Get a bigger better monitor or a second monitor.

[TBarr50]

So I currently run

CPU - i5 4690K stock
GPU - MSI GTX 970 slight OC
PSU - Corsair 750w
Mobo - MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition
Monitor - Packard Bell Viseo243D running 60HZ at 1080p

I have a budget of around £250 and I am getting a bit bogged down with the all the different monitor options. For gaming (Usual stuff like Skyrim+mods, SIms 4, Payday 2, Battlefield etc) should I move to a single 27" 1440p monitor or Dual my current with a 24" 1080p monitor with a higher refresh rate. Or Dual a 24" 1440p monitor with my current.

My desk has little Room so a 27" would fit but a Dual set up would require the monitors be stacked vertically rather than side by side, anyone have any experience with this as well?
EDIT: With the right stand and some angle inwards I could fit them side by side but it would be tight.
Thanks in advance.

 

[Dylzan]

I have a 23 inch 1080p monitor and a 19 inch 768p monitor, I find having 2 monitors is really great for productivity and general use and I don't think I could ever go back to 1. Why not have a 27 inch in the centre and a 24 inch at the side?

 

[TBarr50]

I have a 23 inch 1080p monitor and a 19 inch 768p monitor, I find having 2 monitors is really great for productivity and general use and I don't think I could ever go back to 1. Why not have a 27 inch in the centre and a 24 inch at the side?

I dont know if it is weird OCD or something but the idea of different sized monitors kinda weirds me out. I would have to try it to really be sure though.

 

[martinch]

Twin monitors is great for working, but I can't really see the point for gaming (unless you want to do surround, but the bezels will bother me). Having said that, given that Windows supports window snapping/docking now, in my experience there isn't much practical difference between a single 2560x1440 screen (had one at home), and a pair of 1920x1080 screens (my setup at work), so I'd go for the single good screen.

 

[TBarr50]

Ok so with a bit of Re-arangment of my desk (Moving my Rig to the floor boo) I could have 2 side by side monitors and fancy a 24" Dell U2515H. Is this monitor a good choice or are there better options for my £250 budget?

 

[Chayan4400]

I'd stay away from two screens for gaming, since your centre of vision is going to be in the middle of the two screens, where the bezels of the two meet. For gaming, only a single screen or triple monitor setups are functional, and will enhance the gaming experience. Productivity on the other hand, is another matter. Dual screens are much better, since you can have more programs open, and multitask better. Even for gaming, a dual monitor set up is useful for having the game on one screen, and a guide/ walkthrough/ wiki on the other.

As for your question on vertical stacking, why do you think you see absolutely no gaming setups with two monitors stacked vertically? I'll explain:

Now picture craning your neck upward while playing skyrim on that. Not gonna happen. Productivity is yet again another matter. These type of setups are used alot for things like keeping real time feeds open like stock market data. For gaming, the best thing you can go with is a bigger single monitor.

If you really want the dual monitor experience, go with something like this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/LG-25UM65-P-25-21-Ultrawide/dp/B00I3GJ8RY/ref=pd_cp_computers_0


Which will give you an experience like this:

Here is linus's review of the 34" model (the one linked is the 25" model)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnrxNfxRK_4

Also, keep in mind that for these monitors you will need a Displayport cable (Your GTX 970 almost certainly supports Displayport.).

 

[TBarr50]

Ok I messed up my original post, I meant have the second monitor for productivity. Basically I have decided to go with a second Monitor at 1440p to game on and use the old one for Web etc. I have found this on EBuyer but it seems a bit cheap for what your getting, am I missing a drawback with it or something?

http://www.ebuyer.com/666284-acer-g247hyu-23-8-ips-wqhd-monitor-um-qg7ee-005

 

[Chayan4400]

Ok I messed up my original post, I meant have the second monitor for productivity. Basically I have decided to go with a second Monitor at 1440p to game on and use the old one for Web etc. I have found this on EBuyer but it seems a bit cheap for what your getting, am I missing a drawback with it or something?

http://www.ebuyer.com/666284-acer-g247hyu-23-8-ips-wqhd-monitor-um-qg7ee-005

Ok, first of all thats only a 24" monitor, so not that great fot gaming. Plus, I can't find anything on the refresh rates of this monitor, which may be kept hidden because they are sub-par.

Since that monitor of yours still has some value, why not sell it for $30 (don't have the pound sign ) and buy this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00HYZXZ7O/ref=asc_df_B00HYZXZ7O25972496?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=wwwetalecouk-21&linkCode=df0&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B00HYZXZ7O

Superb monitor, and you can still keep two windows open at the same time whebn you need them, since it is so wide, and fullscreen games when you don't. One monitor also looks cleaner on the desk than two.

If not, The monitor I reccomended earlier is good as well!!!

If still no D), I'd get a decent 1080p screens that is larger.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-S27D390H-inch-HDMI-Monitor/dp/B00KACJ31A/ref=sr_1_5?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1429894441&sr=1-5&keywords=monitor

 

[sora]

Ok so with a bit of Re-arangment of my desk (Moving my Rig to the floor boo) I could have 2 side by side monitors and fancy a 24" Dell U2515H. Is this monitor a good choice or are there better options for my £250 budget?

The Dell U2515H, in my opinion, is a great monitor in my opinion and you should go for it!

 

[Chayan4400]

Ok so with a bit of Re-arangment of my desk (Moving my Rig to the floor boo) I could have 2 side by side monitors and fancy a 24" Dell U2515H. Is this monitor a good choice or are there better options for my £250 budget?

The Dell U2515H, in my opinion, is a great monitor in my opinion and you should go for it!

If you can afford it, and don't mind the 8ms response time, this should be a fine monitor. However, personally I don't see much of a difference in quality at 1440p than 1080p on smaller monitors. That may be just me, though. Also, keep in mind that you are almost certainly going to get lower FPS, since your 970 is gonna have to work harder .