Widescreen Gaming Forum

Hello, first time post here.

So Ive been a console gamer all my life and Im just starting to get into non-MMO gaming with my PC. Ive been playing with a 20" CRT and I want to upgrade to a widescreen LCD.

I want a monitor in wich i can play both with my 360 and my PC. But Ive been reading about aspect ratios and resolutions and how the 360 doesnt support 16:10 and such and I need advice.

-Should I get a 16:10 monitor (such as a 1680x1050 native)? Will Xbox 360 games be playable in these resolutions without much distortion? or...

-Should i get a 16:9 (such as a 1920x1080 native)? Will I find these resolutions supported by current PC games such as Fallout 3, Prototype or the upcoming Dragon Age: Origins?

-Does my rig have enough power to run current games in high at 1920X1080?
AMD Phenom 9550 2.2 Ghz Quad
Radeon HD4870
6GB Ram
Vista 64 bit

Thanks in advance for the help.

Dont know if Im posting in the right forum =/

get a 16:9 with HDMI. Most PC games will support 16:9 Resolutions. I don't have an Xbox; but that's what i typically hear. You can always Pillarbox (Put black bars on the sides if your game doesn't support 16:9 resolutions.

You can view the Detailed Reports of individual games to find out what Resolutions/Aspect Ratios they support. Click "Games" by the widescreen lists tab on the sidebar.
1680x1050=16:10
1920x1080=16:9

You have a computer that is slightly better than mine. I run most games Maxed out just fine.

*edit: this topic should probably me moved to hardware discussion...I think; It's about monitors. One of the admins will probably move it methinks.

Yeah, if I wanted a monitor I was certain to be playing console games on, I'd get a 16:9 one with HDMI too.

And I've moved this to Hardware. :)

I play console games on my 16:10 BenQ FP241W just fine. It has a built-in aspect scaling mode, so 16:9 games get letterboxed instead of distorted.

Aye, Cranky... but now that 16:9 monitors are becoming more common, unless you want 16:10 for something, it's pretty much six of one, half a dozen of another...

Hmm, so I guess I should go with a 16:9 monitor then. What resolutions/size should I get? I was thinking either a 1600X900 20" or a 1920X1080 22".

-Will 1920X1080 strain my system?

-Does 1600X900 look good enough to game with both the PC and the 360?

Thanks for the responses.

I'd suggest a 16:9 24" - 1920x1080. This will be headache-free with your consoles and I think 24" is the perfect size. Any smaller and you want a bigger one, but any larger and I think it would be too overpowering ... (depending on how close you sit - for me 24" is perfect). Make sure it has HDMI.

I went from a 16:10 monitor to a 16:9 and I haven't found a single game that supports one AR but not the other, so that's not an issue. Also people saying that 16:10 allows you to fit two documents perfectly side by side and stuff - who the hell wants to do that anyway. :lol:
If your desk's big enough keep your old monitor as a secondary and then wonder how you ever got by without 2. 8)

for PC gaming I would choose a monitor size based on the graphic card I intend to buy (or that I have) and also based on the games I want to play.

Actually, since the NXE update, the Xbox 360 supports 1440x900 and 1680x1050. Used it a good while until I got a TV. Not sure I saw 1920x1200 though. This is through the VGA cables, so I'm not sure how it'll fare with HDMI or something.

Actually, since the NXE update, the Xbox 360 supports 1440x900 and 1680x1050. Used it a good while until I got a TV. Not sure I saw 1920x1200 though. This is through the VGA cables, so I'm not sure how it'll fare with HDMI or something.

-It has support for 1440x900 and 1680x1050 now? Interesting.

-Would 1920X1080 put enough strain on my Radeon HD4870 where I would not be able to play current games like Fallout 3, Prototype, etc, on high settings?

How much memory on that 4870? You might need to turn down AA and other post-proc filters, though I think you'd be pretty okay.

How much memory on that 4870? You might need to turn down AA and other post-proc filters, though I think you'd be pretty okay.

Its 1gb. Its also overclocked.

A 1GB 4870 should do fine. A 512MB one would struggle. Then again, I was playing 1920x1200 on a 128MB 9500Pro for a while and slowly worked my way up through a 256MB 6800GT, 512MB X1950XTX, 512MB 8800GT, 1GB 4850 to a 4870X2 2GB... and all of them were playable at the time. A few settings would have to be tweaked... (except the 4870X2... that just handles anything that gets thrown at it...)

Wow, gimme the 4850. :P

I'd say your 4870 will do quite well in most games. Good card with plenty of memory, so it should stand up to 1920x1200 just fine.

Wow, gimme the 4850. :P

That particular upgrade 'path' was actually split across two computers or two different sites - both running 1920x1200, which is why I included all of them. :)

And my old hardware just gets 'handed down' to an older PC, or used to rebuild or whatever. :P The only hardware I've got going 'spare' are emergency spares and generally things too old for you to want. ;)