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The X34 OLED ships in its Standard picture mode, which is reasonably close to standard. I recommend calibrating the User mode with its available two-point white balance controls and selectable color space.
Grayscale and Gamma Tracking
To the eye, a grayscale step pattern looks slightly green. The meter picked up some red as well, but green is the most visible color error, so something must be done. Gamma is also a tad dark from 70-100% brightness.
Calibrating the user mode takes care of both issues. The X34 OLED now has visually perfect grayscale tracking, i.e., neutral gray across the board. And gamma improves just enough to add some extra depth to the image. This is reference-level performance. I ran these tests using the General color space, which covers just over 95% of DCI-P3.
The X34 OLED’s sRGB mode is very accurate in the gamut test, which you’ll see below, but it has the same grayscale errors as the default Standard mode. These cannot be adjusted away, so neutral tones will look a little green.
Comparisons
The X34 OLED’s visible green errors mean it should be calibrated. It’s a little behind the other screens for out-of-the-box accuracy, but it calibrates to a high standard. After adjustment, all the panels have visually identical grayscale. The X34 OLED has extremely precise gamma with a tiny 0.06 range of values and a 2.27% deviation from the 2.2 reference. The actual value was 2.25. This is excellent performance.
Color Gamut Accuracy
Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.
In the color test, the X34 OLED leaves nothing to complain about. Aside from the slightly green whites, the rest of the gamut is on point with all measurements on target. A default color error of 2.17dE is very low. Calibration fixes the grayscale issue and has a slight, positive effect on the remaining points. This is reference-level color.
The sRGB test shows the same white error and very slight undersaturation in red and magenta. The error is still low enough to be invisible, though.
Comparisons
With all monitors calibrated, the X34 OLED nearly wins the day with an impressive 1.06dE score. That’s impressive for sure but all the panels are very close. Visually, there is no difference in color accuracy, but you will see more color volume from the Alienware, Gigabyte, Corsair, and AOC because they have Quantum Dot layers. The X34 OLED covers over 95% of DCI-P3, which is respectable but average. sRGB coverage is slightly over the mark at 102.08%.
Test Takeaway: The X34 OLED needs calibration to look its best, but offers good flexibility with multiple gamut modes. Its 95% coverage of DCI-P3 is average but a little lower than Quantum Dot screens. Gamma is very tight, which gives the X34 OLED fine and precise detail in all parts of the picture.
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