How much can you go wrong when choosing a monitor, even if reviews of it are positive? A lot, because a review can often only assess the manufacturer’s quality control to a limited extent, unless there are more reports of faulty or defective copies of a device. However, if you get (obviously several times) a Monday device, then Murphy is behind the next corner with a nasty grin. And an MSI Optix MAG274QRX, which is today’s example. But it can actually happen with any device, you just have to have subscribed enough bad luck. And that’s exactly why there’s a community article in the top story box today, which we don’t want to withhold from you.
First of all, I would like to briefly say something about the background for the selection of the above monitor. Since 2017, I have owned the Asus MX25AQ, an IPS, 1440p, 25-inch monitor with 60 Hz. According to Geizhals, the panel installed is from LG, though not a Nano-IPS, as those were only introduced in 2018, if I’m not mistaken. The Asus was my daily work and gaming monitor. Its well-tuned sRGB mode was a big plus here, as I often work with professional photos of artwork. While I don’t do image editing, a largely accurate color representation of what I see is important.
In general, I prefer well (hardware) calibrated monitors from the factory. Decisive for my choice was the extensive review by Prad.de of the bigger brother, the Asus MX27AQ, which, however, was not available for a few weeks, which is why and I finally ordered the smaller model. However, the Asus monitor also has its weaknesses, such as the lack of ergonomics – it only tilts – the sRGB mode is also locked, which is unfortunately the norm for monitors from this manufacturer. You can’t even adjust the brightness. Then there’s the 60 Hz, which I also found limiting over time, and the size of the panel. Basically, I want to stick with 1440p resolution so as not to overtax my 3060 Ti and also not to have to buy overly expensive graphics cards in the future.
In October 2022, I decided to purchase a new IPS monitor, which would then once again serve as an all-rounder: reading and writing texts, working with photos of artwork and creating presentations, watching a series or movie on the side, and gaming. Because of the work with a lot of static content, an OLED was out of the question from the start. OLED TV yes, OLED monitor only for gaming and movies/series not, especially at current prices. Also, I’m not a fan of having two monitors on the desk that serve different purposes. This is a personal preference. I decided to go with the MSI Optix MAG274QRX after Tim from Hardware Unboxed reviewed the monitor. You can see the review here:
It is an IPS monitor, 27 inches, 1440p with 240 Hz. I don’t necessarily need this high refresh rate, but the monitors in the 144-180 Hz range have not convinced me for one reason or another. I wanted to steer clear of LG’s nano-IPS panels with their often subterranean contrast, since various users repeatedly complain about eye complaints. Furthermore, I was not convinced by the factory calibration of the sRGB preset of most monitors or it was simply not available. According to Hardware Unboxed, the MSI monitor has a panel from Sharp, which can also be found in the Gigabyte M27Q X.
The overall package of the MSI monitor was coherent for my criteria: a slightly larger panel compared to my old monitor (27 instead of 25 inches), comprehensive ergonomic options, a good sRGB mode where the brightness can be adjusted; plus presets for DCI-P3 and Adobe RGB, the former I like to use to watch a movie. What I found impressive from the first moment was the sharper text display, even though the PPI of the MSI monitor is slightly lower than that of my old Asus and the sharpness slider is set to 0. Presumably, this is related to the different coating and/or the higher contrast.
Hardware Unboxed measured this at 1200:1, which is a decent result. Of course, you don’t buy an IPS for its black values, but I was happy to take the higher contrast. The color reproduction is equally impressive, even in sRGB mode. On my old Asus monitor, for example, white is not true white, but a “milky”, darker shade of it. On the MSI, white is truly white, even at low brightness. Text display on bright backgrounds also benefits from this. Variable overdrive (“set and forget” to “fast” or “quick”) and the 240 Hz are two other strengths of this monitor, especially for gaming (I “discovered” Apex Legends in the summer of 2019 and have enjoyed playing it ever since, except for story games).
As you can see, I’m not completely dissatisfied with my monitor, on the contrary. However, what I didn’t know in October is that the purchase of this monitor will be the beginning of a monitor odyssey, which will involve four copies. And so I start my suffering tour over many stations and inevitably remain with the old device for the time being.
MSI Optix MAG274QRXDE, 27" (9S6-3CA88A-073)
 | Lieferzeit 11-12 Werktage | 1467,39 €*Stand: 30.04.24 14:00 |
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