HDR gaming on PC - What settings are you using?

[EatChildren]

I was discussing this a little bit in the LG C9 thread, and am curious about those gaming on PC and the displays and settings they're using. Main reason being while consoles generally plug-and-play and automate their output accordingly, Windows is notoriously finicky and there's an argument to be had about 8-bit vs 10-bit, and tweaks in GPU driver control panels.

The questions I ask are thus;
1) What display are you using for HDR gaming via PC?
2) What GPU are you using?
3) Do you allow Windows and GPU control panels to automate output, or are you customising your settings?
4) If the latter, what settings are you using? (eg: RGB vs YCbCr420 vs YCbCr422 vs YCbCr444, 8-bit vs 10-bit vs 12-bit, etc)

The reason I ask is that from my tinkering and research there doesn't appear to be a solid consensus on what PC gamers should be doing. Some people leave it totally automated, others opt for specific settings (eg: through the Nvidia Control Panel). There's also reports of Windows not always handling HDR appropriately and whatnot.

On my end there are immediately differences if I play with the settings. For example, if I plug in my PC to my LG C8 and boot up Gears 5, while leaving the NVIDIA control panel settings to automated, and turn on HDR via Windows, the display output says it is running in HDR and receiving a HDR signal, but the image quality has what appears like extremely crushed blacks more likened to RGB. Meanwhile If I use the control panel to change the colour output to YCbCr422 10-bit, which is the same signal the PS4 Pro sends when outputting HDR, the image quality changes while the display still says it's using HDR.

There appears to be a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding going around (myself included!) pertaining to 8-bit vs 10-bit, RGB vs variations of YCbCr, and what exactly people should be aiming for to tailor their signal and display for the most accurate image quality.

Ergo, this thread.

EDIT: Two really good explanations.

Copy pasting something I wrote some time ago.

You've probably been playing games or watching content in HDR via your PC, while missing a critical component – 10bit video.

Windows 10, unlike game consoles does not auto-switch the bit depth of the outgoing video when launching HDR games.

By default, both NVIDIA and AMD GPUs are configured to output RGB 8bit.

You might be wondering "But my TV turns on its HDR modes and games look better" this is indeed true – HDR is a collection of different pieces that when working together create the HDR effect. Your PC is sending the WCG(Wide Color Gamut)/BT.2020 metadata as well as other information to the TV which triggers its HDR mode, but the PC is still only sending an 8bit signal.


How to output 10-bit video on an NVIDIA GPU

NVIDIA GPUs have some quirks when it comes to what bit depths can be output with formats. The list is as follows:

• RGB/YUV444:
  • 8-Bit
  • 12-Bit
• YUV422
  • 8-Bit,
  • 10-Bit
  • 12-Bit

What does this mean for you? Not much – 12-bit has the same bandwidth requirements as 10-bit. If you do require RGB/YUV444, and send a 12-bit signal to the TV, that signal still only is contains a 10-bit signal being sent in a 12-bit container. The TV will convert the signal back down to 10-bit.

However, if you want to output true 10-bit, then you'll need to step down to YUV422 signal. Again, not the end of the world. At normal TV viewing distances (and even in 4K monitors) it is very difficult to tell the difference between 4:4:4 and 4:2:2.

The recommended setting in this case is YUV422 video, at 10-bit, for both SDR and HDR. This will make the switch seamless and does not require you to do any extra work.

How to configure NVIDA GPUs

1. Right click on the Windows desktop
2. Open the NVIDA control panel
3. On the left side, click on Resolutions
4. click on the Output Color Formatdropdown menu and select YUV422
5. Click on Apply
6. Now click on the Output Color Depth dropdown menu and select 10bpc(bits per color)
7. Click on Apply

Thats it. Your GPU is now outputting YUV422 10-bit video to your TV or monitor.

Now launch an HDR game and you'll see the full 10-bit color depth!

Click to shrink...

I'm hoping to do a full video on this,
I've got some new equipment on it's way, so I can do some extensive testing on setup options for me.

me and LtRoyalShrimp did some testing between us a few weeks ago to consolidate this info, see his excellent post above.

But as rule of thumb

You want to aim for your :
10bit/12bit
YUV 422
This should be your gold standard.

Enable HDR in windows before you boot a game (I leave mine on all the time)

Games typically behave more favourably in full screen exclusive, so use this for HDR where available.

In the NVIDiA CP, there are 2 sets of resolution options and timings. The UHD standard options and the PC standards. Always try to use the UHD options first if you can, this will likely iron out some of the quirks that can occur.

Click to shrink...

 

[GangWarily]

I use the following:

1. PG35VQ
2. 2080 TI
3. I don't...and afaik, I have to manually enable HDR when I'm playing 99% of HDR games on Windows. I think Doom Eternal may have been one of the rarity where it turned it on automatically when HDR is enabled in the game and turns it off once you're out.
4. I use RGB 8 bit since 10 bit caps out at 144fps (The monitor goes up to 200hz). I've read that 8 bit can't do HDR / that it sacrifices quality somehow (something to do with dithering?) and I honestly could not tell the difference.

I've also played a fair bit of HDR games on my B7 but Game Mode in HDR makes every super dim for some reason :S

 

[scitek]

1) Vizio P50-C1
2) RTX 2080
3) Nvidia color settings
4) YCbCr422 12-bit, which my set downsamples to 10-bit.

 

[collige]

I have really messed around too much with HDR gaming yet since support is kind of a clusterfuck. That said:

1) Razer Raptor
2) GTX 1080ti
3/4) I have it set to RGB, 10 bit, full dynamic range in the NVvdia control panel. YCbCr422 and YCbCr444 only give me the option for limited range

 

[Jayde Six]

1)Sony Bravia X950H
2)Radeon RX 580
3)Customizing - Also using a script to toggle Windows level HDR on/off, Steam and Movies engage HDR Automatically, WIndows Store games need the script
4)YCbCr4:2:0 10-bit

 

[SliChillax]

1) LG C9
2) RTX 2080ti
3) 422, 12 bit
I've set the TV to recognize my PC as a normal input not as a PC as I hear it causes some issues with image quality. I do use game mode though.

From the tests that I've done comparing the same game on consoles, I haven't seen any difference with PC HDR which is a good thing. Bring on the RTX 3xxx cards with Hdmi 2.1 so we can end this headache.

 

[craven68]

1) Samsung 55Q6FN
2) 1080TI
3) Manually on windows setting to turn on or off hdr, before, it was automatically on somes games....on nvidia, i put it on automatically too
I m going to try YCbCr4:2:0 10-bit again, if i remember right, in a lot of game before, it wasn't always better ( but it was on my older tv, maybe it's different now).

 

[R dott B]

1) LG CX
2) RTX 2080ti
3)Nvidia color settings
4) YCbCr4:2:0 10-bit

 

[maenckman]

1) Sony Bravia XE93
2) RTX 2080ti
3/4) 422, 10 bit
For me there is no big difference between RGB (which is 8 bit with dithering, according to Windows) and YCbCr422 except there is less banding with the latter. But I remember a discussion about this in the HDR games analyzed thread. If you want to go down that rabbit hole ;)

 

[Deimos]

1) LG C9
2) GTX 1060
3) 4) YCbCr422 12-bit

Nvidia's default HDR settings are RGB if I'm remembering right. I tested every mode and 422 12 bit resulted in the best colors and least banding.

 

[Edgar]

1) Sony X900E
2) RTX 2080ti
3) 422, 12 bit limited range . 9 times ouf of ten i enable hdr on windows on my own . For SDR i used RGB , full range, 8 bit color .
I am still not sure what im doing is right ,but meh seems to work okay for me unless theres anyone willing to share proper settings

 

[brain_stew]

Honestly, I tend not to bother with my LG B8. I prefer to take advantage of the better motion resolution I get from black frame insertion and it doesn't mesh well with HDR die to the lowered peak brightness. HDR in Windows is a finicky mess, so I prefer to just leave it switched off for now, I may give it another go in future.

Never combine 8 bit and HDR though, you're going to introduce hideous banding if you do.

 

[Megasoum]

I use a TCL Series 6 tv with a GTX 1080.

I have never played around with the NVIDIA settings... should I?

The main thing I have noticed is that the vast majority of games I have tried so far, most will work in HDR without me having to first enable it in the global Windows Settings for my TV.

The two current exceptions I have are Shadow of the Tomb Raider and F1 2020. For those I need to go in the Settings app and turn it on/off before and after I play the game which is annoying... I looked but couldn't find a programtically way to toggle that setting in Windows so I can't seem to be able to automate it.

 

[Videophile]

Copy pasting something I wrote some time ago.

You've probably been playing games or watching content in HDR via your PC, while missing a critical component – 10bit video.

Windows 10, unlike game consoles does not auto-switch the bit depth of the outgoing video when launching HDR games.

By default, both NVIDIA and AMD GPUs are configured to output RGB 8bit.

You might be wondering "But my TV turns on its HDR modes and games look better" this is indeed true – HDR is a collection of different pieces that when working together create the HDR effect. Your PC is sending the WCG(Wide Color Gamut)/BT.2020 metadata as well as other information to the TV which triggers its HDR mode, but the PC is still only sending an 8bit signal.


How to output 10-bit video on an NVIDIA GPU

NVIDIA GPUs have some quirks when it comes to what bit depths can be output with formats when connected to a display via HDMI.

HDMI supported formats:

• RGB/YUV444:
  • 8-Bit
  • 12-Bit
• YUV422
  • 8-Bit,
  • 10-Bit
  • 12-Bit

What does this mean for you? Not much – 12-bit has the same bandwidth requirements as 10-bit. If you do require RGB/YUV444, and send a 12-bit signal to the TV, that signal still only is contains a 10-bit signal being sent in a 12-bit container. The TV will convert the signal back down to 10-bit.

However, if you want to output true 10-bit, then you'll need to step down to YUV422 signal. Again, not the end of the world. At normal TV viewing distances (and even in 4K monitors) it is very difficult to tell the difference between 4:4:4 and 4:2:2.

The recommended setting in this case is YUV422 video, at 10-bit, for both SDR and HDR. This will make the switch seamless and does not require you to do any extra work.

How to configure NVIDA GPUs

1. Right click on the Windows desktop
2. Open the NVIDA control panel
3. On the left side, click on Resolutions
4. click on the Output Color Format dropdown menu and select YUV422
5. Click on Apply
6. Now click on the Output Color Depth dropdown menu and select 10bpc(bits per color)
7. Click on Apply

Thats it. Your GPU is now outputting YUV422 10-bit video to your TV or monitor.

Now launch an HDR game and you'll see the full 10-bit color depth!

 

[chrisypoo]

Copy pasting something I wrote some time ago.

You've probably been playing games or watching content in HDR via your PC, while missing a critical component – 10bit video.

Windows 10, unlike game consoles does not auto-switch the bit depth of the outgoing video when launching HDR games.

By default, both NVIDIA and AMD GPUs are configured to output RGB 8bit.

You might be wondering "But my TV turns on its HDR modes and games look better" this is indeed true – HDR is a collection of different pieces that when working together create the HDR effect. Your PC is sending the WCG(Wide Color Gamut)/BT.2020 metadata as well as other information to the TV which triggers its HDR mode, but the PC is still only sending an 8bit signal.


How to output 10-bit video on an NVIDIA GPU

NVIDIA GPUs have some quirks when it comes to what bit depths can be output with formats. The list is as follows:

• RGB/YUV444:
  • 8-Bit
  • 12-Bit
• YUV422
  • 8-Bit,
  • 10-Bit
  • 12-Bit

What does this mean for you? Not much – 12-bit has the same bandwidth requirements as 10-bit. If you do require RGB/YUV444, and send a 12-bit signal to the TV, that signal still only is contains a 10-bit signal being sent in a 12-bit container. The TV will convert the signal back down to 10-bit.

However, if you want to output true 10-bit, then you'll need to step down to YUV422 signal. Again, not the end of the world. At normal TV viewing distances (and even in 4K monitors) it is very difficult to tell the difference between 4:4:4 and 4:2:2.

The recommended setting in this case is YUV422 video, at 10-bit, for both SDR and HDR. This will make the switch seamless and does not require you to do any extra work.

How to configure NVIDA GPUs

1. Right click on the Windows desktop
2. Open the NVIDA control panel
3. On the left side, click on Resolutions
4. click on the Output Color Formatdropdown menu and select YUV422
5. Click on Apply
6. Now click on the Output Color Depth dropdown menu and select 10bpc(bits per color)
7. Click on Apply

Thats it. Your GPU is now outputting YUV422 10-bit video to your TV or monitor.

Now launch an HDR game and you'll see the full 10-bit color depth!

Click to shrink...

I just wanted to sincerely thank you for this. This is literally exactly what I needed to solve my PC HDR issues, and you're the first person I've seen that explained everything so simply and succinctly.

Really, seriously, thanks.

 

[Elven_Star]

Copy pasting something I wrote some time ago.

You've probably been playing games or watching content in HDR via your PC, while missing a critical component – 10bit video.

Windows 10, unlike game consoles does not auto-switch the bit depth of the outgoing video when launching HDR games.

By default, both NVIDIA and AMD GPUs are configured to output RGB 8bit.

You might be wondering "But my TV turns on its HDR modes and games look better" this is indeed true – HDR is a collection of different pieces that when working together create the HDR effect. Your PC is sending the WCG(Wide Color Gamut)/BT.2020 metadata as well as other information to the TV which triggers its HDR mode, but the PC is still only sending an 8bit signal.


How to output 10-bit video on an NVIDIA GPU

NVIDIA GPUs have some quirks when it comes to what bit depths can be output with formats. The list is as follows:

• RGB/YUV444:
  • 8-Bit
  • 12-Bit
• YUV422
  • 8-Bit,
  • 10-Bit
  • 12-Bit

What does this mean for you? Not much – 12-bit has the same bandwidth requirements as 10-bit. If you do require RGB/YUV444, and send a 12-bit signal to the TV, that signal still only is contains a 10-bit signal being sent in a 12-bit container. The TV will convert the signal back down to 10-bit.

However, if you want to output true 10-bit, then you'll need to step down to YUV422 signal. Again, not the end of the world. At normal TV viewing distances (and even in 4K monitors) it is very difficult to tell the difference between 4:4:4 and 4:2:2.

The recommended setting in this case is YUV422 video, at 10-bit, for both SDR and HDR. This will make the switch seamless and does not require you to do any extra work.

How to configure NVIDA GPUs

1. Right click on the Windows desktop
2. Open the NVIDA control panel
3. On the left side, click on Resolutions
4. click on the Output Color Formatdropdown menu and select YUV422
5. Click on Apply
6. Now click on the Output Color Depth dropdown menu and select 10bpc(bits per color)
7. Click on Apply

Thats it. Your GPU is now outputting YUV422 10-bit video to your TV or monitor.

Now launch an HDR game and you'll see the full 10-bit color depth!

Click to shrink...

So, no need to turn on the HDR thing in Windows display settings?

 

[Mukrab]

I use the following:

1. PG35VQ
2. 2080 TI
3. I don't...and afaik, I have to manually enable HDR when I'm playing 99% of HDR games on Windows. I think Doom Eternal may have been one of the rarity where it turned it on automatically when HDR is enabled in the game and turns it off once you're out.
4. I use RGB 8 bit since 10 bit caps out at 144fps (The monitor goes up to 200hz). I've read that 8 bit can't do HDR / that it sacrifices quality somehow (something to do with dithering?) and I honestly could not tell the difference.

I've also played a fair bit of HDR games on my B7 but Game Mode in HDR makes every super dim for some reason :S

Click to shrink...

It is unbelievable to me that not more games did what doom did and let you enable hdr without having it enabled on windows. I think wolfenstein did it too.

 

[Edgar]

Copy pasting something I wrote some time ago.

You've probably been playing games or watching content in HDR via your PC, while missing a critical component – 10bit video.

Windows 10, unlike game consoles does not auto-switch the bit depth of the outgoing video when launching HDR games.

By default, both NVIDIA and AMD GPUs are configured to output RGB 8bit.

You might be wondering "But my TV turns on its HDR modes and games look better" this is indeed true – HDR is a collection of different pieces that when working together create the HDR effect. Your PC is sending the WCG(Wide Color Gamut)/BT.2020 metadata as well as other information to the TV which triggers its HDR mode, but the PC is still only sending an 8bit signal.


How to output 10-bit video on an NVIDIA GPU

NVIDIA GPUs have some quirks when it comes to what bit depths can be output with formats. The list is as follows:

• RGB/YUV444:
  • 8-Bit
  • 12-Bit
• YUV422
  • 8-Bit,
  • 10-Bit
  • 12-Bit

What does this mean for you? Not much – 12-bit has the same bandwidth requirements as 10-bit. If you do require RGB/YUV444, and send a 12-bit signal to the TV, that signal still only is contains a 10-bit signal being sent in a 12-bit container. The TV will convert the signal back down to 10-bit.

However, if you want to output true 10-bit, then you'll need to step down to YUV422 signal. Again, not the end of the world. At normal TV viewing distances (and even in 4K monitors) it is very difficult to tell the difference between 4:4:4 and 4:2:2.

The recommended setting in this case is YUV422 video, at 10-bit, for both SDR and HDR. This will make the switch seamless and does not require you to do any extra work.

How to configure NVIDA GPUs

1. Right click on the Windows desktop
2. Open the NVIDA control panel
3. On the left side, click on Resolutions
4. click on the Output Color Formatdropdown menu and select YUV422
5. Click on Apply
6. Now click on the Output Color Depth dropdown menu and select 10bpc(bits per color)
7. Click on Apply

Thats it. Your GPU is now outputting YUV422 10-bit video to your TV or monitor.

Now launch an HDR game and you'll see the full 10-bit color depth!

Click to shrink...

I can select 12 bit 422, is there any practical difference between 12 bit and 10 bit 422?

 

[strife85]

I am using a vg27aq and hdr looks washed out ;( I changed the settings to YUV422 and 10bit. When I turn HDR on in windows it's just washed out colors.

 

[dgrdsv]

I am using a vg27aq and hdr looks washed out ;( I changed the settings to YUV422 and 10bit. When I turn HDR on in windows it's just washed out colors.

Click to shrink...

350 nits max brightness. This monitor is below even the useless DHDR400 spec, it's not HDR essentially. Just don't use it.

 

[EvilBoris]

I'm hoping to do a full video on this,
I've got some new equipment on it's way, so I can do some extensive testing on setup options for me.

me and LtRoyalShrimp did some testing between us a few weeks ago to consolidate this info, see his excellent post above.

But as rule of thumb

You want to aim for your :
10bit/12bit
YUV 422
This should be your gold standard.

Enable HDR in windows before you boot a game (I leave mine on all the time)

Games typically behave more favourably in full screen exclusive, so use this for HDR where available.

In the NVIDiA CP, there are 2 sets of resolution options and timings. The UHD standard options and the PC standards. Always try to use the UHD options first if you can, this will likely iron out some of the quirks that can occur.

 

[jb1234]

So, no need to turn on the HDR thing in Windows display settings?

Click to shrink...

Depends on the game. For some (like Ori and the Will of the Wisps and FFXV), you have to activate it in Windows. Others (like Doom Eternal) can activate it in-game.

 

[EvilBoris]

I can select 12 bit 422, is there any practical difference between 12 bit and 10 bit 422?

Click to shrink...

no, if you choose 12bit, it will carry a 10bit signal unless an application forces Itself into 12bit.
Games running HDR10 all output 10bit.

 

[EvilBoris]

So, no need to turn on the HDR thing in Windows display settings?

Click to shrink...

I would , just to make sure it's working.
Vulcan, DX12, DX11 all have different APIs available to Windows and the GPUs, so their is a disparity between how they all function

 

[strife85]

Ok I think I got HDR working on vg27aq. It doesn't look that much different, but the colors aren't very washed out in Destiny 2 now. They look brighter a bit is all. I changed colors in NVIDIA control panel. Basically put contrast to 100% and left the other stuff as is.

 

[EatChildren]

Really fantastic posts. Gonna bookmark a couple. Thanks guys. The main reason I made the thread is because it's really hard to find a consensus. And if we're getting some form here, that's great. Also thank you for the explanations as to why certain settings are best.

 

[Deleted member 17092]

1. Pixio 277h 1440p
2. 5700XT
3. some games auto trigger and some you have to use the windows slider
4. 10 bit limited

 

[tokkun]

However, if you want to output true 10-bit, then you'll need to step down to YUV422 signal. Again, not the end of the world. At normal TV viewing distances (and even in 4K monitors) it is very difficult to tell the difference between 4:4:4 and 4:2:2.

The recommended setting in this case is YUV422 video, at 10-bit, for both SDR and HDR. This will make the switch seamless and does not require you to do any extra work.

Click to shrink...

For games and movies, yes. But I wouldn't want to leave my chroma settings at 4:2:2 for desktop applications like web browsing.

 

[EvilBoris]

For games and movies, yes. But I wouldn't want to leave my chroma settings at 4:2:2 for desktop applications like web browsing.

Click to shrink...

With the C9/CX the 444 handling for HDR is super poor and I would challenge anybody who says they can see the difference between 422/444 at 4K resolution at a typical viewing distance for a 48inch+ screen.

besides, simply running the content at 10bit quadruples the amount of data, before it is reduced by half in the chroma channel.
So the difference is far less pronounced than a straight 8bit vs 8bit comparison.

 

[Megasoum]

Enable HDR in windows before you boot a game (I leave mine on all the time)

Click to shrink...

That was my plan when I first hooked up my HDR tv but everything looks terrible in SDR if I have HDR turned on. Super bright and washed out.

 

[Deleted member 17092]

Does anyone have an answer to if it makes sense to use full 444/RGB if you are running HDR at 1440p?

I believe the bandwidth is there to do so but there is not much info on HDR at lower than 4k resolution.

 

[plagiarize]

I'll have to check when I get home. I'm using an HDR monitor that connects with display port, so I'm not sure that handles things the same way. When I connect to my 4K tv for hdr, I go the 422 route, but I'm pretty sure I don't have my PC set the same way with my monitor because 422 at the distance I sit from my monitor *is* readily apparent.

Are there any good test screens for banding, etc?

 

[Herman The Tosser]

In the NVIDiA CP, there are 2 sets of resolution options and timings. The UHD standard options and the PC standards. Always try to use the UHD options first if you can, this will likely iron out some of the quirks that can occur.

Click to shrink...

Your and LtRoyalShrimp's posts are very useful, thanks.

Would you be able to clarify this though - which area is which in the NVCP?

 

[Deleted member 17092]

I'll have to check when I get home. I'm using an HDR monitor that connects with display port, so I'm not sure that handles things the same way. When I connect to my 4K tv for hdr, I go the 422 route, but I'm pretty sure I don't have my PC set the same way with my monitor because 422 at the distance I sit from my monitor *is* readily apparent.

Are there any good test screens for banding, etc?

Click to shrink...

I recall a more general banding test I've used just with a Google search but that was more to test if I had a good panel or not on my B7 (it's perfect).

 

[Elven_Star]

Yeah, I tinkered around a bit with it and have decided it's not worth the trouble (2018 TCL). Back to RGB full.

 

[EvilBoris]

Your and LtRoyalShrimp's posts are very useful, thanks.

Would you be able to clarify this though - which area is which in the NVCP?

Click to shrink...

Just in the regular resolution selection area.

It will say Ultra HD, HD, SD - These are the TV resolutions.

then further down the list you'll see the sub heading "PC"

These are the VESA standard PC resolutions

 

[Megasoum]

So is there a way to programmatically enable/disable HDR at the Windows level?

Or I guess, side question... Is there a way to not make my tv look like crap when I enable HDR in Windows but not doing actual HDR content?

 

[Kyle Cross]

Just in the regular resolution selection area.

It will say Ultra HD, HD, SD - These are the TV resolutions.

then further down the list you'll see the sub heading "PC"

These are the VESA standard PC resolutions

Click to shrink...

How can we be sure that a game in fullscreen is using the TV resoluions instead of the PC ones? For example in my NVCP 4k under TV tops out at 60hz and allows YUV422 10bit, but the 4k under PC only allows YUV420 8bit 100hz or 120hz. Needless to say I want the TV version, but in-game settings seem to have no differentiation.

 

[Vasto]

Been waiting for a thread covering this.

1. Samsung MU6300 4K HDR
2. Radeon 5700XT

Can somebody tell me what I need to set my color depth / pixel format to in order to get HDR on PC? Right now I have it set to 8 Bit Color Depth and RGB 4:4:4 Pixel Format PC Standard ( Full RGB ).

 

[EvilBoris]

How can we be sure that a game in fullscreen is using the TV resoluions instead of the PC ones? For example in my NVCP 4k under TV tops out at 60hz and allows YUV422 10bit, but the 4k under PC only allows YUV420 8bit 100hz or 120hz. Needless to say I want the TV version, but in-game settings seem to have no differentiation.

Click to shrink...

That's a really good question, I guess games can access the same list of resolutions too. I absolutely bet that is why people get weirdness on PC with HDR.
I suppose one thing to do is edit the resolutions your display's EDID offers in something like CRU.

 

[Vasto]

Been waiting for a thread covering this.

1. Samsung MU6300 4K HDR
2. Radeon 5700XT

Can somebody tell me what I need to set my color depth / pixel format to in order to get HDR on PC? Right now I have it set to 8 Bit Color Depth and RGB 4:4:4 Pixel Format PC Standard ( Full RGB ).

Click to shrink...

After trying the different Pixel Format looks like in order to get 10 Bit color I have to use either YCbCr 4:2:2 or YCbCr 4:2:0. Which one should I use?

 

[Herman The Tosser]

Just in the regular resolution selection area.

It will say Ultra HD, HD, SD - These are the TV resolutions.

then further down the list you'll see the sub heading "PC"

These are the VESA standard PC resolutions

Click to shrink...

Oh I see, thanks. I was using 4K under the UHD header on my C8 anyway so all good.

 

[Deleted member 17092]

So is there a way to programmatically enable/disable HDR at the Windows level?

Or I guess, side question... Is there a way to not make my tv look like crap when I enable HDR in Windows but not doing actual HDR content?

Click to shrink...

afaik it's just kind of a crapshoot as far as games that automatically enable and disable vs having to toggle the slider. ultimately I don't think that flipping the toggle is that big of a deal.

After trying the different Pixel Format looks like in order to get 10 Bit color I have to use either YCbCr 4:2:2 or YCbCr 4:2:0. Which one should I use?

Click to shrink...

422 is half the color sampling of 444 while 420 is 1/4 so 422.

 

[Megasoum]

Maybe not directly HDR related but are there any tricks in reducing color banding? I'm playing on a TCL 55R615 tv with a GTX 1080 and the games look great overall but I'm still getting some color banding at times and this is killing me haha...

Some of it happens during pre-rendered videos so for those I assume it's probably mostly a compression issue but I'm also seeing it in gameplay too.

I'm playing Shadow of the Tomb Raider and I am seeing it a lot when swimming underwater for example.

 

[EvilBoris]

Maybe not directly HDR related but are there any tricks in reducing color banding? I'm playing on a TCL 55R615 tv with a GTX 1080 and the games look great overall but I'm still getting some color banding at times and this is killing me haha...

Some of it happens during pre-rendered videos so for those I assume it's probably mostly a compression issue but I'm also seeing it in gameplay too.

I'm playing Shadow of the Tomb Raider and I am seeing it a lot when swimming underwater for example.

Click to shrink...

Videos is usually just down to them being low bit depth and low bit rate, then converted to HDR, which reduces their effective bit depth.

In games, you are still likely to see it , especially when anything is volumetric.
If you have a film grain option, that will help to smooth it out.

 

[Fries]

I'm stuck on a C8 with HDMI2.0 I believe so only enough bandwidth for 4K 60Hz HDR 10 bit @ 4:2:2, I don't expect my 2080 ti to hit past 60 on Ultra in a lot of games with my old i7 4790k anyway so that is good enough for me. I do find it annoying to have to turn on and off the Windows HDR setting because some games that do turn it on automatically do not turn it off ._.

 

[Vasto]

I go to YouTube and watch a HDR video it does not say HDR in the corner of the video. I thought HDR was supposed to automatically turn on for HDR content?

 

[Videophile]

I go to YouTube and watch a HDR video it does not say HDR in the corner of the video. I thought HDR was supposed to automatically turn on for HDR content?

Click to shrink...

For YouTube to play HDR videos the HDR toggle in the Windows 10 settings needs to be set to on. This will turn on HDR system wide, and a browser like Chrome will detect that HDR is supported and let YouTube play in HDR.

Its really annoying to have to do this and I hope it changes in the future.

The reason games can turn on HDR is because they take over the entire display pipeline when launched in fullscreen - A browser can't do this currently afaik so if Windows is running in SDR and Chrome launches a HDR video Chrome has no way to tell Windows/the attached display to switch to HDR.

 

[Videophile]

Maybe not directly HDR related but are there any tricks in reducing color banding? I'm playing on a TCL 55R615 tv with a GTX 1080 and the games look great overall but I'm still getting some color banding at times and this is killing me haha...

Some of it happens during pre-rendered videos so for those I assume it's probably mostly a compression issue but I'm also seeing it in gameplay too.

I'm playing Shadow of the Tomb Raider and I am seeing it a lot when swimming underwater for example.

Click to shrink...

You could try forcing the driver to do some dithering.

A person on the AVS forums created this really handy command line tool to change dithering and color format options.

Download link: http://www.mediafire.com/file/yxcecws1dwfwhqq/NvColorControl2.0.0.0.zip/file

Usage: NvColorControl <bit-depth> <color format> <dithering> <hdr>
  <bit-depth>   : 8, 10 or 12
  <color format>: RGB (full), RGBLM (limited), YUV444, YUV422 or YUV420
  <dithering>   : state: 0 = auto, 1 = enabled, 2 = disabled,
                  bits : 0 = 6 bit, 1 = 8 bit, 2 = 10 bit,
                  mode : 0 = none, 1, 2 or 3 = spacial, 4 = temporal
  <hdr>         : 0 or 1
Examples:
- NvColorControl 8 YUV444
- NvColorControl 10 YUV422
- NvColorControl 12 YUV420
- NvColorControl 8 RGB 1 1 4 1

NOTES:
- not all combinations are possible
- HDR can currently only be enabled and requires the application to stay open
- this application does not revert automatically to the previous settings after a timeout

 

[Vasto]

For YouTube to play HDR videos the HDR toggle in the Windows 10 settings needs to be set to on. This will turn on HDR system wide, and a browser like Chrome will detect that HDR is supported and let YouTube play in HDR.

Its really annoying to have to do this and I hope it changes in the future.

The reason games can turn on HDR is because they take over the entire display pipeline when launched in fullscreen - A browser can't do this currently afaik so if Windows is running in SDR and Chrome launches a HDR video Chrome has no way to tell Windows/the attached display to switch to HDR.

Click to shrink...

When I turn on the HDR toggle in Windows my entire screen becomes washed out and it does not look good at all. Any idea what is happening?