p.1 #1 · Monitor calibration Spyder 4 vs ColorMunki vs i1display pro vs old Huey
So I'm running an old Samsung Syncmaster 216bw and using a Huey to calibrate it.
Light/Dark seems to be a bigger issue than colors, but I keep wondering.
Been looking at the Colormunki Display, or the i1Display Pro as they have rebates, but wondering if I should be spending money on a new monitor instead (tight economy)
Any thoughts on the calibration tools mentioned in the Subject line?
p.1 #2 · Monitor calibration Spyder 4 vs ColorMunki vs i1display pro vs old Huey
Brainstorming here. The cheapest solution for light/dark issues could be to simply adjust your monitor's brightness in a stepwise fashion, adjusting the exposure of your image so it looks ok, then save it as a jpeg labeled for with brightness level. Send them off for prints and pick the one that looks right. It is a bit time consuming but only costs you the prints. So for a tight budget this should work.
I am not familiar with the Huey.
I have a Spyder 4 and like it a great deal.
If you buy a new monitor that is not pre-calibrated, you will still have brightness issues since monitors out of the box can be too bright for photo editing.
p.1 #3 · Monitor calibration Spyder 4 vs ColorMunki vs i1display pro vs old Huey
IMHO buy a calibration tool first (datacolor Spider is the most economical I think) as better to have an old calibrated monitor than a new non calibrated; the pre-calibrated and the self-calibrating variety tend to be the more expensive quality monitors so a calibration tool invariably comes as the cheapest option. Not to mention that monitors tend to drift with time and have to be recalibrated at intervals , hence a factory pre-calibrated monitor solves nothing in the long term.
Btw, I have an old Spider (2Pro), which was part of the print suite. Never had problems, both the printer and the monitor profiler worked flawlessly, and whenever I had a question Datacolor support was always quick to respond.
p.1 #4 · Monitor calibration Spyder 4 vs ColorMunki vs i1display pro vs old Huey
You don't mention if there's anything wrong with your current monitor or Huey.
I got a Spyder 4 Express yesterday (excellent birthday gift!). I was a bit worried as to how it would adjust the monitor, as I have a cheapo Dell s2409w sRGB TN panel. No wide gamut for me.
After running the software, I like the results. It definitely looks better and my eyes were waaay off, especially in the brightness and darkness.
The limitations of the Spyder4 Express were fine for me. I only have one monitor and the gamma was fine for me. If there is nothing wrong with your current monitor, I'd keep it. If you get a new one, you can send me your old one as a birthday gift
