I have been trying to calibrate my new Asus 21.5" VE228 to match my VW226H but this hasn't been easy. How good is the Spyder 3 Pro? From what I have read it does a good job and can help make two different monitors calibrate really close to looking the same.
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Calibrating dual monitors.
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ive read that the X-Rite Eye One Display 2 is better than the Spyder 3. Because they are two seperate models, it might be hard to make them look the same. Even though the dE and luminance and white point are the same, the color output might look different because of different panels.
The Spyder3 Pro?
Wow that thing looks nice but 200$ is a biet more then i want to spend. The Spyder3 Pro is about 130$. I am not trying to work a miracle but would like to get them closer to matching. Not to mention the color always looked to blue on my VW266H.
The problem will be that most video cards have a single LUT. You can do a "calibration" of both screens so that the white point, black point, and colour temperature are the same but you cannot do a full curve profile and correction through the video card and get them both the same.
Generally workstation class cards (like Quadros) are required for multi-LUT capability so that you can load each monitor's correction curve into the video card. The other way to do it is get hardware LUT displays which do the correction in the display. (of course that's not your scenario)
Generally workstation class cards (like Quadros) are required for multi-LUT capability so that you can load each monitor's correction curve into the video card. The other way to do it is get hardware LUT displays which do the correction in the display. (of course that's not your scenario)
ICM profiles wont adjust that? I have read some users have TN panels and IPS panels that have matched up fairly close. Im not looking for a miracle but anything that can get htem closer. They are way off at the moment.
My point is that video cards can only apply one LUT correction and it will apply it to both outputs. You cannot put one ICM on one DVI and another on the other so that both monitors are individually corrected (unless you get a Quadro).
Really? Win7 gave me that option no problem. I had no problem applying a different ICM to each monitor. I guess I am confused.
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1004&message=36168854
The problem isn't the OS, it's the video card. If you drive each monitor with a discrete card then it would be possible to individually correct each display. Most multi-output GPUs have one LUT that is shared for all outputs (unless of course this has changed in recent GPU releases - I've never read anything about it). When you apply a correction all of the outputs on the same card will change in the same way.
On a related note - I didn't think that loading an ICM profile into Win7 actually does any correction - it just sets the "profile" for that device which will be used by any colour-aware applications like Photoshop. The OS desktop is not colorspace aware. You need to use a "gamma loader" that comes with your profiling software to load the correction into the GPU LUT.
I've had my 2490 (hardware LUT) display since right around the time I went from XP -> Vista so I did not need any gamma loaders for Vista or 7. I just recently built a second Win7 rig in the house which I used Monaco EZColor to calibrate/profile and I did not observe any change in the display when associating the monitor's ICM in Win7. I had to allow MonacoGamma (comes with EZColor) to run at startup which loads the ICM and then loads a corrective map into the GPU's LUT. This is where the single-LUT limitation of most gamer/consumer GPUs will come into play since a distinct LUT cannot be loaded per-display.
I just did a quick google on the topic I was discussing, just in case I wasn't clear. If consumer/gaming cards currently offered by AMD or NV are multi-LUT, it's a recent development and is news to me.
This link has links to some other threads about the issue. Adobe Photoshop forums still say to look at cards like "Matrox" if you need dual LUT in one card. I have also not seen a wealth of articles cheering "AMD 6xxx cards are now dual LUT!", just lots of 'me too' posts looking for multi-LUT cards.
http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showtopic=157911
This link has links to some other threads about the issue. Adobe Photoshop forums still say to look at cards like "Matrox" if you need dual LUT in one card. I have also not seen a wealth of articles cheering "AMD 6xxx cards are now dual LUT!", just lots of 'me too' posts looking for multi-LUT cards.
http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showtopic=157911
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So does this mean something like the Spyder3 would work ok in my situation? I know for a fact I can adjust color on each monitor with no problem and also load sepearate calibration files. Wasn't 100% sure if the Spyder3 Pro would do what I was wanting. Basically get the monitors to look closer together. Thanks for the links!
Man, I don't know. As I said (actually typoed, now fixed - oops) if gamer grade video cards were now multi-LUT it's news to me (and google). Without multi-LUT, you cannot fully correct both displays. I'm not sure what CCC may offer as far as the tint sliders and whatnot, but that's not full LUT functionality that would be used by software like what accompanies the Spyder3. If anyone has evidence that gamer-grade cards are now multi-LUT, please speak up. Currently threads in photography forums still point people to NV Quadro, Matrox or AMD FirePro for multi-LUT functionality.
Also, as I mentioned, associating a profile with a display is not the same as applying a correction visible to non-colour managed applications (like the OS desktop). You can tell Windows that a given profile goes with a given device, but that doesn't mean windows loads a LUT correction.
You would definitely be able to use the functionality of a Spyder (or similar) system to set the monitor controls for whitepoint and colour temperature. Then your displays would show the same shade of white and be the same brightness. The issue is that shades of grey will wander from true grey in different ways on each display. R, G and B can have different (incorrect) gamma responses etc... With a full LUT correction it won't be "correct". Even if you have one LUT, you can set the colour temp and luminosity of each display, and then choose one to be LUT corrected to 100% correct and let the other be incorrect. A lot of people choose to have one display which holds the photo being worked on while the incorrect display holds tool palettes, email, file folders etc... I assume you're trying to do surround or something so that won't work out the way you want.
That actually makes sense to me now. Explains the cost difference wtih the FireGL and Quadros if they are multi LUT right? I guess If I can get one monitor adjusted perfect with the Spyder I can use CCC on teh other monitor to match ti up the best I can. Both monitors are really so far off I have nothing to go on. If I get can one right maybe that will help.
Probably what I will get. The Elite can do brightness also for matching up dual displays so thats tempting as well. I guess this is one of those thigns you buy once and keep for many years.
Well, a real test app is the best way to tell, I guess. Is there a link to this tool? Others may wish to use it as well. I was googling around the datacolor and their forums are full of the same thing about GPUs being single LUT over and over...
If the 6970 is true dual LUT that's cool - never seen it mentioned before. This would certainly push masses of people who were anywhere near middle ground over the fence to the red team if they run more than one display (once they understand what the issue is, of course) assuming that NV hasn't started doing dual LUT too. I'd like to use the tool on my new GTX560Ti just for kicks. Do you need to have two displays hooked up to do the test? (i.e. is it visual, like turning screens a tint one at a time? or does it just look at registers in the GPU and report back?)
If the 6970 is true dual LUT that's cool - never seen it mentioned before. This would certainly push masses of people who were anywhere near middle ground over the fence to the red team if they run more than one display (once they understand what the issue is, of course) assuming that NV hasn't started doing dual LUT too. I'd like to use the tool on my new GTX560Ti just for kicks. Do you need to have two displays hooked up to do the test? (i.e. is it visual, like turning screens a tint one at a time? or does it just look at registers in the GPU and report back?)
I wonder if the eyefinity stuff had anything to do with them going Dual LUT? So I picked up a Spyder3 Pro at Frys. Go them to match B&H Photo's price of $128.88. I just calibrated my buddys Asus that is identical to mine. Holy crap what a difference. I knew it was bad but going back and fourth between calibrated and not you can really see a huge difference. The blacks look amazing and whites are actually white now and not blue. I am very impressed! Now as long as I can calibrate both my monitors at home I will be happy. Using their test tool confirmed it was dual LUT so it should work. This thing is really worth the money. Calibration was easy and strait forward.