PG27AQDM HDR 6500K looks bad with orange colours

[Joshy25]

Heya, I got this monitor about a month ago, overall very happy with it aside from how the colour Orange seems to be handled in HDR. Specifically with how Orange spreads around in a scene, it seems to appear like a deep Purple rather than as Orange, or it appears as way too much Orange.

In terms of troubleshooting, I've tried Firmware 105 has this issue, but 104 does not. 

I've got some example images from The Witcher 3, and whilst I appreciate that showing a colour issue with photos from a phone isn't ideal, the issue is so prominent that it can be shown very clearly.
I have also noticed this same issue in Cyberpunk 2077, Alan Wake 2 & Oppenheimer (specifically around 25:40 when they're in the tent, lit by an Orange light/candle)

Let's start with the image that shows the issue, notice how the area around the candlelight is purple-tinted, and part of Geralt's face is purple-tinted also. It looks very wrong from a colour-accuracy perspective, and interestingly HDR @ 6500K is the only setting where it looks like this. 

Next, HDR @ 8200K; This time the issue is gone. But the issue with 8200K for HDR is that it's incredibly dull, even with 100% saturation set in the HDR calibration tool it just looks washed out and blue (but blue isn't an issue, since it is 8200K after all, it's supposed to look more blue tinted).

And finally, HDR off. Again, the issue is gone. And no amount of messing around with the colour settings on the display can reproduce the issue that 6500K has with Orange lighting. So the issue must lie somewhere behind the scenes with how HDR in 6500K is handled, or I just have a faulty unit.

Basically, I have 2 questions. 

1) Can other people (if anyone reads this) reproduce this issue in HDR @ 6500K? Not just in Witcher 3, in any game or content with Orange sunlight or candle-lit scenes.

2) If this is a known and widespread issue, can we expect some improvements in this area in a future (if we're still getting them) Firmware release? 

This is really the only issue I personally notice with HDR on this monitor, and if a future Firmware release can eliminate or at least reduce this issue, this monitor will be practically perfect for me.

[aurance]

Yes, I have this exact issue, the purple tint with MCM105 firmware. On 6500K temp with HDR on. I hope they address this.

[Nate152]

Hey guys,

I just got the ROG Swift PG27AQDM myself and what an awesome gaming monitor it is, this is my first monitor with HDR.

Upon setting it up, I installed the firmware version MCM104, with this firmware, my solar grenades in Destiny 2 had a greenish tint to them.

Upgrading to firmware version MCM105, the green tint is gone and Destiny 2 looks fabulous with HDR on.

I let everything to default, the color temp is at 6500k, I use racing mode as that looks the best to me for my games.

I have the Witcher 3, it's been a while since I played it so I went ahead and installed it. Low and behold, I have the purple too.

I'm wondering if it could be the game wanting to give off a certain vibe, you can get rid of the purple by raising the Gamma in the Video game settings. Try setting the Gamma one notch higher than half way.

Does this make the purple disappear?

[Joshy25]

Yeah, upping the gamma does mostly remove it, but then it makes nighttime look very bright, almost like daytime, and it makes caves and other dark areas look very visible which kinda defeats the point of a cave. And games that have no gamma setting will forever have the issue. I think as a temporary fix this is fine, but it would be better if this was addressed with a firmware update so users don't have to up the brightness of their content.

[Silent_Scone]

Hi @Joshy25 ,

In CP2077, are you able to show a scene where this is prominent for direct comparison? I've been playing this on MCM105 and haven't noticed anything. In fact, the game looks great. 

Install the monitor drivers and colour profile, also run Windows HDR calibration tool from Windows Store if not done so already.

[Joshy25]

I've done both of those things already, I had an issue with the Colour profile where it set the max HDR brightness to ~400 nits & removed the ability to use the HDR calibration profiles, so I've uninstalled that. 

In terms of Cyberpunk 2077, the issue is much less obvious because indoor areas aren't primarily lit with Orange light, so in Cyberpunk it's not particularly prominent, but there are a few areas I've noticed it. 

[Joshy25]

Another example, this time from a movie. 

[Silent_Scone]

After looking closely in CP2077 on MCM105 I can see a very slight hue when running 6500K, however, it's not nearly as prominent as yours appears to be. Overall, HDR in 2077 is very impressive on this panel.

Have you tried calibrating via the Windows HDR tool in Cinema mode? Some users report more accurate calibration results doing this.

[Marcaelsti]

bruh hdr in cb2077 is the worst out there

if u like it thats nice for u 

but in reality its the worst, black floor level is raised af and the colours overall are washed out the contrast is all over the place 

i played it using auto hdr with in game hdr turned off

[Silent_Scone]

That’s down the games implementation. But yes, it is “nice for me” once l calibrated the panel and manipulated the in-game settings to fix black levels (which isn’t that difficult). In fact, you could sit here and argue that 9 out of 10 games have lazy HDR implementation. With that being the case, just turn it off.

https://youtu.be/CpOMB5pEWVc?si=jw54eguT5lgbgHhe