Quote Originally Posted by hershon
I've had my Mitsubishi 48" HD ready widescreen TV for about a month (I get my HD broadcasts via Time Warner Cable), I'm pretty sure it's a CRT and as of now, I'm more than happy with it. The settings as far as I know were the factory settings which the place that sold it & installed it for me, checked out, and as I said I'm more than happy with the picture. Given that, are you saying that after a while the picture will deteriorate or settings change or what have you and you will therefore need someone to reset (calibrate) the TV. If you don't mind clarifying this for a total beginner, I'd appreciate it. Thanks
First thing's first, do you have a test DVD like the Sound & Vision Home Theater Setup disc, or Digital Video Essentials, or Avia? If not, buy that first and make the adjustments to your TV's settings. The improvement with just that will be very noticeable.

The calibration has nothing to do with the settings changing -- it has to do with the fact that a TV's factory settings are almost always incorrect by default. The factory default settings typically bump up the brightness and the sharpness way too high. The test DVDs provide tutorials and color filters so that an average user can do the adjustments and improve their picture quality. When I used the test DVDs with my TV, the improvement was very obvious. These test DVDs also provide audio tests, which I strongly suggest that you do with a SPL meter.

An ISF calibration like what BillB describes is more advanced because it requires more precise adjustments that require access to the service menus (which are off-limits to consumers). They typically cost at least $500, and their effectiveness depends on how the TV is set at the factory. The factory settings are almost never set to reference levels, although some companies deviate from these references more than others. The test DVD will get you closer to those reference levels, and the ISF calibration will get you closer still.