New Monitor...

ASSA551N · 11 Oct 2016 at 20:17

Evening all.

I have decided that now i have a fairly decent rig, i am going to upgrade my monitor to a 4k one.

I have read up a lot about hdmi 1.2/1.4 @ 30hz/60hz etc.....

So, my question is...

I have around £300 to spend ,and i am asking you all - What monitor would you recommend i buy (26in+ ), that will work well with my current setup?

Many thanks.

BluD · 11 Oct 2016 at 21:26

For a single 1070 i wouldnt recommend 4k if your gaming bud, your gonna be having to drop a lot of settings in demanding games to get 60 FPS, i would look more at a 1440p option.

ASSA551N · 11 Oct 2016 at 22:01

BluD said:
For a single 1070 i wouldnt recommend 4k if your gaming bud, your gonna be having to drop a lot of settings in demanding games to get 60 FPS, i would look more at a 1440p option.

Seriously??
Ok, then what 1440p one do you recommend?

thanks

w00dy85 · 13 Oct 2016 at 16:22

ASSA551N said:
Seriously??
Ok, then what 1440p one do you recommend?

thanks

I agree with BluD, a 1440 monitor would suit your 1070 far better.

I am in the middle of looking for a new monitor to replace my Dell U2312HM and have only been looking at 27" 1440 monitors. And from what I have seen theirs not a great range of monitors out there at 1440, plus I have decided not to go with Acer or Asus. So my options are even more limited, I was also looking to spend about £300. But after looking around I think I am going to have to up my budget to close to £400.

mahius · 13 Oct 2016 at 17:46

Depends on what else you want from a monitor (I expect the no Asus/Acer is due to the terrible quality of panels, don't worry it only affects IPS, I have an old Asus TN panel that somehow works flawlessly in comparison to the IPS one I've RMAd). If you only want IPS, then options are limited and you still have the chance of getting a bad panel.

Here's a PLS panel from Samsung, 1440p with 4ms response time but it's not a high refresh rate, just the default 60. Also has no speakers fyi: https://www.overclockers.co.uk/sams...aming-slim-bezel-monitor-black-mo-206-sa.html

A BenQ one with speakers, this time IPS so watch out for potential backlight bleed and such. This one and the one before have USB hubs: https://www.overclockers.co.uk/benq...lim-bezel-flicker-free-monitor-mo-105-bq.html

A similar Philips monitor, except this one is an AMVA (essentially VA) panel-type: https://www.overclockers.co.uk/phil...led-monitor-black-5yr-warranty-mo-026-ph.html

And the only high refresh-rate option here, a TN monitor with FreeSync, but it does have high refresh rate: https://www.overclockers.co.uk/aoc-...descreen-led-monitor-black-red-mo-045-ao.html

In all honesty, the 4k options can be a tad better. And yes, I wouldn't recommend a 4k monitor at all, even if considering future GPU upgrades. Mainly due to being limited to 60fps, high refresh rate is something that potential buyers shouldn't overlook. No such thing as a 4k monitor with high refresh rate.

phil-k · 13 Oct 2016 at 17:56

mahius said:
Depends on what else you want from a monitor (I expect the no Asus/Acer is due to the terrible quality of panels, don't worry it only affects IPS, I have an old Asus TN panel that somehow works flawlessly in comparison to the IPS one I've RMAd). If you only want IPS, then options are limited and you still have the chance of getting a bad panel.

I'm sure I have read in forums that there are more problems with TN panels rather than IPS, its just that Asus and Acer don't have a very good RMA record
I am deciding which type to get

w00dy85 · 13 Oct 2016 at 20:20

like phil-k said the main reason I'm not going for Acer and Asus was for their RMA record. But I am also torn between IPS and a 144mhz gaming monitor at 1440, I can't make my mind up. To go for smoother gaming or better colours and better image :confused:

I am looking at AGON AG271QX 27" and a DELL UltraSharp U2715H 27", though I have seen the Dell for £368.

james_2k · 16 Oct 2016 at 22:16

TN, ew, no thank you! Even with IPS glow etc, its a no brainer (to me at least) to go ips, or maybe VA, but they can have colour banding especially in darker shades.

Guest2 · 16 Oct 2016 at 22:43

I thought you can grt IPS & 100 / 144 / 165hz monitors now? Best of both worlds then

1070 I would definately not go 4k. I have a heavily overclocked 980ti which matches 1080 stock speed (or slightly faster) and don't hit 60fps all of the time even at 1440p.

What hapoens with a 144hz gsync monitor if you don't hit the required fps?

james_2k · 16 Oct 2016 at 23:26

gsync is for when you don't hit the cap. it doesn't work if its at the monitors refresh rate or above.

Guest2 · 16 Oct 2016 at 23:35

Are right, so it works up to 100hz / 144hz then stops working if you have >100fps / >144fps? That seems strange

james_2k · 16 Oct 2016 at 23:44

indeed, but its not strange really, the whole point of it is to slow the monitors refresh rate down to what your gpu is doing, so when the fps is at the refresh rate of the monitor, theres no need for it (as they are already 'synced') above the max refresh rate, gsync cant do anything as the monitor cant display those extra frames.

Below the max refresh rate of the monitor, well, it can sync the refresh rate with the fps from the gpu, and you get nice smooth gameplay.

for instance, i was playing the witcher 2 at around 100 fps capped with vsync, (100hz monitor) now im on the witcher 3 and get around 50/60 with the settings i use, to be honest, i dont notice much, if any reduction in smoothness. gsync works great

mahius · 17 Oct 2016 at 07:02

phil-k said:
I'm sure I have read in forums that there are more problems with TN panels rather than IPS, its just that Asus and Acer don't have a very good RMA record
I am deciding which type to get

I just RMA'd my monitor a few days ago and apart from the fact that the instructions I was given were obsolete (I was told only the monitor would be taken, but they changed it to taking the whole thing) and the driver taking a spare power adaptor (that didn't come included with the monitor), the replacement I received has been flawless with no issues, not even the tiny bit of backlight bleed the first one had.

Though if I'm honest, I feel like I dodged a bullet by being lucky with the replacement. Fair play if that's what you want, I was unaware of monitor issues being common, till recently with these very popular 'gaming' monitors.

Speaking of G-sync/FreeSync, I let my brother have a go with his RX480 on Gears of War 4 1440p. Considering that he gets between 40-70 fps and the FreeSync range is 40-90, it was perfect. Alas, no FreeSync on my 970, but I'm happy enough with the resolution and framerate. G-sync, we have to pay extra for, whereas FreeSync is pretty much no additional cost (besides what the manufacturer decides to charge).