(Reviewed) $400 2560x1440 IPS no-AG 90hz+ Achieva Shimian QH270 and Catleap Q270 - Page 369

I have read most of this long thread and still have some questions. I am about to make an order for either Achieva ShiMian QH270-Lite or a CrossOver 27Q. Not going for CatLeap because of the taller stand (need this to fit under one of my wall shelves over my desk). Basically deciding on the aesthetics and whether the lack of the white trim on the CrossOver vs. Achieva is worth the ~$40 premium. Here is something else that I'm wondering about - is the CrossOver 27Q model going to have the internal adjustment panel for brightness, presets, and what not? (as the Achieva one does not).

Another thing I'm a bit confused about is the difference between Achieve ShiMian QH270-Lite and QH270 IPSBS. One seller writes the following : "QH270-IPSBS mode is higher version than QH270-lite model High Grade LG S-IPS pannel. " Does this imply better image quality or simply that IPSBS has operational speakers (which I do not care about, as I have other dedicated speakers)? The price difference between the two models is $7.50 from ta_planet.

Another thing is the decision between sellers... ta_planet seems to be checking his (their) monitors and being nice about it (?) vs. the [almost] cheapest Green-sum I'm not so sure about.

So it's basically between a $320 Achieva ShiMian AH270-Lite and $366 CrossOver 27Q.

For reference, I gave my good card to a friend and using an XFX 9800GT right now (which is listed as compatible) until I get a 7850 or one of the upcoming nVidia 6** cards.

P.S.: I don't know if this extra testing CatLeap monitors go through to ensure quality is evident in practice, but at least according to this thread's poll, it appears that CatLeap monitors have fewer defects in proportion to the number of purchases vs. the Achieva ones... I am worried about not only dead / stuck pixels but also backlight unevenness and color variations.

Any input would be very welcome!
Edited by ElevenEleven - 5/9/12 at 10:00pm

I have the same concerns as ElevenEleven,

I currently have a GTX 570 and will be upgrading soon to the GTX 670/680 Nivdia Graphics card.

Also from reading the thread it says these are A- Grade LG display panels?

What is the difference in quality for these A- Grade monitors compared to an Apply Display that has an A+ grade from what I read?

I have the Achieva ShiMian QH270-Lite, and it does have brightness control, but nothing else. Your gamma, colour balance, etc will be adjusted with your computer. I don't know about the Crossover, but I suspect it has brightness control, too.

As far as image quality, both Shimian's are identical. The IPSBS has speakers AND tempered glass. The Lite has neither. They have identical panels, though. The cheapest seller for the ShiMian AH270-Lite, now is Dream-Seller at 302.90. I bought from him and had a great experience.

Not to knock the Crossover's because they have the best looking bezels, hands down, but I've seen a LOT of pixel problems come up with them in this thread. One guy even got three for crossfire and had a stuck pixel in each. Also, see vinunleaded above; he has a dead pixel right in the middle of the screen.

Seems to be just random luck. The way I went evaluating sellers was based on more negative experience people had and amounts of communication between sellers and customers. There are people who claim successful experiences of getting partial refunds or free replacements (after return shipping refund) on defective monitors. For some reason, I'm wary of ordering from dream_seller, but ta_planet seems nice, and a couple others described in a PCBank 27" thread seem good.

Speaking of PCBank, I read a whole thread on the PCBank PB2700 Super 27" last night, and now I think maybe I should just get that. It's still going to be a toss between getting lucky and unlucky with some issue, but PCBanks don't have the white trim around the bezels, still have low height, and appear to have better dead pixel track record for the Super version. Again, not enough data to confirm and deny.

I'm just surprised there aren't more reviews and comparative reviews, as the volume of those panels sold is quite high.

P.S.: Dead Pixel Policy: the way I understand it, having read multiple sellers' policies, is that one pixel in the center of the screen or up to 5 elsewhere is considered acceptable (some models even allow up to 10 dead pixels off-center).

P.P.S.: The only version of Achieva ShiMian that has tempered glass is the IPSB version. The Lite version does not and neither does IPSBS. The stats are listed in comparative tables attached to many sellers' description pages and are confirmed from reviews here.
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Also, I apologize if I missed it, but is there in-Windows calibration available for the Achieva line? There are a couple calibration profiles listed in another thread for PCBank Super monitors, for example.
Edited by ElevenEleven - 5/10/12 at 11:40am

Okay so my first post was deleted for having an eBay link. I feel like I need to repost this to help people make an informed purchasing decision. I bought the CrossOver from ta_planet. It has a dead pixel right in the center. He's not willing to replace it because his policy is 5 dead pixels anywhere on the display. Keep in mind that the other sellers consider 1 dead pixel in the center defective.

Read the description thoroughly. Be warned

If you read descriptions by quite a few sellers, you will see that 1 dead pixel in the middle section is considered okay, more than 1 - not okay. up to 5 dead pixels toward the edges of the screen is considered okay as well. I don't know where you got your "1 dead pixel in the middle of the screen is ground for exchange" information, as I have read otherwise.

Example:

Hey can i see a pic with your monitor and that stand?

Apologies if I missed it - are there calibrated color profiles available for Windows monitor color calibration for Achieva ShiMian Lites? Unsure if someone posted one and I overlooked it.

Also noticed that some sellers list their monitors as tested for proper operation before shipping and some do not... Wonder if that means there's a higher chance of getting a DOA one from the latter.

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Is the tempered glass Achieva model similar in glare-terms to Apple Thunderbolt displays? Ease of display cleaning is a plus with a glass front.
Edited by ElevenEleven - 5/10/12 at 9:57pm

http://www.overclock.net/t/1228062/achieva-shimian-monitor-club/200_100#post_17150253

Try this (associated with monitor under the devices tab of color management). Its not going to be accurate with each monitor being different.

Try this. not sure how accurate it is going to be with monitors being different.

Brightness is 3rd level on the monitor itself (there are 10 steps of dimming)

Extract .ICM file
Right click
install as profile
Then under color management
Displays
Add the profile for the monitor and enable Spyder4Express.zip 2k .zip file