[Trastof]

Hello folks,

I see there is a few topics about this issue, but didn´t see to this monitor.

Last two weeks I did research in rtings.com, blurbusters.com, youtube.com, pcmonitors.info, etc., and I decided to buy Alienware AW2521HFLA (in my country letters L stands for white version and A is for Europe).
Specs of monitor:
24.5 inches 1080p IPS 240Hz Freesync/Gsync

So I bought 24.5“ Dell Alienware AW2521HFL(A). First of all I have to say it´s a great monitor with more pros than cons but I noticed one big issue which my eyes can´t accept. Even IPS glow is tolerable.

That thing is Interlace pattern artifacts 😥 I noticed that when gaming especially Elden Ring which is locked 60Hz game in fullscreen. When moving it appears as long as I don´t stop moving. It irritates me a lot and the image takes on the look of a CRT monitor. On the other side when I play Hunt Showdown, DayZ or other non-locked Hz game at 165-240FPS/Hz, I can see those vertical lines but much less (about 80% less) but they are still visible.

I don´t want to change for another Alienware because this issue will be the same. I don´t know if this issue is relevant to 24.5 inch panels and 23.5 inch panels not.

Could you advise me which monitors do not have this problem (Interlace pattern artifacts)? I preffer 1080p, 23.5-24.5 inches, IPS 144-240Hz with decent input lag, contrast 1000:1 and i don´t prefer BFI because I am flickering sensitive.

I hope for response
Thank you!

Trastof

[PCM2]

Hi Trastof,

A few things to be aware of when it comes to ‘dynamic interlace pattern artifacts’ (sometimes referred to as ‘scan lines’ or ‘inversion artifacts’):

– Believe it or not, most users don’t notice them. Or notice them readily – not usually enough to find them bothersome. This is why most users won’t comment on them and why most reviewer won’t comment on them (in addition to it being beyond the depth of subjective testing they’ll do).

– They can vary between units of the same model, to some degree. But if a model is prone to them it will generally be found to a reasonably similar degree on other models of the same unit.

– If a model is prone to them it’s usually something the panel will exhibit. And that means other monitors sharing the panel will have them. They’re very common on 240Hz+ monitors and I’m not aware of one that doesn’t have them. They may be out there, but as above it’s not something people usually comment on them and I haven’t personally tested one without the issue.

– They’re more noticeable if you sit closer to the monitor, but there’s a certain ‘sweet spot’ (or range of ‘sweet spots’ – or should that be ‘not-so-sweet spots’) where they’re most noticeable. They can also be more noticeable if you wear glasses, particularly but not exclusively reading glasses.

So with all this said, before trying to find a replacement without them – which will be very difficult if you want to stick with the 240Hz+ capability – you could try seeing if you can adjust your viewing distance to make them less visible. As you point out they become much less obvious at higher refresh rates on models like the AW2421HFL(A). They’re also linked to the refresh rate rather than frame rate. So perhaps experiment with a static 240Hz refresh rate rather than using VRR in some cases, if you can cope with that. With Elden Ring you can apparently run it in ‘borderless’ mode and it will follow the refresh rate of the desktop. Obviously assuming VRR is disabled so it doesn’t just knock down to the frame rate – so it should be running 60fps at 240Hz most of the time, which is at least an even division and should in theory work well. This sort of thing often works for other games (the Mafia series comes to mind) which appear to be refresh rate locked when running exclusive fullscreen, but will reflect the desktop refresh rate when you run them in a ‘borderless’ mode.

[Trastof]

Thank you for reply!

I´ll give this monitor a second chance because it has more benefits than cons (scan lines/IPS glow).

I´ll ask If I buy another unit of the same model will I get panel which has much less IPS glow?

Trastof

[PCM2]

‘IPS glow’ doesn’t really vary in isolation for units of the same model. As we note in reviews it can be brought out more strongly on units with more backlight bleed or clouding – and that’s a complete lottery. So unless your current unit has a large amount of backlight bleed or clouding, it’s unlikely another unit would have much less noticeable ‘IPS glow’.

[PCM2]

Just to add that ‘dynamic interlace patterns’ can be an issue with quite a few 240Hz QHD models. For those with the budget, OLED options such as the ASUS PG27AQDM and LG 27GR95QE-B are free from these. For those on a tighter budget and based in the US, I can confirm that the RCA Evolution Premium I recently looked at didn’t exhibit these either.

[Author]

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