Doubts and advice on buying a gaming monitor

Discussion in 'Computer Monitor Forum' started by Robox1, Apr 9, 2020.

  1. Robox1

    Robox1 Guest

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    I have a doubt about the characteristics of the monitor to buy and use for gaming.



    I currently have a 24" 1080p TN.

    My need is to upgrade the monitor, with the aim of:



    a) switch to a 27-28 "

    b) increase the resolution to 2k or 4k

    c) improve the stuttering that can occurs even in conditions of 50-60 fps, always playing with activated vsync, hating tearing

    d) in any case improve the gaming experience from all points of view)

    e) Freesync or g.sync



    I use last fps game or action rpg, always with details to the maximum (as far as possible of course and the playable ... 40-60 fps) and with medium level VGA, not from 500-800 euros.



    My questions, for which I ask you for advice, are the following:



    1) in my situation, having a frequency higher than 60Hz, while never playing higher than 60-70 fps, in itself already improves the fluidity of the image? Or is it useless to use a 144Hz monitor?



    2) in my case, the purchase of a 2k or 4k maybe it is better to orient it on a 60 or 90Hz?



    3) does a game from 60 to 100 fps have a much higher fluidity and, above all, more pleasant in the gaming experience or do you notice much?



    4) do you notice a better image quality going from a TN to an IPS or VA? ... if yes, maybe it is better to direct the choice to a better panel than the TN?
     
  2. Undying

    Undying Ancient Guru

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    1. Its useless having an 144hz, 2k monitor if you can reach those framerates and not having hardware behind it.
    2. Ideal would be having both but you'll have to choose between higher refresh rate and pixel density. 1080p 27" is the maximum i would go for the size/resolution or 32" 1440p.
    3. Yes, fluidity especially with gsync/freesync is there but reaching a 100fps in games require some serious horsepower.
    4. I use VA curved panel and i like it. After using an TN panel its an improvement in every possible way.
     
  3. JonasBeckman

    JonasBeckman Ancient Guru

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    Going from the Dell display (U2716D) to this current LG (LG27GL850) was quite a step up as a personal experience for the current hardware upgrade after getting the rest of the system updated. :)

    For the questions in particular.


    60Hz to 120 or in this case 144 was a significant upgrade much more than expected and as a bonus the display is adaptive sync compatible with both G and Free sync.
    However the downside is that it has a lower range over HDMI and a comparatively high minimum range (48 I think.) for this sync to kick in. Also it's not full FreeSync2 nor does it have the scalar found on NVIDIA G-Sync displays.

    For HDMI I think you can hit 98Hz at 4k before having to drop from 4:4:4 color to something like 4:4:2 or 4:2:2 avoiding a reduction in image quality for a trade-off of maximum possible refresh rate, Display Port 1.4 can handle it but HDMI 2.0 can not and 2.1 is mostly on very expensive high-end TV models AFAIK. (For now plus well the current GPU models do not do 2.1 HDMI either.)
    Adaptive sync allows a variable rate refresh so you don't have to be a constant 120 or 144 which is a big thing with demanding current games and settings even just the resolution alone when hitting up to 2560x1440 let alone 3840x2160 or higher.
    (Think ultra wide compatibility overall has improved but it's not perfect.)

    Yes, hard to explain without seeing it but full framerate or adaptive sync and compared to before yeah it's a upgrade alright. :)

    TN is cheap and fast, IPS and it's many, many variants is often seen as a step up but it's not perfect either and VN well it has a better contrast ratio and as such pure black levels are (way) better but it's not quite as fast as current IPS and from my observations tends to be seen on more expensive displays.
    IPS has a core downside though the uniform always present IPS glow and it will be there and it will vary for every display how much it'll bother you and how it shows up.



    For this particular monitor? Well it's not the most expensive but it is near or just above 500 Euro with a panel LG calls Nano IPS there's a less costly version too GL83 something I believe which has the key difference of running with the SRGB color space whereas the 850 uses DCI-P3 which the way the colors are presented (And with a bit of adjusting and ideally full calibration but the tools for this yeah they are also expensive.) another clear upgrade in my opinion.

    The display carries a HDR signal but it's sup HDR400 (~350 NITS) plus it lacks backlight support and it's a 8-bit panel with FRC dithering (~10-bit) so don't use HDR on this that's for the big expensive high-end displays.
    Also adaptive sync support is there but stuff like black frame insertion or ultra low motion blur that's not and that can be another desirable factor but also a matter of cost.

    https://www.displayninja.com/lg-27gl850-review/

    They have a pretty good list and this includes many recent displays too including info on costs so it can be a good initial source for what to look for. :)
    https://www.displayninja.com/reviews/monitors/

    Primarily been using TFT Central ( https://www.tftcentral.co.uk/ ) but I wanted some more info for this upgrade, think there's at least one or two more Nano IPS (NIPS?) panels out on the market now and there's also been a real push for more affordable displays although several do use 1920x1080 instead of higher but it's not a massive downside or anything like that plus even a "small" upgrade to 2560x1440 is not a insignificant step in the GPU hardware just from the resolution increase alone.



    EDIT: Oh I almost forgot!

    The ratings and black levels as often is the case well they're a bit cheat-like for reports versus actual results nothing new but it is something to also keep in mind when looking for a display replacement.

    This monitor is rated at ~1ms response time but as always gray-to-gray but this is accomplished with the overdrive section of fastest and not the normal one although fast is a good compromise but fastest is a mess and should be avoided.
    (Fast is still really good though but IPS still has a ways to go.)

    Contrast is reported at 1000:1 but it's actually more like 800:1 even falling beyond a few other IPS or IPS-type panels and nowhere near a VA 2000 or 3000 : 1 for black levels.


    Plus again HDR just a marketing thing it carries a signal but it'll be washed out mostly unusable and falling shy of even the HDR400 specs let alone something like HDR1000 which would be a good target.
    (And also it's a 8-bit plus FRC dither panel not a native - but costlier 10 or 12 bit panel or higher, really costly though.)



    That sort of stuff and panel info and smaller but useful details and supported features is why I would recommend reviews or user opinions and reports over just the specs and listed features from the manufacturer, getting a better overview of what to expect and what the actual values and results are and hold up in testing. :)
     
    Last edited: Apr 9, 2020
  4. JonasBeckman

    JonasBeckman Ancient Guru

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    Anything else? Well not much but it is really nice to see high-refresh displays coming out and becoming both more available and importantly also more affordable and while still having good overall specs and quality without paying 800 -1000+ USD/EUR or more. (Think the top end LG and Asus displays are more than double that although a few would also make for excellent TV's or are TV's that work as excellent displays.)

    Just for 2019 and now the start of 2020 there's been a few nice additions and there's a good selection in most price brackets not just half a grand or higher which is also really good to see. :)
    (I don't upgrade the monitor very often though so I have to basically read up and re-learn much of it as I decide to see what's available.)

    EDIT: And once again just going beyond 60Hz into 120 or higher yeah definitively a worthwhile investment.

    Full on G-Sync or a complete FreeSync 2 display that'd be nice but that G-Sync scalar module not very cheap from my understanding (~800 or so US Dollars back then I think.) and Free Sync 2 availability and the changes AMD implemented to that well I have barely seen any at all let alone any actually in stock here.

    (EDIT: The module was ~500$ not 800$ https://www.techpowerup.com/245463/nvidia-g-sync-hdr-module-adds-usd-500-to-monitor-pricing )
     

  5. sykozis

    sykozis Ancient Guru

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    TN vs VA vs IPS..... It depends a lot on the display manufacturer... Just because a monitor uses a VA or IPS panel, does not mean it's necessarily going to be better than a monitor with a TN panel.

    I have Acer displays with both VA and IPS panels. I also have a pair of AOC monitors with TN panels. I actually prefer the AOC displays with their TN panels over the Acer displays with their VA and IPS panels.

    We can sit here and argue about it, but in the end....everyone has a preference. Newer TN panels don't have the viewing angle issues that older TN panels did. They also don't have the issues with color reproduction or contrast that the old TN panels did. My advice is to find a store with the monitors you're considering on display, if possible, and see which you think looks best.

    TN panels have gotten a LOT better over the years. My current display, a TN panel, has considerably better color, viewing angles, contrast and picture quality than the TN panel I "upgraded" from. For anyone using an older TN panel based display, pretty much anything is going to be a huge upgrade..... In some cases, even an etch-a-sketch would be an upgrade...(Viewsonic).....
     
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