You Asked: Blu-ray picture fix, lossy vs. lossless, and AI self-calibration

1 week ago

On today’s You Asked: Can streaming and cablegram signals look amended than 4K Blu-ray discs? When is nan 65-inch TCL QM8 reappraisal coming out? Which is amended connected Apple aliases Amazon Music: lossless aliases Dolby Atmos? And tin nan powerfulness of AI beryllium utilized to create a self-calibrating TV?

A 4K Blu-ray image fix?

Light filters done woody bleachers successful The Greatest Showman connected a Sony A95L QD-OLED.

Ed O’Brien writes: I’m not getting nan astir retired of watching movies connected my Sony A95L pinch a Panasonic DP-UB820 4K Blu-ray player. With cablegram aliases streaming, I americium blown distant by nan image quality, while 4K Blu-rays conscionable look “meh.” I moreover tried nonstop comparisons pinch titles for illustration The Fugitive and The Flash, and nan cablegram and streaming versions person overmuch amended ocular quality. Should I beryllium utilizing definite TV aliases subordinate settings erstwhile watching a 4K Blu-ray? Any thief would beryllium overmuch appreciated.

This is nan first clip I’ve heard anyone mention that nan image they get from their cablegram aliases streaming work looks amended than nan 4K Blu-ray. But I tin ideate a batch of different folks will besides beryllium funny astir this.

I person 2 theories astir why nan image value connected nan cablegram aliases streaming type whitethorn look superior to your 4K Blu-ray.

But first, see this: The 4K Blu-ray disc has a higher spot complaint and spot extent than conscionable astir immoderate streaming service. (Sony’s Bravia Core offers thing very close.) That higher spot complaint and spot extent helps pinch much subtle ocular value aspects for illustration reduced colour banding and different compression artifacts. However, astir folks prime up connected opposition and colour much readily than other, much subtle cues.

Theory No. 1: You whitethorn simply for illustration nan look of SDR much than HDR. SDR has a little move range, which intends that nan image tends to beryllium much uniformly bright. If you person nan brightness mounting connected your Sony A95L group reasonably high, nan full SDR image will beryllium a spot brighter and possibly much vivid, too.

If you aren’t subscribed to nan apical tier of your streaming work (like is nan lawsuit for Netflix, Max, aliases Amazon Prime), you whitethorn beryllium getting 4K, but not HDR. And you could beryllium watching successful SDR and uncovering that image to beryllium much enjoyable. HDR doesn’t sound everyone’s socks off, and depending connected really good nan HDR was mastered, it whitethorn not beryllium each that awesome anyway. Folks often kick HDR is excessively dark, usually because they aren’t watching it successful a pitch-black room and they for illustration brighter pictures.

Theory No. 2: You mightiness not beryllium getting HDR connected your Sony A95L. It could beryllium that you are, successful fact, watching successful HDR connected those streaming services aliases — little apt — cablegram box, but you haven’t changed a mounting successful your Sony TV that unlocks HDR for nan HDMI input that you person your Panasonic Blu-ray subordinate plugged into.

On a Sony TV, spell into nan Settings menu and prime Channels and Inputs > External Inputs > HDMI Signal Format. From there, place nan HDMI larboard your 4K Blu-ray subordinate is plugged into and prime 1 of nan Enhanced options. If you don’t alteration this setting, you won’t get HDR from your disc player.

Your TV should person told you this was nan case, but it only does that once. If you click retired of it, past your Blu-ray subordinate conscionable remains connected cruise control, delivering nan SDR version.

There is besides a anticipation that a mounting wrong nan Panasonic 4K subordinate needs to beryllium adjusted — whether aliases not you person nan Enhanced format mounting turned connected for nan Sony TV.

TV reviews coming up

Brad Haggerty writes: When will you reappraisal nan 65-inch TCL QM8?

I must admit that I’m prioritizing 3 TVs complete nan 65-inch QM8 correct now, and for a fewer reasons. One: I reviewed nan monstrous 115-inch QM851G already, though I understand that reappraisal is not an denotation connected really nan modular QM8 — nan QM851G — will perform, which is why I will beryllium doing that reappraisal soon.”

The different reason: The Panasonic TVs person arrived and we haven’t seen those present successful 10 years, truthful immoderate urgency is deserved. (Also, not only did I get a Samsung QN90D, but it’s a monolithic 98-inch type that’s taking up a ton of abstraction and I request to get it retired of here).

The adjacent reappraisal will beryllium nan Panasonic W95A, followed by nan Samsung QN90D, nan Panasonic Z95A, and nan TCL QM8.

At a loss: Lossless aliases Atmos?

Jonathan Morales writes: What is your return connected Ultra HD/lossless audio versus. Dolby Atmos for euphony services specified arsenic Amazon Music aliases Apple Music? I understand that lossless audio has a higher spot rate, and that Dolby Atmos is lossy by quality digitally, but pinch much and much euphony being released mixed pinch Atmos successful mind, is nan quality negligible? I person gone backmost and distant listening to nan differences aggregate times and can’t look to dress up my mind.

First, a speedy clarification: While it is existent that Dolby Atmos connected Apple Music and Amazon Prime Music intends a lossy euphony stream, it is not existent that Dolby Atmos is, by its nature, lossy — or, not lossless. Dolby Atmos tin beryllium delivered lossless done Dolby True HD — nan Atmos spatial audio coding doesn’t person thing to do pinch nan awesome compression.

However, arsenic you pointed out, connected Apple Music aliases Amazon Prime Music, you tin perceive successful either Dolby Atmos Music, aliases successful lossless aliases high-res lossless. I deliberation nan value of nan awesome itself — whether it is compressed aliases not — is nan slightest important facet erstwhile it comes to really vastly different nan two-channel type sounds compared to nan Dolby Atmos version.

The Dolby Atmos operation you get for a opus tin beryllium outstanding aliases it tin sound for illustration basking garbage. It really depends connected who did nan operation and what choices they made during nan mixing process.

Sometimes nan Atmos type has buried vocals aliases a bunch of reverb was put connected nan vocal. Horns whitethorn beryllium mixed to nan back, which tin sound awesome aliases unspeakable depending connected your system. There’s already a statement arsenic to whether nan quality betwixt a high-quality MP3 versus a lossless codec tin beryllium heard by astir folks. That statement notwithstanding, erstwhile they make euphony successful Atmos, it’s nan Wild West: Sometimes it’s awesome and sometimes it’s downright terrible.

AI calibration coming to TVs?

A man measures colour equilibrium connected a Sony X95L mini-LED.

Cole writes: With nan emergence successful AI capabilities, do you deliberation location will ever beryllium an AI characteristic added to TVs that could execute a calibration? Maybe not to nan level of a master calibrator, but a basal calibration?

First, let’s commencement by acknowledging that Samsung has a Smart Calibration app that lets you usage a Samsung Galaxy telephone aliases an iPhone to execute a basal and a much precocious calibration. And while I’ve not conducted a trial connected really good Samsung’s master calibration holds up to a calibration performed by an existent professional, I perceive it does a beautiful respectable job.

On nan much precocious level, immoderate TVs person Calman AutoCal built in. This is thing a master aliases precocious location personification mightiness use, but it automates a bunch of nan much manual activity progressive successful calibration, namely making adjustments and past remeasuring. AI does person nan imaginable to make calibration much accessible to consumers, but TV manufacturers and package developers would person to get connected board.

Here’s really I deliberation thing for illustration AI self-calibration mightiness work.

It’s not apt that nan package would get built into nan TV — this seems for illustration thing to offload. Something for illustration Calman calibration package would request to tally successful nan unreality and, nary matter what, nan personification is going to request a metre — for illustration nan colorimeter we use. Something not excessively expensive, but meticulous capable to supply a value calibration suitable for anyone but nan astir ardent professionals.

You’d request to get nan TV to stitchery nan measurement information from nan colorimeter aliases spectro, and nonstop that information backmost to nan cloud-based calibration software. That programme would analyse nan data, nonstop image settings adjustments to nan TV, and past retest. And truthful on.

Honestly, I deliberation that could beryllium done now and without AI. Where I deliberation precocious AI — for illustration ChatGPT aliases Bard — would travel in: Asking nan personification a bid of questions astir their needs and wants.

The quality constituent progressive successful calibration is nan calibrator knowing really nan TV needs to beryllium group up based connected nan customer’s needs and wants. AI would beryllium needed for that discretion. AI would besides beryllium required for an ongoing feedback loop. For example, AI could ask: Here’s really that’s going to look — do you for illustration it? What would you want to beryllium different? AI could past construe and instrumentality it.

I deliberation it tin beryllium done … today. But it would require practice by respective entities to make it a reality. Will we spot that happen? Not for a mates of years astatine best. I americium not judge nan request is awesome enough. It’s difficult capable arsenic it is to get nan overwhelming mostly of caller TV owners to set nan image mode preset aliases move disconnected eco mode. It’s difficult to spot a large return connected finance for what I deliberation would beryllium a sizable project.