Colorimeter and Spectrophotometer Questions

[Lord of Pirates]

I was considering calibrating all of my displays sometime down the line and I've been looking into colorimeters and spectrophotometers. Does a spectrophotometer ever need to be calibrated? An i1 Pro sells used for a little more than an i1 Display Pro colorimeter so I was considering it if it never needs calibration, or even pairing it with a colorimeter if need be.

Any suggestions or info would be appreciated as I have pretty much no idea beyond basic reading on the subject, thanks in advance to anyone that helps .

[22point8]

I have an i1 Pro rev A (binuscan branded), and an i1 Pro rev D, they read within 0.2 dE of eachother. The rev A came with the matching white tile base an passed the i1 diagnostic it was made in 2002. I have an i1 display 2 (it deteriorated really fast), a DTP-94 (old, but because it has a glass filter it doesn't drift much over time), and I have a i1 display pro, the default plasma .ccss spectral correction for plasma is very accurate compared to profiling off the spectro.

The spectro is slow and can't read low luminance accurately, but the i1 display pro can read down to 0.003 cdm2 (Panasonic VT/ZT60 plasma black, for anything darker like a Pioneer Kuro the only way to read the true black level is a Klein which is about £5000).

What kind of monitors do you want to calibrate?

I have .ccss correction files for EBU phosphor PVM/BVM CRT and Samsung F4500/4900 plasma.

[Lord of Pirates]

LCD/LED TVs and monitors, anything I can calibrate as I see no reason not to if I get a meter(s). If I'm understanding correctly: spectrophotometers don't drift much (if at all) and a colorimeter's drift depends on the design but will still drift over time?

[22point8]

I'd go for the i1 display pro, the only 'troublesome' displays seem to be OLED and Quantum Dot (Sony Triluminous). If you can afford it get both, if you get the i1 Pro make sure it comes with the base/white tile with matching serial number. You wouldn't want to use just the spectro, its too slow, you would only use it to profile.

i1 Pro:
Measure Red, Green, Blue, White
Save file as 'reference'

i1 Display Pro:
Measure Red, Green, Blue, White
Use 'reference' meaure to create correction matrix

Now the i1 Display pro is as accurate as the i1 Pro, but faster and can read darker.

[Lord of Pirates]

I'd go for the i1 display pro, the only 'troublesome' displays seem to be OLED and Quantum Dot (Sony Triluminous). If you can afford it get both, if you get the i1 Pro make sure it comes with the base/white tile with matching serial number. You wouldn't want to use just the spectro, its too slow, you would only use it to profile.

i1 Pro:
Measure Red, Green, Blue, White
Save file as 'reference'

i1 Display Pro:
Measure Red, Green, Blue, White
Use 'reference' meaure to create correction matrix

Now the i1 Display pro is as accurate as the i1 Pro, but faster and can read darker.

You mean that it's worthwhile to get both if I can afford it, correct? I'd be buying an i1 Pro used and the i1 Display Pro new if so. Any recommendations on software or does i1Profiler support the i1 Pro? I was planning on using HCFR for my TVs. I want to avoid spending anything on software if possible. I also wanted to know if it mattered if I got a UV Cut or this? Sorry for the glut of questions, I want to make sure I know what I'm doing and that I don't mistakenly purchase something I shouldn't. Thanks for your help so far .

[22point8]

HCFR for TVs, Dispcalgui for computer monitors.

UVcut is an extra filter for photo papers it doesn't matter for display devices. You don't need an i1 Pro, but it is nice to have for the accuracy and newer display technologies like OLED and Quantum dot.

The i1 Display pro is extraordinarily good value for money ($150 or thereabouts), you can only do better by paying $1000s

A used i1 Pro is $200-$300, a new i1 Pro 2 is $1000, a JETI Specbos 1211 is $8800

Also the i1 Profiler software is pretty limited, and for the i1 Display pro you're better off not installing the X-rite driver, that way the PC uses the HUD driver and you can us the meter in whatever software you want.

Anyway heres some stuff for you to read:
http://www.avsforum.com/forum/139-displ ... -ebay.html

http://www.avsforum.com/forum/139-displ ... eters.html

[Lord of Pirates]

Thanks for the info and links. One last question before I let this thread fade into the ether: Do I need to worry about the stuff mentioned here on the dispcalGUI site or am I fine to calibrate without if a correction file isn't available? I'll go for just the i1 Display Pro first and pick up the i1 Pro down the line if I feel the need if I'm fine to calibrate without a correction file.

[22point8]

The meter comes with a set of correction files, if you install the X-rite profiler software it install the generic correction files called ESR files. Dispcalgui and HCFR can convert them to .ccss and you can probably find some online specific to your display.

[Lord of Pirates]

The meter comes with a set of correction files, if you install the X-rite profiler software it install the generic correction files called ESR files. Dispcalgui and HCFR can convert them to .ccss and you can probably find some online specific to your display.

I was able to find one for the display that will be arriving today but not my TVs or my current junk monitor. I presume the accuracy isn't quite as high using the generic correction files as it would be using the i1 Pro to create one or finding one for the specific display? I'm good as long as there won't be a major difference in accuracy using the generic ones when I couldn't find a specific correction file. Is once every three to four months an acceptable recalibration period?

I said it was the last question and then I have more .

[22point8]

Well something like a CRT or Plasma would take a long time drift once its had about 200 hours use, CCFL LCDs will lose brightness over time, LED edge/backlit displays probably don't drift.

[Lord of Pirates]

Well something like a CRT or Plasma would take a long time drift once its had about 200 hours use, CCFL LCDs will lose brightness over time, LED edge/backlit displays probably don't drift.

Alright, thanks again for all your help .