Need help with HDR on my tv

BloodshotX · Dec 24, 2021

Hello,
I was looking online how to best set up HDR on my Samsung tv but couldn't really find anything. Until i found the support page for HDR on Microsoft and now it clicks and i looks like i watched HDR "wrong" for an entire year....

Microsoft somewhere in their support page tells something about dynamic contrast, contrast enhancer ect, I never really changed the standard setting because with SDR it basically did very little to nothing if it was on or off.

To make a long story short, Samsung out of the box turns on something called "contrast enhancer" on SDR but also HDR. But the description on the left side leads me to believe that i need to turn it off for HDR and i just want a confirmation if i'm on the correct path.

The description on my tv reads as follows

Am i correct to assume that this setting basically "compresses" HDR into SDR if i turn this on? I can remember that the max backlight setting was way to bright almost looking like an SDR image put on max backlight (i.e. very uncomfortable for the eyes)

Asking because i want to play my series X and my ps5 at their best capacity

Ferrs · Dec 24, 2021

Preventing differences between bright and dark areas sounds like defeating the purpose of HDR. I don't have a Samsung TV but I wouldn't turn all of that automatic contrast shit off for HDR. HDR metadata should be the one controlling that.

Seganomics · Dec 24, 2021

You should have backlight set to max or very near it otherwise you are already limiting the expanded range that HDR gives you.
If the overall image is too bright with HDR on then the content you are displaying likely has bad implementation, or your TV simply isn't great at 'doing' HDR, and I would suggest switching over to SDR.

gdt · Dec 24, 2021

What TV do you have? Some "hdr" TV's can't really do hdr.

BloodshotX · Dec 24, 2021

gdt said:
What TV do you have? Some "hdr" TV's can't really do hdr.

Its the q70r, got it quite a while. But just as with video games i discover new settings way later

Lowrys · Dec 24, 2021

BloodshotX said:
Its the q70r, got it quite a while. But just as with video games i discover new settings way later

I have a Samsung. You need to turn that off. You basically want to have all those extra things turned off except local dimming, of course.

Samsungs have also had undefeatable tone mapping for a while, but you can't do anything about that.

Here's what Vincent from HDTV test recommends for HDR on the QXT models, which are a bit for recent than yours. But the will still help:

Picture
General
Ecosolution
Ambient light detection off
Motion lighting off
Energy saving off

Game mode settings
Game mode on
Dynamic black equalizer 0
Game motion plus off

HDMI black level
Low

Picture settings
Expert settings
Sharpness 0
Colour 25
Tint 0
Local dimming high
Contrast enhancer off
Colour tone warm 2
Gamma st2084 to 3
Shadow detail 0
Colour space settings auto

The Q70R has about 800 nits peak brightness, so in the Xbox HDR calibration tool you want to click all the way to the left for the dark bit, and then exactly 10 clicks to the right for the other two parts. Don't try to click until the eye disappears - if your Samsung has tone mapping it won't ever really disappear. But 10 clicks corresponds to 800 nits, which is what you want.

BloodshotX · Dec 24, 2021

Lowrys said:
I have a Samsung. You need to turn that off. You basically want to have all those extra things turned off except local dimming, of course.

Samsungs have also had undefeatable tone mapping for a while, but you can't do anything about that.

Here's what Vincent from HDTV test recommends for HDR on the QXT models, which are a bit for recent than yours. But the will still help:

The Q70R has about 800 nits peak brightness, so in the Xbox HDR calibration tool you want to click all the way to the left for the dark bit, and then exactly 10 clicks to the right for the other two parts. Don't try to click until the eye disappears - if your Samsung has tone mapping it won't ever really disappear. But 10 clicks corresponds to 800 nits, which is what you want.

Ah thanks! I thinkered a bit with a hdr youtube video of ac odyssey and turned off the contrast enhancer. But wow, doing only that makes the whites more white but it doesnt brighten the entire image. Witch it does do with contrast enhancer on. Weird that samsung default it to on even with hdr. Whats the recommanded setting in sdr. Bc with sdr you barely see a difference between on and off

Theorry · Dec 24, 2021

Lowrys said:
I have a Samsung. You need to turn that off. You basically want to have all those extra things turned off except local dimming, of course.

Samsungs have also had undefeatable tone mapping for a while, but you can't do anything about that.

Here's what Vincent from HDTV test recommends for HDR on the QXT models, which are a bit for recent than yours. But the will still help:

The Q70R has about 800 nits peak brightness, so in the Xbox HDR calibration tool you want to click all the way to the left for the dark bit, and then exactly 10 clicks to the right for the other two parts. Don't try to click until the eye disappears - if your Samsung has tone mapping it won't ever really disappear. But 10 clicks corresponds to 800 nits, which is what you want.

you can also just hit both triggers and shoulder buttons at the same time in there. At the right top its shows the nits number.

Lowrys · Dec 24, 2021

Theorry said:
you can also just hit both triggers and shoulder buttons at the same time in there. At the right top its shows the nits number.

I did not know this! Thank you, great info.

Lowrys · Dec 24, 2021

BloodshotX said:
Whats the recommanded setting in sdr. Bc with sdr you barely see a difference between on and off

He recommends it off in SDR too. TVs out of the box are often set up for massive saturation, blown out highlights and crushed blacks. All to make the image "pop". If that's the picture people like, sure, have them on. But for a more accurate picture turn them off.

BloodshotX · Dec 25, 2021

Thanks to everyone for the advice, my picture is looking much much better, typically me for getting the best picture setting years after i got the tv xD

BloodshotX · Dec 25, 2021

Lowrys said:
He recommends it off in SDR too. TVs out of the box are often set up for massive saturation, blown out highlights and crushed blacks. All to make the image "pop". If that's the picture people like, sure, have them on. But for a more accurate picture turn them off.

Any idea what to do with the HDR adjust settings? Hdtv test says step 15 with 1 and 2. But ether sony changed the setting after that video or im doing something wrong bc the sun only disapears with step 30 of the total 31 steps although my tv is rated 1000 nits (samsung q70r). Sadly tonemapping cannot be disabled with the R series from 2019.

Also is it just me or is the PS5 menu noticably dimmer in HDR then in SDR? In ratchet everything is bright and pops but the ps5 menu seems off for some reason.

Lowrys · Dec 25, 2021

BloodshotX said:
Any idea what to do with the HDR adjust settings? Hdtv test says step 15 with 1 and 2. But ether sony changed the setting after that video or im doing something wrong bc the sun only disapears with step 30 of the total 31 steps although my tv is rated 1000 nits (samsung q70r). Sadly tonemapping cannot be disabled with the R series from 2019.

The undefeatable tone mapping on your Samsung is why the sun won't disappear properly. It's the same issue as on the Xbox tool.

In the PS5 HDR tool, 30 clicks corresponds to just over 8.5k nits, and 31 is 10k nits lol.

In the PS5 HDR calibration tool, you should set the black level at the minimum (all the way to the left).

For the two brightness settings, you want either 13 or 14 clicks to the right from minimum. Those correspond to 732 and 853 respectively, and your TV seems to fall in the middle. Both should be the same: 13 for both or 14 for both.

Edit:

Oh and make sure your black level setting is matched in the TV and consoles. Limited + low on PS5. Same equivalent on Xbox.

BloodshotX · Dec 25, 2021

Lowrys said:
The undefeatable tone mapping on your Samsung is why the sun won't disappear properly. It's the same issue as on the Xbox tool.

In the PS5 HDR tool, 30 clicks corresponds to just over 8.5k nits, and 31 is 10k nits lol.

In the PS5 HDR calibration tool, you should set the black level at the minimum (all the way to the left).

For the two brightness settings, you want either 13 or 14 clicks to the right from minimum. Those correspond to 732 and 853 respectively, and your TV seems to fall in the middle. Both should be the same: 13 for both or 14 for both.

Edit:

Oh and make sure your black level setting is matched in the TV and consoles. Limited + low on PS5. Same equivalent on Xbox.

Ah, So thats why XD. Yea got this tv in 2019 and it has permanent tonemapping, but im still happy with it and dont want to replace it. Thanks for the info tho