U3011 lag

D

DF-1

2[H]4U
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Jun 17, 2011
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Hello,

I just received my U3011 from dell from that refurbished deal ($629, $679 after tax)

It says that the screen has been used for 11 hours, manufactured in feb 2013, and is revision A08.

I must say, the monitor is GREAT, the colors, the space, the resolution.

but I have one problem..

I think I have a lot of added input lag and response time..

I tried playing WoW, TF2, and BF3. It wasn't as noticeable in WoW, but playing as a scout in TF2 you could immediately notice it. I googled for hours, I put it to game mode and 1:1 ratio which did somewhat help, but I can still feel it, its sluggish, the mouse feels floaty and im playing much more terribly than I did yesterday.

I'm not sure what to do, this screen is AWESOME. but I don't think I can live with this input lag/response time.

I currently have it connected to my gpu (780) by displayport. I use the hdmi on the gpu to my reciever for 5.1 audio.

Will switching to DVI help? or different drivers? or something else?

Please help! I don't want to return it!

Thank you very much.
 
The U3011 has input lag- that's why I bought HP's ZR30w instead. No OSD, no scalers from HDMI/VGA, no OSD, no lag.
 
...So I decided to try something.

I unplugged both the HDMI and displayport from GPU, shut down the receiver so I have no sound.

I put the supplied DVI (which came attached to the monitor, the other supplied connectors weren't attached)

I ran TF2.. and, no input lag, still some response time lag.

you don't need for expensive test equipment to tell, its a night/day difference. the mouse actually responds to you when you move it, not 0.5 or 0.25 seconds later...

So, does that mean I can't have my 5.1 surround? and more importantly... Why? was it just me switching DVI and displayport? I had the two screen effect because the HDMI (receiver) cannot supply only audio. maybe it was that?

I still notice the response time delay, its a bit annoying, but its not as annoying as before, it gives the effect of like dropping from 60fps to 40-45. (maybe its not response and something completely else?.. frame dropping?)

its not always noticeable, it seems to happen in certain parts of the map, but i ensured I was getting over 60fps. it seems to happen every 10-30seconds. the rest is smooth.

How odd is this whole situation... Well I hope I can figure it out. more testing to be done! if anyone knows why any of this happens, i'd greatly appreciate it!
 
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The Dell U3011 is an amazing monitor, but the input lag is really bad for gamers. I stopped using it for games when it took 2 seconds to pull out a Dead Ringer.
 
Quicksilver_ said:
The Dell U3011 is an amazing monitor, but the input lag is really bad for gamers. I stopped using it for games when it took 2 seconds to pull out a Dead Ringer.
Click to expand...

Dude... Im have been gaming on a U3011 A00 launch display for years now and it is NOT bad for gamers. I am also super sensitive to input lag and this monitor does not bother me at all.

To the OP it almost sounds like the jump from your former resolution to 2560x1600 is more taxing on your Video card. This would certainly slow games down.

My advise on the lag is that if you have been using a shitty Tn display for a while, give this time and Im positive in a week youll notice nothing.. your perception is your reality right now.. soon it will be normal to you. Trust me here ...
 
Zepharus said:
Dude... Im have been gaming on a U3011 A00 launch display for years now and it is NOT bad for gamers. I am also super sensitive to input lag and this monitor does not bother me at all.

To the OP it almost sounds like the jump from your former resolution to 2560x1600 is more taxing on your Video card. This would certainly slow games down.

My advise on the lag is that if you have been using a shitty Tn display for a while, give this time and Im positive in a week youll notice nothing.. your perception is your reality right now.. soon it will be normal to you. Trust me here ...
Click to expand...


Well, for whatever reason it seems like display port introduces 250ms delay...

DVI has been working fine, I even hooked up my receiver back up like I had before, didn't change the lag for the worse, so I guess its just the displayport... how odd...

WoW now seems great. at first, with displayport I got REALLY dizzy head/hurt eyes, after switching cables I played and noticed it was really smooth.

but I still notice the slightly slow response pixel times, and for some reason TF2 now has a little stuttering, frame missing/skipping or all 3.... MSI afterburner shows a steady 15-22ms delay for EACH frame, with some spikes sometimes.

also the game seems to have a LOT more tearing than in my other screen, maybe its just more noticeable since its a larger screen? I don't know... (vsync causes major mouse/input delay in that game, so I don't use it)

but as I said, WoW seems REALLY smooth. so i'm not really sure what it is, maybe because its a slower-paced game? The thing is I play TF2 a lot... so its disappointing.



I don't think its my GPU, I barely noticed an increase in Vram usage (mostly around 1500), and ALL frames are ALWAYS above 60, even 90+. (GTX 780)

before, with the input lag I thought I'd return it. now that its fixed im leaning to keep it, if my problems with TF2 would go away I would be the happiest person.

and fyi: my old monitor was also an IPS, an eIPS LG 236V.

Thanks for all the input! I hope that someone can help me solve the problem. :D

edit: just a shot in the dark, can it SOMEHOW be related to me technically running 2 "monitors"? being the receiver/u3011
 
I run five monitors- three off my primary GTX670, and two off the motherboard, all DVI or HDMI, with at least one DVI <-> HDMI in there.

Don't have any issue, but there isn't a receiver in the mix- game with headphones :).
 
So, when I made TF2 run at 1920x1200 there was still stuttering (msi afterburner showing spikes that go from the normal 15ms which is smooth, to 30ms spikes all of a sudden back down to 15ms.

putting Vsync on fixes this, making all frames at 22ms constant, but introduces mouse lag.

I tried almost everything there is humanly possible I think, all the way to regedits.

Now I booted up borderlands 2. I also immediately saw stuttering.

It was Vsynced and fullscreen windowed. I took off vsync and it did NOT stutter, but the image tore, I tested it about 4-5 times on/off just to make 100% sure.

Then I noticed it was running windowed fullscreen. for the heck of it, while still being w/o vsync I put it to be only fullscreen (not windowed), it remained smooth. I put on Vsync and it STILL remained smooth. No input lag, no stutter, and the pixel response time was barely noticeable (if it was even present)

I am pretty sure I didn't have any stuttering problem on the other monitor, no matter what setting I was running. all frames are staying 60+ at 2560x1600.

I'm just not sure whats going on anymore. I am sooo confused. I still can't fix TF2. although like I said 1920x1200 mode makes it a little less noticeable.

Is it because I am more famillar with 1920x1200 in that game? that im not used to how the mouse moves in 2560x1600? Is it that its just MORE noticeable on a bigger screen with more detail? Is my GPU defective? (tried 2 drivers). Is it because I now have "two" screens? I Am I going a little insane?

I really want to keep this screen, I just don't know what to do! its so upsetting.
 
Well, I kept trying borderlands 2, I plugged in my old monitor with the same u3011 cable. and it had zero problems at the exact same situation.

I tried removing the receiver and go w/o sound, didn't help.

I went back to the u3011, and I THINK that when my character doesn't move it doesn't stutter (went by a constantly physx swinging cloth). only when I move I see the stutter.

What could this mean? Should I try a different keyboard? It works completely fine on the 1920x1080 screen. I'm so, so lost.

edit: Is it my hard drive? could it be my hard drive? Do I need an SSD?

edit2: I just noticed that when I scroll in chrome it also seems to "skip" every second. I guess there is something about this monitor, skipping, and vsync on/off.

edit3: I also tried to install the driver included in the CD, it tells me it detects two monitors, YAMAHA (reciever) and some DELL without it saying U3011, it stops, and says please connect the correct dell monitors with the only option to exit. I tired numerous times to install it.
 
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Wish I could help you man- it's not like the U3011 should have BAD issues, it should just have a bit of input lag and a bit of ghosting.

Stuttering is completely your system. Could be anything, from a settings issue to a driver issue to a game issue. With VSync off, you're going to get tearing- try Adaptive VSync instead of just on or off.

Last thing- I had to upgrade my mouse for 2560x1600. No kidding. The Logitech G500 is an amazing mouse, but somehow, it wasn't precise enough for that resolution in BF3. Went with a Steelseries Sensei, totally smooth and accurate now. Might try maxing the sensitivity on your mouse when in game, and then lowering the game sensitivity setting until it feels right?
 
Scrap Afterburner and try evga Precision. I use it if instead of afterburner (which I was a big fan of) it is better. Put on NO vsync on anything and use the frame limiter included in precision (its a slider check box) set to 60fps

Also never play in anything other than true full screen as fo whatever reason some cards and drivers stutter. AMD cards particularly.

Also make sure you have the NEWEST (BETA) drivers available and that your system recognizes the U3011

Have faith bro its a great monitor. With the frame limiter set to 60 you have almost zero tearing and it will be solid smooth with out using vsync. I used to want to see 100+ fps on screen to thing I was getting the most, but came to accept I cant perceive a damn thing over 60. Once I accept it Im a MUCH happier gamer...

try
 
Well, world of warcraft runs PERFECTLY smooth, I think I just need more lighting in my room (get a little dizzy after an hour of play), but there is no stuttering, no input lag, mouse very responsive, and vsync is totally functioning fine. MSI afterburner cannot report on frametime no matter what I did.

I found out why borderlands 2 will stutter... its so ridiculous too... You can make it stutter by 1) running windowed fullscreen, 2) have anything open, (task manager, chrome, firefox) that is NOT minimized and it will stutter. minimize it and its GONE. so, so weird.

So, I think its a game-by game basis, since if the screen works wonderfully on WoW, BL2, and rift. but others don't... well, im just not sure whats going on, since everything always worked fine on my old 23" IPS... and when its bad, its REALLY bad, a whole experience ruin-er

Also, in BF3 when I run near the crates in-game with Vsync on they sort of stutter, my characters hand/gun DOES NOT, and when i'm not moving (not using keyboard) everything is FINE, the same thing happened in BL2. Vsync off has tearing and I'm not sure if stutter, because of the characters head bobbing, but MSI does report some spikes as-well.

I'm not sure if I have the right drivers for this screen. the CD included says I don't have a dell screen and it just tells me to quit. I installed a driver from 2010... before that I had the windows 2006 one...

I tried using frame limiting for TF2, it didn't help with the stutter, and caused even more tearing, vsync off and unlimited frames has less tearing. It seems to happen in certain places on the map though.

I just downloaded the EVGA tool and will be using it. and coincidentally I do use a logitech G500, but it seems to be working fine for me at this resolution IdiotInCharge... Should I try swapping it just to see what happens?

Could stuttering be because im running games off a HDD that has my games and windows installed on it?

Is it the game developers fault? I don't know anymore... and I don't have too much time to decide if I keep it or return it...
 
Do yourself a favor and buy a 120Hz or 144Hz monitor strictly for gaming. I've got u3011 and it a fantastic monitor but I do not bother gaming on it. I got VG278HE few weeks ago and it is great.
 
Iching said:
Do yourself a favor and buy a 120Hz or 144Hz monitor strictly for gaming. I've got u3011 and it a fantastic monitor but I do not bother gaming on it. I got VG278HE few weeks ago and it is great.
Click to expand...

Do you by any chance play with nvidia 3d? I was thinking about that...

Well, the previous one I was using (LG ips236v) didn't have any of these problems, no matter if vsync was on or off.

I wanted the u3011 for the resolution and the 30" space, if that asus was higher in res, I'd definately go for it.

before getting this u3011 I thought about all of the possiblities, because I really wasn't sure what I wanted. I thought of trying a 120hz screen, trying 3d vision, maybe getting a korean 27", a 30", going 3x 1920 x 1xxx for surround, waiting for 4Ks. but this U3011 went on sale, so it was my obvious choice.

I'm not sure what to do now, if I return it... I wish I could try them all :p

Borderlands 2 looked fantastic at that resoultion and never skipped a beat, WoW too, absoutely zero problems.... but I just can't play TF2 like this and its killing me....

I guess I'll return in within the next 1-2 days, I'll keep trying things until then. I was so excited to get a "refurb" that only had 11 powered-on hours that was manufactered 4 months ago with 0 blacklight/dead pixel/tint. :(

Thanks for all the recommendations so far, I really appreciate you all trying to help me! :D
 
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Seems odd that TF2 is specifically giving you issues. Any monitor with a built in scaler (such as yours) will introduce input lag no matter what but it sounds like that's not your issue anymore. Do you have any other source engine games you can try? TF2 can surprisingly bring even top end cards to their knees depending on settings, so you should see if all source engine games exhibit this issue or perhaps try turning your graphical settings down.

It's unlikely that your HDD is causing issues since it wasn't happening with your other monitor, right?
 
sniggle said:
Seems odd that TF2 is specifically giving you issues. Any monitor with a built in scaler (such as yours) will introduce input lag no matter what but it sounds like that's not your issue anymore. Do you have any other source engine games you can try? TF2 can surprisingly bring even top end cards to their knees depending on settings, so you should see if all source engine games exhibit this issue or perhaps try turning your graphical settings down.

It's unlikely that your HDD is causing issues since it wasn't happening with your other monitor, right?
Click to expand...

Yeah, I don't think its my HDD, but I was just trying to think about any and all possible things, I thought maybe textures are harder to load/take longer at 2560x1600 or something? I don't know but I guess not :D


I do have L4D2 and CS:GO that are source. But it also affected BF3 before I turned off Vsync (shaking) and BL2 before I found that fix.. both of which didn't have issues on my old one either.

And to be honest, I do NOT feel ANY input lag in World of Warcraft. I don't think I could notice the different in that particular game if I was next to a no scaler/OSD 144hz screen. It's just so fluid and responsive.


I tried lowering everything in TF2 to minimal settings, tried windowed fullscreen, borderless windowed fullscreen, regular fullscreen, regedit to make some internet media delay go from 10ms down to 0, but I will try L4D2/CS:GO and see what happens there...

It seems to happen more often when the character moves around, like in BL2 before I found out what was causing it, standing still had no stutter, moving did. I think it may be the same for TF2.

but in TF2 it mainly happens in certain parts of the map.

edit: played one and a half rounds in CS:GO, was very smooth, frametimes in EVGA precision showed almost no spikes. but I have to decide in the next few hours what to do... who knows what other games are smooth/aren't? I don't think I can really take the chance for $679...
 
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Well, after trying CS:GO I tried TF2 again... and for the first time EVER TF2 ran with no stutter, still a lot of tearing though. EVGA precision also confirmed what i was seeing with frametime.

I thought maybe it was fixed, I then loaded up BF3 and put vsync on but things still were "shaking" around my character, like crates. although there is no stutter, its very annoying.

of course one of them HAD to get fixed right as I was about to put it in the return box...
 
DF-1 said:
Do you by any chance play with nvidia 3d? I was thinking about that...

Well, the previous one I was using (LG ips236v) didn't have any of these problems, no matter if vsync was on or off.

I wanted the u3011 for the resolution and the 30" space, if that asus was higher in res, I'd definately go for it.

before getting this u3011 I thought about all of the possiblities, because I really wasn't sure what I wanted. I thought of trying a 120hz screen, trying 3d vision, maybe getting a korean 27", a 30", going 3x 1920 x 1xxx for surround, waiting for 4Ks. but this U3011 went on sale, so it was my obvious choice.

I'm not sure what to do now, if I return it... I wish I could try them all :p

Borderlands 2 looked fantastic at that resoultion and never skipped a beat, WoW too, absoutely zero problems.... but I just can't play TF2 like this and its killing me....

I guess I'll return in within the next 1-2 days, I'll keep trying things until then. I was so excited to get a "refurb" that only had 11 powered-on hours that was manufactered 4 months ago with 0 blacklight/dead pixel/tint. :(

Thanks for all the recommendations so far, I really appreciate you all trying to help me! :D
Click to expand...

I did not have time to play with LightBoost. I am using Asus for FPS when I play online otherwise I use u3011 for anything single player. My wife uses two 30 inch Dellls for her work and she said she will never use a smaller display. I would keep that Dell and get Asus on sale.
 
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