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Nvidia cards don't display full RGB color via HDMI—here's a fix

shankly1985

shankly1985

shankly1985

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Just a heads up if some you guys are effected they is a fix. This happens on Both HDMI and DP only as far as I have seen.
This could also be the reason some users say AMD's graphics looks better on colours etc!

A quick test to see if you effected, "Click link" on the image you should see four squares.. A white, Gray, Black, and a Black/Gray
http://i.imgur.com/Bw61l68.jpg

Copy and Paste
If you're using HDMI output with an Nvidia graphics card, you likely aren't getting full and accurate color range, specifically at the black and white ends of the spectrum. For some reason, Nvidia cards default to Limited RGB (16-235 levels of differentiation per color) when using HDMI, despite a PC display's ability to support full RGB (0-255 colors).This driver issue has been affecting the HDMI output of Nvidia cards for years, and could be limiting your color range without you knowing it. Luckily there's a fix.
PC Gamer contributor and all-around PC modding hero Peter "Durante" Thoman has released a simple patch to fix the Nvidia color issue. Before Thoman's patch, the only way to fix the issue was via editing your driver's .ini files before installation.
Limited RGB is a setting designed for TVs, which use a video range of 16-235. In full RGB, each of the three additive primary colors (red, green, blue) has a full range of zero to 255 color value, but in limited RGB the extremes of that spectrum are stripped away. Any color value of 16 or below is just displayed as 16, and anything in the 235-255 range defaults to 235. Presumably, using HDMI output made Nvidia cards think they were displaying to a TV, locking into the TV-designed limited RGB setting even when a full RGB-capable monitor was in use.
A quick test to see if you're experiencing the issue is to open this image, courtesy of a helpful Reddit poster. If you see four distinct shades, two white on the left, two black on the right, then you're in the clear. But if you only see a black and a white column, you have the problem.
Being forced into limited RGB meant not getting the full colors you should be able to display. Why settle for muted grey when you could have deeper blacks and brighter whites? Thoman's patch takes care of the issue, but you will have to reinstall it every time you update your drivers.
Despite this having been a problem for years, Nvidia seems to have finally taken notice of the issue. According to a screenshot of a conversation with an Nvidia rep, the issue will be fixed in the next driver branch release. That driver is still in development, so there's no ETA, but at least it's on the way. Until then, we have Durante.

http://www.pcgamer.com/nvidia-cards-dont-full-rgb-color-through-hdmiheres-a-fix/
 
Doesnt affect display port, nice attempt at trolling though

I see one grey, one white and 2 black squares on my phone so time to get the pitchforks out for samsung obviously
 
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Only had this issue when connected via hdmi to my plasma TV not to pc monitors.

Use the full rgb toggle tool that's been floating around for years to fix it.
 
andybird123 said:
Its a complete non issue, people have known about this and how to switch for ages... good that nvidia are finally going to fix it

Ive used both hdmi and dp on a multitude of monitors and never had them set themselves to limited range, and even if they did it takes three clicks to click the other option
Click to expand...

What might be a NONE issue to you doesn't count the mass on here does it.

:rolleyes:
 
Its been possible to work around it for ages and doesn't effect most displays and/or a good number you can change it from the monitor OSD anyhow i.e. many Dells. There are some fringe cases where it happens with DP but 99% of DP setups are unaffected by it. HDMI displays that are seen as TVs are affected by it. In most cases you can just use DVI or DP if you can't manage to work around it other ways.

Most people would know if they were affected by it as it really doesn't look right at all, whites often look dusty, blacks are heavily crushed, etc.
 
Rroff said:
Its been possible to work around it for ages and doesn't effect most displays and/or a good number you can change it from the monitor OSD anyhow i.e. many Dells. There are some fringe cases where it happens with DP but 99% of DP setups are unaffected by it. HDMI displays that are seen as TVs are affected by it. In most cases you can just use DVI or DP if you can't manage to work around it other ways.

Most people would know if they were affected by it as it really doesn't look right at all, whites often look dusty, blacks are heavily crushed, etc.
Click to expand...

Blacks aren't crushed, they are washed out since the monitor is expecting 0 to be black and the video card is sending 16 as black, so black looks grey.

My monitor is one of those affected on both the HDMI and DP ports.

The previous fix and the new toggle in the beta drivers fixes this issue.
 
Broken Hope said:
Blacks aren't crushed, they are washed out since the monitor is expecting 0 to be black and the video card is sending 16 as black, so black looks grey.

My monitor is one of those affected on both the HDMI and DP ports.

The previous fix and the new toggle in the beta drivers fixes this issue.
Click to expand...

Ah yeah, think its the intel HD on my tablet that results in heavy blacks with full range issues. Anyhow its pretty obviously wrong.
 
Rroff said:
Ah yeah, think its the intel HD on my tablet that results in heavy blacks with full range issues. Anyhow its pretty obviously wrong.
Click to expand...

Crush blacks will happen when the display doesn't support full RGB. You loose details in the dark scenes.

So is this now fixed in the latest beta driver from nvidia?
 
Well I've never heard of this before and I've run an NVidia card in my HTPC connected to a TV via HDMI for years. Are all TVs limited range or are some capable of the full range and so would benefit from the fix?
 
Hmm, this has been in the drivers for video for a long time.

nvidia-driver1.jpg


I wonder why its only just been added to the desktop ?
 
I am surprised people didn't know this. It's been an issue on Nvidia cards for ages.

glad they are finally sorting it out too.
 
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