Titan Army C34A1R 34-inch WQHD 165 Hz gaming monitor review: Ultra-wide, ultra-value

Curved 34-inch 21:9 ultra-wide WQHD 3440x1440 VA gaming monitor with 165 Hz, Adaptive-Sync, HDR10, and wide gamut color

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Titan Army C34A1R
Editor's Choice
(Image: © Tom's Hardware)

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Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

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Titan Army C34A1R
(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

The C34A1R is a very bright monitor. It doesn’t have a zone dimming feature, so field and window patterns will measure the same. It’s just shy of 420 nits in SDR mode, which is midway between the brightest and dimmest screens in the category. The Philips monitor has an advantage with its full-array local dimming Mini LED backlight.

After Calibration to 200 nits

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Titan Army C34A1R
(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

A monitor gains rarely contrast with calibration, especially given that I had to lower the slider two clicks to solve a clipping issue. However, the C34A1R excels after adjustment, boasting a best-in-class 4,578.4:1 score, thanks to impressively low black levels.

The ANSI score of 3,943:1 is also a winner, again best-in-class. The C34A1R delivers a deep and textured image that rivals the much more expensive Philips. It doesn’t get much better than this.

Test Takeaway: The C32A1R has superb contrast for an edge-lit monitor, even beating an expensive Mini LED screen’s native ratio. Achieving this level of performance for $230 is indeed impressive.

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Christian Eberle
Christian Eberle
Contributing Editor

Christian Eberle is a Contributing Editor for Tom's Hardware US. He's a veteran reviewer of A/V equipment, specializing in monitors. Christian began his obsession with tech when he built his first PC in 1991, a 286 running DOS 3.0 at a blazing 12MHz. In 2006, he undertook training from the Imaging Science Foundation in video calibration and testing and thus started a passion for precise imaging that persists to this day. He is also a professional musician with a degree from the New England Conservatory as a classical bassoonist which he used to good effect as a performer with the West Point Army Band from 1987 to 2013. He enjoys watching movies and listening to high-end audio in his custom-built home theater and can be seen riding trails near his home on a race-ready ICE VTX recumbent trike. Christian enjoys the endless summer in Florida where he lives with his wife and Chihuahua and plays with orchestras around the state.