Dummies guide to Hz and Freesync/Gsync?

craig_t

craig_t

craig_t

Associate
Joined
18 Mar 2015
Posts
1,101
I'm looking to buy a new monitor, to go with I think a 390X if I bite the bullet... So, in the event that I do I am struggling to get my head around it all! My budget is around £250, hence the variations below.

What I know is:
G-Sync=Nvidia
Freesync=AMD

I get 1440p is higher than 1080p but what is real world differences between:

1440p vs 1080p - Is it noticeable? Am I buying myself into an old life only getting 1080p?
60hz vs 144hz - What is actually different here, in simple terms what is the benefit?
1080p 144hz vs 1440p 60hz - What will I notice between the two?
Freesync/G-Sync - What will this do for my gameplay, is this for 'under performing FPS'?
On a game, what optimal FPS do I need and why?

Sorry if these are posted all over already but I am just struggling to get my head around it all in one. Hopefully though if all these answers come into one post it will help others too.
 
1) 1440p is a big upgrade from 1080p. I've been on a 2560x1600 (16:10) monitor since 8800GTX days, before switching to the RoG Swift (2560x1440, 16:9). 1080p seems horrible by comparison.
It used to be awkward because it meant I had to keep buying new GPUs (as I should imagine 4k will be now) but these days it's a mainstream resolution.
I have a friend who went from a 27" IPS 1080p monitor to a RoG Swift not long after they launched, and he is also sold. Considers it a night and day difference.

2) 144hz is just as amazing as 1440p. I would never go back to a 60hz monitor. Games that are limited to 60hz now make me sad.

3) Oooooh that's a tough one. I think I'd probably go for 1440p60 over 1080p144, but it's close.

4) Change your (gaming) life. Variable refresh is the future. Suddenly, FPS does not matter much, it's smooth anyway. If you plan to buy Freesync, be careful. It's an open standard, meaning some implementations are utterly crap and exist only to be a selling point. Things like 48-70hz FS ranges, which defeat the entire object of it. Or 144hz monitors that only go up to 90hz with Freesync on.

Freesync with the new crimson drivers does handle refresh rates below the minimum, but only if your freesync range is wide enough for frame doubling to be an option.

GSync has none of these issues as nVidia sign off on the monitors and won't allow crap ones into the market to devalue GSync.



GSync on a 144hz monitor means it's like having the perfect monitor for whatever level of FPS you are seeing right now. GPUs pushing 85FPS? Perfectly smooth, no tearing. 48? Still perfectly smooth. 140? Guess what, smooth!
 
^ +1

in the past I chose 1440@60hz over 1080@120hz, but with 1440@144 with gsync, I could never go back now, my next upgrade will be 4K@120hz+ when they eventually come out

personally, I can notice when fps goes under about 80fps, so I tune my settings to try to maintain 100+fps as much as possible

if you only have a budget of around £250, I would go for 1080p@144hz with gsync over 1440@60hz without
I personally wouldn't touch AMD after all the problems I had and with the huge variability on their freesync monitors
 
Last edited:
Freesync can be every bit as good as GSync, but is very much "buyer beware". There are lots of poor implementations about and you need to be very careful about what you buy.

It's much cheaper though.

GSync avoids all that hassle if you're willing to pay a bit more.
 
1440p vs 1080p - Is it noticeable? Am I buying myself into an old life only getting 1080p?
Click to expand...

There's something more fundamental to the above: a higher resolution (1440p vs 1080p) allows you to have a physically larger monitor yet maintain the same visual quality. Or you can have a same-sized monitor with higher visual quality.

Very roughly, 24" @ 1080p = 27" @1440p

If I run my 28" 4K monitor at 1080p at my standard viewing distance, I can clearly see the individual 2x2 pixel blocks.
 
craig_t said:
I'm looking to buy a new monitor, to go with I think a 390X if I bite the bullet... So, in the event that I do I am struggling to get my head around it all! My budget is around £250, hence the variations below.

What I know is:
G-Sync=Nvidia
Freesync=AMD

I get 1440p is higher than 1080p but what is real world differences between:

1440p vs 1080p - Is it noticeable? Am I buying myself into an old life only getting 1080p?
60hz vs 144hz - What is actually different here, in simple terms what is the benefit?
1080p 144hz vs 1440p 60hz - What will I notice between the two?
Freesync/G-Sync - What will this do for my gameplay, is this for 'under performing FPS'?
On a game, what optimal FPS do I need and why?

Sorry if these are posted all over already but I am just struggling to get my head around it all in one. Hopefully though if all these answers come into one post it will help others too.
Click to expand...


Your budget is £250? And you want to buy a 390x?

What's your current monitor? And what kind of games do you play?
 
rtho782 said:
1) 1440p is a big upgrade from 1080p. I've been on a 2560x1600 (16:10) monitor since 8800GTX days, before switching to the RoG Swift (2560x1440, 16:9). 1080p seems horrible by comparison.
It used to be awkward because it meant I had to keep buying new GPUs (as I should imagine 4k will be now) but these days it's a mainstream resolution.
Click to expand...

Is 1440p really mainstream? Steam survery has the 1440p usage at around 1% of total.

http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey?platform=pc
 
I just sent back a 75hz freesync 1440p monitor for numerous issues one of them being freesync, my 120hz 1080p monitor is night and day smoother, 70hz is just not enough and freesync I just didn't get the hype, I don't get tearing on my 120hz monitor just a smooth image

Starting to wonder if it's all marketing talk and trying to lock people into a particular brand of gpu
 
Last edited:
rtho782 said:
1) 1440p is a big upgrade from 1080p. I've been on a 2560x1600 (16:10) monitor since 8800GTX days, before switching to the RoG Swift (2560x1440, 16:9). 1080p seems horrible by comparison.
It used to be awkward because it meant I had to keep buying new GPUs (as I should imagine 4k will be now) but these days it's a mainstream resolution.
I have a friend who went from a 27" IPS 1080p monitor to a RoG Swift not long after they launched, and he is also sold. Considers it a night and day difference.

2) 144hz is just as amazing as 1440p. I would never go back to a 60hz monitor. Games that are limited to 60hz now make me sad.

3) Oooooh that's a tough one. I think I'd probably go for 1440p60 over 1080p144, but it's close.

4) Change your (gaming) life. Variable refresh is the future. Suddenly, FPS does not matter much, it's smooth anyway. If you plan to buy Freesync, be careful. It's an open standard, meaning some implementations are utterly crap and exist only to be a selling point. Things like 48-70hz FS ranges, which defeat the entire object of it. Or 144hz monitors that only go up to 90hz with Freesync on.

Freesync with the new crimson drivers does handle refresh rates below the minimum, but only if your freesync range is wide enough for frame doubling to be an option.

GSync has none of these issues as nVidia sign off on the monitors and won't allow crap ones into the market to devalue GSync.



GSync on a 144hz monitor means it's like having the perfect monitor for whatever level of FPS you are seeing right now. GPUs pushing 85FPS? Perfectly smooth, no tearing. 48? Still perfectly smooth. 140? Guess what, smooth!
Click to expand...

Thanks that has cleared things up a lot for me, so if I can foot the extra get a 1440p 144hz... BUT my worry is can the 390x handle 1440p on ultra ok OR will I see better from 1080p ultra?

rtho782 said:
Freesync can be every bit as good as GSync, but is very much "buyer beware". There are lots of poor implementations about and you need to be very careful about what you buy.

It's much cheaper though.

GSync avoids all that hassle if you're willing to pay a bit more.
Click to expand...

Isn't G-Sync only for nVidia cards? I've always been nVidia, but the 980ti is out of my budget at the minute and just couldn't stretch that far.


melmac said:
I know it's his budget for the monitor. I was just asking was he buying a 390x.
Click to expand...

melmac said:
Your budget is £250? And you want to buy a 390x?

What's your current monitor? And what kind of games do you play?
Click to expand...

elrasho said:
Can't find any monitors with that spec for £250
Click to expand...

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/aoc-...descreen-led-monitor-black-red-mo-033-ao.html

1080p 144hz freesync @ £239.99

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/iiya...g-widescreen-led-monitor-black-mo-124-iy.html

1440p 60hz freesync @ £245

I play things like COD, Dirt, FarCry4 and similar...

Currently I have a GTX 670 FTW playing VIA a DVI > VGA convertor to a none HD monitor.... Just to give an idea of my 'upgrade' :D
 
Last edited:
MooMoo444 said:
Is 1440p really mainstream? Steam survery has the 1440p usage at around 1% of total.

http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey?platform=pc
Click to expand...

True, but it's far more widely supported than it used to be. When I first started playing at 2560x1600, many people still used 1280x1024 monitors, and loads of games didn't like running at 1600p. Now, it's much better.

Plus, the Steam HW survey I take with a pinch of salt. Partly because it detects my resolution as all three of my monitors (and I'd wager a higher proportion of 1440p users are multi monitor than say, 1080p users), partly because it detects me as 60hz (main monitor is 144hz) and partly because 95% of the time I get asked to take it, I seem to be on my laptop anyway so most of the time Steam think I'm at 1600x900 with a GT650m.


craig_t said:
Thanks that has cleared things up a lot for me, so if I can foot the extra get a 1440p 144hz... BUT my worry is can the 390x handle 1440p on ultra ok OR will I see better from 1080p ultra?



Isn't G-Sync only for nVidia cards? I've always been nVidia, but the 980ti is out of my budget at the minute and just couldn't stretch that far.
Click to expand...

A 390X should be fine at 1440p. It's not much slower than one of my 980s, and just as fast as a stock 980, and I feel like the 2nd 980 is only useful for hitting over 60fps.

GSync is nVidia only, you're right to look at Freesync if you're going AMD. I was just giving an overview of both.

The 1080p monitor you list is a good choice with a 30-160hz Freesync range, and will be able to handle speeds below the 30hz minimum with AMD's new Crimson drivers.

The 1440p monitor is a 48-70hz Freesync range, showing the issues of freesync. This one will never be able to do much about that 48hz minimum. If you think of it as a normal monitor with a slight benefit from Freesync, great, but it's not a good implementation of variable refresh rates.

A friend of mine has just bought that 1440p monitor for his nVidia machine as it wasn't any more expensive than a non-variable display anyway, and really likes it. It's just the Freesync on it that sucks.
 
rtho782 said:
True, but it's far more widely supported than it used to be. When I first started playing at 2560x1600, many people still used 1280x1024 monitors, and loads of games didn't like running at 1600p. Now, it's much better.

Plus, the Steam HW survey I take with a pinch of salt. Partly because it detects my resolution as all three of my monitors (and I'd wager a higher proportion of 1440p users are multi monitor than say, 1080p users), partly because it detects me as 60hz (main monitor is 144hz) and partly because 95% of the time I get asked to take it, I seem to be on my laptop anyway so most of the time Steam think I'm at 1600x900 with a GT650m.




A 390X should be fine at 1440p. It's not much slower than one of my 980s, and just as fast as a stock 980, and I feel like the 2nd 980 is only useful for hitting over 60fps.

GSync is nVidia only, you're right to look at Freesync if you're going AMD. I was just giving an overview of both.

The 1080p monitor you list is a good choice with a 30-160hz Freesync range, and will be able to handle speeds below the 30hz minimum with AMD's new Crimson drivers.

The 1440p monitor is a 48-70hz Freesync range, showing the issues of freesync. This one will never be able to do much about that 48hz minimum. If you think of it as a normal monitor with a slight benefit from Freesync, great, but it's not a good implementation of variable refresh rates.

A friend of mine has just bought that 1440p monitor for his nVidia machine as it wasn't any more expensive than a non-variable display anyway, and really likes it. It's just the Freesync on it that sucks.
Click to expand...

So really, if my budget is what it is I am best to get the 1080p monitor and just deal with it for now? Regardless it would be an improvement on my current experience, a samsung SyncMaster 2243? :)
http://uk.hardware.info/productinfo/13929/samsung-syncmaster-2243nw/specifications

I'd love to go 1440P, but I don't think I can justify the additional spend, I need a new PSU and 390X, plus the monitor and I wasn't really looking to spend any money never mind this much :)
 
craig_t said:
So really, if my budget is what it is I am best to get the 1080p monitor and just deal with it for now? Regardless it would be an improvement on my current experience, a samsung SyncMaster 2243? :)
http://uk.hardware.info/productinfo/13929/samsung-syncmaster-2243nw/specifications

I'd love to go 1440P, but I don't think I can justify the additional spend, I need a new PSU and 390X, plus the monitor and I wasn't really looking to spend any money never mind this much :)
Click to expand...

I would go with this

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/iiya...descreen-led-1ms-monitor-black-mo-128-iy.html

But saying that anything you get is going to be a huge improvement over what you have already.
 
1440p still requires a decent amount of power for max settings, I've been to 4k with a 980Ti whilst it was amazing when watching 4k videos and playing games, I wasn't happy with 60hz. So I dropped back to my 1080p 144hz I will be going 1440p 144hz when the next gen of cards come out as there is a pretty big difference between the two resolutions but it's not something I really care about, the refresh rate is what i'm worried about now, going back to 60hz is like going from an SSD to a HDD in windows load up times!

The above looks a lot better than the one you posted?
 
savagesam117 said:
1440p still requires a decent amount of power for max settings, I've been to 4k with a 980Ti whilst it was amazing when watching 4k videos and playing games, I wasn't happy with 60hz. So I dropped back to my 1080p 144hz I will be going 1440p 144hz when the next gen of cards come out as there is a pretty big difference between the two resolutions but it's not something I really care about, the refresh rate is what i'm worried about now, going back to 60hz is like going from an SSD to a HDD in windows load up times!

The above looks a lot better than the one you posted?
Click to expand...

Black is boring, I liked the brushed look but not the red bits..

melmac said:
The AOC monitor has an overdrive problem, it was supposed to be fixed, not sure if it has been completely sorted.

And I think Iiyama make better monitors than AOC.
Click to expand...

I see, I will look into that one then thanks
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom