CalMAN Enhanced Spyder 3 Colorimeter with CalMAN

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CalMAN Enhanced Spyder 3 with CalMAN Home Edition

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CalMAN Enhanced Spyder 3 with CalMAN Enthusiast Edition

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CalMAN Enhanced Spyder 3 and ColorMunki with CalMAN Enthusiast

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Spyder 3 Calibration Service

(for those that already own a Spyder 3)

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We've worked out an exclusive deal for our members to bring you this product at a price lower than what everyone else pays anywhere on the internet! Buy direct from SpectraCal at prices lower than buying off their own website! Same product, same support, just more money in your pocket at the end of the day.

Seven sensors for exceptional colorimeter performance! Specially hand-calibrated for use with CalMAN (included) to ensure the highest quality and accuracy possible!

If you are looking for a great colorimeter to do home calibrations at a reasonable price without sacrificing quality, the Spyder3 is for you!

The Spyder3 tri-stimulus colorimeter features 7 sensors, giving you a more complete calibration measurement than standard colorimeters, which only use 4 sensors. Standard tri-stimulus colorimeters (such as the EyeOne Display 2) use 3 sensors to measure red, blue, and green (RGB) and 1 sensor to measure pulse. The Spyder3 also has 1 pulse sensor, but has two sensors for each color (RGB), which more effectively measures the range of each color for a more accurate calibration.

CalMAN supports the Spyder3 flawlessly. A CalMAN Basic licence is included with the purchase of the meter. The Spyder3 is quick-reading and excellent at low light level work.

Also included are a tripod holder and stand (for calibrating projectors) in addition to a suction-cup for direct screen mounting.

The Spyder3 is a wonderfully engineered meter but it lacked factory calibration. Our past experience with Spyder meters showed that only approximately 1/3 were accurate enough out of the box for serious display calibration. The others were simply too far off to be of any use. So we're now taking the guesswork out of buying an uncalibrated meter! SpectraCal is buying Spyder3 meters in bulk, picking the best ones, and specially hand calibrating them for use with CalMAN. The ones that don't meet the grade are quite literally recycled!

SpectraCal is enhancing each Spyder3 unit by hand calibrating them in their labs and storing the control files in a custom folder that ships and installs with the meter & CalMAN (CalMAN has the ability to store calibration adjustments on behalf of the device being used in a session). The result is an extremely accurate device that is highly competitive with much more expensive, NIST Certified tri-stimulus colorimeters.

If you already own a Spyder3 and would like to get the advantages of the CalMAN Enhanced Spyder3, purchase the Spyder 3 Calibration Service using the 'Buy Now' button above. You will then send in your Spyder3 and it will be verified if it can indeed be calibrated. If its performance is too far out of range to correct, your Spyder3 will be returned to you and you will be refunded the cost of the Spyder 3 Calibration Service (you will only be charged for shipping). If the meter can be calibrated, you'll be provided calibration tables for use with CalMAN that will make it a CalMAN Enhanced Spyder3.

Note that CalMAN Enhanced Spyder3 performance is only available from within CalMAN, so this service is valuable only if you already own a CalMAN licence.

What advantages does the CalMAN Enhanced Spyder 3 have over the EyeOne Display 2/LT?

How does the Spyder3 compare for accuracy and repeatability and low light handling in comparison to the Display 2/LT?

The results of the Spyder3 calibrations have been very good. The calibrated Spyder3 definitely provides superior results when compared to the Display 2.

Response time is 2 to 4 seconds, depending on light level. Unlike the Chroma 5 however, neither the Display 2 nor the CalMAN Enhanced Spyder 3 is temperature compensated so both should be allowed to acclimate to the unit being measured for 30 minutes after the display has been turned on. This is especially true for plasma displays which tend to run hot.

What about the Chroma 5? How does the CalMAN Enhanced Spyder 3 compared to the Chroma 5?

At the other end we have the Chroma 5. It is in a different class. I think the easiest way to conceptualize it is to think of the Chroma 5 as the lowest priced professional meter. The Chroma 5 is calibrated to NIST-traceable reference standards by X-rite. The CalMAN Enhanced Spyder3 is the best performing consumer class colorimeter you can get.

Three (3) sets of tables for generic light situations have been created: Projected light, Phosphorus (plasma & CRT), and direct view / panel.

Does the Spyder 3 also come with the original computer monitor calibration software?

No. These are bulk OEM / generic packages with zero software. A custom calibration table is shipped to be added for use with CalMAN, a license key to unlock the CalMAN software for use with the Spyder 3, and a copy of Get Gray test pattern disc. Computer monitor calibration software is not included.

We have a Spyder3/ColorMunki package available. So why buy two meters? As is often the case, there's usually a trade-off: The Spyder3 reads extremely fast but is a colorimeter so it drifts over time as it uses a filter that slowly degrades. The ColorMunki on the other hand reads slowly but remains more accurate over time since it's a spectroradiometer with no filter to degrade.

Using CalMAN you can profile the Spyder3 against the ColorMunki to get the speed of the Spyder3 with the accuracy of the ColorMunki. The best of both worlds! Pro's do this all the time with the more expensive NIST certified Chroma5 (colorimeter) and EyeOne Pro (spectroradiometer). Now you can do the same at a fraction of the cost.

These meters are sold by SpectraCal, an authorized Datacolor OEM reseller. Why does that matter?

In short, when you buy a meter through us, you know what you are getting, and you know you are getting the best.