Overdrive Test — Monitor Response Time & Ghosting
This overdrive test shows a high-contrast object moving across a solid background. Without overdrive, slow LCD transitions leave a visible trail or smear behind fast-moving edges. Too much overdrive causes pixels to overshoot their target colour, creating bright or dark coronas (inverse ghosting) ahead of moving objects. Use this test to find the overdrive level where smearing disappears but coronas haven't yet appeared — the sweet spot for your monitor and refresh rate.
Tip: Open your monitor's OSD before starting. Keep your cursor still during the sweep, disable any in-game sharpening, and test at your normal refresh rate. Strobing (ULMB/MBR) affects results — disable it first.
- Set monitor overdrive to Off in the OSD. Click Start Test and observe trailing.
- Raise speed gradually to make smearing obvious — this is your baseline.
- Switch to Normal/Medium overdrive; trailing should reduce significantly.
- Try Fast/Extreme; watch for bright halos ahead of the object (inverse ghosting).
- Settle on the highest level that shows no visible coronas.
What each overdrive level looks like
Overdrive Off
Pixels transition at their natural speed. You see a long, faded trail behind the moving square — classic smearing. Fine for office monitors; noticeable in fast motion content.
Overdrive Normal
Pixels receive a moderate over-voltage boost. Most trailing disappears. This is the best setting for most monitors — smearing goes away and coronas are minimal or absent.
Overdrive Fast
Maximum boost. Transitions are fast, but overshoot creates a bright leading edge (inverse ghosting corona). If you see a white halo ahead of the square, you've gone too far.
Overdrive vs. ghosting explained
LCD pixels cannot switch colour instantaneously — the liquid crystals need time to reorient. Ghosting is the visual trail this delay creates: the old pixel value lingers for part of the next frame, leaving a smear behind fast-moving edges. Overdrive addresses this by driving pixels with extra voltage, accelerating the transition. The risk is overshoot: the pixel blasts past its target and must correct back, creating the characteristic bright or dark corona. The balance between these two artefacts determines the ideal overdrive level for your panel.
Overdrive & Response Time — FAQ
What is overdrive on a monitor?
Overdrive applies a brief over-voltage to LCD pixels to make them transition faster. Lower settings leave trailing; higher settings overshoot and create bright or dark coronas ahead of moving objects.
What is inverse ghosting / overshoot corona?
When overdrive is set too high, pixels overshoot their target and then correct back. This shows as a bright or dark fringe leading fast-moving objects. Reduce overdrive by one step to eliminate it.
Can this test give me a response time in milliseconds?
No — browsers don't expose per-pixel timing. Use this for visual comparison of settings and displays rather than absolute measurements.
Does refresh rate affect which overdrive setting is best?
Yes. At 60Hz, moderate overdrive is usually enough. At 144Hz+ you may need faster overdrive — but monitor corona risk increases, so check carefully at speed.
What is the best overdrive setting?
The one where smearing disappears without visible coronas. Use this test: raise overdrive until trailing is gone, then back off if bright halos appear ahead of the moving square.