Pen lag/deadzone on Surface pro 2017 in Zbrush

Anonymous
2018-05-29T22:59:20+00:00

I bought the Surface Pro 2017 i7 8GB model a couple of days ago primarily for Zbrush (3D sculpting software) with the use of the surface Pen. 

Everything seems to work other that this problem: When i place the pen tip on the screen there seems to be a small zone of about 3mm around the tip where nothing gets registered. When i go out of this zone the stroke gets registered and everything seems fine and is responsive. This happens with every new stroke.

The issue is only with the pen, the trackpad works fine. I did not encounter this issue in other software than Zbrush so far; Photoshop is fine. 

I downloaded the Wintab drivers, turned off 'flicks' and 'press and hold'. Windows is updated (Windows 10, version 1803)

I really hope somebody can help me since I use Zbrush professionally and I bought the Surface Pro just for this software.

Other than this I really love the device and I would hate to return it just for this small software issue.

Kind Regards, Robin

Surface | Surface Pro | Display and screen

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  1. Anonymous
    2018-06-01T18:54:27+00:00

    Hi Robin, 

    If your Surface Pen is not working properly when you're using Zbrush, we suggest that you run the Surface Diagnostic Toolkit. The diagnosis and repair time averages 15 minutes or less but can take an hour or longer, as it performs series of tests to diagnose your Surface Pro. Click **here**on how to run the Surface Diagnostic Toolkit. 

    Let us know how it turns out.

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  2. Anonymous
    2018-06-13T21:36:36+00:00

    Sorry I missed your reply but thank you very much for helping me. 

    I ran the Surface Diagnostic kit and everything seems to work correctly. 

    I also made sure all or the surface and windows drivers are up to date.

    I am quite sure this is a software issue. I remember seeing (can´t find it anymore) somebody with the exact same issue but then in Photoshop.

    This was fixed after a Windows update. 

    Multiple friends are interested in Buying a Surface Pro for Zbrush but I just can`t recommend it with this issue which is a shame.

    I can make a recording of the issue if it is still unclear, just let me know.

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  3. Anonymous
    2018-06-14T00:39:32+00:00

    Hi Robin,

    Thank you for performing the initial suggestion and providing an update. Have you tried to test the Surface Pen inking in a different app? You can open Sketchpad to check if your Surface Pen will behave the same way. If the same problem occurs, let's run a pressure sensitivity test to further check for software issues. You can install and run the Surface app to do this. Once you have downloaded the app from Windows Store, open it and click on the pen icon. Follow the onscreen instructions to adjust the pen sensitivity.

    Keep us updated about the outcome.

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  4. Anonymous
    2018-06-14T10:07:56+00:00

    Thank you for the suggestion but as stated in my initial post only Zbrush has this Issue.

    I tried both SketchBook and Photoshop and both do not have this issue.

    I know Photoshop has this problem as well but this was fixed through a Windows update.

    I already have the surface app and the pressure curve seems to be fine, pressure sensitivity seems to have nothing to do with this problem (without the wintab drivers Zbrush has no pressure sensitivity at all and the problem is still there, also when navigating the menus the problem is there).

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  5. Anonymous
    2018-06-15T02:47:13+00:00

    We understand. I recommend you use the Feedback Hub app to report the problem as a possible bug. If this gets our software engineers' attention, they'll work on a resolution that should be available through the upcoming updates. To learn more about using the suggested app, you can go here.

    Regards.

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