The ProArt series in the ASUS product line consists of devices intended for professionals, mainly content creators. It includes, for example, the ASUS ProArt Studiobook Pro 16 OLED laptop, which we met last August. Today we are reviewing another product in this series – namely a 32-inch 4K ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV monitor.

 

ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV specifications

Diagonal
32″
Curvature no
Aspect ratio 16:9
Screen type IPS
Resolution 3840×2160 dots
Update frequency 60 Hz
Color coverage 100% Rec. 709
Colors 1.07 bln
Brightness 400 cd/m²
Contrast 1000:1
HDR support HDR10
Wall mount VESA 100×100
Adjustments tilt forward-backward, turn left-right, change height, portrait mode
Connectors DisplayPort 1.2, 2x HDMI 2.0, USB-C (DP Alt Mode), 4x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, headphones jack
Additional functionality additional clamp for attaching to the table, speakers (2×2 W), charging devices via USB-C (90 W)
Dimensions (together with a stand), WхHхD 727x(471~601)x245 mm
Weight 12.6 kg
Estimated price in Ukraine from 34 thousand hryvnias

 

Design

The design of the ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV is restrained: you immediately understand that you have a working tool in front of you, and not some gaming device. The case is made of practical matte plastic, only the ProArt logo on the back panel is glossy.

ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV monitor review

The screen has the already familiar “frameless” design, when in the off state it is surrounded only by an inconspicuous body line on the sides and top and a thin panel with a “polished metal” texture on the bottom. After switching on, an additional frame around the image becomes visible, which is hidden under the protective “glass” – together with the plastic of the case, the screen is surrounded by a 9 mm wide frame on the sides and top.

The stand is fully functional, allows you to turn the screen left-right (+30°~-30°), tilt forward-backward (+23°~-5°), adjust the height (0-130 mm) and switch the monitor to portrait mode. In the lower part of the leg there is a cutout for organizing the connected cables.

In addition, the ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV includes an additional bracket in the form of a clamp – with its help, you can fix the monitor on the desk and thus free up space around the monitor. If desired, the display can also be mounted on the wall using a VESA mount (100×100).

All video connectors are located in a small niche next to the stand mount: one DisplayPort 1.2, two HDMI 2.0 and one USB-C (DP Alt Mode). There is also a USB hub for 2 USB 3.2 Gen1 ports and a minijack for wired headphones. Two more USB 3.2 Gen1 are conveniently located on the side panel to the left of the screen.

 

Menu

ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV is controlled using a joystick and five physical buttons on the right side of the bottom panel. Pressing any button brings up the “quick menu”, which contains several “hot” functions and launches the main menu.

ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV monitor review

In it, the first item is Preset — a selection of video mode templates for various tasks and emulation of color spaces, followed by the Blue Light menu with four degrees of reduction of the proportion of blue in the backlight. The Palette section brings together traditional image settings: brightness, contrast, color saturation, color temperature, gamma, black level, etc.

Sharpness, panel overdrive, image proportions and input range deserve a separate item – they are located in the Image item. The Sound menu allows you to adjust the volume of the built-in speakers and select its source, in PIP/PBP you can enable the “frame-in-frame” mode and adjust its parameters, in QuickFit Plus, the user can optionally display different types of rulers on the screen to simplify work with graphics, and in Signal – manually select the video signal source.

The Settings section contains all other system settings that did not find a place in the previous points – Adaptive Sync activation, OSD options, operation indicator behavior, monitor information, factory reset, etc.

 

Functionality

The ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV uses a 10-bit 32-inch IPS panel with a 16:9 screen ratio, a resolution of 3840×2160 pixels, and a refresh rate of 60 Hz. The pixel density is ~138 PPI, the point size is 0.1845 mm; this is a very good indicator in terms of image density and smoothness of fonts: you can make out individual points on the image only if you look closely at the screen.

The brightness in this monitor is regulated by changing the current strength, PWM is not used over the entire brightness range, so there is no screen flickering.

Although with a maximum frequency of 60 Hz, this monitor is not very suitable for the role of a gaming monitor, but it still supports adaptive frequency technology.

The USB-C connector can be used not only for video signal transmission – it also supports charging of connected devices (90 W), so it is very convenient to use it in a pair with a laptop. And the presence of a USB hub allows you to connect any peripheral to the monitor’s four USB ports and use it with a laptop without occupying its ports.

 

ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV image quality

The screen coating is “semi-matte”, which has almost imperceptible parasitic reflections on a dark background, if you look at it from a typical position of a PC user. When tilted to the side, the screen gradually becomes more “glossy”, but it does not interfere with work behind it.

The declared reaction time is typical for an IPS panel in a non-gaming monitor: 5 ms (GtG). It is achieved by using matrix overdrive — the corresponding settings are located in the Image section, the Trace Free item. The degree of overclocking is adjustable from 0 (overclocking is off) to 100 (maximum) in steps of 20. Note that the difference between them is completely insignificant, and even at maximum overdrive, overclocking artifacts in the form of plumes behind objects that move quickly on the screen are almost imperceptible .

Trace Free “0 / 60 / 100”:

The uniformity of black is very good, barely noticeable light spots can be seen in the lower left and upper right corners – and then only if the maximum brightness is set and the surface of the screen, on which the black color is displayed, is viewed in complete darkness; in the normal mode of using the monitor, it is impossible to notice them.

ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV monitor review

The glow effect is typical for IPS technology: if you look at the screen from the side and from above, a moderate gray glow with a barely perceptible warm shade appears against a black background.

Viewing angles are traditionally wide for IPS: when viewed from the side, the screen loses some brightness, and the image “warms up” a bit, which is noticeable first of all on a white background, but the colors remain almost as saturated, and in general, the image quality almost does not deteriorate.

In the monitor settings, the Standard image mode is set by default – let’s start with it. Color coverage fully covers the sRGB space and is 85% of DCI-P3. The brightness is adjustable in the range of 32-340 cd/m² — at the lowest value, you can comfortably work with this monitor even in the dark, the highest is quite enough even for a very brightly lit office space. The maximum static contrast in this mode is slightly lower than the official specifications, 870:1.

The ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV has gamma control — the user can choose one of five values, from 1.8 to 2.6 in 0.2 steps. In all cases, the real gamma value perfectly corresponds to the declared value. There are four options for color temperature, the actual value of this parameter in all of them is slightly overestimated: for example, the temperature set by default “6500K” is actually 7400K, the warmest “5000K” is 5500K.

In the monitor settings, there is a Blue Light function – reducing the amount of blue in the backlight. It has 4 degrees of intensity and allows you to further reduce the color temperature: for example, if the 7400K that the user receives by default seems too cold to him, it can be changed in the range of 7400-5600K.

The uniformity of the color temperature is quite good, considering the size of the panel: the maximum deviation in different areas of the screen ΔE is 4.7. The uniformity of the white field is mediocre: the right part of the screen is 17% dimmer than the center, where the brightness is maximum.

The accuracy of color reproduction is very high: ASUS ProArt Display PA329CV passes the factory calibration of the main video modes, and in Standard, the maximum value of ΔE does not exceed 0.7 (the only color that does not match the overall picture is explained by the nuances of the test colorimeter), the average value is only 0.5. As a reminder, it is considered that the average user is unable to notice the difference between the reference color and the one displayed by the monitor, if ΔE does not exceed two.

The sRGB mode limits the color coverage to 97% of this space (73% Adobe RGB, 73% DCI-P3), the accuracy of color reproduction is also very good, but slightly worse than in Standard – the average value of ΔE is slightly less than one. In this mode, almost all image settings are blocked, including brightness – it is set at 84 cd/m², which is a comfortable value for working in semi-darkness, but in bright light the screen will appear too dim.

In DCI-P3 mode, the color coverage is the same as in Standard: more than 100% sRGB, 81% Adobe RGB, 85% DCI-P3. Manual settings are not blocked here, so the brightness can be adjusted in the range of 38-397 cd/m², the maximum static contrast is 940:1 – almost the “passport” characteristics of both parameters, and noticeably higher than the Standard mode. The accuracy of color reproduction in this mode is noticeably worse, although it is still within the normal range: the average value of ΔE is 1.97.