1440p IPS G Sync Wide Gamut Monitor affordable?

[cgipperich]

Hey all! Just dove into the world of buying a new monitor after upgrading my rig and am a little dizzy after all the factors I've just newly discovered. Wondering if I can get some feedback on what I really need for what I'll be using it for so I don't spend more than I need to. I have a Geforce GTX 980 as my GPU.

First, what I'll be using it for. I do professional video and photo editing, but I also am a serious gamer. From what I understand now, its a little hard to blend these worlds together while keeping cost now, so I need some advice on what I should look for to make the best of both worlds.

I'm stalking newegg's November deals like a hawk so I want to know exactly what I'm looking for so that I can snatch something for a sale price when it pops up.

What I'm looking for (please correct me if any of these seem off):

Monitor type: LED IPS. I've read about more accurate color representation and wider viewing angles that IPS monitors have so I'm going to be firm on buying one. Accurate and uniform colors are extremely important to me as an editor.

Resolution: 1440p. I want something a little more than 1080p because my card can handle it, and there seems to be a lot of well priced options for this resolution. 4k is too expensive and more than I need.

Refresh rate: either 120hz or 144hz. I'd like to know about the difference between the two and how much the prices differ. Will everything look like a soap opera? Is higher better for gaming?

Response time: I know this is where IPS monitors suffer. However I really don't have a good frame of reference as to what makes a "good" or "bad" response time. So 2ms vs 5ms really doesn't mean much to me. What should I look for?

Connector: Display port.

G-Sync: This is totally new to me. I understand this helps a lot with gaming but I'm wondering how it factors in with editing purposes. Also how does this impact the price? How does it factor in with response time and refresh rate?

Color Gamut: Once again, color representation and available color space is incredibly important. I've looked at graphs of percentages of color space that monitors can capture and I'm wondering what I should look for. Adobe RGB? sRGB? Adobe RGB+?

Backlight Type: Seems to me that LED is the best for contrast, energy efficiency, and luminance but maybe I'm wrong.

Color Depth: 8 bit? 10bit? I'm assuming the more, the better.

Aspect Ratio: 16:9

Size: I'm a bit flexible on this one. I'm upgrading from a 17 inch so literally anything will be impressive. Id like to stick with 25-27 inches and I've seen a lot of options in this range. However if going down means a better quality screen and a lower price then I will go for it.

Final Price: I'd like to keep it under $400. I'm hoping this will be possible through stalking newegg's daily deals and cyber Monday deals.


I think that about covers all of the different factors. I have a general idea of what I need but I'd like to hone in on the specifics. Any help is much appreciated and I will be sure to respond to any posts in a timely manner.

Thanks!

 

[Darkseiders]

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/acer-monitor-xb270hubprz How about this? I don't know your budget. Did you want an ultrawide?

 

[cgipperich]

Darkseiders,

Thanks for the reply. I'm sorry I neglected to put my price range in my post. I'd like to keep it under $400 if I could. I'm not completely sure how hard that will be given the specifications that I'm shooting for. Is $400 unrealistic? I'm also hunting newegg's deals so maybe something this expensive will drop down to my range one day randomly? Also, 16:9 is totally fine for me.

P.s. in the specifications, there wasn't much information pertaining to all of the factors that I'm looking for. Do you know where I could find out all of that information?

 

[Darkseiders]

Just click the links in the pricing section. The $400 range for a 144hz 1440p IPS display isn't realistic. If you want to go 60hz or TN, then your options start to open up a little.

 

[cgipperich]

Just click the links in the pricing section. The $400 range for a 144hz 1440p IPS display isn't realistic. If you want to go 60hz or TN, then your options start to open up a little.

What areas do you think I can afford to slim down without hurting myself too much?

 

[Darkseiders]

Depends on if color reproduction and viewing angles are more important, or if refresh rate and response time are.

 

[cgipperich]

Depends on if color reproduction and viewing angles are more important, or if refresh rate and response time are.

I suppose this is going to be difficult as I'd imagined. I'd say, seeing as video and photo editing is what I do for a living, that is the area I would rather concentrate on. Gaming is important to be as well, but currently I have a small, 720p 60hz monitor and it's not too terrible. Color reproduction and accuracy is the main factor of what I need from this monitor, while 100hz or better refresh rate, G-Sync, 5ms or less response time, and 1440p resolution is also what I would like to have.

 

[Darkseiders]

Acer G257HU smidpx 25" 4ms IPS 1440p 60Hz: $270
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009728&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-PCPartPicker,%20LLC-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

 

[cgipperich]

That one is close for sure. Do you know of any that have these specs but G-Sync or 100/120hz for a little more money?

 

[Darkseiders]

If a little bit more money is almost double the cost of that one, yes. I would assume not, so no.

 

[cgipperich]

Let's see it.

 

[Darkseiders]

It's currently sold out, but it is a very popular monitor. It is a freesync monitor, but it is 144hz. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236466&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-PCPartPicker,%20LLC-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

It is $700 for basically the same thing except g sync. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009742&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-PCPartPicker,%20LLC-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

 

[cgipperich]

Gosh that price increase is significant. I'm assuming free sync does not work with my GPU correct?

 

[Darkseiders]

IF (and that's a very, very big if) free sync is accepted as a standard in frame syncing, then MAYBE it will work. But just maybe. Short answer? No, it isn't compatible.

 

[cgipperich]

So it seems I'm going to have to cut some corners on what I was originally looking for, which is to be expected. I'm looking at that Acer monitor you sent me and I like everything except for the refresh rate. Personally, do you see any problems with gaming on 60 Hertz? I know the most serious gamer in the world so what the jump to 100 or 120 or 140 hertz really be that detrimental?

 

[Darkseiders]

I personally have never games on/ used a 144hz monitor, but the thing is, that if your gpu can't output more than 60fps, you won't notice the difference. However, I'm told using a 144hz monitor on a game running at 144+ fps vs. 60hz is like night and day, seeing as the visible fps is more than 2x that of a 60hz. For all intents and purposes, I think you should just buy a good 144hz TN, as they would be cheaper. Along with the other one, that is.

 

[cgipperich]

Is there a big difference in color representation, luminance and color fall off when it comes to a TN monitor versus an IPS monitor? Is that going to hurt me a lot when it comes to editing?

 

[Suzuki@1473780084@1473780163]

If you can work with histogram and waveform then no, won't hurt your workflow much. If you can't, then don't buy anything but IPS.

 

[cgipperich]

So I'm looking at this monitor currently:http://m.newegg.com/Product/index?itemnumber=N82E16824009728

I wish the refresh rate was higher but, as we discovered, that drives up the price quite a bit. Also, 16.7 million colors represented....I've seen a few that are over a billion but I'm wondering if you guys could elaborate on how this would impact me as a video and photo editor. Is 16.7 million not a lot? What percentage of the sRGB spectrum is it?