Proud Owner of a New Samsung UN65NU800! Some Questions...

[IntelliVolume]

It was a long time comin', but I am FINALLY the proud owner of a new 4K TV in the form of a Samsung UN65NU8000 we just purchased yesterday from Best Buy on an awesome sale. Couldn't pass up this opportunity to replace our long-in-the-tooth Sony SXRD rear projection set which has begun showing signs of the dreaded yellow staining...

While the TV will be delivered tomorrow and we wait for our cabinet builder to come and alter our entertainment center in order to fit the larger screen, I had a few pre-operating questions if anyone with any knowledge of this set can answer...

First and foremost: This model, as I understand it, was Samsung's most premium 4K display BEFORE getting into the QLEDs (which we simply couldn't afford, unfortunately, nor an LD OLED) -- is this actually a good TV with a good picture?

Secondly, out of the gate, we won't be hooking up a UHD player to this display (wanted an Oppo 203, but didn't act on it because of money and now the company isn't even making players anymore, as most enthusiasts know) due to monetary restraints and the aforementioned Oppo dilemma; instead, I will be continuing to run my trusty Oppo BDP-83 BD player for BD and DVD playback, still connected through an Onkyo 605 AVR via HDMI 1.3a connections.

Now, given this setup, am I correct in assuming I can connect everything the way I had it in the past with the SXRD TV -- that is, HDMI OUT from the Oppo to HDMI IN of the Onkyo, and then HDMI OUT from the Onkyo to HDMI IN of the new Samsung? If so, the TV should then be upscaling the 1080p signal from the BDP-83 to 4K, correct? I know with DVD playback, there will be double processing going on, as the Oppo will be upscaling DVDs to 1080p and then the TV will be upscaling THAT to 4K...

Assuming this is correct, should I experience any problems running an older spec HDMI connection from my older gear to the Samsung? I do understand that I need a new AVR in order to do 4K video passthrough, but I'm not there yet and instead need to connect the older gear I'm running to the new TV.

Additionally, we don't plan on doing ANY streaming or using ANY of the smart applications on the TV -- we just want to use it for disc playback (and watching cable from our high def box) -- how difficult is it to "ignore" the smart features and app setup on this TV upon setup? Can they simply BE ignored?

With regard to a setting I had made in the Oppo BDP-83 based on my previous equipment (and based on what Oppo customer service advised me on), the COLOR SPACE setting in the BDP-83 was on "4:4:4," as Oppo told me that's what my Sony SXRD "natively sampled at" -- what should this COLOR SPACE setting be on for the new 4K TV?

Also -- just out of curiosity: Should we experience a pretty intense "impact" jump going from a 50" set at 12 feet to a 65" at the same distance, especially considering we're going from a rear pro with an aging optical block to a brand new 4K display?

I'm sure I'll be checking back in with a myriad of questions once I'm up and running (such as about picture mode settings and such), but this is what I can think of right now; if anyone could assist in any way, it would greatly appreciated.

[IntelliVolume]

Well, then, can anyone at least tell me if I can connect my old Blu-ray player via HDMI 1.3 to this new 4K set without any issues? Will the TV basically upconvert the 1080p signal from the BD player? The TV was delivered today...

[puddy77]

All your older HDMI equipment and connections should work just fine; plug and play. I would assume you can leave your Oppo's colorspace to 4:4:4. Or Auto should work too.

I haven't used any 2018 Samsung's yet, but I have experience with '17, '16 and earlier. You can easily ignore the smart apps. Just turn the TV on and let them disappear from the screen.

But since you are not buying a UHD BD player yet, I would recommend sampling some 4k streaming like Netflix or YouTube so you can see what HDR is all about.

Jumping 15" at the same seating distance should be a significant increase. Enjoy your new set!

[IntelliVolume]

Originally Posted by puddy77

All your older HDMI equipment and connections should work just fine; plug and play. I would assume you can leave your Oppo's colorspace to 4:4:4. Or Auto should work too.

Thanks so much for your reply, Puddy...it's very much appreciated!

Does the Samsung I purchased sample at 4:4:4, definitely, do you know? Of course, I can always leave it to AUTO...

Thank you for confirming that I can just connect my old HDMI cables with the new TV.

I haven't used any 2018 Samsung's yet, but I have experience with '17, '16 and earlier. You can easily ignore the smart apps. Just turn the TV on and let them disappear from the screen.

Thanks so much for confirming this; were the Samsungs you had of good quality? I used to think Samsung made a GREAT TV based on what I saw; I'm getting kind of negative feedback about their new ones now, especially the series that the one I bought came from replaced, the MU8000...

But since you are not buying a UHD BD player yet, I would recommend sampling some 4k streaming like Netflix or YouTube so you can see what HDR is all about.

Well, I know I definitely want to enjoy physical media and continue buying it via a UHD player, but I appreciate the suggestion.

Is this TV's (the Samsung UN65NU8000 I bought, that is) HDR support "good enough" for a decent 4K experience with native content?

Jumping 15" at the same seating distance should be a significant increase. Enjoy your new set!

Thank you very much!

Can't wait to start using it (if we don't decide to return it).

[puddy77]

Yes, to all of the above. For details, check out Rtings' review: https://www.rtings.com/tv/reviews/samsung/nu8000

[IntelliVolume]

Originally Posted by puddy77

Yes, to all of the above. For details, check out Rtings' review: https://www.rtings.com/tv/reviews/samsung/nu8000

Sorry Puddy, didn't get the notice that you had responded again in this thread...

Thanks for the confirmation; indeed, I did see the rtings review...

Here's another question I had: Being that I will not be using a UHD player for the immediate time being with the NU8000, what should the HDR settings in the TV be set to? I will be sending a 1080p signal from my Blu-ray player for now, along with a 1080i signal from the cable box, so what should the HDR10 settings in the Samsung be adjusted to? Does it matter?

Also -- what happens when I eventually get a UHD player and play discs that boast the "advanced" forms of HDR such as Dolby Vision? Being that the Samsung doesn't have these advanced operations, only HDR Plus/10, would the signal from the 4K disc get "downconverted," so to speak, on my set? And how is that going to look?

[IntelliVolume]

Unfortunately, just learned that our cabinet builder can't come out for at least four weeks to complete the work on our entertainment center; without him, the TV won't fit, at all.

So now the set has to sit in the box for another month in the living room before it can be used.

[GRD43L]

I also picked up this unit. It is light years ahead of 2007 LG plasma that became unwatchable for last several years. It made watching EVERYTHING so much more enjoyable.

[IntelliVolume]

Originally Posted by GRD43L

I also picked up this unit. It is light years ahead of 2007 LG plasma that became unwatchable for last several years. It made watching EVERYTHING so much more enjoyable.

Good to hear from another NU8000 owner!

The display, while good, is driving me nuts with the constant dimming issues and the on/off of the LEDs when the picture goes black.

I attempted a calibration on the set last night which ultimately failed (using the setup discs I have), and I will get to that in a new post soon...

[GRD43L]

Correction. 65NU8000 makes watching MANY (instead of EVERYTHING) movies so much more enjoyable.

VQ on movies released BEFORE the BD (2006) are a hit/miss. Some look great, some do not.

Only watched a handful of BDs so far but even 2010 Japanese animation (Summer Wars) with all the tiny details all over the screen looked sharp and well defined. 2003 Zatoichi, however, was very disappointing.

[IntelliVolume]

Originally Posted by GRD43L

Correction. 65NU8000 makes watching MANY (instead of EVERYTHING) movies so much more enjoyable.

VQ on movies released BEFORE the BD (2006) are a hit/miss. Some look great, some do not.

Only watched a handful of BDs so far but even 2010 Japanese animation (Summer Wars) with all the tiny details all over the screen looked sharp and well defined. 2003 Zatoichi, however, was very disappointing.

Can you share what settings you're using?

[IntelliVolume]

I'm trying to get my head around exactly how the gamma control on these new UHD TVs work in relation to the shadow detail/black crush factor; my Samsung NU8000 has a gamma control slider that runs from "-" to "+" values, with the default being in the middle at "0" (out of the box in every picture mode; I use Movie mode for my UHD Blu-ray player). However, on just about every disc, there seems to be some black crush and loss of shadow detail...as if the blacks just aren't "bright enough" (if that makes any sense).

I know the brightness setting controls the black level response, and in the past (with my previous primary HT display, a Sony SXRD) I had adjusted this properly with setup discs and their PLUGE patterns...when I attempted a calibration with some discs (including the Spears & Munsil first edition BD) on my NU8000, I couldn't seem to get the brightness setting correct (the display comes set to "0" brightness, the middle position, by default in every mode) -- but moving beyond that for a moment, I thought that I might play around with the gamma setting to try and get the picture a bit "brighter" in the blacks/darks.

Now, I have read reviews on these new Samsungs -- including the more premium QLEDs -- that suggest brightness should be raised to anywhere from "+1" to "+3" and the gamma raised to "+1" to compensate for crushed blacks and some other issues, but I don't know if this is accurate (most reviews tend to say leave brightness and gamma at their default positions, in all fairness). I understand the only way to get this all perfectly right (or close to it) is to get test patterns up and such, but I wanted to know if anyone had any general information about this that could help me...

If I wanted to combat blacks that are a bit too dark, would I RAISE or LOWER the gamma control? Would RAISING it help with shadow detail loss, or is it the other way around? Similarly, would playing around with the BRIGHTNESS help, or should I just leave this to GAMMA? My Samsung's brightness control slider only goes to like "+5" at the max, I think, so I'd have "0" to "+5" to play with if I increase it...

[IntelliVolume]

Can anyone assist with the gamma question?

[IntelliVolume]

Can anyone help with the gamma query?

[wxman2003]

Originally Posted by IntelliVolume

Can anyone help with the gamma query?

You might want to join AVS Forum as they have a thread dedicated to your tv.

https://www.avsforum.com/forum/166-l...rs-thread.html

[IntelliVolume]

Originally Posted by wxman2003

You might want to join AVS Forum as they have a thread dedicated to your tv.

https://www.avsforum.com/forum/166-l...rs-thread.html

I'm aware of the thread there, wxman; I was part of it for awhile and then discontinued hanging around there because the gamma questions still weren't answered, either.

There hasn't been much activity on/in that thread in the time it was started, with most of the discussion being about price differences or mounting problems when folks are putting it on their walls. The settings don't seem to be a priority.

In general, I just wanted to know if by RAISING the gamma control the shadow detail in dark areas would be DECREASED or INCREASED, or if it's the other way around...and if this affects the brightness control in any way.

There's no one here that can help with that?

[wxman2003]

Originally Posted by IntelliVolume

I'm aware of the thread there, wxman; I was part of it for awhile and then discontinued hanging around there because the gamma questions still weren't answered, either.

There hasn't been much activity on/in that thread in the time it was started, with most of the discussion being about price differences or mounting problems when folks are putting it on their walls. The settings don't seem to be a priority.

In general, I just wanted to know if by RAISING the gamma control the shadow detail in dark areas would be DECREASED or INCREASED, or if it's the other way around...and if this affects the brightness control in any way.

There's no one here that can help with that?

If you go from a gamma of 2.4 to 2.2 the picture will look more washed out but will provide better near black detail.

[IntelliVolume]

Originally Posted by wxman2003

If you go from a gamma of 2.4 to 2.2 the picture will look more washed out but will provide better near black detail.

So, on my Samsung, the display automatically adjusts for the TYPE of gamma curve to use based on SDR or HDR content -- so that's fine. However, there's a slider that is adjustable that lets you increase or decrease the gamma level, with the default on all picture modes being "0" (the middle). I am finding that there is some black crush with these default settings in Movie mode, leaving brightness at "0" too (middle of the range)...

If I wanted to ADD some shadow detail to get the darker parts of films looking a little BRIGHTER, would I INCREASE or DECREASE the gamma slider?

[wxman2003]

Originally Posted by IntelliVolume

So, on my Samsung, the display automatically adjusts for the TYPE of gamma curve to use based on SDR or HDR content -- so that's fine. However, there's a slider that is adjustable that lets you increase or decrease the gamma level, with the default on all picture modes being "0" (the middle). I am finding that there is some black crush with these default settings in Movie mode, leaving brightness at "0" too (middle of the range)...

If I wanted to ADD some shadow detail to get the darker parts of films looking a little BRIGHTER, would I INCREASE or DECREASE the gamma slider?

I don't know how a Samsung tv works, but one would think if you decrease the gamma slider, you are decreasing the gamma and thus making the near blacks brighter. So if 0 is 2.2, -1 on the slider might be closer to 2 or 2.1.

[IntelliVolume]

Originally Posted by wxman2003

I don't know how a Samsung tv works, but one would think if you decrease the gamma slider, you are decreasing the gamma and thus making the near blacks brighter. So if 0 is 2.2, -1 on the slider might be closer to 2 or 2.1.

So, what you're saying is, if I DECREASE gamma, this should help with bringing out shadow detail? It's not the other way around -- that RAISING gamma would make the black crush a bit less noticeable?