Why Professional Calibration Beats Out-of-the-Box Settings for TVs and Projectors
When you unbox a brand-new TV or projector, the excitement is real. But what many people don’t realise is that the “default” or “out-of-the-box” settings are rarely designed for the best picture quality in a home cinema or living room. Instead, they’re tuned to look bright and eye-catching on a showroom floor—or to conserve energy with dimmed brightness and power-saving modes—often at the expense of accuracy.
This is where professional calibration comes in. Whether you own a high-end television or a projector, calibration ensures your display is performing at its absolute best, delivering images exactly as the filmmaker intended.
Out-of-the-Box Settings: Made for Showrooms and Energy Saving, Not Homes
Manufacturers configure TVs and projectors either to stand out under harsh retail lighting or to meet energy efficiency targets. This means exaggerated colours, overly bright or overly dim images, and settings that might tick boxes in a store or for regulations, but don’t look natural at home. Common issues include:
Oversaturated colours (skin tones look too red or orange)
Crushed blacks (loss of shadow detail)
Washed-out whites (highlights lacking detail)
Unstable brightness from energy-saving or dynamic modes
Inaccurate motion handling
These factory defaults might grab attention in a shop or save power on paper, but they don’t give you the best at-home experience.
Filmmaker Mode: A Step in the Right Direction
In recent years, many TVs and some projectors have introduced Filmmaker Mode (and similar “Cinema” presets). These modes automatically switch off unnecessary processing, reduce motion smoothing, and target more accurate colour reproduction. For most people, Filmmaker Mode is a much better starting point than Standard, Vivid, or Eco modes.
However, while it’s closer to the correct look, it’s still a one-size-fits-all preset. It doesn’t account for differences in your specific display, your screen size, or the unique lighting conditions in your room. This is why even with Filmmaker Mode, a professional calibration still makes a noticeable difference.
What Professional Calibration Delivers
A professional calibration uses specialised equipment to measure and adjust your TV or projector’s performance to industry standards, correcting the gamma, white balance and colour management system. The result? A picture that’s accurate, balanced, and perfectly suited to your room. Benefits include:
🎨 True-to-life colours – natural skin tones, accurate primaries, and subtle shades
🌑 Improved contrast – deeper blacks and more visible shadow detail
💡 Balanced brightness – tuned for your room’s lighting conditions
🎥 Cinematic accuracy – movies and shows look exactly as the director intended
Calibration takes your display from “good enough” to “reference quality.”
Why It’s Worth It
Your TV or projector is often the centrepiece of your home entertainment setup. If you’ve invested in quality equipment, it deserves to be set up properly. Without calibration, you’re only seeing part of its potential. Professional calibration maximises performance, protects your investment, and enhances every viewing—whether it’s a blockbuster film, sports event, or gaming session.
Bring Out the Best in Your Display
If you want your TV or projector to perform at its peak, professional calibration is essential. At Sonyx AV, I specialise in fine-tuning displays so that you experience movies, shows, and games exactly as they were meant to be seen.