120hz vs 60hz

It really depends on what you're talking about.

For computer monitors it means the display is capable of displaying up to 120 images per second. This is nice because if you're playing a fast-action game you have more chances to see something happening. 120Hz is also required for the new 3D glasses than nvidia introduced recently; it basically makes your left and right eyes see separate 60Hz signals to create the 3d effect. FYI, virtually all LCD monitors are 60Hz.

Televisions that claim 120Hz technology typically don't support 120Hz input. They use a 120Hz refresh rate so that 24Hz source material (aka blu-rays) can be displayed smoothly (1 source frame:5 display frames). Since 24 does not divide evenly into 60, 60Hz tv's display a slightly jittery image for 24Hz sources.
 
And that slightly jittery image annoys some of us with very sensitive vision. :)
 
this is what i was wondering. do computer lcds can they display 120hz, does your video card need to be able to? is the image quality better at 120hz? this is exciting thing.
 
There are about 2 computer monitor LCD's that can do true 120hz mode for 3D rendering (using Nvidia glasses) but they also function fine without them.

I have the Samsung and its the real deal and I love it.
 
The 120hz HDTV's that I've seen have all looked jittery. I mean, it looks smooth sometimes, and it's nice seeing all those frames, but the fact that it's lower hz source material converted to 120hz making it jittery is almost not worth it. I'd only get a 120hz monitor if the source material was 120hz, eg: a video card that can display native at 120hz. Other than that - I'd rather deal with 60hz and no jitteriness.
 
There arent ANY true 120HZ HDTVs out.
Only computer LCDs.
 
They are 120hz... they just won't take 120hz inputs... the internal engine in the TV will duplicate frames until it reaches 120hz.

So for film content it will try to display the same frame 5 times in a row before moving to the next (24fps * 5 = 120) and for regular 30fps content it'll display it 4 times... atleast that's the idea... some of them try to "smooth" out the motion by interpolating missing frames (Instead of displaying duplicates) but it's never really consistent... we have a high-end Sony 120hz TV and regret buying it... turn off most of the "120hz" features anyways... it was cool watching the Superbowl with all the settings cranked up, but for films and regular TV it never looks good/consistent.
 
The only two true 120Hz monitors are the Samsung 2232rz and the Viewsonic VX2265wm. These are both 22" 1680x1050 monitors, and they will take 120Hz from the video card. All LCD TVs that advertise themselves as 120Hz, 240Hz or even 480Hz only do that internally, and actually take 60Hz or less from the video card.

Somewhere on the forums I saw someone compare the Samsung and Viewsonic but I can't find that comparison anymore. One of them was better than the other is all that I remember. I have not seen any rumors of more true 120Hz monitors yet, so there probably isn't any other choices coming very soon.

Edit: I see in the Viewsonic VX2265wm thread here that the Viewsonic has apparently very low or no input lag, but it is stuck on 100% brightness when in 120Hz mode and has high backlight bleed, which puts a damper on my enthusiasm for that monitor. The Samsung 2232rz is criticized for having poor color accuracy (too blue) and average 10ms to 12ms input lag going up to 25ms (why make a 120Hz monitor with input lag?). Finally, there may be a third true 120Hz monitor from ASUS in Q3 2009; with the flaws in the first two monitors, it may be worth waiting to see if ASUS does it right.
 
Last edited:
120 Hz monitors (i.e. displays that can actually take 120 Hz input and display it 1:1) are really good for fast-paced action games and FPS. For MMORPGs and RTS games it's not as crucial.

120 Hz monitors also allow you to have V-sync on (i.e. get rid of image tearing) without limiting yourself to 60 fps (but rather 120 fps).
 
evilsofa said:
Finally, there may be a third true 120Hz monitor from ASUS in Q3 2009; with the flaws in the first two monitors, it may be worth waiting to see if ASUS does it right.
Click to expand...

Do you have a link to this? I've been looking for info on this asus monitor but can't find anything except initial marketing crap from early March. I'm especially interested in the supposed release date....
 
evilsofa said:
The only two true 120Hz monitors are the Samsung 2232rz and the Viewsonic VX2265wm. These are both 22" 1680x1050 monitors, and they will take 120Hz from the video card. All LCD TVs that advertise themselves as 120Hz, 240Hz or even 480Hz only do that internally, and actually take 60Hz or less from the video card.

Somewhere on the forums I saw someone compare the Samsung and Viewsonic but I can't find that comparison anymore. One of them was better than the other is all that I remember. I have not seen any rumors of more true 120Hz monitors yet, so there probably isn't any other choices coming very soon.

Edit: I see in the Viewsonic VX2265wm thread here that the Viewsonic has apparently very low or no input lag, but it is stuck on 100% brightness when in 120Hz mode and has high backlight bleed, which puts a damper on my enthusiasm for that monitor. The Samsung 2232rz is criticized for having poor color accuracy (too blue) and average 10ms to 12ms input lag going up to 25ms (why make a 120Hz monitor with input lag?). Finally, there may be a third true 120Hz monitor from ASUS in Q3 2009; with the flaws in the first two monitors, it may be worth waiting to see if ASUS does it right.
Click to expand...


I would say that it's noteworthy that the vx2265wm's issue with the backlight is solvable with turning down the brightness of the monitor in the ATI or NVIDIA control panel. Not really a big issue at all once you get it where you want it in there.

It's amazing to have an LCD that has the performance of a CRT finally.
 
evilsofa said:
The Samsung 2232rz is criticized for having poor color accuracy (too blue) and average 10ms to 12ms input lag going up to 25ms (why make a 120Hz monitor with input lag?).
Click to expand...

Samsung love making their monitors too blue. I bought one half a year ago and it was too blue and many of the samsung TVs I've seen had too much blue, as well as several Samsung monitors have been criticised in reviews for being too blue.
 
A true 120hz monitor can display 120 frames of source content per second. A 60hz monitor can display 60 frames of source content per second.

A higher refresh rate means less image tearing and smoother motion.

Many 120hz televisions use motion image interpolation, where samples from the two existing frames of the video are used to create middle frames. These middle frames help smooth out the movement of objects (especially with BluRay movies at 24 frames per second!) but they can create some strange visual artifacts.


There are only a handful of true 120hz LCD displays on the market, and they're all computer monitors. From my experience w/ my old CRT monitor, I've found that anything over 85hz is just gravy anyways :p Still, I'd take a 120hz monitor over a 60hz monitor any day.
 
i finally got the vizio 47" 120hz setup with hdmi... with sound over hdmi on a 2600p perfectly. that screen makes my samsung 225bw look like someone took a soupy shit on the front and smeared it all around with their face.

i did notice some very slight studder here and there... i wasn't sure if it was the 3800+@stock speed struggling (the vid card should handle the encoding though) or if i was seeing the 60hz feed being upped to 120hz by the tv.... overall though, it was like looking through a window, not at a tv.
 
spacetrader said:
i finally got the vizio 47" 120hz setup with hdmi... with sound over hdmi on a 2600p perfectly. that screen makes my samsung 225bw look like someone took a soupy shit on the front and smeared it all around with their face.

i did notice some very slight studder here and there... i wasn't sure if it was the 3800+@stock speed struggling (the vid card should handle the encoding though) or if i was seeing the 60hz feed being upped to 120hz by the tv.... overall though, it was like looking through a window, not at a tv.
Click to expand...

I'll let you off with a warning for failure to read the thread... this time. No LCD TV, including yours, can take more than 60Hz from the video card.
 
As far as HD shooting formats used for broadcast, there are only 3 main formats.

1080i interlaced (59.94 "fields" per second each field is a half res pass (540 pixels tall))
1080p progressive (29.97 frames per second)
720p progressive (59.95 frames per second)

Films are transferred at 23.98 frames per second...

So no professional acquisition formats exceed 60Hz... Thus any frames beyond 60 are just doubles!
Imagine how crappy that will make things look if your TV tries to create frames on the fly from thin air! Especially with highly compressed content!

If you looked at real 720p59.94 uncompressed, you would not think there needs to be more frames per second.. The key is providing a consistant 59.94 (or 60Hz)
 
My untrained eyes can't tell when the hell 60Hz or 120Hz is being used, then again I don't have side by side comparisons, just past and present (Westinghouse 47" -> Sceptre 47" -> Sony Z series 40")... That and I just couldn't/wouldn't care to notice the difference of every detail when I'm sitting back and watching a show/movie/whatever - HD is gorgeous (exceptions apply - ugly people, acne/zits/pimples) however displayed. IMO the real differences that can genuinely affect viewing are black levels and colors.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top