Similar article Do You need an UltraWide? 21:9 vs 16:9
Specs
- Screen size: 37.5 inch
- Pixel Type: IPS
- Subpixel Layout: RGB
- Pixel Density: 111 PPI
- Color Depth: 10 Bit
- Max Refresh Rate: 160 Hz
- Variable Refresh Rate VRR: Yes
- Aspect ratio: 21:9
- Resolution: 3840 x 1600
- Brightness: 450cd/m² sustained, 750cd/m² peak
- High dynamic range: HDR 600
- Local dimming: technically YES, but poorly implemented
- Curve Radius: 2300R
- Response time: 1ms
- Viewing angle: 178/178
- Contrast ratio: 1000:1
- Screen Finish: Matte
- Color support: DCI-P3 98%
- Height Adjustment: 4.3″ (11.0 cm)
- Tilt Range: -15° to 5°
- Rotate Portrait/Landscape: No
- Swivel: No
- Wall Mount: VESA 100×100
- Weight: 20.5 lbs (9.3 kg)
38GN95B-B vs 38GN950-B
LG 38GN95B-B and LG 38GN950-B are two nearly identical subtypes of the same product. 95B-B is intended for business B2B orders and 950-B for retail, however both of them can be found in retail.
The business version has an energy saving mode while the consumer does not. Business ver. warranty is 3 years, consumer – 1 year. The price may also vary, in 2021 the business costed $1550, and the consumer $1800, and in 2025 the price went down to ~$1200.
Box contents & assembly
38GN95B-B package included:
- DP cable
- HDMI cable
- USB-A to USB-B cable
- Power adapter
The stand is hefty and reliable, easy latch installation with no screwdriver needed. The monitor itself is bulky and lacks handles, extra caution is needed not to drop it accidentally.
Ports:
- 1x DisplayPort 1.4
- 2x HDMI 2.0
- 2x USB 3.0 out type A
- 1x USB 3.0 in type B
- 1x 3.5 audio jack
Switching on and first impressions. Pixel density. Wow factor
LG 38GN95B-B is impressive. The 38 inch workspace is vast and can feel overwhelming for those who have never used ultrawides before. The first impression is extremely positive.
The pixel density is not as crisp as on 27″ 4K monitors, but the pixels are not noticeable from a 1-meter distance. Looking closely it is possible to spot them, but it requires extra effort, so overall, the screen feels very natural to look at. 100-125% Windows scaling works well, unlike on 27″ 4K monitors where you need to use 150-175% to make them actually usable.
LG 38GN95B-B advantages and downsides
Resolution
This is a UWQHD+ monitor @ 3840 x 1600, also referred to as a 4K Ultrawide. Its resolution is higher than the common 3440 x 1440, but lower than the standard 16:9 4K @ 3840 x 2160.
Basically it is a 4K with with one-quarter of the vertical pixels removed. Having fewer total pixels than a standard 4K makes it less demanding on your system. The downside is that the pixels are larger, making the overall image less sharp.
No cooling fan
Many high refresh gaming monitors include cooling fans, often due to the heat generated by the NVIDIA G-Sync module. However, this FreeSync monitor has no fans, which is a significant advantage. Moving parts always require maintenance, can fail, and often produce noise.
Color accuracy
Out of the box color accuracy is very good covering 99% of the sRGB spectrum. With minor tweaking and the help of our CALIBRITE ColorChecker , we achieved 100% coverage. Overall, this monitor can be used out of the box for color-critical tasks without needing calibration. It has an ‘sRGB’ mode that locks colors to the sRGB color space, and a ‘Gamer 1’ mode that unlocks the full potential of the Adobe RGB color gamut.
160Hz refresh rate
While 160Hz is quite good for modern games, it may be considered too low for competitive titles.
Due to the DisplayPort bandwidth limitation, when using HDR, the 160Hz refresh rate causes color dithering and limits the display to 8-bit color depth. Lowering the rate to 120Hz allows for full 10-bit color.
The dithering isn’t really noticeable to the naked eye.
Uniformity
The screen’s white and black uniformity is impressive, especially considering its size. Most IPS panels are not typically this uniform.
No eye fatigue
IPS has lower contrast than OLED. The picture is not as vivid and bright. However, it has a benefit—less contrast means less strain on the eyes, making it possible to work long hours without substantial fatigue.
The LG UltraGear 38GN95-B backlight is flicker-free at all brightness levels with no PWM, which reduces the eye strain.
Burnout
IPS unlike OLED has no burnout, so no need to worry this monitor panel will degrade over time from static images.
Brightness
The max SDR brightness hovers around 500 nits full screen, while small objects in HDR peak at about 750 nits. Overall, the brightness is good and aligns with the HDR 600 specification as advertised.
The lowest brightness at the 0 setting is 80 nits, which is not low, it might be too bright for those who prefer dim, ultra-dark displays, especially for nighttime use. 80 nits and huge display size combined provide a relatively bright light source. Starting work on dark winter mornings might feel a bit overwhelming for some users.
Height, tilt, swivel
Due to its large size and weight, this monitor has no swivel. On the other hand the tilt (-15° to 5°) and height adjustment (11cm) mechanisms are implemented well and give a lot of room for maneuvers.
RGB
RGB backlight is quite powerful and can lit the whole room, but whether it is actually useful is subjective. Dynamic lighting themes may be distracting and tiring for some users. Multiple lighting presets are available and can be controlled through the monitor’s menu or via the app.
HDR performance / local dimming
Currently, there are no 4K ultrawide 3840 x 1600 monitors capable of exceeding HDR 600; only 3440 x 1440 OLED models can surpass this level.
The HDR experience is subpar compared to HDR 1000 / 1400 rated displays with advanced local dimming technologies.
The color representation in HDR content is very accurate, but the atrocious local dimming implementation, with only 12 zones and inborn IPS low contrast and milky blacks, make HDR content look barely different from SDR.
Local dimming is implemented particularly bad and may be considered as non-existing – 12 independent zones for such a wide area is just not enough. We don’t really understand why LG included these dimming zones in the first place, as it’s hard to imagine anyone finding them useful in real-world scenarios. Seems more like a marketing feature. When a small object appears on the screen, an entire large section lights up which is very distracting.
Blacks
Milky blacks are typical of IPS panels, and as mentioned earlier, the poorly implemented local dimming offers no improvement. However, the black screen uniformity is very good.
Response time
The Fast, Normal and Off settings provide flawless results, but Faster introduces substantial artifacts.
Apart from artifacts on the highest setting, overall the response time is exceptional and good for competitive gaming. Though the 160Hz refresh rate and the huge screen may not be optimal for many competitive titles.
Menu
DAS stands for Dynamic Action Sync. Automatically switches at 60 Hz or above, eliminates image buffering between the GPU and Display. LG low latency technology that ensures the signal is processed before the image which helps in fast-paced competitive games. Can’t be turned off.
Game Mode menu
Gamer 1, Gamer 2 are user configurable presets that allow the use of HDR and Adobe RGB color space.
FPS, RTS, Vivid, Reader, HDR Effect are system preconfigured presets that are not color accurate and limit customization, but provide alternative quick looks.
sRGB locks the screen to the sRGB color space – very color accurate out of the box.
Game adjust menu
Overclock allows for the 160Hz refresh rate to be set in Windows at the cost of color subsampling when using HDR due to the HDMI 2.0 bandwidth limitation. Possible configs:
- 160Hz + HDR + 8 bit with dithering
- 120Hz + HDR + 10 bit
- 160Hz + 10 bit
Adaptive-Sync on or off, technology that allows a display to adjust its refresh rate to match the frame rate of the content rendered by the GPU.
Black Stabilizer 50 default, lightens or darkens black areas, can be used in gaming by making it easier to spot objects in dark scenes that would otherwise be hard to see. Distorts the overall color accuracy.
Response Time Off, Normal, Fast, Faster. Fast being the optimal solution providing the best balance between display speed and minimal trailing. Faster introduces artifacts.
Cross Hair attaches a cross overlay in the middle of the screen, can be used in gaming.
Game Reset resets the menu to default.
Picture Adjust menu
Brightness 0-100.
Contrast 0-100.
Sharpness 0-100 with 50 default.
Gamma 4 modes, with fourth being the default and preferred according to the LG manual.
Color Temp Custom, Warm , Medium, Cool, Manual. All being color presets that aren’t color accurate, except for Custom that enables RGB sliders and calibration.
RGB sliders used for color calibration, useful with the CALIBRITE ColorChecker.
Six Color sliders used for extended color calibration.
Black Level High or Low. Switch between the full 0-255 and limited 16-235 RGB black level range. Is enabled only for HDMI, with ‘High’ being the preferred setting. DisplayPort is locked to High and can’t be changed.
DFC – Digital Fine Contrast is an auto brightness function that triggers based on content. It is supposed to improve contrast and energy saving. In reality this feature provides questionable benefits and may be distracting especially during color critical work.
Picture Reset resets the menu to default.
Input menu
Input HDMI 1, HDMI 2, DisplayPort.
Ratio ‘Full Wide’ stretches the image to the screen size regardless of the original aspect ratio. ‘Original’ fits to the screen and does not stretch, preserving the original aspect ratio. ‘Just Scan’ preserves the aspect ratio as well as the original pixel size of the image.
Auto Input Switch allows the source to switch automatically whenever a new device is connected.
General menu
Waves MaxxAudio provides sound processing presets in case you use HDMI sound combined with headphones.
Language
Smart Energy Saving is a power consumption reduction algorithm based on increased contrast.
Lighting Option RGB backlight which may stay turned on even after the monitor is switched off.
Power LED small red LED light inside of the joystick under the screen. Even when on, the light is very dim and hardly noticeable, in fact we didn’t even know it existed before we read the manual.
Automatic Standby is a timer setting that activates the monitor’s sleep mode.
HDMI Compatibility some older graphics cards do not support HDMI 2.0.
DisplayPort Version 1.1 or 1.2 or 1.4.
Local Dimming technology that breaks the screen into zones with each zone lit independently to improve contrast. In this particular model, however, it is poorly implemented, as there are only 12 zones for such a large screen, which ideally requires at least 500 zones to function effectively.
Variable Backlight controls the reaction speed of dimming zones, used in HDR only.
Buzzer beep sound during the switch on.
OSD Lock locks all menu options except for Brightness, Contrast and Input.
Information current resolution, refresh rate, total time the panel was on (mileage).
Reset to initial settings resets the menu to default.
Is LG 38GN95B-B still relevant in 2025 ?
IPS is becoming less relevant nowadays as OLED market share rapidly increases.
3840 x 1600 resolution is quite rare, so for productivity tasks, the LG 38GN95B-B is still relevant. There are no OLED monitors with this resolution that have an HDR rating higher than 600, so technically, this monitor is the best in its class.
For gaming, this monitor is less relevant, as there are faster, brighter ultrawide OLED options like the LG 34GS95QE OLED or ASUS PG34WCDM OLED or Dell Alienware AW3423DW QD-OLED. The issue is that these options have a slightly lower resolution of 3440 x 1440. There are no ultrawide 3840 x 1600 OLED counterparts.
Recommended for
- Productivity (stock trading, text, office, coding, video/sound edit, mixed usage)
- Users who watch a lot of static pages and don’t require the high contrast of OLED, which can be eye straining
- Two-monitor setup replacement
- Immersive gaming: racing, simulation, RTS, RPG games
- 21:9 movies
- Color-critical work
Not recommended for
- Competitive / FPS gamers and users susceptible to motion sickness
- HDR content and deep blacks (local dimming implemented poorly)
- Users who like ultra-dim displays for nighttime use
- Online streamers
- Content creators or users focused on 16:9 Output
- People with limited space / who need swivel
- PS5, XBox (no HDMI 2.1 support)
Similar article Do You need an UltraWide? 21:9 vs 16:9
