The Ultimate Guide to Fixing Darker Colors on PS4

Have you noticed the colors looking dull and lifeless on your PlayStation 4 games? Inaccurate colors can ruin the gaming experience and prevent you from seeing games as the developers intended. The good news is there are steps you can take to resolve darker colors on your PS4 console when connected to a TV. With optimized display settings, you‘ll be able to enjoy stunning and vivid visuals that truly immerse you.

As an home electronics expert who has worked on TV technologies for over 10 years, I‘ve seen many PS4 gamers struggle with darker screens and muted colors. In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll walk you through the various display settings and calibration steps needed to get the brightest, most accurate colors from your PS4 gaming setup.

How Display Technologies Impact PS4 Picture Quality

Modern televisions use different panel technologies, each with their own advantages and drawbacks:

LED – LED TVs use a LED backlight and LCD panel. Provides good brightness and colors but prone to blooming around bright objects.
OLED – OLED displays have self-lit pixels for perfect blacks and wide viewing angles. Lower brightness than LCD/LED.
LCD – Traditional CCFL backlit LCD panels. Affordable but lacks wide colors and deep blacks of newer tech.
QLED – Quantum dot LED TVs with enhanced color volume. Requires proper calibration to avoid oversaturation.

For PS4 gaming, OLED and high-end LED/QLED models provide the best overall picture quality thanks to deep blacks, vibrant colors, stellar contrast and pixel-level lighting control.

Recommended Display Settings for Optimal Gaming

Based on industry standards, here are the ideal display values for PS4 gaming:

Brightness – For SDR, around 200 cd/m2. For HDR, up to 1000 cd/m2 peak brightness.
Contrast – Between 3000:1 and 5000:1 for deep blacks without crushing detail.
Color – Target Rec. 709 or DCI-P3 color gamut for accurate saturation. Avoid oversaturated colors.
Sharpness – Zero sharpness enhancement. Keep in-game resolution scaling instead for crisp image.

The Benefits of Display Calibration

Displays can vary in their color accuracy out of the box. Using professional calibration tools like colorimeters and software helps tune the display to specifications for consistent image quality:

Measures color temperature, gamma, brightness uniformity and other parameters.
Creates ICC color profiles that refine how the display reproduces colors.
Applies calibration settings across various input sources like gaming consoles.

Regular calibration ensures colors remain accurate as displays age and decline in performance. It is highly recommended for optimal picture quality.

Proper Setup of HDR10 and Dolby Vision HDR

For vivid colors that pop on PS4 games, High Dynamic Range (HDR) is an essential feature. However, incorrect HDR implementation can cause darker screens. Ensure the best experience by:

Only enabling HDR when your TV genuinely supports HDR specs like HDR10 or Dolby Vision.
Matching the PS4‘s HDMI input settings to the port‘s HDR format (HDR10, etc).
Setting PS4 to limited RGB range for HDR since TV applies its own color mapping.
Picking display modes like Game HDR with minimal processing to avoid altering the source HDR data.

Evaluating HDMI Standards for Gaming Performance

The HDMI connection from your PS4 to TV impacts resolution, frame rates and visual quality. Key differences:

HDMI 1.4 – Up to 1080p 120Hz or 4K 30Hz. No HDR.
HDMI 2.0 – Enables 4K 60Hz, 1440p 144Hz. Adds HDR10/Dolby Vision support.
HDMI 2.1 – Higher bandwidth for 4K 120Hz. Features like Variable Refresh Rate.

For the best performance, use Premium High Speed HDMI cables and ports rated for HDMI 2.0 or 2.1. Lower versions will limit display capabilities.

Measuring Display Lag for Responsive PS4 Gaming

Display lag refers to the delay between an input being processed and visible on screen. High lag makes games feel sluggish and unresponsive.

Experts measure lag using tools like oscilloscopes and high-speed cameras. Look for TVs with low lag scores of 15ms or less for smooth PS4 gaming.

Gaming features like Game Mode further reduce input lag by minimizing television processing.

PS4 Rendering Methods and Their Visual Impact

The PS4 utilizes various rendering techniques that can affect picture quality:

Checkerboard Rendering – Renders alternating pixels for near-4K visuals from a 1080p base image. Can cause moire artifacting.
Temporal Injection – Uses prior frames data to upscale to higher resolutions. Minimizes rendering cost.
Resolution Scaling – Dynamically reduces rendering resolution to maintain frame rate. Hurts image clarity.
Reconstruction Methods like AMD FidelityFX – Apply sharpening, anti-aliasing, and other processing to upscaled frames for cleaner visuals.

Understanding these rendering strategies can explain anomalies you may notice in some PS4 games.

Showcasing PS4 Games with Stunning HDR and 4K Support

To highlight the visual benefits of optimized display settings, here are some PlayStation titles with incredible HDR and 4K support when played on a compatible television:

Horizon: Forbidden West – Vibrant colors and highlights that pop with HDR. Native 4K at 30 fps.
Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart – Pixar-like graphics in 4K HDR. Bright, colorful alien worlds.
Gran Turismo 7 – Photorealistic car models and stunning race replays thanks to 4K and HDR.
Marvel‘s Spiderman Remastered – Improved shadows, reflections and textures in 4K. Ray tracing support.

Establishing Consistent Calibration Across Content and Inputs

Even with optimized display settings, picture modes and calibration can vary across content like gaming, streaming and Blu-Ray. Here are tips for consistency:

Create separate picture presets like "Gaming" and "Cinema" rather than changing modes constantly.
Apply balanced calibration settings like color temperature, gamma and brightness/contrast across all presets.
Use same limited RGB range for gaming and video. Full RGB range is best reserved for PC monitor inputs.
Manage HDMI inputs independently if needed, such as different HDR formats or black level settings.

Closing Thoughts

If you‘ve noticed your PS4 games looking darker and muddier than they should, correctly configuring your television‘s display and calibration settings can significantly improve the picture quality. Vivid colors, optimal brightness and responsive gaming await with the steps provided in this guide.

Feel free to reach out if you need any assistance fine-tuning your PlayStation gaming setup for the best visual experience possible. Happy gaming!