Originally Posted by Spanbauer http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=18459286#post18459286">

Here's a question for you Chad: had the C7000 been running in a high-contrast setting — perhaps even dynamic or standard picture mode — when you arrived? Myself and others have discovered that if we run our B650 Samsung plasmas at a very high contrast, even in movie mode, black levels suffer considerably. But if we dial contrast back to high 70's or low 80's, after the phosphors have 4-6 hours to "cool down" our black levels appear nearly twice as good as they would be otherwise. I imagine this would be even more prevalent with the ultra-thin models, if it's a heat issue. Note that the improvement in black levels is not something you'll see instantly when changing the contrast; it takes literally hours before blacks improve.

It would be very interesting to see what kind of black level reading you get if you leave the television on 0 IRE for an hour or more, assuming the set doesn't cut the signal entirely when it detects an all-black image.