First Time Builder - Need Help with Choosing a Monitor

[che10]

Hello everyone,

I will be building my first ever PC in about a month and need some help regarding what monitor to choose.

I do not have an unlimited budget and the options in my country are kinda limited. I am looking to game at 1440p at a good fps.

I am coming from a FHD 17.3" 60 hz laptop. Never experience anything over this resolution or framerate.

 

My available options are:

 

• SAMSUNG 27" Odyssey G55A QHD 165Hz 1ms FreeSync Curved Gaming Monitor with HDR 10 VA Panel - $280. MY CURRENT CHOICE.

• MSI OPTIX G273QF 27″ 2K IPS 165HZ - $368

• MSI MAG272CQR 27” WQHD 2K HDR Ready 165Hz 1500R Curve VA Panel - $380

Looking for the best price/performance option.

I am not a competitive gamer, I just wanna play games for fun during my free time.

 

Thanks in advance!

[Merzoner]

My personal pick would be something from samsung or LG. They both make best quality panels but samsung is usually cheaper. For 1440p look for something in between 27'-32'. For refresh rate anything above 144 Hz is good. Also look at what panel the monitor uses; both VA and IPS have their advantages and disadvantages. I hope this was helpful.

[P e r s e p h o n e]

Hey again! Looks like I'm helping you out quite a bit today LOL. 

 

If I were you, I'd use rtings.com to see more details about the features, you care about in each monitor. They really dive deep into the details you might be looking for. 

 

Since the refresh rate, resolution, and size are all the same I'd look into which ever has the best (lowest number) pixel response time to avoid any smearing. If you care about color accuracy or contrast ratio, I'd look into that too. Whatever has the highest contrast ratio and lowest delta e is what you want. 

[che10]

25 minutes ago, P e r s e p h o n e said:

Hey again! Looks like I'm helping you out quite a bit today LOL. 

 

If I were you, I'd use rtings.com to see more details about the features, you care about in each monitor. They really dive deep into the details you might be looking for. 

 

Since the refresh rate, resolution, and size are all the same I'd look into which ever has the best (lowest number) pixel response time to avoid any smearing. If you care about color accuracy or contrast ratio, I'd look into that too. Whatever has the highest contrast ratio and lowest delta e is what you want. 

Thanks! You indeed are lol.

Problem is I have never experienced anything over 1080 60hz on my laptop and games probably run below 60 fps too so I am not sure what to expect. I am only looking for a good experience without spending a lot of money, my choice so far is the Samsung(VA panel), it's a good price for a 1440p 165 hz here but my only concern is it being VA because most of the time people make VA seem to be really bad and always suggest IPS.

[P e r s e p h o n e]

3 minutes ago, che10 said:

Thanks! You indeed are lol.

Problem is I have never experienced anything over 1080 60hz on my laptop and games probably run below 60 fps too so I am not sure what to expect. I am only looking for a good experience without spending a lot of money, my choice so far is the Samsung(VA panel), it's a good price for a 1440p 165 hz here but my only concern is it being VA because most of the time people make VA seem to be really bad and always suggest IPS.

Typically, VA only wins out in terms of contrast ratio and IPS tends to win out in pixel response time, viewing angles, and color reproduction. I wouldn't say it's really bad, but I can't say I've had much experience with them either. I've only ever went for IPS, TN, and now QD-OLED. 

 

It seems to me that the Samsung one can be a bit smeary. Meaning that the pixels are slow to change. This is what pixel response time means and it's different from refresh rate. I understand you might want to save on the cash. Being your first build, you're probably going to have to buy a lot more. I will say that a monitor tends to last most people through a few upgrades and even new builds unless you really get into the quality of your display. So, it might be worth going for a nicer panel since they tend to last, and you'll have to carry on with that experience for longer. 

 

At the end of the day, any of these will be a big upgrade from your previous experience. So, if the costs are a big factor, I wouldn't worry about it too much. Plus, if you went with the nicer monitor, I doubt you'll upgrade any time soon as there isn't much of a difference for most people at this refresh rate and resolution. From there you'd really have to shell out quite a bit of money to see any more serious improvements.

[Stahlmann]

What's your region?

What's your budget?

What's your PC's specs?

Are there any specific features you're looking out for?

Are your options really limited to these 3 monitors?

[Andrewtst]

I suggest you consider as below

• OLED - if it is only for movies and gaming with outstanding HDR performance, less productivity as currently most OLED had text fringing issue due to no standard sRGB sub pixel arrangement. 
• Mini-LED VA - all usage, only pick Samsung Odyssey Neo G7, Neo G8 and Neo G9. All this 3 model came with very fast respond time and no black smearing issue with great HDR performance. 
• IPS - all usage and on budget, not care much on HDR performance. 
• VA - all value VA should be avoid as mostly very slow respond time and black smearing issue. 
• TN - this shall be totally avoid. 

[che10]

5 hours ago, Stahlmann said:

What's your region?

What's your budget?

What's your PC's specs?

Are there any specific features you're looking out for?

Are your options really limited to these 3 monitors?

I'm from Lebanon.

My budget is up to $2500.

Specs are so far:

R9 7900x + Strix B650E-F + 32 GB 6000 mhz CL36 which my friend will get me from the US for $600

SN850x 2TB

MSI MAG C360 360mm AIO

Still not sure if I should get a 3070/ti for around $250-$300 or a 3080 for $350-$400+

I am coming from a 60hz 1080p laptop screen, never experienced anything higher than this.

I am looking to do some light video editing, some gaming and just casual browsing and watching movies. I am not a pro gamer or video editor, it's just a hobby.

 

Other options are available but they are all above $400

Some other options:

• MSI MPG321QRF-QD 32″ OPTICS 175HRZ - $720
• LG 35WN75C-B UltraWide Monitor 35” QHD = $506
• MSI OPTIX MAG342CQR 34″ 144HZ - $477
• MSI 2K 165 Rapid-IPS Quantum DOT MAG274QRF-QD $466
• LG 34WP65C-B 34-Inch 21:9 Curved UltraWide QHD 160HZ - $434
• MSI Optix G32CQ4 QHD 2560 x 1440 165Hz 32″ Curved - $382
• LG 32 INCH ULTRAGEAR QHD VA 165HZ HDMI DP - $348

[Andrewtst]

46 minutes ago, che10 said:

• MSI MPG321QRF-QD 32″ OPTICS 175HRZ - $720 (this is the best spec, HDR 600 but too bad it is 1440p in 32")
• LG 35WN75C-B UltraWide Monitor 35” QHD = $506 (VA is out)
• MSI OPTIX MAG342CQR 34″ 144HZ - $477 (VA is out)
• MSI 2K 165 Rapid-IPS Quantum DOT MAG274QRF-QD $466 (only 300 nits, below HDR 400 standard, bad in HDR)
• LG 34WP65C-B 34-Inch 21:9 Curved UltraWide QHD 160HZ - $434 (VA is out)
• MSI Optix G32CQ4 QHD 2560 x 1440 165Hz 32″ Curved - $382 (VA is out)
• LG 32 INCH ULTRAGEAR QHD VA 165HZ HDMI DP - $348 (VA is out)

Hi, basically all your choices are not good, VA panel had black smearing and slow respond time and not recommended to pick, currently the only VA panel that don't have such issue is only 3 models from Samsung I highlight previously as that 3 models are using latest generation of VA panel that eliminate this issue.

 

32" should go with 4K resolution, 27" in 1440p resolution.

 

Rtings and Techspot is the best place for monitor review and choices. You will notice they is no VA panel is being selected, all is IPS and OLED, the only VA panel being choose is from Samsung Odyssey series from Neo G7 and above. The reason is because all VA panel monitor is bad and only Samsung Odyssey series using the latest VA panel gen which is good and eliminate the serious issue from VA - black smearing and slow respond time. If you prefer VA then only pick from either Samsung Odyssey Neo G7, Neo G8 or Neo G9, else you should consider only IPS panel or OLED panel monitor.

 

Rtings Best Monitor - The 8 Best Monitors - Winter 2023: Reviews - RTINGS.com

Rtings Best Gaming Monitor - The 6 Best Gaming Monitors - Winter 2023: Reviews - RTINGS.com

Techspot Best PC Monitor - The Best PC Monitors - Early 2023 | TechSpot

Techspot Best HDR Monitor - Best HDR Gaming Monitors - Early 2023 | TechSpot

 

You can also check the YouTube channel review Monitor Reviews - YouTube which is the YouTube channel from Techspot.

46 minutes ago, che10 said:

3070/ti for around $250-$300 or a 3080 for $350-$400+

Go for 3080 if you want more future proof and capability on 4K gaming.

[che10]

30 minutes ago, Andrewtst said:

Basically, all your choices is bad, VA panel had black smearing and slow respond time and not recommended to pick, currently the only VA panel that don't have such issue is only 3 models from Samsung I highlight previously as that 3 models is using latest generation of VA panel that eliminate this issue.

 

32" should go with 4K resolution, 27" in 1440p resolution.

 

go for 3080 if you want taste in 4K gaming.

Unfortunately all the monitors here are mostly the same like they all buy from the same supplier and yes I am looking for 27" only for 1440p, which monitor would you suggest?

[Andrewtst]

29 minutes ago, che10 said:

Unfortunately all the monitors here are mostly the same like they all buy from the same supplier and yes I am looking for 27" only for 1440p, which monitor would you suggest?

For 27" 1440p, I would suggest you look into following.

 

Best Choice (Great HDR performance) 

• Dell Alienware AW3423DWF (Ultrawide OLED)

• LG 27GR95QE (Wide OLED)

Did not take HDR into main consideration

• Gigabyte M27Q X (Wide IPS)

• Gigabyte M27Q Pro / M27Q (Wide IPS)

• LG 27GP850-B (Wide IPS)

• MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD (from your choice this is similar as others 3, but from review this monitor is over saturations out of the box, if you don't have calibration tools, I will not consider this).

[Stahlmann]

1 hour ago, che10 said:

My budget is up to $2500.

Sorry i meant the budget for just the monitor. What GPU you're gonna buy has a pretty big impact on monitor recommendations aswell.

[che10]

15 minutes ago, Stahlmann said:

Sorry i meant the budget for just the monitor. What GPU you're gonna buy has a pretty big impact on monitor recommendations aswell.

It's $400 max atm, might increase it a bit later since the build will be 1 month from now. I will be buying either a 3070/ti or a 3080 for Nvidia or 6700xt-6800/xt for AMD.