Going dual monitor, can I get some suggestions?

[Griever114]

So i have 2 580gt's and im getting a brand new workstation to accomodate more space... that means. MULTI MONITORS!!! WAHOO!

Can someone tell me what is the most bang for my buck?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007617%20600030619%20600030956&IsNodeId=1&bop=And&ShowDeactivatedMark=False&CompareItemList=20%7C24%2D236%2D049%5E24%2D236%2D049%2DTS%2C24%2D236%2D052%5E24%2D236%2D052%2DTS%2C24%2D236%2D102%5E24%2D236%2D102%2DTS%2C24%2D236%2D153%5E24%2D236%2D153%2DTS

Im looking for a 24", gamimg/bluray worthy, easy to use/setup for multi-display.

Can anyone help?

Also, I want 2 screens so I can watch youtube/movies while playing D3 (if you know the game then you know the painful grind). Im new to multi-setups so wont the game try to stretch the game to fit on 2 screens? How do you set that up on 1 screen?

Thanks!

 

[ssddx]

what type of monitors you choose depends on what your preferences are.

there are tn, va and e-ips and ips panels out there. tn is the only panel type with 120hz/3d capability currently but is also the worst in terms of color accuracy and in some cases have significant color shifting. e-ips panels have a wide viewing angle so you do not get the color shifting. better ips panels offer improved color accuracy.

a tn or va panel is going to be the cheapest option.

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for blueray you want 1920x1080 resolution.

for dual monitors you will want both to be the same resolution, physical size and brand. this will eliminate any potential irritations later on.

is your system capable of using two 120hz monitors? or is it only capable of using one (or two 60hz monitors). check your video card outputs. 120hz requires dual link dvi. can your system generate decent framerates in D3 or other games you play at 1920x1080? ideally on 120hz you want 120fps and on 60hz you want at least 60fps. what your hardware is capable of will influence your decision.

--

when i have used dual monitors for gaming the game always fullscreens on one monitor. i limit the windows taskbar to one screen though which may affect this. different display settings could affect programs differently. a fullscreen game however will lock your cursor to one screen causing you not to be able to use the other screen.

to fix this all games you play will need to be "windowed". ie, showing the windows frame and top title bar with minimize, maximize, close. while it might seem like an irritation at first, you get used to it. when swapping screens you may have to click on the game window to continue playing (the game will continue to run though as if you were giving zero input). since you will be watching videos you would just click a video and click the game again to continue playing. a slight irritation but its not terrible.

 

[jaguarskx]

Blu-Rays will likely look better on VA panel monitors than TN or IPS panel monitors. TN panels basically suck because they color shift is dramatic compared to VA or IPS panel monitors the more off center you are from the screen. But even if you set you head dead center there can still be some color shift. For example, my 24" Asus VK246H is a TN panel monitor I can make out color shifting simply by setting my head to stare at the center of the screen, and then roll my eyes to view the parts of the screen near the edge of the monitor.

VA panel are better than IPS panels for movies because they have higher static contrast ratios which generally range between 3,000:1 up to 5,000:1 for high end monitors. IPS generally manages to do 1,000:1. While TN panels may state static contrast ratio of 1,000:1, most are like 700:1 or 800:1. Static contrast ratio allows you to see the difference between subtle colors tone differences. IPS and VA panels can truly display 256 different shades of colors and truly display 16.7 million colors (e-IPS panels is an exception). On a VA panel monitor you might be able to tell the difference between GREY #170 and GREY #175. On an IPS panel you likely will not be able to tell the difference and on a TN panel you definitely will not see the difference.

Most monitors list Dynamic Contrast Ratio (DCR) rather than Static Contrast Ratio (SCR; which is the true measure of how well the monitor can display different color tones). DCR basically forces the monitor to change brightness and contrast based on what is being displayed. In a dark scene the monitor becomes brighter and contrast goes up, in bright scenes the brightness is toned down as well as the contrast. If find it extremely annoying and very misleading. So when you see a monitor advertised withe 20,000:1 or 5 million:1 DCR be wary or just ignore that figure because it does not mean anything.

The downside of VA panels is that they have slower response times than TN (as fast as 2ms), and IPS panels (as fast as 5ms). VA panel monitors typically have 8ms or slower response time. 8ms is still fast enough to play games, but hardcore gamers prefer lower response times. The problem is there are not very many VA monitors.

IPS monitors; especially the more expensive H-IPS, S-IPS and P-IPS monitors represents the best of both worlds. Good colors, very little color shifting until you get to extreme angles (same with VA Panels), and fast response times as low as 5ms. So they are good for both games and movies. The downside is price, they range from what most people would likely consider expensive $500+ to extremely expensive (easily $1000+). For the price that bought my 25.5" NEC LCD2690WUXi monitor, I could almost buy 7 Asus VH242H monitors.

The e-IPS panel is the less expensive version of IPS panels and you'll see them in many monitor that costs around $175 or more. They are like half TN panel and half "true" IPS panel. Color shifting is not as dramatic as TN panels, but not as consistent as IPS or VA panels. Response times are at best 5ms (like the other more expensive IPS panels), but no worse than 8ms. How's e-IPS's contrast? Don't know enough to make a general statement. Generally, better for movies than TN panels. While not as fast as 2ms response times, many gamers do not seem to make too much of a fuss about 5ms compared to 8ms response times. e-IPS panel monitors are also very inexpensive; able to compete with all but the cheapest TN panel monitors in terms of price.

 

[Griever114]

what type of monitors you choose depends on what your preferences are.

there are tn, va and e-ips and ips panels out there. tn is the only panel type with 120hz/3d capability currently but is also the worst in terms of color accuracy and in some cases have significant color shifting. e-ips panels have a wide viewing angle so you do not get the color shifting. better ips panels offer improved color accuracy.

a tn or va panel is going to be the cheapest option.

--

for blueray you want 1920x1080 resolution.

for dual monitors you will want both to be the same resolution, physical size and brand. this will eliminate any potential irritations later on.

is your system capable of using two 120hz monitors? or is it only capable of using one (or two 60hz monitors). check your video card outputs. 120hz requires dual link dvi. can your system generate decent framerates in D3 or other games you play at 1920x1080? ideally on 120hz you want 120fps and on 60hz you want at least 60fps. what your hardware is capable of will influence your decision.

--

when i have used dual monitors for gaming the game always fullscreens on one monitor. i limit the windows taskbar to one screen though which may affect this. different display settings could affect programs differently. a fullscreen game however will lock your cursor to one screen causing you not to be able to use the other screen.

to fix this all games you play will need to be "windowed". ie, showing the windows frame and top title bar with minimize, maximize, close. while it might seem like an irritation at first, you get used to it. when swapping screens you may have to click on the game window to continue playing (the game will continue to run though as if you were giving zero input). since you will be watching videos you would just click a video and click the game again to continue playing. a slight irritation but its not terrible.

i have dual 580 gt's in sli and a core i7 2600k @ 3.8

will this monitor be a good upgrade?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236052

I currently use a 24IN(24in viewable) E248WFP Flat Panel Display.

any help?

 

[ssddx]

i cannot view shopping links here...

from what i can tell by a quick search of your current monitor you have a 24" dell tn panel.

first decide if you want 120hz or not. if no, then any va, ips or IPS would be an upgrade. personally i prefer high end monitors but this is your choice.

if you do want 120hz then you need to consult your video card specs to see if they can handle dual link dvi. most new cards should.

--

for the type of gaming you do i dont see much of a point in 120hz and would suggest a monitor with a better viewing angle. especially for dualscreening. this means va, ips or IPS. also, avoid led backlighting unless you plan to buy a high end monitor as cheaper ones can have a blue/purple hue to them.

 

[Griever114]

i cannot view shopping links here...

from what i can tell by a quick search of your current monitor you have a 24" dell tn panel.

first decide if you want 120hz or not. if no, then any va, ips or IPS would be an upgrade. personally i prefer high end monitors but this is your choice.

if you do want 120hz then you need to consult your video card specs to see if they can handle dual link dvi. most new cards should.

--

for the type of gaming you do i dont see much of a point in 120hz and would suggest a monitor with a better viewing angle. especially for dualscreening. this means va, ips or IPS. also, avoid led backlighting unless you plan to buy a high end monitor as cheaper ones can have a blue/purple hue to them.

These are the two monitors i was looking to dual-setup but cannot choose between them. There is a $20 prices difference and the only difference I see is the more expensive one is 2ms response time vs the cheaper 5ms response time.

$179 - ASUS VH242H Black 23.6" 5ms HDMI Full 1080P Widescreen LCD Monitor
$199 - ASUS VW246H Glossy Black 24" 2ms(GTG) HDMI Widescreen LCD Monitor

Thoughts?

 

[ssddx]

what type of screen coating does the first have?

also are both 60hz?

glossy coatings make colors more vidid but have the downside of creating quite a bit of glare with ambient light sources. bad positioning of lighting could cause a rather painful glare and eye strain depending on placement.

ideally you would go to a store to compare the two before you buy. if you cannot then search for reviews online. it is pretty hard to give an exact comparison of every single model online which is why normally we stick to generic recommendations and specific models which we have used ourselves.

 

[Griever114]

Best answer selected by Griever114.