NEC Spectraview 3090 Users Manual

							41	 |	SPECTRAVIEW	II 	- 	USER’S 	GUIDE
Calibrating and Profiling the Displa\f
If  more  than  one  supported  display  monitor  is  connected,  select  the  display  to  be  calibrated  from  the Display 
listbox. Note that each display has an independent Target.
Click  the Calibrate  button  to  start  the  calibration  process.  The  software  will  provide  instructions  for  placing  the 
calibration sensor on the screen and provide updates as the calibration progresses.
Once  the  calibration  process  has  been  completed,  an  ICC/ColorSync  profile  will  be  generated  if  the Generate 
profile after calibration option in the Preferences dialog is selected. The profile will automatically be associated 
with the system’s Color Management System. 
The results of the calibration process will then be displayed in the Information window. 
It is also good practice to use the Test Patterns to quickly visually verify the integrity of the calibration.
Profiling the Displa\f
An  ICC/ColorSync  monitor  profile  of  the  display  can  be  generated  without  calibrating  the  display  by  selecting 
Generate  ICC  Profile.. from  the File  menu.  Non-SpectraView  displays  can  be  profiled  but  not  calibrated  by 
SpectraView.
Validating the current  Calibration
The current state of the display monitor can be measured and compared to the currently selected Target in order 
to  quickly  determine  if  the  current  calibration  is  still  accurate,  or  if  the  display  should  be  recalibrated. A  series  of 
measurements will be taken on the display and a brief report will be shown of the results. The Information window 
will also be updated with a more detailed analysis of the results. 
Note: Several factors can influence the results of the validation process and a Delta-E values of 3-5 do not always 
indicate that the display needs to be recalibrated. Even very slight differences in the positioning of the sensor from 
when  it  was  calibrated,  and  the  length  of  time  the  monitor  has  been  powered  on,  and  the  basic  measurement 
repeatability  accuracy  of  the  sensor  itself,  all  impact  the  results.  Also  keep  in  mind  that  the  Delta-E  value  is 
comprised  of  the  luminance  and  color  difference.  Differences  in  color  are  much  more  critical  than  a  difference  in 
relative luminance. 
  
						

							42	 |	SPECTRAVIEW	II 	- 	USER’S 	GUIDE
Using ICC/ColorS\fnc Monitor Profiles
The ICC/ColorSync monitor profiles generated by SpectraView are used to inform the Color Management System 
of the color characteristics of the display monitor.
Color  Management  Systems  use  this  information  to  determine  how  to  display  images  on-screen.  Depending  on 
the  image  editing  software  package  being  used,  profiles  for  printers  and  scanners  can  also  be  utilized  to  create 
accurate image prints and scans.
The exact method of loading ICC monitor profiles into the Color Management System will depend on the software 
application being used. Most software applications rely on the operating system (Mac OS or Microsoft Windows) to 
provide the current profile information. However some applications may have a color management setup where the 
display monitor profile can be selected.
SpectraView will automatically select and associate the generated ICC/ColorSync monitor profiles with the system’s 
Color Management System.
Refer to the instructions for the particular software package being used to determine how to correctly load and use 
the ICC/ColorSync monitor profiles generated by SpectraView.
Adobe Photoshop Overview
When combined with accurate printer profiles, Photoshop can perform accurate CMYK previews or soft proofs of 
what an image will look like when printed.
The  hardware  based  calibration  of  the  SpectraView  display  monitor  will  provide  superior  results  compared  to  the 
basic visual calibration offered by the Photoshop or ColorSync Control Panels.
Note that it is not necessary to perform any of the monitor settings in the Adobe Gamma Control Panel since all of 
the necessary monitor calibration and measurements will be done by SpectraV iew.
In  Photoshop,  images  are  manipulated  in  what  is  known  as  an  image  color  workspace.  This  color  workspace 
is  independent  of  the  display  monitor  color  characteristics,  allowing  images  to  be  transferred  between  systems 
with  different  monitor  settings  without  loosing  any  color  information  or  restricting  the  color  gamut  of  the  image. 
Photoshop will convert colors on the fly when it displays the image on the SpectraView monitor, so the colors you 
see accurately reflect the file’s working color space.
The selection of an RGB color workspace will depend on the application. For details of the standard color workspaces 
included in Photoshop, consult the online help in Photoshop. Note that typically the color workspace will be different 
to that of the display monitor. Do not attempt to load the ICC/ColorSync monitor profile as the color workspace in 
Photoshop.
When editing an image in CMYK format, Photoshop uses the monitor color characteristics to perform the CMYK-
to-RGB  conversion  necessary  to  display  the  image  accurately  on  the  display  monitor,  which  uses  a  RGB  device 
dependent color space.
When  editing  or  viewing  an  image  in  RGB  format,  Photoshop  also  uses  the  display  monitor  color  characteristics, 
together  with  a  set  of  printer  separation  tables  or  printer  ICC/ColorSync  profile  to  perform  the  RGB-to-CMYK 
conversion necessary to preview or soft proof a print the image. Printer separation tables are usually provided by 
the printer manufacturer or other third party, or can be generated using a 3rd party printer profiling application.
5	
Ou\fsi\be	of	Spec\fraView
 
						

							43	 |	SPECTRAVIEW	II 	- 	USER’S 	GUIDE
Calibrati\fn
Question 1: How often do I need to calibrate my monitor?
Answer: The answer will depend on how critical a color accuracy is necessary, how long the monitor is used per 
day,  environmental  conditions  and  the  characteristics  of  each  individual  monitor.  Some  users  working  in  highly 
critical color applications may calibrate their displays every couple of days. Others may only need to do it once a 
month.  The  recommended  and  default  re-calibration    period  is  every  2  weeks.  The Validate  Calibration  feature 
can  always  be  used  to  verify  the  display’s  white  point  and  Intensity  and  determine  if  the  monitor  needs  to  be  re-
calibrated. Always remember to allow the monitor sufficient time to warm up and reach optimum color performance 
before performing any color critical work or calibrating the display .
Question:  (  Mac  OS  only)  Why  can’t  I  use  the  ColorSync  control  panel  to  switch  between  different  display 
calibrations like I can do with other monitors?
Answer:  When  used  with  the  SpectraView  software,  NEC  display  monitors  store  all  of  the  necessary  color 
adjustments  internally,  including  the  10  or  12  bit  Look  Up Tables. The  ColorSync  utility  switches  the  display  color 
settings  by  changing  the  Look  Up  Tables  in  the  video  graphics  adapter.  The  ColorSync  profiles  generated  by 
SpectraView  contain  linear  Look  Up  Tables  for  the  video  graphics  adapter.  Therefore  the  SpectraView  software 
must be used to update the display monitor.
Question  2:  (  Mac  OS  only)  I’m  using  a  wide  color  gamut  display  together  with  the  standard  gamut  screen  on 
my MacBook. Colors in Safari look oversaturated when the window is on the wide gamut display . What is wrong?
Answer: The color management in Safari and some other Mac applications will only apply color correction for the 
primary  display  (the  display  with  the  menu  bar).  When  a  window  is  moved  to  the  secondary  display,  the  correct 
color correction for that display is not applied. This causes the images to be oversaturated on the secondary display. 
To display colors correctly on the wide color gamut display it must be made the primary display. Use the Mac OS 
System Preferences - Displays to configure the display as the primary. 
Question 3: I’m using two different displays and calibrating both to the same target, however the white points do 
not match exactly. What can I do to improve this?
Answer:  This  issue  can  be  caused  by  the  different  spectral  outputs  of  the  two  displays  causing  the  human  eye 
to see color differences differently than the color sensor used to calibrate the displays. In this case the numerical 
measurements from the color sensor are identical on both displays, but they do not visually match. Manually visually 
matching one display to another can usually avoid this issue. The basic steps to take are as follows:
1. Calibrate both displays.
2. Pick one of the displays to be a reference. Call this display #1. 
3.  Select  display  #2  in  SpectraView,  open  the  Edit  Calibration  Target  dialog  then  open  the  Custom  White  Point 
dialog  by  clicking  on  the  Edit...  button.  Use  the  Visual  Match  tool  to  adjust  the  white  color  so  it  visually  matches 
white shown on display #1. 
4. When a visual match is achieved, put the sensor over the measurement area and click Measure. This will enter 
the value that the sensor perceives into the White Point. Save this as a new  Target. 
5.  Recalibrate  display  #2  with  this  new  Target.  From  now  on  always  use  the  respective  Target  to  calibrate  each 
6	
Frequen\fly	Aske\b	Ques\fions
 
						

							44	 |	SPECTRAVIEW	II 	- 	USER’S 	GUIDE
display.
Question  4:  I’m  trying  to  match  my  display  to  my  prints  in  order  to  soft  proof,  however  after  calibrating  using  a 
standard Target white point such as D65 or D50, the screen still appears too pink/magenta/green compared to the 
print. What can I do to make them match?
Answer:  Depending  on  many  factors  such  as  the  lighting  conditions  used  to  view  the  prints,  paper  type,  and 
the  printer  profiles  used  for  the  soft  proofing,  the  display  white  point  may  not  visually  match  that  of  the  paper. 
It  is  important  to  remember  that  the  preset  white  points  such  as  D65  are  not  magic  numbers  that  must  be  used 
regardless. The calibration Target white point can be adjusted as necessary in this scenario. This is especially true 
if a standard viewing environment such as a light box is not being used to view the prints.
Adjusting  the  white  point  using  a  Kelvin  or  Daylight  value  alone  is  adjusting  the  white  point  along  the  fixed  Black 
Body curve as viewed on a CIE xy diagram, and can vary the white point from cool to warm. 
However, the color cast between the print and display may be at right angles to this curve, so in this case no Kelvin 
value will be able to fully compensate. A white point that lies off the standard Black Body curve can be entered by 
specifying it in terms of CIE xy instead of as a Kelvin or Daylight value. 
To  get  an  idea  of  how  CIE  xy  values  relate  to  the  actual  White  Point  color,  try  zooming  in  on  the  Color  Gamut 
diagram on the Information window. In the example below, the Black Body curve is shown. If for example the display 
appears to be too green, then the white point should be moved slightly towards the lower right - this corresponds to 
increasing the CIE x value, and decreasing the y value slightly. Modify the Target White Point values by making small 
adjustment (for example increments of +/-0.003) and recalibrate the display. Several iterations may be required to 
find the best values. In addition to this method, the Visual Match tool described in the previous answer can be used 
to interactively find a visual match between the print and display .
Black Body curve
  
						

							45	 |	SPECTRAVIEW	II 	- 	USER’S 	GUIDE
Question  5:  Each  time  I  calibrate  my  monitor  I  receive  a  different  Delta-E  result.  Should  I  recalibrate  again  if  I 
receive a value that is high?
Answer: For Delta-E values of less than 2 there is almost certainly no need to recalibrate. For values higher than 3 
it is important to understand what the cause is, and if it is significant. 
The  calibration  and  adjustment  process  has  inherent  variability  due  to  many  factors  such  as  the  repeatability  of 
color sensor measurements, and changes within the display as it is adjusted. The basic accuracy and repeatability 
specifications for most sensors is typically +/- 0.002 or higher for CIE xy, and +/- 2% for luminance. These variances 
alone can give rise to Delta-E values of up to 2 or 3.
When a specific Intensity value is being used for the calibration, the Delta-E value is comprised of the luminance 
and color differences. Differences in color are much more critical than a difference in relative luminance. Look at the 
results of the calibration shown in the Information window to determine if the high Delta-E value is caused mainly 
by a shift in color or in luminance. 
High Delta-E values can also occur if a specific Intensity value is being used for the calibration and the display is 
not capable of achieving the specified Intensity value. The calibration will always aim to achieve the specified White 
Point, even if the Intensity value could not be reached. If the display can not be calibrated to achieve the specified 
Intensity value modify the value accordingly. 
In some situations, the display Intensity will drift slightly for several minutes after it is adjusted. Since the measured 
value  used  to  calculate  the  final  Delta-E  result  is  taken  up  to  one  or  two  minutes  after  the  display  was  adjusted, 
a  higher  Delta-E  value  may  be  shown,  even  though  the  calibration  process  achieved  the  specified Target  values 
during  the calibration  process. Selecting  the Extended  luminance  stabilization  time option  in the Preferences can 
be used to try and minimize this effect.
Question 6: The Delta-E result values shown in SpectraView are higher than those shown in other display calibration 
applications. Does that mean they are better at calibrating the display than SpectraV iew?
Answer: No. SpectraView calculates the Delta-E values using both the luminance and color differences for more 
realistic and accurate values. Other applications may calculate Delta-E differently.
Question  7: After  calibration  I  manually  adjusted  some  of  the  monitor  controls  to  get  a  better  color  match  for  my 
particular application. What happens the next time I calibrate the monitor?
Answer: The manual adjustments will be reset by the calibration process. 
In general it is not a good idea to manually adjust the monitor after calibration because it not only invalidates the 
calibration and ICC/ColorSync profile, but also means that the adjustments will be lost the next time the monitor is 
calibrated. 
If you still feel it is necessary to tweak the display after calibration, a much better approach is to create a new Target 
file based from the measurements of the display after it has been manually adjusted. That way the monitor will be 
automatically calibrated to that particular set of characteristics the next time it is calibrated. Use the Custom White 
Point tool to measure and set the white point and Intensity values.
 
						

							46	 |	SPECTRAVIEW	II 	- 	USER’S 	GUIDE
Installati\fn and Setup
Problem: Calibrate button is disabled.
Solution: The calibrate button is disabled for either of the following reasons:
•	No supported calibration sensor was detected.
•	No supported display monitor was detected.
See the following sections for further explanations. 
Problem: No supported monitor was detected.
Solution: 
•	Verify that the display monitor connected is a model supported by this version of SpectraView II. Check if 
a newer version of the software is available from NEC.
•	If more than one video output is present on the computer, try connecting to the other output connector. 
•	Always use a DVI or DisplayPort video output if possible. 
•	Connect a USB cable between display to the host PC (MultiSync PA Series only) and restart SpectraView.
Mac OS:
•	See the README file included with the software for further information about any specific incompatibilities  
or issues. Note that some Macs require at least OS 10.5.2 in order support the functionality necessary with 
SpectraView.
ÿ Windows:
•	Some video graphics adapter cards may not support the necessary functions for SpectraV iew to 
communicate with the display monitor. For Windows systems, verify that the video graphics adapter is 
supported by SpectraView by checking the Windows Graphics Chipset Compatibility Information. See the 
README file included with the software for further information. 
•	Install the latest video drivers for the video graphics adapter card.
•	Communications with the display monitor requires a special driver to be installed. This is installed and 
configured when SpectraView is installed, however any of the following changes may necessitate that 
SpectraView be re-installed to re-configure the driver:
•	Updating the video graphics adapter card driver.
•	Changing the monitor model
•	Changing the video port that the monitor is connected to.
•	Check the display configuration by clicking the Display Configuration button. In the Display 
Configuration dialog, confirm that your model of display monitor is listed. If it is not listed, then there is a 
problem communicating with and detecting the display monitor. If it is listed, confirm that the monitor is 
associated with the correct Windows desktop display.
7	
Troubleshoo\fing
 
						

							47	 |	SPECTRAVIEW	II 	- 	USER’S 	GUIDE
Problem: No supported calibration sensor was detected. 
Solution: 
•	Try reconnecting the calibration sensor and click the Auto Detect button in the Preferences dialog 
to re-detect the sensor. 
•	It may be necessary to close and re-launch the SpectraView application. 
•	(ÿ Windows) It may be necessary to install the drivers for the color sensor device. Note that only 
the drivers for the X-Rite iOne devices are installed by the SpectraV iew setup application. Drivers for 
other devices must be installed manually. 
Problem: Severe color banding appears after calibrating on images and when the test pattern is shown.
Solution: 
•	Always use a DVI video output if possible. 
•	If an analog video signal must be used perform the following steps once prior to calibration: 
 
1. Display something on the screen that has both full black and full white, such as the  Test Pattern in 
SpectraView. 
 
2. On the monitor’s On Screen Display, select and operate the AUTO CONTRAST control.
 
3. Proceed with the calibration. 
Problem (ÿ Windows): The ICC profile generated by SpectraView does not appear to be correctly installed 
and recognized in Windows. 
Solution: 
•	This problem may occur especially when using a multi-monitor configuration. In some cases 
updating the video driver may fix this issue.
•	The profile can be manually assigned if necessary as follows: 
1. In the Windows Display Properties control panel, select the Settings tab and click Advanced.
 
2. Select the Color Management tab on the Display Properties dialog. 
 
3. Find the color profile generated by SpectraView and use Set As Default.
•	A more advanced control panel is available from Microsoft for Windows XP which is much more 
reliable for checking the assigned monitor profile. On the www.microsoft.com website, search for “Color 
Control Panel Applet”.
Problem (ÿ Windows): SpectraView is unable to save the generated ICC profile. 
Solution: If SpectraView is unable to save the ICC profile for this reason it will prompt you with the name and 
location of the file that needs to be manually deleted in order to replace it with a new profile. 
•	This issue may occur if there are multiple users assigned to the machine. An ICC profile created by a 
user can normally only be updated and replaced by that user, or an administrator. Starting with Windows 
Vista, even if you are currently an Administrator, applications do not normally allow full administrative 
privileges by default.  
 
You can either delete the current ICC profile manually (in which case Windows will ask for administrative 
level credentials or permissions),  or you can re-run SpectraView “as Administrator” by right-clicking the 
 
						

							48	 |	SPECTRAVIEW	II 	- 	USER’S 	GUIDE
application icon and selecting “Run as administrator”. This process needs to be done once each time the 
user who created the last ICC profile for the display is changed. 
•	This issue may also occur if another application is currently using the ICC profile. For example if the 
Windows Advanced Display Settings control panel is open, the ICC profile may be locked. Be sure to close 
any applications that may be using the profile.
 
						

							49	 |	SPECTRAVIEW	II 	- 	USER’S 	GUIDE
Using SpectraVie\b \bith NaViSet Administrat\fr ( ÿ Wind\f\bs versi\fn \fnly)
The  SpectraView  II  software  integrates  with  the  NEC  DISPLAY  SOLUTIONS NaViSet Administrator  software  to 
provide remote administration of  the display monitors on networked machines. NaViSet Administrator will report all 
of the current SpectraView settings and the current calibration status within the NaViSet Administrator Console 
application. 
When  using  the Single  Connection  feature  of  NaViSet  Administrator  to  administer  a  remote  machine,  the 
SpectraView information will be shown in the monitor metadata report. 
When using the Monitor Asset Report feature to poll and gather information about the display monitors on multiple 
remote machines, the SpectraView information can be included in the Output Monitor Asset Report file by selecting 
the items to include in the report in the Configuration Wizard.
8	
NaViSe\f	A\bminis\fra\for
Example metadata report showing the SpectraView settings using the Single Connection feature.
 
						

							50	 |	SPECTRAVIEW	II 	- 	USER’S 	GUIDE
9	
Tes\f	Pa\f\fern	Gui\be
The SpectraView II software includes several test patterns that are useful in evaluating the monitor calibration. It is 
also good practice to use the Test Patterns to quickly visually verify the integrity of the calibration. 
A  pattern  based  on  the  DICOM  TG18-GC  test  pattern  has  a  number  of  useful  features  that  allow  very  detailed 
analysis  of  the  monitor  grayscale  performance  in  one  pattern.  The  main  features  of  this  pattern  are  described 
below. 
“QUALITY  CONTROL”  characters with decreasing contrasts at minimum, mid-point, and maximum pixel values for  simple  low-contrast  evaluation  at three luminance levels.
Sixteen  luminance  patches  with  pixel  values varying  from  8  to  248  for  luminance  response evaluation.  Each  patch  contains  four  small 10x10    pixel  corner  patches  at  ±4  of  pixel  value difference  from  the  background,  +4  in  upper-left and  lower-right,  -4  in lower-left  and  upper-right. The small patches are used for visual assessment of luminance response.
Two  patches  of  minimum  and maximum  pixel  value  with  13,  and 242  pixel  value  internal  patches, similar  to  5%  and  95%  areas  in  the SMPTE test pattern.
256 level grayscale with 2 lines per level.
Line-pair patterns for resolution evaluation, having pixel values of 0-255 and 128-130.
Grey background of pixel value 128.
Several other patterns are available in SpectraView and can be selected 
using the buttons at the top left of the screen, or using the [ and ] keys.