I've made it this long with a TN monitor, buy another?

djoye

djoye

2[H]4U
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I've been using a Samsung 226cw for the past 7 years and it has been great as far as gaming (response time) and the view angle from my position three feet from the monitor looks good. I once hooked up a newer Dell 24" 1920×1080 monitor to my PC, it might have been an IPS panel because the colors were quite noticeably better, but the response time was awful because I could see ghosting in games; I can't remember the model of the Dell monitor.

I really want something around 27" and at least 1080p but I was initially worried about TN panels until I realized that I had been using one ever since I upgraded from a CRT. If I'm satisfied with the Samsung 226cw then should I just go ahead and shop for another TN gaming monitor?
 
I don't have much experience with monitors bro, but I think response time is better in newer IPS monitors. In the end, it depends on weather you'll be using your monitor for competitive play or not (since response time is king in competitive scenarios).

cheers!
 
XL2730Z isn't bad and neither is the PG278Q (both TN.) the XB270HU is a great monitor and the only real negative is the annoying IPS glow. if TN colors don't bother you even after using what was most likely an e-IPS screen, i'd say go for the PG278Q as you have an nvidia card, because IPS glow would probably outweigh the bonus of better colors for you. you can usually find them for around $500 refurbed if you're into that, new ($670) is only about $130 cheaper than the XB270HU. however, if you don't care about any kind of variable sync and/or motion blur reduction features, you have a choice of either the $500-$580 IPS MG279Q (same panel as XB270HU but freesync and no motion blur reduction) or the $600 XL2730Z (freesync with brand-agnostic motion blur reduction.) these are all 1440p monitors. i strongly recommend against getting a 1080p 27" monitor, as a. the pixel density really sucks and b. the good ones are older and hard to come by (samsung s27a950d/750d.)
 
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Just keep in mind that a 27 inch TN panel will be more restrictive with it's viewing angles as opposed to a smaller screen. If you're ok with this then get the PG278Q, or the MG278Q if you have no need for gsync as it's only about $100 more than the BenQ XL2720Z but has 1440p resolution instead of 1080p.
 
TN panels are only viable if one only has 250$ to spend and desperately wants a 144hz monitor, but the 250$ 144hz TN panels have worse colours and contrast than the 226CW along with most of the good CCFL back-lit TN panels.

Modern AHVA/IPS/PLS panels have faster pixel response times than CCFL back-lit TN panels, and superior image quality too. The 1440p TN panels use grainy matte coatings and are only marginally faster than the 144hz AHVA panels (MG279Q and XB270HU) pixel response time wise. The ONLY reason the PG278Q is popular is because it came out many months before the first 144hz AHVA panel did.
 
Simple question for you, NCX:

Which is, in your opinion, better, ASUS MG279Q or Acer XB270HU?
 
lb_felipe said:
Simple question for you, NCX: Which is, in your opinion, better, ASUS MG279Q or Acer XB270HU?
Click to expand...

They're both good for different reasons and their functionality depends on which brand of GPU they're connected to. The Asus has better image quality since it has a dark matte grey bezel which vastly increases the perceived black depth compared to the Acers glossy black bezel which ruins the perceived black depth. The Acer offers superior gaming performance since it has less input lag, Sync tech up to 144hz and Lightboost.
 
Thanks.

What do you say about to paste tape on glossy bezels (or even paint them)? Would it be the fix for the perceived black depth on Acer one?

With an oc'ed GTX 980 Ti, is XB270HU worth it? That GPU has enough juice?

Also, an R9 Fury (non X) has it for MG279Q?

Remembering that 2560x1440x90Hz is average between 2560x1440x60Hz and 3840x2160x60Hz (in which such GPU struggles).

2560x1440@60Hz: 2560*1440*60/60/10^(3*2)= 3.7 MP@17ms
2560x1440@90Hz: 2560*1440*90/60/10^(3*2)= 5.5 MP@17ms
3840x2160@60Hz: 3840*2160*60/60/10^(3*2)= 8.3 MP@17ms

Using 60Hz as baseline.
 
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Have you thought about switching back to a CRT?

If you must have a LCD for whatever reason, I would choose a VG248QE. If you can afford it, maybe the PG278Q or Acer 2560x1440, 100Hz IPS. Make sure you enable ULMB on any of those. If you play competitive games and have a budget under $800, go for the VG248QE or a similar strobed LCD. At $800+, you have to decide if you want the IPS benefits (Acer) or 20 more Hz (Asus ROG Swift).
 
rabidz7 said:
Have you thought about switching back to a CRT?.
Click to expand...

I was a late switcher to LCD. When I first got my current (and only) LCD - an ASUS VW-266H - I could definitely notice ghosting. Apparently, my brain has learned to compensate for it now as I never notice it anymore.

That said, I only got rid of my CRT because it went bad. Does anybody still make CRTs?
 
Yippee38 said:
I was a late switcher to LCD. When I first got my current (and only) LCD - an ASUS VW-266H - I could definitely notice ghosting. Apparently, my brain has learned to compensate for it now as I never notice it anymore.

That said, I only got rid of my CRT because it went bad. Does anybody still make CRTs?
Click to expand...

You can get a refurbished unit from Unkle Vito. Otherwise, look for a used one.
 
rabidz7 said:
Have you thought about switching back to a CRT?

If you must have a LCD for whatever reason, I would choose a VG248QE. If you can afford it, maybe the PG278Q or Acer 2560x1440, 100Hz IPS. Make sure you enable ULMB on any of those. If you play competitive games and have a budget under $800, go for the VG248QE or a similar strobed LCD. At $800+, you have to decide if you want the IPS benefits (Acer) or 20 more Hz (Asus ROG Swift).
Click to expand...

You know G-Sync vs ULMB is a toss up for me. I have tried both on the PG278Q I just got on the Amazon sale and playing MGS:V at 1440p is awesome. Game seems to have a 60FPS limiter and when I put G-Sync on its smooth as butter pegged at 59.9FPS per afterburner on my Titan-X with all the candy on. When I tried ULMB I got tearing out the ying yang with the display at 120hz and the game still at the same 59.9 FPS. Maybe I should have limited the screen to 60hz?
 
Well, I wouldn't pay over $150 for a TN monitor these days (which usually means under 24" if buying new). I'm not sure you're asking the right question though. The right question is "what's my budget, and what features do I care about?" I personally think that if you're considering a 27" gaming monitor, there's no reason to go with the PG278Q over the XB270HU with only a small difference in price - and if you have the patience/time, the PG279Q will surely best the XB270HU in certain areas and should be worth the wait.

Ghosting is not an issue on the new IPS gaming panels. Whether price is (an issue) for you is another story.
 
I would agree with FMX that the PG279Q will be better than the XB270HU. I plan to get one when it does eventually come out soon. I considered the XB270HU but with so many posts about the bad QC and so many guys getting 2-3-4 monitors before they got one they could "live with" I just wanted to wait for the Acer but I broke down and got the PG278Q for the time being.

That and the "IPS Glow" may or may not be something that is an issue on a panel by panel and user by user basis.
 
JayteeBates said:
You know G-Sync vs ULMB is a toss up for me. I have tried both on the PG278Q I just got on the Amazon sale and playing MGS:V at 1440p is awesome. Game seems to have a 60FPS limiter and when I put G-Sync on its smooth as butter pegged at 59.9FPS per afterburner on my Titan-X with all the candy on. When I tried ULMB I got tearing out the ying yang with the display at 120hz and the game still at the same 59.9 FPS. Maybe I should have limited the screen to 60hz?
Click to expand...

Asus artificially limits the monitor so you can't set ULMB at 60Hz. They really think that people are too dumb to understand how flicker works.

I would recommend uncapping the framerate to reduce tearing on ULMB.
 
FMX said:
Well, I wouldn't pay over $150 for a TN monitor these days (which usually means under 24" if buying new). I'm not sure you're asking the right question though. The right question is "what's my budget, and what features do I care about?" I personally think that if you're considering a 27" gaming monitor, there's no reason to go with the PG278Q over the XB270HU with only a small difference in price - and if you have the patience/time, the PG279Q will surely best the XB270HU in certain areas and should be worth the wait.

Ghosting is not an issue on the new IPS gaming panels. Whether price is (an issue) for you is another story.
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you can remove the framerate cap in mgsv with no serious side effects, i played through the entire game getting ~90 fps. fyi.
 
I removed the framerate cap and I fluxuated between low 70's and 120ish depending on where I was so I am liking G-Sync better at the moment.
 
JayteeBates said:
I would agree with FMX that the PG279Q will be better than the XB270HU. I plan to get one when it does eventually come out soon. I considered the XB270HU but with so many posts about the bad QC and so many guys getting 2-3-4 monitors before they got one they could "live with" I just wanted to wait for the Acer but I broke down and got the PG278Q for the time being.

That and the "IPS Glow" may or may not be something that is an issue on a panel by panel and user by user basis.
Click to expand...

Yeah the Acer's QC issues, the bad AG, glossy bezel, and overall cheap build quality quickly deterred me from taking a chance, so I can't say I blame you on the PG278Q purchase. My personal choice to tide me over was the Dell U2715H (I wanted IPS and 27" 1440p for sure). Once IPS gaming monitors get to where they need to be, and more companies jump on board, I'll consider one.
 
Probably against most recommendations, I bought the Acer 1440p monitor with the red strip at the bottom and have been using it for 2 weeks.

1) That red strip is more of a copper color and isn't actually distracting; I don't notice it at all when focused on a games.
2) Games that run over 120FPS are glorious.
3) No dead pixels on my display.
4) I've had no odd issues (flickering--that I've read from customer reviews) and I'm using the included DisplayPort cable with my GALAX GTX 970 card.
5) The output is even across the screen
6) It came super bright, I set the brightness to 0 and contrast to 20 and then used the WIN10 display calibration to calibrate it.
7) I set Windows to 144Hz and let it rip. Even though this is a Freesync monitor and I have an NVIDIA GPU, there appears to be some kind of vsync stepping occuring; sometimes the framerate will sit at certain intervals but I've not yet seen any tearing or slowdown and I'm surprised at how well games seem to work with it.
8) It can be difficult to view from angles outside of what you may typically view from sitting directly in front of the display. I sometimes like to play music in Foobar 2000 and then stand up and play guitar and navigate the track, it can be difficult to see where the song is in the time display at the bottom of Foobar 2000 unless I have the fonts set larger. Since this is for gaming, that doesn't hurt my feelings. If anything, I need to use my eyes less when playing music.
9) Why are G-sync monitors so much more expensive? I like NVIDIA GPUs, but I'm not paying a premium just to have G-sync. If AMD gains the upper hand with DX12, I'll switch. (Re: Brand loyalty is for suckers). G-sync 27"+ monitors are easily over $500, eff that.

For running games at 1440p, I basically crank up the settings and then disable any anti-aliasing and work down from there. The only game with bad aliasing is Killing Floor 2, so I have to leave FXAA enabled and then I lower other settings to get it to run over 100FPS.

Bottom line for this Acer monitor: The image quality looks at least as good as the Samsung 226cw that I used previously and now I have 2560×1440 with up to 144Hz refresh rate. Set Windows to 144Hz and let it rip.
 
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