A decision feedback equalizer is calibrated to compensate for estimated inter-symbol interference in a received signal and offsets of sampling devices. The decision feedback equalizer is configured so that an output signal of a sampling circuit represents a comparison between an input signal and a reference of the sampling circuit under calibration. An input signal is received over a communication channel that includes a predetermined pattern. The predetermined pattern is compared to the output signal to determine an adjusted reference for configuring the sampling circuit that accounts for both offset and inter-symbol interference effects.