Need Gaming Monitor Advice

demetrius202 · Oct 17, 2013

I'm in the market for a gaming monitor and have read many wonderfully written guides on the subject of monitor panels. Now I'm at a crossroads of finding a balance between what I want and what I need. Here's what I've decided thus far:

--I only play role-playing games (currently SWTOR, soon ESO and Dragon Age 3) and I want to see vivid colors and sharp details-->so I favor an IPS panel.

--I participate in fast-paced warzones and with my current monitor that has a refresh rate of 60Hz sometimes I get eye-fatigue and headaches very likely from the poor fluidity of movement during faster elements of gameplay. I want to alleviate this-->so I favor a monitor with a refresh rate of atleast 80-120hz. This is a guess, I dont need 144Hz like hardcore fps gamers but something better than what I have.

--I want to experience vivid colors in all it's glory...I wanted a 30" but this is super hard to find so now I'm caught between getting either a 27" or 24". I've actually bought a 27" overlord computer monitor but it's gonna be 8 weeks before I get it (atleast) so for this reason alone I'm looking at 24" models, but it's hard to find one with the above-mentioned credentials. I've never had a monitor bigger than 23", and I've measured it out 27" on my desk and I dont sit so close that this would be too big and I think this is actually a better size than 30" anyway, but how big is too big?

So does anyone know of a good 24" IPS monitor with refresh rate above 60 Hz (80-120Hz) with decent response time of 6ms with 1080p or 1200p resolution and decent input lag? If I can find one then I'd get this now and not wait until freaking December for this overlord monitor. All help is definitely appreciated.

xSocrates · Oct 17, 2013

Whats your gpu? And whats the price range

Pete_the_Puma · Oct 17, 2013

Go big or go home.

Unless your GPU is weak I'd say go for 2560x1440. 5 minutes of ANY game at this resolution will RUIN 1080p for you the same way looking at your 1080p TV has ruined your grandmas 480i TV.

No 1440p displays will do 120Hz out the box (that I know of) but this one is reported to be easily overclocked to 110-120Hz.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA2RY0ZA3895

I'm telling you. Do yourself a favor just go watch any game at 1440p (on a rig with good FPS) and you will never go back to 1080p.

P

xSocrates · Oct 17, 2013

Pete_the_Puma :

Honestly i would not even touch that monitor, it says even in the link the monitor may have 3 to 5 dead pixels, and personaly i dont like 1440 i dont need that big of a screen, if it where up to me and if you have a solid gpu i would get http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006HIKIG0?tag=bgm05-20 it is the BEST monitor for gaming,

Pete_the_Puma · Oct 17, 2013

xSocrates :

3 to 5 dead pixels out of 3 686 400?!?!?! You would most likely never even find them unless you looked really hard!

And please, BEST GAMING MONITOR at 1080p?!?!? Why because it has a fast refresh at 120hz? Are you telling me you would rather have a 720p (1280x720) screen at 300Hz refresh versus a 1080p (1920x1080) screen at 60Hz refresh?

Anyone would pick the 1080p60Hz over the 720p300Hz. Higher resolution always looks better. It has nothing to do with the screen size.

I have both a cheap 2560x1440 at 60Hz and a "top of the line" 120Hz 1080 and the 1080 is gathering dust. Please observe just a few minutes of gaming on 1440p (with FPS over 50) and see for yourself. And if you can have 1440p at 110Hz with an overclocked display then there is really no argument to be had.

burdenbound · Oct 17, 2013

I own a Qnix 1440p monitor, bought from ebay for $310, it's a great buy but you need to know the risk ahead of time when buying a korean 1440p. This may turn you off the monitor but for the money you get the samsung PLS monitor (comparable to LG's IPS) and easily overclocked to 120Hz. A vast majority of them come with no dead pixels, mine didn't atleast, and like it was said before once you go 1440p you will never look at 1080 the same.

Pete_the_Puma · Oct 17, 2013

The Qnix is also now available through NewEgg, which would save you the hassle of dealing with returning stuff to Korea if you ever needed to like us early adopters had to risk.

Just wish I had known about the Qnix and it's OC potential before I bought my Crossover Q27.

burdenbound · Oct 17, 2013

I recommend this link to learn a bit more about the monitor and seeing some people's review of it. http://www.overclock.net/t/1384767/official-the-korean-pls-monitor-club-qnix-x-star

demetrius202 · Oct 17, 2013

Sorry, I forgot to put my rig components. I have all the listed parts and am ready to put together. Trying to wait on my monitor

i7 2600K overclocking @ ~4.5GHz
Hyper 212 Evo
Asus Maximus V Extreme
Geforce GTX 690
G. Skillz 16GB (4x4GB@2133 MHz)
Samsung 512 GB SSD
WD 2 TB HDD Storage
Corsair HX 1050W PSU
CoolerMaster HAF 932 Case

Price range for monitor: 500-600 bucks. I did find some 27" monitors with the right specs but cost 800-900 bucks. I went crazy on my gpu, but don't want to do so on my monitor. I have to say though that if I see a monitor and absolutely love it I may go a little higher.
How long does it take to get the Korean monitors from newegg? I really hope not 2 months like overlord. If not, I will roll the dice and go with the 27" Qnix. I read a little about it on another website but will use the above link. Thanks so much for the input guys and gals!

Pete_the_Puma · Oct 17, 2013

Hey Demetrius,

Nice build. A few things I would point out tho.

I7-2600K is really not needed if this is a gaming rig. Not sure how much that processor costs but I would strongly recommend going with either an i5-3570k or i5-4670K (although that MOBO you listed is Z77 so it will take the i5-3xxx not the i5-4xxx) and perhaps saving a little money. Look at these benchmarks of BF4 with different CPUs, no benefit to I7 fastest was an OCd i5.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/battlefield-4-graphics-card-performance,3634-10.html

Second, unless you are trying to go with the most power in a single card form (pretty sure that Mobo supports up to 4 way SLI) you are much better off with say 2x GTX 770 4GB than a single GTX 690. This will be BOTH faster and cheaper. See reviews comparing 770SLI to 690 here:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-770-gk104-review,3519-12.html

Hope this helps.

P

xSocrates · Oct 17, 2013

Pete_the_Puma :

I dont really want a debate, i just stated my opinion, and if i buy something and pay close to 400$ i dont want the word dead next to its name, also i have tried 1440p gaming, i have one too and i just prefer the 1920 1080 resolution to it, also 60hz is not enough for me, i dont want a monitor with 300hz, i just want a 1080p monitor with 120hz refresh rate, most games nowadays are made for this setup in mind, and i said best gaming monitor, not because its just mine opinion but also because its the opinion of many people that are experts in this field, while the onix evolution 2 is blasted by many. While you are happy with your purchase, a lot of people that get that monitor are not, while i dont see anyone complaining about the xl2420

Pete_the_Puma · Oct 17, 2013

Oups....

Just noticed you HAD all the parts already.

Oh well. When it comes to monitors I would say a 690 would be wasted on 1080p resolution. If you are not sure and really have 700$ you could always buy both, a 350$ high refresh 1080p monitor and a cheap 350$ 1440p monitor you can OC to higher refresh rates. I can pretty much GUARANTEE the 1080p will be gathering dust before long... mine is.

demetrius202 · Oct 17, 2013

Pete_the_Puma :

I've decided that if I get a 24" monitor I'll get one with resolution of around 1200p but if I get a 27" monitor (which is what I want!) I'll get 1440p based on many other owners' recommendations. The I7 cpu I had for 2 yrs because my wife was using my computer for graphical designing so I went with that one. No reason to throw it away now with a new rig, especially since she'd be the one affected most, not me.

xSocrates · Oct 17, 2013

If the budget is 700$ i would get 2 of the benq xl2420t, im running two and playing the same games as you, i find it especially useful when playing swtor, if im struggling on a quest or playing with friends, i would highly recommend the 2 monitor setup.

Pete_the_Puma · Oct 17, 2013

xSocrates :

Sorry xSocrates I didn't mean to be rude. I just think most people who get 1080p displays do not know there are higher resolutions out there.

I think there could potentially be a debate between 1080p@120Hz and 1440p@60Hz but with equal refresh rates and with equal screen size the higher resolution (or higher pixel density) will ALWAYS look better. That's why your old school 640x480TV looks so terrible now. Some people see the difference in higher refresh rates, especially in high movement first person shooter games but the majority will hardly distinguish anything above 60-70 FPS. Everyone will notice how much better 1440p looks compared to 1080p, unless they couldn't tell the difference between 480i and 1080p. The future is with higher resolutions, that's why we have 4k, 6k and 8k coming down the pipes.

I will leave you with a quote from the Toms Hardware article about gaming in 4K, these are not my words but theirs.

"Sitting in front of 3840x2160 will absolutely wreck 1920x1080 for you—even if you’re used to playing across three screens."

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/pq321q-4k-gaming,3620-10.html

I dont understand when you say the screen is too big, a 27inch 2560x1440 is just the same size as a 27inch1920x1080.

P

-Fran- · Oct 17, 2013

Well, like stated previously, that's a nice build. I have a 2700k at 4.6Ghz with just 1.27v and I can go to 5Ghz with ease on air. I have a single 7970 at 1100Mhz (Sapphire Vapor X) and it plays everything (decently coded) over 100FPS all the time.

I play Guild Wars 2 and even on heavy crowded fights, I never go down 60FPS and having a bigger monitor doesn't make that much of a difference in terms of FOV or gameplay since you can scale the UI in almost every game out there.

So, in my opinion, for the games you want to play, go for increased refresh rate and picture quality.

I have a Samsung SA700 that's 1080p@120Hz and it is very good. The only thing I don't like is the glossy finish. Color wise, it's very good without any deep calibration. A great product for its price IMO.

Cheers!

xSocrates · Oct 17, 2013

Pete_the_Puma :

xSocrates :

Sorry xSocrates I didn't mean to be rude. I just think most people who get 1080p displays do not know there are higher resolutions out there.

I think there could potentially be a debate between 1080p@120Hz and 1440p@60Hz but with equal refresh rates and with equal screen size the higher resolution (or higher pixel density) will ALWAYS look better. That's why your old school 640x480TV looks so terrible now. Some people see the difference in higher refresh rates, especially in high movement first person shooter games but the majority will hardly distinguish anything above 60-70 FPS. Everyone will notice how much better 1440p looks compared to 1080p, unless they couldn't tell the difference between 480i and 1080p. The future is with higher resolutions, that's why we have 4k, 6k and 8k coming down the pipes.

I will leave you with a quote from the Toms Hardware article about gaming in 4K, these are not my words but theirs.

"Sitting in front of 3840x2160 will absolutely wreck 1920x1080 for you—even if you’re used to playing across three screens."

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/pq321q-4k-gaming,3620-10.html

I dont understand when you say the screen is too big, a 27inch 2560x1440 is just the same size as a 27inch1920x1080.

P

The benq is 24inch, i mainly play fps and rpg games, those 3 extra inches make a big difference for me, and yes while i do believe that bigger resolutions are coming, i just dont like the onix since i got burned by them in the past pretty bad.

demetrius202 · Oct 17, 2013

xSocrates :

Pete_the_Puma :

xSocrates :

Sorry xSocrates I didn't mean to be rude. I just think most people who get 1080p displays do not know there are higher resolutions out there.

I think there could potentially be a debate between 1080p@120Hz and 1440p@60Hz but with equal refresh rates and with equal screen size the higher resolution (or higher pixel density) will ALWAYS look better. That's why your old school 640x480TV looks so terrible now. Some people see the difference in higher refresh rates, especially in high movement first person shooter games but the majority will hardly distinguish anything above 60-70 FPS. Everyone will notice how much better 1440p looks compared to 1080p, unless they couldn't tell the difference between 480i and 1080p. The future is with higher resolutions, that's why we have 4k, 6k and 8k coming down the pipes.

I will leave you with a quote from the Toms Hardware article about gaming in 4K, these are not my words but theirs.

"Sitting in front of 3840x2160 will absolutely wreck 1920x1080 for you—even if you’re used to playing across three screens."

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/pq321q-4k-gaming,3620-10.html

I dont understand when you say the screen is too big, a 27inch 2560x1440 is just the same size as a 27inch1920x1080.

P

The benq is 24inch, i mainly play fps and rpg games, those 3 extra inches make a big difference for me, and yes while i do believe that bigger resolutions are coming, i just dont like the onix since i got burned by them in the past pretty bad.

What happened with the Qnix? Warranty issue? That's my biggest fear, and the reason I went with Overlord to begin with.

xSocrates · Oct 18, 2013

demetrius202 :

xSocrates :

Pete_the_Puma :

xSocrates :

Sorry xSocrates I didn't mean to be rude. I just think most people who get 1080p displays do not know there are higher resolutions out there.

I think there could potentially be a debate between 1080p@120Hz and 1440p@60Hz but with equal refresh rates and with equal screen size the higher resolution (or higher pixel density) will ALWAYS look better. That's why your old school 640x480TV looks so terrible now. Some people see the difference in higher refresh rates, especially in high movement first person shooter games but the majority will hardly distinguish anything above 60-70 FPS. Everyone will notice how much better 1440p looks compared to 1080p, unless they couldn't tell the difference between 480i and 1080p. The future is with higher resolutions, that's why we have 4k, 6k and 8k coming down the pipes.

I will leave you with a quote from the Toms Hardware article about gaming in 4K, these are not my words but theirs.

"Sitting in front of 3840x2160 will absolutely wreck 1920x1080 for you—even if you’re used to playing across three screens."

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/pq321q-4k-gaming,3620-10.html

I dont understand when you say the screen is too big, a 27inch 2560x1440 is just the same size as a 27inch1920x1080.

P

The benq is 24inch, i mainly play fps and rpg games, those 3 extra inches make a big difference for me, and yes while i do believe that bigger resolutions are coming, i just dont like the onix since i got burned by them in the past pretty bad.

What happened with the Qnix? Warranty issue? That's my biggest fear, and the reason I went with Overlord to begin with.

The power connector (im sorry if this is not the wright translation, but the connector in the monitor) just stopped working, when i sent in my complaint, they said that my warranty was invalid, i went to the store in which i bought the monitor, they said they couldnt do anything about the warranty and eventually i managed to get store credit equal to the price of the onix monitor and that is how i got my benq.

demetrius202 · Oct 18, 2013

Thanks so much for the valuable information! I have some research to do which I plan for tonight after work, regarding the Qnix monitors. It's coming down to doing a 2 monitor BenQ 24" setup vs. a 27" overclocked Qnix monitor. I have to weigh my own personal desires for high resolution monitor vs. bigger monitor vs. possible warranty issues. I'll let you know what I've decided. So many useful posts above it's hard to just pick one as a solution since everyone brought so much valuable, much needed info.

Pete_the_Puma · Oct 21, 2013

Just make sure if you get the QNIX with the intention of overclocking it you get the right one. I think both have the same name but you want the one with single input!

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