Display for my PC build

[Rokas2260]

Hi, I got a few questions on what kind of monitor I need for my PC... So these are my specs:
z170x-gaming 3
i7-6700K
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 WindForce 4Gb x3
8x2GB (16GB) ram 2133Mhz
KINGSTON SUV400S37480G (500GB SSD)
Hitachi HDS721010CLA332 (1TB HDD)
Suppressor F51 /No window (case)
Windows 10 Pro 64bit

So with this build that I made it customly I want to finally buy a decent gaming monitor, I checked at my local shops for them within my budget which is around 500-300 Euro.. They were pretty okay I guess... But I was confused at one part... There was a monitor that has default as 4K and most others were 1920x1080 (I'm using that) so how can the monitor that is slightly bigger than 1920x1080 hold 4K as default resolution ?
And the next question is what kind of I should buy that is within my budget? (That would be good for gaming and have good kind of color)
And last question, if I would buy a monitor that holds 4K resolution as default would it be alright with my GPU without loss of performance or it would be too much for it work and keep the good performance for this GPU ?

 

[Max1s]

The "resolution" of the monitor is not the same as the "size." Of course, monitors with a higher resolution will tend to be bigger, but size and resolution are not always linked. For example, if I have a 21 inch desktop monitor with a resolution of 1920x1080 (also knows as "1080p") and I upgrade to a huge 55 inch TV with a resolution of 1080p, I have a bigger screen, but I'm still looking at the same number of pixels (1920 x 1080 = 2,073,600) as on the smaller monitor.

So you're asking about 1080p vs 4K. Your GTX960 would probably struggle a bit to play games at 4K, but then again, medium settings at 4K might look better than high settings at 1080p. I recommend you google a review of your graphics card where they test it at 4K.

If you have a large budget for a monitor and want to do better than 1080p, I recommend you look at 1440p resolution monitors. They are the same aspect ratio as 1080p, just more pixels, and they tend to be 24-31 inch size.

 

[Rokas2260]

The "resolution" of the monitor is not the same as the "size." Of course, monitors with a higher resolution will tend to be bigger, but size and resolution are not always linked. For example, if I have a 21 inch desktop monitor with a resolution of 1920x1080 (also knows as "1080p") and I upgrade to a huge 55 inch TV with a resolution of 1080p, I have a bigger screen, but I'm still looking at the same number of pixels (1920 x 1080 = 2,073,600) as on the smaller monitor.

So you're asking about 1080p vs 4K. Your GTX960 would probably struggle a bit to play games at 4K, but then again, medium settings at 4K might look better than high settings at 1080p. I recommend you google a review of your graphics card where they test it at 4K.

If you have a large budget for a monitor and want to do better than 1080p, I recommend you look at 1440p resolution monitors. They are the same aspect ratio as 1080p, just more pixels, and they tend to be 24-31 inch size.

That's a lot of useful information.. I have tried playing 4K games on ultra graphics with quite low fps of (20-30) (Dying light, no man's sky, league of legends) they were playable but maybe with a bit of lower graphic settings it would of been better... And clearly this monitor that I played on didn't support 4K resolution, but my GPU did hold out while playing on ultra graphics and unsupported (5year old) monitor 4K resolution which was quite surprising... So it could work in a way, but I think it would be kinda bad for gaming and my budget... So yea maybe having a bit higher resolution as 1440p would be better for everything I think...
So then the other question is, what kind of monitor should I buy that is 1440p with 500-400 Euro max budget ?
Edit, I looked up few monitors, and I found one for around 470Euro and it looks and seems pretty 1440p good monitor, have a look, is it good ?
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009769&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-PCPartPicker,%20LLC-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

 

[Max1s]

That monitor also has "free-sync," which, for AMD cards, prevents tearing is apparently quite good (I've never used it) I think the nvidia equivalent is called "G-sync"

Personally I use a panel I bought from the south koreans on ebay, the "x-star" monitor. It's a B-grade panel that has one stuck pixel, but for an otherwise great 27 inch 1440p monitor at $300 I can't complain. (I think they're even cheaper now)

I'm not familiar with the market for monitors, but it might be worth sticking with a monitor that is 144Hz refresh rate, depending on what games you play.

 

[Rokas2260]

That monitor also has "free-sync," which, for AMD cards, prevents tearing is apparently quite good (I've never used it) I think the nvidia equivalent is called "G-sync"

Personally I use a panel I bought from the south koreans on ebay, the "x-star" monitor. It's a B-grade panel that has one stuck pixel, but for an otherwise great 27 inch 1440p monitor at $300 I can't complain. (I think they're even cheaper now)

I'm not familiar with the market for monitors, but it might be worth sticking with a monitor that is 144Hz refresh rate, depending on what games you play.

Well I'm gonna google more around monitors, and see if I can find something as good and cheep... Also gonna talk to my computer specialist, so maybe he will have few suggestion on what kind of monitor would be good on my PC

 

[timeconsumer]

In order to determine what purchase would best fit your build we first need to know what games are the most important to you.

144Hz is ideal for playing competitive FPS games. CS:GO in particular. Higher end FPS games like BF1 you will struggle to surpass 60 FPS with a GTX 960 unless you dropped the settings down (nothing wrong with that, but a lot of people are glued to high textures).

Otherwise if you play a lot of single player games 60Hz is more than sufficient, and you can focus on a higher quality experience like an IPS or AVHA panel for better viewing angles and better colors. 1440p is another option but again, depending on what games you want to play and the settings you will struggle to drive higher frame rates at those resolutions with a GTX 960.

Lastly you need to consider the lifespan of your parts. How long do you plan on using this monitor vs how long you plan on using this GPU. If you plan on upgrading the GPU to something bigger within the next year or two, buying a monitor that you can't take full advantage of now is somewhat mitigated, as monitors tend to be used by people for many years, and you will be able to drive those higher framerates or resolutions for many years after the upgrade.

FWIW here are a few monitors I like to recommend for people, depending on needs and budgets.

Budget 1080p 60Hz TN Panel: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/mWV48d/benq-monitor-gl2460hm
1080p 60Hz IPS Panel: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/X4s8TW/dell-monitor-u2417h
1080p 144Hz TN Panel: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/rkphP6/asus-monitor-vg248qe http://pcpartpicker.com/product/ZBZ2FT/aoc-monitor-g2460pf
1440p 60Hz IPS Panel: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/LVV48d/asus-monitor-pb278q (good all around monitor for gaming, editing, watching movies, etc)
21:9 Ultrawide TN Panel: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/LhV48d/asus-monitor-pb298q http://pcpartpicker.com/product/cFrcCJ/dell-u2917w-290-2560x1080-60hz-monitor-u2917w (ultrawides have very specific considerations you need to take into account)
1440p 144Hz Gsync: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/BcTrxr/dell-monitor-s2716dg (this is more of a GTX 1070 or 1080 monitor and you will not take advantage of it for most games, but again depending on upgrades and such I felt I should mention it)

If you want to discuss any of these in-depth I'd be happy to oblige. I personally would opt for a 1080p 60Hz with your GPU, 144Hz if you play CS:GO.

 

[Rokas2260]

In order to determine what purchase would best fit your build we first need to know what games are the most important to you.

144Hz is ideal for playing competitive FPS games. CS:GO in particular. Higher end FPS games like BF1 you will struggle to surpass 60 FPS with a GTX 960 unless you dropped the settings down (nothing wrong with that, but a lot of people are glued to high textures).

Otherwise if you play a lot of single player games 60Hz is more than sufficient, and you can focus on a higher quality experience like an IPS or AVHA panel for better viewing angles and better colors. 1440p is another option but again, depending on what games you want to play and the settings you will struggle to drive higher frame rates at those resolutions with a GTX 960.

Lastly you need to consider the lifespan of your parts. How long do you plan on using this monitor vs how long you plan on using this GPU. If you plan on upgrading the GPU to something bigger within the next year or two, buying a monitor that you can't take full advantage of now is somewhat mitigated, as monitors tend to be used by people for many years, and you will be able to drive those higher framerates or resolutions for many years after the upgrade.

FWIW here are a few monitors I like to recommend for people, depending on needs and budgets.

Budget 1080p 60Hz TN Panel: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/mWV48d/benq-monitor-gl2460hm
1080p 60Hz IPS Panel: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/X4s8TW/dell-monitor-u2417h
1080p 144Hz TN Panel: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/rkphP6/asus-monitor-vg248qe http://pcpartpicker.com/product/ZBZ2FT/aoc-monitor-g2460pf
1440p 60Hz IPS Panel: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/LVV48d/asus-monitor-pb278q (good all around monitor for gaming, editing, watching movies, etc)
21:9 Ultrawide TN Panel: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/LhV48d/asus-monitor-pb298q http://pcpartpicker.com/product/cFrcCJ/dell-u2917w-290-2560x1080-60hz-monitor-u2917w (ultrawides have very specific considerations you need to take into account)
1440p 144Hz Gsync: http://pcpartpicker.com/product/BcTrxr/dell-monitor-s2716dg (this is more of a GTX 1070 or 1080 monitor and you will not take advantage of it for most games, but again depending on upgrades and such I felt I should mention it)

If you want to discuss any of these in-depth I'd be happy to oblige. I personally would opt for a 1080p 60Hz with your GPU, 144Hz if you play CS:GO.

Okay thanks for the options, so to correct you and inform you about games I play... I don't play lots of FPS games, I do play CS:GO but I'm not a gamer for it, so I don't focus on that, I want a monitor that would be for any type of games as in more SP or lan games (skyrim, dying light, 7 days to die, etc(and even the new upcoming game, mass effect andrometa) ) But I don't play Battlefield or COD.... I'm not thinking on buying a new GPU for like at least few years right now or maybe more... I don't really need widescreens... BUT! 1440p 60Hz IPS Panel did get my interest.. I do need a monitor for movies, gaming, and such... But I'm just worried about it's big 2560x1440 resolution.. Would my GPU have any struggles or downs when running along with this monitor ? (In and out of gaming)
Edit: I been googling around about that monitor that I was interested in from your suggestions... And I've found something else, and even a bit better from what I see, I'm gonna drop a link and tell me if that one is better: https://www.asus.com/Commercial-Monitors/PB278QR/
And this is the one you suggest : https://www.asus.com/us/Commercial-Monitors/PB278Q/

 

[timeconsumer]

Right, that display isn't available in the US so I don't know a whole lot about it. It uses a different panel than the 278Q, the QR is a AH-IPS panel. I have hard a lot of good things and it appears most people really like it.

As far as performance, you're going to have to drop the settings on a GTX 960 to handle 1440p in most games. If you use something like the PCGamer 16 game average the GTX 960 averaged 30 FPS with a minimum of 15 FPS across all the games they tested for that resolution. With lower settings you can definitely achieve playable framerates. And a 27" IPS screen would be great for everything else outside of gaming.

 

[Rokas2260]

Right, that display isn't available in the US so I don't know a whole lot about it. It uses a different panel than the 278Q, the QR is a AH-IPS panel. I have hard a lot of good things and it appears most people really like it.

As far as performance, you're going to have to drop the settings on a GTX 960 to handle 1440p in most games. If you use something like the PCGamer 16 game average the GTX 960 averaged 30 FPS with a minimum of 15 FPS across all the games they tested for that resolution. With lower settings you can definitely achieve playable framerates. And a 27" IPS screen would be great for everything else outside of gaming.

Well damn, I looked up a video of how it is for gaming with my GPU on 1440p monitor, and it doesn't look good nor sounds good from you for performance :/ I didn't think resolution could make such a huge impact on performance, especially for this GPU... I just really need to think if it's worth it... Like writing prons and cons.. Like what's good in new monitor I believe it would be : better colors, higher resolution, bigger screen, better connection, special technologies... And in cons, it would be loss of performance, even if OCed...
And even then I'm gonna have right now 2 monitors so much more work for the GPU... But I wonder then, if I do have loss in graphics downgrading them, how much of a quality in the game I would have then ? Would it be as good as it would be on ultra settings in 1080p ? Or it would be bigger screen in loss of quality and performance ?
Like it's a lot to think of when it comes to deciding if I want a bigger and newer monitor in 1440p or 1080p for the next 5 or so years... As in my opinion I'm kinda going on 1440p monitor while I think I could change my GPU faster (and lifespam would go faster to death than monitor) so in that case it would be a lot better to have 1440p and waste less money then... Well I don't know exactly... What do you think "timeconsumer" ?