BenQ XL2720Z practical for no blur 60fps gaming? Others?

[MKirk]

Hello,

It looks like the BenQ XL2720Z is the only 27"+ display with blur reduction that is really able to be used for 60fps gaming, but is it really practical to use it that way? Both PC and PS4?


I'm looking for a display that I can use with blur reduction my PC and PS4, and occasional Xbox 360 60fps games. I would hook up a PC on Displayport, and switch between PS4, Xbox 360, and occasional PS3 on HDMI. I would like to be able to play 60fps games with blur reduction. I would like to be able to turn off blur reduction for console 30fps games and also for general computer use.

Is it really practical to switch blur reduction on / off for the different uses?


Background: I'm an old guy, old gamer. I spent tons of time playing games on CRTs. When LCD displays first became barely affordable ($1000) I switched to LCD to reduce eyestrain from CRT flicker while looking at text. (Code, e-mail, start of WWW, etc) But I immediately noticed the horrible smearing in motion on the games of the time. These were mostly top-down isometric games where there was a lot of full-screen panning and everything was blurry during panning. I was annoyed, but the reduction in eyestrain for non-gaming use and the free desk space won out. At that time BlurBusters did not exist and I didn't know about the sample-and-hold effect on our eyes.

Last year I bought a Sony 55w900a for my living room and discovered the Impulse mode. Yes, on big solid boxes , like console "home" screens, I can see the flicker. But when playing games I don't really notice the flicker. What I do notice is that for 60fps games, the LCD smear is gone. Oh what joy! Motion clarity finally restored! Diablo fluid and clear! Wolfenstein PS4 great graphics and clear shots at the bad guys! Child of Light gliding beautifully across the screen!

Now I am hooked on strobe modes for gaming. But, alas, I must share the wonderful TV with my family, so there are plenty of times my teenage daughters are watching TV (shows that I can't stand) and I am back in my office for gaming.

I currently use an old Samsung 32" 1080p 60 Hz LCD HDTV (CCFL) as my PC/console display in my office. I love the 32" size for the distance I sit from the screen (3-4 feet). The black levels are pretty bad and the motion clarity is horrid. Really really bad.

I would love to just get a 32" LCD TV the same as my big TV, but I can't find anything like that. The Sony 32w650a is 60Hz and has LED Motion, but the backlight is not as powerful as the 55w900a and thus the strobing makes it too dim. I saw the Vizio M322i-B1 (also 60Hz) at Best Buy, which has "Blur Reduction" on game mode. It's clearly strobing, as I can see a small amount of flicker on solid rectangles, but I don't think it's strobing enough to get the level of clarity I desire.

From what I can tell in all my reading here, the Benq XL2720Z is largest display that does 60 Hz / 60fps strobing that could be usable? But is it practical? Is there anything else to consider? In the pipeline?

I need multiple inputs so I can plug in PC + Console.
I want motion clarity at 60fps (console + PC)
Would prefer 32" size, but could go down to 27" (bummer, but clarity more important)
Don't care much about lag. I can tell the difference on my TV between game mode and not, but I'm old and physically skillcapped.
1440p would be oh so nice for photo editing and coding and gaming detail, but the above are higher priority.

Thanks for your input!

Mark

[Falkentyne]

The Z series is the only game in town if you want 60 FPS motion blur free gaming. There's absolutely NO other option at the moment except those impulse mode TVs.

None of the other strobe monitors can strobe at 60 hz. I think the Eizo only goes as low as 85 or 110, either that or that's ULMB on the gsync models.

Yes it works quite well. Works even better if (on computer only), you do the vertical total 1260 tweak in CRU to help eliminate strobe crosstalk (the lower the refresh rate, the less the strobe crosstalk).

The drawback of course is the flicker. If you couldn't stand 60hz CRT flicker, you will stand LCD 60 hz single strobe flicker even less.(it as a double strobe mode but that isn't blur free, though double strobe works at 50hz reliably. single strobe (the one we want for blur reduction) can not work depending on the exact 50hz timings used and could cause the monitor to reset itself (with blur reduction off) if the brightness gets too high if strobe fails to work.

There probably won't be another 60 hz strobe monitor for awhile, unless Asus or others come out with other proprietary blur reductions.

[Chief Blur Buster]

Welcome to Blur Busters! You came to the right place.

Unfortunately, in the sub-40 inch league, you are stuck with few options. I agree that the BENQ XL2720Z is your go-to display if you love Sony Impulse. There is no proper strobe backlight in the 32 inch size format that meets your needs. The flicker appearance is identical between BENQ 60Hz strobe and Sony 60Hz "Impulse" strobe mode, both being strobe backlight technologies.

The minimum working (one-flash-per-refesh) strobe rates of the various strobe brand names:
LigttBoost - 100Hz
ULMB - 85Hz
Turbo240 - 105Hz
BENQ Blur Reduction - 60Hz via V2 firmware

I press very hard on manufacturers to support the 60Hz strobe rates, at least via an undocumented DCC command (advanced user option), so do not count 60Hz out yet. We have a small following of 60Hz strobe lovers including console users.

P.S. If you wish to support Blur Busters, feel free to order via http://www.blurbusters.com/benq/v2-firmware-included/

[MKirk]

Okay, looks like for now XL2720Z is the only choice.

How does switching modes work? Is it possible to have separate configurations saved for:

1. 120Hz no blur reduction for general PC use.
2. 60Hz Blur Reduction for 60fps games on PC and console?
3. 60Hz No Blur Reduction for < 60fps games (console games mostly)
4. Some intermediate Hz, like 85 or 90, with blur reduction for games my video card can push that high.

Video card is Nvidia 760.

Thanks!

Mark

[Chief Blur Buster]

For the Z-Series Version 2, stroberate is automatic all the way from 60Hz through 144Hz. It synchronizes the backlight strobe to the Hz at any refresh rate between 60Hz through 144Hz, even in 0.001Hz increments. It is the only monitor on the market at the moment, with a fully multisync strobe that functions automatically exactly at the refresh rate, for all refresh rates. Other monitors stop strobing, or does a double-strobe, when going beyond supported strobe rates (either due to technological limitations, firmware limitations, or a safety against low-frequency flicker. So all you need to do is switch input, or switch refresh rates, and the monitor will automatically change the backlight strobe to match the current Hz of the current video input.

With Strobe Utility, if you use Blur Reduction at multiple refresh rates, you may need to recalibrate your Crosstalk a bit, if you want to optimize for minimum ghosting at one specific refresh rate (e.g. 60Hz versus 120Hz). But this is easy to do, and you might just choose one middling setting that looks good to you at both refresh rates.

- You run at any refresh rate anytime you want, the refresh rate is controlled by your device (computer, console).
- Running different inputs at different refresh rates also work. Input switching is automatic if you turn off one device and then turn on the other (e.g. turn off computer, then turn on console), or you can use an external switcher. Refresh rate (strobe rate) will switch at the same time as you switch inputs.
- For custom refresh rates, you use NVIDIA Control Panel. You can also download 3rd party utilities that can switch refresh rates upon a hotkey.
- You can use a profile button on the S-Pad (a remote controller pad) to quickly enable/disable blur reduction via button press, in order to avoid going through the onscreen menus.

Intermediate rates of 85Hz is a good compromise, to reduce flicker while not needing the GPU requirements of 120fps for good-looking 120Hz strobing. (This applies to CRT too, 85fps@85Hz has often looked better than 85fps@120Hz, even back in the old days). With the flexibility, almost everything is an upgrade relative to the Sony in the strobe technology department. The chief downgrade relative to the Sony, would simply be TN versus VA/IPS, so the colors will not be as good as the Sony. Most 120Hz monitors are TN.

[MKirk]

Thanks very much for the info. Sounds straightforward to make it work.

I noticed the Benq BL3200PT , 32" 1440p display, but it is 60 Hz with no strobe. Sigh.

What is the AMA setting do on these 60Hz displays? It just controls ghosting? It doesn't improve LCD blur?

Thanks,

Mark

[Chief Blur Buster]

It only controls overdrive.
See the overdrive page on Blur Busters: http://www.blurbusters.com/faq/lcd-overdrive-artifacts/

It does not fix motion blur.