Question Help needed to ascertain what monitor my current PC can support!

[rambo244]

Hey guys, I built my PC back in 2013 with the help of this community. It's been going strong ever since.

I would like to upgrade my monitor because I am currently using an old samsung HDTV and its really not that great at all.

My current build consists of Z87-G45 gaming motherboard / powercolor HD7950 / I5-4670k LGA1150 / EVGA supernova NEX 750G PSU / Water2.0 Pro / believe I have 8GB DDR3 Ram currently installed as well.

I have been thinking of upgrading and just building a brand new PC build.

But the PC runs fine for my needs currently... However I'd like to upgrade my screen because my current screen isn't nice to look at.

So, with my current PC is it worth buying a new monitor? Can it power a really good monitor? My budget is around $500-$800 on a really great monitor if possible.

I don't want to buy a sub-par monitor.. if this build cant run a new great monitor i'd rather just build a brand new PC and get really good monitors.

Please let me know, thanks!

 

[Hellfire13]

Depends on what you do with the PC. That is a 1050ti level card if I am not mistaken. If your workload is video intensive like gaming or rendering, 1080p/60hz should be ideal. For everything else you can probably go as high as you want. 1080p is relatively cheaper than higher specs. If you want to game on a better monitor, then you will need a better card and probably a better CPU to balance that, depending on how powerful card you choose.

 

[rambo244]

Depends on what you do with the PC. That is a 1050ti level card if I am not mistaken. If your workload is video intensive like gaming or rendering, 1080p/60hz should be ideal. For everything else you can probably go as high as you want. 1080p is relatively cheaper than higher specs. If you want to game on a better monitor, then you will need a better card and probably a better CPU to balance that, depending on how powerful card you choose.

I honestly mainly surf the web, watch utube and netflix / movies ... also play some games but nothing that demanding.... The most demanding game I play is LoL which isn't demanding at all.. I mainly game on consoles. -- I just enjoy having an overbuilt super fast PC with really good graphics as I do spend most of my time at my PC desk when home. So it's worth it for me.

How come you'd suggest 1080p over something like 4k / 144? Which i've heard great things about. I'm not too concerned about the cost as long as the performance is noticeably better! - I'd be intending to keep the build for another 10 years like I did with my current build, so spending 2-3k on the setup + monitors isn't too bad imo.

 

[Hellfire13]

I honestly mainly surf the web, watch utube and netflix / movies ... also play some games but nothing that demanding.... The most demanding game I play is LoL which isn't demanding at all.. I mainly game on consoles. -- I just enjoy having an overbuilt super fast PC with really good graphics as I do spend most of my time at my PC desk when home. So it's worth it for me.

How come you'd suggest 1080p over something like 4k / 144? Which i've heard great things about. I'm not too concerned about the cost as long as the performance is noticeably better! - I'd be intending to keep the build for another 10 years like I did with my current build, so spending 2-3k on the setup + monitors isn't too bad imo.

The 1080p suggestion was for demanding games and similar graphically intensive tasks, because the current GPU is not strong enough to pull them at high resolutions. Since your workload is less intensive, you can get a 4k screen if you want.

 

[kanewolf]

I honestly mainly surf the web, watch utube and netflix / movies ... also play some games but nothing that demanding.... The most demanding game I play is LoL which isn't demanding at all.. I mainly game on consoles. -- I just enjoy having an overbuilt super fast PC with really good graphics as I do spend most of my time at my PC desk when home. So it's worth it for me.

How come you'd suggest 1080p over something like 4k / 144? Which i've heard great things about. I'm not too concerned about the cost as long as the performance is noticeably better! - I'd be intending to keep the build for another 10 years like I did with my current build, so spending 2-3k on the setup + monitors isn't too bad imo.

The question then is what types of interfaces your HD7950 has.
According to this page -- https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/radeon-hd-7950.c307 You have HDMI 1.4a and DP 1.2
HDMI could do 4K but at 30HZ according to this page -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI#Refresh_frequency_limits_for_standard_video
DP1.2 could do 4K but also at 30Hz according to this page -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DisplayPort#Refresh_frequency_limits_for_standard_video
I would NOT recommend a 4K display. I would go with a 1440 display since you can get 60HZ with the graphics card you have.

 

[rambo244]

The question then is what types of interfaces your HD7950 has.
According to this page -- https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/radeon-hd-7950.c307 You have HDMI 1.4a and DP 1.2
HDMI could do 4K but at 30HZ according to this page -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI#Refresh_frequency_limits_for_standard_video
DP1.2 could do 4K but also at 30Hz according to this page -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DisplayPort#Refresh_frequency_limits_for_standard_video
I would NOT recommend a 4K display. I would go with a 1440 display since you can get 60HZ with the graphics card you have.

I appreciate this response GREATLY!

Thank you for taking the time to help. Perfect info, exactly the type of guidance I was looking for.

Now ONE last thing!....

What's your opinion on keeping my current set-up and getting a 1440 display at 60HZ
OR
Building another PC entirely for around $2000 - then getting a 4k monitor? -- Would there be a noticeable difference?

I'd assume so... but how much of one? Like a night and day kind of difference?

Once I have this info I'll be able to proceed!

Thanks again.

 

[kanewolf]

I appreciate this response GREATLY!

Thank you for taking the time to help. Perfect info, exactly the type of guidance I was looking for.

Now ONE last thing!....

What's your opinion on keeping my current set-up and getting a 1440 display at 60HZ
OR
Building another PC entirely for around $2000 - then getting a 4k monitor? -- Would there be a noticeable difference?

I'd assume so... but how much of one? Like a night and day kind of difference?

Once I have this info I'll be able to proceed!

Thanks again.

A 4K display and a 1440 display may be difficult to see any difference depending on the screen size. Your eyes just can't see the difference.
So it then becomes a question of distance from the screen, amount of desktop real estate you are willing to sacrifice, etc.
A PAIR of 1080 monitors might make the most sense rather than a single highest resolution monitor. A pair of 23s or a 27 in 1440 and a 23in 1080 side monitor.

 

[Hellfire13]

Now ONE last thing!....

What's your opinion on keeping my current set-up and getting a 1440 display at 60HZ
OR
Building another PC entirely for around $2000 - then getting a 4k monitor? -- Would there be a noticeable difference?

In your usecase, the current setup should be fine for a couple of years more. IPS monitors are pretty affordable these days with some of the best viewing quality...

PCPartPicker Part List

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
Monitor | Acer VG270U bmiipx 27.0" 2560x1440 75 Hz Monitor | $199.99 @ Newegg
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total | $199.99
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2022-04-28 19:54 EDT-0400 |

 

[rambo244]

In your usecase, the current setup should be fine for a couple of years more. IPS monitors are pretty affordable these days with some of the best viewing quality...

PCPartPicker Part List

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
Monitor | Acer VG270U bmiipx 27.0" 2560x1440 75 Hz Monitor | $199.99 @ Newegg
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total | $199.99
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2022-04-28 19:54 EDT-0400 |

Thanks, maybe I'll pick this screen up.. $200 isn't terrible, especially if It'll allow to to continue using my current PC for several more years. -- Then in future I can always use this monitor as my 2nd monitor and get a new main monitor with the new PC build... quite smart I like the idea.

Only 1 issue with my current PC ... I hear noise coming from it, I think its one of the fans thats rattling a bit on the top of the case... maybe I'll replace it with a new fan and should fix the issue.

 

[Hellfire13]

Thanks, maybe I'll pick this screen up.. $200 isn't terrible, especially if It'll allow to to continue using my current PC for several more years. -- Then in future I can always use this monitor as my 2nd monitor and get a new main monitor with the new PC build... quite smart I like the idea.

Only 1 issue with my current PC ... I hear noise coming from it, I think its one of the fans thats rattling a bit on the top of the case... maybe I'll replace it with a new fan and should fix the issue.

Thats a good idea...cheers

 

[rambo244]

A 4K display and a 1440 display may be difficult to see any difference depending on the screen size. Your eyes just can't see the difference.
So it then becomes a question of distance from the screen, amount of desktop real estate you are willing to sacrifice, etc.
A PAIR of 1080 monitors might make the most sense rather than a single highest resolution monitor. A pair of 23s or a 27 in 1440 and a 23in 1080 side monitor.

This is what I've been using as my monitor... I think a 27 in 1440 would be a huge noticeable difference!
Samsung LN32A330 32-Inch 720p LCD HDTV (2008 Model)

 

[rambo244]

Thats a good idea...cheers

For reference I've been using this as a monitor... I think its time for an upgrade... Think i'll be ordering the one you linked later tonight. Thanks again my friend!
Samsung LN32A330 32-Inch 720p LCD HDTV (2008 Model)

 

[Hellfire13]

For reference I've been using this as a monitor... I think its time for an upgrade... Think i'll be ordering the one you linked later tonight. Thanks again my friend!
Samsung LN32A330 32-Inch 720p LCD HDTV (2008 Model)

That is a 400% gain.

 

[rambo244]

That is a 400% gain.

1 more thing, before I order. I see the monitor you suggested is 75HZ - however they have the same monitor with i believe 144hz or 175 or so... Why would you suggest the 75HZ monitor over the other? isn't the higher hz the better? or is my PC not able to run anything more? - Thanks again.

 

[Hellfire13]

1 more thing, before I order. I see the monitor you suggested is 75HZ - however they have the same monitor with i believe 144hz or 175 or so... Why would you suggest the 75HZ monitor over the other? isn't the higher hz the better? or is my PC not able to run anything more? - Thanks again.

For games you might have to tweak the settings sometimes. Rest should work fine. I suggested keeping that in mind. Its fine if you go with 144hz as well.