Widescreen Gaming Forum

In US, you can buy a non spectraview edition of the 2690 and then later get a Spectraview 2 program with probe to LUT calibrate the screen. Calibrating the monitors 12-bit LUT is the optimal in coloraccuracy.

In EU, they have a different policy. If you buy non spectraview edition, the EU's variant of Spectraview "Spectraview profiler" grey's out LUT calibration. I've heard that if you order Spectraview 2 from US, they refuse to take non US credit cards. Spectraview profiler supports a lot more probes as well.

What they did, was to lock spectraview capabilities in the OSD. Unlocking it is very simple (once you know where to go and which buttons to press).

Enter the advanced menu:

Hold down input button while powering on the screen. Press menu and choose tag E (its where the information is in the advanced menu).

Pressing select + down gives you option to turn spectraview settings on/off. Choose on.

Download the Spectraview profiler here:

http://www.spectraview.nec-mitsubishi.com/

Choose download area.

You need to register with email to download. Install the program.

A nasty little sideeffect due to NEC only granting Spectraview 2690 buyers the LUT calibration, is that you don't need license anymore and have no time limit of the program. So, in the spirit of anti-piracy, you need to delete the program after 14 days, since you have unlimited use of it now... :lol:



Tested out different settings and it works perfectly with Spyder 2 probe! Got a DeltaE of 0.1 average! :D

Thank you Tamlin.

I just bought an NEC 2690WUXi.

I tried the US version of Spectraview.

It didnt work properly.

The grey scale had pink and beige stripes in the lightest area.

But then i tried the EU version of Spectraview thanks to you.


It works fantastic.

Thank you soo munch.


Greetings from David in Denmark.

P.S how did you found out to turn the Spectraview setting on?

G'day from Australia Tamlin. I have just purchased a nec multisync 2609 and didnt know that I needed the software program spectraview to use with my spyder2Pro to best calibrate my new monitor.

Spectraview program in unobtainable here in Austalia and the USA site does not allow non USA people to purchase this program.

Do you know anywhere in Europe that I can purchase the spectraview NEC program? I am so angry about NEC about this, that I am seriously considering demanding a refund for this LCD monitor.

Many thanks for your time and help.

Cheers
Ron from Australia

Thank you Tamlin.

I just bought an NEC 2690WUXi.

I tried the US version of Spectraview.

It didnt work properly.

The grey scale had pink and beige stripes in the lightest area.

But then i tried the EU version of Spectraview thanks to you.


It works fantastic.

Thank you soo munch.


Greetings from David in Denmark.

P.S how did you found out to turn the Spectraview setting on?

You're welcome David! :)

I figured it out by testing the screen extensively and when I did, I also checked for "easter eggs" like service menu and other functions.

G'day from Australia Tamlin. I have just purchased a nec multisync 2609 and didnt know that I needed the software program spectraview to use with my spyder2Pro to best calibrate my new monitor.

Spectraview program in unobtainable here in Austalia and the USA site does not allow non USA people to purchase this program.

Do you know anywhere in Europe that I can purchase the spectraview NEC program? I am so angry about NEC about this, that I am seriously considering demanding a refund for this LCD monitor.

Many thanks for your time and help.

Cheers
Ron from Australia

Hi Ron!
I'm removing the email from your post, since there are no protection here against webcrawlers, so you might get spam with posting your email.
I've searched everywhere on where to buy the spectraview profiler program, but unfortunately its not possible at this moment I think. Hopefully Will @ NEC might do something about that. The Spectraview profiler is a version of the BasicColor 4, so you might buy that so you have it legally and then just download Spectraview profiler as shown above. The method described in first post gives you a permanent license anyway, so it doesn't matter if you have the BasicColor 4 or Spectraview profiler license, since you have no need to insert the license file anyway. Send an email to Basiccolor to check this beforehand. :)

If you have a probe already (like Spyder, Eye one or similar), then you can register and ask for a 14-days lisence to test it with your screen. Its perfectly legal. Use the above method to unlock the LUT calibration in the program before usage. You don't need to install the 14-days lisence file, just download it for legal purpouses.

Tamlin...many many thanks for your most helpful advice. I note that you are a great help on the web. Are you overall pleased with your NEC 2609? I purchased mine before I was made aware that the spetraview was not available in Australia, nor overseas.

Again many thanks

Cheers from Australia

Ron

Thanks! :) I try to do my part for the community.

Europe have the same problem as Australia obviously. Australia might be able to order Spectraview 2 from NEC Japan though. EU users are blocked from ordering Spectraview 2 from USA, so there are no upgrade path for Multisync users in EU. NEC Europe have denied NEC USA to sell us Spectraview 2 and they are not offering Spectraview Profiler in other ways then a trial edition.

I'm very happy with my Multisync 2690WUXi though and was happy with it also before I managed to get Spectraview profiler to LUT calibrate it.

The H-IPS panel is the closest you get to CRT besides black level (which is bad on all panels compared to CRT). For movies, the black level adjustment gives you a "CRT black simulation". Image consistency is great and so is the color accuracy. All other panel types, VA's and TN's alike, have image shifts one way or the other.

I have all the inputs in use now. Two computers are connected through the DVI-D and DVI-I, while I have a DVD player through the D-SUB. All with individual settings in OSD/OSM.

I read on dpreview that you have a photography firm. You'll love this screen then! You can edit your pictures in aRGB, then save them in cmyk and sRGB. Whatever format people are requesting, you'll have it ready. Saves a lot of time and workload.

Gaming is wonderful on this screen too. Just remember that there is an advanced menu where you can turn on overdrive if wanted (its off by default). Power on the screen while holding the input button in. Then you can press menu and see the advanced version of it. In here, you'll find functions like colorcomp (to even out uniformity of colors and brightness), gammacomp (selection of the 12-bit gamma correction) and much more.

This is one of the most featurepacked screens on the market today. :D

G'day Tamlin. Looking forward to getting my NEC...hopefully it will be arriving tomorrow. Do you use yours for mainly games, movies and do you do any photography?

I have just commenced a small family photography business with my wife after we have worked for many years as registered nurses.

Have always wanted to do photography and 5 years ago purchased a camera and taught myself everything and then shot unpaid for one of our cities top pro wedding photographers. I enjoy weddings, besides its the type of photography that pays the money for what is an expensive habit.

My greatest photography passions are landscapes here in Australia and also night time photography. Unfortunately these are known not to be good money spinners.

So weddings are a change to the suffering we see as nurses but bloody hard work, constant concentration and sensing and anticipating the moments.

Again many thanks for your great help.

Take care Tamlin

God bless you

Ron

hey Tamlin,

thx for your findings,
do you have any suggestions how to proceed after reaching the advanced menu at a 2180UX model?
how did you find the button-combo :/

thank you
lxlx

What they did, was to lock spectraview capabilities in the OSD. Unlocking it is very simple (once you know where to go and which buttons to press).
Download the Spectraview profiler here:

So, in the spirit of anti-piracy, you need to delete the program after 14 days, since you have unlimited use of it now...

So if I got that right you're saying you can essentially get a full featured one for the price of the locked out one using these methods? Are you meaning you have to keep deleting the program and reinstalling it or will your settings be retained after deleting it? If this is the case, do you think NEC will somehow end up guarding against people doing this?

I have been tempted by the new lower price on Newegg, especially since reading a detailed tech review on the Planar 26" that spoke about it's black level being underwhelming. Most of the reviews on the NEC at Newegg indicate people are buying the bundled version even in the US. I live in the US btw, would this work for me too and do you know if this advanced menu code works for US models?

Home with the flu, so I've turned the days a bit. I've neglected this thread a bit... :oops:

Ron: Sorry for late reply. I haven't seen it before now. Hope you enjoy your screen and that it was you I answered on dpreview about this screen as well! I'm not taking pictures myself (even point-n-click camera's disagree with me), but I am editing pictures from time to time. Worked much with pictures earlier years as well. Strange, but I can read the composition of a picture and still not take good ones myself even if my life depended on it. :lol:
I won't reveal too much because of internet privacy, but I have seen a couple of thousand pictures (mostly positives/slides) from Northern Australia and must say that its a pearl! No wonder you love landscape pictures. :)

Ixlx: Hi! I'm not sure about the 2180UX model. Usually, the hidden menu's are made active by pressing 2 or 3 buttons. Some screens you need hold one or two buttons and press menu, while others like the 2690 you press when you are inside the menu. The f2304 I also have needed to have buttons pressed while powering on the screen itself. Try out different combinations. It won't hurt the screen anyway.

If to try inside the menu, safest bets are often in the information menu's or similar menu's where there are no option to change things. The 2690 have many hidden options, so don't give up because you found one and it didn't have spectraview on/off. :)

Frag:

No, you are not getting a fully featured one for the price of the locked out one with these methods. You are getting an option to try the monitor lut calibration function for 14-days. The program already gives you an option to try other calibration types for 14-days and this method only gives you an extra testing option. :)

Settings will stay after you delete the program. Actually, the program itself will even work after the 14-days, because of the nasty side effect this method have of making the license permanent. Therefore, you have to delete it manually (or get a new 14-days trial), since you have only legally 14-days. Using it longer, is piracy.

This works for US models as well. But in either case, you need a hardware calibrator. I'd recommend just buying the Spectraview 2 bundle, since its available in US. If I could have ordered it from Norway, I would have, but they have blocked out EU credit cards, so they don't anger NEC Europa...

We can't even buy Spectraview profiler, even though many have requested and I would buy it the moment it became available. :(

NEC would have to do something in the end. They are already aware of this solution, but haven't done anything so far. What we are doing is trying out a legally obtained trial version with a legally obtained 14-days right to use the program. Nothing illegal. Of course, this method CAN be used to illegal purpouses, but so can a kitchen knife be used as well. I'm showing a legal use of this program and have told NEC that if they find anything illegal about this thread, I'll delete it. Hopefully NEC does the thing all us customers want:
DO AS NEC USA AND LET US BUY THIS PROGRAM FOR GODS SAKE! OUR CREDITCARDS ARE POLISHED AND READY! :lol: