techoptimized
patreon
The new NVIDIA RTX HDR and NVIDIA App: a literal Game Changer for HDR on PC
🕑 Added 2024-02-24 10:30:30 +0000 UTC
After over 15 years since the launch of current NVIDIA Control Panel, which was enriched with options but has not changed at all from an UI/UX perspective (still resulting in a very slow, clunky and outdated experience), NVIDIA finally decided to completely overhaul its "Front-End" application to control all graphics settings and features within a single NVIDIA App, which is also merging GeForce Experience functionalities with no more need to log-in.
While the new app is a very welcome refresh for managing the same Global and per-game settings (which are still tied to the same options/values at a driver level and currently not all of them are changeable from the new app) in a much faster and in a much more pleasant way, along with providing a streamlined way to manage drivers updates, overlays, filters and find other NVIDIA apps...the real news is the addition of the new RTX HDR for Games as a new Global Setting which is de-facto a MUCH better replacement of the current Windows 11 AutoHDR feature.
NVIDIA already provided an RTX HDR Upscale + Upconversion for all SDR video reproduced in web browsers, streaming apps and even specific offline clients like VLC, but now the feature expanded also for all SDR games with the following benefits over AutoHDR:
No more black level raise
Much less color banding (as RTX HDR includes a de-banding filter)
Higher Peak Luminance
Better contrast
Much wider compatibility: it will basically work on ALL DX9 to DX12 SDR games + possibility to also convert OpenGL/Vulkan games when using the DXGI model for them (in NVCP). With some mods, even very old DX7-DX8 games can be processed!
It will only apply to SDR games (ignoring native HDR10 ones) but you can also try/prefer it over (bad) native HDR10 titles by just disabling their HDR in-game and re-start them in SDR
(AutoHDR on the left; RTX HDR on the right)
Too good to be true?
Are there any drawbacks in this?
Only two: Performance and Colors Oversaturation (re-ntroduced after drivers 560.xx)
RTX HDR currently hits average FPS by around -8% by just enabling it as is, but you know me: I've already found a way to optimize it globally with one click... :)
To also fix the oversaturation issue, continue reading.
First, in order to enable RTX HDR for Games you need:
An NVIDIA RTX GPU (2000 series or newer)
Windows 11 22H2 or newer
NVIDIA Drivers 551.61 or newer
A single HDR display (for multiple HDR displays you need driver 565.90+ and latest NVIDIA App)
AutoHDR must be DISABLED in Windows 11 (you can also turn off Notifications for it)
HDR must be ENABLED system-wide in Windows 11
DSR/DLDSR and Image Scaling must be disabled in NVCP
The game must launch in SDR mode
Then you could install the new NVIDIA App and enable it globally from there...but actually you don't need to do it as there is a better method without the need to install the new app at all.
Even better you can set RTX HDR globally as shown below:
(for LG G3 & G4 OLED only use -> these)
Click for Full Screen
You can in fact just use latest NVIDIA Profile Inspector with the settings above (which will also fix the color oversaturation issue and Gamma 2.2 tracking) , click "Apply changes" and reboot. Activating the feature flag "No Debanding (0x06)" the cost for it will lower from around -8% to around -3% your average FPS with no visible differences compared to default and, trust me, it is definitely worth it.
If some of your native HDR10 games will have washed out colors after the change, set "RTX HDR - Enable" flag to Off only for them (through NVIDIA Profile Inspector or disable RTX HDR only for them in NVIDIA App).
The other good news is in fact that the new NVIDIA App is just a new "Front-End" for all these settings and won't disrupt/change anything set through classic Control Panel or NVIDIA Profile Inspector.
My final advice is in fact to setup everything as suggested in my full, always updated PC Gaming Optimization Guide and then use the "Export" function of NVIDIA Profile Inspector to save your "Base" (Global) profile which will include all Control Panel Global settings + additional tweaks (as RTX HDR settings, DLSS Preset E, ReBar enabled globally etc.) in a safe place and then "Import" it and apply it again after each drivers upgrade:
Quick and painless.
Let me know if that worked for you and what do you think about RTX HDR over Windows 11 AutoHDR.
Enjoy :)
-P
Comments
P40L0
Yes as NVIDIA App applies RTX HDR at "filters/overlay" level while NVPI at "drivers level" (which is more performant and compatible in my opinion)
Didakhos
Hi Paolo. Is it normal that after changing the settings on Profile Inspector the NVIDIA App still shows different values for nits/grey middle point/contrast/saturation?
P40L0
UPDATE 2025/03/21: - Updated RTX HDR settings' for the new NVIDIA Profile Inspector v2.4.0.19
P40L0
UPDATE 2025/02/13: - NVIDIA Profile Inspector was updated to v2.4.0.11 and now includes all RTX HDR options, so there is no need to use the custom XML anymore - Images and article updated to reflect that
P40L0
Because that hex value correspond to 800 (nits). You can calculate others here: https://www.rapidtables.com/convert/number/decimal-to-hex.html?x=800
Евгений Макаренко
Hello, just want to know theoretically why instead of 3E8 I set 320 according to your recommendation, which corresponds to 800 nits for lg cx. Why in the value only numbers and how to calculate this value for other devices, for example for my monitor?
P40L0
It works for me, that's just a message from NVIDIA App Beta (which you can completely uninstall and RTX HDR will still work perfectly on a driver level + you can configure it using NVIDIA Profile Inspector)
Blanche
It seems the Prefer layered on DXGI swapchain is not working on OpenGL and Vulkan games, It says on the Nvidia overlay when I enable RTX HDR that OpenGL is not supported even though I enable DXGI on NVCP.
P40L0
You can find them here: https://www.resetera.com/threads/lg-2017-2024-oleds-optimized-settings-for-xbox-one-series-x-s-ps4-ps5-switch-pc-and-webos-movies-sdr-hdr-dv.73304/post-119780799
William Z
I have a G4 and was going through your post about the RTX HDR configuration. I got a bit confused when you mentioned that the values need to be changed again and that you updated them. Could you point me to where the update is? Sorry for the confusion! Thanks,
P40L0
Keep 320, but then use the new updated values I posted already: 2C, 7D, 4B
Евгений Макаренко
Hello, I have a lg cx, the values 320,32,64,64 and low quality 0x06 are no longer correct, do I need to change?
P40L0
UPDATE 2024/09/05: - After drivers 560.xx, NVIDIA RTX values need to be changed again to correctly track Gamma 2.2 and fix colors' oversaturation. I've just updated them both for the universal suggestion and specifically for G3/G4
P40L0
You don't need to use any "HDR Dynamic Vibrance". Just set the overall general settings for RTX HDR through NVIDIA App or directly in NVIDIA Profile Inspector (which I recommend) as shown in this post. For CX just set Peak Brightness to 800 nits or set the last 3 hexadecimal value in Inspector's Peak HDR Brightness line to 320 instead of 3E8
Edvin
What about settings for my LG OLED CX using RTX HDR with HDR Dynamic Vibrance?
P40L0
You need to enable it globally via Inspector as shown. Personally I don't even have/use NVIDIA App at all. I do all via the regular NVIDIA Control Panel + Inspector and everything is working perfectly this way ;)
Евгений Макаренко
I was just clarifying, because when you globally enable rtx hdr in all games in nvidia app it says rtx hdr enabled, but in one game hellblade first part it is disabled even if enabled for all, that's what confused me..... I just know that hellblade has native hdr.
P40L0
No, you can leave RTX HDR enabled globally as it will just apply for SDR games to be live converted to HDR, while native HDR10 won't be touched (but if you have problems with those, like for example everything is grey/washed out when you launch some of them, you can turn RTX HDR: Off just for them specifically also with Inspector)
Евгений Макаренко
And in general, am I correct that in the nvidia app rtx hdr global need to turn off, and include it forcibly separately for games without hdr, to distinguish such games I understood can be any lack of hdr settings in the game menu, there can also be set to 800,50,0,0.?
P40L0
You can use NVIDIA Profile Inspector to set it globally as written in my guide but for 800 nits set the last 3 hexadecimal value to 320 instead of 3E8.
Евгений Макаренко
And how to edit the global parameter to 800,50,0,0 exactly in the nvidia app, I can not find, or you need to manually prescribe for each game there too. And is it possible to somehow understand whether normal hdr is working in the game, or rtx hdr?
Евгений Макаренко
Thanks so much for the help, apologize for the time taken, moving back to hgig for pc, good luck.
P40L0
Actually there are more games suitable for HGIG now than not, so yeah: HGIG on PC gaming is a better decision ;)
Евгений Макаренко
I realized that most games are not suitable for hgig, based on your settings from that list, so I decided to use dtm, but I understand the correct will not come out all the same because of the fact that in windows 2800nits, and in games 4000nits, based on your words, I realized that the best option to adjust hgig, although there will be a loss in some bright areas as you wrote....
P40L0
No, when using HGIG you need to set both Windows and games to the actual TV Peak luminance, so if for LG OLEDs it means 800 nits or 1.000 nits (for G2/C4) or 1.500 nits (for G3/G4). HGIG will look best when you're actually able to do so, but some games won't let you change it (and won't apply system settings) so DTM would look better in those cases, but usually HGIG is fine too even if not exactly correct. You can find a list of over 200 personally calibrated HDR games with recommended settings for each of them here: https://www.patreon.com/techoptimized/about
Евгений Макаренко
Strange, but when I set the calibration to max 2800, windows shows 10000nits. So what to use hgig? Even for those games where in hdr settings you recommend dtm, I specifically switched to dtm because of this, are there more such games? And I wanted to clarify more, if still use dtm, in my case, in games where you write to set to 4000 should I also in the game set 4000, or 2800 as in the calibration of windows to match?
P40L0
When using DTM, yeah, 4.000 nits will look best but on PC, as you've seen, the system HDR Calibration app won't go that far so HGIG may be a better option there instead. Once you applied the Windows HDR Calibration, you should see the Peak you choose in the display info (in Windows advanced Display section)
Евгений Макаренко
I decided to try dtm instead of hgig for gaming and pc in general, since in the settings table you have dtm set and bolded. Could you please tell me what settings to set for dtm in rtx hdr, now 1000, 50, 0, 0? And clarification, when calibrating windows hdr, the first black window set to 0, and the next two set to 2800nits, this is the maximum available, 4000 is not available, did I do it right? And also after applying the profile in windows in the display info writes peak brightness 10000 nits, is it correct?
Евгений Макаренко
Thank you so much.
P40L0
You can change it to 800, 50, 0, 0 for CX within NVIDIA App globally to be even more accurate. The 1.000 nits was an "universal" recommendation as still looks good on CX (and will match G2/C4 too), but with 800 you will be a bit more accurate in your case.
Евгений Макаренко
Hello, installed exactly the Nvidia app for rtx hdr, disabled hdr auto in Windows, enabled rtx hdr in nvidia. My TV I have lg cx 55, tone processing HGIG, in the application nvidia rtx hdr such settings 1000, 50, 0, 0, are they correct for my TV, because when calibrating windows hdr brightness 800? If the settings are not correct, how can I change them in the nvidia app itself? I will be grateful for help
P40L0
Is it in the middle? Because in the first NVIDIA App Beta the middle value was 0 but the corresponding Hexadecimal value for it was 064 = 100 Decimal.
Laurens
Thanks did all that and worked like a charm, I just noticed something in the color control app when I look for RTX hdr it says saturation is at 100 but shouldn’t it be 50 with these settings ?
P40L0
Try doing the Windows 11 HDR Calibration and see at what point you're clipping the second and third brightness screens: if it's around 1.000 nits, yeah, you can apply the recommended settings for most, otherwise write down the nits and convert them in hexadecimal values to put in NVIDIA Profile Inspector's RTX Peak HDR Brightness field here: https://www.rapidtables.com/convert/number/decimal-to-hex.html The rest of RTX HDR settings will be fine.
Laurens
Hi paolo does my monitor need to support HDR 1000nits to use RTX HDR because I have an BenQ peak brightness is 400 does it still work then and do the recommended values from you work for me too. Thank you in advance 👍🏻
P40L0
Absolutely yes: forget ReShade and all HDR mods, disable AutoHDR, enable RTX HDR instead and set it as recommended for your display. That's it for all SDR-to-HDR titles, while native HDR10 ones won't be altered.
Edvin
Hello I am your new supporter because I have been working with PC HDR since windows 10 got it first time. Now I tune HDR on all my PC games using reshade+lilium shaders and sometimes use AutoHDR addon flr reshade by MajorPainThe Cactus for those SDR titles or titles with bad HDR where Windows AutoHDR does not work or is bad. Now, do you recommend to switch to RTX HDR instead using my method dealing with reshade for every game ad spending time analysing and tuning? I have an RTX4090.
James Jackson
Thank you. I’m glad to see you’re still doing this kind of stuff. I’m the guy who gave you Reddit platinum a few years ago. I’ve always come back every few months and checked in on the Resetera thread. If you ever become a wired audiophile let me know and I’ll point you in the right direction 😉
P40L0
If you reopen Inspector and still see the same settings, it's working ;) Also if you set Preset E and replaced DLSS Upscale .dll to 3.7+ , open the game and you don't see any error message, it's also working ;)
James Jackson
Hi, ive done the Nvidia profile inspector + XML tweak but how do I know that its working? Thanks!
P40L0
The main settings you see in the article already take account of the gamma fix and already aim 1.000 nits, so you can use that ;)
Electric
Hey, it seems like there has been a driver update that changed the gamma. What would be the best setting for my HDR1000 monitor? After calibration from the windows app, it shows 1010 nits. So if you can tell me the best RTX hdr settings to use that would be great thanks!
ttheo1983
i am sorry i supposed to say 0%, i see, thanks for your answer, i will try that value too and see how it looks
P40L0
Default is 0% which will noticeably oversaturate colors (blue and red especially) and don't affect Peak Luminance. Saturation at -50% as my new suggestion in the post (both through app and/or NVIDIA Profile Inspector hex code) will fix it, making it go back to as "neutral" as native/calibrated HDR.
ttheo1983
quite interesting, i will try it, it will be ok if i set the saturation at default 50? i guess it doesnt affect the peak brightness or something
P40L0
On paper: yes, but I found that maxing it out to 1.000 looks best both on 800 nits and 1.500 nits display, other than 1.000 ones. ;)
ttheo1983
i would like to ask peak brightness slider should be at 1000 or it depends on the peak brightness of the HDR monitor? for example 800 nits for an lg c2 with HGIG enabled
