Unsolved
1 Rookie
•
5 Posts
0
114
April 7th, 2025 13:29
AW2725DF, raised blacks in SDR with Smart HDR enabled in OSD
I’m having an issue with blacks being raised/grey in all content when Smart HDR is enabled in the OSD. I am in SDR with HDR disabled in windows.
This is with Smart HDR enabled, HDR in windows disabled:
This is with Smart HDR disabled, Windows HDR disabled:
As you can see there is something odd going on there. Even more frustrating is sometimes I boot into my system and everything is fine with Smart HDR enabled, but as soon as I enable/disable HDR in windows the blacks become grey again and I need to disable Smart HDR to fix the issue.
I have tried changing settings in Nvidia Control panel like making sure range is set to full and toggling 8/10 bit. I have tried adding an SDR ICC to correct the shift but blacks are still raised with gamma correction. I tried factory resetting the monitor. This issue exists in all modes so creator, standard, game, custom etc. all have this issue. The issue also persists no matter what Smart HDR mode is enabled.
I’m really stumped on how to fix this and wondering if it’s a Windows issue, GPU issue, monitor firmware issue. If the fix is to toggle Smart HDR every time I want to use HDR that is fine but I feel like that defeats the purpose of a Smart HDR feature. I would greatly appreciate any input on how I may fix this issue.
intertiacreep
1 Rookie
•
2 Posts
0
July 23rd, 2025 23:32
Did you ever figure this out? I'm having the same issue. I was under the impression when switching back to SDR, the monitor would "turn off hdr."
DellUserPerson
1 Rookie
•
5 Posts
0
July 23rd, 2025 23:40
@intertiacreep
Yes and no. I ended up resetting windows and it fixed the problem. Unfortunately I was never able to pinpoint the exact issue. I found another post with a similar issue that stated uninstalling the Dell drivers and using the generic windows drivers worked for them. After resetting windows I never reinstalled the Dell drivers and I am just using the generic windows display drivers. The only advice I could maybe recommend is trying to uninstall the Dell drivers if you have installed them.
intertiacreep
1 Rookie
•
2 Posts
0
July 24th, 2025 01:11
Wow, I was about ready to give up on this monitor and maybe sell it for a different one, but that did the trick it looks like. Thanks for such a quick response!
DellUserPerson
1 Rookie
•
5 Posts
0
July 24th, 2025 01:19
@intertiacreep
No problem, I’m glad I could help!
xHxzardous
1 Rookie
•
5 Posts
0
August 2nd, 2025 09:25
@DellUserPerson How did you uninstall the Dell drivers? I've been having some HDR related issues and I'm interested in trying the same thing but can't figure out how to do it.
DellUserPerson
1 Rookie
•
5 Posts
0
August 2nd, 2025 14:58
@xHxzardous
Open Device Manager, find display adapters and try to locate your monitor. Once you find it right click and select uninstall. If the Dell driver is installed you will see the name of your monitor, if it’s not installed you will see “generic pnp monitor”. Hope this helps
xHxzardous
1 Rookie
•
5 Posts
0
August 2nd, 2025 15:05
@DellUserPerson I did this successfully but it didn't fix my issue, sadly. Having an insane problem where every HDR profile on the AW2725DF will only display HDR highlights properly when I'm tabbed out of games. When the game is in focus, the image gets dull and the highlights turn off.
I made a reddit thread about it a while ago which showcases the issue with a video. I am at a complete loss. Maybe someone will read this comment and know what to do. :/
https://www.reddit.com/r/OLED_Gaming/comments/1lj5b2o/alienware_aw2725df_hdr_isnt_working_correctly/
DellUserPerson
1 Rookie
•
5 Posts
0
August 2nd, 2025 15:39
@xHxzardous I have seen a few Reddit posts about this too but I have no idea how to fix it. I haven’t encountered this issue but what I can say is the HDR experience on windows has been a pain to deal with.