1080p vs 1440p vs 4k, which is better for gaming?

[andy_castillo]

What do you recommend? I want to hear your own opinions, especially those who have tested different monitors and Hz. It is optional, but what components is needed for the resolution and Hz?

 

[constantine_99]

for enjoying the view and productivity, higher resolution is prefered

but for e-sport play, especially games like CSGO, the lower the better, as higher resolution makes everything smaller

it's up to your preference and needs

component that are required are obviously a GPU meant for the resolution, and adequate system to make sure no bottleneck occurs

roughly it's like this... i think:
1050ti and any equivalent rival GPU below = med 1080p@60 and high any resolution below
1060 and their equivalent rival GPU = high 1080p@60
1070 and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1080p@60 / 1080p@144 / 1440p@60
1080 and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1440p@60 / 1440p@144
1080ti and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1440@144 / 4k@60

personally if i can, i would buy the 4k monitor instead, since resolution can be set on the software so even with a 4k monitor i can still use 1080p when i want to play competitive games like CSGO etc and use the 4k resolution when i want to walk around in skyrim / doing some productivity work.

however, it's all still a far-fetched dream
as even now, i still playing on 1366x768, with a borrowed monitor no less

 

[andy_castillo]

for enjoying the view and productivity, higher resolution is prefered

but for e-sport play, especially games like CSGO, the lower the better, as higher resolution makes everything smaller

it's up to your preference and needs

component that are required are obviously a GPU meant for the resolution, and adequate system to make sure no bottleneck occurs

roughly it's like this... i think:
1050ti and any equivalent rival GPU below = med 1080p@60 and high any resolution below
1060 and their equivalent rival GPU = high 1080p@60
1070 and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1080p@60 / 1080p@144 / 1440p@60
1080 and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1440p@60 / 1440p@144
1080ti and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1440@144 / 4k@60

personally if i can, i would buy the 4k monitor instead, since resolution can be set on the software so even with a 4k monitor i can still use 1080p when i want to play competitive games like CSGO etc and use the 4k resolution when i want to walk around in skyrim / doing some productivity work.

however, it's all still a far-fetched dream
as even now, i still playing on 1366x768, with a borrowed monitor no less

If I buy a monitor 4K I can put the resolution in 1440p/144Hz? Or I need a 4K 144Hz ?

 

[constantine_99]

for enjoying the view and productivity, higher resolution is prefered

but for e-sport play, especially games like CSGO, the lower the better, as higher resolution makes everything smaller

it's up to your preference and needs

component that are required are obviously a GPU meant for the resolution, and adequate system to make sure no bottleneck occurs

roughly it's like this... i think:
1050ti and any equivalent rival GPU below = med 1080p@60 and high any resolution below
1060 and their equivalent rival GPU = high 1080p@60
1070 and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1080p@60 / 1080p@144 / 1440p@60
1080 and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1440p@60 / 1440p@144
1080ti and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1440@144 / 4k@60

personally if i can, i would buy the 4k monitor instead, since resolution can be set on the software so even with a 4k monitor i can still use 1080p when i want to play competitive games like CSGO etc and use the 4k resolution when i want to walk around in skyrim / doing some productivity work.

however, it's all still a far-fetched dream
as even now, i still playing on 1366x768, with a borrowed monitor no less

If I buy a monitor 4K I can put the resolution in 1440p/144Hz? Or I need a 4K 144Hz ?

I don't think there's a 4k 144hz monitor yet, as there's still no GPU that can perform to that fps
For the 1440p@144, I dunno, perhaps it can, but as I said, I never had a 4k monitor so I don't know for sure

 

[10tacle]

That's an excellent general guide by constantine. But a 60Hz 4K monitor will still only run at 60Hz no matter the resolution setting. At least the ones that are out currently anyway. Also, always run the monitor at its native resolution. If you want to lower the resolution setting for more FPS, then lower it in the game settings. Never do so at the desktop level.

 

[andy_castillo]

for enjoying the view and productivity, higher resolution is prefered

but for e-sport play, especially games like CSGO, the lower the better, as higher resolution makes everything smaller

it's up to your preference and needs

component that are required are obviously a GPU meant for the resolution, and adequate system to make sure no bottleneck occurs

roughly it's like this... i think:
1050ti and any equivalent rival GPU below = med 1080p@60 and high any resolution below
1060 and their equivalent rival GPU = high 1080p@60
1070 and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1080p@60 / 1080p@144 / 1440p@60
1080 and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1440p@60 / 1440p@144
1080ti and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1440@144 / 4k@60

personally if i can, i would buy the 4k monitor instead, since resolution can be set on the software so even with a 4k monitor i can still use 1080p when i want to play competitive games like CSGO etc and use the 4k resolution when i want to walk around in skyrim / doing some productivity work.

however, it's all still a far-fetched dream
as even now, i still playing on 1366x768, with a borrowed monitor no less

If I buy a monitor 4K I can put the resolution in 1440p/144Hz? Or I need a 4K 144Hz ?

I don't think there's a 4k 144hz monitor yet, as there's still no GPU that can perform to that fps
For the 1440p@144, I dunno, perhaps it can, but as I said, I never had a 4k monitor so I don't know for sure

I see Asus made a Monitor 4k 144Hz.

 

[10tacle]

^^Acer has one as well. Both have been delayed until 2018 due to technical issues:

http://www.pcgamer.com/asus-and-acer-delay-feature-rich-4k-144hz-monitors-with-hdr-until-2018/

But I don't see the need for this because even a 1080 Ti SLI setup will not run current AAA games at 4K at 100+ FPS to take advantage of those monitor frequency speeds. Now next year's Volta from Nvidia may change that.

 

[constantine_99]

That's an excellent general guide by constantine. But a 60Hz 4K monitor will still only run at 60Hz no matter the resolution setting. At least the ones that are out currently anyway. Also, always run the monitor at its native resolution. If you want to lower the resolution setting for more FPS, then lower it in the game settings. Never do so at the desktop level.

i need to ask something then
the monitor i borrowed right now had native resolution of 1366x768@60hz
but when i lower the resolution to 1024x768, i can change the refresh rate up to 75hz, why's that?

 

[ko888]

I see Asus made a Monitor 4k 144Hz.

You're willing to pay $2,000 for that monitor?

 

[andy_castillo]

That's an excellent general guide by constantine. But a 60Hz 4K monitor will still only run at 60Hz no matter the resolution setting. At least the ones that are out currently anyway. Also, always run the monitor at its native resolution. If you want to lower the resolution setting for more FPS, then lower it in the game settings. Never do so at the desktop level.

i need to ask something then
the monitor i borrowed right now had native resolution of 1366x768@60hz
but when i lower the resolution to 1024x768, i can change the refresh rate up to 75hz, why's that?

Thats happend to me lol

 

[10tacle]

the monitor i borrowed right now had native resolution of 1366x768@60hz
but when i lower the resolution to 1024x768, i can change the refresh rate up to 75hz, why's that?

Some monitors have that capability, but usually it's the lower resolution monitors. I've seen 1080p monitors that allow running at 75Hz at 1280x1024. You can also try overclocking a 60Hz monitor at native manually with a custom resolution setting in the Nvidia control panel like 1920x1080 @ 75Hz, but that is not recommended and can degrade the panel over time.

But back to running at a lower non-native desktop resolution, some people aren't bothered by the inferior texture quality (fuzzy lettering, fuzzy pictures, etc.) for higher refresh rate. It's up to the panel maker to allow that to happen in the monitor's firmware for their monitor and the graphics adapter to make a "handshake" (officially supported).

 

[constantine_99]

That's an excellent general guide by constantine. But a 60Hz 4K monitor will still only run at 60Hz no matter the resolution setting. At least the ones that are out currently anyway. Also, always run the monitor at its native resolution. If you want to lower the resolution setting for more FPS, then lower it in the game settings. Never do so at the desktop level.

i need to ask something then
the monitor i borrowed right now had native resolution of 1366x768@60hz
but when i lower the resolution to 1024x768, i can change the refresh rate up to 75hz, why's that?

Thats happend to me lol

that's why i theorized that it might be possible in the first place...
and that's also why i asked the guy who had better knowledge than me to explain it so later on i can explain it to the other when they asked me the same question

 

[andy_castillo]

I see Asus made a Monitor 4k 144Hz.

You're willing to pay $2,000 for that monitor?

The monitor is on 1000-1500$, probably in your country thats your price. But nah, for the moment, I don't buy that monitor.

 

[constantine_99]

the monitor i borrowed right now had native resolution of 1366x768@60hz
but when i lower the resolution to 1024x768, i can change the refresh rate up to 75hz, why's that?

Some monitors have that capability, but usually it's the lower resolution monitors. I've seen 1080p monitors that allow running at 75Hz at 1280x1024. You can also try overclocking a 60Hz monitor at native manually with a custom resolution setting in the Nvidia control panel like 1920x1080 @ 75Hz, but that is not recommended and can degrade the panel over time.

But back to running at a lower non-native desktop resolution, some people aren't bothered by the inferior texture quality (fuzzy lettering, fuzzy pictures, etc.) for higher refresh rate. It's up to the panel maker to allow that to happen in the monitor's firmware.

i see, so it almost works like an Overclock huh? (going over the listed spec, chance of shortening the hardware's age)
thanks for explaining that to me appreciate it dude

btw @OP
i don't think a monitor priced at 1k$ is worth buying, unless u're a hardcore enthusiast with a shitload of money (which something i'm not) they might say otherwise
i would already bow down and kiss the ground if i can have 1k$ to build my PC in the first place Y(ToT)Y

i mean, when my father said he gonna give me a PC for gaming, what i get is a 2nd gen pentium + a GT 630....
and i had to spend my whole vacation just to work at my mom's office and save up for a 1050ti, skip almost every lunch to save up for getting an i5 2400, and skip every dinner to save the money for a new mouse + keyboard

*me venting up all my feelings*

 

[turbopixel]

personally if i can, i would buy the 4k monitor instead, since resolution can be set on the software so even with a 4k monitor i can still use 1080p when i want to play competitive games like CSGO etc

Partially true, as lowering the resolution from native can make up blurry images. Not all monitors have good algorithms for downscaling.

 

[constantine_99]

personally if i can, i would buy the 4k monitor instead, since resolution can be set on the software so even with a 4k monitor i can still use 1080p when i want to play competitive games like CSGO etc

Partially true, as lowering the resolution from native can make up blurry images. Not all monitors have good algorithms for downscaling.

now i know the reason why enthusiast build a multi-display i always wonder what's the necessity of getting an extra monitor

thanks for the enlightenment

 

[Glenwing]

That's an excellent general guide by constantine. But a 60Hz 4K monitor will still only run at 60Hz no matter the resolution setting. At least the ones that are out currently anyway. Also, always run the monitor at its native resolution. If you want to lower the resolution setting for more FPS, then lower it in the game settings. Never do so at the desktop level.

i need to ask something then
the monitor i borrowed right now had native resolution of 1366x768@60hz
but when i lower the resolution to 1024x768, i can change the refresh rate up to 75hz, why's that?

Thats happend to me lol

that's why i theorized that it might be possible in the first place...
and that's also why i asked the guy who had better knowledge than me to explain it so later on i can explain it to the other when they asked me the same question

It's not theoretically impossible, but it hasn't been done on any 4K monitors that I'm aware, except one NEC 4K monitor that could do 1080p 120 Hz (the PA322UHD) but it's not exactly meant for normal consumers (it's $3000).

 

[turbopixel]

@constantine_99
I am not exactly sure what you mean. Because I am referring to single monitor with say 4k native resolution. Depending on the monitor, lowering the resolution can be a little blurry (like on my 1440p monitor). Native resolution is crisp clear in comparison to that. I don't say every monitor works like this.

 

[constantine_99]

@constantine_99
I am not exactly sure what you mean. Because I am referring to single monitor with say 4k native resolution. Depending on the monitor, lowering the resolution can be a little blurry (like on my 1440p monitor). Native resolution is crisp clear in comparison to that. I don't say every monitor works like this.

i meant: now i know why enthusiast had 4k monitor accompanied with 2 1080p monitor or stuff like that
so that they won't have to lower the 4k's native resolution when they need the 1080p
(example: if they suddenly miss CSGO and wants to play it, they can just use the 1080p monitor, instead of playing it on the 4k monitor, lowering the resolution, and gets a blurry display)

PS: sorry if i suck at making example, i hope u get the gist of what im trying to say

 

[turbopixel]

Yes, everything fine.
My native language is German and I downscale to English btw. ;-)

 

[constantine_99]

Yes, everything fine.
My native language is German and I downscale to English btw. ;-)

downscale XD
we're on the same boat then mate
english is not my native language too

 

[10tacle]

Yes, everything fine.
My native language is German and I downscale to English btw. ;-)

Well as an American, I can assure you that your English as a German is better than many if not MOST Americans here. :lol:

 

[madmatt30]

To be fair most (not all) 4k screens will downscale to 1080p absolutely fine & you won't see a quality loss.

This is down to them having 1 to 1 pixel mapping (4k is exactly 4 x 1080p resolution) .

 

[strategist421]

for enjoying the view and productivity, higher resolution is prefered

but for e-sport play, especially games like CSGO, the lower the better, as higher resolution makes everything smaller

it's up to your preference and needs

component that are required are obviously a GPU meant for the resolution, and adequate system to make sure no bottleneck occurs

roughly it's like this... i think:
1050ti and any equivalent rival GPU below = med 1080p@60 and high any resolution below
1060 and their equivalent rival GPU = high 1080p@60
1070 and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1080p@60 / 1080p@144 / 1440p@60
1080 and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1440p@60 / 1440p@144
1080ti and their equivalent rival GPU = ultra 1440@144 / 4k@60

personally if i can, i would buy the 4k monitor instead, since resolution can be set on the software so even with a 4k monitor i can still use 1080p when i want to play competitive games like CSGO etc and use the 4k resolution when i want to walk around in skyrim / doing some productivity work.

however, it's all still a far-fetched dream
as even now, i still playing on 1366x768, with a borrowed monitor no less

If I buy a monitor 4K I can put the resolution in 1440p/144Hz? Or I need a 4K 144Hz ?

You can always turn the resolution down but you cannot raise the refresh rate of a monitor.