*Update:
Please note some of the above comment refers to HDTV issues, and some relate to MONITOR.
Motion blur (120Hz/240Hz) is a post-processing done on HDTVs to make video smoother which is really only ideal for SPORTS like soccer and hockey.
144Hz monitors should use one of:
- VSYNC
- Adaptive VSYNC
- Half Adaptive VSYNC (RadeonPro has the same feature called Dynamic VSYNC which has a "Half" version as well. It works.)
- NO VSYNC
- GSYNC mode (GSync monitor with NVidia GPU)
- Freesync mode (Freesync monitor with AMD GPU)
*IMPORTANT*
The most important thing to know for PC gaming IMO is:
a) which of the above choices (Adaptive VSYNC?) to use for a particular game, and
b) how to then TWEAK the game settings to optimize for that choice.
For example, do NOT enable normal VSYNC then run the game below 60FPS as you'll get added STUTTER. Using VSYNC is a good choice if you know you'll never drop below 60FPS. You don't want to just enable Adaptive VSYNC because it can cause screen tearing in cut scenes.
With Adaptive VSYNC as said above you want to adjust so you rarely drop below the target (i.e. 60FPS) but don't drop the settings so low that you NEVER drop but are now playing with reduced visual quality.
Freesync and GSYNC are pretty straight forward if the refresh is 144Hz. Basically crank the visuals up to maximum then drop a few settings if you want a bit higher FPS. Maybe 50FPS is fine for medium/slow games but you want at least 100FPS for shooters.
*I know it's confusing, but maybe COPY this so you can research some of the ideas here and get a grasp on game tweaking.
A good Freesync monitor (27" IPS, 2560x1440, 144Hz) is about $550USD. A GSYNC version is about $750USD.
These asynchronous monitors are great, however just too expensive IMO. Unfortunately when on a budget you have to choose between:
- asynchronous or not
- resolution (2560x1440)
- IPS vs TN
- Refresh rate (60Hz, 144Hz)
Personally, I'd look into a 2560x1440, 60Hz, IPS monitor for $350 or so. To me, IPS is a must-have. After that I prefer the screen resolution of 2560x1440.
I think $550 for a good Freesync monitor is doable, but then the only AMD GPU I feel comfortable recommending is the RX-480 (non-reference) and pairing a $250 GPU with a $550 GPU seems weird to me.
But then a GTX1070 + $750 GSYNC monitor is getting pretty expensive when you add everything up. Probably about $2000.
Other:
PCPARTPICKER is pretty useful to experiment with building a PC.