best gaming LCD monitor

[polonyc2]

I'm back in the market for an LCD...I've never owned an LCD so can someone fill me in on what are the must have features for a hard core gaming monitor...and when they say that 'native resolution' is 1680 x 1050 does that mean that the max resolution I can use with that monitor is 1680 x 1050?...I can't game at 1920 x 1200 (which is my preferred gaming resolution)?

also is there a huge noticable difference between a 2ms and 5ms response time?

[ATINUT]

Yes, when they say the native resolution is 1680 x 1050, that is the max resolution that the lcd can do. To be able to game in 1920 x 1200, you have to be willing to spend the money on an LCD panel in the 27inch to 32 in range, which I believe can handle 1920 x 1200, and not all manufacturers make lcd monitors that can do that resolution.

You also have to look at how much space you have, where you are going to put the monitor, to make sure you have enough space for it.

I actually enjoy gaming in 1680 x 1050 in games that support it.

With my desk, I didn't have enough room to get the Viewsonic VG2230wm Widescreen LCD. I'm limited on my computer desk to a 20inch Widescreen LCD.

[polonyc2]

so what happens in a few years when gaming is possible at 2400 x 1900 or some crazy resolution like that and I'm stuck with a monitor with a native resolution of only 1900 x 1200 or 1680 x 1050?...I have to then buy a new monitor??...I thought monitors were meant to last for a long time...my CRT has been with me for over 7 years now...so with LCD's I have to change them out every few years to be able to game at high resolutions??

[ATINUT]

Contrary to what publishers and so would have you believe, you can do gaming in 1920 x 1200 or 1680 x 1050, on an LCD for years to come. Come on, you don't honestly believe that gaming on some crazy resolution like 2400 x 1900 will look any better than gaming on a 1920 x 1200 or 1680 x 1050 LCD do you.

Honestly get yourself a decent LCD and be done with it, rather than chasing after something with a crazy resolution, that won't make the game look any better or get you better refresh rates. LCD's are limited to a max refresh rate of 60hz in their native resolution anyway.

[traveler]

Go for the 20" to 22" LCD widescreen monitor.

Like ATINUT says, at 1680 x 1050 it'll wow you on an LCD widescreen.

What to look for: Response time, no slower than about 6 ms. Contrast, the bigger the better. Angle: get 178 degrees of viewing angle and no less; the good screens have this angle; poor screens have 172 degrees (or something like that). And Features, get what you like (I like to rotate into tall screen mode)

[polonyc2]

Originally Posted by traveler

Like ATINUT says, at 1680 x 1050 it'll wow you on an LCD widescreen.

but with my current CRT I'm playing all my games (except Crysis) at 1920 x 1200...won't playing games at 1680 x 1050 be a step down in image quality and performance?

[ATINUT]

Originally Posted by polonyc2

but with my current CRT I'm playing all my games (except Crysis) at 1920 x 1200...won't playing games at 1680 x 1050 be a step down in image quality and performance?

No they won't step down in image quality and performance. The image quality and performance depends on what cpu you have, how much ram you have in your system, the videocard and the amount of ram on the videocard, and so on.

For example, I play C&C 3, Bioshock, Quake 4, Call Of Duty 2, Company Of Heroes, Neverwinter Nights 2, Loki: Heroes Of Mythology, and Two Worlds in 1680 x 1050, without any step down in image quality and performance. With some of the games I mention, like Quake 4, and Neverwinter Nights 2, and Company Of Heroes, if you set the graphic options with in these game to Ultra graphic quality, you will see a drop in performance, as more of the graphics are being loaded in to the videocard's memory.

It's when you get real crazy with graphic options in a game, is when you will see your performance drop. I've seen this with Company Of Heroes, Quake 4, and Neverwinter Nights. This in part, can also depend on how well the game, and the game engine were written.

[polonyc2]

Ive narrowed my LCD monitor choices down to 3...I'm hearing the TN panel ones aren't as good as the S-PVA ones...I'm also looking at 8-bit...low response times and low input lag are also critical for me as I'm a hardcore gamer...would also like a native resolution of 1920 x 1200...with that in mind these are my 3 choices...opinions?

DoubleSight DS-243N

DoubleSight 24" Widescreen Monitor

Lenovo ThinkVision L220x

Lenovo launches 22-inch WUXGA ThinkVision L220x - Engadget

BenQ G2400W (uses a TN panel but I hear it's the best TN panel monitor out)

BenQ USA - Computing

[wonderwrench]

Originally Posted by polonyc2

Ive narrowed my LCD monitor choices down to 3...I'm hearing the TN panel ones aren't as good as the S-PVA ones...I'm also looking at 8-bit...low response times and low input lag are also critical for me as I'm a hardcore gamer...would also like a native resolution of 1920 x 1200...with that in mind these are my 3 choices...opinions?

DoubleSight DS-243N

DoubleSight 24" Widescreen Monitor

Lenovo ThinkVision L220x

Lenovo launches 22-inch WUXGA ThinkVision L220x - Engadget

BenQ G2400W (uses a TN panel but I hear it's the best TN panel monitor out)

BenQ USA - Computing

What size monitor and windows res do you run now? Text and icons will be so small at 1920x1200 res on a 22 or 24 inch wide screen you will need a magnifying glass to see whats going on. Sure you can run a lower desktop res and have a loss in image quality or you can spend hours fussing with font sizes etc. and run 1920x1200. Maybe you can live with it? All versions of windows though XP/2003 make it almost impossible to scale fonts and icons on a system wide basis. Maybe Vista fixed this problem but I doubt it.

[polonyc2]

Originally Posted by wonderwrench

What size monitor and windows res do you run now? Text and icons will be so small at 1920x1200 res on a 22 or 24 inch wide screen you will need a magnifying glass to see whats going on. Sure you can run a lower desktop res and have a loss in image quality or you can spend hours fussing with font sizes etc. and run 1920x1200. Maybe you can live with it? All versions of windows though XP/2003 make it almost impossible to scale fonts and icons on a system wide basis. Maybe Vista fixed this problem but I doubt it.

I'm currently using a 21' Sony CRT monitor at 1280 x 1024...with my old ATI card I was using 1360 x 1024...it's actually quite easy to increase font size in XP...the most important aspect is to increase DPI size which increases font size on a system wide basis...I'm currently using a custom DPI size of 125dpi...raising DPI size in correlation with going into the 'Appearance' Tab and increasing font and icon size makes customizing XP very easy...I've been doing it for years with no issues

with DPI you can raise it to ridiculously high levels so I'm not worried about using a widescreen monitor at 1920 x 1200

[wonderwrench]

Originally Posted by polonyc2

I'm currently using a 21' Sony CRT monitor at 1280 x 1024...with my old ATI card I was using 1360 x 1024...it's actually quite easy to increase font size in XP...the most important aspect is to increase DPI size which increases font size on a system wide basis...I'm currently using a custom DPI size of 125dpi...raising DPI size in correlation with going into the 'Appearance' Tab and increasing font and icon size makes customizing XP very easy...I've been doing it for years with no issues

with DPI you can raise it to ridiculously high levels so I'm not worried about using a widescreen monitor at 1920 x 1200

Yes I know how its done. You must not be very picky because to increase everything equally, font's, icons, boxes etc. etc. everywhere in all apps under all conditions is a pain in the ars if even possible. On a MAC its almost 1 click. As long as you know what your getting into and can deal with it, great! Let me know how it goes.

[VSEKH]

I'm looking at getting a new LCD screen also as my current Viewsonic 20.1' monitor is flickering too much. Plus Viewsonic sent me a replacement, but this was also bad. It has been 2 months now and they have not sent me a replacement. I am looking at one between 24' to 28' as I want to play games at 1920x1200 to utilize my 8800GTX's power. Can't make up my mind on whether I should get one with an HDMI connector or not.

[RACINGX]

I have the NEC 20wmgx2 and love it.

Amazon.com: NEC MultiSync 20WMGX2-BK 20.1" LCD Monitor: Electronics

The image is unbeatable.

[SpeedDMN]

Just remember to lower the resolution in your games before you switch monitors. If you don't, the result is a black screen when you start your game. I usually game at 1600x1200 and the plasma only supports 1440x1080. The huge size of it makes it worth the hit in resolution to me. Frankly, if it were a display of the same size, I would prefer my flat panel CRT (which is now collecting dust) over a LCD. The LCD is a bit brighter, but it doesn't have the crispness of a high res CRT IMO.

[polonyc2]

to the people that own an LCD...how is the ghosting/lag when playing fast paced FPS games?...is it noticable?

Originally Posted by SpeedDMN

Frankly, if it were a display of the same size, I would prefer my flat panel CRT (which is now collecting dust) over a LCD. The LCD is a bit brighter, but it doesn't have the crispness of a high res CRT IMO.

I agree...that's why I'm giving serious thought to buying a used/refurbished high end 21' CRT to replace my current monitor...I'm a hardcore gamer and I was all set to go with an LCD but there isn't 1 LCD monitor that has all the features I am looking for---low response time, 8-bit, low input lag, S-IPS or S-PVA, high contrast, swivel/tilt etc...not to mention the whole risk of getting an LCD with dead pixels etc

why buy an LCD just for the sake of buying one?...it has to match or exceed the quality of my current CRT for it to make any sense...and the LCD technology is still not there yet for high end gamers...you have to compromise image quality by getting a TN panel with low response times or suffer with good image quality but bad input lag and response times

I think a good CRT is still the better choice for high end gamers