What is the fastest monitor available?

schmutz06

schmutz06

schmutz06

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regarding input lag / latency. The time it takes for any actions on the controller/mouse to take place on screen

I use a Dell Ultrasharp U2711 and mostly do multimedia design work. It isn't the best for competitive gaming. I am trying to find the fastest monitor on the market for games like:

Street Fighter
Guitar Hero
FPS games (Halo Reach)

My budget is anything up to £500 (~$1000).

as a starting point:

Dell U2312HM. 0.6ms response which seems to be the lowest. Vertical orientation adjustment too and well under budget

I am looking for:

Size: 22-24" - 1080p (nothing larger)
Latency: Lowest available, doesn't matter how much it butchers the image quality I just want something uber-fast like my CRT!
Adjustments: vertical orientation would be ideal when using it as a second monitor for multimedia work
inputs: I plan on hooking up an xbox to it so HDMI is important. For reference I do my serious gaming on a 10 year old CRT and I own an expensive samsung D7000 55" TV!
3D Not necessary
120Hz: Not necessary

If 3D and 120Hz monitors are the way to go for low input lag then I'm happy to go that route though.

Worth noting: The dell 2312HM has no hdmi socket. Now if using an adapter cable is going to induce any latency then I'll rule out this monitor!

I am looking for the FASTEST monitor. I want to avoid buying the 2312HM only to find 120hz displays would have been the better option.

Can someone confirm this? That the 2312HM has the least latency out of any full HD display out there? Any perceivable difference over my trusty CRT won't cut it
 
Hi there,

As you point out, the Dell U2312HM is very good for low input lag. However, if you are mainly playing fast-paced games then you would also want a monitor with very low pixel response time - so that ghosting is reduced (crt's in contrast don't show any ghosting since the technology allows for much faster colour switching). For this the Dell does OK (as the reviews show), however gaming-focused TN panel monitors (specifically 120Hz ones) will do better here and show less ghosting.

If you are using a console then the benefit of a 120Hz refresh rate on these 120Hz monitors can't be exploited - however the low input lag and fast pixel responsiveness will be made use of with a HDMI device.

As for using a HDMI adapter with a DVI monitor - this isn't a problem (so long as the resolution is 1920x1200 or less) and doesn't introduce any extra lag - since the DVI and HDMI use the same video signal, so no conversion is required. The only thing that is lost is the sound signal - since DVI can't carry sound.
 
cmndr_andi said:
As for using a HDMI adapter with a DVI monitor - this isn't a problem (so long as the resolution is 1920x1200 or less) and doesn't introduce any extra lag - since the DVI and HDMI use the same video signal, so no conversion is required. The only thing that is lost is the sound signal - since DVI can't carry sound.
Click to expand...
You're forgetting one thing there, HDMI and single link DVI are the same video signal and fine up to 1920x1200 at 60Hz
If you want 120Hz or a higher resolution your only options are dual link DVI or displayport (or HDMI 1.4a but there isn't a single monitor on the market that has it). In this case all a bit irrelevant since the XBOX 360 won't do higher resolutions or 120Hz in the first place, but it's still good to know.

Since you have the budget for it and are looking for a 'CRT experience' I would say that 120Hz is what you want. At that size the Samsung S23A750D/S23A700D and the BenQ XL2420T are the most interesting monitors.
If you ever want to use the 3D option for gaming then keep in mind that Samsungs are intended to be used with AMD cards and the BenQ with NVIDIA cards. Perhaps a nice gimmick for the XBOX is that the Samsungs also have an option to automatically convert 2D to 3D. How well it work will differ per game/movie etc.

According to a forum review the Asus VG236H(E) is faster than the Samsung S23A700D. You did say you prefer any form of image degradation over any form of input lag, so if that's your only criteria the ASUS is the better monitor. The ASUS suffers from a green tint and you need super human vision to notice a difference input lag wise though.

Keep in mind that for the best experience you will also need 120'ish FPS so perhaps a video card upgrade is also in place depending on what you currently have. At lower FPS there should still be a noticeable difference, just not the full experience.

[edit]
Do check your video card beforehand btw, 120Hz could be completely out of the Window if you don't have a second displayport or dual-link DVI connection available, the Dell is already using one and with some NVIDIA cards that might be problematic. All recent AMD cards should come with both dual-link DVI and displayport, but assumption is the mother of all screw-ups.
 
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Axeia said:
You're forgetting one thing there, HDMI and single link DVI are the same video signal and fine up to 1920x1200 at 60Hz
If you want 120Hz or a higher resolution your only options are dual link DVI or displayport (or HDMI 1.4a but there isn't a single monitor on the market that has it). In this case all a bit irrelevant since the XBOX 360 won't do higher resolutions or 120Hz in the first place, but it's still good to know.
Click to expand...

Yea, I should have explained this better. When I said:

cmndr_andi said:
If you are using a console then the benefit of a 120Hz refresh rate on these 120Hz monitors can't be exploited - however the low input lag and fast pixel responsiveness will be made use of with a HDMI device.
Click to expand...

I should have explicitly stated that consoles (and any other devices connected by HDMI) are limit to a 60Hz refresh rate, even on a 120Hz monitor. You do indeed need a dual-link DVI or Displayport 1.2 connection to send a 1080p@120Hz image to these monitors.
 
thank you for sharing the information.

I am now inclined to go for a 120Hz display. The 2312HM might be technically fastest with it's 0.6ms response, but the difference between 0.6ms and 1-2ms in 120hz displays shouldn't be distinguishable. The difference in blur/most clarity however would. I especially notice blurring when playing a game like fifa 12 doing a goal kick to the halfway line, which will cause the camera to quickly pan horizontally.

I'll look at 120Hz displays from here on. The BenQ XL2420T is my favourite only because I have read good things about it. The asus might be technically superior but as you said the latency/image quality trade off is probably not worth bothering with even for the most hardcore gamer.

The rest of my system will be up to the task I currently use 2600K @ 4.4Ghz/2x 560ti SLI/16GB RAM

Few things:

I'll have the U2711 as the primary display running at the usual 60Hz. Will there be any conflicting problems running both displays at different refresh rates? I assume it is likely. So for usual dual monitor work I'll operate both at 60Hz and when gaming I'll disable the U2711 to allow for 120Hz on the other display? (thank goodness for ultramon!)

Is it possible to experience active shutter 3D on the 120Hz display with a pair of Samsung D7000 LED glasses (3050s/3100's) or is the nvidia kit required? I know glasses are usually hardware specific. If the samsung 120hz displays mentioned will be compatible that would be a bonus...
 
No idea about the 3D glasses, never interested me even the slightest bit. PCM2 or someone else probably has an answer to that question.
Running 120Hz and 60Hz monitors at the same time shouldn't be a problem it's a per monitor setting. Or per connection? Not sure about displayport daisy-chaining. You should be fine either way.

For a game to start on the right(120hz) screen it will need to be made the primary screen in Windows. Could be a pain in the rear if you want the taskbar on the Dell. AMD has an option in their control panel to add shortcuts/hotkeys to change the monitor setup. Don't know if NVIDIA offers the same or similiar option.
If you use ultramon to clone the taskbar it isnt much of a problem though. Don't like a cloned taskbar myself, a waste of screen real estate imo.

PS: I shouldn't type such lengthy posts on my phone, so many edits
 
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ok thanks for your help I believe I will give the BenQ XL2420T a go. Ultramon allows me to set display profiles which can be assigned to hotkeys. Instant change of primary/secondary monitor, resolutions, refresh rates, wallpaper.. whatever I need :) I recall seeing a setting in one game (may have been battlefield 3) EDIT, yes it was bf3! in which you could select the primary monitor from within.
 
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