Picking a 1440p for game, GHz a problem?

[mindfire]

Hi

I am currently hunting for a new 1440 monitor. The market is dazzling me with brand, refresh rates, panel type etc.

My need is RPG/racing/strategy gaming, such as Witcher 3 and the upcoming Batman. I prefer the picture quality than any other aspect, but I see the GHz featured at every product description, should I be worrying about that?

My budget is 250 pounds. 24 inch is fine but I saw somewhere that 1440 offers more on 27!

I have one gtx 970, wonder if this can support 1440 gaming at ultra too?

Thank you guys!

 

[Octivius]

Hi

I am currently hunting for a new 1440 monitor. The market is dazzling me with brand, refresh rates, panel type etc.

My need is RPG/racing/strategy gaming, such as Witcher 3 and the upcoming Batman. I prefer the picture quality than any other aspect, but I see the GHz featured at every product description, should I be worrying about that?

My budget is 250 pounds. 24 inch is fine but I saw somewhere that 1440 offers more on 27!

I have one gtx 970, wonder if this can support 1440 gaming at ultra too?

Thank you guys!

 

[andy_Man]

The Gtx 970 can game on 1440, probably not on ultra. Maybe ultra with no anti-aliasing.
Generally speaking IPS panels give you better color. TN give you lower response time, lower latency, and higher hz.

 

[photonboy]

Hi,
Don't get hung up on getting "Ultra at 1440p" with your card.

If you can afford a nice 1440p monitor go ahead and buy it, however when tweaking any game you should first decide on your frame rate/VSYNC goal then decide on the resolution and other graphics settings to maintain this.

I have a 1440p, 60Hz monitor. Here's some examples:

a) CIV5 - running at 1440p, 60FPS
(it not only looks better at 1440p vs 1080p but it's not too demanding so I can put settings to maximum and maintain 60FPS)

b) Crysis 3 - running at 1080p, 60FPS
(I use "Adaptive VSYNC" though if screen tear isn't too bad then maybe VSYNC OFF. Can't maintain Ultra settings however I do tweak Shadows, AA etc for the optimal quality to maintain mostly 60FPS

1440p in some games such as Crysis 3 doesn't look much better than 1080p IMO. The processing power is arguably put to much better use elsewhere or keep the same settings with a higher frame rate such as 60FPS instead of 46FPS).

Other:
TN vs IPS:
I prefer IPS because of the quality of color. The main disadvantage is some ghosting (blur) but to me the Pros outweigh the Cons. As for 144Hz etc, that adds to the COST so it may not even be an option (and don't get a crappy quality monitor just to get 144Hz).

As for "GHz" I'm not sure what you are referring to.

I'll see what is offered in your budget assuming UK pricing at pcpartpicker and post a few monitors below...

 

[photonboy]

27", 1440p:
This BenQ is slightly above your budget however using PCpartpicker it's the only 1440p monitor listed that's near your budget, aside from a Dell version with higher response time which was also 25" not 27":
https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/benq-monitor-gw2765ht

1080p, 24", 144Hz, TN panel:
https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-monitor-vg248qe

1080p, 24", 60Hz, TN panel:
https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-monitor-vx248h

1080p IPS??
If interested in IPS make sure the RESPONSE TIME isn't too high (hard to compare manufactures but I'd say 6ms max). I didn't link one because the only one with enough customer reviews at pcpartpicker was a Dell with 8ms response time so I wasn't sure whether to recommend it or not.

This is just a starter guide.

If you look at the 144Hz model then I suggest using "Half Adaptive VSYNC" for some games. That will lock to 72FPS. That's for games where you want VSYNC due to screen tearing but can't maintain 144FPS solidly.

*Due to your budget you have to make some hard choices. If you want 144Hz that has to be at 1080p. If you want 1440p there's nothing unless you increase it slightly (and then it's 60Hz not 1440p). Personally I'd probably get the first one I linked since it should be nearly identical to my own which I really love. Some games like CIV5, Starcraft 2 etc look much better at 1440p (due to small text or other items).

As for Witcher 3 you'd likely want to play that at 1080p as it's very demanding (though 1080p still looks better upscaled on a 1440p monitor than it does on a 1080p monitor with similar specs since you still have more pixels).

If confused, research these terms carefully:
- vsync
- adaptive vsync
(focus on screen tear, latency, and maybe research G-Sync as well which needs a different monitor but does explain the pros/cons of VSYNC etc fairly well)