What are some good monitors for a dual 1080p setup?

[tman2damax11]

Sorry for the wall of text, but monitors are a serious long-term investment type thing to me, so I either get the perfect ones for the task at hand, or don't get any at all if they don't meet the demand (anyone get that rhyme?). So I really need some new monitors, I've been settling with what I've had for years, and when I say years I mean one of the displays I use is from 2006 and the other from 2009.

 

The first display is the one I use for my Xbox 360 and Xbox One, I currently have to switch the hdmi cables every time I want to switch consoles, but by the time I get new monitors I won't need the 360 because all the games that I do play will be ported to xbox one or I probably won't want to play them anymore, so only one hdmi port is necessary, but the display is a Sharp LC26DV20U with some negative aspects like the oddest resolution of 768p, which makes all my games look blurry because its not a resolution supported by either console and no games run at this resolution, the bezels are like 2 inches thick on all sides and 5 inches on the bottom with the speakers, and a lacking contrast ratio of 800:1, also its like 35 pounds! The only good features are that it has an HDMI port, which is pretty insane for being 8 years old, the internal speakers are actually pretty usable and have good bass, and it only has a ~12ms delay which as far as I know is too low to be noticeable.

 

The monitor I use is a lot nicer of a story, its a Hanns.g HZ251, it has the same lacking contrast ratio of 800:1 making the image look flat a lot, the internal speakers are completely garbage, as many are, the bezels could be thinner but they're actually quite thin, but they're weirdly rounded and I hate the glossy plastic used. The nice features are that it is full 1080p, the menus are so simple and theres only few settings that need tweaking, which is a plus for me, and it only has a 2ms delay which is pretty nice for being 5 years old. Currently these displays are across the room from each other and I constantly move from my desk to my chair to play games on console and work on my PC.

 

So my plan is to get a bigger desk and have a 2 monitor setup with my PC displaying to both monitors when I'm gaming or doing general PC work stuff, then if I want to game on console I just switch the input on one of the monitors to go to the xbox one. Then I can comfortably console game from my desk and have the other monitor for doing PC stuff while I use the xbox at the same time. And I do record my PC footage, so with this setup I can get an elgato or something like that someday to record xbox footage since the PC will be right next to it.

 

My challenge is to find the right monitors. My prefered specs would be 1080p resolution - I have no need for anything higher, also it has to be 1080 not 1200p, because a 16:10 aspect ratio will mess with the xbox one - 24-26 inches - anything smaller than 24 in is just too small for me and it feels cramped, and anything bigger than 26 in just feels like a TV to me, also my current monitor is 24.5 in so I'm most comfortable with that - at least 1 HDMI and DVI port - again I will have an xbox one running to one monitor and my PC will have 2 DVI cables with 1 going to each monitor - good color and contrast ratio - anything better than 800:1 for the contrast ratio and for color I would like IPS, but a comparable tn or other display type would be acceptable - build in speakers won't matter - I'm getting high quality desktop ones soon - stand swivel and height adjustment don't matter - i'm usually ok with a fixed height and I don't need to turn the displays to go vertical or anything like that - and of course price, I plan to only spend $500 max on both monitors - I don't know if this is too little, too much, or just right? But if the monitors you guys present to me have compelling features, color quality, meet all my demands, or whatever I will consider spending a bit over $500 and maybe bump my budget up to $600.

 

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

[AlwaysFSX]

Acer H276HLbmid

http://www.microcenter.com/product/428877/H276HL_27_LCD_IPS_Monitor

[ForsakenLive]

The Dell P2414H has a lovely screen, really thin bezels, an impressive stand, lots of connectivity, low input lag and a big reputation. You can get it for cheaper now, as it used to have a heavier price on the past.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EMB4KVI/?tag=pcpapi-20

 

There are many other good monitors, like the Asus PB238Q, and other cheaper monitors, that while having a lower grade stand and no vesa mount, still have a pretty damn good screen, like the Acer H236HLbid, which is a choice by many PC gamers that want a good display around the $150 price.

 

You said you are used to swapping out cables and select inputs, to use both your consoles and the PC on the same monitor, have you considered getting a HDMI splitter switch, that allows you to press a button and select what input is being used? Example:

 

[Geekazoid]

@tman2damax11, WOW! That is one very damn long post you've got there (first post on this thread of yours).

[0s4x]

Acer H236HL bid

[tman2damax11]

Acer H276HLbmid

http://www.microcenter.com/product/428877/H276HL_27_LCD_IPS_Monitor

love the simple black design, ips screen, and price, but 27 inches is just to big for my needs

[tman2damax11]

Acer H236HL bid

just like @AlwaysFSX, love the simple black design, ips screen, and price, but in this case 23 inches is just to small for me, whenever I use a 23 in monitor it just feels like I have no room to multitask.

[0s4x]

just like @AlwaysFSX, love the simple black design, ips screen, and price, but in this case 23 inches is just to small for me, whenever I use a 23 in monitor it just feels like I have no room to multitask.

Are you really going to notice that a monitor is one inch larger or smaller than your preferred range?

 

EDIT: not trying to be a jerk, some people do tend to notice such small differences in monitors.

[AlwaysFSX]

love the simple black design, ips screen, and price, but 27 inches is just to big for my needs

The hell? I thought I posted the link for the 24" version. I know it exists. Must've been mis-listed on PCPartPicker.

[tman2damax11]

The Dell P2414H has a lovely screen, really thin bezels, an impressive stand, lots of connectivity, low input lag and a big reputation. You can get it for cheaper now, as it used to have a heavier price on the past.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EMB4KVI/?tag=pcpapi-20

 

There are many other good monitors, like the Asus PB238Q, and other cheaper monitors, that while having a lower grade stand and no vesa mount, still have a pretty damn good screen, like the Acer H236HLbid, which is a choice by many PC gamers that want a good display around the $150 price.

 

You said you are used to swapping out cables and select inputs, to use both your consoles and the PC on the same monitor, have you considered getting a HDMI splitter switch, that allows you to press a button and select what input is being used? Example:

As I explained I wouldn't be needing multiple HDMI ports by the time I upgraded, but this monitor seems to have no HDMI ports, but it has tons of great features, a great stand, IPS, good screen size, and a good price, so this is definitely going to be a consideration, thanks for the recommendation.

[dhavalshah2010]

http://www.aoc-europe.com/no_cache/en/monitors.html?useCacheHash=1&showUid=222

[dhavalshah2010]

As I explained I wouldn't be needing multiple HDMI ports by the time I upgraded, but this monitor seems to have no HDMI ports, but it has tons of great features, a great stand, IPS, good screen size, and a good price, so this is definitely going to be a consideration, thanks for the recommendation.

http://www.aoc-europe.com/no_cache/en/monitors.html?useCacheHash=1&showUid=222

 

Check this

[tman2damax11]

http://www.aoc-europe.com/no_cache/en/monitors.html?useCacheHash=1&showUid=222

 

Check this

This almost exactly what I'm looking for. Has all my prefered features, and as a bonus it looks extremely well built. My only complaint is that its only 21.5 in, which is a huge downside for me. but definitely still a consideration because it does meet all my requirements besides size, great suggestion!

[TheKoerby]

Hey, how important is it to you that both monitors have to be the same model? Because if that should be not that big of a deal i would go with one Eizo Forris Fs2333 and an Asus PB238Q. I know they are both 23" but the difference between 24" and 23" is not that big.

 

The Eizo has 2 times Hdmi and is one of the best 23" out there but pretty expensive so I thought maybe mix things up a little.

 

Of course I would totally understand if the monitors have to be the same model, but I didn't find anything with 2 times Hdmi under 400 bucks expept the Eizo.

[tman2damax11]

Hey, how important is it to you that both monitors have to be the same model? Because if that should be not that big of a deal i would go with one Eizo Forris Fs2333 and an Asus PB238Q. I know they are both 23" but the difference between 24" and 23" is not that big.

 

The Eizo has 2 times Hdmi and is one of the best 23" out there but pretty expensive so I thought maybe mix things up a little.

 

Of course I would totally understand if the monitors have to be the same model, but I didn't find anything with 2 times Hdmi under 400 bucks expept the Eizo.

These both looks like great displays, I am a huge fan of asus and I was eyeing the PB238Q, but I just can't get over the fact that it is only 23 inches, but I'm still considering it because I think asus is at the top for monitor reputation. And again I only need 1 HDMI so 2 is not necessary.

[TheKoerby]

Oh sorry, I misread the HDMI controversy . I just saw that the Asus PA248Q is under 300 bucks on Amazon. If you are willing to go to your max budget I think these are just amazing, even though you would probably never exceed the capabilities.

 

It's sad that there are no Pb248Q available anywhere....

[Nvious]

This almost exactly what I'm looking for. Has all my prefered features, and as a bonus it looks extremely well built. My only complaint is that its only 21.5 in, which is a huge downside for me. but definitely still a consideration because it does meet all my requirements besides size, great suggestion!

 

The Dell S2340M is very similar to this AOC and is 23"

[dhavalshah2010]

This almost exactly what I'm looking for. Has all my prefered features, and as a bonus it looks extremely well built. My only complaint is that its only 21.5 in, which is a huge downside for me. but definitely still a consideration because it does meet all my requirements besides size, great suggestion!

 

Hey can u pls help me with this already posted but weired it has 0 views !!!!!!! on LTT

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/175798-aoc-3d-led-d2367ph-any-good/

[tman2damax11]

The Dell S2340M is very similar to this AOC and is 23"

Great find, but it has no HDMI ports which is a very important feature for me.

[Nomelas]

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&cs=19&sku=860-BBCG&baynote_bnrank=0&baynote_irrank=0&~ck=baynoteSearch

 

Dell U2414H, has 2 HDMI ports but no DVI. It does have a display port & mini displayport though and you could always use adapters. Thin bezels make for great multi-monitor setups

 

http://www.amazon.com/Dell-UltraSharp-U2414H-1080p-Monitor/dp/B00H4MJ1M0 $254 on amazon