Colors and Ideal Settings

Fine-tuning for the optimal picture, just like they see in the film studio: In this chapter, we'll show you how good the Sony KDL-52 V 5500's colors and presets really are, and how to get the best out of the TV's picture.

Color Fidelity:

Many of today's flat-panel TVs exaggerate colors and scream out for the buyer's attention in the showroom with garishly adjusted pictures. Some of this Sony's eight picture modes also do some exaggerating, but luckily the "Cinema" mode confines itself to a natural-looking color temperature and impresses with neutral primary and secondary colors; thanks to the decent contrast ratio, the colors hardly weaken in darker scenes.

When decoding digital HDTV signals, the Sony largely conforms to the requirements of the ITU-BT 709 standard. Here, the slight deviations in the depiction of primary and secondary colors only become apparent with the help of relevant test patterns and RGB filters.

In an HDTV broadcast of a soccer game, the Sony displays the grass in fine yellow, green, and golden-brown shades, allowing you to pick out which areas of the field are fresh and which have been trodden down - the TV never shows unnatural or overly intense green tones. The skin tones of the players and referee are also correct, so you'll be able to see the color difference between hot-headed rage and pale composure in their faces. The Sony differentiates fine shades excellently and maintains a fine balance between red and yellow tones, making neither the lips too pink nor the skin monotone.

These true-to-life colors come down to two things: That the Sony's color space is only very slightly extended and, in the "Warm 2" color-temperature preset, that the 6,500 Kelvin color temperature remains constant over nearly all grayscales. The display only deviates toward a slightly cooler picture in very dark luminance levels (below ten percent). This is the only significant visible variation from the ideal values in the otherwise-exemplary CIE diagram.

The CIE diagram indicates accurate color reproduction, with only the darkest grayscales showing a slight blue tint. The black triangle represents the ideal values (the EBU color gamut), while the white triangle represents the color gamut of the test device. The white spots in the center of the image give the color coordinates of various grayscales. Ideally, you should see only one spot - this would mean that all grayscales appear with the same color impression. The crosshair marks the D65 white point (color temperature: 6,500 Kelvin).

Calibration:
Many of the Sony's total of eight picture modes exhibit a blue tint, with some over-sharpening and overly striking colors. The "Cinema" mode provides a natural-looking color temperature and neutral primary and secondary colors. The user has to select the correct picture mode and the backlight brightness separately for each input and for the TV tuner; the remote control's "Scene" button gives the user fast-track access to the relevant settings.

Ideal Settings

We achieved an optimal Blu-ray HDTV movie picture using the settings listed below. Do note, however, that manufacturing variations, differences between playback devices, and HDMI-transmission variables may make slight changes to these settings necessary.

Picture Mode: Cinema (access via the "Scene" button)

Screen Format: Wide

Display Area: Full Pixel

Backlight: 6

Contrast: 86

Brightness: 52

Color: 58

Sharpness: 3

Noise Reduction: Off

MPEG Noise Reduction: Off

Film Mode: Auto 1

Black Corrector: Off

Adv. Contrast Enhancer: Off

Gamma: Leave at the standard value

Auto Light Limiter: Off

Live Color: Off

White Balance: Leave at the standard values