4k monitor recommendations?

I'm considering upgrading to a 1080ti and a 4k monitor. Before I go digging back through Bombcasts to see if Rorie names the monitor he got that will finally allow him to play KOTOR II the way it was meant to be played, does anyone have any recommendations?

Something with an IPS panel that is at least 30-32 inches. Any smaller than that and you run into scaling issues in Windows. 32 inches seems to be about the sweet spot for most people assuming you're about 2-3 feet away from the monitor.

Keep in mind that running anything at 4k is pretty tough on hardware still so I wouldn't worry about running above 60hz since it will probably be another 2-3 years before that is really feasible unless you want to spend a grand on graphics cards.

This is probably what you want assuming you don't want to take a chance importing on of those Korean Microboard monitors from eBay. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00O1B5M9I/?tag=wcengdgtsynd-20&ascsubtag=WC31052

Have you considered a QHD 144hz? I already have a really gorgeous Sony 65" 4K right past my desk for 4K goodness and for more serious gaming I just picked up a 2K 144hz from Dell that looks pretty sharp. It looks much clearer than 1080p and the 144hz thing is something I can barely stand to give up at this point. Especially if you play a lot of shooters or other faster-paced games, it's a great way to go.

Otherwise, what are your priorities? What brand of GPU? Price range? Do you want response time or image quality?

I think 1440p @144hz is better deal than 4k @60hz. Not only will it be easier to run games in general but 144hz is something special if you have the hardware to run it, especially at 1440p. IMO the only reason to go 4k at this time is if you need that resolution for work productivity or video/image editing. Anything else you're probably better off just with 2 nice 27' 1440p monitors if you have the desk space.

@stonyman65 said:

I second this.

Want to echo that one - I would highly recommend a 1440p @ 144hz over a 4k @ 60hz any day.

As of late the first 4k monitors that support higher refresh rates have been announced but they will cost you north of 1.5k $ and even then those are below 30 inch in size which makes 4k loose a lot of its appeal on .

4k @ 144 hz

Acer Predator X27

Asus ROG Swift PG27UQ

1440 p @ 144 hz

Acer Predator XB271HU

Asus ROG Swift PG279Q

I went for the Acer as out of the 1440p @ 144 hz @ 27 inch ips g-sync monitors out there it has noticeable less quality issues than other manufacturers' models.

1080ti is barely getting 60 with current games and obviously that won't last long, so i would suggest either getting a 4k tv(not monitor) or get a 144hz 1440p monitor. If your dead set on 4k look for the input lag, sony's seem to be good in this department. If you want hdr and all that I wouldn't go for any of the cheap ones, hdr seems to only be good on high end models (especially Oleds). 1000$ and under tv's don't seem to have the peak brightness, black levels, and color gamut to actually do hdr they just recieve the signal (Just got one since my last tv died under warranty and hdr is noticeably worse than sdr on it)

I've been looking at gaming monitors of late, and since several people brought up the 1440p/144hz issue in this thread, I won't start a seperate one. Best Buy has this 24" Dell G-Sync model on sale this week, and I'm really tempted to jump on it. That said, I'm only running a 970 right now, so I am worried about its ability to keep up at that resolution. My processor is an i5 3570k, and I would like to hold off on upgrading the video card until I can justify doing the whole thing. I would prefer not to have to plunk down for a monitor at the same time as that, so my question really becomes: should I buy the monitor now and play at slightly lower settings at 1440p with the 970, and then have it at the ready for when I'm ready to splurge on what will amount to a whole new rig? I am thinking that the G-Sync will really help compensate for just running a 970, since the refresh rate will be matched to the frame rate, and maybe I can make it to early next year (and hopefully the real next-gen of Intel processors) before upgrading the rest. Any thoughts on the matter are appreciated, especially from anyone running that resolution on similar hardware.

From everything I heard the Bomb Squad talk about 4k, it sounds like there still isn't a whole bunch of content dedicated to it. It sounds like HDR and OLED is more important and gives you better results.

https://www.amazon.com/Acer-XB280HK-bprz-28-inch-Widescreen/dp/B00O0Z5682

I bought one of these monitors about a year ago.
My biggest recommendation on buying a UHD monitor: make sure it has G-Sync-- it's truly amazing.
Chances are you're going to be playing at sub 60 frames, and G-sync feels buttery smooth the whole time. Without a frame counter on screen, I honestly can't tell a difference between 40 or 60 FPS.

I'm in the same boat. I'd wait.

@stonyman65: When you say you're in the same boat, are you currently using a 1080p monitor and considering the upgrade, or using a 1440p monitor and have had a bad experience? Do you have any experience using a G-Sync monitor? I have not used one, but what bothers me more than actual frame rate is jutter and tearing from mismatched frame and refresh rates, so that is why this particular deal is so tempting. The next cheapest G-Sync monitor I would consider is only $20 less, but it's a 1080p panel, and I really don't want to be limited to that after the next round of upgrades.

@ralphmoustaccio:

I don't know if you saw my first post or not, but coming from someone who upgraded to a 4K G-sync monitor, I highly recommend it.
The difference is night and day, there's absolutely no comparison. G-sync can't effectively be described, you have to see it in person. Plus you'll love the added clarity of higher resolutions. I say go for it, especially if you don't want the added price of a monitor when you purchase a new rig. I'm not sure what the benchmarks for a 970 are at 1440p, but you may not have to turn too many settings down at all. Like I said, I can't tell a difference between 40 or 60 FPS with my monitor. It's glorious.

@betterley: I'd missed that when I replied to Stonyman, but I appreciate you replying to bring it to my attention. I have always heard that there is no way to do justice to G-Sync by just describing it. The "I can't tell a difference between 40 or 60 FPS" with it is exactly what I was hoping for. In looking at higher resolution monitors over the last few weeks, I've tinkered around with rendering some games at 1440p and downsampling to 1080p on my current setup, and that's usually the range I was getting at medium to high presets on stuff released in the last couple of years. Obviously, there will be games that are exception to that, but if there is little to no discernible difference in that FPS range with G-Sync that's great news. And with 24" being on the smaller side, I may even be able to get away with more limited use of AA at that resolution.

How is the user interface in most games at 4k? I've seen some screenshots in 4k and the UI looked uncomfortably small.

I have a 4k HDR TV and the ASUS Ultra Wide at 1440 and 100 Hz (G-Sync). I vastly prefer to game on my ultra-wide. It is well worth the dough and, yes, the extra frames do make a difference, especially with no screen tearing. My recommendation...go Ultra Wide.

@betterley: I did wind up buying that Dell G-Sync monitor, and it (finally) arrived yesterday. You're right. G-Sync is glorious. Most games I've thrown at it from the last year haven't required much if any reduction in settings to get good frame rates at 1440p, and the visual difference with fluctuating frame rates is so minimal as to be irrelevant. Impressive stuff, Nvidia.

@ralphmoustaccio:

Awesome! I'm glad you like it. SO BUTTERY SMOOTH! When I first played a game on it, I couldn't believe how smooth everything looked and felt. It's great.