Ravenger on 13/3/2009 at 12:26
Well I'm about 2/3 of the way through playing Thief 2 on this new Dell IPS monitor, so I thought I'd give my updated impressions.
The glare I noticed in very dark scenes on the monitor is actually a feature of the panel - some sort of polarisation effect. It's only really noticeable if you sit close to the screen, so I've pushed my monitor back a bit to minimise the effect.
I'm still very pleased with it compared to my previous Samsung TN panel monitor, and Thief 2 is very playable on it. I do find I have to play with the in-game gamma more than I did on a CRT.
I don't think there's an LCD screen that can really do justice to Thief in the same way as a CRT, but this comes fairly close.
I don't find the text blurry at all - it's just as clear as my previous monitor.
Papy on 16/3/2009 at 03:19
Quote Posted by Ravenger
I don't find the text blurry at all
The text is not blurry, it was causing more eyestrain. I suspect the backlight is somewhat different. Maybe it's a specific problem with my eyes. Anyway, I'm beginning to get use to it.
As for the glare and the kind of posterization effect, I prefer to raise the monitor instead of putting it further away. Looking at the monitor from a lower position helps. That way I can still play with 16" away from it.
BTW, since contrarily to the Samsung 226BW the Dell 2209WA is usable with dark games, I was happy and decided to replay Thief 2... Of course, my happiness didn't last long! The 8800GT makes the game look horrible! Now I have to go to the Thief section to find if there's a way to make the 8800GT suck less with Thief 2 (I think I remember a patch or something, I hope it's for the 8800GT). Seriously, will it ever end?
Here's some pictures of the 2209WA (left) and the Samsung 226BW-C (Right). Both at default settings, brightness and contrast at 75.
(
http://img10.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0237r.jpg)
Inline Image:
http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/7331/img0237r.th.jpgThe 226BW can have a great picture, but the angle of vision must be perfect (I guess about -15 degrees) and the monitor must be very far away. When looking at the 2209WA, with a negative angle, there is a lot of backlight visible and there are parts where we lose almost all details. The angle in this picture is of course exaggerated, but it was just to make the backlight more visible.
(
http://img21.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0238e.jpg)
Inline Image:
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/479/img0238e.th.jpgWith this angle, the 226BW is complete crap while the 2209WA is really good. There is only a bit of backlight visible on the top of the screen (not really visible on the photo, but it's there). The only problem is still the lack of black.
Ostriig on 16/3/2009 at 13:52
Quote Posted by Papy
The only problem is still the lack of black.
Are you using Dynamic Contrast? For dark settings, I feel it really makes a big difference, in the good way. It's only in games that mainly use lit environments, and especially with a combination of "gun-metal gray and dystopia brown" textures (like in Fallout 3 daylight), that it screws up. It's because the screen can only work off the colour of the pixels it displays, it can't really tell the difference between a lit room with dark architecture, and an actually dark room. For games like Thief or Deus Ex, turning the option On should be of help.
Naturally, if you meant "lack of black relative to a CRT", then yeah, there's not much one can say about that.
Ravenger on 16/3/2009 at 14:08
Dynamic contrast on the 2209WA is only available in game and movie colour modes. I've got my monitor set up using the custom colour mode, so if I want to use dynamic contrast I just switch to game mode, which doesn't take too many button presses.
It does make the game darker, but I find it's a bit too aggressive at ramping up the brightness when there's a torch or other bright light source on screen, so I generally play with the dynamic contrast off, and adjust the in-game gamma manually if I find it too light/dark.
Ostriig on 16/3/2009 at 15:19
Quote Posted by Ravenger
it's a bit too aggressive
That's one of the things where the Dell fell short of Biker's NEC, in my opinion - the Dynamic Contrast is just too dramatic. I think it does a good job in dark games, in general, but in other cases it sometimes makes a dark scene either too dim, or a lit one too bright (Go Go Mirror's Edge). It's a pity you can't configure the light range it operates in. The one thing you can do, however, is still screw around with the global Contrast setting, even while Dynamic Contrast is on, to achieve some effects better suited to your tastes.
As for switching Colour Modes - is there some shortcut that I'm not aware of? Otherwise there are a fair few button presses to change from Custom to Game.
bikerdude on 16/3/2009 at 20:57
Quote Posted by Ostriig
That's one of the things where the Dell fell short of Biker's NEC, in my opinion - the Dynamic Contrast is just too dramatic.
Also it dosent operate in the same was was the NEC either..
Dynamic contrast operation:-
* Dell
- in dark areas it decreases the Brightness and increases the detail in the shadows - hmmm ok'ish.
- in light areas it increases the Contrast, making a bright light source even brighter - wtf, ouch my eyes.
* NEC
- in dark areas it increases the Contrast and increases the detail in the shadows - as your eyes would.
- in light area it decreases the Contrast, adjusting to a bright light source - as your eyes would.
Papy on 17/3/2009 at 20:52
Quote Posted by Ostriig
Are you using Dynamic Contrast?
I tried it but saw no difference.
But...
Quote Posted by Ravenger
Dynamic contrast on the 2209WA is only available in game and movie colour modes.
Doh! I'll try tonight.
Edit : I tried it, it does help in dark areas but I don't like it. It doesn't look natural at all.
For now, I tried a few settings and the one I like the most when playing Thief at night is with Dynamic Contrast: off, brightness:0, contrast:90, Mode Selection:Video, Preset Modes:Games, Saturation:65. The over-saturation makes the lighted area a bit cartoonish, but it helps in dark areas. Is there a better setting someone could recommend?
