[PCM2]

Having reviewed one of the G-SYNC Pulsar offerings (the AOC AGON Pro AG276QSG2), I was left impressed by the technology itself and felt the core performance of the monitor was quite strong. Nvidia is generally heavily involved in the tuning of “full fat G-SYNC” offerings like these Pulsar models, so I wouldn’t expect huge performance differences between similar Pulsar models from various manufacturers. Price is certainly going to weigh into the decision process heavily and that can vary regionally. But clearly there are some additional “quality if life” aspects to consider where the models can differ more noticeably.

I’ve just received some interesting feedback from somebody who has tested the AOC AGON Pro AG276QSG2 alongside the comparable model from MSI and ASUS. Specifically the MSI MPG 272QRF X36 and ASUS ROG Strix Pulsar XG27AQNGV. They ultimately ended up keeping the ASUS as it offered the most consistently high quality feel and the best experience in specific areas they were interested in – it was also the cheapest option in their region.

What I found most interesting is that they noticed some screen surface differences between the models. I know from experience it can be difficult to determine exact differences in this respect – it can depend on how the monitors are set up, their exact position and lighting when they’re viewed. But they’re confident the ASUS was noticeably “more matte” than the other options. Monitor manufacturers don’t typically “resurface” monitors and just use the panel as is, which suggests there are slightly different revisions of this G-SYNC Pulsar panel available. It might be a different panel revision (or variant) was required due to the tighter integration of the “G-SYNC Ambient Adaptive Sensor” (altering brightness and colour temperature according to ambient lighting) on the ASUS model compared to the AOC and MSI. Anyway, here are their full thoughts shared having tested this trio together:

“The AOC wasn’t for me unfortunately. I’ve found the stand flimsy, and the piece of plastic that covers the bottom of the panel was bent/crooked.

I’ve found that all of the monitors produced coil whine when Pulsar was enabled:
The AOC was at the worst frequency (lower than the others) and was the most irritating for me. I’m sensitive in that regard though.
The MSIs coil whine frequency was higher, didn’t bother me much, but was the loudest among the three.
The ASUS was at the same frequency but the quietest among the three. This one would be unnoticable for many I think.

Color representation was roughly equal (subjectively) among all three, with a slight nudge towards the ASUS. The ASUS was also the only one that came with a calibration certificate. There were differences in the coating applied to the panel:
ASUS: Noticably more matte than the others. Hiqher quality feeling, but also a little less crisp. Also might’ve made it a tiny bit less bright than the others.
MSI: Glossiest among the three. Most crisp. I think most would favor this one for a pure gaming monitor.
AOC: Roughly in between the other two.

All of them behaved weird in 10bit color space, so I’m only speaking of 8bit.

OSD:
MSI: Wins here: Most options (blue light filter, 6 axis color adjustment, very fast/snappy, high quality look, best crosshairs)
ASUS: Second best but slower, more rudimentary look and no 6 axis color
AOC: Worst. Intentionally cheap looking visuals. Slow.

Backlight bleed, allthough those might’ve just been panel lottery related:
ASUS: Very little. Good.
AOC: Forgot to check this consciously before it went back, might’ve been the best one in that regard or on par with the ASUS.
MSI: Worst. If I had decided on this one I would’ve tried ordering a second one to see if I can get one with less bleed.

Quirks:
Both the MSI and the AOC had issues with DPMS and didn’t wake properly on my work linux system.
The MSI additionally didn’t turn on Pulsar again once booting back into windows, so it had to be turned on manually everytime.
The ASUS had no such issues.

Presentation (Box, PSU, etc.):
ASUS > AOC > MSI

Bottom line:
You’ve probably guessed it by now: I’ve went with the ASUS. In addition to the points mentioned, this one just feels like a premium product. The other ones didn’t. Ironically that one was the cheapest one in my region.”

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