Monitor Calibration on Dual Monitors

Question

Monitor Calibration on Dual Monitors

I'm having an issue with calibration on two Apple 23" Cinema Displays. It's a dual monitor setup on my Mac Pro. I'm using a Huey Pro monitor calibrator.

Following the procedure using the Huey Pro software, I calibrate the first monitor, then drag the calibration program to the second display and calibrate it. The result is that both calibration profiles that are created are for the calibration of the first monitor only.

In other words, it seems to overwrite the second profile with the first profile's data.

I've tried calibrating one, then quitting the application, launching again, and calibrating the second monitor, but still get the same results.

I'm able to somewhat remedy the issue by calibrating four times. I calibrate both, using the left monitor first, then the right one. Then I calibrate again starting with the right monitor first, then the left one. That leaves me with four profiles, but only one good profile for each monitor.

Pantone claims that this is an issue with Apple and the way the system handles color profiles. I think it might have something to do with the fact that both monitors are the same model.

I brought my Huey Pro up to my work where I have two different brands of monitors set up in dual display format, and it had no issue calibrating the monitors.

Is this just a simple oversight by Apple or poor software for the Huey Pro? I'm sure there are other designers or people who have color corrected two of the same display types before.

This issue existed for me in Leopard and now in Snow Leopard.

Mac Pro 2 x 3 ghz, Mac OS X (10.6.1), 8gb RAM

Posted on Oct 12, 2009 11:54 AM

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Answer 1

dechamp

Level 4

3,495 points

Oct 12, 2009 12:56 PM in response to Andrew Burwell

Does the calibration software allow you to name the profile so that they are not overwritten?

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Answer 2

Oct 12, 2009 1:11 PM in response to dechamp

Yes, I'm able to name them two separate things. Two profiles show up in the control panel, but the actual profiles themselves only contain color data for first monitor calibrated.

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Answer 3

Oct 13, 2009 2:05 PM in response to Andrew Burwell

Anyone else have any ideas?

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Answer 4

Dec 2, 2009 11:05 AM in response to Andrew Burwell

I also have two ACD 23" displays connected to my MacPro. I have been using Moncaco OptixPro to calibrate both monitors. I have noticed in SL my monitors appear "washed out", colors are less vibrant and everything looks faded compared to Leopard 10.5.8. I have tried recalibrating using Monaco OptixPro in SL but both monitors still look washed out. What I have noticed though in SL is this...

If I choose the profile that I created for each monitor, both monitors appear washed out. If I then choose the default monitor profile for the LEFT monitor, it actually affects the right monitor also - the RIGHT monitor will get slightly brighter! So it seems that SL is somehow confusing the two monitors.

Changing the monitor color profile for one display should NOT affect the secondary display... am I right? I did not experience this behavior in Leopard 10.5.8.

I currently have SL installed on an external Firewire drive for testing purposes, until the monitor color profiles issues get resolved. I reverted back to 10.5.8 on my main drive.

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Answer 5

Dec 2, 2009 11:06 AM in response to shawnotay

I forgot to state that I had previously been calibrating my monitors to gamma 2.2 - I've always calibrated my displays to gamma 2.2.

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Answer 6

Dec 2, 2009 11:08 AM in response to Andrew Burwell

I forgot to mention that I've always calibrated my monitors using gamma 2.2.

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Answer 7

danegeld

Level 2

185 points

Dec 2, 2009 2:09 PM in response to Andrew Burwell

I've also had nothing but problems with my Huey Pro software. Most of the time, it won't even recognize that I have two monitors and when it does, the calibration fails or it produces the same profile for both screens. Pantone has been no help at all. I've chalked the Huey Pro off as a bad investment.

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Answer 8

Timoluka

Level 1

0 points

Jan 7, 2010 12:25 PM in response to shawnotay

Have you had any resolution of this problem? I can confirm that I'm also experiencing this problem. When using multiple monitors, It seems that colorsync asserts the gamma curve from the profile for the primary monitor (the default specified in the arrange panel under the displays pref pane) over the secondary monitor. In other words, switching between different colour profiles for the primary monitor invariably affects the gamma displayed by the secondary monitor. Resultingly, whichever monitor contains the OS X finder toolbar is the only monitor which displays color correctly, obliterating a multi-monitor design workflow where both screens need to be accurate.

This should NOT be happening - must be a nasty colorsync bug.

In 10.5.*, the user was able to arbitrarily define the primary monitor (under colorsync utility) regardless of the toolbar positioning (under displays), and 10.5.* did not suffer from this gamma-shift issue.

In 10.6.*, the aforementioned functionality is gone, implying that assignment of color profiles in a multi-screen setup is handled differently (erroneously) by colorsync, effectively making color-accurate work across multiple different screens (MBP/iMac + external screen, for example) impossible.

Anyone have any idea about recourse for this issue?

Message was edited by: timichango

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Answer 9

Jan 8, 2010 8:14 PM in response to Andrew Burwell

I have a 23" Cinema Display and an Eizo CG222W running on a Mac Pro with 10.6.2.

In the Display preference panel, I chose to move the tool bar to the display I wanted to calibrate with Apple or Eye-One calibration and that is the display that was calibrated. Then move the tool bar to the other display and calibrate it.

I still can't calibrate the Eizo with their software but that's another issue. It is a major 10.6.2 glitch, IMHO.

Bill

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Answer 10

Timoluka

Level 1

0 points

Jan 9, 2010 7:10 PM in response to William Abbott

Hi William,

The problem isn't creating the calibration - I used the same procedure that you described (using a Spyder colorimeter) in order to generate the profiles for each monitor. The problem is that starting with snow-leopard, these profiles DON'T seem to be getting applied independently to the respective displays.

To reiterate the behaviour I'm seeing: Display 1 (mbp) and Display 2 (dell 2408) have been independantly calibrated, and have the correct profiles assigned. no problem there. The problem is that when I change the profile for display 1, the gamma on display 2 shifts visibly; it's as if the color response curves for display 2 are being respected, but it's gamma response is being over-ridden by the profile for display 1.

If I switch the finder tool bar over to display 2 (effectively making the dell display 1, and the mbp display 2) this behaviour is inverted; changing the profile for the dell affects the gamma on the mbp.

This DID NOT happen under leopard 10.5.X - profiles were applied independently to the respective displays, and consequently both were color managed correctly under color managed applications (such as Photoshop). As of snow leopard, only one screen at a time (the primary) is properly profiled, killing a 2-screen color managed workflow that used work.

Any idea how we can compel Apple to fix what they've negligently broken here?

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Answer 11

Jan 11, 2010 12:53 PM in response to Timoluka

Hi-
I am not having that behavior you describe with my Cinema display (#1) and an Eizo (#2). The Display pane in System Preferences Opens two panels, one on each monitor and each display can be set to its calibrated profile, which will remain with it when the Tool Bar is moved from one to the other. This is in 10.6.2 on a Mac Pro with two video cards, one for each display.

My problem has been unwanted orange or magenta coloration of the entire Eizo screen after calibrating it with i1 or Eizo software, all of the latest, 10.6 compatible issues.

I hooked the Eizo up to my old 2.0 GHz G5 PowerMac with 10.5.8 and had the same coloration problem.The only commonality among the two was the display and the software, as I only ran the Eizo calibration (of the appropriate variety, for 10.5) and had the same orange coloration problem.

Today I found a newer, 10.6 compatible diagnostic test tool for my i1 Display2 calibration device and it passed that test. I then calibrated both displays with i! software and so far have seen the magenta cast on the Eizo in the Calibrated Mode.

So I still don't know entirely what is happening except that I cannot seem to calibrate my Eizo display, which I bought to match prints to the display after a long and painful siege trying to produce a useable b&w print using an Epson printer and the Cinema display.

We'll see what happens next.

Bill

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Answer 12

Jan 15, 2010 7:41 PM in response to Andrew Burwell

I have a macbookpro 15 with SnowLeopard and am running a secondary brand new Dell U2410 monitor (best I could afford) I tried using my huey calibrater with no success after trying to print on my r2400 epson and now finally found a dell tech who helped me find the manual calibration tool for the u2410 I was then able to achieve a perfect identical screen appearance but when printing all dark areas that have great detail are printed very muddy and without detail. When I hooked my new monitor and printer up to my old Dell xps 600 the image on screen was almost exactly like the print from the macbookpro/Dell u2410 monitor. the Epson tech who was helping me at the time said "Oh yes, well that must be what the photo file actually is!" in other words implying that the combination Macbookpro/Dell U2410 makes me appear to be a better photographer LOL!, and that the real photo file is not good! Of course I refuse to believe that as a good file apperance on screen is because it is a good photo so I am at a loss as to what is happening?

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Answer 13

Jan 15, 2010 11:09 PM in response to William Abbott

Hi-

Here is the resolution to my problem of inability to calibrate two monitors, a 23" Apple Cinema Display and an Eizo CG222W display, running on a new Mac Pro with 2 video cards and OS 10.6.2.

It turned out that my 3 year old Eye-One Display 2 Rev A device was faulty, even though it passed the Eye-One Diagnostic test with flying colors. A new Eye-One Display 2 (now Rev B) did the trick and the two displays look very, very similar, and when I open the profiles and look at the gamuts, the white points are identical, as they should be, but the gamut of the Eizo is much larger, as it should be.
I am using Eye-One Match v 3.6.3, which is compatible with Snow Leopard.

Good luck to you all,

Bill

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Answer 14

Tim3308

Level 3

556 points

Feb 21, 2010 6:14 PM in response to Andrew Burwell

Yep, dual display work flow got reamed w/Snow Leopard, who woulda thunk it... at this stage in the game something so basic to Mac loyalists would become a pain in the rear?

Check out the Adobe run Photoshop CS4 forums. Adobe has publicly come out and laid this at apple's feet, stating that they are working w/Apple to fix the issues w/ Snow Leopard like mine -- my Eizo does not have the menu bar, my ACD does -- in photoshop, and other apps, the colors are horrid in the "menu bar" display(ACD). Its like the profiles were doubled — colors are all "goosed". Only the Eizo display colors, calibrated by ColorEyes Display Pro and Spyder3, can be trusted. So far there is no work around and no answer, it just is. Apple broke their own previously solid dual display system (colors are basically goosed & off all over 10.6.2, Preview, etc., unless an app can respect color management like PS, in the one monitor the OS will let it).

I certainly hope the forthcoming 10.6.3 is the answer -- anybody heard specifically?

Message was edited by: Tim3308

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Answer 15

Tim3308

Level 3

556 points

Mar 30, 2010 9:18 AM in response to Tim3308

10.6.3 seems to have fixed the dual display color issues in Snow Leopard, when the OpenGl pref is checked in PS CS4. Good news, but, unfortunately other 3rd party apps like Painter 11, will not show correct colors on the 2nd display.

As you would imagine this not helping the work flow for graphic folks and 2 displays.

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