GH4 Monitoring in 4K... Need advice.

Jaime Valles

Jaime Valles

Veteran
Hello, all. I'm considering getting either a 4K computer monitor or 4K UHD TV to be able to view my GH4 content at actual size while editing. My current editing setup:

MacBook Pro Retina 15"
Apple Thunderbolt Display
Adobe Premiere Pro CC 2014

I want to view the 4K footage on the 4K monitor/TV while editing. Do I need something like this to view it correctly?
http://www.aja.com/en/products/io-4k
Or maybe something from Blackmagic Design?
https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/ultrastudiothunderbolt

I'm not interested in importing footage or convert footage from one type to another. I also don't need SDI. I want to plug in a DisplayPort or HDMI monitor/TV to my computer in order to view the footage I've already shot in 4K internally on the GH4 on a 4K monitor while editing.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! :bath:
 
I'm unsure of the requirements in the MAC realm, but I'm getting UHD 4K 60hz strait from my Nvidia Titan Display right out of my PC.

Everything I'd read steered me away from using a "TV" as a monitor for a computer, or used for editing...though should work if it was exclusively your secondary PREVIEW MONITOR - your mileage, needs and budget may vary.

Also, depending on which 4K you prefer to shoot in and deliver in, that might be a factor: 4096x2160 cinema 4k, or 3480x2160 UHD 4k... IF you need perfect pixel alignement. On my UHD, the C4K (4096) scales down "good enough" for me, and there are thin black bars at top and bottom. I don't feel minor scaling one way or the other to be a deal breaker while working in 4k.

LG just released a real 4096 monitor for about $1200? - and I am sure there are others.
http://www.tomshardware.com/news/lg-31mu97-ips-4k-monitor,27988.html
I got the $600 samsung and am happy with it for direct camera connected testing, playback, editing, and for use as a computer monitor.

Also, there is the 60hz issue: HDMI 1.4 only dishes 4k at 30hz, Display Port does 60hz (no audio? i'm unsure), but hdmi 2.0 will do 4k 60hz... but that doesn't seem to be out yet.
 
wwjd said:
I'm unsure of the requirements in the MAC realm, but I'm getting UHD 4K 60hz strait from my Nvidia Titan Display right out of my PC.

Everything I'd read steered me away from using a "TV" as a monitor for a computer, or used for editing...though should work if it was exclusively your secondary PREVIEW MONITOR - your mileage, needs and budget may vary.
Click to expand...

Yes, I'm thinking of using the 4K TV or 4K monitor as a secondary PREVIEW monitor when editing in Premiere Pro.

Also, depending on which 4K you prefer to shoot in and deliver in, that might be a factor: 4096x2160 cinema 4k, or 3480x2160 UHD 4k... IF you need perfect pixel alignement. On my UHD, the C4K (4096) scales down "good enough" for me, and there are thin black bars at top and bottom. I don't feel minor scaling one way or the other to be a deal breaker while working in 4k.

LG just released a real 4096 monitor for about $1200? - and I am sure there are others.
http://www.tomshardware.com/news/lg-31mu97-ips-4k-monitor,27988.html
I got the $600 samsung and am happy with it for direct camera connected testing, playback, editing, and for use as a computer monitor.
Click to expand...

Yep, I'd be looking at a real 4096 monitor like the one you posted.

Also, there is the 60hz issue: HDMI 1.4 only dishes 4k at 30hz, Display Port does 60hz (no audio? i'm unsure), but hdmi 2.0 will do 4k 60hz... but that doesn't seem to be out yet.
Click to expand...

Good question. Can I just plug in that LG monitor via DisplayPort to my MacBook Pro and use it as a secondary preview monitor in 4K WITHOUT having to buy a Blackmagic or AJA box?
 
Jaime Valles said:
Oh! So I can just purchase the LG 31MU97 monitor and plug it into my MacBook Pro via DisplayPort to use it as a secondary preview monitor in Premiere Pro?

If so, that's fantastic!

Then what's the point of the AJA Io 4K? Is it just for the inputs and cross conversion?
Click to expand...

''Monitoring'' is more a realtime procedure. You're referring to post playback editing. AJA Io is a playback and capture device. More importantly it's 10-bit. You'll eventually learn that the more accurate you want to get with coloring you'll need proper color corrections monitors. Personally at your stage you don't need a 4K monitor. It's better to invest in a Full HD accurate color monitor. Upscaling your footage or exporting your 4K sequence will be consistent nonetheless.
 
demoboy said:
''Monitoring'' is more a realtime procedure. You're referring to post playback editing. AJA Io is a playback and capture device. More importantly it's 10-bit. You'll eventually learn that the more accurate you want to get with coloring you'll need proper color corrections monitors. Personally at your stage you don't need a 4K monitor. It's better to invest in a Full HD accurate color monitor. Upscaling your footage or exporting your 4K sequence will be consistent nonetheless.
Click to expand...
You're not going to get much better monitoring at the price that the LG lists for. It's 10bit, 99% adobe and srgb, and 97% Dci gamut. But OSX only supports 8bit.

I bought this monitor and should have it this week, but will be out of town until thurs or friday.
 
demoboy said:
''Monitoring'' is more a realtime procedure. You're referring to post playback editing. AJA Io is a playback and capture device. More importantly it's 10-bit. You'll eventually learn that the more accurate you want to get with coloring you'll need proper color corrections monitors. Personally at your stage you don't need a 4K monitor. It's better to invest in a Full HD accurate color monitor. Upscaling your footage or exporting your 4K sequence will be consistent nonetheless.
Click to expand...
I see. So, in an ideal world, I'd have a professional 4K color correcting monitor hooked up to the AJA Io 4K to see the more accurate 10-bit image while editing.

Where do I find a 4K accurate color monitor?
 
dustylense said:
You're not going to get much better monitoring at the price that the LG lists for. It's 10bit, 99% adobe and srgb, and 97% Dci gamut. But OSX only supports 8bit.

I bought this monitor and should have it this week, but will be out of town until thurs or friday.
Click to expand...
Right. The LG 31MU97 does say it's 10-bit but OSX only outputs 8-bit. If I use the AJA Io 4K with the LG monitor would I be able to see the full 4K 10-bit picture?
 
The AJA lo 4K is basically the Kona 3G in a nice IO box. The Ultrastudio doesn't downconvert 4K for viewing on HD monitors. I sold mine because it didn't. I have a Kona 3G card in a Thunderbolt expansion chassis for monitoring from my Mac Book Pro retina. Works a treat!
 
Curious as to the reasons for not using a TV. Most are color-accurate to below perception levels these days aren't they? I'm using a 55" (1080), 4:4:4, deep color (30/36/48/64-bit), 60fps through hdmi. What's else would I be getting with a cc monitor?
 
back tracking on what I said earlier.... I think using a normal off the shelf TV is a good practice to playback and check your colors etc on. ... using as a secondary monitor only, and would be best to TRY to calibrate it a little bit. "Monitors" tend to be more accurate out of the box than most TVs from what I have read and seen.

HOWEVER, I could not use a "tv" screen as a computer monitor due to the lag (unless they figured that out recently?) and god knows what kind of werid processing could be turned on.
 
wwjd said:
back tracking on what I said earlier.... I think using a normal off the shelf TV is a good practice to playback and check your colors etc on. ... using as a secondary monitor only, and would be best to TRY to calibrate it a little bit. "Monitors" tend to be more accurate out of the box than most TVs from what I have read and seen.

HOWEVER, I could not use a "tv" screen as a computer monitor due to the lag (unless they figured that out recently?) and god knows what kind of werid processing could be turned on.
Click to expand...

My Monitor (a Samsung 42" LED, 2 years old) can do 4:4:4 HDMI input, has no input lag whatsoever... and any processing features can be turned off very easily... This budget TV even has a blue gun only calibration mode... something I've not personally seen outside of broadcast monitors.

I used to work at The Mill which is a major post-production house and the suites used to use Pioneer Kuro plasma's for client monitoring for a long time... one Colourist even chose it over a Sony Grade 1 monitor to grade from. He eventually chose the Dolby monitor... a $4,000 TV vs a $40,000 monitor...
 
Jaime Valles said:
Well, after reading the reviews on Amazon, I don't think I'm going to get a Cinema 4K (4096) monitor just yet. It looks like there are plenty of compatibility issues with OSX:
http://www.amazon.com/ss/customer-r...mary&showViewpoints=1&sortBy=byRankDescending
Click to expand...
There is nothing wrong with it other than the ability of OS X to display 4096. I have it hooked up right now displaying UHD at 60htz on the Mac Pro. I get two thin bars on the sides with my eyes have already adjusted too. A majority of my work are stills and this is the best monitor I've ever have done color work on. After my calibration I'm seeing 99% color accuracy in photoshop. With the dual color mode you can check what your shots will look like in other color spaces. Its pretty sweet.

Now on the video side, the monitor is quite impressive. It's really quite lovely to see my 4K footage in 4K (well UHD). But I shoot mostly UHD on the Pannys and BMC4K anyway. Color is fantastic and the detail is incredible.

Keep in mind though, you will need a beefy GPU to run this sucker. They recommend a Mac Pro or late 2013 MBP.

Lets just say I'm very happy with the purchase.
 
dustylense said:
There is nothing wrong with it other than the ability of OS X to display 4096. I have it hooked up right now displaying UHD at 60htz on the Mac Pro. I get two thin bars on the sides with my eyes have already adjusted too. A majority of my work are stills and this is the best monitor I've ever have done color work on. After my calibration I'm seeing 99% color accuracy in photoshop. With the dual color mode you can check what your shots will look like in other color spaces. Its pretty sweet.

Now on the video side, the monitor is quite impressive. It's really quite lovely to see my 4K footage in 4K (well UHD). But I shoot mostly UHD on the Pannys and BMC4K anyway. Color is fantastic and the detail is incredible.

Keep in mind though, you will need a beefy GPU to run this sucker. They recommend a Mac Pro or late 2013 MBP.

Lets just say I'm very happy with the purchase.
Click to expand...
Thank for the report. The reason I hesitate to get that monitor now is that if I'm going to be watching my content in UHD anyway, might as well get a UHD monitor that's far less expensive. Although, I may be trading in the color benefits as well. Hmm...
 
OK, after much research I've decided to hold off on getting a 4K monitor for now. Instead, I'm looking at these Ultra-Wide monitors from LG:

http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NTQHIUM/ref=pe_171560_127070710_em_1p_3_ti

And there's this one:

http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JR6GCZA/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

The only difference between the two seems to be that one is curved, and that makes it cost $500 more. Does anyone know if there's any other reason for the curved one to cost so much more?

Thanks!
 
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