Help with choosing a monitor

[nenesbe]

Hello guys,

Last December I finally built a gaming PC and have been catching up on all the games I missed such as Arkham Knight, Dark Souls 3, Outlast 2 etc. But I feel like my current 1080p 60hz LG tv is not doing justice to my PC. So I decided to improve it.

My specs are 1070 GTX, 16 gb ram and i5-8600K. With this rig, I didn't have any visible, if at all, performance drops on those games with settings on Ultra quality. Games I intend to play are Witcher 3, RE7, DOOM and a variety of upcoming games. With that said, what kind of monitor should I go for? My knowledge is not much beyond resolution and refresh rate and I definitely wanna play at around 120 fps. Would it be able to run games on 4k? Or would I have to lower it down to like 2k? Basically what would be my best improvement without compromising too much from quality?

Thanks

 

[firebird1133]

Well in short, it depends. First off while you stated that you would like to game at ~120FPS (i get it, it looks truly beautiful) you just aren't going to be able to achieve that frame-rate at 4K on games with your system. The 1070 is more of a 1440p card if you want 120FPS but can run games at 4K if you don't mind your frame-rate dropping under 60 or the low graphical settings you will likely need to use when running games at that resolution.

OP can you clear up for me if having 120-144 fps game-play is essential to you? And if you would use a 4k screen for other things (such as YouTube or other 4K media) enough to make it worth the extra $$$?

 

[J_E_D_70]

1440p/144hz/gsync is the way to go on a 1070. Dell S2716DG is the value champ with those specs.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0149QBOF0/?tag=pcpapi-20

 

[nenesbe]

@firebird1133

It's not so much as essentiality - I am not a professional gamer or anything. It's just a luxury I would like to have after years of using a low-end rig. But if I absolutely had to choose between 1080/120 or 1440/60, I would go with the latter.

As for other media, I do use Youtube, Twitch etc. but given my sub-par internet connection, I almost never use them on HD quality. So that's that.

 

[firebird1133]

@firebird1133

It's not so much as essentiality - I am not a professional gamer or anything. It's just a luxury I would like to have after years of using a low-end rig. But if I absolutely had to choose between 1080/120 or 1440/60, I would go with the latter.

As for other media, I do use Youtube, Twitch etc. but given my sub-par internet connection, I almost never use them on HD quality. So that's that.

Is budget an issue or are you willing to spend an extra buck to have 4K still an option when starting up your games/Media?

 

[nenesbe]

@firebird1133

It's not so much as essentiality - I am not a professional gamer or anything. It's just a luxury I would like to have after years of using a low-end rig. But if I absolutely had to choose between 1080/120 or 1440/60, I would go with the latter.

As for other media, I do use Youtube, Twitch etc. but given my sub-par internet connection, I almost never use them on HD quality. So that's that.

Is budget an issue or are you willing to spend an extra buck to have 4K still an option when starting up your games/Media?

Not really an issue.

Also kinda related: is it possible for me to use another graphics card in tandem with the current one to boost performance. For example, would I be able to use a newer gpu together with my current 1070 after 2 years of use?

 

[firebird1133]

@firebird1133

It's not so much as essentiality - I am not a professional gamer or anything. It's just a luxury I would like to have after years of using a low-end rig. But if I absolutely had to choose between 1080/120 or 1440/60, I would go with the latter.

As for other media, I do use Youtube, Twitch etc. but given my sub-par internet connection, I almost never use them on HD quality. So that's that.

Is budget an issue or are you willing to spend an extra buck to have 4K still an option when starting up your games/Media?

Not really an issue.

Also kinda related: is it possible for me to use another graphics card in tandem with the current one to boost performance. For example, would I be able to use a newer gpu together with my current 1070 after 2 years of use?

OK well that makes it easier but there are issues with just buying a 4K monitor and downscaling to 1440p to get those frames up to 120 per second, downscaling can be finicky and in some cases 1080p will look better than 1440p so i would recommend a 1440p 144hz monitor for your setup even with price not being an issue. Your 1070 should be able to deliver the ~120fps you want @ 1440p consistently with some in game settings tweaks, 1440 is just a good middle-ground and match for your card. For the more intensive games that you feel like keeping the 120 FPS edge on you can always downscale to 1080 since 1440 downscaling works significantly better than 4K downscaling.

About your question for adding another GPU to your rig, Yes you can add an extra card even if its new, to your system and run them in SLI as long as its another identically specced or (better yet) an identical 1070. Although this is an option I would not recommend it since SLI does NOT scale 100% (more like 30%) and it changes game to game with some not supporting multi GPU at all. A better option if you want to upgrade your GPU is to sell it (used GTX 1070's will easily go for 600$ right now) and use the profit to go towards a card like the GTX 1080 ti for a much larger and more consistent gain for a lower price than buying another 1070.

Here is a link to the gains you would see with a 1080 ti: http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-1070-vs-Nvidia-GTX-1080-Ti/3609vs3918
Edit: scroll down the page to see the gain in FPS.

 

[nenesbe]

@firebird1133

It's not so much as essentiality - I am not a professional gamer or anything. It's just a luxury I would like to have after years of using a low-end rig. But if I absolutely had to choose between 1080/120 or 1440/60, I would go with the latter.

As for other media, I do use Youtube, Twitch etc. but given my sub-par internet connection, I almost never use them on HD quality. So that's that.

Is budget an issue or are you willing to spend an extra buck to have 4K still an option when starting up your games/Media?

Not really an issue.

Also kinda related: is it possible for me to use another graphics card in tandem with the current one to boost performance. For example, would I be able to use a newer gpu together with my current 1070 after 2 years of use?

OK well that makes it easier but there are issues with just buying a 4K monitor and downscaling to 1440p to get those frames up to 120 per second, downscaling can be finicky and in some cases 1080p will look better than 1440p so i would recommend a 1440p 144hz monitor for your setup even with price not being an issue. Your 1070 should be able to deliver the ~120fps you want @ 1440p consistently with some in game settings tweaks, 1440 is just a good middle-ground and match for your card. For the more intensive games that you feel like keeping the 120 FPS edge on you can always downscale to 1080 since 1440 downscaling works significantly better than 4K downscaling.

About your question for adding another GPU to your rig, Yes you can add an extra card even if its new, to your system and run them in SLI as long as its another identically specced or (better yet) an identical 1070. Although this is an option I would not recommend it since SLI does NOT scale 100% (more like 30%) and it changes game to game with some not supporting multi GPU at all. A better option if you want to upgrade your GPU is to sell it (used GTX 1070's will easily go for 600$ right now) and use the profit to go towards a card like the GTX 1080 ti for a much larger and more consistent gain for a lower price than buying another 1070.

Here is a link to the gains you would see with a 1080 ti: http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-1070-vs-Nvidia-GTX-1080-Ti/3609vs3918
Edit: scroll down the page to see the gain in FPS.

Oh, I definitely dont consider changing my gpu, at least for now. I just bought it last december.

One last question before I decide: how much of an fps loss are we talking about at 4k? Would it run around ~60 or much lower?

 

[firebird1133]

@firebird1133

It's not so much as essentiality - I am not a professional gamer or anything. It's just a luxury I would like to have after years of using a low-end rig. But if I absolutely had to choose between 1080/120 or 1440/60, I would go with the latter.

As for other media, I do use Youtube, Twitch etc. but given my sub-par internet connection, I almost never use them on HD quality. So that's that.

Is budget an issue or are you willing to spend an extra buck to have 4K still an option when starting up your games/Media?

Not really an issue.

Also kinda related: is it possible for me to use another graphics card in tandem with the current one to boost performance. For example, would I be able to use a newer gpu together with my current 1070 after 2 years of use?

OK well that makes it easier but there are issues with just buying a 4K monitor and downscaling to 1440p to get those frames up to 120 per second, downscaling can be finicky and in some cases 1080p will look better than 1440p so i would recommend a 1440p 144hz monitor for your setup even with price not being an issue. Your 1070 should be able to deliver the ~120fps you want @ 1440p consistently with some in game settings tweaks, 1440 is just a good middle-ground and match for your card. For the more intensive games that you feel like keeping the 120 FPS edge on you can always downscale to 1080 since 1440 downscaling works significantly better than 4K downscaling.

About your question for adding another GPU to your rig, Yes you can add an extra card even if its new, to your system and run them in SLI as long as its another identically specced or (better yet) an identical 1070. Although this is an option I would not recommend it since SLI does NOT scale 100% (more like 30%) and it changes game to game with some not supporting multi GPU at all. A better option if you want to upgrade your GPU is to sell it (used GTX 1070's will easily go for 600$ right now) and use the profit to go towards a card like the GTX 1080 ti for a much larger and more consistent gain for a lower price than buying another 1070.

Here is a link to the gains you would see with a 1080 ti: http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-1070-vs-Nvidia-GTX-1080-Ti/3609vs3918
Edit: scroll down the page to see the gain in FPS.

Oh, I definitely dont consider changing my gpu, at least for now. I just bought it last december.

One last question before I decide: how much of an fps loss are we talking about at 4k? Would it run around ~60 or much lower?

You can look it up on YouTube for specific games. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt for instance will run at just over 30 FPS with settings at medium, whereas Battlefeild 1 can hit over 60 FPS with ultra settings no problem.
although i would much rather play at 1440p with those 100 frames.

 

[nenesbe]

@firebird1133

It's not so much as essentiality - I am not a professional gamer or anything. It's just a luxury I would like to have after years of using a low-end rig. But if I absolutely had to choose between 1080/120 or 1440/60, I would go with the latter.

As for other media, I do use Youtube, Twitch etc. but given my sub-par internet connection, I almost never use them on HD quality. So that's that.

Is budget an issue or are you willing to spend an extra buck to have 4K still an option when starting up your games/Media?

Not really an issue.

Also kinda related: is it possible for me to use another graphics card in tandem with the current one to boost performance. For example, would I be able to use a newer gpu together with my current 1070 after 2 years of use?

OK well that makes it easier but there are issues with just buying a 4K monitor and downscaling to 1440p to get those frames up to 120 per second, downscaling can be finicky and in some cases 1080p will look better than 1440p so i would recommend a 1440p 144hz monitor for your setup even with price not being an issue. Your 1070 should be able to deliver the ~120fps you want @ 1440p consistently with some in game settings tweaks, 1440 is just a good middle-ground and match for your card. For the more intensive games that you feel like keeping the 120 FPS edge on you can always downscale to 1080 since 1440 downscaling works significantly better than 4K downscaling.

About your question for adding another GPU to your rig, Yes you can add an extra card even if its new, to your system and run them in SLI as long as its another identically specced or (better yet) an identical 1070. Although this is an option I would not recommend it since SLI does NOT scale 100% (more like 30%) and it changes game to game with some not supporting multi GPU at all. A better option if you want to upgrade your GPU is to sell it (used GTX 1070's will easily go for 600$ right now) and use the profit to go towards a card like the GTX 1080 ti for a much larger and more consistent gain for a lower price than buying another 1070.

Here is a link to the gains you would see with a 1080 ti: http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-1070-vs-Nvidia-GTX-1080-Ti/3609vs3918
Edit: scroll down the page to see the gain in FPS.

Oh, I definitely dont consider changing my gpu, at least for now. I just bought it last december.

One last question before I decide: how much of an fps loss are we talking about at 4k? Would it run around ~60 or much lower?

You can look it up on YouTube for specific games. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt for instance will run at just over 30 FPS with settings at medium, whereas Battlefeild 1 can hit over 60 FPS with ultra settings no problem.
although i would much rather play at 1440p with those 100 frames.

Alright, got it. Thank you so much.

 

[firebird1133]

@firebird1133

It's not so much as essentiality - I am not a professional gamer or anything. It's just a luxury I would like to have after years of using a low-end rig. But if I absolutely had to choose between 1080/120 or 1440/60, I would go with the latter.

As for other media, I do use Youtube, Twitch etc. but given my sub-par internet connection, I almost never use them on HD quality. So that's that.

Is budget an issue or are you willing to spend an extra buck to have 4K still an option when starting up your games/Media?

Not really an issue.

Also kinda related: is it possible for me to use another graphics card in tandem with the current one to boost performance. For example, would I be able to use a newer gpu together with my current 1070 after 2 years of use?

OK well that makes it easier but there are issues with just buying a 4K monitor and downscaling to 1440p to get those frames up to 120 per second, downscaling can be finicky and in some cases 1080p will look better than 1440p so i would recommend a 1440p 144hz monitor for your setup even with price not being an issue. Your 1070 should be able to deliver the ~120fps you want @ 1440p consistently with some in game settings tweaks, 1440 is just a good middle-ground and match for your card. For the more intensive games that you feel like keeping the 120 FPS edge on you can always downscale to 1080 since 1440 downscaling works significantly better than 4K downscaling.

About your question for adding another GPU to your rig, Yes you can add an extra card even if its new, to your system and run them in SLI as long as its another identically specced or (better yet) an identical 1070. Although this is an option I would not recommend it since SLI does NOT scale 100% (more like 30%) and it changes game to game with some not supporting multi GPU at all. A better option if you want to upgrade your GPU is to sell it (used GTX 1070's will easily go for 600$ right now) and use the profit to go towards a card like the GTX 1080 ti for a much larger and more consistent gain for a lower price than buying another 1070.

Here is a link to the gains you would see with a 1080 ti: http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-1070-vs-Nvidia-GTX-1080-Ti/3609vs3918
Edit: scroll down the page to see the gain in FPS.

Oh, I definitely dont consider changing my gpu, at least for now. I just bought it last december.

One last question before I decide: how much of an fps loss are we talking about at 4k? Would it run around ~60 or much lower?

You can look it up on YouTube for specific games. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt for instance will run at just over 30 FPS with settings at medium, whereas Battlefeild 1 can hit over 60 FPS with ultra settings no problem.
although i would much rather play at 1440p with those 100 frames.

Alright, got it. Thank you so much.

No problem! hope you're satisfied with what you buy.