3D Gaming whats needed - GPU, LCD, GLASSES?

WiseBat

WiseBat

WiseBat

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As i am looking at upgrading my PC, I was also think about possible 3D gaming.

If I was to opt for this obviously I would need 3D monitor but what GPU would I need?

Currently running a ATI 5850 can this do 3D / do ATI have 3D cards over Nividia? (Prefer ATI)

What glasses would you need? Do they have to be same manufact as the LCD or any brand?

Cheers
 
Currently only NVIDIA cards support 3D. You will also need a 120HZ monitor and an NVIDIA 3D vision kit.

The 3d kit includes active 3D glasses and an infra-red sensor. When 3D vision is enabled the graphics card displays 2 images alternately (very fast, that's why you need a 120hz monitor - 2 x 60hz images), a bit like looking at your thumb and closing alternate eyes. The glasses then black out the eye not needed for each image, again very quickly and your brain combines the two images into 3D! The infra-red sensor synchronises the glasses with the monitor.

You will need a good NVIDIA GPU or use an SLI setup.
 
the thing to bear in mind is 3d vision needs to render everything twice so the faster card the better.
its also nice to when you see 120fps in normal 2d games at full settings.
 
Try it out before you buy too, or buy second hand so you can sell on without too much of a loss. It might not be for you, while I love 3d in the cinema, I couldnt get on with it gaming at all and found it all very stressful on my eyes.
 
+1 for try before you buy

To run games in 3D it is possible to use your existing 5850, however this isn't the best solution as Nvidia do 3D gaming much better at the moment due to their integrated approach. If you were to use your existing card then you would need to buy a monitor or TV that does HDMI 1.4 and supports 3D content (should come some matching glasses), then buy some middleware like tridef or IZ3D.

The "problems" with this setup are the following:
- HDMI 1.4 3D monitors/TVs are expensive and you can't use cheap DVI-D 120Hz monitors like this (which do work with the nvidia tech).
- HDMI 1.4 only supports 3D at 720p@60Hz or 1080p@24Hz (due to bandwidth resrictions) so you are advised to run 3D gaming at 720p@60Hz. In contrast, Nvidia 3D using a dual-link DVI connection can do full 3D 1080p@60Hz.
- The AMD 3D drivers are written by a separate company - unlike Nvidia where the 3D drivers are done in-house.

Here is some more info on this setup.

As for Nvidia - it has all the benefits mentioned above and we can actually easily spec you a parts list. You basically need a powerful GPU (as 3D effectively halves your framerate by rendering each frame seperatiely for each eye) so a nice graphics card like a GTX 480 or GTX 570 (at least) would be a good choice. You then need a 120Hz monitor - and of these would be great, personally I would have my eye on this LG. Finally you will need the Nvidia 3D vision kit (you can also buy extra glasses separately, but they aren't cheap).

So that is what you need, but I will stress again that you would do well to test out 3D gaming for an extended gaming session before you put your money down.
 
You can get some red and green glasses, and run nviida 3D vision discover to see if you like it or not. I noticed a lot of ghosting, and serious drops in fps. Yes, its a lot more immersive (just cause 2 was fantastic) but until they start bringing out 3D tech that doesnt make you feel sick as a dog, I'm staying well away.
 
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