BenQ SW321C Review - The Ultimate 32" 4K Photographers Display!

[@ArtIsRight]

Please give this video a "like" and subscribe if you are new! This will help me out with the KZbin algorithm!

[@ArtIsRight]

:)

[@MaZEEZaM]

I do wish BenQ would share the Designer Design that looks so nice with both models, why would you offer something thats pretty ugly just because of a difference in use. It would also have been nice if they offered or included a hood for the designer model, even if it was an optional upgrade. I also love the idea of the hardware based calibration, it sounds like it would be great in the designer model or does this hardware based calibration limit the software based calibration?

[@michaelbrenner2233]

Informative without getting in the weeds or being overly long. Highly recommended reviewer.

[@ArtIsRight]

Thank you!

[@gaperklake]

You are indispensable, Art. Thank you. I received my SW321C this morning.

[@ArtIsRight]

Thank you!

[@afti03]

Art! amazing work! i have a suggestion regarding the lighting differences between the screen and the actual print. The screen is uniformly lit, but the picture is only being lit from above, creating shadows underneath..my suggestion is to somehow add a light that shoots from underneath the print, that way, you AT LEAST have half of the print uniformly lit. Something like an LED strip or an LED stick. Hope that helps, cheers!

[@ArtIsRight]

Thanks

[@2klatte]

WOW...thanks for the amazingly detailed and helpful content!

[@ArtIsRight]

@2klatte, you're welcome!

[@gbye007]

Great review. I particularly liked the D50 paper colour sync. One question - can we see the a 50% grey after cal compared to an Eizo? I'm particularly sensitive to accurate grey tones.

[@ArtIsRight]

Thank you! About the Eizo comparison, I don't have one to compare that too.

[@NeilSnapePhotography]

Another good review. Packed with information. Making print matching conditions is already difficult, presenting it on KZbin almost impossible. Yet you still did as good as you can. With a 16 Macbook Pro we had no problems running Lightroom and Photoshop with PD at 60w. Yet as I expect, if running video editing specifically exporting it will require more power.

[@ArtIsRight]

@Neil Snape, thank you! What I found out is that when fully loaded, it will still charge the battery but much slower, since most of the power is going to power CPU and GPU. And yes tell me about trying to get my camera to get the screen and paper looking the same. It looks fantastic in person but I have yet to figure out a way how to do it justice on camera. If you do let me know :)

[@NeilSnapePhotography]

@@ArtIsRight Illuminent metameri will have you chasing an impossible target to match. The only stable matching light is filtered tungsten but even then the filters are somewhat of a variable depending on age, batches, heat distortion. Human vision adapts and tries to normalise all light in a perceived fashion whereas cameras just record what is reflected.

[@ArtIsRight]

@Neil Snape, I hear you. Thank you.

[@creativesymon]

Excellent review. I was near sold on this until the 10bit part. I hate panels being called 10bit then they're really 8bit + 2. One thing I'd like to ask...when you do a hardware calibration...does it inform the PC to not send/use a software ICC profile?

[@ArtIsRight]

@Symon, so when you do hardware calibration, the PC would still have an icc profile, however, what that profile does is 2 things, it tell the video card to output the signal as is with no manipulation or remapping. And the second thing that it does is tell the video card the color parameter or gamut that the display is showing in the perspective calibration mode.

[@creativesymon]

@@ArtIsRight Awesome. Thanks for clearing that up :)

[@ArtIsRight]

@Symon, you're welcome.

[@Matt-ui4eb]

Thanks for your videos, Art. I got a lot of information from your videos. Could you share me whether SW321C has IPS glow at 4 corners, especially dark photos editing, a gloomy room or different viewing angles?

[@ArtIsRight]

With photo no, with just backlight yes but minimal

[@johnscott7828]

I currently own an Eizo GC2420 but am considering upgrading to a BenQ monitor. This is a great review. I can’t tell what the the difference is for the SW321C and the SW271C. When I look at the specs on the BenQ website they appear the same except for the monitor size difference. Is that correct? Is it just a matter of screen real estate? Thanks.

[@ArtIsRight]

For the most part yes, SW271C has Uniformity Gen 3, SW321C Gen 2, and SW321C has an extreme matte display coating that no other display has. Best to watch my SW321C review.

[@lauriewahlig2819]

I currently own the BenQ BL3201PH 32” and have had it for about 5 years. Is this model a significant upgrade? Pros/cons of upgrading to this model? Thanks so much!!

[@ArtIsRight]

BL is an office oriented display. These SW are the top of the line, the best BenQ has to offer pro displays that cover a much wider color gamut. So these are much better.

[@lauriewahlig789]

@@ArtIsRight so i realize you are an ambassador for BenQ but since it is a lot of money, would you say it is a noticeable difference for a photographer working in lightroom, photoshop and capture one?

[@ArtIsRight]

Yes it would make a big difference because of the color gamut coverage and hardware calibration. kzbin.info/www/bejne/b5m5l6qNbrF-bqc Side note, yes I am their ambassador, but I always give out my own honest opinions. If you look at my videos and follow my channel you will see that. I don't like BenQ because I am their ambassador, I like them because they make great products and I happen to their ambassador :)

[@lauriewahlig2819]

@@ArtIsRight many thanks!!!!!

[@ArtIsRight]

:)

[@lout1587]

Great review, even 4 years after the fact. I would love to purchase this display, but I would also love to satisfy my needs without spending so much money. Are there alternatives to this display (perhaps without as many features) that would cost closer to $1,250? Or would it be penny wise, but pound foolish, as the saying goes, to choose any other display for printing photographs? I am using an M2 Ultra Mac Studio and an Epson p700 printer.

[@ArtIsRight]

Knowing that you print I would recommend any SW, so if you want something more in the range SW272U 27"4K is $1499, SW272Q 27" 2K is $799 or the newest SW242Q 24" 2K is $480 an amazing value. All of these have hardware calibration and 99% Adobe RGB

[@lout1587]

@@ArtIsRight Thank you very much for the info. Good to know I can save some money by reducing the screen size.

[@blackcobolt1520]

Thanks for this detailed review. One aspect you did not touch upon is eye care. Is this display flicker fee? Does it have all the eye care features of the lesser Benq monitors to alleviate eye strain? Also, can this monitor simultaneously display multiple input sources in the grid format like the PD range? I'm not just talking about PIP or PBP but true multiple or dual input source feeds from the various IO inputs. The duo gamut support is not a true split screen. Many thanks

[@ArtIsRight]

I didn't mentioned it because I don't believe that this model have eyecare. This display is my daily driver and I don't notice any flickering on the display. And no it can't do a gird like the PD.

[@blackcobolt1520]

@@ArtIsRight Thanks Art. If it does not have dedicated eye care support, does it have a low blue light mode? Alternatively, can you manually reduce the blue light output and brightness and save both reduced levels to a custom mode? Maybe use the dial on the puck to adjust the blue light on the fly by turning the knob?

[@jamilabbasy]

Been watching your BenQ videos...really helpful. I understand the concept of a hardware calibrated display, but am confused what should bet set in the Mac OS display settings color tab for the profile. You say you can have consistent color between multiple computers once calibrated. Is there an ICC profile Palette Master creates? And then do you share this same ICC profile between multiple computers? Thanks!!!

[@ArtIsRight]

Is there an ICC profile Palette Master creates? yes kzbin.info/www/bejne/eZjSY6Ntn6tmpJI kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqPNg6J_mpVgo9E And then do you share this same ICC profile between multiple computers? No, they are computer and connection specific.

[@jamilabbasy]

@@ArtIsRight Thank you! That was the one video explanation I was not seeing. I’ve been software calibrating forever and now fully understand the hardware calibration differences. Thanks again!!!

[@hautehussey]

@@ArtIsRight it doesn’t make sense that they would be computer specific unless you’re only referring to different types of computers/video cards/settings.

[@Vlad_Dracul]

Art, you somehow forgot to mention the best quality of this monitor: above everything, it's a great insectary. Lil' bugs easily crowl in the screen (not in the monitor, in the screen itself), die there and there's no way to get them out of there, so in time you'll have quite a nice collection of dead flying insects. Absolutely great.

[@ArtIsRight]

Never had that issues with any of my display, but it would seem this can happen to any.

[@Vlad_Dracul]

@@ArtIsRight Never happened to any of my other monitors (I'm a computer&laptop owner since 1998), didn't even know it was possible. Just imagine my shock and horror...

[@ArtIsRight]

Second that, I would reach out to your local BenQ support and see what they can do to help.

[@hautehussey]

Being unable to clean the screen is a huge issue. Is this a screen you’re still using? Have you run into any more issues with this in the last two years?

[@ArtIsRight]

I have not run into any issue and I have clean my screen. The roller works, or if you have debris on the screen just clean it with a lightly damp - non chemical or alcohol - cleaner.

[@afrodude01]

When will it be available in Canada? Great video.

[@ArtIsRight]

@Matthew Davis, I would think that it is going launch officially on the same date as the US which is Feb 3rd. I know that you can order them now, in CA, you can get it from Amazon and Vistek, I am not sure if Bestbuy CA have them or not.

[@JohnAmaro_Official]

Hi Arti,my pc can handle 4k display without any problems. Would you suggest the 4k or 2k model (sw270c)for photo editing ? Thanks

[@ArtIsRight]

@John Amaro, unless you are doing video, or has a justifiable need for 4K, then I would stick with 2K for photo editing. Even though your videocard can handle it, 4K is really taxing on it.

[@JohnAmaro_Official]

@@ArtIsRight thanks. I always had the idea that you can see a bit more details on the 4k. May i ask whats the contrast ratio of this display? Also whats the contrast ratio after the calibration with pme?

[@ArtIsRight]

@John Amaro, visually you might thing that you see more since the pixels are smaller and more densely compacted in a 4K display. So there are more pixels representing your image when viewed at 100% say compared to a 2K. But those pixels are small and compact. Which also leads to everything being small and most people would run the 4K and some scaled resolution. The contrast ratio of the display is 1300:1, however, once calibrate to 80 cd/^2, a lower contrast ratio. I don't have the exact amount here. But the case in point is what are you doing with the contrast ratio, if you are doing fine art print then you would want it lower. If you are doing high end glossy print then getting blacks darker would be the ideal here. So this is somewhat dependent on the use case.

[@johnmcclung4736]

Art, I've really been enjoying your videos. However, when looking at BenQ displays at Amazon, I keep reading about various flaw and problems, and poor customer support. Can you speak to that? Is that an old problem that's been rectified? I'm now leaning towards an NEC display, bigger than my current MultiSync PA241W. Thank you for an update on BenQ quality in 2021.

[@ArtIsRight]

NEC display are older models, they don't really introduced new one any more. They are a good brand and works well. As far as various flaws and problem, I would look and make sure that you are looking at the SW line from there I would go through those comments and see what is going on. If it an issue with validation failure, most of those issues have been solved with the latest software release, obviously, because these are connected to a computer, sometimes the cable choice, OS, software or drivers could be causing conflict. As far as, hardware goes, they are really good. Most of the time when these SW displays fail you will see and it is obvious, i.e. dead pixel. With regards to customer support, they are a growing rapidly in this segment and they have a smaller group of support staffs that are trained for these specific issues and I work closely with them on this. The support team is US based and in house not outsourced. So give and take, support might not be instantaneous but the will take care of their customer, especially if there's a fault with the display. So I would check the feedback on amazon and look at the rational.

[@johnmcclung4736]

@@ArtIsRight Thanks for the info, Art. Recent reviews of the SW line are all very positive, so perhaps the problems were other, older models. ▪️ Am I right in believing that any model of the iMac cannot be calibrated as well as an SW BenQ display?

[@ArtIsRight]

imac can be calibrated but they can only be calibrated to P3 color space. If you do photo you want Adobe RGB.

[@lout1587]

Thanks!

[@ArtIsRight]

Welcome!

[@vinayvenugopal4184]

Hi Art. I am facing a lag issue when I connect my 2015 MBP 13”, running on the Intel Iris GPU, to the Benq 321c. I am essentially using this to edit on Lightroom and occasionally on Photoshop Would it be a faulty cable or would this be expected with an older model ?

[@ArtIsRight]

You could try another cable but I don't think that it would help much. Essentially the integrated GPU is having a hard time driving the 4K resolution on the display. This is something that you can try and see if you can change the refresh rate to 60 Hz, if you can't it would be the GPU limitation kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y5bTcn2qp7Wggqc

[@lauriewahlig2819]

Do you have a preference for external speakers and can they be connected to the BenQ SW321C?? Thank you!

[@ArtIsRight]

Via the 3.5 mm headphone jack yes. As far as external speakers go, there are so many options. A sensible price one would be Yamaha, Klipsch, Bose. Personally I use KEF LS50 self power studio monitors but each individual needs is different. Hope this helps :)

[@lauriewahlig2819]

@@ArtIsRight Again, thank you so much

[@iKeto_gal]

How do you clean the blue roller monitor cleaner? Not sure if I use a certain soap on it

[@ArtIsRight]

Just wash it with warm water and let dry, no soap

[@adrianarmirail]

Great video, thanks. However, it would've been great to compare to the competition (Eizo, NEC, etc.). As it is, this is like a promotional video, not a comprehensive review

[@ArtIsRight]

You’re welcome. And let me say that review comparisons videos are different in nature. I am confident enough that the information presented here are based on facts and objective testings rather than subjective feeling. ;)

[@tomatokosir]

Is it flicker-free also at lower brightness settings?

[@ArtIsRight]

yes

[@ArtIsRight]

These are high end display, less prone to those issues.

[@DaveSincere]

I purchased this monitor last week and I was super excited to get it but now I'm extremely disappointed. I've had it for 6 days and must have calibrated it 100 times since its arrived. I've calibrated it using Palette Master and DataColor Spyder 5 Pro Colorimeter. I was not happy with results, calibration failed a bunch of times. I changed settings and it passed. But the colors look washed out and super dull. I thought if I used a different colorimeter it may make a difference. I bought the X Rite X1 Display Pro Plus and used it about 20 times and have the exact same results but it did calibrate faster. I called BenQ and the first guy Josh was very patient and helpful, after getting XRite colorimeter I called again, spoke with Ivan who was extremely UNHELPFUL. Im at my wits end. I don't want to return it but it seems that's what I have to do.

[@ArtIsRight]

Add my Facebook page, we'll chat there and I'll help you out.

[@marcusnz232]

What is it like as a general work display with a Retina MBP M1 when you are not doing image editing?

[@ArtIsRight]

It is great, it has been my daily driver since launched

[@marcusnz232]

@@ArtIsRight Thanks. What scaling do you use for OSX? I love the in depth reviews you do, btw. No fluff, just solid information.

[@ArtIsRight]

Thank you. Amazing enough some, a very small number of people still says this review is bias, can't win.

[@marcusnz232]

@@ArtIsRight Meh. You can’t please everyone in life, can you? 🤣

[@ArtIsRight]

Touche!

[@jlopez813v]

Wait so how did you calibrate it if your unable to touch the screen because of the new coating

[@ArtIsRight]

@Junior Lopez, it is sensitive to finger prints and touching with human hands could damage the coating because our hands have oils. I was able to calibrate the screen. I don’t recommend cleaning it with a micro fiber cloth because during the process excessive press could be put on the coating and screen. Hope this helps clarify things up :)

[@jlopez813v]

@@ArtIsRight yes it does. But which calibrator would you recommend not the software but like the physical object

[@ArtIsRight]

@Junior Lopez, the best one to use is the X-Rite i1Display Pro

[@jlopez813v]

@@ArtIsRight alright thank you but quick question could this work with a laptop ?

[@ArtIsRight]

@Junior Lopez, this device will work to calibrate your laptop as well.

[@KeineZensur]

This time you got all the main points right: 1: hardware vs. software calibration (and honest lookback on buggy PME versions) > finally! 2: 10bit beeing really a 8bit + frc 3: uniformity 2.0 4: backlight bleeding (nice!) 5: coating 6: almost "industrial", non disturbing design I feel like you heard my cries before :) Well done Art I really like the hotkey puck and its programability a lot. This alone is a killer feature. Could you elaborate on the coating a bit? Is it really this sensitive that you cannot use a microfiber cloth? What is it made of then? Is BenQ aware of the fact that they're using a wrong *.edr in PME (they should use RG_Phosphor_Family_25Jul12.edr)? Despite this I was able to force PME to use the correct one with a modified *.xml file. Any news on the official release date? I tested the SW321C on windows you can see my results at Neil's channel here kzbin.info/www/bejne/fZywcnh7pb-LicU

[@ArtIsRight]

@Hans Wurst, Thank you for the feed back and support. I'll make sure to share the edr with BenQ. Also if you don't mind could you elaborate a bit more about the edr for me. I like to get an understanding of it. About the coating, I'm not sure what it is made off but it is something that only BenQ has right now. The thing is that the roller does not put too much pressure on the coating and it picks up the dust particles rather than smudge or smear to remove it like the micro fiber cloth. I have not tested this but I don't want to damage my screen coating either. I'll reach out to BenQ and see if I can find out more about this for you. Official press briefing was the last 2 days. The official release date is February 3rd in the US. I am not sure what the date is like in other countries. And yes I have checked out Neil Channel too, another great BenQ Resource.

[@KeineZensur]

@@ArtIsRight Well I think cleaning with any microfiber cloth shouldn't destroy any coating of any *monitor*, right? I'll risk that. As for the *.edr ('Emissive Display Reference File') file:I already mentioned that in Neil's video here kzbin.info/www/bejne/f3radHudd8d3qKM Here's a copy from my comment: It seems PaletteMaster uses the wrong *.edr correction file for these types of BenQ displays. Afaik SW270C is GB-LED, SW2700PT is QLED and SW240 is PFS phosphor. www.prad.de/testberichte/test-benq-sw270c-grafik-monitor-mit-16-bit-3d-lut/6/#comment-1574 .PME uses "RGBLEDFamily_07Feb11.edr" (see Manifest.txt) instead of a suitable .edr (i.e "RG_Phosphor_Family_25Jul12.edr"). This could explain the colour shift some are experiencing here. Futher infos: hub.displaycal.net/forums/topic/how-to-see-uniformity-result-like-this-one/#post-19865 I put the "RG_Phosphor_Family_25Jul12.edr" in the PME folder on c: and did modify "Manifest.txt" and "I1D3Mapping.txt" to force PME to use this edr. This worked for me. BenQ could easily fix this by putting a right *edr file in PME from the start. They could/should create their own *.edr for the SW321C. They got all the tools inhouse. Maybe Neil can comment on this?

[@ArtIsRight]

@Hans Wurst, I'll be cleaning mine with the roller only, you can take the risk but I rather not do that personally. And thanks for the edr info.

[@KeineZensur]

@@ArtIsRight Could you reach out to BenQ please and get the actual display type specs (QLED or WLED PFS:) and hand them over the *.edr infos? Could you also ask the to create a proper *,edr? The SW321C would be outstanding accurate with this. Thank you Art.

[@ArtIsRight]

@Hans Wurst, I'll reach out and do my best to get the info to them and get clarification on the information that you requested. This may take sometime for them to get back to me.

[@maximilian.R]

Why isn't mentioned that this monitor has some serious limitations. USB-C cannot run at its full bandwidth potential with 60Hrz selected, and instead one has to choose USB 2.1 bandwidth to keep the 60Hrz refresh rate. Otherwise one is stuck in 30Hrz refresh rate. That is quite a blunder and useless packages. Not to mentions that your HDMI connection is a poor choice with this monitor--had the worst calibrations results compared to USB-C. And, on the control puck, one cannot change between calibrated profiles, but just between color modes--unless. If one puts out a products, make sure everything works from hardware, connection, to software. Was a waste of money on my part. The PME software had issues throughout the years, and it is still not a perfect software.

[@ArtIsRight]

PMU software is out that address many of your issues. USB C 4K displays all have the same bandwidth limitation. HDMI is not a poor limitation rather a bad type of connection or less preferred one for color profession. If you are that unhappy about this, I would just return the product. And you're welcome for the review.

[@maximilian.R]

Hello! I appreciate the input. I just wanted to confirm that you are able to save your calibrated profiles to one of the calibration slots on the puck (1-3 buttons). Can you confirm in System Setting, in Display panel (on your Mac, or PC) that the color profile was activated to the one you wanted, when pressing the corresponding button on the puck? I have the same monitor, SW321C, and it is not switching between the calibrated color profiles that I had it set to. Visually, on the monitor, a change is noted between color spaces/profiles, but when I open the system setting within the OS, it is still on prior color profile, or default BenQ color profile, not my latest calibrated profiles. Is it switching between your calibrated profiles? Double check! Tech support from BenQ is telling me that I cannot save any calibration profiles to any of the 1-3 buttons on the control puck! Issues with monitor, misleading information from BenQ? What is going on?

[@ArtIsRight]

I just wanted to confirm that you are able to save your calibrated profiles to one of the calibration slots on the puck (1-3 buttons). You don't save the calibration profile to the puck, it does not work that way. You can assign the short cut keys on the puck to calibration, 1, 2, 3. And with Palette Master Ultimate icc sync it will automatically change the icc profile. There are other factors to be aware of such as closing down the program and launching it up again so that the proper icc profile is used. Can you confirm in System Setting, in Display panel (on your Mac, or PC) that the color profile was activated to the one you wanted, when pressing the corresponding button on the puck? Yes did a video on this kzbin.info/www/bejne/jZeUn5SDiZqCm9k I have the same monitor, SW321C, and it is not switching between the calibrated color profiles that I had it set to. Visually, on the monitor, a change is noted between color spaces/profiles, but when I open the system setting within the OS, it is still on prior color profile, or default BenQ color profile, not my latest calibrated profiles. Is it switching between your calibrated profiles? Double check! Are you using PMU? Are the profiles created with PMU? If any of these answers are "no" it will not work! Tech support from BenQ is telling me that I cannot save any calibration profiles to any of the 1-3 buttons on the control puck! They are correct, there's a misunderstanding somewhere on your part, Look back at the answer to my first question. Issues with monitor, misleading information from BenQ? What is going on?\ Issue is not with the monitor, their hardware are fine. BenQ never published any info about saving the profile to the hotkey puck hotkey, the information that they presented on this clearly short cut to color mode and not storage. There's a disconnect here and lots of incompletely information. Hopefully this will fill in the miss gap. All information stated here is correct.

[@maximilian.R]

Hello. Well, unfortunately, it was BenQ support that told me to go back to PME. After almost a month of going back and forth the with them, they mentioned to try PMU, again. After, monitor reseting, and deleting other profiling apps (ccStudio), tonight I finally had it working again. The controlling puck is able to switch the monitor profiles I created during calibration, and within the Mac OS, also. Thank you for replies.@@ArtIsRight

[@ArtIsRight]

:)