MSI Optix MAG27CQ & MSI Optix MPG27CQ 1440p 144Hz Gaming Monitors Review

[Julio Franco]

MSI's Optix MAG27CQ and MPG27CQ monitors check a lot of boxes on the feature list: 27" curved monitors with 1440p resolutions, FreeSync support, 144Hz refresh rates, and 1ms response times. Let's see how they perform and whether one of them may be a good choice for your next gaming display upgrade.

Read the full article here.

https://www.techspot.com/review/1742-msi-mag27cq-msi-mpg27cq/

 

[TheDevopsGuy]

Skimmed through the article while at work, if possible could you point out what color adjustments did you do to the MSI MAG27CQ.
Also the first model which they sent me of the panel had a defect, the MAG version is a great budget panel but the quality check from msi's side seems to lack as iv'e seen lots of similar cases as mine.

as per features the monitor has low red backlights which are barely visible which kinda makes me wonder what their purpose really are. A usb hub or a crappy speaker just for casual use would've been much better IMHO.

 

[letsgoiowa]

Very bizarre you tested with an Nvidia GPU instead of an AMD one to see how well the Freesync works because that is VERY important. Seeing how the monitor responds to Freesync is critical: does it exhibit flickering? Does it have a proper LFC implementation? Does it have any other things with Freesync to be aware of, such as how my ASUS MG279Q can adjust the range from 35-90Hz to 55-144?

That's the most important part of the review really.

 

[TheDevopsGuy]

Very bizarre you tested with an Nvidia GPU instead of an AMD one to see how well the Freesync works because that is VERY important. Seeing how the monitor responds to Freesync is critical: does it exhibit flickering? Does it have a proper LFC implementation? Does it have any other things with Freesync to be aware of, such as how my ASUS MG279Q can adjust the range from 35-90Hz to 55-144?

That's the most important part of the review really.

As I have the same panel I think I can speak on this, freesync wise it does have LFC should be around 48-144 frequency, when you get to the lower end of the fps range you will notice quite some panel flickering on the MSI MAG27CQ. You can find details on panels and their ranges/LFC specs here https://www.amd.com/en/products/freesync-monitors

As for the review in itself it was alright I would've preferred if they delved deeper in real benchmarks on response times of panels perse because I highly doubt its 1ms in extreme overdrive mode.
If you have a good gpu which can drive 144fps the panel works great I'm quite happy with it.

 

[dj2017]

I think an AMD GPU is a better choice for testing FreeSync monitors. I understand that a reviewer doesn't have all the hardware of the world around, but a reviewer of monitors needs to have at least a mid range freesync capable GPU somewhere to use it when needed.

 

[amghwk]

1440p @ 144Hz is like getting smug in a middle ground because 4K setup with minimum 60Hz output setup is still expensive.

For me, I never had the urge or need to use 1440p since I'm very happy with my current 1080p at 60Hz, even though my graphics card can play higher than that smoothly.

 

[brucek]

1440p is just right for me, and I don't mean as a compromise.

Compared to 1080p, I fit many more pixels on my display, pixels that add real benefit to my daily productivity, especially development.

Compared to 4K, I can still run 1440p at 100% native resolution, while 4K native on the max 27" that fits well on my desk results in text that's far too tiny. By the time I scale it to what my eyes can handle, it's back down to close enough to 1440p that I"m better off just sticking with a native vs. scaled resolution.

There may eventually come a time when you just can't buy anything that's not 4K. I hope the scaling and the o/s support for it is a lot better by then.

 

[Amback]

Hi, thank you for the review. Would appreciate if in the future you guys could test total lag(signal processing + response time).

This are things that are important too.

 

[vekspec]

I just wanted to say I've owned three of these 27in 1440p curved monitors and all of them had dead pixels in the same area after a month's use. Horrible quality. It all sounds like a good option for the price but unless they improve their quality I'm going to stick with the more reputable brands like Asus or Dell.

I will praise the retailer for their protection plan which I ended up completely changing out and grabbing a Dell QHD Gsync for $70 more

MSI makes great motherboards, laptops and graphic cards but their monitors are still in "Beta".

 

[davidm71]

Looking for calibrated settings for the MPG27CQ if anyone can share? Thanks

 

[mbawn]

"Content creation"

I so hate this brutishly dumb, wilfully undermining cliché. You are obviously going to see the colours just by looking at them as well, not just by "creating". Not necessarily (but perhaps) in CounterStrike, but in all nature scenes, forest, sky, sea - and many less obvious things. And movies, or wallpapers. Reality has a far wider colour spectrum, as does for example cinema and what we even expect from a decent TV. You also tested accuracy without beating it over the head with this club of a cliché, and it's what's REALLY important for content creation. If you maintain actual COLOURS are less important, accuracy is what's left and most important for content creation.


In fact consuming content is what an image is for. Your dumb cliché has actively held monitor progress and quality back these past 8 years. sRGB is standard, sRGB is nothing. But they have figured they can just show off by what EVERYONE has (or is either failing completely with and so should be avoided anyway). And here we actually have a developer making an effort, but you just beat it down with the sme dumb cliché. No-one is "content creator" or image editor (in the real sense), these things don't matter - it's for the picture itself. (Deepest skies, turquoise, natural green etc.)