What Color Space is my Macbook Pro running in?

Question

Level 1

9 points

What Color Space is my Macbook Pro running in?

I am using a late 2011 Macbook Pro (non retina display) with the anti-reflective (non gloss) matte screen.

Using the default system preferences display option of "Color LCD". I am not using an external monitor.

When setting my "interface Monitor" color space in applications such as Assimilate Scratch or DaVinci Resolve, should I be setting it to Linear/sRGB? Rec709?

here are the specs for my macbook pro

https://support.apple.com/kb/SP644?locale=en_US&viewlocale=en_US

It shows it is LED-backlit...

Also, for the new Retina displays, which are OLEDs, by default are they running the same colorspace as my machine???

Posted on Aug 23, 2015 3:48 PM

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Answer 1

wpwood3

Level 1

10 points

Aug 23, 2015 5:26 PM in response to rdmartin

The non-retina Macbook Pro produces about 70% of sRGB.

The Retina Macbook Pro's do close to 100% of sRGB.

https://cdtobie.wordpress.com/2012/06/18/color-gamut-of-retina-display-macbook-p ro/

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Answer 2

rdmartin Author

Level 1

9 points

Aug 26, 2015 4:17 PM in response to wpwood3

Okay so the machine itself will always be running in sRGB?

But likely 99% of macbook users are going to never change the system settings default display setting on their machine which is "Color LCD"

So on that display setting, does that means they are monitoring out Rec709? Since TVs run the broadcast content in that rec709 colorspace - or is it just an easily misleading label and the display is still monitoring out in sRGB?? (thus transforming all content being played regardless of what the color space it was corrected in?)

The attached pic might help seeing my specs on the LEFT hand of the pic.

On the right - it says CUDA not supported.... I thought I had CUDA drive? How to initialize it?

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Answer 3

Aug 26, 2015 6:52 PM in response to rdmartin

CUDA ia an NVIDIA proprietary method for managing the computing in their own GPU's. Unless you have an NVIDIA graphics chip (which you do not) you do not have CUDA and cannot use it.

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Answer 4

rdmartin Author

Level 1

9 points

Aug 27, 2015 1:05 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

No actually do have it.

CUDA is listed in the bottom row of my system preferences and when I click on it's thumbnail the picture box shows up.

It had numerous updates available and actually the playback of vimeo videos at drastically changed - shifts in skin tones and colors.

VLC has also had a slight improvement, however Quicktime 7 and 10 have had no change in playback results\

what the heck is happening?!

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Answer 5

Aug 27, 2015 7:30 PM in response to rdmartin

You have downloaded the CUDA driver, probably directly from NVIDIA. But since you do not have an NVIDIA graphics processor, any results you get are unpredictable, and no one can provide support for it since you do not have the required Hardware.

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Answer 6

rdmartin Author

Level 1

9 points

Aug 27, 2015 7:49 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

well shoot!

Ideal to unistall it then, yes?

How to do so?

Also, can anyone answer my original question:

Okay so the machine itself will always be running in sRGB?

But likely 99% of macbook users are going to never change the system peferences default display setting on their machine which is "Color LCD".

So on that display setting of "Color LDC", is the machine actually monitoring out Rec709? Since TVs run the broadcast content in that rec709 colorspace - or is it just a misleading label and the display is still monitoring out in sRGB on a machine that is formatted in sRGB (or RGB-A)??

Therefore, mac displays do an automatic transform of all video content regardless of what colorspace it is in and regardless of the media player the content is being viewed with simply into sRGB????

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Answer 7

Aug 27, 2015 8:15 PM in response to rdmartin

No one is using the signals to the captive display for broadcast. There is no physical way to do that.

Each and every output device has a custom color profile based on the color gamut of that specific display. The standard sRGB is modified with this profile before it is displayed to you on that display. If you add an additional display, it would have a different color profile, and output to that display would be modified by its color profile before you see it.

If you do not like the way the screen looks, you can use the "calibrate" tab to make some adjustments.

Even printers have a color profile (but most users do not bother with them unless using their printer for proofing magazine covers.)

If you added Hardware that output to broadcast, it would also have a color profile to adjust it to whatever standard you require.

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Answer 8

rdmartin Author

Level 1

9 points

Aug 28, 2015 12:18 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

I just deleted CUDA - it is no longer in the preferences pane along with all files associated with it have been deleted.

However, the playback of my files while using vimeo, on the browser of firefox and google chrome did not revert back to their original color representation.

Could it actually be that vimeo internally did some changes to their playback settings the very day I updated CUDA and so I just presumed CUDA was the culprit?....haha an unlikely coincidence.

Thank you Grant for the response. I now understand that my macbook pro display has an internal color profile that interprets and displays media of certain color spaces in such a way in order to be as closely decoded as possible to that standard depending on what you are monitoring out.

So then my final question remains: If I am using this Macbook and it's built-in display to look at media.... in a program such as SCRATCH ASSIMILATE (which is a color space agnostic program) (unlike DaVinici resolve which runs in sRGB)..... and I am using the "Color LCD" display profile.... I have to set the "monitor" color space to a profile of rec709 OR Lin/sRGB?

Checkout the screenshot of my display profile

THANK YOU!!!

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