Help: which monitor should I buy???

[malakizedek]

I am a console peasant making the switch to gaming PC and I need your help:

Which monitor should I get?

Acer Predator Z35 35-inch Curved Full HD (2560 x 1080) NVIDIA G-Sync Display, 144Hz

OR

Acer Predator Z35P 35" Curved 1800R QHD (3440x1440) NVIDIA G-SYNC, 100hz

(So the only difference is the first one has a lower resolution but higher refresh rate)

(Or is there a better monitor you know of?)

I play a lot of Overwatch but also want to play games like Divinity Original Sin 2, Mass Effect Andromeda, Ni No Kuni 2, and the new Age of Empires

The computer that I’ve built has top of the line graphics card, etc, so I’m pretty sure I could use any high performance monitor

Thank you so much for helping me out!

 

[vapour]

what are your rig's specs?

 

[malakizedek]

Vapour:

Processor: Intel Core i7-8700K
Processor Cooling: Corsair H60 Liquid cooling
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 ASUS STRIX RGB 8GB
Motherboard: ASUS Prime 7370-P
Primary Hard Drive: 240 GB ADATA SU650 SSD
Power Supply: 600W Standard 80 PLUS Gold
Data Hard Drive: 2 TB Hard Drive
Memory: 16GB DDR4-300 G. SKILL TRIDENT Z RGB

(Honestly that’s all Greek to me but I am fairly sure it’s a good rig! Let me know if I should improve anything)

 

[WildCard999]

Just a heads up Overwatch doesn't support the 21:9 ratio, for that game you will have black bars on the sides.

 

[malakizedek]

Hmm I didn’t realize that, WildCard999... are the black bars annoying? Should I get a different monitor since I play Overwatch a lot?

 

[superninja12]

my suggestion , NONE.

acer x34 xD

 

[WildCard999]

Hmm I didn’t realize that, WildCard999... are the black bars annoying? Should I get a different monitor since I play Overwatch a lot?

The black bars can be kind of annoying however games that do support the 21:9 look amazing so it really comes down to if Overwatch is going to be your determining factor or are the other games, which you'll want to check if they support 21:9, makes the upgrade worth it. Some games that don't can be modded for 21:9 however with Overwatch they wanted to keep everything fair so they limited it to 16:9 but Blizzards other games such as WoW & Diablo 3 support 21:9.

 

[malakizedek]

So would I be better off getting:

Acer Predator XB271HU Abmiprz 27-inch WQHD (2560x1440) NVIDIA G-SYNC Monitor (Display Port & HDMI Port, 144Hz)

OR

ASUS ROG SWIFT PG27AQ 27" 4K/UHD (3840x2160) IPS 4ms G-SYNC Eye Care Gaming Monitor with DP and HDMI ports

 

[DeadRam]

If you have an unlimited budget, wait for the 4K 144Hz monitors otherwise get a 27" (2560x1440) NVIDIA G-SYNC 144Hz Monitor. (2560x1440) NVIDIA G-SYNC 144Hz Monitor = $600. A 4K (3840x2160) NVIDIA G-SYNC 144Hz Monitor = $1500-2000

 

[WildCard999]

I think your system would pair well with that 1440P/144hz/Gsync for Overwatch and those other games.

 

[vapour]

Definitely not 4k 60Hz monitor, bad for overwatch.
I suggest either regular 1440p 144+ Hz or Ultrawide 1440 100Hz
Try out ultrawide screen in a local shop before you buy it. I will prefer ultrawide, just totally different experience. Gsync is good to have if you don't want any stuttering.

 

[malakizedek]

Vapour - do the black bars on the side of the ultra wide screen bother you or do most games support the ultra wide screen size?

 

[WildCard999]

@malakizedek, do you by any chance live near a Microcenter? If so Vapour's idea of checking out a ultrawide at the store is a great idea, and if they have a good return policy it would give you some time to try it.

 

[malakizedek]

@WildCard999, I checked their website and there isn’t a Microcenter location in my state. Can I just go to Best Buy to check out monitors? (Again, this is the first time I’ve ever bought anything PC related). I plan on buying directly from Amazon for the rewards points I earn

 

[nobspls]

I wouldn't buy a curved monitor. The distortion is just horrid.

 

[malakizedek]

Also, what’s the difference between a WQHD (2560x1440) and WQHD ISP (2560x1440) monitor? The ISP is more expensive, but is that worth it? What is it exactly?

 

[vapour]

@WildCard999, I checked their website and there isn’t a Microcenter location in my state. Can I just go to Best Buy to check out monitors? (Again, this is the first time I’ve ever bought anything PC related). I plan on buying directly from Amazon for the rewards points I earn

Yes, Bestbuy is fine but they may not have those gaming monitors on display, Microcenter does.

 

[vapour]

Also, what’s the difference between a WQHD (2560x1440) and WQHD ISP (2560x1440) monitor? The ISP is more expensive, but is that worth it? What is it exactly?

IPS is in general better color than TN panel and with Gsync, the input lag should be small. However, if you feel those TN panel looks good, just get the cheaper TN's.

 

[WildCard999]

@WildCard999, I checked their website and there isn’t a Microcenter location in my state. Can I just go to Best Buy to check out monitors? (Again, this is the first time I’ve ever bought anything PC related). I plan on buying directly from Amazon for the rewards points I earn

You could go through BB however what they have on display may be limited, I lucked out and was able to see a demo of the Acer X34 when it first came out at a local BB.

To answer your other question, I think your talking about IPS, is that it produces better coloring over TN panels but the response is a little bit slower, usually IPS (5ms) & TN (1-2ms) but in most games you won't notice the difference.

 

[WildCard999]

I wouldn't buy a curved monitor. The distortion is just horrid.

It depends on the size and how far you sit from the monitor, with the 34"+ models and with a reasonable gaming distance the curves gives quite a immersive experience. This also may be with the ultrawides that can pull it off much better over the curved 16:9 monitors I've seen.

 

[malakizedek]

@Vapour - looking at the specs, the ISP version has a response time of 4ms as opposed to 1ms for the regular WQHD... Is better color or a lower response time better for games like Overwatch? I’m guessing the 1ms is the way to go?

 

[vapour]

Response time is not input lag and those ultra wide gsync ips is pretty good for input lags. You may want to google input lag vs response time. You may feel huge diff between 1ms response monitors.