BenQ’s ZOWIE RL2460 esports monitor: Shoryuken unboxing & review

Is the ZOWIE RL2460 a must-have for serious fighters?

If you’ve attended a Capcom Pro Tour event over the last year or so, or watched the live stream, you have almost certainly seen this a few times:

ZOWIE have been involved in our upper level events for a while now, singing the praises of lagless displays and their importance to esports performance. For many, this is preaching to the choir: of course we want as little lag as possible in our gaming displays!

The RL series from ZOWIE–part of the BenQ product family–are used for other professional gaming events as well, but the RL2460 is notably the official monitor of the 2017 Capcom Pro Tour. Event attendees have already had some direct experience with this product, for sure; unless you’re a tournament organizer, you might not have had a chance to spend too much hands-on time with one, though. ZOWIE provided us with a couple so we could try them out and get a good taste of what it’s like to play and practice on an RL2460, including its double-display “head-to-head” option.

Our own review will focus on the basic experience of setting up and playing fighting games on the RL2460; others before us have already provided in-depth examination and testing of the RL series’ technical claims and abilities, and as they are better equipped to speak to these aspects, we’ll defer to their expertise in that area. For the more technically-minded, check out D1DLC’s RL2460 review, and compare what Tom’s Hardware, PCMag, and Display Lag had to say about the preceding RL2460HT model. Display Lag in particular speaks highly of the prior version’s low input latency and motion-blur reducing abilities. A rundown of the specifications (as provided by BenQ) is included here for those so inclined; for the rest, go on ahead to the unboxing further below!

What’s in the box?

The RL2460 is generously packed for a 24-inch monitor, I was surprised how big the boxes were! But much of that space is to provide adequate protection for the stand components as well as the screen. have a look:

Click to view slideshow.

You’ll be getting the monitor and base, power cable, and an HDMI cable, in addition to a thin quick start guide and a CD-ROM with the RL series full manual PDF and the monitor’s PC drivers. The monitor can be used on consoles like the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Wii U right out of the box.

Form and function

The RL2460 sports a basic, matte-surfaced, functional-not-fancy look; this is intentional, based on the idea of providing less distraction so you can fully direct your focus to the on-screen action. The base is easily attached, no tools necessary. It has a built-in swivel panel that allows a full 90° of motion.

The upper joint on the stand allows for a healthy range of adjustment to the viewing angle, and the monitor itself can travel most of the stand’s vertical range to adjust the height of the screen relative to the base. The stand is very firm and stable. The screen can be rotated 90° to a vertical orientation, if you want to bust out some old vertically-scrolling arcade shoot ’em ups. The stand is marked with a height/angle indication scale, allowing you to note and easily replicate desired positioning. This version does not include wall-mounting hardware.

This monitor has built-in speakers–but they aren’t great. They put out some decent volume, but don’t expect much for clarity. They work well enough to play on without a headset for a little while, but you wouldn’t want to rely on them. The monitor includes a 30mm audio jack as a welcome alternative, so you can directly plug in your own headset/headphones or speakers. In addition to two HDMI inputs, the monitor includes other input options for PC users. Note the HDMI output jack–more on that soon.

On the lower right side of the display you’ll find the control panel; in addition to the LED-lit power button it uses five other control buttons to access the set up menu functions. This appears to be a standard BenQ design choice. From here you can switch video inputs, control the speaker volume, and adjust the picture quality to your liking through a wide range of display tweaks–including options to adjust the black equalizer and low blue light (to help ease eyestrain for long periods of use). You can program the upper three buttons as shortcuts for your most-used functions, to avoid digging through the extensive menu every time.

Gaming on the RL2460 (alone)

Right out of the box, I found the RL2460 comfortable to play on, even before picture fine-tuning. 1080p HD video off my PlayStation 4 was clean and clear, with no noticeable motion blur or flicker distracting from gameplay. You might still have to play with your settings to get the best possible brightness and color settings for your favorite fighting game. I didn’t find the display tiring to the eyes, even for multiple-hour play sessions. To get a decent cross-sampling of display quality, I tried a number of different PS4 fighters: Street Fighter V, The King of Fighters XIV, Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-, even Nidhogg, for a giggle. I also tried out Final Fantasy XV and Rez Infinite, too; the monitor has pre-set video settings for different game genres, to deliberately fit an ideal “look”–and they work fairly well.

In terms of input delay: I used to play primarily on a Toshiba HDTV, and I definitely perceived a difference in input timing switching over to the ZOWIE. It took me a little while to find the right timing for some links and cancels again, and while that speaks as much to the limitations of a general-market HDTV not meant for competitive gaming, it does reinforce the importance of cutting the lag on your gaming display down as much as possible. Even on Street Fighter V, it feels better.

This is a monitor built for competitive utility, though, not graphical showcasing. Games definitely look more impressive on my HDTV. As crisp and clean as the RL2460 is, the general depth and richness of the video isn’t the best. But considering the intended use of the product–and the relatively low retail cost–that seems like a worthwhile trade-off. As LCD displays go, the RL2460 also seems to suffer greater variation in brightness based on viewing angle than most I’ve seen lately, including a lower-cost basic BenQ PC monitor I use regularly. It’s not a significant effect, and at no point is it great enough to make the screen unviewable, but it is noticeable. I never found it an impediment to gameplay though, especially not while using the monitor alone, as you’re going to be viewing it at the ideal angle anyway.

[Street Fighter V, Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-, & Nidhogg on “Fighting” display setting; Final Fantasy XV, ABZÛ, & Limbo on “Standard” display setting]

Gaming on the RL2460 (with a friend/rival)

Now for that HDMI output! It has two functions. You can use it to feed video to your capture card on a PC (to remove potential lag from the gameplay side of the streaming process), and you can plug it into another RL2460 to allow lagless two-screen battling: the much-lauded head-to-head feature.

This is a strong positive to the monitor’s design, presuming you’re willing to drop the extra cost on an additional monitor. While playing side-by-side is fine, it’s a blast to fight it out in the head-to-head configuration. It was easy to set up–just plug and play, no configuration necessary–and it really captures the feel of serious competition to battle on your own monitor. It reminds me of Japanese arcade cabinet configurations, even though I’m personally used to the side-by-side layout common in the West, and some players will still likely prefer that. Still, if you’ve got the space and the cash, this is lots of fun.

So–do you need this monitor?

Maybe? In my experience trying it out after not playing regularly on a dedicated competitive display, I won’t go back. You might not need this monitor, but if you want to play fighters at more than a casual level, you should at least get something like it. There is another significant consideration for the serious competitor–as the monitor of choice for many major events, and as the aforementioned official monitor of the Capcom Pro Tour, you will be playing on this display at some point if you travel to compete. It makes sense to practice on the same monitor, or a comparable product.

For the price–generally $215-$225 USD, depending on the retailer, I would definitely recommend this monitor for a dedicated home gaming station, or for tournament organizers looking for new displays for events. You’ll probably have to save the head-to-head for finals, though. If you had a look at the other reviews linked above, the consensus seems to be that the RL2460 performs quite nicely for the cost, and in my view, I agree. ZOWIE themselves preach a design philosophy to offer a monitor that best meets the needs of competitive fighting games: a lagless display pre-set with ideal visual settings for fighters, minimal visual distractions, and built-in head-to-head support for what they (and many) consider the ideal setup for serious matches. With the RL2460, they are certainly delivering well on their promises.

Pros:

• Virtually lagless performance
• Easy setup, adjustment, and video setting customization
• Built-in speakers
• Affordable cost
• Training parity (it’s already the monitor of choice for many major gaming events)

Cons:

• Noticeable screen dimming based on viewing angle
• Built-in speakers’ audio quality is poor
• No included wall-mounting options

Additional sources: BenQ USA; ZOWIE by BenQ USA; D1DLC; PCMag; Tom’s Hardware; Display Lag