Nixeus NX-VUE27 27" Monitor: High Resolution for the Masses
by Chris Heinonen on September 20, 2012 6:10 PM ESTConclusion: Works Well, but Definitely Cuts Corners
As I mentioned in the opening, I didn’t want to recommend the import 27” monitors as I worried about their warranty and support issues. I've never had any comments or criticisms of their performance as I haven’t used one, and from the data that Anand ran on one they seem to perform reasonably well. Since the Nixeus has a warranty and user support, the issue really comes down to performance as well as pricing.
The main concern I have is the contrast ratios. Many people, including the Imaging Science Foundation, believe that Dynamic Range is the single most important aspect of any display; if everything on the display is muted then you won’t care if the colors are accurate or not. Of course movies and games demand this more than word processing and programming do. It really is the higher black levels that cause the issue on the Nixeus compared to other displays. Unfortunately it’s also an area that IPS doesn’t help with, as it typically has higher black levels than VA-based panels.
Beyond that, I found the performance to be pretty good. The input lag is a killer for gamers, and they will need to go with the HP ZR2740w still if they want a 27”, 2560x1440 display with low input lag. The OSD is the other thing that bothers me, but since I calibrated the display for a final time I haven’t had to get back into the settings, and I imagine it will be the same for most users as well. On the whole colors are good, the screen is sharp, and the glossy coating didn't bother me with glare too much, though I do work in a basement with no natural light and recessed ceiling lights.
The workmanship of the display is very basic and utilitarian and feels nowhere near as solid as a display from HP or Dell. The glossy finish picks up fingerprints easily, the stand is stiff and hard to adjust sometimes, and the protective film is still stuck in a couple of areas for me. With the original target price of $430 I had no issue recommending the Nixeus, but with the updated online price of $500 it isn't as much of a slam-dunk. It still sells for less than the HP monitor and offers an OSD and more inputs, but the HP offers a better contrast ratio, A+ instead of A graded panel, a better stand and build quality, and can be used for gaming. These aren't small differences, and they are more forgivable for $220 difference than $150.
In the end, the performance of the Nixeus is still good, and the price is better than anything you don't buy off eBay. For doing work, including the editing, writing, and posting of this review, it does a very good job. Unlike the imported Korean panels I don't have an issue recommending the Nixeus NX-VUE27; I just wish the price had come in at the original $430 target instead of the current $500 as that would make it very easy to recommend it to everyone. That said, if you don't need DisplayPort or HDMI inputs and you're willing to risk having problems, several of the other AnandTech editors have purchased 27" Korean LCDs and are quite pleased with the results; it's a gamble, but for many online buyers it has been an acceptable risk.
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Death666Angel - Friday, September 21, 2012 - link
Or AMD 7xxx. :)Penti - Friday, September 21, 2012 - link
No, just no. Only 3 GHz HDMI 1.4a support above 1920x1200. Don't confuse the two, the monitor does not support it. DVI-DL or DP that rules here. The Nixues might accept a higher res signal over HDMI but it doesn't have the bandwidth to handle it so it causes issues. DP or DVI-DL recommended and is the only one's supported by the vendor. It's basically like trying to run SL-DVI at a higher res then specced here. Skip HDMI-connections whenever you can, skip notebooks with only HDMI whenever you can if you want to run over 1920x1200. Even if you happen to have stuff supporting HDMI 1.4a 3GHz (3GHz part is vital here) in your portable stuff the monitor isn't yet supporting it. They need a new generation of chips driving the displays. GCN and Kepler might be practical if you like to run above 2560x1600 though, but most monitors still requires two DP-connections for 3840x2160/2400 when they don't have true DP1.2 support. There isn't really much of any hardware around to support all the other DP1.2 features either such as daisy chaining.HDMI is essentially useless here unless it can scale your console (1280x720/1920x1080) good enough on that screen to be usable and correctly viewed. VGA isn't really any use either. You simply have to use a lower res screen if you don't have access to DL-DVI and or DP supporting stuff.
atotroadkill - Friday, September 21, 2012 - link
Thanks for the clarification... I currently use the displayport connection from my GTX 670 to my NX-VUE27... before when I was using HDMI 1.4 I did experience artifacts and some sync issues at 2560x1440. After that I tried Dual Link DVI but I couldn't see my bios... but after switching to Displayport those issues went away.Despoiler - Thursday, September 20, 2012 - link
Too much processing lag. 2 FRAMES!!! Glad I held off. That is a non-starter.atotroadkill - Thursday, September 20, 2012 - link
"Because I have to run at a non-standard resolution compared to the Nixeus, you might see some additional lag being added to the input than if you ran natively, but there is no way for me to actually test the native input lag time. There is also no way on the Nixeus to set a 1080p image to be centered and not scaled, which might reduce lag by doing 1:1 mapping and bypassing the scaler but at the expense of only using part of the screen."The 2 Frames and processing is because of Non-Native resolution testing and testing it 1080p...so if you are gaming at 1080p on the monitor then yes it will bother you - and gaming on this monitor at 1080 you shouldn't get this monitor anyways.
I'm using it at 2560x1440 playing BF3 and it has no affect on my shooting and timing (with V-SYNC off)
abhaxus - Friday, September 21, 2012 - link
I wonder about this also. Since the author doesn't have a CRT capable of 1440p for reference, why not just compare the input lag using the HP as a reference at 1440p? Seems like a solution that might get answers for those of us who are quite interested in this monitor. I suspect it's as you say, that without scaling it can do ok.cheinonen - Friday, September 21, 2012 - link
Well, testing that would require that I still have the HP monitor, but since I didn't buy it, that isn't really an option for me to do. The only CRTs out there that can do 1440p are probably projectors with 9" CRTs, and unfortunately installing a 100+ lb. projector, not to mention the cost of finding one in great shape to test it, precludes that.trynberg - Friday, September 21, 2012 - link
Not that I expect you to get one, but there are plenty of 19-21" CRTs out there that can do 2048X1536 resolution for dirt cheap...I have two sitting at home right now (19" Mitsubishi and 21" Sun/Sony).cheinonen - Friday, September 21, 2012 - link
It has to be 2560x1440, though, for the exact same native resolution, and something that can do that is incredibly hard to find.Sabresiberian - Friday, September 21, 2012 - link
Hmm well okay the Sony GDM FW900 runs at 2304x1440, not 2560, but wouldn't that give you better results?(I'm not sure this is a huge issue, as long as your testing methodology is consistent across LCD displays.)