IPS vs TN, 1440p, 144hz and GSYNC

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shawnsum

shawnsum

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Jul 22, 2012
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So I made this post back in December, still have not decided on anything and actually have more questions/concerns!

I'm looking to upgrade my Display but I am super concerned with the amount of backlash I've been seeing regarding "quality control" on these high priced displays. It's 2017, so yes..I want something that will last, is shiny, and has all the bells and whistles (IPS, GYSNC, 144hz, etc, etc). But at the same time I'm saying I want all these things, some of this stuff worries me, especially a IPS panel. Really, what are my odds of getting a good panel, no defects, no severe light bleed? Getting involved in a RMA circle jerk just does not sound fun to me when I'm spending $800-1000..

It almost makes me just wanna stick to a TN panel, but then I'm like "No!! I want to experience the quality I know IPS can deliver!". I'm extremely torn on making a decision...

Here are a few displays I'm currently considering.
-Acer Predator 34"
-Asus ROG Swift 27"

Any help, suggestions, input is greatly appreciated!
 
Hate to burst your bubble, but tn panels have back light bleed issues as well. There is a difference between ips glow and backlight bleed, so you should be aware of that as well. I recently switched from a 1080p tn to a 1440 pls panel and I will never go back to a tn panel or 1080 again.
 


Good to know. Thanks!

 
Hey Shawnsum,

I have been on the market for a new monitor myself. I'm so exhausted of that endless and fruitless search. It's a bit of a long story but I'll share it to let some steam off.

Last July my journey for finding a new monitor begun. As I've been using a 120Hz monitor for around 5years now I just couldn't go back to "normal" 60Hz monitors. As mine was a 24" 1920x1080 TN display I naturally wanted something bigger and better but it had to tick a few boxes.

My requirements were as follows:

Size - at least 27"
Resolution - at least 2560x1440
Refresh Rate - at least 100Hz
Optional - G-Sync

So in July 2016 I ordered Acer XF270HU 27" WQHD IPS Monitor with FreeSync (https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Monitors/Acer-XF270HU-Gaming-FreeSync-Display-Height-adjustable/B017STCKU8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1486050593&sr=8-1&keywords=Acer+XF270HU+27). As soon as I turned the thing on and I saw a big cluster of stuck/dead pixels in the lower right quarter of the screen and also another "smudge" in the upper right. I requested a return and the company I bought it from sent me a replacement.

The second Acer XF270HU 27" WQHD IPS Monitor with FreeSync arrived a couple of days later and it didn't have any dead/stuck pixel but the IPS glow was horrendous. It almost felt like there is radiation coming from that thing. I got the feeling as if pins and needles were being stuck into my eyeballs. And all this while I had reduced the brightness to 25-30. I played with all settings but it didn't help. So I returend this monitor for a refund.

I then though to myself - I've had enough of IPS panels so decided to go back to TN and so ordered an AOC AGON AG271QX 27" QHD LED 144Hz monitor (https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/bc7/AOC-Monitor-Response-Display-Speakers-Adaptive-AG271QX/B01G4AUGR6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1486050563&sr=8-1&keywords=AOC+AGON+AG271QX+27%22). At first look it was pretty good but within a couple of hours I discovered another horrible (for me at least) issue with it. It suffered from something that I later found out was referred to as "pixel inversion" - to try and describe it shortly - you can see vertical lines when there are moving objects on the screen - it happens while watching videos, scrolling pages, playing games - basically everywhere. It is especially off-putting when playing games and there is smoke/fog effects on the screen. It was unbearable. So I returned this monitor too.

I thought the problem was with the brand - AOC or something so went on and purchased a different TN display monitor. This time - Acer PREDATOR XB271HUAbmiprz (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Acer-Predator-XB271HUAbmiprz-27-Inch-ZeroFrame/dp/B01EN5JN5K). Sadly as soon as I turned it on I found out it suffered from the same "pixel inversion" problem.

This whole thing made me do a little more research and I found out that pretty much all high refresh rate monitors on the market both TN and IPS source their displays from AU optronics - a Chinese displays manufacturer. So it doesn't matter if you buy Benq, AOC, Acer, Asus, Dell or whatever (apart from Samsung and LG, to this later) - the plastic on the outside is different with different logos and different manufacturer but the most vital part - the display itself is manufactured by the same company - AU Optronics. And thus all high refresh rate TN displays suffer from pixel inversion, and high refresh rate IPS monitors suffer from IPS glow.

Apparently Samsung have developed and been using their own VA technology which is supposed to be middle ground - not as good as IPS when comes to colour reproduction and viewing angles, but not as bad as TN. The problem with VA panels in general is that have slower response time and suffer from "ghosting". But Samsung announced and finally brought out on the market a new 34" 100 Hz display that was supposed to be the "bestest" ever when comes to gaming - both delivering 100Hz refresh rate and also having all the bells and whistles like Quantum dot technology supporting sRGB 125% and what not. It is the Samsung LC34F791WQUXEN (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-LC34F791WQUXEN-Curved-Gaming-Monitor/dp/B01L98A326/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1486051244&sr=8-1&keywords=34%22+CF791)

This monitor was over my budget. From the initial £400 to doubling it to £800, but as I thought this will be the ultimate solution of all my problems I bit the bullet and ordered it.

Well.... what can I say - after 2 weeks trying to "get used to it" I also returned the Samsung. No, it didn't have dead pixels, and no, it didn't have that pixel inversion problem as TN displays, and despite the fact that it was a VA panel it still had IPS glow, although to a much lower level. Sadly, due to its curvature (1600R, the most curved display in the world, as they advertise it) and the IPS glow it made me feel cross-eyed. Also, the ghosting VA panels are infamous with was there too. I made a short video (sorry for the quality) when I was opening a dispute for my return. You can see the video here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kjFgiiVhwQ&feature=youtu.be

So... I got a refund for the Samsung too and just when I was about to give up I found out that there was an updated version of the ASUS ROG SWIFT PG278Q - the new model has a letter "R" at the end - I presume meaning - Revised. I had little hopes of the pixel inversion being fixed but still wanted to see for myself as there wasn't any info about it I could find online. So I ordered the updated ASUS ROG SWIFT PG278QR (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01LWQGIUR/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). It arrived yesterday and ...yes - you guessed it - nothing has been fixed it still suffers from pixel inversion as the previous model.

So... to sum it all up - I bought and returned 6 monitors from different brands and different types of displays, spent almost 8 months in the process - personally for me it has proved impossible to find a monitor which doesn't suffer from IPS glow, Ghosting, or pixel inversion and which is at least 27" in size, at least 2560x1440 in resolution, and with at least 100Hz refresh rate.

People say the IPS glow and the pixel inversion are subjective and not everyone finds it annoying. Sadly I don't just find them annoying - I find both issues unbearable.
 


Wow, I feel so sorry for you, jesus christ...I'm glad you were able to get refunds and stuff though through your journey. I read your entire story and I am quite glad you told it, but I wanted to quote the last thing you said, which is my entire reason why I posted this up!!

I'm picky, I notice things others claim they do not, those things annoy me thus ruining the experience. FPS dropping below a certain threshold, screen tearing, etc, etc. I realize that IPS Glow is normal, it's just the severity of it that can be too much for people. I'll be pulling the trigger soon on one of the two mentioned above in my OP. I know HDR is right around the corner but it's honestly just going to be out of my budget when it floods the market, will consider them in a couple years after using whatever I end up buying soon.

Again, thanks for sharing your story!

 
Hey,

I'm glad my post didn't bore you too much :)

I am exactly like you - very sensitive to all the things you mentioned. I'm almost as accurate to guessing the current fps in a game as fraps is - I could tell within 5-10 FPS. And so many people keep trying to argue that anything above 60 fps is pointless, or that you can't see it and so on...

Just make sure whenever you are placing your order, that you do it from a place where you would have no issues getting a refund in case you are not satisfied with the monitor.

Wishing you all the best and success in the monitor hunt!
 
Monitor hunts can be a real challenge unfortunately. I also wish you the best of luck and hope you find something that meets your needs. Monitors are quite subjective, and we each can tolerate different levels of imperfections.
 


Well said! I'll just have to make my order and see how it goes. It's going to be so nerve racking un-boxing and setting up whatever I get!

 
Hey same situation as you. Im gonna wit till march. Then we will finally get a proper review of the omen x 35 ( VA panel with quantum dot ) im no fan of va, but if there is no ghostong and colours are as crisp as they claim.. it also has a 2500:1 contrast radio and supposedly no backlight bleed. They will also present the pg27uq around that time so... thats the one im aiming for. Cant futureproof any better than this.
 


Well I've narrowed my search down to 1 display now. I'll be ordering the Asus ROG Swift PG279Q in a few days.

I decided to go with this one over the Predator x34 for a couple reasons. I bought a GTX 980 TI less than a year ago and I feel like jumping up to a ultra wide resolution would dip me below a comfortable FPS threshold for me personally on upcoming titles at max settings.

The new displays coming out this year will kick total ass, if you got the $ and the hardware I say hell yeah and go for it. It's simply just out of reach for me, lol. It would mean all kinds of hardware for me to run @ 60+. Will require a minimum of 2 1080s to get 60 FPS consistantly @ 4k. $1100-1200 in GPUs, another $1500+ on the display. No thanks, but more power to all the people out there that can afford it!!

 
True true, but its still worth waiting for the omen x 35. I just saw an x34a for 990€. That pricd will drop even more once there is more competition. And once the 1080ti comes out you might find a good deal on a 1080. Also, i've heard a 980ti is more or less identical to a 1070 an will get you along quite nicely on a 3440 x 1440p screen.
As for me i'm planning to use my screen for at least 5 years, thats how i justify that massive pricetag
 
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