Ergotron HX with HD Pivot review: A solid heavy-duty monitor arm for large ultrawide monitors

Monitor arms are handy for lifting your monitor off your desk, making it easier to move and giving you more desk space. Unfortunately, as monitors get larger, standard monitor arms just don’t cut it. Fortunately, companies like Ergotron make monitor arms for larger ultrawide monitors like the Samsung Odyssey G9.

Estimated reading time: 8 minutes

Our Ergotron HX Desk Monitor Arm with HD Pivot review looks at a solid, heavy-duty desk monitor arm for larger 49″ ultrawide monitors. Read on to see how it holds up (pun intended!).

Specifications

The Ergotron HX Desk Monitor Arm with HD Pivot we reviewed has the following features and specifications:

• Arm folds back over the base into a compact retracted position; perfect for tucking under systems furniture storage shelves or cabinets in space constrained areas
• Portrait/landscape rotation with lockout
• Streamlined cable management routes cables under arm and within extension
• Desk clamp attaches to surface edge .4″ to 2.4″ (1.0 to 6.6 cm) thick
• Grommet mount attaches through surface holes
• Suitable for monitors weighing 28–42 lbs (12.7–19.1 kg) with a depth of 6″–12″ (15–30 cm) without stand. For monitors with a depth less than 6″ (15 cm), consider using the standard HX desk arm
• Monitor can be turned 360° at connection point of arm and extension; turning is restricted to 180° at connection point of extension and base
• Tilt Range: 15° backward, 5° forward
• Mounting Standards: VESA MIS-D, 75/100 (hole pattern = 100 x 100 mm & 75 x 75 mm)
• Product Weight: 15.5 lbs (7 kg)
• Colour: White (45-647-216) or Matte Black (45-647-224)
• Shipping Dimensions: 12.1″ x 19.3″ x 7″ (30.8 x 48.6 x 17.8 cm)
• Shipping Weight: 17.3 lbs (7.8 kg)
• Warranty: Ten years

What’s in the box

• Arm
• Extension
• HD pivot
• Desk clamp
• Grommet mount
• Mounting hardware

Design

The Ergotron HX Desk Monitor Arm with HD Pivot comes in four pieces. At the bottom is a desk clamp or grommet mount. The desk clamp is about 5 1/2″ thick at the front, tapering out to 6″ at the back. As for depth, the base is 4 3/4″ deep on each edge, angling slightly to 5″ deep in the middle. An extension is attached to this, then the arm, and finally the HD pivot, which attaches to your monitor. Once assembled and installed, the monitor arm rotates at the top and bottom of the extension. The HD Pivot head swivels (optionally), rotates and tilts up and down.

Each component is crafted from sturdy metal and is finished in white. A matte black version is available as well. On the underside of the extension piece is a removable grey plastic piece that can be used for cable management. This cable management continues up to the main arm. Instead of a plastic cover on the arm, the cables are attached via velcro strips.

Overall, it’s solid (weighing 7kg (15.5 lbs), and it needs to be to support a monitor like the Samsung Odyssey G9. With its 49″ screen size, the Odyssey G9 weighs a whopping 16.69kg (36.8lbs). The good news is, this monitor arm does a fantastic job of holding the Odyssey G9 up. Not only that, but it’s easy to move around, but we’ll touch on that more in a minute.

Installation/Assembly

The Ergotron HX Desk Monitor Arm with HD Pivot is pretty straightforward to assemble. First, though, make sure that you have a VESA mount adapter for your monitor. The Samsung Odyssey G9 does come with one, but not all monitors do and depending on the design, you may need one. Second, you’ll definitely want a second pair of hands when attaching the monitor to the arm.

If you have a grommet hole in your desk, you can use the optional grommet base. I did not have a grommet hole on my Vari ProDesk 60 Electric Standing Desk, so I opted for the desk clamp. The desk clamp attaches to surfaces between 0.4″ and 2.4″ (1.0 to 6.6 cm) thick, so I had no issues there. The bottom of the desk clamp does have a pad on it to protect the surface of your desk. However, the top of the discs on the bottom do not, so you may run into some indentation on the underside of your desk, depending on how tight you clamp it.

The other issue I ran into was the cable tray on my desk, It’s not a fault of Ergotron, but I did have to offset the desk clamp towards the left of the back of the desk to suit my setup. I only mention it as this will change the way you swivel and move the arm, but it still works just fine for my purposes.

Once the desk clamp (or grommet clamp) is fastened to your desk, slide the knob on the end of the extension arm into the top of the clamp and tighten with the included Allen key. Next, do the same with the main arm.

After you’ve completed those steps, attach the HD Pivot to the back of your monitor. If you don’t need the monitor to rotate, you can screw an included M4 screw into a dedicated slot on the HD Pivot to lock your monitor from rotating. Next, using four more M4 screws or four M4 screwdriver-less bolts, attach the HD Pivot to the back of the monitor. The HD Pivot has holes for 75mm x 75mm and 100mm x 100mm VESA setups.

With that second set of hands I mentioned, attach the monitor to the arm by sliding the HD Pivot down from above. Finally, secure the HD Pivot to the arm by screwing two screws up from the bottom.

All said and done, it took about 1/2 an hour to assemble the HX Desk Monitor Arm and attach the Samsung Odyssey G9 to it.

Installation Photo Gallery

Ease of Use

Once your monitor is securely attached, you can easily adjust the tilt and lift. If the monitor stays in place when you let go of it, you’re set. If not, you’ll need to tighten the lift if it sinks or tighten the tilt if it angles forward on its own accord. Likewise, if it is stiff when you try to tilt, pan, or lift it, you’ll need to loosen the corresponding adjustment screw.

After the monitor is stable, you can easily move it around or tilt it by gently grabbing the monitor’s corners. If you want, you can also lift or pan your monitor by grabbing the monitor arm directly. There is an optional handle that you can purchase to make it easier to move around if you wish. I could see how it would help, but I didn’t really have any issues moving the monitor around without it.

At any rate, the G9 was fairly easy to move around when I needed to.

Performance

As far as performance is concerned, the Ergotron HX Desk Monitor Arm with HD Pivot worked exactly as expected and advertised. It holds a heavy ultra-widescreen monitor with no issues and is also easy to tilt, pivot, and pan to your desired position. Whether more centred and bent back on itself or fully extended when mounted on the edge of a desk, this monitor arm is solid with no compromise in stability. Some nights when gaming I even pull it out more so I can lean back in my desk chair and game in a more relaxed position.

The monitor arm also frees up valuable desk space, allowing me to move my soundbar further back. The included cable management is a nice feature as well, keeping things nice and tidy. It almost looks like the monitor is floating now with my setup, adding a nice bonus aesthetic to my system.

Price/Value

With an MSRP of US$339, the Ergotron HX Desk Monitor Arm with HD Pivot isn’t exactly cheap. But it is solid, works well, and is a small price to pay if you’re paying over $1000 for your monitor.

Photo Gallery

Wrap-up

If you have a large, heavy, ultra-widescreen monitor and are looking for a monitor arm, the Ergotron HX Desk Monitor Arm with HD Pivot is an excellent solution. Sturdy and easy to use, it not only frees up desk space but gives you more control over your monitor position and orientation than your monitor stand will.

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Last Updated on January 8, 2022.