Question Which monitor upgrade should I get for my gaming setup? 4k 144 hz vs. 1440p 165hz

Kescarte_DeJudica

Commendable
Jul 18, 2017
7
0
1,510
Hello everyone!

I'm looking to upgrade from my 1080p 60Hz monitor that I started off with to a monitor that is a lot more gaming oriented.

I'm torn between too very nice monitors, and would love some community input.

For reference, my build is an i-7 6700k 4.0 Ghz (I haven't overclocked it yet), 16 GB DDR4 RAM, and a new RTX 2080 Ti.

My first option is the ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q. It is 27", 1440p with a 144 Hz refresh rate, and can be overclocked to 165 Hz. It has IPS panels and GSync. Super nice monitor, has a better resolution than what I currently play at, will definitely be much more smooth, and I will no longer have to deal with screen tearing. Better color quality from IPS panels is all the better. Price is $700.

My second option is the Acer Predator X27 bmiphzx. It is also 27", 4k with a 120Hz refresh rate, and can be overclocked to 144 Hz. It has IPS panels, GSync and HDR 1000. Not quite as smooth, but way prettier. Also super pricey at $1,800.


I'm torn between these monitors. I know that for the majority of newer games, I'll be playing at 1440p, because playing them at 4k would make the framerate dip down to 50-80 FPS, and for those titles, I'd rather have smoother gameplay then a prettier picture. Because of this, it seems like the 1440p monitor would be the better option, because if I am not playing most games at 4k, then it would be kind of a waste of money.

On the other hand, I also play several older games, and indie games that I could get a higher frame rate on at 4k, enough to justify playing at that resolution. I'd love to have the option to choose between those two, based off of what the game could output reasonably in frames. That's the advantage of the more expensive monitor, the choice of higher resolutions for certain games that can my PC can handle. Another great plus is that I can play some games at HDR, which I think would be amazing!

The downside is that few games support HDR, only a handful. On top of that, while the 1440p monitor can output a refresh rate of 165 Hz, the 4k monitor can really only do 120 Hz. While you technically can run it at 144 Hz, you can only do that if you lower the color quality from RGB to YCbCr422 , which would make the picture a good bit less pretty.

Both monitors have awesome features, which is a big step up from what I am currently using. Better resolution, higher refresh rate, Gsync, IPS, etc. My main issue is trying to decide whether it is worth the cost of almost tripling the price tag of the monitor for a couple of extra features which will make the games look nicer, but I will only really use in a limited capacity, and also sacrifice a bit of FPS for it.

What do you guys think? Is the 4k option worth the extra cost for the options it gives me, or should I go with the 1440p monitor, which is my base standard for what I want?

Thank for your help!
 

Eximo

Titan
Ambassador
Well the 165hz overclock is not guaranteed. Their marketing will say "up to". Not to mention that it reintroduces ghosting and overshoot. Those panels are best run at their native refresh 144hz or 120hz. (I did run into someone here complaining they would get glitches with the overclock on)

Nothing can come close to running 4K 120hz flat out with all the settings cranked on a recent title. But if you plan to keep it a long while, and don't mind paying the entry fee, then I don't see why not. Not sure how well 1440p will look on a 4K panel.

Have you considered an ultrawide 3440x1440 panel? I know you drop a lot in frequency, 75hz with a 100hz overclock option. But the viewing experience might be worth it and the 2080Ti shouldn't have much of an issue running it.

I'm sticking with my PG279Q for the next few years. Have to justify the price somehow. I'm looking forward to OLED displays making it effectively into the PC monitor space. (At reasonable prices) And GPU prices will have to come down before I consider an upgrade from my GTX1080. I can certainly afford those high end parts, I'm just not willing to spend that much on them. (When my computer starts being worth more than my car I start to worry, though with one that ship has sailed years ago) And if everybody keeps buying at high prices, the OEMs are just going to keep those prices up there. I don't begrudge Nvidia too much, the RTX2070 is a little cheaper than the GTX1080 was at launch. And the RTX2080 price is about right given the new memory and the increased GPU die size. But $1200-1450 for 2080Ti (I had plans to buy the next Ti card, but they released it with the others, now I think die shrink before upgrade)

With Nvidia caving on the G-sync only variable refresh, not sure how long G-sync panels are going to remain viable as a product line. Why pay the premium when you can get a FreeSync monitor with the same panel. G-sync is marginally better, but not really noticeable to the naked eye from all accounts. Not sure now is the best time to be buying into the ecosystem.