Sony V4500 series screen settings

markl99 · 07-01-2009, 08:47

Just dipped my first toe into the world of LCD TVs and bought a Sony KDL-26V4500 and I've been playing around with the screen settings but haven't managed to get a setup that I'm completely happy with, there's just too many variables

Anyone out there willing to share thier settings that they think show off this great TV to it's best. Not sure if it's relevant but I'm currently using it to watch BT-Vision via scart but will be switching to HDMI in a day or two.

Many thanks.

Kremmen · 08-01-2009, 12:57

I've just ordered one of those

I'm going to take a snapshot of my current Sony settings as most of the menu items look similar.

May be a while before I get it set and post back.

markl99 · 13-01-2009, 10:11

Hi

Did you mange to get some settings you were happy with, i still find i'm tinkering with mine on a daily basis. Don't get me wrong, I think the TV is great and it's probably just me not being used to LCD but I'd appreciate some guidance.

Thanks

Kremmen · 15-01-2009, 07:40

Not picked it up yet - due to short supply it will be either Fri or next Wed.

Kremmen · 17-01-2009, 09:47

I'm still waiting for them to get into stock again but, according to the Which? test they found the following best :

Quote:

Ideal picture settings

Brightness 53/100

Contrast 88/100

Colour 58/100

Picture profile Standard

Sharpness 14/30

Backlight: 6/10

Color temperature:
Cool Noise reduction:
Low MPEG noise reduction: Medium Adv.
contrast enhancer: Off
Live colour: Off
Film mode: Auto

markl99 · 17-01-2009, 20:52

Many thanks I'll give these a try and report back, what did Which think of the TV?

niall campbell · 17-01-2009, 22:35

you could try a THX set up in a Star Wars dvd

gillw · 19-01-2009, 21:07

I'd be interested in any settings anyone could offer. I just bought a KDL32W4000 and cant get the colour settings right. I seem to get the background ok, but faces then dont like look right. If I get the faces right, then the backgrounds are wrong.

I thought I had it right last night, but then this evening whilst watching Sky News, the picture looked washed out as if it had too much brightness.

tellytart1 · 19-01-2009, 22:01

Were you setting up with a DVD, then looking at Sky?

Most TVs nowadays will retain different settings for each input - so you'll need to set up each input individually to get the best look for each.

tellytart1 · 19-01-2009, 22:04

Oh, and don't trust the picture on Sky News/BBC News. The rolling news channels to cut costs don't employ a permanent lighting director to rack the cameras, so it's the vision mixer who sets up the cameras, and invariably will not be correct.

(When I was at TV centre we regularly used to colour balance the cameras correctly overnight, then as soon as the vision mixers came in, they would wind an arbitrary amount of red into each camera (not the same amount) thus messing up the colour balance because they wanted a "warmer" look to it. Not caring that cutting between shots then resulted in wildly different colours!)

tellytart1 · 19-01-2009, 22:06

And they also resorted to a "one size fits all" policy for lighting. Basically the one setup was fine for general use, but as soon as you had a black presenter or guest, it struggled to light them properly without overexposing the set or white colleague.

gillw · 20-01-2009, 08:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by tellytart1

Were you setting up with a DVD, then looking at Sky?

Most TVs nowadays will retain different settings for each input - so you'll need to set up each input individually to get the best look for each.

I was just setting up against Sky SD.

The News Channels are definately the worst. I'd be interested to see if the brightness issues I am seeing on Sky News go away when they move back to their normal studio.

Are calibration DVD's any good?

tellytart1 · 20-01-2009, 11:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by gillw

Are calibration DVD's any good?

No, they're not good, they're generally excellent for setting up a TV picture properly.

Get something like TV Essentials DVD, available on HD-DVD and Blu-Ray - I know the Hd-DVD version has a standard DVD side that can be played, not sure about the blu-ray one. It comes supplied with Audio tests as well as video tests, and also a set of colour filters so that you can use the test signals to set up the colour balance and level correctly too.

markl99 · 20-01-2009, 20:59

Using the setting quoted above I've got the picture pretty much how I would like it (I did have to bring the colour setting down a bit) but I'm finding some programmes appear particulalry dark a prime example was tonights Holby City I noticed on Coronation Street too, is this normal?
Sorry for the questions but I'm surprised at how different this is from viewing my old TV.

Kremmen · 22-01-2009, 14:57

Mines just arrived and I'm collecting it later.

I'll start with the settings from Which? and go from there.

The funny thing I found is that Which? preferred the Panasonic TX-26LXD80 - but all the other reviews I have seen all prefer the Sony.

The other reviews reckon the Panny has washed out greys and the bult in speaker sound is below average.

gillw · 22-01-2009, 20:48

Here are the current settings I am using

Picture Mode: Standard
Backlight: 3
Contrast: 62
Brightness: 45
Colour: 70
Colour Temperature: Warm 1
Sharpness: Min
Noise Reduction: Off
MPEG Noise Reduction: Off
Adv Contrast Enhancer: Off
Live Colour: Off

Going to try the Which settings now to see if they are better.

gillw · 22-01-2009, 20:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by tellytart1

No, they're not good, they're generally excellent for setting up a TV picture properly.

Get something like TV Essentials DVD, available on HD-DVD and Blu-Ray - I know the Hd-DVD version has a standard DVD side that can be played, not sure about the blu-ray one. It comes supplied with Audio tests as well as video tests, and also a set of colour filters so that you can use the test signals to set up the colour balance and level correctly too.

Thanks for the info...Only prob is I havent got a HD-DVD or Blu-Ray player yet

Kremmen · 23-01-2009, 07:02

Got mine setup last night and the Which? settings are not to my liking.

I'm currently running with :

Backlight 6
Contrast 70
Brightness 45
Colour 52
Neutral
Sharpness 14
Noise Reduction Med
MPEG Off
Contrast Enh Off
Live Colour Off

and it still doesn't look right

Also - I have a remote controlled light switch and when I turn the telly on (without touching the remote) it turns the light off, then on, then it starts dimming and brightening for about 20 seconds !

What is the telly doing at startup ?

gillw · 23-01-2009, 10:11

I've tried the Which settings and found them too bright. I have dropped the backlight down to 3 and the brightness down a couple and it looks better.

Still not entirely happy though...

Kremmen · 24-01-2009, 06:22

Your right - even my previously posted settings were a tad dodgy.

My daughter spent all yesterday playing with all the settings and I think she's got it cracked :

Backlight 2
Contrast 84
Brightness 50
Colour 59
Temp Neutral
Sharpness 5

All the 4 other settings to Off

Looks far better in my situation. I think the secret is to get the backlight right down.

gillw · 24-01-2009, 19:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kremmen

Your right - even my previously posted settings were a tad dodgy.

My daughter spent all yesterday playing with all the settings and I think she's got it cracked :

Backlight 2
Contrast 84
Brightness 50
Colour 59
Temp Neutral
Sharpness 5

All the 4 other settings to Off

Looks far better in my situation. I think the secret is to get the backlight right down.

I'll give them a try - thanks.

gillw · 25-01-2009, 14:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kremmen

Your right - even my previously posted settings were a tad dodgy.

My daughter spent all yesterday playing with all the settings and I think she's got it cracked :

Backlight 2
Contrast 84
Brightness 50
Colour 59
Temp Neutral
Sharpness 5

All the 4 other settings to Off

Looks far better in my situation. I think the secret is to get the backlight right down.

Tell your daughter she's a star!

These settings are much better - thanks.

Kremmen · 26-01-2009, 07:22

I've since turned the colour down by 2, some channels were a bit over the top.

I've since noticed that any connected equipment has their own settings as well so I've done it another 2 times for the PVR and DVD player.

gillw · 28-01-2009, 21:42

I've been running these settings for a few days and all is ok. I did knock the brightness down a couple of notches as it was too bright on the news channels, but apart from that the settings are all good.

Didnt realise there was individual settings for each connected device.

Kremmen · 29-01-2009, 14:29

Yep

I've had to do mine 3 times for the Humax PVR and my DVD player.

Only thid morning I noticed the wife watching Analogue telly and that was way too bright so that needs doing as well I suspect.

One other point - I ordered a spare remote so I don't have to keep chucking it across the room when she want's it.
Needn't have bothered, my old remotes from the aged S2612U work perfectly. The only missing button is the Subtitiles one.

07-01-2009, 08:47	#1
markl99 Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 58	Sony V4500 series screen settings Just dipped my first toe into the world of LCD TVs and bought a Sony KDL-26V4500 and I've been playing around with the screen settings but haven't managed to get a setup that I'm completely happy with, there's just too many variables Anyone out there willing to share thier settings that they think show off this great TV to it's best. Not sure if it's relevant but I'm currently using it to watch BT-Vision via scart but will be switching to HDMI in a day or two. Many thanks.

08-01-2009, 12:57	#2
Kremmen Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 113	I've just ordered one of those I'm going to take a snapshot of my current Sony settings as most of the menu items look similar. May be a while before I get it set and post back.

13-01-2009, 10:11	#3
markl99 Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 58	Hi Did you mange to get some settings you were happy with, i still find i'm tinkering with mine on a daily basis. Don't get me wrong, I think the TV is great and it's probably just me not being used to LCD but I'd appreciate some guidance. Thanks

15-01-2009, 07:40	#4
Kremmen Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 113	Not picked it up yet - due to short supply it will be either Fri or next Wed.

17-01-2009, 09:47	#5
Kremmen Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 113	I'm still waiting for them to get into stock again but, according to the Which? test they found the following best : Quote: Ideal picture settings Brightness 53/100 Contrast 88/100 Colour 58/100 Picture profile Standard Sharpness 14/30 Backlight: 6/10 Color temperature: Cool Noise reduction: Low MPEG noise reduction: Medium Adv. contrast enhancer: Off Live colour: Off Film mode: Auto

17-01-2009, 20:52	#6
markl99 Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 58	Many thanks I'll give these a try and report back, what did Which think of the TV?

17-01-2009, 22:35	#7
niall campbell Forum Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Aberfeldy Posts: 7,035	you could try a THX set up in a Star Wars dvd

19-01-2009, 21:07	#8
gillw Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Worcestershire Posts: 2,535	I'd be interested in any settings anyone could offer. I just bought a KDL32W4000 and cant get the colour settings right. I seem to get the background ok, but faces then dont like look right. If I get the faces right, then the backgrounds are wrong. I thought I had it right last night, but then this evening whilst watching Sky News, the picture looked washed out as if it had too much brightness.

19-01-2009, 22:01	#9
tellytart1 Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: London Posts: 3,638	Were you setting up with a DVD, then looking at Sky? Most TVs nowadays will retain different settings for each input - so you'll need to set up each input individually to get the best look for each.

19-01-2009, 22:04	#10
tellytart1 Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: London Posts: 3,638	Oh, and don't trust the picture on Sky News/BBC News. The rolling news channels to cut costs don't employ a permanent lighting director to rack the cameras, so it's the vision mixer who sets up the cameras, and invariably will not be correct. (When I was at TV centre we regularly used to colour balance the cameras correctly overnight, then as soon as the vision mixers came in, they would wind an arbitrary amount of red into each camera (not the same amount) thus messing up the colour balance because they wanted a "warmer" look to it. Not caring that cutting between shots then resulted in wildly different colours!)

19-01-2009, 22:06	#11
tellytart1 Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: London Posts: 3,638	And they also resorted to a "one size fits all" policy for lighting. Basically the one setup was fine for general use, but as soon as you had a black presenter or guest, it struggled to light them properly without overexposing the set or white colleague.

20-01-2009, 08:39	#12
gillw Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Worcestershire Posts: 2,535	Quote: Originally Posted by tellytart1 Were you setting up with a DVD, then looking at Sky? Most TVs nowadays will retain different settings for each input - so you'll need to set up each input individually to get the best look for each. I was just setting up against Sky SD. The News Channels are definately the worst. I'd be interested to see if the brightness issues I am seeing on Sky News go away when they move back to their normal studio. Are calibration DVD's any good?

20-01-2009, 11:41	#13
tellytart1 Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: London Posts: 3,638	Quote: Originally Posted by gillw Are calibration DVD's any good? No, they're not good, they're generally excellent for setting up a TV picture properly. Get something like TV Essentials DVD, available on HD-DVD and Blu-Ray - I know the Hd-DVD version has a standard DVD side that can be played, not sure about the blu-ray one. It comes supplied with Audio tests as well as video tests, and also a set of colour filters so that you can use the test signals to set up the colour balance and level correctly too.

20-01-2009, 20:59	#14
markl99 Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 58	Using the setting quoted above I've got the picture pretty much how I would like it (I did have to bring the colour setting down a bit) but I'm finding some programmes appear particulalry dark a prime example was tonights Holby City I noticed on Coronation Street too, is this normal? Sorry for the questions but I'm surprised at how different this is from viewing my old TV.

22-01-2009, 14:57	#15
Kremmen Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 113	Mines just arrived and I'm collecting it later. I'll start with the settings from Which? and go from there. The funny thing I found is that Which? preferred the Panasonic TX-26LXD80 - but all the other reviews I have seen all prefer the Sony. The other reviews reckon the Panny has washed out greys and the bult in speaker sound is below average.

22-01-2009, 20:48	#16
gillw Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Worcestershire Posts: 2,535	Here are the current settings I am using Picture Mode: Standard Backlight: 3 Contrast: 62 Brightness: 45 Colour: 70 Colour Temperature: Warm 1 Sharpness: Min Noise Reduction: Off MPEG Noise Reduction: Off Adv Contrast Enhancer: Off Live Colour: Off Going to try the Which settings now to see if they are better.

22-01-2009, 20:52	#17
gillw Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Worcestershire Posts: 2,535	Quote: Originally Posted by tellytart1 No, they're not good, they're generally excellent for setting up a TV picture properly. Get something like TV Essentials DVD, available on HD-DVD and Blu-Ray - I know the Hd-DVD version has a standard DVD side that can be played, not sure about the blu-ray one. It comes supplied with Audio tests as well as video tests, and also a set of colour filters so that you can use the test signals to set up the colour balance and level correctly too. Thanks for the info...Only prob is I havent got a HD-DVD or Blu-Ray player yet

23-01-2009, 07:02	#18
Kremmen Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 113	Got mine setup last night and the Which? settings are not to my liking. I'm currently running with : Backlight 6 Contrast 70 Brightness 45 Colour 52 Neutral Sharpness 14 Noise Reduction Med MPEG Off Contrast Enh Off Live Colour Off and it still doesn't look right Also - I have a remote controlled light switch and when I turn the telly on (without touching the remote) it turns the light off, then on, then it starts dimming and brightening for about 20 seconds ! What is the telly doing at startup ?

23-01-2009, 10:11	#19
gillw Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Worcestershire Posts: 2,535	I've tried the Which settings and found them too bright. I have dropped the backlight down to 3 and the brightness down a couple and it looks better. Still not entirely happy though...

24-01-2009, 06:22	#20
Kremmen Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 113	Your right - even my previously posted settings were a tad dodgy. My daughter spent all yesterday playing with all the settings and I think she's got it cracked : Backlight 2 Contrast 84 Brightness 50 Colour 59 Temp Neutral Sharpness 5 All the 4 other settings to Off Looks far better in my situation. I think the secret is to get the backlight right down.

24-01-2009, 19:40	#21
gillw Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Worcestershire Posts: 2,535	Quote: Originally Posted by Kremmen Your right - even my previously posted settings were a tad dodgy. My daughter spent all yesterday playing with all the settings and I think she's got it cracked : Backlight 2 Contrast 84 Brightness 50 Colour 59 Temp Neutral Sharpness 5 All the 4 other settings to Off Looks far better in my situation. I think the secret is to get the backlight right down. I'll give them a try - thanks.

DS Forums

Sony V4500 series screen settings

25-01-2009, 14:27	#22
gillw Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Worcestershire Posts: 2,535	Quote: Originally Posted by Kremmen Your right - even my previously posted settings were a tad dodgy. My daughter spent all yesterday playing with all the settings and I think she's got it cracked : Backlight 2 Contrast 84 Brightness 50 Colour 59 Temp Neutral Sharpness 5 All the 4 other settings to Off Looks far better in my situation. I think the secret is to get the backlight right down. Tell your daughter she's a star! These settings are much better - thanks.

26-01-2009, 07:22	#23
Kremmen Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 113	I've since turned the colour down by 2, some channels were a bit over the top. I've since noticed that any connected equipment has their own settings as well so I've done it another 2 times for the PVR and DVD player.

28-01-2009, 21:42	#24
gillw Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Worcestershire Posts: 2,535	I've been running these settings for a few days and all is ok. I did knock the brightness down a couple of notches as it was too bright on the news channels, but apart from that the settings are all good. Didnt realise there was individual settings for each connected device.

29-01-2009, 14:29	#25
Kremmen Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 113	Yep I've had to do mine 3 times for the Humax PVR and my DVD player. Only thid morning I noticed the wife watching Analogue telly and that was way too bright so that needs doing as well I suspect. One other point - I ordered a spare remote so I don't have to keep chucking it across the room when she want's it. Needn't have bothered, my old remotes from the aged S2612U work perfectly. The only missing button is the Subtitiles one.