Why Displayport and HDMI images outputs are kind of different? And nobody talk about it?

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AxelFar
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Why Displayport and HDMI images outputs are kind of different? And nobody talk about it?

Post by AxelFar » 08 Aug 2020, 19:33

I have a Helios 300 2019 laptop with a 1660ti hooked on a Acer XZ242Q 23,6 144hz Monitor and i'm like one hour going through DisplayPort 1,2 and HDMI 2,0 connections and i feel like HDMI has a bit more blur, but it make the image smoother, and Displayport don't have this blur, the image is sharper, but is a bit more sluggish, and i'm having a hard time deciding.
But more import, why i don't find anyone talking about this anywhere, like they are 1:1?

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RealNC
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Re: Why Displayport and HDMI images outputs are kind of different? And nobody talk about it?

Post by RealNC » 09 Aug 2020, 07:02

Maybe you get the age-old issue of the nvidia drivers assuming that anything you connect over HDMI is a TV, not a monitor, and you get the wrong color range. Monitors use "full" range, TVs use "limited" range. If you use "limited" on a monitor, the image has less contrast and is somewhat washed-out (black for example becomes dark gray,) making it look less sharp overall.

This is not an issue with DisplayPort. The driver will correctly use full color range.
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AxelFar
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Re: Why Displayport and HDMI images outputs are kind of different? And nobody talk about it?

Post by AxelFar » 09 Aug 2020, 18:34

No, the colors are exactly the same, also it is on "complete" in Nvidia Settings, everything is equal, is just that HDMI has more blur on fast images (like moving the camera fast in a FPS game), what somehow make it a bit more smooth, and Displayport don't have this.
I can't be the first one to notice this ,it is actually very subtle, but maybe it has to do with my monitor way to handle both signals, anyway, i didn't though there was a difference at all in the technology, and didn't find anything about this.

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Re: Why Displayport and HDMI images outputs are kind of different? And nobody talk about it?

Post by Chief Blur Buster » 11 Aug 2020, 14:04

HDMI and DisplayPort looks identical on many monitors at the same settings, but some monitors activates different processing / different profiles for HDMI versus DisplayPort. The defaults may be optimized differently (profiles, settings, etc).

This is usually a monitor/settings-specific thing, since different ports can have different overdrive tuning settings or processing settings.

It's a monitor-specific thing, and the most common cause is overdrive-settings differences on the different ports.

Also, some HDMI outputs are locked to 60Hz, so verify the refresh rate when you're on HDMI, since switching ports will also often switch refresh rates, as refresh rates are memorized differently for different ports. And some monitors won't allow max Hz on HDMI.

Also, if you're comparing sync technologies, make sure it is apples-vs-apples. Sometimes VRR enables a different overdrive, which has less/more blur, so if you're comparing HDMI versus DisplayPort, make sure VRR setting is the same (disabled, for example).
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AxelFar
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Re: Why Displayport and HDMI images outputs are kind of different? And nobody talk about it?

Post by AxelFar » 15 Aug 2020, 00:42

Thanks, yes the Hz are the same, VRR too.
I end up preferring the Displayport image since it doesn't have that artificial blur, it looks a bit smoother but the DP image has more clarity on higher movements so i preferred that.
Have to be something with the different processing of the ports, thanks for the clarifications.

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