Tom Bussey Posted June 22, 2016 Share Posted June 22, 2016 Does anyone use a curved monitor for their 3D work? I'm pretty sure I'm going to upgrade to a 3440×1440 monitor. I like the idea of a curved display for Max work, mirroring the radial set-up of 2 separate monitors, but unsure whether it might make editing finished images a little tricky. Would be interested to hear the views of anyone that owns one of these as to their strengths and weaknesses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joelmcwilliam Posted June 23, 2016 Share Posted June 23, 2016 (edited) It is simple. For production stuff you want real colors and no distortion at all. The real image. A curved monitor is great for watching movies, because your eyes are focussed at the center and everything else you just let it soak into you. But for production you also have to focus on the edges of the sreen, because of all those submenu's, and then you will notice the slight distortion the curved monitor will give you. I prefer a large and flat uhd monitor. You will have to move your head a bit more. Edited June 23, 2016 by joelmcwilliam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dimitris Tolios Posted July 7, 2016 Share Posted July 7, 2016 The whole curved idea is a gimmick in practice. The curvature is too small to matter (completely pointless for TVs imho, but that is another story). The 34" 1440p wide panels are amazing. Much preferable to 4K. I'd say go for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonm Posted July 7, 2016 Share Posted July 7, 2016 Hi Dimitris - which 34" are you referring to? The whole curved idea is a gimmick in practice. The curvature is too small to matter (completely pointless for TVs imho, but that is another story). The 34" 1440p wide panels are amazing. Much preferable to 4K. I'd say go for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dimitris Tolios Posted July 7, 2016 Share Posted July 7, 2016 (edited) All IPS panels out there are made by LG, so pretty much all 34" 3440x1440 (Ultra WQHD, often refered to as "3.5K") screens out there other than those by Samsung (VA panel) have very similar attributes and to an extend prices. Of course your selection varies from the original flat LG 34UM95C 60Hz ~$640 to curved models like the Dell UltraSharp U3415W etc in the $750 range (varying in appearance, connectivity - some have Thunderbolt which is a "must" for some Mac users), and then expand to the curved "gaming / enthusiast" class monitors (mainly by Asus, Acer & now Eizo) that use more customized electronics to drive the panel and offer increased frequencies and technologies like FreeSync or Gsync, the latter two being increasingly important in applications involving fast moving graphics but not so much ArchViz. These "Gaming" panels are the most expensive of the bunch, at $850~$1300. I would expect all the available IPS options, including the Samsung VA to perform very similarly, especially after a calibration with a decent colorimeter, like the X-Rite ColorMunki, will work very well. With 2.5x the real-estate the usual 16:9 1080p gives you and less scaling issues than 24~28" 4K panels (at least with older UIs), I think these are great options for ArchViz, photo & video editing etc. There are occasions where 2x discreet panels bring benefits, and the ultra-wide 34" will push a second panel perhaps too far on the side, but having it as a main monitor I would see no issues. Edited July 7, 2016 by dtolios Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonm Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 Thanks Dimitris I was going to get the 27" dell - how does this fare to that? Unsure of which one to get now lol I also ordered the ColorMunki All IPS panels out there are made by LG, so pretty much all 34" 3440x1440 (Ultra WQHD, often refered to as "3.5K") screens out there other than those by Samsung (VA panel) have very similar attributes and to an extend prices. Of course your selection varies from the original flat LG 34UM95C 60Hz ~$640 to curved models like the Dell UltraSharp U3415W etc in the $750 range (varying in appearance, connectivity - some have Thunderbolt which is a "must" for some Mac users), and then expand to the curved "gaming / enthusiast" class monitors (mainly by Asus, Acer & now Eizo) that use more customized electronics to drive the panel and offer increased frequencies and technologies like FreeSync or Gsync, the latter two being increasingly important in applications involving fast moving graphics but not so much ArchViz. These "Gaming" panels are the most expensive of the bunch, at $850~$1300. I would expect all the available IPS options, including the Samsung VA to perform very similarly, especially after a calibration with a decent colorimeter, like the X-Rite ColorMunki, will work very well. With 2.5x the real-estate the usual 16:9 1080p gives you and less scaling issues than 24~28" 4K panels (at least with older UIs), I think these are great options for ArchViz, photo & video editing etc. There are occasions where 2x discreet panels bring benefits, and the ultra-wide 34" will push a second panel perhaps too far on the side, but having it as a main monitor I would see no issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dimitris Tolios Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 (edited) LG 27" 2560x1440p IPS panels have been around for much longer and were the "standard" for people seeking more real estate (along with the LG 30" 2560x1600 IPS). Those are great and trusted panels and a huge upgrade in available screen space vs. 1080/1200p options. I would probably go for a "utilitarian" Dell U2715H. Has lots DP/mDB/HDMI, USB 3.0 hub, and anti-glare coating that I personally like in bright lit rooms. Some hate Dell's anti-glare coating, I hate the super glossy iMac as those do get glare from surrounding windows / lights. Other panels, like those from Asus, fall somewhere in-between and are also good choices. I have the older Dell U2711 for years and I am happy with it. Note that there are two classes of IPS panels, most with 8-bit LUT (like the U2715H) and some with 10-bit LUT (like the U2711), but not all apps or GPUs can output 10bit...I would pick a 8-bit LUT that gets calibrated once in a while over a 10-bit panel that doesn't anyday. There are lots of more expensive 27" 1440p screens, but again those start being aimed to gaming (gsync / freesync, higher Hz), have busy designs, and start getting too pricey to IMHO for office graphics / ArchViz etc... Edited July 8, 2016 by dtolios Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyderSK Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 Color reproduction (6bit + FRX, 8bit, 10bit) and (often hardware programmable) Lookup tables (10-16bit) are two different things in monitors ;- ) The difference is in color gamut. OP will easily recognize the latter by price, and I don't recommend anyone without good understanding of color management (and patience) to own such monitor. 3ds Max and most CGI software are not color managed (for weird historic reasons) (with exception of newer framebuffers like VFB+ and Vray3 which offer 3dLUT), so maintaining wide gamut workflow from 3dsMax to Photoshop (or Nuke/Fusion,etc..) can be chore and introduce major headache. I've cut my teeth over the years a lot on this.. Calibrating them is also not as straightforward, they often (in Dell case almost always) require specific single device to work with their software ( for Dell it's X-Rite i1Display Pro, so your ColorMunki and Spyder would be worthless. ) And then there are clueless folks who just do it anyway and software calibrate their high-end monitors :- ) Of course, most do offer hardware clamping to sRGB profile, but... Since 2017 3dsMax has great scaling support, I would go directly to 4k monitor. It's 2016, no reason to have same resolution as on cellphone :- ) I am quite fond of 34" 21:9 panels too (but they could come at 5k). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dimitris Tolios Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 Amazon has the Dell UltraSharp U3415W for $700 right now. Don't know if it is for the very short-term, as today is "Prime Day", but it is a solid price for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonm Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 hey Dimitris I was actually up last night to the weeeeeee hours of this morning researching - do i get the 27 or 34 dell!!!! I was thinking maybe 2 x 27s or 1 x 34 - I cant make up my mind lol Amazon has the Dell UltraSharp U3415W for $700 right now. Don't know if it is for the very short-term, as today is "Prime Day", but it is a solid price for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dimitris Tolios Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 hey Dimitris I was actually up last night to the weeeeeee hours of this morning researching - do i get the 27 or 34 dell!!!! I was thinking maybe 2 x 27s or 1 x 34 - I cant make up my mind lol If that's what you are losing sleep over, you should have realized you are in the top 1% of the world's population* *probably make that top .5% or better Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonm Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 among other things but this isnt the forum for it right so what do you think mate? 27 or 34 for Arch Viz? If that's what you are losing sleep over, you should have realized you are in the top 1% of the world's population* *probably make that top .5% or better Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dimitris Tolios Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 I think 2x 27" is pure overkill...too wide to keep in your FOV on a reasonably deep desk. I would go for the 34" personally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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