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The NG17FGQ has a decent default picture mode that delivers reasonably good color with only minor errors. Or you can calibrate its User mode for better performance.
Grayscale and Gamma Tracking
Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.
Out of the box, the NG17FGQ’s grayscale tracking is somewhat green in tone. The error is visible at 40% brightness and higher. This flattens the image and makes highlights look dull. Gamma is also a little light, running around 2.07 average rather than the 2.2 reference.
Calibrating the User picture mode and color temp removes all visible color errors but there is no fix for the gamma. This chart means the picture is a tad lighter than it should be. The panel has excellent contrast so to take full advantage of that, gamma should be no lower than 2.2. It would be better to err the other way. But this is a relatively minor point. The picture is still better after calibration than before.
Comparisons
A default grayscale error of 4.94dE means the NG17FGQ should be calibrated to get the most from it. With a few tweaks of the RGB sliders, I got the error down to 1.94dE, which is acceptable but not quite as good as the other screens.
Gamma tracks with a very tight range of values at only 0.15 from highest to lowest. This is a good thing because it means that the detail will be clear at all brightness levels. The 7.27% deviation (actual value 2.04) indicates a light gamma which brightens the picture at the cost of some depth. Again, these are minor points, but there is a little room for improvement.
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.
Though the NG17FGQ supports HDR, there is no wide color gamut available. sRGB is the one and only choice for all content. The green and red primaries are spot-on out of the box, but blue is a little undersaturated. And the white point error pulls the magenta and cyan secondaries off their hue targets. The overall error is reasonably low, however.
Calibration fixes the secondary hue errors and adds some blue saturation. Only the 80 and 100% blue targets are now under the mark. Magenta is also a little under-saturated as a result. With a final error of 2.39dE, the NG17FGQ does a good job with color, but it could be a little better. A wide gamut would be very welcome.
Comparisons
None of the screens here have significant color errors. That the worst score is 2.42dE speaks positively about the quality of high-speed gaming monitors. The Nexigo’s 2.39dE score is nothing to complain about.
Wide gamuts are rare in FHD monitors. The Gigabyte is the sole QHD panel of the group and has quite a bit more saturation than the others. But the Nexigo is next in line with over 113% coverage of sRGB. You’ll still need a software LUT to correct the under-saturated blue primary for color-critical work. For gaming, there is plenty of color available, just not the wide gamut that enhances HDR content.
