MediaLight Mk2 Flex TV Bias Lighting Review & Comments

Never yet used my ambilight with just white. I much prefer it following the onscreen colours. I am unsure why you make a distinction between gaming and watching a film.
 
Installed my first set of white bias lighting almost 6 years ago as the blacks on my new TV at the time just weren’t very good and wow what a difference it made and now I can’t watch TV without it.

Even with the perfect blacks that OLED can offer I still planned to get a new strip when I upgraded but trying to get one as close to 6500k has been a bit of a minefield over the years (cool white was too blue and warm white was too yellow however both were advertised as being close to 6500k by the respective sellers) but will definitely go with one of these sets.
 
Never yet used my ambilight with just white. I much prefer it following the onscreen colours. I am unsure why you make a distinction between gaming and watching a film.
This is explained in the article.
Although it should be stressed that only the ISF neutral white Ambilight setting is strictly bias lighting,
...
The idea is to have a neutral white light behind the TV that equates to D65 (6500K), which is the industry standard for white in terms of video production, distribution and reproduction. A lamp or a DIY solution almost certainly won’t be as accurate, and thus the bias light around the screen could adversely affect how you perceive colours on the screen.
Hi @Steve Withers. This is not the cheapest solution.I've been using Luminoodle for a couple of years now. It doesn't have a remote, but other than that is basically the same thing. It only costs 20 quid.

... but trying to get one as close to 6500k has been a bit of a minefield over the years (cool white was too blue and warm white was too yellow however both were advertised as being close to 6500k by the respective sellers) but will definitely go with one of these sets.
That is an issue. Apparently my one is not exactly 6500K either. But it seems to work well.
 
This is not the cheapest solution. I've been using Luminoodle for a couple of years now. It doesn't have a remote, but other than that is basically the same thing. It only costs 20 quid.
I never said it was the cheapest option, but it's definitely the most accurate and convenient. And as you say it comes with a remote control that allows you to adjust the brightness. For £50 to £90, depending on the size of your screen, you really can't fault the MediaLight for value.
 
I had the original MediaLight Mk1. It's a well designed high quality product.

Unfortunately it's no use with display panels that fit close to the wall (such as with Samsung's No-Gap wall mount bracket). Display panels need to be at least 3 to 4 inches from the wall to allow the light from LEDs to diffuse evenly. I ended up with "hot spots" around the display which were too distracting.

Being able to bend the Mk2 LED strip through 90 degrees is genius as it allows a single power cable rather than the 4-way rat's nest of the original.
 
I never said it was the cheapest option, but it's definitely the most accurate and convenient. And as you say it comes with a remote control that allows you to adjust the brightness. For £50 to £90, depending on the size of your screen, you really can't fault the MediaLight for value.
If I was looking for one now, this would be my preferred option because of the remote and accuracy. As for convenience, to me they are about the same. It looks almost identical and both are flexible and usb powered. It's decent value for what it is but I would argue Luminoodle is better value overall.
 
@Steve Withers Thanks for the Review. Regarding the Wall colour, I imagine there are many people who will use this in a living-room situation rather than a dedicated Home Cinema Room, and so the wall behind might not be white or Grey. As LED's are nowadays capable of producing a nearly infinite range of colours, it would be great if this company also offered a plug-in inline sensor which would look at the actual colour temperature of the light being reflected off the wall, & adjust the LED strip colour output to produce an actual reflected colour close to 6500k. (I appreciate that this would not work on a patterened wallpaper). Could that work?
 
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Sounds interesting. Might take the punt on this.
So, for a 65 inch OLED screen... should I go for the £90 version (6 m)?
 
Sounds interesting. Might take the punt on this.
So, for a 65 inch OLED screen... should I go for the £90 version (6 m)?


Screen size to length requied guide at near the bottom.
 
I've had the Medialight Mk1 unopened in its box since I bought my LG E6. The calibrator advised it and I've no doubt he's right. Just didn't seem necessary though. We typically watch in blackout or almost so on an OLED would it improve contrast? And behind the screen is partly painted a dark colour so not sure what that would do to reflected light. Anyone feel strongly that I should bother or should I try to sell it?
 
I have my 50" TV on a stand and I would want it on three sides and not all the way around. The display is situated in front of our main lounge window but obviously when it gets dark the curtains are closed. The curtains themselves are a sort of light oatmealy colour. Anyway according to them I would only need a two metre length. This is specifically because of the display being on its stand, which would also cover me for when this TV eventually packs up and I go for a 65 incher. Hopefully this won't happen for a long time yet as it's a 3D capable one, a Panny VT30 and I like my 3D Blu-rays. The price when this length becomes available, and direct from them, will be £49.99 which given its pedigree is fair and reasonable.
 
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I've had the Medialight Mk1 unopened in its box since I bought my LG E6. The calibrator advised it and I've no doubt he's right. Just didn't seem necessary though. We typically watch in blackout or almost so on an OLED would it improve contrast? And behind the screen is partly painted a dark colour so not sure what that would do to reflected light. Anyone feel strongly that I should bother or should I try to sell it?
Tough one to answer and highly subjective I think.
Bias lighting definitely makes it easier on the eyes, but I always feel it reduces perceived contrast on an OLED no matter how dim I make it. Blacks always seem to be infused with the faintest wash of the wall colour to me. As I said it’s very faint and maybe my imagination, but the effect disappears in a blacked out room.
Wall colour also seems critical to me. Ours are an ivory colour, so presumably the colour temperature will be warmer than intended as a result. There is no way i could get away with painting the walls grey. Don’t think I’d want to tbh.

I’d suggest trying it for yourself though. There’s no need to fix it to the TV, just put it loose behind the TV for testing purposes. You can repack if you decide to sell or fix it properly if you like it.
 
Tough one to answer and highly subjective I think.
Bias lighting definitely makes it easier on the eyes, but I always feel it reduces perceived contrast on an OLED no matter how dim I make it. Blacks always seem to be infused with the faintest wash of the wall colour to me. As I said it’s very faint and maybe my imagination, but the effect disappears in a blacked out room.
Wall colour also seems critical to me. Ours are an ivory colour, so presumably the colour temperature will be warmer than intended as a result. There is no way i could get away with painting the walls grey. Don’t think I’d want to tbh.

I’d suggest trying it for yourself though. There’s no need to fix it to the TV, just put it loose behind the TV for testing purposes. You can repack if you decide to sell or fix it properly if you like it.
That's very helpful, thanks. Decision made, will be up in the classifieds when I get around to it. Main wall colour is teal so dread to think what that would do!
 
Looks like a no brainer for me and cost is not a factor when considering how much our respective displays cost.
 
Love mine :D

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And they weren't kidding about accuracy, I measured a dE of ~0.2 off my wall :eek:
 
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Will shortly be repainting the room with the tv and as only me watches it you have now got me thinking of painting the wall behind the tv grey. Thinking of it will go nice with the anthracite radiator in there.
 
Very interesting they suggest BS colour 00 A 11. RAL 000 45 0 is an exact equivalent . Will need to see how much a tin of matt emulsion would cost. Probably have to buy a tin that would do 10 coats.
 
Bias lighting definitely makes it easier on the eyes, but I always feel it reduces perceived contrast on an OLED no matter how dim I make it. Blacks always seem to be infused with the faintest wash of the wall colour to me. As I said it’s very faint and maybe my imagination, but the effect disappears in a blacked out room.

As I've never experienced eyestrain when watching TV, I'm not sure I've any need for this.

It's certainly true that TVs are brighter than projectors. But if you're watching a very dark scene on an OLED with some areas of black, this light will light up walls, which will reflect on to your TV screen, which will make blacks a dark grey. And near-black information, below the level of light reflecting on the screen will disappear.

One of the other things I love about OLEDs is the invisibility of different aspect ratios. If you watch (for example) a 2.35:1 film on a 16:9 OLED in the dark, you can't see the black bars, you just see the image. This greatly improves the viewing experience for me, and was immediately clear right from the very first material I watched. This light would ruin that effect.
 
Very interesting they suggest BS colour 00 A 11. RAL 000 45 0 is an exact equivalent . Will need to see how much a tin of matt emulsion would cost. Probably have to buy a tin that would do 10 coats.
I went and got mine mixed at Wickes at the Dulux machine, works great :smashin:
 
re: OLED and Bias Lighting

 
Never yet used my ambilight with just white. I much prefer it following the onscreen colours. I am unsure why you make a distinction between gaming and watching a film.
Thank you Steve. Yes I am purchasing this for my 65in Wallmounted Sony AF9. I couldn’t get on with the previous version which had many cables that were just too awkward to manage. However this design is easier to manage and install.
 

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