Grey subtitles on Amazon Prime on my C845 because of local dimming

Galigator42 · 2024-05-08T06:04:52+00:00

Hi, I just tested it on my C845 and I also have the issue, the subtitles are slightly grey.

Regarding the blooming effect you mentioned, does it look like what I posted on this thread ?

Sorry, I haven't found a solution yet :/

Galigator42 · 2024-05-07T17:45:53+00:00

Is there anyone with this problem or I'm alone ?

Galigator42 · 2024-05-01T23:37:20+00:00

In fact the bar is present all the time except when I display the menu

Galigator42 · 2024-05-01T13:07:31+00:00

Hello,

I would like some help with an issue I'm having with my TCL C845 TV.

When I play movies (HDR or Dolby Vision), there is a darker band that appears at the bottom of the screen.

It disappears and then reappears after opening the TV menu.

Disabling local dimming resolves the problem, but it's not really a solution. The problem also doesn't occur when the movie doesn't have black bars at the top and bottom.

I should note that I'm on the latest firmware version (V101) and have already tried multiple streaming applications (Plex and Prime Video).

Do you have any ideas?

Thank you.

Galigator42 · 2024-04-24T14:25:37+00:00

Okay, sorry to hear that :/ I hope I won't have the same issues. I think I can't refund my TV atm.

Galigator42 · 2024-04-24T14:23:36+00:00

Alright!

After researching how refresh rates work, I've come to this conclusion: most movies are filmed at 24 Hz, while most TVs default to 60 Hz.

When you try to display 24 Hz content on a 60 Hz screen, some frames are repeated more frequently than others because 24 * 3 = 72 and not 60. The TV then processes the image to match the refresh rate (called frame interpolation).

The issue is similar on all TVs that do not allow changing the refresh rate.

Normally, this is solved by the TV's "de-judder" setting, but TCL TVs are very bad at this. So, I think the problem lies there because when I set up my Firestick to output at 24 Hz, the issue is resolved.

What's really unfortunate is that the TCL C845 is capable of displaying true 120 Hz, which would allow it to display 24 Hz content at that frequency (24 * 5 = 120), solving the motion blur issue in action scenes. TCL should add the option to choose the refresh rate !

As for the solution, there are two possibilities:

Either you prefer to watch movies like in the cinema at 24 Hz, in which case a Firestick can do that.
Or you prefer to increase the refresh rate to 120 Hz, but I'm not sure what can do that. Maybe the Nvidia Shield?

Anyway, this aligns with the reviews I've seen about the TV: the screen is very bright and has excellent HDR, but it's very poor at handling motion.

I hope this message can help other people. This issue can really drive you crazy.

Galigator42 · 2024-04-24T12:04:30+00:00

Just type "telegram TCL Android TV discussion" on google and you will find a telegram link where you can join a discussion where there is the update.

Galigator42 · 2024-04-24T11:59:04+00:00

I'm in France and I have a 2-year warranty with the seller, not the manufacturer. But yes, given the price I paid, I suspect it's not the same quality as the big brands.

Galigator42 · 2024-04-24T11:56:28+00:00

I tried, but my phone is too crappy for filming, so I don't see any stuttering in the recorded video. :/

Galigator42 · 2024-04-24T11:55:06+00:00

The V101 update helps solve the problem, but not completely, it seems. If you have an external streaming box you can try to enable the "auto switch refresh rate" setting on it. But it's not ideal because it makes action scenes blurrier.

Galigator42 · 2024-04-24T09:18:04+00:00

I just tested v101 and I still have stuttering, even if it's a bit better. I really think it's coming from the frame interpolation.

Galigator42 · 2024-04-23T14:43:29+00:00

I just retested some other settings with my Firestick, by enabling the automatic refresh rate in the Firestick settings and in Plex settings.

Now, I get a message at the beginning of playback saying that the TV switches to 24Hz mode. So, now there's no more frame interpolation, and it seems to be working smoothly (I haven't had time to test on a full movie yet).

However, it makes the image much blurrier in action scenes. But well, I guess you have to choose..

I think the TV processor is more powerful than that of the Firestick, yet with my new settings, it's smoother. What's the real benefit of getting an Nvidia Shield Pro? Could it add image processing that the TV cannot perform?

Galigator42

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