Min Max
The Min/Max scope plots the minimum and maximum luma (Y') — or decoded nit value in a PQ/HLG scale — for each horizontal scan line, giving a compact overview of the signal's dynamic range across the frame. It is especially useful for HDR workflows when monitoring the "brightness envelope" of the image and verifying that levels stay within legal bounds.
Where a standard waveform shows every sample on each column, Min/Max shows only the two extremes per line. The trace is sparser, the envelope is easier to read at a glance, and clipping excursions jump out immediately.
Min/Max scope requires a Pro license.
How It Works
Two traces are drawn for every scan line of the image:
Max trace — the brightest pixel on that line (highest luma or nit value)
Min trace — the darkest pixel on that line (lowest luma or nit value)
The gap between the two traces represents the local contrast range per line. A narrow gap means low contrast on that line; a wide gap means high contrast. In well-graded HDR content, the max trace rides the highlights — you want to see it occasionally reach into the 600–1 000 nit "sparkle" zone but stay mostly below — and the min trace hugs shadows without slamming against the bottom.
Scale
IRE
0–100
8-bit
0–255
10-bit
0–1023
PQ ST 2084
0–10 000 nits
HLG
0–1 000 nits
The scale follows the input source by default. Enable Scale override to choose a specific scale.
Legal range lines are drawn at legal black and legal white (e.g. 64 and 940 in 10-bit) when enabled.
Error Thresholds
Set minimum and maximum allowed levels (in the active scale). When the signal exceeds these bounds, the affected region is highlighted in red — useful for flagging illegal blacks or clipped highlights during QC.
Peak Levels
Enable Show Peak Levels to display numeric min/max readouts with horizontal marker lines. The values update in real time and adapt to the current scale (integer for SDR, nits with decimal precision for HDR).
Peak level colour is configurable.
Custom Targets
Up to 4 independent reference lines at specific levels (0–1023 in 10-bit scale, or a nit value in PQ/HLG scale). Each target has:
Enable/disable toggle
Value slider with visual gradient indicator
Colour picker
Useful for marking black points, white points, mid-grey, or HDR reference levels.
Display Options
Dim source image
Darken the background image (0–100 %) to make the overlay stand out. Adjustable with mouse wheel on hover.
Colorize
Colour-code the trace — green for within bounds, red for errors
Enhance Edges
Increase trace contrast for better visibility (0–12)
Top & Bottom margin
Vertical margin for scale labels
Left & Right margin
Horizontal margin for scale labels
Keyboard Shortcuts
Mouse wheel (on scope)
Adjust dim strength
Alt (hold)
Show crosshair overlay
Related
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