Reddit reviews Antec Bias Lighting for HDTV with 51.1-Inch Cable (Reduce eye fatigue and increase image clarity)

Just wanted to give a big thanks to all the helpful people here who are so willing to share their knowledge, and to u/ZeosPantera for his handy guides.

This was the very first project I wanted to complete in our new house, and considering the delays due to missing/wrong pieces for the furniture, my reluctance to punch holes in the walls in our new place, and so on, it was a bit of a pain to take on. My main goals were to keep it simple, modern, and clean, and I think I managed it well enough.

It's a basic setup, and I know there are some taboo things people will point out (e.g. speakers too close to the corners/walls, non O2-free copper-clad wire, etc), but the important thing is that I'm happy with it. I don't plan on changing much for years to come (unless you guys end up pointing out something that ends up bothering the crap out of me). It looks and sounds great - even the wife loves it, despite her initial skepticism when I first told her my plan (probably the most important thing).

So many thanks to everyone in this subreddit for being awesome, and let me know what you guys think.

As requested, here are the components.

TV:

• 65" Vizio M652i-B2
  
  
• Sanus Systems LL11-B1 Mount
  
  
• Antec Bias Lighting for HDTV (for giggles)
  
  Audio:
  
  
• Marantz NR1403 AV Receiver
  
  
• Energy 5.1 Take Classic Speakers
  
  
• Astro A50's Surround Sound Wireless Gaming Headset (for the wee hours of the night)
  
  Media console:
  
  
• A modified combination of a 3-unit and a 1-unit Ikea Besta TV benches (as opposed to the regular frames which don't have cable management). A bit of an elaboration on this: I say this is modified because out of the box, if you want to mount them to the wall, they rely on drywall anchors (f that s). So I changed out the hanging brackets and drilled some new holes to accommodate the Ikea Akurum Suspension Rails that are normally used for kitchen cabinets -waaaaay more secure when you're actually going into the studs. Add some miscellaneous doors and drawers and you end up with what I built.
  
  Edit: Parts list and links added! And formatting.

Yeah, 6500k. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007TG5EG8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_Z0MAzbG2AR1DS
I got these guys for $10, USB powered and just comes in white at the right temp

https://www.amazon.com/Antec-Lighting-HDTV-51-1-Inch-increase/dp/B007TG5EG8

Looks good! For anyone else, I grabbed these for cheap if you don't care about changing the color:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007TG5EG8

one long strip you just wrap around the back edge of the monitor with included self-adhesive tape. Great on the eyes in a dark room.

Yep. 5 bucks at Amazon.

Yeah! Here's a great example. They often go on sale. Just add that strip to the back of your TV and plug it into the USB (so it's on when the TV is on). I've had it for a year and love it.

Here's a photo of the effect.


Best of luck on the couch too!

Just picked up this string on Amazon recently, it seems to work well.

A few points to address your questions.

• What you're referring to is bias lighting, and it has the effect of tricking your eyes to perceiving a higher contrast ratio. Here's an example of a set: http://www.amazon.com/Antec-HDTV-51-1-Inch-BIAS-LIGHTING/dp/B007TG5EG8
  
  
• Contrast ratio is THE most important component of picture quality (contrast ratio is defined as the brightest the TV gets divided by the darkest blacks). Plasma has typically had higher contrast ratios than similarly price LCD's and are thus lauded for their performance/dollar ratio. They also have better motion handling, but generally speaking, they don't get as bright as LCD's so excessive ambient light can be an issue with plasma.
  
  
• OLED is a technology that allows for 0 blacks. Remember our definition of contrast ratio? 0 is now in the denominator; OLED has effectively an 'infinite' contrast ratio which makes the technology so exciting and the picture quality of OLED so superb. Wait for prices to come down for it and the technology to mature, however.
  
  
• Unless you have a huge screen or sit very close, 4K is probably not worth it at the moment unless the price difference isn't all that much. There's not a ton of 4k content available right now, although it's coming along.
  
  
• To minimize input lag for gaming, use the television's "Game Mode," which turns off all unnecessary video processing that can add lag.
  
  
• A note about calibration: calibration assures you get the same image that the producer of the content intended: ie, the colors you see are the same colors he or she meant for the scene. That is what is meant by a set having accurate colors, how closely it can be calibrated to resemble the director's intent for the program. This is largely a personal preference, whether someone prefers accurate, calibrated colors or not, but once you get used to a calibrated display, all those "vivid" or "dynamic" modes seem entirely too fake and "blue." These modes are used in store to attract attention, but they're not accurate and the colors are blown up and artificial looking. A 'real' calibration is mostly done by a professional calibrator unless you have your own tools, like a colorimeter. You can get close to a calibrated display by changing the set to "movie" or "cinema" mode and using a calibration disk (such as Disney's WOW disk) to tweak the settings further. Additionally, there are many picture settings online for specific TV models and although this might get you closer to a truly calibrated picture, each set is a little different and the same settings aren't guaranteed to get you a perfect result. For most users though, the aforementioned options will be fine. Hiring a good calibrator will run you a few hundred bucks and simply not worth it for the casual home theater enthusiast.

Ne ho una della Antec (stessa Antec dei case per PC), alimentata via USB quindi si spegne e accende da sola con la TV.

Fa bella scena, aumenta la percezione di profondità del nero, e riposa la vista poiché le pupille si dilatano e restringono meno spesso in presenza di una luce bianca costante. Consigliata.

i'm gonna pick up this after seeing yours. It doesn't do the same thing, but it has the best reviews and looks pretty cool. and it's cheap as hell. lol.

I bought this set since my TV doesn't have USB. I paid $10 more, so this is a great deal. I turn it on every time I turn on the TV. The extra length allows me to bend it around the edges for an even tone around the frame.

Your next purchase should be some Bias Lighting. It will look pretty and your eyes will love you.

Don't know about Hue light strips. I'm using a cheap bias light. Its fairly flexible but I didn't try bending it at the corners. Mine goes straight across the back. I just trimmed it to length. One day I'll replace it with a Hue strip when it goes on a decent sale.

If you are looking for a standard light behind the TV, (not one that changes colors), I use this one https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007TG5EG8/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Plugs into my TV USB port for power, and turns on when the TV does. Cheap solution that works for me.

I just got This usb bias lighting from amazon. I haven't set it finalized attachment to the tv yet, but it seems like it'll be nice because it is powered by the USB port on my tv, so it turns on and off with the tv.

I'm very happy with this one on my 75" TV: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007TG5EG8/

My TV is wall mounted, but there is a TV stand/media center beneath it to house all the electronics, so I have the Bias lighting placed 3/4 of the way up across the back of the TV. I don't care to have lighting beneath the TV, but it still diffuses down quite a bit. I also had to pull the TV out a little bit, otherwise it was too bright for my liking, and it gets better diffusion this way.

It's just lights, man. It's not something you "do to the TV". Lights are merely placed behind a TV/monitor, usually attached to back of the monitor itself to reflect on the surface behind it. The purpose is to increase the ambient light around the screen without shining more light on the screen itself or directly in your eyes. Some plug into the TV/monitor and get their power that way. Some have a battery pack. You could get lights designed and marketed for it or DIY pretty easily with LED christmas lights and some tape, or anything really.

Have you considered trying out led lights on the back of the monitors instead of the lamp?

Something like, http://www.amazon.com/Antec-HDTV-51-1-Inch-BIAS-LIGHTING/dp/B007TG5EG8

One of these would make a nice glow behind the tv if you're looking to get something to replace the net

https://www.amazon.com/Antec-Lighting-HDTV-51-1-Inch-increase/dp/B007TG5EG8/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1469744165&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=Antec+Bias+Lighting+for+HDTV

Something like this is a cheap, easy way to see if bias lighting works for you

http://www.amazon.com/Antec-HDTV-51-1-Inch-BIAS-LIGHTING/dp/B007TG5EG8/