HD grading monitor shortlist

[Mario Rubertis]

Walter,
Would you think a Matrox MXO2(with their calibration tools) and a 500$ HDMI monitor would be a valuable tool to some of us?
You mention that “Even our professional plasma displays have floating white points so they are not “true broadcast displays.” They have to be manually calibrated almost weekly to keep them close.”
Would you not agree that even though you may have to “calibrate on a weekly” basis, if the MXO2 calibration utility does turn your HDMI monitor in to a calibrated monitor, those of us trying to achieve a look, or grade could benefit from a cost effective solution such as MXO2 + HDMI monitor, if they are on a budget and can’t afford a 10K “Color Grading Monitor”?
Wouldn’t that combo be better than no calibration at all to a monitor?
You even elude to a way of making FCP show blue only to help calibrate a monitor, meaning that Blue Only is crucial to the calibration procedure.
“You can create a Blue Only display from FCP if you really want.”
Matrox is the only one I can find that offers this in their calibration utility, so it must be better than a utility that does not offer a Blue Only Option, would you agree?

I wasn`t saying buy an HDMI monitor and a mini, as it can replace a 10K monitor. I’m merely saying that you can feel confident with that combo when wanting to ensure proper colors and make adjustments to those colors? Would you agree that Matrox solution is acceptable for a big majority of editors here?

I agree that top tier Colorist such as yourself charge quite handsomely for your services, and it’s justified. I’m sure you have the experience and respect of the industry for a very difficult job, but not all of us are playing at such a high level making feature films etc…

But there are those of us that want to ensure that what we see is what we are delivering and I honestly believe my MXO2 solution provides that security..

Just trying to balance out the perspective.

Catalin, I hope this gives you a complete picture

An Artist At Heart.
Life is made of moments…

[Catalin Brylla]

Thanks for all the feedback. Maurice, I agree with you, but I think without a proper standard, there would be colour anarchy.

I have bought the MXO2 LE and the new Panasonic TH-42PF20E (professional Plasma). Grade 1 monitor will follow in a couple of months. Will report back about the setup soon.

Catalin Brylla
Filmmaker – Editor – Lecturer
http://www.catalinbrylla.com
Mobile: 07789004745
Skype: cbrylla

[Jono Hill]

Hi,

I’m looking for a similar set up but I’m down in Australia and having difficulty pinning down what the model numbers are on the Panasonics. I’m trying to compare specs but it’s all very consumer based info.

If anyone has any knowledge or can take a look at these specs it would be appreciated. I’m sure I’m not the only one trying to work this out.

Was thinking about this one
TH-P46U20A 46″ https://panasonic.com.au/products/det…?objectID=5576

here’s the full list

https://www.panasonic.com.au/products/category.cfm?objectID=46

Thanks

[Jono Hill]

Hi,

I’m looking for a similar set up but I’m down in Australia and having difficulty pinning down what the model numbers are on the Panasonics. I’m trying to compare specs but it’s all very consumer based info.

If anyone has any knowledge or can take a look at these specs it would be appreciated. I’m sure I’m not the only one trying to work this out.

These are the models available here, I’m keen to find something that’s 1080

https://www.panasonic.com.au/products/category.cfm?objectID=46

[Nicholas Natteau]

Hi Walter,

Just a quick question for you. I’m trying to decide between getting the FSI 1770W and its bigger brother the LM2450W. I see that the 2450W is physically bigger. But what about the extra contrast ratio: 1100 vs 900.

Aside size and more contrast ratio, what else is better about the LM2450 than the 1770W?

Is the 1770W big enough for doing critical evaluation and is its 900:1 constrast ratio enough as well for editing? I’m leaning towards the 1770W right now because of its portability factor…light enough and small enough for field work and hopefully editing in the studio as well. One size fits all so to speak.

Thanks very much in advance,

– Nick

[Keith Dobie]

This was a very helpful thread! I wanted to see how it turned out, so I contacted Catalin Brylla (she made the original post) and asked how her plasma solution was working out. She kindly wrote back and gave me permission to post it here:

I am quite happy with the solution. I went with the TH-42PF20, which is their new model with HDMI in. I am using the Matrox MXO2 LE and connect the monitor via HDMI (the SDI module from Panasonic was too expensive). Calibration was very easy via the software GUI. I have onlined a few times with it (I am more an offline editor), so I cannot tell about permanent use, but the colours are still very crisp. There is a bit of jitter on the screen, but I guess that is the plasma (it is very minimal). The monitor is bloody heavy, so make sure you have a steady desk. Other than that, no problems. I think it is the best solution for a mid-budget setup.

Are you running Avid or Final Cut? In any case, I am still using the meters (Y waveform, RGP parade, vectorscope) to monitor and judge the signal, as I am not sure how accurate the MXO2 software calibrator is. People recommend to have a professional calibrating it. Somewhere on the net, I think you can even get calibration profiles for Panasonic models (usually in forums), so might be worth checking those.

Let me know if there is anything else you want to know. Please feel free to share this info on the CC thread.

Catalin

Thanks to Catalin for that. I just upgraded camera to HD. Will be editing with a Mac Pro, Matrox MXO2 Mini and a 42″ Panasonic plasma as broadcast monitor. (Also considered 24″ Dell monitor with HDMI) Just trying to figure out which Panasonic model would be best. (Waiting to hear back from them) They have quite a lineup of consumer and Pro plasmas. The top end consumer models and the Pro Plasmas with 1920×1080 seem to be about $1,000 less than the entry level FSI monitors (Canadian pricing). The Pro Plasmas have a lot of features used in digital signage. Can’t tell if they use better or different panels than the top consumer ones. So if it would do the job for now, would consider getting an entry level 42″ Panasonic consumer model (1024×768) and then upgrade to the Grade 1 monitor later. I’m doing events, freelance news, and corporate projects.

Any thoughts?

Keith