GSYNC and eye-strain?

Talk about NVIDIA G-SYNC, a variable refresh rate (VRR) technology. G-SYNC eliminates stutters, tearing, and reduces input lag. List of G-SYNC Monitors.
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WeelyTM
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Joined: 01 Jun 2014, 20:42

GSYNC and eye-strain?

Post by WeelyTM » 01 Jun 2014, 21:29

I apologize in advance if this question has already been answered, but I can't seem to find a solid answer anywhere.

TLDR:
Since the GSYNC upgrade gets rid of the PWM dimming, does that mean people who suffer headaches/nausea/migraine issues using the Asus VG248QE monitor will have those issue disappear? Since the DIY kits are back in stock, I'm really wondering if I should get one.

Long version:
I hadn't realized that I never used a PWM-dimmable monitor before (nor did I know this monitor used it, or even what PWM dimming was for that matter), and I didn't really have issues with my VG248QE until I was gaming one night and it was just too bright. Turned the brightness way down, and over the next 3 hours I slowly developed issues that gave me extreme eye pain, a migraine-esque headache like I've never had before, pretty bad light sensitivity, and was sick to my stomach so bad if felt like I was being slammed by a kickboxer ever time I breathed in. Oh, and my left eye started twitching, a lot, even when closed in a dark room. Not fun.
And it came on so slowly. It wasn't until I stood up after those few hours, and prompty fell down, that I realized I had a major problem. Like a live lobster being boiled slowly, I swear. And this lasted for 3 days, without using my machine any further.

So after some research, I tried resetting the monitor and removing anything I've done that would've caused this change. But I can't shake it now. Even just sitting in Windows looking at my desktop, I have significant eye strain. I set it to strictly 100% brightness so the imperceptible flickering should be gone, but either it isn't or the brightness alone gives me headaches. I tried a bunch of things, including the LightBoost hack in case it was a sensitivity-to-blurring issue... and while it was different, it was not much better. Now I had blotchy black spots in various parts of my vision, which increased 100 fold whenever there was a significant amount of white onscreen. So I abandoned that.

Found this post, which had a solid tip to set brightness to 100%, and lower contrast and colors to get the brightness down (at a sacrifice of color quality). Even better, I turned on my CFL lamp next to my monitor as suggested and this improved things further.

But the colors are so awful now, and my eyes are still recovering. So, what I'm wondering is, has anyone with issues like these claimed significant improvement after using the GSYNC mod? I'm a fan of the tech since I read about it here on blurbusters (no stuttering, no tearing, and no input lag? sign me up!), and I already use only the displayport input anyway... but if it is going to have the same eyestrain or worse issues that may put me in the hospital... it just won't be worth it.

Any insight you guys might have would be greatly appreciated! :)

PoWn3d_0704
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Re: GSYNC and eye-strain?

Post by PoWn3d_0704 » 01 Jun 2014, 22:04

While i have no scientific informatiom to share, I can tell you that the GSync monitors are so awesome. its smooth as hell and the stutterimg is really the only thing that has ever cause me eye strain. i cant play games without Gsync anymore because it literally hurts my eyes.

If thats from lack of tearing or the PMW i dont know. I just know I cant go back.
Asus VG248QE with GSync. Blur Busters GSync Contest Winner.

flood
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Joined: 21 Dec 2013, 01:25

Re: GSYNC and eye-strain?

Post by flood » 01 Jun 2014, 22:24

In the first few hours of using my vg248qe, I felt quite a bit of strain; it felt kind of like tunnel vision. I was mostly browsing the web; black text on white background.

I did the following:
moved the monitor further back
turning down brightness (even at 0 it was much brighter than my old monitor)
lowering the blue value in the color temperature

And after that, I didn't feel any eyestrain. Unfortunately, I don't know exactly which solved my problem, but you can try those and see how you feel.

But about gsync: yes it eliminates the PWM backlighting, which may or may not help with your case of eyestrain. Personally, the thing I like most about gsync is that ULMB has decent colors (versus lightboost which looks absolutely terrible).

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Chief Blur Buster
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Re: GSYNC and eye-strain?

Post by Chief Blur Buster » 02 Jun 2014, 23:31

I have occasionally heard of people having nasty problems with certain monitors such as the ASUS VG248QE. Several people in the last year have posted in forums (that I read) with similar problems with yours. Most were all, coincidentially, users of the ASUS VG248QE. Though one posting with vision complaints similar to yours was using a different monitor, but one that also happens to be very bright.

Computer monitors need to have a much wider brightness dimming range, while providing PWM-free and strobing options, as well as warmer color temperature options (or low-blue-light modes). BENQ has been doing a recent initiative of eye-friendliness (their Eye Care Initiative). I believe that they plan to bring that to their GSYNC monitors too. I have heard consistently fewer reports of eyestrain problems with the recent BENQ monitors, so I would presume that their initiative is more-or-less working -- and I'm glad that attention is being paid to this. That said, the brightness dimming range needs to become even wider on modern monitors, so that the image can be dimmed dramatically. Monitors need to be able to get roughly as dim as an iPhone at minimum 0% brightness. Even many PWM-free monitors are still too bright at 0%, when running at home in the dark (lights out).

I believe your vision is probably bothered by both PWM and flicker, so you need a PWM-free monitor with an extremely wide brightness/dimming range. The GSYNC upgrade does make the VG248QE PWM-free, though the minimum brightness setting is still higher than a lot of other PWM-free monitors.
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WeelyTM
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Joined: 01 Jun 2014, 20:42

Re: GSYNC and eye-strain?

Post by WeelyTM » 05 Jun 2014, 04:52

PoWn3d_0704 wrote:While i have no scientific informatiom to share, I can tell you that the GSync monitors are so awesome. its smooth as hell and the stutterimg is really the only thing that has ever cause me eye strain. i cant play games without Gsync anymore because it literally hurts my eyes.

If thats from lack of tearing or the PMW i dont know. I just know I cant go back.
Thanks, good to know!
flood wrote:In the first few hours of using my vg248qe, I felt quite a bit of strain; it felt kind of like tunnel vision. I was mostly browsing the web; black text on white background.

I did the following:
moved the monitor further back
turning down brightness (even at 0 it was much brighter than my old monitor)
lowering the blue value in the color temperature

And after that, I didn't feel any eyestrain. Unfortunately, I don't know exactly which solved my problem, but you can try those and see how you feel.

But about gsync: yes it eliminates the PWM backlighting, which may or may not help with your case of eyestrain. Personally, the thing I like most about gsync is that ULMB has decent colors (versus lightboost which looks absolutely terrible).
Yea, I feel a bit too close to my setup, but can't do much about it until I break down my desk (has shelves that block the monitor going further back). I'll have to give the blue value tweak a try, I keep seeing too much red but it may be unrelated. Still, worth a shot

WeelyTM
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Joined: 01 Jun 2014, 20:42

Re: GSYNC and eye-strain?

Post by WeelyTM » 05 Jun 2014, 05:32

Chief Blur Buster wrote:I have occasionally heard of people having nasty problems with certain monitors such as the ASUS VG248QE. Several people in the last year have posted in forums (that I read) with similar problems with yours. Most were all, coincidentially, users of the ASUS VG248QE. Though one posting with vision complaints similar to yours was using a different monitor, but one that also happens to be very bright.

Computer monitors need to have a much wider brightness dimming range, while providing PWM-free and strobing options, as well as warmer color temperature options (or low-blue-light modes). BENQ has been doing a recent initiative of eye-friendliness (their Eye Care Initiative). I believe that they plan to bring that to their GSYNC monitors too. I have heard consistently fewer reports of eyestrain problems with the recent BENQ monitors, so I would presume that their initiative is more-or-less working -- and I'm glad that attention is being paid to this. That said, the brightness dimming range needs to become even wider on modern monitors, so that the image can be dimmed dramatically. Monitors need to be able to get roughly as dim as an iPhone at minimum 0% brightness. Even many PWM-free monitors are still too bright at 0%, when running at home in the dark (lights out).

I believe your vision is probably bothered by both PWM and flicker, so you need a PWM-free monitor with an extremely wide brightness/dimming range. The GSYNC upgrade does make the VG248QE PWM-free, though the minimum brightness setting is still higher than a lot of other PWM-free monitors.
Awesome, thanks for all the info! I'm looking into BENQ's Eye Care Initiative now, sounds like a great step in the right direction. I'm going to look into their GSYNC monitors before I buy the DIY kit for the VG248QE, sounds like I might be able to get everything I want in a BENQ without making myself sick, depending when they are going to come out (seems like last report was January and for Q1, so who knows). If its going to be some time yet, the DIY kit may get me through the year if I'm careful about brightness issues.

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