For passionate gamers, the performance of their monitor holds immense importance when it comes to enhancing the gaming experience. An issue that can significantly hinder this experience is known as ghosting. Ghosting occurs when the image displayed on the monitor seems to linger or create a faint residue after moving objects.
This can be especially troublesome in high-speed games such as first-person shooters, where even the slightest delay or distortion can determine the outcome between victory and defeat.
Many of us have a misconception that ghosting is a problem in gaming but that’s just a myth. Ghosting is actually a problem associated with your PC Monitor. This article will tell you everything about ‘Screen Ghosting’, its causes and solutions.
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What is Screen Ghosting in Gaming?
In gaming, ghosting is a technical phenomenon in displays. It is a term given to multiple impressions of images on a single screen. It happens when a previous image continues to appear on the screen along with the latest image. The impression of the stale image seems a blur. In-all, it creates a smudged effect on your gaming screen, which we call a ‘Ghost’ image. Since it sounds similar to a Ghost following and leaving impressions behind, the name given is ‘Ghost image’.
Ghosting makes your gaming experience bitter and ruins the overall fun, excitement, and adventure in the game. Ghosting is not just about games, it could be anywhere on the screen say while you’re watching movies or doing something important on your laptop.
What Causes Ghosting?
The major reason behind ghosting is to Refresh Rate and Response Time. Improving these 2 things on your laptop or PC, you may enjoy watching a clear screen, free from any ghosting. Let’s talk about them one by one.
- Screen refresh rate: This parameter quantifies the frequency at which the screen refreshes itself within a single second and is measured in Hertz (Hz). A higher refresh rate signifies a more desirable display quality.
- Response time: As its name implies, response time refers to the duration it takes for a display to react to changes in frames and colors. It is measured in milliseconds (ms). A lower response time indicates a more rapid transition of pixels and colors between frames.
By Refresh rate, we mean how frequent your computer or laptop’s screen refresh its display. Each time when the screen refreshes itself, a new image appears which takeover the previous screen. The unit of measuring the refresh rate is Hertz (Hz). The lowest refresh rate is 60Hz, which is an average rate used by most of the devices. However, there could be 75Hz to 144Hz refresh rate.
By Response time we mean, the time is taken by your system CPU To display and update the new image over the old one. Response time also includes the speed of changing the colors and reset the pixels of an image.
So, we can say, high response time is a problem because the higher the response time, the more time it will take to replace the old image with the latest one. 3 milliseconds of response time is ideal. Similarly, slow refresh time causes screen ghosting.
How To Fix Ghosting on A Monitor or Laptop Display
You need to fix screen ghosting as early as possible, especially if you are a die heart digital gamer. Ghosting turns to the game into a nightmare if your system is suffering from screen ghosting. You may even get frustrated. Here are 4 simple and working methods to deal with such annoying situations.
Check Your Monitor Cables
This is the first thing you should do. Sometimes loose cables give birth to such creepy things like screen ghosting. Replacing tangled up and tore cables, sometimes resolves the issue. You can also make sure the cables used by your device should be of good quality and are strongly shielded.
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Enhancing Monitor Performance
Utilizing the technique of enhancing monitor performance allows for the augmentation of refresh rates while reducing response time. It is imperative to exercise caution when modifying or adjusting the monitor settings.
It is advisable to seek guidance from a knowledgeable software professional prior to implementing any changes. Mishandling the overclocking process can potentially result in detrimental effects on your display.
Check Your Monitor or Laptop Display Software Settings
Software is highly responsible for the increased response time but there are settings that help in dealing with ghosting. To do this, you need to dig a little deeper into display settings. If your device has NVIDIA G-Sync settings, disable and re-enable again. This is a good workaround to get rid of screen ghosting.
Keep Your Drivers Up-to-date
Not much explanation is needed here. All you have to do is download and install the latest drivers on your device and keep updating the existing drivers as well. You can use programs like driver booster to keep your driver updated for free.
Verify The Settings Of Your Monitor Or Laptop Display Software
The software configuration plays a significant role in determining response time, and there are specific settings that can assist in mitigating ghosting. To begin, navigate to your display settings and explore the options available. If your device incorporates NVIDIA G-Sync settings, try disabling and then re-enabling them. This serves as a helpful workaround to alleviate the issue of screen ghosting.
Testing For Ghosting In Monitor
To assess ghosting, refresh rate, pixel rate, and other specifications of your display, numerous tools and websites are accessible online. Testufo is widely regarded as one of the top options among these resources. It provides a comprehensive platform for conducting tests and evaluations related to ghosting and various other display parameters, making it a preferred choice for many users.
Vertical Alignment Panels (VA)
Vertical Alignment Panels (VA) are frequently linked to issues of ghosting. Although these monitors boast superior color reproduction compared to In-plane Switching (IPS) and Twisted Nematic (TN) displays, they typically exhibit a lower refresh rate and higher response time, which is the primary cause of ghosting. Therefore, it is advisable to refrain from opting for VA panels when considering the purchase of a new monitor.
Overdrive Function
Unleash the power of your monitor’s performance by activating the overdrive function through the settings. Enhance your viewing experience by accessing this feature conveniently from the on-screen display menu. By adjusting the overrides, you can effectively reduce or eliminate the issue of ghosting.
For users with NVIDIA GPUs or AMD GPUs, you can take advantage of the overdrive function offered by NVIDIA G-Sync and AMD FreeSync, respectively. These technologies provide additional control and optimization, ensuring a smoother and more immersive gaming experience.
Get A New Monitor
When everything fails, this might be the last option left. When you have tried all the above 3 methods but nothing works, you should get a new monitor. It is needless to say that, you should replace the old monitor with the one having a high refresh rate and low response time.
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What To Look Out For in Getting A New Display For Gaming
When one of your intentions for getting a new display is competitive gaming, you must consider and test the refresh rate and response time as they are the factors responsible for screen ghosting. In a nutshell, we can say that for the excellent gaming experience, your monitor should possess fast response time, low input lag, and high refresh rate. These will not only wash away all screen ghosting issues but also resolve all the problems of screen tearing and stuttering. Plus it also avoids VA panels.
Conclusion
Screen ghosting is absolutely a devil for playing games but you can’t let takeover it. Hopefully, the above information and solutions given will help and take your PC gaming at the next level.
