Display Stream Compression (DSC) is an industrial compression standard created by VESA that offers visually lossless performance on video connections.
What Does DSC Do?
It is a low-latency compression algorithm based on the VESA DSC standard YCoCg color space. Display Stream Compression allows you to use high-bandwidth display connections without the need for a new connection standard.
Why Is DSC Needed?
In high resolutions such as 4K, 8K and 10K, the required bandwidth can be greater than the capacity of the video connections. Although the production of graphics cards is high, the standards on the ports are updated periodically and it may take time for manufacturers to keep up with them.
For example, DisplayPort 1.4 can provide 32.4 Gbit in seconds and HDMI 2.1 can offer 48 GBit, for a 4K 240 Hz display connection, we need 54.84 Gbits per second. Under normal circumstances, the connection width is limited at low refresh rates as these ports cannot be covered, but DSC steps in at this point and can provide you with a high-bandwidth connection by making lossless compression.
With DisplayPort 2.0, it is foreseen that the connection of 120 Hz HDR displays at 4K resolution can be made without the need for compression, and when DSC is activated, it is expected to support up to 120 Hz displays with 10K resolution.
How to Use DSC
To use Display Stream Compression technology, you need a supported display and a DSC-supported video card with DisplayPort 1.4 or HDMI 2.1 video output.
For Display Stream Compression support, you need a graphics card with NVIDIA’s Turing (RTX 2000) and AMD’s RDNA (RX 5000) or newer architecture. After completing the hardware requirements, you need to turn on the DSC setting from the monitor settings.
What Are the Disadvantages of DSC?
Display Stream Compression has many advantages, but there are two points that can be considered disadvantages.
- You cannot use technologies such as DSR, DLDSR and VSR, which are virtual resolution generation technologies.
- When DSC is on, you cannot use all of the other monitor connections on the video card.
- Since the data line used by the video connections is common, the maximum number of monitors you can connect may vary depending on the number of displays using DSC.
