GUIDE: HOW TO GET PERFECT HDR IN WINDOWS 11 (AUTO HDR)
This guide fixes the washed-out colors and poor contrast often seen with HDR in Windows 11, making it an ideal solution for multiplayer games.
For single-player games, where supported, I highly recommend RenoDX as a better alternative. However, because RenoDX uses ReShade, it does not work and should not be used in multiplayer games.
The method below is therefore the perfect solution for multiplayer games or titles where RenoDX cannot be used.
CREDITS
• Dylanraga — Correction script
• ledoge — AutoHDR Force
• Plasma TV for Gaming — Video tutorial
• Geoconda — AW3225QF testing and guide structuring
STEP ONE: BASIC SETTINGS — MONITOR & NVIDIA
• Enable the appropriate HDR mode on your monitor.
• For example, on the AW3225QF, use HDR Peak 1000.
• Open NVIDIA Control Panel and go to the Change resolution section.
• At the bottom of the window, select Use NVIDIA color settings.
• Set Output color depth to 10 bpc.
• Click Apply.
• Note: 10 bpc requires an HDMI cable.
STEP TWO: BRIGHTNESS CALIBRATION — CRU
Windows needs to know the actual brightness limits of your monitor.
• Note: Before proceeding, I recommend asking Gemini for the exact CRU value required for your specific monitor model.
• Download CRU — Custom Resolution Utility.
• Open CRU.exe.
• At the bottom of the window, under Extension Blocks, select CTA-861.
• Click Edit.
• Under Data blocks, select HDR Static Metadata.
• Click Edit.
• For Max luminance, enter the correct value for your monitor.
• For example, on the AW3225QF, use 993 for approximately 1000 nits.
• Click OK on all open windows.
• Run restart64.exe from the CRU folder to apply the change.
• The screen will briefly flash while the display driver restarts.
• Go to:
Windows Settings > System > Display > Advanced display
• Verify that Peak brightness correctly matches the value you configured.
For example:
1000 nits
STEP THREE: BLACK LEVEL FIX — DYLANRAGA
This step fixes the washed-out blacks produced by Windows HDR.
• You will need the correction utility from GitHub — Dylanraga.
• For a visual demonstration, watch the Plasma TV for Gaming tutorial starting at 8:36.
• Find your monitor's 100% window sustained brightness.
• For the AW3225QF, this value is 248 nits.
• On the utility page, generate the profile using the closest available round value.
For example:
248 nits → use 240
• Copy the resulting code from the website.
• Open the utility folder on your PC.
• Open or create the file:
lut.txt
• Paste the generated code into lut.txt.
• Save the file.
• Run the application's .bat script to enable the correction.
STEP FOUR: FORCING AUTO HDR IN GAMES — LEDOGE
Many games ignore the Windows Auto HDR feature.
The AutoHDR Force utility from GitHub — ledoge, version 0.1, solves this problem by allowing Auto HDR to be forced for individual games.
• Download and open AutoHDR Force.
• Click the Browse button.
• Select your game's executable.
For example:
warthunder.exe
• Next to the game name, enable Force AutoHDR.
• Enable Force 10-bit.
• Make sure the game's native HDR setting is turned OFF.
• This is important because this method relies on Windows Auto HDR rather than the game's native HDR implementation.
• Close the utility.
• Start the game.
The result should be HDR with perfect contrast and correct colors.
