Moving from 30" ACD to 32inch 4K monitor - underwhelming?

[Sharky II]

Hi all,

I currently have a 30" ACD and a 24" Dell 1080p monitor off to the side. It's about time to replace them both - but my main focus is the 30" ACD - when calibrated, it's struggling to get bright enough for day to day work, with all the lights on. I also find myself using my old 2012 retina MBP to do certain things over my 30" ACD simply because it's a pleasure to look at the screen (sharpness, brightness).

I mainly work in audio (Logic X) but also do some work in photography (Capture One) and FCPX. I want a large monitor as I can sit back a fair distance from the screen when working with audio.

Anyway, this question is about sharpness/PPI. I am sure the monitor I'm after (BenQ 3220) is a world apart from the 30" in many ways, but I'm wondering if people who went from a 30" ACD/Dell to a 4k 32" were underwhelmed by the lack of sharpness? I understand that it won't be a 'retina' experience like a MBP (although I will often be a couple of feet back) but how 'bad' is it? I know the obvious answer is to go for a 27" option, but I don't really want to lose any size.

I'd love to see some in person, but with lockdown etc, it's not easy to waltz into a shop to see how it compares to my 30" ACD.

I suppose I could always buy a 32" and send it back if I don't love it, but I'm still interested in your thoughts.

Cheers!

Ed

 

[retta283]

Even a 32" at 4K will have higher PPI than both the Dell 24" and the 30" ACD.

4k at 32" is 137.68 PPI compared to 100.63 for the ACD, and 91.79 for the Dell 24". This is still much less than Retina PPI of 220. Do keep in mind though that you will be viewing from a slightly farther distance on average so a bit lower PPI might not be noticeable.

As a frame of comparison, here's some other res + size PPIs.
32" 5K = 183.53
32" 6K = 215.7
27" 4K = 163.18
27" 5K = 217.57

While I haven't owned a 32" 4K I have used displays at similar PPIs and to me anything above 110 or so on a desktop monitor is perfectly crisp. Even a MBA at similar PPI performed quite well for me. This will all depend on viewing distance and also how good your eyes are. I'm quite old and I need glasses to read anything on my screens so PPI isn't as big of a deal to someone like me.

 

[satcomer]

Your 2012 mBP is over 8 years old so anything over 1080p is butter to such an old Mac! You can’t expect great 4K from such and old Mac! Sorry to give such bad news!

 

[retta283]

Your 2012 mBP is over 8 years old so anything over 1080p is butter to such an old Mac! You can’t expect great 4K from such and old Mac! Sorry to give such bad news!

He most likely is not intending to use it with the 2012 MBP, he only brought it up to compare the screen quality to what he has currently. No where in the OP does it say the monitor is intended for the MBP. In other threads he's indicated that he has a Mac Pro so I'm assuming that's the intended use.

 

[kepler20b]

I just hate to break it to you, but there's no other way to say it--

you just dont know what you're talking about.

yes, apple makes great products. but your 30" ACD circa 2010 is not better than a garbage 4k, bottom barrel screen in terms of "sharpness" and clarity"

30" ACD : 2560x 1600 == 100ppi
32" 4k: 3840 x 2160 == 138 ppi


if you are truly only concerned about PPI/clarity/"retina" ness,

you should get a 4k 27" screen which has a PPI of 164, which of course is also way better than any "ACD"


also as already mentioned, you really need to pay attention to connectivity if your going to use a 2012 MacBook as the main driver of the displays.

 

[ght56]

I find the pixel density of a 4K 27-inch display to be yield some sharper text than a 4K 32-inch, although I find it most noticeable with smaller text, text that uses serif fonts, and if using dark mode.

The BenQ is a very well-respected display as you know. You may also want to check out Dell's 32-inch UltraSharp, the U3219Q--it's a good display but a bit dated and I would expect 2021 update. I'm currently using the 27-inch U2720Q and think very highly of it. You can get two of them for the price of some 32-40 inch 4K displays.

 

[Sharky II]

Thank you for the responses. I think some of you are confused as to what I'm asking, and are skim reading my post and answering different questions to what I asked. I have no intention of using it with my 2012 rMBP. I was merely saying that the 2012 rMBP has a nice 'Retina' display (even in 2020), which in terms of PPI is much higher than any 24/27/32" 4K screen. Therefore if one expects that a 4K monitor will be a similar experience to a rMBP, they will be disappointed.

I have done the PPI calculations myself - I am fully aware that a 4K screen is sharper than than my 30" screen. I'm also fully aware that a 27" or 24" 4K screen is even sharper, and I've compared the PPI with various Apple products I've used with retina displays.

I have a PhD in Computer Science - I am not an idiot nor a techniphobe, please don't be rude to me - I am merely asking for the opinions of people that have specifically gone from a 30" 2K Apple/Dell display to a 32" 4K display, and if they were slightly underwhelmed by the sharpness, due to the possible expectation of a more 'retina' upgrade. Perhaps they wish they'd gone for a 27", for example.

I am unable to go into shops to look at 4K 32" monitors myself due to lockdown etc. If anyone has actually gone from a 30" ACD to a 30"+ 4K monitor, I'd love to hear about your experience.

If you just want to tell me that I don't know what I'm talking about, please leave me alone.

Thanks