Follow up on my monitor question... I got the BenQ SW2700PT, but after a few days sent it back. It was a strange experience from the start. Initially, the colors seemed very good, but I noticed the greys were not neutral (too warm), so I used my Spyder 5 to calibrate, and thought I'd download BenQ's calibration software (since they recommend using it). I went to BenQ's website, as indicated on the supplied paperwork, but came to a non-existent page. So I Googled "BenQ monitor calibration software" and found a different link, this time it worked so I downloaded the software. (The same thing happened when I tried to register the monitor - I had to use Google find the registration page, and then the "Register" link did not work.) At first, the software would not run - it started and then a box popped up with some error message, clicking out of the box closed the program. So I calibrated using the Spyder software, which worked, but the results were odd (again, the greys were not neutral). I ran the Spyder calibration several times and got slightly different results each time, until I got a result I could live with. The next day, after restarting my computer, I tried the BenQ calibration software again - this time it ran, but there are 2 options: one advanced and one more brief. I tried the advanced first - it took at least 15 minutes and when it finished the screen was a bizarre range of pinks and purples. So I ran the calibration again, this time using the other option, which worked ok, but the result was different than I got with the Spyder software. After the calibration, it offered an option to verify the calibration, which I selected. There were 2 parameters, both of which reported as "Failed". I ended up going back to the Spyder calibration profile that I liked the most, but I still had no idea if the monitor was anywhere near correctly calibrated with all of the different results. Over the course of a few days I submitted three support requests to BenQ, and while I did get automatically generated emails indicating that my requests had been received, to this day I have not received any responses to the questions. Finally, I noticed a dead pixel, so I contacted B&H and sent it back.
I waited a while to consider other monitor options, and ended up getting a Viewsonic VP2768. It's an IPS 4k monitor that has 100% RGB, but not 100% Adobe RGB, and cost less than the BenQ. It supposedly comes pre-calibrated and the colors are great, and look like they should so I haven't bothered to calibrate it yet (although I will at some point). To be honest, I really missed the 4k. I really like this monitor.
|