Samsung Odyssey G8 G80SD 32 inch Intermittent Black Screen

[NealMcDeal]

Hi Everyone

update.

For months I have been chasing Samsung re: firmware updates, eventually I got hold of 2nd level support and a technician that actually knew something instead of giving me standard pre-canned responses.

I was using 1004 firmware and then upgraded to 1005, unfortunately there was not any improvement.

However, Samsung support gave me access to v1301...a big jump in version numbers and now this is on the support websites to download as a USB update. (I am not sure if it is available via auto updates as I had upgraded them all manually as at the time, the auto update process didn't have the new firmware).

I can say that this version 1301 has "improved" but unfortunately not eliminated the screen blanking issue. This is very disappointing, but that being said it is happening a lot less these days once I have upgraded to this firmware.

So if you are running on anything less than 1301 and have this issue, I suggest you upgrade to the new version. You won't regret it. I have contacted support again, to find out if they are still going to continue looking into this problem. [I have also indicated that I have another problem with the Settings - Number - Color button on the remote, and that my remote eventually stops responding to my monitor - oh well will have to wait for that to be fixed.]

Anyway back to the monitor problem. I only seem to have the problem with Display Port. (Don't matter what frequency as it still occurs - FYI I operate the monitor at 120Hz. But tried 60Hz and 240Hz and still same issues. However, if I use HDMI I don't have any issues at all. I am using a NVIDIA RTX 4080 Super; using G-Sync Compatible/Adaptive Sync.

I have this monitor (as well as a G6) connected to my main PC using Display Port and then a work PC connected via HDMI. I am mainly on HDMI during the day and have NEVER had the issue with HDMI on the G8. However, when using Display Port, the problem still exists. (BTW the G6 has never missed a beat - so if you only use one computer connected to the monitor I will suggest you change your cable to HDMI. But if you are like me that use two computers connected up, the one using Display Port will probably still have an issue.

Do other people still have this issue with the screen going randomly black for about 1-2 sec from time to time? What Frequency (Refresh Rate) are you using?

Thanks

Neal

[LG_Bullet]

Dear NealMcDeal,

I'm sorry to hear about your issue.

The truth is, on my end as well (with an RTX 5080 and a single monitor), the black screen problem has returned — but only once, around 3–4 minutes after the first startup. It’s just a brief flash, and after that, the issue doesn’t reappear.

This behavior is happening now with the Nvidia 576.88 driver, whether on the Windows desktop or even during gameplay.

Regardless of the fact that we’re using top-tier hardware, this is unacceptable — but for now, I can still live with it. Personally, I found the green/red/white flashes to be more annoying.

I will continue to report this to Nvidia, mainly through the driver feedback forum for the current version, and if necessary, via the links provided there:
🔗 https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce/forums/game-ready-drivers/13/568606/geforce-grd-57688-feedback-...

I (and many others) will continue to raise our voices in protest, and I believe it makes a difference — for example, with one of the previous drivers, I made a YouTube video for Nvidia showing the green/red/white flickering, and it was resolved in the next driver release.

So let’s keep fighting — let’s keep pushing the big companies, because we deserve better!
Have a great day!

[Mafuusu]

Hey everyone,

I've had my G80SD for 14 months now, picking it up shortly after launch, and I absolutely love this monitor. It's going to be a long time before I replace it. It boasts some of the best tech on the market, and every day I'm still amazed by its image quality. But, it hasn't been all sunshine and roses.

I always used it with a high-quality DisplayPort (DP) cable with my old 4070Ti STRIX. I frequently experienced those annoying black screen flickers that would last 1-2 seconds. This was particularly disruptive in games, and it slowly but surely started to stress me out. That's when I found this forum and have been following it ever since.

I waited a long time for NVIDIA or Samsung to address and resolve the issue, but we all know that's proving difficult. So, I followed the community's advice: I removed the DP cable, put in a high-quality HDMI cable, and BOOM – problem completely solved! I haven't had a single black screen since.

I'm not sure if you all know this, but GSYNC works perfectly fine with HDMI. The fact that it might appear as "not supported" in the control panel when using HDMI is due to HDMI licensing, but it functions just the same as with a DP cable. Trust me, it works! Give HDMI a try.

In my case, it was a lifesaver. I ditched DP for HDMI, and that was it. I only use one monitor, and today I'm running it with a 5090, and everything is perfect.

I strongly recommend that anyone who can switch from DP to HDMI do so. Even if they eventually come out with a fix for DP, I don't see any reason to go back.

Hope this helps someone out there!

[sirkam]

So good to see that there are some persons who resolved their issue by switchin from DP to HDMI, I don't have the same luck, even using HDMI I have sporadical black screens. I recently upgraded to 5080 graphic card and issue is the same...idk what to do, it's frustrating to be in the middle of a match and lose video

[NealMcDeal]

Hi Sirkam,

I am sorry to hear about your situation. Unfortunately, you are not able to do much. We are at the mercy of NVIDIA updating their drivers. It is very "hit and miss" some drivers are better other worse. Basically sometimes one step forward and two backward. I have posted previously about what you can do to the best of my knowledge.

The ONLY thing that we can all do is to download the latest drivers from Nvidia, try them out, and if you still get a black screen, flicker, corruption etc is to post comments in the driver feedback forums on Nvidia website (eg. this link is one example - https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce/forums/game-ready-drivers/13/568606/geforce-grd-57688-feedback-...  

Do this for each time for new drivers, then when you post, don't simply complain about black screens etc, instead provide as much detail as possible (in particular the Monitor Make/Manufacturer - eg. Samsung 32" Odyssey OLED G8 UHD Gaming Monitor (LS32DG802SEXXY) and your particular setup, eg. Manufacturer Nvidia Card Model and technical details; driver, OS and firmware versions of monitor etc. etc. 

The more we all mention Samsung, the more likely Nvidia will take notice. Of course, if you want to highlight all the awards this monitor has won, being #1 gaming monitor and the problem not occurring with AMD cards, and that it has been unresolved since their release a year and half ago they may take a bit of notice!!

The more we do as a community to post this info on Nvidia's support forums for their drivers the more likely it will become; if we don't then I don't see that this problem will ever be fixed (unless it was a side-effect of fixing another monitor with same issues or something else!)

I have posted a few times in the past about my setup and feel that it is related to this "Certain DisplayPort 1.4 monitors may display random black screen flicker when connected to DisplayPort 2.1 graphics card [5277453]" as per Nvidia's readme on a recent driver release (v576.80). 

I have a RTX 4080Super, and from what I can tell from people on here and online generally the RTX 5xxx series cards have more black screen issues. But who knows really???

That is my only suggestion....  maybe submit questions to Nvidia directly to their customer support - https://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/ask

[NealMcDeal]

Hi Everyone, 

Just a general update.

I have reached out to my Samsung contact - and unfortunately no good news, Nvidia is continually snubbing (aka 'ghosting') them and not replying to Samsung's R&D and Support teams. So honestly we are on our own 😞

I am not going to keep pestering my contact as he may eventually 'ghost' me...

However in my last contact to him, he confirmed that he has passed on my requests for minor feature updates to the firmware, unfortunately he cannot confirm if they will implement these suggestions and when, we can only hope on that as well....

The three features that I have requested to be in a future firmware update are as follows:

The ability to ----

1. toggle off or on the "Game Bar" and Reminder message after powering on the monitor.
2. turn off the RED LED where the IR Sensor is at the bottom (underneath) of the screen.
3. to nominate two or three favourite apps so that when you click on the 123 button (top left of the remote) you can quickly launch your favourite apps (eg. Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, etc)

Hopefully their R&D team can implement these features, the first two should be easy given that they are in the service menu. The third item may be pushing it.

I am guessing if they were to implement any of these then the likely earliest we will see them would be towards the end of the year as a guess.

[NealMcDeal]

Been using the new version of Nvidia drivers 580.88 and unfortunately saw the black screen within a few minutes. I will still see how it goes over the weekend.

I tried this driver as it said that - Odyssey G81SF https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce/news/mafia-the-old-country-geforce-game-ready-driver/ is now supported as certified G-sync compatible monitor and fixed a black screen flicker issue with G9... so I had fingers crossed.

I submitted a support ticket with Nvidia, and asked for an update. 

But I would encourage you all to try it out and post your comments feedback on their support forums for each driver version you use - this is the link to the most recent one 580.88 -  https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce/forums/game-ready-drivers/13/572368/geforce-grd-58088-feedback-... 

Apparently I was told that they don't go back to look at older versions on the forum, so best bet to get visibility is to try new driver, if issue persists then post on the respective driver forum and that way the devs may see it (especially if the Samsung posts get up-voted by the community)

[Yaari]

Todays NVIDIA drivers talk about flicker fixes for Samsung Neo G9. Wish they would just fix this one already. 

[NealMcDeal]

I just wanted to update everyone. I submitted a case to Nvidia a few weeks ago and have been going back and forth with their helpdesk concerning the issues experienced with the intermittent black screen. Last week after providing lots of info to them, they have formally escalated this issue to "attempt to recreate your issue or find a workaround solution if possible". They indicated that the process may take some time and they asked me to be patient. I then got a response from their next level of technical support and he said "The issues you are hitting on your monitor is similar to the ones we are investigating. We'll reach out again if we need  more information." So from this perspective, it is positive, that that Nvidia are aware of this type of issue being experienced. The main thing from my perspective is to make sure that they are across our monitor brand and model. If you are using the new drivers from Nvidia, go to the support forums for the given release and post details of your PC setup, video card and also importantly your monitor details. The more visible this is on both Samsung and Nvidia forums the more likely they will look to resolve.

Also I suggest if you can also submit a formal support ticket with Nvidia they will get back to you, and you will be asked to run some tools etc to get sys config details, logs etc.. and it may take about an a couple of hours of your time going back and forth, but if a few more people can do this the more they will be aware of the problem. If we don't do anything they won't know!

[Danny1979]

It's samsungs responsibilly to chase nvidia if they really care. But they aint doing that at all, but instead just push more products onto the market. Some products are good, but this one is a failure and i doubt it would ever be solved. The shop i bought both screens from had 17 returned of them that are being offered as second hand(refurbished). The store told they all got returned because of the issues described and had been sent back to Samsung. Who then claimed they screens are fixed... what ever that means. Anyways, i admire your patience. I did not had that patience after such a expensive purchase and seeing this still going on for over a year. Goodluck and i hope it gets solved for everyone at some point. if not, sell them or return them ASAP and get yourself some different screens that work as advertised. LG is good brand that sells its OLED panels to samsung anyways for them to make screens 😉

[Danny1979]

I ended up returning both screens to the store, which had a lot more returned of them mainly because of the DP issues and them not being resolved. What also played a part in my decission was the 2 popups i got everytime the screen was turned on, and there being no way to turn it off. This is far from usable and messes with my work flow because i either had to wait for them to go away OR grab the remote control. No idea who thought this was a brilliant idea that serves the end users, but he/she clearly doesnt use these overpriced gimmick screens themselves. i paid over a 1000 euro for a screen that acts like i'm stupid and cant remember how to use the remote controller and therefor has to remind me everytime how you can bring up the game bar when you turn the screen on... This is complete nuts and no more samsung for me. I swapped them for LG screens and even saved some money on the refund. No DP issues and no annoying popups anymore, but just properly working screens.

Also i'm skeptical this being a NVIDIA issue judging by quality of the firmware these devices run on and how little Samsung actually cares about these issues. Samsung could have easily hooked them up to a NVIDIA card and do some debugging themselve, but instead they blame NVIDIA.

Anyways, These screens dont work as advertised since day 1, and it's still not solved. But Samsung never bothered to recall them back untill the issues are fixed. not even a public statemment regarding the issues. To me that says a lot.