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LG 27UL550 Review: Matte 3840x2160 LG AH-IPS with AMD Free-Sync

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NCX:

LG 27UL550 Photo Gallery

Best Reviewed Flicker Free 27" 4-5K AHVA/IPS/PLS

DSC_0048 by Dr NCX, on Flickr

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Review Testing Methodology & PCSpoiler (hover to show)
My room is lit by a single 2200 lumen (brightness), 6500k color temperature Animen LED light or 4x LIFX BR30 bias lights placed behind my monitors.

All testing done using a SpectraCal C6 HDR2000 (upgraded i1 Display Pro Colorimeter; a colorimeter measures the colors, contrast, brightness, gamma, ect; proof of ownership), HCFR (program used to measure the color presets and verify calibration) and dispcalGUI for calibration. I use my own cables to connect the monitors to my PC and consoles.

PixPixAn's (free software) Chase, Streaky Pictures and Flag tests were all used to test the pixel response times along with the Ghosting test from Test UFO. Input lag was tested with the Leo Bodnar Input Lag Tester.

LCD monitor test images test patterns from Lagom were used to test the colors along with tons of photos from Wallpapers Wide.

PC:

Motherboard: MSI M87
CPU: Intel i7 4770k
Case: Lian Li PC80
GPU: Zotac GTX 980 Ti AMP! Extreme
Ram: 16gb Patriot G Viper Xtreme 2133mhz
Power Supply: Antec High Current Pro 1200w

DSC_0050 by Dr NCX, on Flickr

NCX:
Table of Content


Features & Stand
Matte Coating
Menu & Set-Up
Flicker/PWM Dimming
Ghosting/Overdrive Performance
Input Lag
Brightness & Contrast
Preset Color Accuracy
Un-Calibrated versus Calibrated
Calibrated Image Quality
Perceived Black Depth
Back-Light Bleed
Viewing Angles
LG AH-IPS Glow
Playstation 3 &4
Xbox 360 & Xbox One
Settings & ICC Profile
Conclusion

NCX:
Features & Stand

LG 27UL550 Front 20s by Dr NCX, on Flickr

LG 27UL550 Rear by Dr NCX, on Flickr
The LG has a stable or non-wobbly height adjustable stand made of metal, 3.5mm Audio Out, Displayport, and 2x HDMI 2.0 inputs which all support 40-60hz AMD Free-Sync which I could only test with the Xbox One X since I do not have a compatible AMD or Nvidia graphics card.  Unlike the majority of monitors made in the past year the LG 27UL550 has a perceived black depth increasing, sparkly, matte, dark grey bezel instead of a fake bezel or frame-less casing with a perceived black depth decreasing inner black bezel like the LG 27UD, 27UK and 27UL6-8xx series monitors.  The height adjustable stand is too short when raised maximum height to be useful.

NCX:
Matte Coating

DSC_0044 by Dr NCX, on Flickr
The LG 27UL550 has a nearly grain or sparkle free matte coating which is non-reflective as well as does not look obviously dulled, grainy and sparkly when viewing light colors and white, even when viewing the monitor from a few centimeters away.  Reflections do not look hazy, washed out and white as they do on semi-glossy coated monitors, but the matte coating still can obviously not match the clarity and vibrancy of reflective glossy coatings.  I prefer glossy, almost-glossy/low-haze and Plasma Deposition Coatings, but could not find faults with the 27UL550's matte coating.

NCX:
Menu & Set-Up

DSC_0037 by Dr NCX, on Flickr
LG 27UL550 Menu Album.  Only the most important menu photos are posted and mentioned here.  Free-Sync must be manually activated in both the LG 27UL550's menu and by whichever Free-Sync compatible device the monitor is connected to, those being a compatible graphics card or Xbox One X.  To activate the 27UL550's Free-Sync setting go into the Picture Menu, select the Game Adjust sub menu and set FreeSync to On.

LG 27UL550 Picture Menu>Game Adjust>FreeSync setting
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DSC_0113 by Dr NCX, on Flickr
Free-Sync must also be activated by the console (Xbox One X) and/or graphics card as well.  Here's how to activate Free-Sync with the Xbox One X, and here's how to activate it with compatible AMD and Nvidia graphics cards.

Changing the Picture Mode from Custom to SMPTE-C to increase the preset color accuracy slightly, and is the only other setting which should be changed, assuming one is not going to use the color (Red, Blue and Green) controls to calibrate the monitor in the Custom mode since they are locked when the SMPTE-C mode is selected.  To select the SMPTE-C Picture Mode setting go into the Picture Menu, go to the top and select the Picture Mode sub menu, then scroll down to the bottom and select SMPTE-C:

LG 27UL550 Picture Menu
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DSC_0110 by Dr NCX, on Flickr

LG 27UL550 Picture Menu>Picture Mode Sub Menu with SMPTE-C
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DSC_0111 by Dr NCX, on Flickr

Correct Way To View AHVA/IPS/PLS & VA

Correct Monitor Viewing Height by Dr NCX, on Flickr
The top left image shows the correct way to view IPS type (AHVA, IPS, PLS) and VA panels, but most importantly IPS LCD panels.  Doing so vastly reduces white glow when viewing black and dark content, especially if the display brightness is not cranked in a dimly lit room.  IPS vs TN: Right & Wrong Ways To Use Or View; How To Vastly Reduce AHVA/IPS/PLS Glow & Vastly Increase The Perceived Black Depth

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