Tricorn Black vs Black Magic: Same LRV, Separate Colors

Tricorn Black and Black Magic: the documented difference

Tricorn Black and Black Magic both have a published LRV of 3. That equality describes reflectance, not matching colorants or identical undertones. Choose by the material relationship as well as the number. Tricorn Black is an appropriate baseline for comparing blacks because the manufacturer explicitly describes it without undertones. Black Magic is a very dark black with a slight warm influence.

The choice beside white plaster and oak doors

Repeated black casings can divide a room into many outlines; the total number of painted edges is a design decision beyond color selection.

Set up both candidates with white plaster and oak doors. Use equal-sized boards with the intended finishes and place them in the same orientation. Do not put one directly beside a window and leave the other in shadow. A difference that follows the position rather than the board is a lighting observation, not evidence that the formula changed.

What the comparison can—and cannot—settle

For a second point of reference, Caviar is recorded at LRV 3.

Map every black edge in the room before painting; the number of outlines matters as much as the shade. Assess Tricorn Black and Black Magic alone as well as side by side. The unchosen board will not remain in the finished room, and a preference created only by that neighbor may not survive its removal. Before ordering samples, compare room-planning features in the paint color visualizer roundup.