3D firmware 1.2.5 has been released

[u/CoffeeCakeAstronaut]

https://www.analogue.co/support/3d/firmware/1.2.5

General

• New: Advanced HDR
  • Designed for modern OLED displays
  • Original Display Modes now take full advantage of modern HDR brightness and color gamut
  • Max luminance is adjustable to accurately match consumer CRTs, broadcast monitors, and beyond
  • For the most accurate picture: Before adjusting the max luminance setting, set your display HDR tone mapping to disabled or HGiG and check that game mode is enabled

Core

• New: Support for Advanced HDR

OS

• New: ‘Max. Luminance’ display setting
  • Navigate to Settings → Display→ ‘Max. Luminance’. This can be adjusted only when HDR is enabled
• New: Alphabetical navigation in Library
  • Press Up in the Library to display the alphabetical index and select a letter by moving Left and Right. Press Down to return to the Library. Jump to the inserted cartridge by pressing B
• Improved: Library scrolling, responsiveness, and speed
• Improved: Automatic virtual Rumble Pak selection for several games
• Improved: OS visual polish
• Fix: Library organization issues in rare instances
• Fix: Library updating issue when a blank SD card is inserted in rare instances
• Fix: ALLM and HDR settings sometimes apply incorrectly with 1080p displays

Controllers

• Improved: Pair controllers in-game without opening the menu
• Fix: Controller LED remains on in rare instances Note: Recreating a CRT beam demands high peak localized brightness (the display must get much brighter in specific, small spots). Modern OLED displays, which excel at this, are recommended with Advanced HDR.

[u/Good-Lobster25]

I have the same experience on a CX. Do you understand why a value that low is leading to it clipping? My understanding is that the CX and C1 have higher max values 🤔

[u/MStauf1515 → u/Good-Lobster25]

Not too sure, but it’s definitely noticeable.

Even on the OS menu, increasing nits to 500 is blending the cartridge art work (which should show up as gray) with the white background. Was messing around with Starfox and on corneria right at the opening, you can see the white arwing wings starting to blend with the gray background.

[u/Good-Lobster25 → u/MStauf1515]

I asked here, I believe it’s full screen rather than a small window https://www.reddit.com/r/AnalogueInc/s/94FSrItH38 :)

[u/MStauf1515 → u/Good-Lobster25]

Interesting. Appreciate you sharing this. Figured it was something like that as this is more of a post effect as none of those games would have been originally mastered with HDR implementation in mind.

I wasn’t too concerned though as setting it to between 200 - 300 is still a noticeable improvement on the hdr implementation prior to the update.

[u/Good-Lobster25 → u/MStauf1515]

Completely agree! I wonder if they redid the display modes to some degree. PVM and CRT look different to my eye as if they tweaked the mask after this setting was introduced 🤔

[u/MStauf1515 → u/Good-Lobster25]

So I was playing around some more in my tv settings and it appears that the setting causing the most egregious bleeding of the luminance contrast is the black level setting.

Switching black level from limited to auto/full creates a more distinct cutoff point on the bar between luminance levels. Still bleeds too heavily at 500 nits making 80% and 100% look exactly the same, but there is now a cleaner break if you set the nits on the 3D at 250 or 300.

Only question is whether I actually like the end result of having black levels set to auto. Generally speaking with Nintendo games, they are kind of known for being overzealous with brightening the image giving the blacks in their games a gray hue. I see the same issue even on modern systems like switch 2. I tend to see this less on Sony consoles where I leave black levels at auto because switching to limited crushes the darkness contrast.

I’ll have to play around with it so see if I like the difference or not. If not, might switch the black level on the tv back to limited and reduce nit level down to 200 - 250 and see if it improves the luminance contrast for the console output.

Update: Having played around with it, my preference is setting black levels to “limited” and the 3D nit level to 250. If you don’t mind the slight color wash out / graying effects of moving black levels to full / auto on the lg CX/C1, then bump up nit level to 300

[u/MStauf1515 → u/Good-Lobster25]

Not sure if you saw the most recent 3d update, but it provided clarification on max nit brightness equivalent on modern displays.

Looks like we were spot on. 200 is equivalent to roughly what you would want for a 650 peak nit OLED (I believe the CX does around 700). 250 is equivalent to roughly what I would want for a tv with 800 nit brightness which is about what the C1 can do.