XG27AQDMG BANDING / broken gradients

[deusXex]

Hi,

There is a clear drop in brightness on gray gradient - mostly white pixel gradient - RG or B gradients seem mostly OK. This is all in SDR and happens with all color modes including the native "Wide Gamut" mode. The lower the monitor brightness settings the bigger the problem. It has to be addressed via firmware, there is no other way to solve it 100%, because most windows apps ignore color profiles. If this issue can't be fixed via firmware (which I doubt), we need ASUS to come clean and say that they won't fix this.

This is happening on all XG27AQDMG monitors. I've seen two and both have the same problem, plus there are multiple threads both on this forum and Reddit.

The only partial solution, which "fixes" it by changing gamma, is here: https://forums.blurbusters.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=13659&sid=7f3f0c88070ac26ed81faab4901db4d2

This gradient problem changes with monitor brightness settings and slightly with monitor frequency! It's the least visible on maximum 240Hz and maximum brightness without Uniform Brightness. The worst case scenario is <120Hz and Uniform Brightness below 50% (which is what most PC users use). Switching from HDMI to DP has no effect.

I've seen these monitors with MCM102, MCM103 and MCM104. No change at all.

ASUS DO SOMETHING, PLEASE, FIX THIS in next firmware!

XG27AQDMG broken gradient

LG C1 vs ASUS XG27AQDMG

[deusXex]

Dear ASUS a gaming monitor that does this is not OK. This monitor has been released 7 months ago and there is still not a firmware fix? How is it even possible???

XG27AQDMG broken gradients

[deusXex]

Dear ASUS, I'm not going to let this issue go. This was my first attempt of contacting technical support and I received completely generic answer not even remotely relevant to this specific issue plaguing all XG27AQDMG monitors:

"Dear Customer,

Unfortunately, a newer firmware than MCM104 is not available for this monitor. If the same issue persists even when the monitor is connected to a different computer, we recommend arranging a service diagnosis and repair of the monitor. Please do so through your retailer or by submitting..."

I'll keep you posted how this goes.

[OceanKalas]

Hi;

just logged to support the cause, I really hope ASUS releases a FW update to adress this same as HDR problem.

recently got this monitor and this problem is huge, amplified when playing SH2 or Cyberpunk, which lowers FPS and the black crush is harder.

[deusXex]

I have some updates. After multiple attempts to contact ASUS' customer support, we are currently waiting for any form of response from ASUS HQ. It has already been 4 days and no response so far. You can check the communication below.

"
Hello,
This issue occurs with all these monitors. If you could dedicate at least a minute to this problem and look at the provided links, we could move forward.
It is necessary to obtain an official statement from ASUS on whether this problem can be resolved via firmware, and if so, when it will be addressed!

---

Dear Customer,
Your request has been forwarded to the Taiwan headquarters. We will contact you with a response as soon as we receive it. Normally, this takes up to 48 hours.

---

Hello,
Thank you for the information and for forwarding the inquiry to the headquarters. It has been 3 days, so I would like to ask about the status.
Is work being done on new firmware that should resolve the mentioned issue with gradients in SDR mode?
Thank you.

---

Dear Customer,
We have not yet received any information from the headquarters. I have followed up on your case.
"

[OceanKalas]

Hope they acknowledge this in FW update

thanks for everything 

[Sh4rx0r]

Chiming in as I have the same issue and it's really distracting! Also made a separate post.

[deusXex]

So I received another update from customer support. After a week of waiting for response from HQ, their response was that they "don't see it" and they asked for pictures even though I already sent them links to 3 forum threads, including this one, full of pictures and additional info.

So at this point I'm beginning to think that ASUS is just stalling and they won't fix it, ever. I hope I'm wrong.

Anyway, here is the continuation of my communication with customer support:

"Dear Customer,

The headquarters requests photos of your monitor showing the issue. The issue does not appear on their monitor.

-------------------------------------

Hello,

The images and problem description were included in the links to forums I provided in my original inquiry.

The issue manifests in gradients that are close to black (around 10% RGB depending on monitor brightness). It is most noticeable in SDR with Uniform Brightness and brightness setting up to 40%, but it appears in a smaller form at any setting.

I am attaching the requested images as an attachment.

Here is the link again to one of the threads where the issue is reported by many people..."

[deusXex]

I’d also like to ask MODS whether they can actually report issues directly to ASUS? Because, at this point, it seems like ASUS is turning a blind eye and happily selling defective products.

[Sh4rx0r]

I'm starting to think too that ASUS is ignoring the issue... Yes, it's a universal WOLED issue, but it can be mitigated via firmware. Come on ASUS.