Need a secondary Monitor recommendation for movies/video

[mmarsh]

Hello Again

So if you remember my previous thread for a new primary monitor I wound up and got the x34P which is awesome which I mainly use for games. I also added a 1080 ti to run everything at x3480x1440 at full detail.

Now I want to replace my secondary. This monitor is only for 2 things, productivity and watching videos/movies. No gaming.

Question: Is HDR worth it?

Criteria

1. Cheap
2. Must be 27" (no larger or smaller)
3. Needs a VESA mount (I think this is standard now) as its going on a Monitor Arm.
4. Oh yeah...cheap.

I saw the EW227HDR for 169 Euros (refurb) that seems to tick all the boxes. What do you think?

 

[HiCZoK]

I came here to recommend EW277hdr based on the reviews. I've not used one myself but I would be very interested to.
1080p seems like a better resolution for movies than 1440p due to movies availability in that resolution. Also, according to reviews, it have great colors, contrast, viewing angles and even less ghosting than other va models.
It does not have vesa though sadly

If you decide to get it, please post some results!

 

[elvn]

Just a heads up - as far as I know windows will not activate HDR mode unless every monitor in the array is HDR. Mixing an SDR monitor with a HDR monitor will not let you enable hdr on the hdr one in windows 10 (unless something has changed or someone has found a workaround that I'm not aware of).

I'm not sure how this would work with mixed HDR either, say a "fake" 400nit HDR w/o fald and a 1000nit+ HDR1000 monitor mixed together. Hopefully in that case you'd still be able to tweak the settings of each monitor in their OnScreenDisplays as well as in drivers.

 

[mmarsh]

I came here to recommend EW277hdr based on the reviews. I've not used one myself but I would be very interested to.
1080p seems like a better resolution for movies than 1440p due to movies availability in that resolution. Also, according to reviews, it have great colors, contrast, viewing angles and even less ghosting than other va models.
It does not have vesa though sadly

If you decide to get it, please post some results!

Sadly I wont be getting it. The lack of a VESA socket is a dealbreaker. Any other suggestions?

 

[HiCZoK]

Not really. For movies, the VA monitor is definitely a good choice but not sure which one

 

[Drozdov]

Just a heads up - as far as I know windows will not activate HDR mode unless every monitor in the array is HDR. Mixing an SDR monitor with a HDR monitor will not let you enable hdr on the hdr one in windows 10 (unless something has changed or someone has found a workaround that I'm not aware of).

I'm not sure how this would work with mixed HDR either, say a "fake" 400nit HDR w/o fald and a 1000nit+ HDR1000 monitor mixed together. Hopefully in that case you'd still be able to tweak the settings of each monitor in their OnScreenDisplays as well as in drivers.

I've tried this with a 27" non HDR monitor and my 4k HDR TV connected to the same computer, I was able to enable HDR on the TV by itself through the windows display settings, using Windows 10.

 

[elvn]

I guess it depends.

-----------------------
EDIT:
Updated/confirmed all of my drivers and more importantly set the hdmi input on the tv to "Computer", HDMI 2.0, and enabled HDR in the extended settings. Then HDR showed up in the windows settings applets. However, the TCL s405 being a "fake" HDR tv with low peak nits - the screen ended up dim and dull looking so I turned HDR off. I didn't buy this tv for HDR but it's nice to know that I'll be able to mix and match HDR and SDR monitors in an array whenever I get a real HDR1000 screen as my primary monitor someday/year.

EDIT-2: I went through the settings more and settled on HDR-normal settings and selected a different tv brightness. I think if I adjust the contrast more I can get it back to fully to the richness/saturation and black depth it was in SDR mode. I know it's still just fake/quasi hdr with very low nit color volume but now I can use "hdr mode" on the tv as a pc monitor :b
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https://www.engadget.com/2018/05/16/hdr-monitor-buying-guide/

Update and comments from the DisplayHDR group
After this article was published, Engadget received a note from DisplayHDR Chairman Roland Wooster with some corrections and interesting insights that have been incorporated into the article. It has also been updated to note that the latest version of Windows 10, RS4, provides better support for a mix of HDR and SDR, provided you have a monitor that supports HDR.

One of Wooster's main points is that the HDR 10 standard and others, including Dolby Vision, don't require specific brightness levels (1,000 nits for HDR 10 and higher for Dolby Vision) as the article stated, but merely aim for it. By contrast, the VESA DisplayHDR 1000 standard does require a peak 1,000 nit level.

"You might like to note that no television, to my knowledge, meets the VESA DisplayHDR 1000 standard." said Wooster. "One of the requirements that we require is a full-screen flash at 1000 nits for two seconds. I have not yet measured any TV to achieve this performance level." In other words, the Philips 4K Momentum 43-inch set might be the brightest display, TV or otherwise, on the market. It also shows that we're far from the ultimate goal of 10,000 nit HDR displays, only seen so far on Sony's CES 2018 concept X1 8K model.

Wooster also pointed out that HDR 10 and other standards don't actually require true 10-bit panels like the article originally asserted. "All of the VESA DIsplayHDR, UHD Alliance, and HDR 10 specs require 10-bit input. And in fact only VESA actually specifies panel bit depth requirements," he said. "The VESA requirement is 8+2, which is also what the majority of 4K/HDR TV's use too. The heavy majority of '10-bit' displays are actually 8+2."

It might not be easy for you to figure out whether or not your panel is 8-bit + FRC or true 10-bit, other than by the price (most true 10-bit TVs and especially monitors are more expensive). It would be helpful if manufacturers were more transparent about these details, or course. It also shows the need for new or refined specifications from the various standards groups and manufacturers so that consumers can make more informed buying decisions.

https://mspoweruser.com/activate-hdr-video-windows-10-spring-2018-update-rs4/

How to run HDR Video on SDR screens

1. Open the Settings App and Navigate to Settings > Apps > Video Playback
2. Turn on “Stream HDR Video”. If your PC is running the Fall Creators Update and doesn’t have an HDR capable screen, this option will be greyed out for you. With Windows 10’s Spring Update, Microsoft is adding a HDR calibration tool, which can be run to prepare your screen for HDR video. This tool is in early stages at the moment, but will be completed with the RS4 release.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/itpro/windows-10/release-information

 

[DanNeely]

1. Cheap
2. Must be 27" (no larger or smaller)
3. Needs a VESA mount (I think this is standard now) as its going on a Monitor Arm.
4. Oh yeah...cheap.

Criteria 1/4 and 3 together will be problematic. A lot of budget monitors either don't have a VESA mount option at all (a fixed stand the screws into the bottom end is cheaper), or only support it via an after market adapter than can add $20 or $30 to that total price.

As far as panel type, as always for anything other than extreme refresh rate gaming the important thing is to avoid TN. I generally prefer IPS, but for watching movies the higher contrast ratios available to VA panels are more appealing. Either type will work well, just avoid TN.