I have a dirty secret

beany_bot

beany_bot

beany_bot

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I am gaming (and have been for years) on a 1080p, 60Hz, TN, cheap dell 23” monitor.
That’s right, I am using a GTX1080 to game at 60FPS on a 1080p panel.
Now in my defence I upgraded my 1060 to a 1080 for my oculus rift. But as I was playing FarCry 5 I thought this is ridiculous. I'm pushing north of 150FPS and using Vsync to stop the tearing. Such wasted power.

The reason I have put off a new monitor for so long is I just can’t decide what I want!

Do I go 4K? Do I go 1440p? Ultrawide? IPS? TN? 144hz?

Its’ maddening!

Personally at age 35, im not needing super fast input lag or refresh rates. I don't play competitively. For me beauty and visuals is king. Also I am not fussed about UW but it might be nice. I watch a lot of youtube though so the black bars might bother me.
4K would be great for me as I do a lot other than just game. But being forced to lower the graphics settings in games would be really hard for me to do. I am a total visuals freak. There lies the other problem. I really want IPS as I favour visuals over speed. But IPS 1440p or 4K is a bloody fortune!

Still undecided and gaming on a potato monitor as a result.
 
is IPS and Gsync REALLY worth £200 more?? Because for a 27" monitor that's usually the difference. I really begrudge buying Gsync because I know it will influence my GPU buying in the future and I don't want that.
I've heard you don't really get screen tearing when pushing north of 120 Frames? That true?
 
I could potentially justify purchase of a Acer XG270HU 27-inch WQHD Gaming Monitor (TN panel, FreeSync, 144Hz, 1ms, ZeroFrame, DP, HDMI, DVI) today. (or when it goes on sale, because its £100 more now than it was 12 months ago, go figure).
But im struggling to justify £200 for the likes of a Acer Predator XB271HU 27 inch which has IPS and Gsync.

I suppose if I go from TN to TN I "won't know what I'm missing". But is it mad to buy a freesync monitor when I can't see myself getting an AMD card any time soon?

THIS IS WHY IT'S SO HARD!
 
tyler_jrb said:
4k is a pain to run even on 1080Ti and is only 60hz as of current, 21:9 is great but not every game/cutscene supports it and it takes roughly 1/3rd more power to run and more expensive.

I do like my high refresh rate though and it really does help keep the game running and looking butter smooth even on non fps games. 120hz+ is a whole new level of quality and immersion in my opinion.

I would personally either get a decent 21:9 panel so like Alienware 35” 120hz, or if it’s out of your price range then consider the new LG 165hz 32” 1440p panel (or 27” predator if your after something a bit smaller). I wouldn’t recommend 4k.

Sync tech is worth it 100% if your getting a quality monitor and want the best experience.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that. Certainly helps narrow it down. I think I'm fairly set on 1440p 16:9 now.

The question now is... IPS or not? For visuals?
 
See, viewing angles is often spoken about. Can't imagine it being a problem for me, like ever. Im always face on when using the monitor. OK well that helps too then (and saves money.) Final point I guess is the hardest. Do I need Gsync? or buy freesync for future proofing?

Does screen tearing bother me? Well at 60 FPS. Yes. it MASSIVELY bothers me. but I dont know about at high HZ
 
southernorth said:
You can get screen-tearing at any FPS, but it becomes less noticeable at higher FPS (frames displayed for shorter periods).

For a GTX 1080, this would work well:


My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £467.09 (includes shipping: £11.10)
​

The monitor is TN, but has good iq when calibrated. Or, pay hundreds more and play the 'IPS panel lottery'.
Click to expand...

You can get a 27" IPS with that spec for around the same price or even less.. Not sure if OCUK sell them though. Never found OCUK competitive when it came to monitors.
 
Just cant decide if paying for IPS is worth it or not for me. I value visuals and pop over response time. But IPS are quite a bit pricier. As for Gsync / Freesync. I wont make a distinction because I just don't know what he future will hold in terms of GPU purchase. So that won't affect my descision.
 
Everything I read reviews for the 1440p 144hz IPS panels I read tons and tons of negative reviews. People saying these panels (ill assume they are all the same panel) can suffer terrible IPS glow. They never seem to review well.
 
OK well, I changed my mind lol.

Im 35 now and realised I don't play that many FPS games. And never competitively. I use my computer for mainly consuming content and a bit of video editing and casual gaming.
I tried a 144hz monitor (running at 120FPS+) and yes it felt smooth. but not hugely. to me, 60FPS looks smooth. If I got a 144HZ monitor I would constantly be chasing 144HZ, even though it wouldn't make a difference to me.

All this said. I decided sexy visuals was best for me. as such I have just ordered a ElectriQ 32" 4K FreeSync IPS, 60Hz, Monitor for £255. It has a 12ms response time, but I'm sure for me that will be fine. Plus 4K and IPS will hopefully look stunning. And that price is basically nothing compared to the other options.
I checked and my GTX1080 should play nearly all older games maxed out, and newer ones on High with a few tweaks.

Cant wait.
 
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Dicehunter said:
Have fun with that, Beware though you will now be chasing the 4K dragon ;)
Click to expand...
Haha ain't that the truth! But that is PC enthusiasm for you. A lot of content I consume is avalible in 4k. So that will be great. As for games. I'm sure I'll get on fine. Gives me something to save for too. I'm sure the 1180Ti will smash 4K 60hz.
 
Stunning consuming 4k content.

Interesting experience in games. Some games. Doom, GTAV, I can run at 4k cranked up and it's fine, others like far cry 5 and rust and hopeless, even on lowest!

Far cry 5 is just weird. On Ultra everything in getting minimums of 38fps. Whereas on LOWEST everything I'm getting 45pfs minimum. And it looks like garbage at that setting. What's that all about. How can it be so close to ultra??

EDIT: I am going to return the monitor. The main reason is its just too damn big. Maybe I would get used to it but it just seems ridiculously big on my desk.
Also (And yes I knew my cards limitations going in) some games just straight up won't run at 4K. In games like Farcry 5 and RUST and I can't even get 60FPS with every single setting on lowest. And in those cases the games look like absolute junk.

I just think that 27" will be a better size for me, and at that size 1440p will look about as nice as 4k anyway.

Slightly weird thing I didn't expect. In games like GTAV, the resolution is so high at 4K, and the sharpness so good, it actually made the game look cartoony, kinda hard to explain but yeah, it made it look just odd, and less realistic. Had a sort of fortnight or sea of theives feel. I mean stunning, but less "real".

Also I can't watch Amazon prime in 4k on it. I thought I could. You need a supported TV.

Anyway, its just too damn big so will swap for 1440p, 27", 144hz. (when prices are reasonable).
 
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So just to update anyone who cares (probably no one) :p:p

Last night I got a ROG swift. PG278Q for £300 off flumtree.

So far delighted with it. Smooth and crisp. Decent enough backs and colours for a TN.

Happy with this decision.

I can tell its not as sharp as the 4k. But simple fact is I couldn't run the 4k in many games. This one I can. And gsync seems to work well. It's in perfect condition, no dead pixels and no BLB.

In an ideal world I would keep the 4k IPS too for consuming content on. But space and money you know.

So yeah. 1440p 144hz is a very sweet spot for me.

RUST still refuses to get 60FPS at "2k". But I guess that's just unity for you. Everything else I'm getting over 80fps. Doom I am getting over 144fps!
 
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