 720 than a 1080 display running at lower frame rates using low/med settings. Smooth motion is much more important than pixel density when it comes to gaming. Lastly, when sitting back at normal viewing distance, you are unlikely too even see a difference between 720 and 1080 while gaming or any type of content that is constantly moving. Static images on the other hand are a whole different story. In the end, I think most people here would rather have a smoother frame rate and with minimal image blur than a higher pixel density.

By the way, there have been double blind studies showing that most people cannot even see a difference between 720 and 1080 when viewing TV/Movie content at normal viewing distances.

[raymondjchin]

By the way, there have been double blind studies showing that most people cannot even see a difference between 720 and 1080 when viewing TV/Movie content at normal viewing distances.

True that. I think they say in order to even start seeing a difference for most people you usually have to be like 7 feet away looking at 55"+ TVs. I think regardless if you get high end 720p vs high end 1080p they are going to make you happy regardless. it's like lamborgini vs ferrari. also you will adjust to your tv of choice so you'll get use to it.

I think we should give ntrain and houstoned some "sock and bobbers" and let them go at it.

[houstoned]

In regards to the 720 vs 1080 argument, I can see both sides of the story. If it's being used as a full time computer monitor which I don't advise due to various issues, I can see how 1080 would be better for web browsing/reading. However, if your just using the monitor for gaming purposes, I'd much rather look at high/max settings running at a higher frame rate at 720 than a 1080 display running at lower frame rates using low/med settings. Smooth motion is much more important than pixel density when it comes to gaming. Lastly, when sitting back at normal viewing distance, you are unlikely too even see a difference between 720 and 1080 while gaming or any type of content that is constantly moving. Static images on the other hand are a whole different story. In the end, I think most people here would rather have a smoother frame rate and with minimal image blur than a higher pixel density.

By the way, there have been double blind studies showing that most people cannot even see a difference between 720 and 1080 when viewing TV/Movie content at normal viewing distances.

those studies are so old and irrelevant. they probably tested a bunch of "general consumers" that couldn't tell u the difference between a their head and their rear end. any person with at least some knowledge can easily spot the difference between 1080p and 720p content. and no duhhh cable/satellite would look similar on a 720p TV or a 1080p TV because all that stuff is broadcasted in 720p/1080i.......

new question: would u rather game @ 80FPS on a 720p display with max settings or 60FPS on a 1080p display at max settings? i'd choose the 1080p display everyday of the week, and twice on sundays.

@raymondjchin: your lambo vs ferrari argument doesn't work because then u'd be indicating that 720p is an equal. it's more like a lambo (1080p) vs a BMW/Mercedes (720p).

[hydra]

LOL, duh, I can tell the difference! I will tell you that my 720P screen looks exactly like my 1080P screen except for one difference. One is bigger The solution is just move a little closer! This is a 42" 720 vs 52" 1080 screen.

Myself, as long as framerate is up and lag is down, I'm happy. I could not care less how anyone else perfers framerate over sreeen rez cause it's whatever floats your boat, no?

But not confusing the issue of having a higher resolution source, ie, BR as I don't see any apparent difference other than more pixels when scaling a game.

[Rykoshet]

I've watched the Lord of the Rings on both 720p and 1080p and couldn't not tell a difference (except in Bandwidth...)