Calman Client3 is a calibration utility application that is used with Calman to help create and manage monitor calibration profiles on Windows and Mac computers. Calman Client3 is always installed on the same computer as the monitor to be calibrated. Both a Windows version and a Mac version of Client3 are available.
Client 3 System Requirements:
- Windows System Requirements: Windows Vista or later, with latest operating system updates installed.
- Mac System Requirements: Macintosh® OS X 10.8 to 10.13 (Client3 may not launch in 10.14 Mojave, future updates will address this)
Client 3 Use Cases
RGB Monitor Profile Calibration
The primary use for Client 3 is calibrating RGB computer monitors that are normally driven from the standard graphics adapter on a Windows or Mac computer. The graphics adapter drives these monitors with a full range of RGB signal levels (0-255/8-bit; 0-1023/10-bit).
Calman Client 3 serves three main functions when calibrating these RGB computer monitors:
- It functions as a test pattern source, producing appropriate test patterns on a monitor under test, as commanded by Calman.
- It functions for display control, receiving calibration data from Calman and writing the data to a monitor profile in the computer operating system.
- It functions as a monitor profile manager, running as a resident menu bar or taskbar app on the target computer to manage monitor profiles that have been created, including loading the current profile at system startup/sleep awaken and allowing end users to easily switch between available monitor profiles.
Calman calibrates RGB computer monitors by creating a 1D LUT grayscale ramp and an ICC color profile. It writes this calibration data to a selected monitor profile in the target computer’s operating system.
Non-Profile Calibration
Another use for Client 3 is calibrating RGB monitors or projectors that are normally driven from the standard graphics adapter on a Windows or Mac computer, but that aren’t being calibrated by creating and saving a monitor profile to the computer operating system.
The monitor or projector may instead be calibrated by adjusting controls within the display itself. Or, the display may be calibrated by creating a 3D calibration LUT and loading the LUT data into the display or into a LUT processor in the input signal path.
In this case, Client 3 will be used only as a Calman-controlled test pattern source, producing test patterns on the display under test as required. The operator might then make manual adjustments to the display or might use Calman to automatically create a calibration LUT.
Video Monitor Calibration
A video monitor may be driven by a computer through a video output adapter (e.g. AJA or Blackmagic Design). The video output adapter converts the computer RGB output signal to a YCC video signal with a limited (SMPTE) range of signal levels (16-235, 8-bit; 64-940, 10-bit).
Calman Client 3 cannot address monitors that are driven by a computer through a video output adapter. To calibrate one of these computer-driven video monitors, you will need an alternate test pattern source.
One alternate test pattern source could be SpectraCal VirtualForge software. VirtualForge runs on the target computer (Windows or Mac) and controls the AJA or Blackmagic video output adapter to produce reference level test patterns. Calman connects to VirtualForge over the local network to automatically switch test patterns as required.
Another test pattern source could be a hardware pattern generator, such as the SpectraCal VideoForge PRO. During calibration, the video monitor would be disconnected from the video output adapter and instead connected to the signal output of the pattern generator. Calman would then connect to the generator to automatically switch test patterns as required.
Another test pattern source could be DaVinci Resolve software, from Blackmagic Design, in a case where DaVinci Resolve is already being used on the computer for editing or color correction. Calman Studio can control DaVinci Resolve over the local network to produce and automatically switch reference level test patterns as required.