Dough Spectrum One review: a top-quality 4k monitor

The Dough Spectrum One is arguably the nicest-looking gaming monitor available on the market, due to its tremendous slim metallic stand and in any other case clear design, however, it’s not model over substance. It additionally has a 4K decision, 144Hz most refresh fee, and a few helpful different options, however is it probably the greatest 4K gaming displays? It gained’t be a go-to choice for esports fans however as an all-rounder show, it’s more likely to have huge attraction.

The Dough firm used to go by the title Eve, beneath which it launched a Kickstarter to create community-designed displays, providing a selection of sizes, resolutions, refresh charges, and numerous different choices. This included the choice that also exists to purchase the Spectrum One in both shiny or matte panel coatings and to purchase the show with or with out its stand.

As with so many Kickstarters, the launch didn’t precisely go to plan and this potential finest gaming monitor candidate arrived late to market with a really excessive worth. Nonetheless, with a reputation change and new pricing, this show has the potential to be a contemporary basic.

Dough Spectrum One specs

Dough Spectrum One specs:

Dough Spectrum One design and construct high quality

The only most defining function of the Dough Spectrum One – apart from the shopping for choices talked about above – is its design. The show panel itself is basically only a neat black rectangle with a plain flat, matte black rear, no RGB lighting, and really slim bezels; it’s an all-business sort of vibe. As such, for those who purchase it with out the stand, there’s nothing too thrilling right here.

Nonetheless, purchase the Spectrum One with its non-compulsory $99 stand and also you get simply the best-looking monitor stand available on the market, in my humble opinion. It’s fabricated from stable metallic with a gunmetal paint end that strikes simply the appropriate steadiness of smartness with out being too uninteresting. Furthermore, it’s extremely slim seen from the entrance, measuring simply 10mm huge for many of its size. From the facet, you may see it’s fairly a bit deeper however the total impression continues to be of a supplies science-defying balancing act.

The stand can be impressively stiff, exhibiting not one of the wobble of some low cost stands, regardless of additionally incorporating 130mm of peak adjustability, together with pivot, rotation (in each clockwise and anti-clockwise instructions), and tilt adjustment. A gap beneath the place the stand broadens to its height-adjusting part acts as the one cable-tidying addition to the stand. Watch out pivoting the display screen with cables working by way of this gap, although – they snag simply and may wrench fairly arduous on the facility and video sockets.

The foot of the stand can be heavy, thick, and utterly coated on the underside with thick rubber, which gives a robust grip in your desk. What’s extra, it’s not too giant (200mm huge by 225mm deep), so it doesn’t take up a lot desk area, and the area it does occupy continues to be usable due to the flat prime of the foot.

Choose to go with out the stand and there’s a normal 100 x 100mm VESA mount on the again of the panel, and the screws are handily pre-installed, moderately than being unfastened in a bag and straightforward to lose.

Dough Spectrum One options

The Spectrum One’s headline function is its 27-inch, 144Hz, 4K, IPS LCD panel, which is out there in both shiny or matte coatings. The selection of coatings means you may both have a end that reduces annoying reflections, however may end up in a barely much less crisp-looking picture with a slight greying impact to darkish colours, or you may settle for reflections, however take pleasure in a barely crisper picture with darkish colours that aren’t so washed out. I speak extra about my expertise with each choices under within the picture high quality part.

Dough used to supply extra choices for display screen decision and refresh fee combos, however the One is at the moment solely obtainable on this 144Hz/4K configuration. The corporate does additionally supply the Spectrum Black vary, although, that are 240Hz 27-inch/1440p and 32-inch/4K OLED displays.

For options apart from the display screen, the Spectrum One isn’t precisely bristling. There are not any built-in audio system or gaming extras, reminiscent of a pop–out headphone stand, and, as talked about earlier, there’s no RGB lighting both. Nonetheless, you do get a USB hub with two USB-A 3.1 sockets for peripherals and two USB-C inputs that additionally help video enter.

The USB-C sockets may ship as much as 100W for system charging, so you need to use a single cable for energy and video to your laptop computer. Fairly a couple of displays supply this function lately, however a number of solely present within the area of 30W of energy, so 100W is a major step up, permitting for fairly highly effective laptops to run at full pelt.

Alongside the 2 USB-A ports and one of many USB-C ports on the left fringe of the again of the display screen is a headphone jack, which lets you pipe audio from related video sources to your headphones. Its sound high quality is obvious and with a full sonic vary – there’s not one of the skinny, crackly sound you get from some low cost monitor headphone jacks.

For different video inputs, you get one DisplayPort 1.4 connector and two HDMI 2.1 ports, so you will get the total 144Hz 4K expertise of this show on all inputs, and have help for options reminiscent of variable refresh fee on consoles.

Again to the display screen, this panel has a 10-bit coloration depth capable of produce as much as 96% of the DCI-P3 coloration area, which interprets to it conforming to even probably the most demanding HDR coloration requirements. It additionally has a DisplayHDR 600 ranking, which requires the show to hit a peak brightness of 600nits versus the extra commonplace 400nits, for extra dazzling moments of brightness.

Nonetheless, there’s no stipulation for larger than the 1,000:1 static distinction ratio of non-HDR shows, and certain sufficient, that’s all you get right here. You’ll need an OLED monitor or an LCD monitor with some extent of native dimming to get higher distinction.

Dough Spectrum One picture high quality

Fireplace up the Spectrum one and its mixture of a 27-inch display screen dimension and 4K decision instantly offers you that satisfying pin-sharp view that you just anticipate from a 4K display screen. Its pixel density is 163ppi, which is well sufficient to make sure no single pixel is discernible from a typical 2ft viewing distance. As an alternative, you get a lusciously {smooth} picture that brings a lifelike high quality to video and gorgeous readability to video games, in addition to making certain textual content is splendidly smooth-edged and straightforward to learn.

Additionally essential to the widely pleasing feeling of utilizing this show is the usage of Home windows 11, because it handles decision scaling so a lot better than earlier variations of Home windows. Utilizing a 4K display screen beforehand meant working sure video games at decrease resolutions, or taking part in round with the scaling settings on the desktop to fine-tune your desktop space, which was such a ache. Now, although, it’s a seamless expertise.

As an IPS LCD panel, viewing angles of each the shiny and matte variations of those screens are wonderful, making certain colours stay correct even when seen from excessive angles. Not solely does this permit for a number of folks to comfortably view a display screen, or for a person to step away from a display screen with out a ruined picture – maybe to sit down again and watch a film – nevertheless it additionally ensures there’s not one of the coloration shimmer and distinction loss that come from some TN and VA panels when shifting your head barely. The principle draw back is IPS glow (the slight graying that may have an effect on components of the display screen when seen from an angle) nevertheless it’s no worse right here than on some other IPS display screen.

Speaking of the shiny and matte finishes, these each conform to expectations. The shiny panel has only a contact extra depth to its darkish colours, extra punch to its shiny colours, and thus a better perceived distinction. Plus, textual content is only a contact sharper, as there’s no grainy matte coating to barely disperse the sunshine. Nonetheless, reflections are noticeable – for those who’re going to be working in a shiny room it gained’t be preferrred.

In the meantime, the matte end can look only a contact greyer, and fewer punchy, and there’s only a slight loss in readability on effective particulars in comparison with the shiny end. Nonetheless, reflections are all however nonexistent. Briefly, the matte model is healthier for work – particularly in brighter environments – and the shiny model is healthier for gaming and video. I discovered myself preferring the shiny choice, although I wouldn’t pay the additional $100 it prices to get it.

Whichever display screen end you select, the general picture high quality right here is great, with that prolonged 96% DCI-P3 coloration vary (96.9% in our assessments) making for shiny and punchy colours, however with none of the overly lurid, nearly luminous colours you get on some prolonged coloration vary shows. You may as well change the show to solely run within the sRGB coloration vary (about 65% DCI-P3) if needed.

Distinction can be good, if unexceptional for an IPS panel. We measured a stage of 1,034:1 in our assessments, which is in the midst of the 700-1,200:1 distinction you’ll usually get on a show of this kind. That’s properly under the three,000-5,000:1 some VA panels can supply, not to mention the ten,000:1 of OLED shows, however VA panels have their compromises and OLEDs are costly!

Though to my eye this show appeared to have an correct steadiness of colours, with white backgrounds trying like true white, in our assessments the show recorded a coloration temperature of seven,087K, which is a long way from the best temperature of 6,500K. Nonetheless, this was simple sufficient to steadiness out with the assistance of a colorimeter, and would solely be a priority for skilled picture modifying – it wasn’t far sufficient off to have an effect on my enjoyment of the display screen or use of it for modifying the photographs on this overview, as an example.

Dough Spectrum One gaming efficiency

In all honesty, I wasn’t anticipating such a tremendous efficiency from this show when it got here to gaming. Positive, its 144Hz refresh fee and claimed 1ms gray-to-gray response time means it was at all times more likely to be a lot {smooth} sufficient for all however esports titles, however to my amazement, this panel was surprisingly good even for aggressive shooters.

The crux of that good efficiency is a surprisingly quick response time. Even with overdrive utterly turned off, this show nonetheless delivers a median response time of 5.61ms. Crank overdrive to excessive and that drops to 4.48ms with no significant rise in coloration overshoot – that bizarre glowing path impact you get on some displays. You possibly can be taught extra about response time and its results in our information to LCD displays.

What’s extra, you may even fine-tune the overdrive your self by switching to handbook mode. I turned this function on, then set overdrive to 50/100, and the response time dropped to only 3.28ms – plus, whereas overshoot grew to become noticeable, it wasn’t terrible.

All that implies that with a refresh fee of 144Hz, this monitor comfortably delivers a response time that’s quick sufficient to make sure it not often reveals any of the image-blurring, ghostly trails which can be the tell-tale signal – and big distraction – of a gradual response time (as a result of its common response time is lower than its body time of 1/144Hz = 6.9ms). For comparability, the Dell G2524H has a 280Hz refresh fee (for a 3.5ms body time) however at finest has a 7.5ms response time so it suffers terribly with apparent ghosting.

So, whereas the Spectrum One isn’t the final phrase in esports displays – you’ll wish to step as much as 240Hz or 360Hz panels (and past) for that – it could actually greater than ship the products for all different gaming situations.

Dough Spectrum One worth

Value: Count on to pay $649 (matte) or $749 (shiny) and $99 for the stand.

Dough Spectrum One overview conclusion

The Dough Spectrum One is a implausible gaming monitor that might have been an absolute revelation at its present worth a yr or two in the past when it was initially slated to be launched. Even with a current $500 drop in worth, although, it’s nonetheless an costly show. There are many 4K/144Hz displays obtainable with a stand for beneath $500. So, to must pay $748 for the equal spec here’s a robust promote.

That mentioned, this show genuinely is better-looking and with superior efficiency than most cheaper rivals. Mixed with its gorgeous stand design, this earns it a spot on our greatest gaming monitor record simply as a premium fashionable choice for many who are comfortable to spend the additional for the design.

For extra gaming monitor suggestions, try our greatest gaming monitor information.