LG 38GL950G - 37.5" 3840x1600/G-Sync/175Hz

Good question. I'm stuck trying to decide between the two monitors while I wait for the new Nvidia cards to come out.

Me too man, I've had my Acer Pred X34 for 5 years now, and looking to upgrade to a newer and larger monitor as my primary.
 
Me too man, I've had my Acer Pred X34 for 5 years now, and looking to upgrade to a newer and larger monitor as my primary.
I too am still running my 5 year old x34, don't get me wrong, there are better/newer options out there, but nothing yet that has really made me think it's time to upgrade.
 
You’re still looking at a year plus before there’s any meaningful upgrades, Announced at CES and 6-12 months after that.

it’ll probably jump a fair bit after that though. Biggest frustration with this screen is bandwidth limitation and crap HDR, we’re now getting screens getting near HDR 1400 specs (ASUS and Apple) and DisplayPort 2 is imminent.

I’d fully expect them to announce a screen at CES that merges that, but it’ll take an age to come out and be first car money. 175Hz plus 5k 2k with 38-43” 21:9 and HDR 1400 would be perfect for me

I massively prefer the form factor of this over my 34 in the office, just in terms of usability, but if I’d had a 34 at home I probably wouldn’t have bothered.
 
I too am still running my 5 year old x34, don't get me wrong, there are better/newer options out there, but nothing yet that has really made me think it's time to upgrade.

Yea, same here, it's just I want a bigger monitor preferably 38-43".
 
Yea, same here, it's just I want a bigger monitor preferably 38-43".
Exactly, the CX 48 is a beautiful screen, but who really has the space to put a 48" TV on their desk? I really want to start seeing the 38"-42" options start to increase. I will see if I can get another two-three years out of my x34.
 
Well LG is increasing OLED production and if the 48CX is a big seller LG (and others) may decide going smaller is not a bad idea and see a market for them. Assuming this all plays out I wouldn't expect smaller than 48" for a couple years at least but you never know. Not this year that's for sure.
 
What's smoother in games - 1440p 120hz oled or the lg 38" 1600p with hardware gsync?


the LG 38" by far

While the OLED crushes it on picture quality, the LG has a much sharper image with the increased PPI and the 160hz+gsync is like butter

only .....If LG could somehow make an OLED version of the 38" LOL
 
the LG 38" by far

While the OLED crushes it on picture quality, the LG has a much sharper image with the increased PPI and the 160hz+gsync is like butter

only .....If LG could somehow make an OLED version of the 38" LOL
damn... thanks. ) The 38" oled monitor is not possible in the foreseeable future I think due to the image retention. LG is definitely not in a hurry to solve this issue. Not as profitable as making small updates to the oled lineup every year and selling it to the market. They have IPSs for the PC users. Although the two markets have started crossing paths lately...

Is CX48 in 4k 4:4:4 noticeably less sharp as well?
 
Speaking of wishlists, yes it'd be nice to have more 38" options but now that I've finally settled on a 38GL it'd be nice to see a 42" version, just stretched out the 24:10 some more.
 
the LG 38" by far

While the OLED crushes it on picture quality, the LG has a much sharper image with the increased PPI and the 160hz+gsync is like butter

only .....If LG could somehow make an OLED version of the 38" LOL

Omg, imagine if this LG 38" monitor ever came out with the same specs but in OLED!? it would literally be the bees knees! I would buy it even if it was twice the price of the current LG 38". Lol
 
Is it fine to have say Discord/Telegram/Firefox running on the 2nd monitor whilst gaming? Or should I alternate with 4k videos to keep the pixels moving?

Don't want to get any potential burn in during long gaming sessions
 
Is it fine to have say Discord/Telegram/Firefox running on the 2nd monitor whilst gaming? Or should I alternate with 4k videos to keep the pixels moving?

Don't want to get any potential burn in during long gaming sessions
If you're talking about the 38gl950g, no... it will not burn in. It does not have an OLED panel.
 
If you're talking about the 38gl950g, no... it will not burn in. It does not have an OLED panel.
Yes the 38gl950g
I've read a few conflicting posts on reddit so just wanted to be sure as it is a sizeable investment in these monitors and so far I've been running these for months with zero issues
 
wait for the alienware. They are going to be coming out with this panel. Should be designated AW3821DW. My only hope is that they will actually have their own implementation of cooling the gsync module instead of this horrific fan.
 
I really like the idea of this LG panel in Dell packaging. I've always had good experiences with Dell. LG has me a bit nervous about their QC and support.
 
Price keeps dropping on Amazon if you want one.
 
Last edited:
With the announcement of the new RTX 3000 series, this terrific monitor will soon be able to run at its full resolution and full 160 fps in demanding AAA games. Even the cost, for the new RTX 3080, sounds reasonable based on history and promises about 50% better performance than a 2080 Ti.
 
Last edited:
I'm thinking about buying one of these to replace my two monitors .. 32GK850G and a smaller 27" 4k LG for color work. Looks like this one can do both gaming and photography duties. I really like the VA panel on my LG 32 though for its dark and consistent blacks, so it's a tough decision. Dual monitors look messy though especially without matching in size and 95% of the time I just use my 32.
 
I got the monitor today and I defiitely can hear a bit the fan, it's a little high pitch sound
It's not loud but still audible : https://youtu.be/qrDOfqcLbeQ
I was wondering if it's normal and if there is a way to disable it somehow.... or if I should send it back maybe?

Thanks
 
I got the monitor today and I defiitely can hear a bit the fan, it's a little high pitch sound
It's not loud but still audible : https://youtu.be/qrDOfqcLbeQ
I was wondering if it's normal and if there is a way to disable it somehow.... or if I should send it back maybe?

Thanks
Probably more of a cheap fan product than anything else. It works but not the most quiet of fans. Not like they put Noctua's in them. You could try and return it and play the fan lotto I suppose. I wouldn't try to disable it.
 
What do you guys think -- 3080 or 3090 for our 38's?
From a $$$ standpoint, the 3090 is approx. twice the cost of the 3080. From a performance standpoint my only concern with the early release 3080 is the amount of memory - 10 Gb. These monitors are very close to 4K in resolution (abt 20% less demanding) and I usually look at those benchmarks to get an idea of expected performance. If they release an upgraded version of the 3080 with more memory, like a Ti version at 16GB, then I'd definitely look at that. That would be in between the base 10Gb and the 3090 at 24Gb. So, IMO they will eventually announce a 3080 Ti w/~16Gb at about $999 to fit between the 3080 and 3090 and THAT would be my buy. If not, it would be a hard choice between the two and I'd likely accept the base 3080. I just can't imagine buying another $1500 card on top of having bought the 2080 Ti a year and a half ago.
 
From a $$$ standpoint, the 3090 is approx. twice the cost of the 3080. From a performance standpoint my only concern with the early release 3080 is the amount of memory - 10 Gb. These monitors are very close to 4K in resolution (abt 20% less demanding) and I usually look at those benchmarks to get an idea of expected performance. If they release an upgraded version of the 3080 with more memory, like a Ti version at 16GB, then I'd definitely look at that. That would be in between the base 10Gb and the 3090 at 24Gb. So, IMO they will eventually announce a 3080 Ti w/~16Gb at about $999 to fit between the 3080 and 3090 and THAT would be my buy. If not, it would be a hard choice between the two and I'd likely accept the base 3080. I just can't imagine buying another $1500 card on top of having bought the 2080 Ti a year and a half ago.

This is my struggle exactly. I was able to sell off my 2080 TI about 3 weeks ago for $1100 and have been using a 1070 in the time being. So realistically it's only an additional $500~ investment (+/- with tax). The only solace I would have is that I can ignore all other video card releases til the 4000 series is released (3090 being the top/titan until the next release). So -- pocket the extra $300? Or spend extra $500-600? Obviously over 20% +/- performance.
 
Got the 38gn950 which is the better version of this with HDR600 and local dimming 12x zones but just can't justify the 2x cost over my existing 3818dw: uniformity is a bit worse though bleed/glow is lower at 120 cd/m2, no KVM , HDR is only useful in some games and requires constant toggling in Windows because you cannot leave it on all the time :makes everything washed out, and at HDR brightness levels ips glow becomes a real pain. DCI-P3 is nice but sRGB mode is locked out and only brightness can be adjusted so color temp is stuck at a slightly reddish 6390k meaning color accuracy for everything besides HDR content is a bit worse...and for some reason I cannot see the earth shattering difference between 60 and 160 Hz...I am leaning towards keeping my Dell ...what am I not seeing guys? Both are 38 UW so that immersion factor is very similar.
 
and for some reason I cannot see the earth shattering difference between 60 and 160 Hz...

Typically, this means you don't have it running at the higher refresh rate. A change of 60hz to 160hz should make 60hz feel like you are watching a slideshow.

You have to specifically set it up most of the time. Double check your videocard settings, and windows display settings.
 
Typically, this means you don't have it running at the higher refresh rate. A change of 60hz to 160hz should make 60hz feel like you are watching a slideshow.

You have to specifically set it up most of the time. Double check your videocard settings, and windows display settings.
Made sure it was set via NV CP and no 60 Hz doesn't appear like a slideshow to me in comparison with higher refresh rates. Anything lower than 60 Hz def does..My S20+ feels a bit more fluid at 120 Hz vs 60 Hz but nothing earth-shattering.
 
Returning it, may try the business version of the 38GN950, the 38WN95C because it comes with a 3 year warranty and has TB3, a dedicated monitor at this price without TB3 is a no go. Hoping costco carries it at some point. My 3818dw soldiers on...decent sRGB+ panels are still the sweet spot for PCs given the broken HDR implementation (the lack of proper gamut mapping is particularly atrocious, you end with somethings looking way oversaturated when using the full DCI-P3 gamut on these screens and the sRGB mode, while good, is worse than a dedicated sRGB+ monitor like the 3818dw with around 102% sRGB coverage). Or may pickup the 48 CX again during holidays and hoping this time get one without a stuck pixel...

Anyhow no one should get the 38GL950 anymore, the 38GN950 or 38WN95C are significantly better than it and cheaper to boot.
 
Last edited:
Returning it, may try the business version of the 38GN950, the 38WN95C because it comes with a 3 year warranty and has TB3, a dedicated monitor at this price without TB3 is a no go. Hoping costco carries it at some point. My 3818dw soldiers on...decent sRGB+ panels are still the sweet spot for PCs given the broken HDR implementation (the lack of proper gamut mapping is particularly atrocious, you end with somethings looking way oversaturated when using the full DCI-P3 gamut on these screens and the sRGB mode, while good, is worse than a dedicated sRGB+ monitor like the 3818dw with around 102% sRGB coverage). Or may pickup the 48 CX again during holidays and hoping this time get one without a stuck pixel...

Anyhow no one should get the 38GL950 anymore, the 38GN950 or 38WN95C are significantly better than it and cheaper to boot.

No one? No exceptions? None?

There are always exceptions.

It's a $200 difference ($1400 vs $1600).

I'd have to see some serious testing before I'd settle for "G-Sync compatible" over actual G-Sync
 
No one? No exceptions? None?

There are always exceptions.

It's a $200 difference ($1400 vs $1600).

I'd have to see some serious testing before I'd settle for "G-Sync compatible" over actual G-Sync
Given how many people complain about the gsync fan noise, you may be the only one sir, apologies. 🙃 Pay $200+tax and deal with fan noise and no local dimming at all fwiw for your money :)
 
Last edited:
LG needs to get off their butts and create a 38" curved OLED monitor/TV. Will sell better than any of their current 38" panels combined (including ones sold by OEMs like Dell, these are all LG IPS panels with different features). The viewing angle hue shift on the 48cx at 4' distance would be a non issue with a smaller curved panel and the IPS glow which makes these screens bad for HDR without FALD is of course a non issue for OLED.
 
Just got mine in from Costco , the 38GN950-B.AUS , second one actually , first one was busted so sent back and new one arrived today.

I don't want to deal with any worries about burn-in with OLED and mainly I don't want anything over 40". I've been gaming on my BenQ 32" 4k's for years now (have one dedicated for gaming , and two connected to another rig on each side of it for work/misc , and after trying the 48" LG CX , and looking at VA 40" options over the years I may have finally found the replacement here.

With nothing else for me on the horizon in what I want , the additional 160 pixels in 1600 vs 1440 makes this fairly close to 4k for me.

Will have to play with it for a few days , but the faster response plus 144/160 over 60 hz I think will make this worth it for me,

Also confirmed with Costco that monitors do not fall into the TV or Comptuer policy and can be returned past 90 days so if bad pixels or something in 6 months will be going back easily enough.
 
Just got mine in from Costco , the 38GN950-B.AUS , second one actually , first one was busted so sent back and new one arrived today.

I don't want to deal with any worries about burn-in with OLED and mainly I don't want anything over 40". I've been gaming on my BenQ 32" 4k's for years now (have one dedicated for gaming , and two connected to another rig on each side of it for work/misc , and after trying the 48" LG CX , and looking at VA 40" options over the years I may have finally found the replacement here.

With nothing else for me on the horizon in what I want , the additional 160 pixels in 1600 vs 1440 makes this fairly close to 4k for me.

Will have to play with it for a few days , but the faster response plus 144/160 over 60 hz I think will make this worth it for me,

Also confirmed with Costco that monitors do not fall into the TV or Comptuer policy and can be returned past 90 days so if bad pixels or something in 6 months will be going back easily enough.
Wanted to keep it too but my 3818dw is better for 60% of the work I do (vs 40% gaming) with better uniformity, sRGB deltaE and 3 way KVM. May be they will release a new 3820dw or a similar alienware combining best of both worlds soon.
Also, while costco coverage makes up for it, LG selling these $1k+ gaming monitors with anything less than 3 year advance exchange policy is simply inexcusable.
 
Last edited:
From a $$$ standpoint, the 3090 is approx. twice the cost of the 3080. From a performance standpoint my only concern with the early release 3080 is the amount of memory - 10 Gb. These monitors are very close to 4K in resolution (abt 20% less demanding) and I usually look at those benchmarks to get an idea of expected performance. If they release an upgraded version of the 3080 with more memory, like a Ti version at 16GB, then I'd definitely look at that. That would be in between the base 10Gb and the 3090 at 24Gb. So, IMO they will eventually announce a 3080 Ti w/~16Gb at about $999 to fit between the 3080 and 3090 and THAT would be my buy. If not, it would be a hard choice between the two and I'd likely accept the base 3080. I just can't imagine buying another $1500 card on top of having bought the 2080 Ti a year and a half ago.
I'm sure we'll see Super or Ti versions of the 3070 and 3080 but that will be next year (2021) sometime. I forget if it was Paul of Paul's Hardware or JayzTwoCents that was speculating on a possible 20GB Vram model based on some released info. Anyway if a 20GB version does happen I'm thinking that would be the 3080. We'll just have to wait and see what Nvidia ends up doing.
 
This is my struggle exactly. I was able to sell off my 2080 TI about 3 weeks ago for $1100 and have been using a 1070 in the time being. So realistically it's only an additional $500~ investment (+/- with tax). The only solace I would have is that I can ignore all other video card releases til the 4000 series is released (3090 being the top/titan until the next release). So -- pocket the extra $300? Or spend extra $500-600? Obviously over 20% +/- performance.

Probably best to wait just a few days for some benchmarks. The cards are already in the hands of many reviewers and benchmarks should be appearing soon. But, given what we know now, I would be very tempted to save the $300 from that lucky 2080 sale and get a 'free' 3080. Nvidia claiming 100fps+ in 4k games w/ ultra settings AND ray tracing would hopefully mean max performance at 160hz on our monitors. Benchmarks will tell the tale though and I would wait until seeing them.
 
Hey all. Been a while since I have lurked the [H]ard forums!
How does the LG 38GL950G handle firmware updates? Can you download the update from the LG site and flash the panel? Or do you have to send it back to LG so they can update the firmware?
I ask this b/c I didn't do the research on my last monitor (msi mag271cqr) and turns out you have to send the MSI monitors back to MSI's tech support and they flash it. There were color banding issues on models with earlier firmware versions :(
I have been looking to for a new UW monitor for the new gfx cards, and have seen glowing reviews about this LG. I have it in my cart on amazon, someone here help push me over the line!
 
Exactly, the CX 48 is a beautiful screen, but who really has the space to put a 48" TV on their desk? I really want to start seeing the 38"-42" options start to increase. I will see if I can get another two-three years out of my x34.

Exactly, it can't be comfortable sitting a couple fert from it either for long term use.

wait for the alienware. They are going to be coming out with this panel. Should be designated AW3821DW. My only hope is that they will actually have their own implementation of cooling the gsync module instead of this horrific fan.
Any specs? I am very interested in a high refresh rate 4k monitor st around 38 or 40 inches
 
Back
Top