HDTV picture settings forum: Panasonic TC-P55VT30 picture settings

...from Panasonic, but hopefully now they'll get back soon.

I have been doing a lot of research on setting up and calibrating DIY, and have been doing about 70% of my research on highdefjunkies.com, where they have a massive thread on Calibrating the new Panny Plamas. I have a new 65VT30 and really want to do it right but am a bit leary of several things. They keep referring to this 100 hour break in with some colored slides and many have replied back that after they do the 100 hours straight of running these slides using a USB or SD card and then they put in there calibration settings that the picture just looks amazing. But a few have said that there TV's were damaged or that they believe and have heard that this process is old, outdated and can cause damage. I do much of my research on CNET for all my electronics and really would like to know what your thougths are on this and what should I do. I think I have seen somewhere on here and can't find it again that you run yours for 24 hours prior to your calibration but what do you do for that 24 hours? Run lides or something similiar? Is this what you would recommend and why, or do you just do it for 24 hours so that way you can get the reciew done as quickly as possible but would recommened something a little longer for the everyday person breaking in there new plasma and trying there DIY calibration.

Thanks and please advise.

Thanks,
I am 2/3 way through the break-in process and have already seen a huge difference when I go back to watching normal tv for just 30 minutes at night just to see how things are going. It has made a huge difference and looks absolutely spectacular, so I can't wait to get in another calibration after about 200 hours and see how much better it is, I already am so satified and can't believe the picture can get any better, but I'll try. I ahve realized from all the blogs and research that it will take 2-3 calibrations and tweeks over the first few months before everything settles in and I can just watch, so I will be clocking the hours and will re-calibrate after 100 and then after 200.
Thanks!

Howdy,

To answer your question, I always run plasma TVs for at least 100 hours before calibrating and posting picture settings. In the case of the VT30 I was advised (by a member of highdefjunkies.com, in fact) that 150 hours was the point at which the panel "stabilized." I ended up performing the calibrations above at the hour points mentioned in the subject line of this reply.

Plasmas definitely change in their picture characteristics during their initial hundred or so hours of "on" time. Often, as was the case of the VT30 and the Samsung PND8000 we tested, black levels improve from their initial levels. As a reviewer on deadline I can't wait forever for the image to stabilize, so I follow the "at least 100 hours" rule.

I also don't use break-in slides or other methods described elsewhere. For my break-in I usually just set the TV to a relatively bright picture mode (default Custom in the VT30's case), tune to a full-frame TV channel that stays on the air overnight, and leave it on (24/7) for a few days.

Hope this helps,

David

I've had my 55vt30 for about a week now. I'm pretty much done running the 100+ hours (170) prep for calibration, using the settings above. I'm curious why some options are grayed out, in particular, motion smoother? Can it be enabled?

Thanks