Widescreen Gaming Forum

Ok, so I recently built a new high end gaming system.
i7 930
ASUS P6X58D mobo
G.SKILL PI 6gb ram
HD 5970

I built this with eyefinity 3x1 in mind but I still need to choose a monitor set to buy. I'm not going to reuse my old one. It is about 4 years old and only 19".

Here is the problem. I keep hearing how TN's are terrible monitors however in the same site I will see terrible review of IPS monitors. I do plan on using my monitors in both landscape and portrait. I've taken my monitor and put it on its side and looked at it in different angles and it didn't seem that bad. So whats the big deal? Is there any videos or pictures of the difference between a TN and a IPS panel?

So are IPS panels really worth it? If they are then why do I keep hearing about dithering, or whatever is called, and color problems? If I do go with an IPS what one do you think? I really only have about $500-$600 left to spend on monitors. I was told that I should get the Dell 2209wa's but I would have to get an active adapter with them and they are pricey. Also they are only 1050 and not 1080 and that seems to cause problems. I've seen a good number of clips showing where some game content like menus and such don't fit right. this ends up making it either impossible to see some stuff or it jumps across to the outside monitors.

My god I'm so confused about all this different monitor stuff. Please help!

$500-$600 cost for all three monitors or for each monitor? If that is your budget for all three, then forget about IPS. If that is your budget for a single monitor, it's still not enough money to get an IPS monitor. IPS monitor as I've known are only for 30" monitors, which cost more than a $1000 each. Try to look into PVA panels instead. They are priced in between TN and IPS. But still may cost way more than TN panels do.

I've had a 24" S-PVA dell monitor for 3 years and I've just replaced it with a 27.5" TN panel. The only notable difference is that the viewing angles of the dell is better than the TN. Well this is probably because the dell has a smaller size than my new TN.

So I would suggest getting a good TN panel if price is an issue and if you don't really use any photo applications for professional use.

The Dell 2209wa's are IPS and only around $250 a pop. The new HP zr22w is around $300 and it is IPS as well. Both are 22 inch.

I have 3 of these and love them for gaming (they are normally on sale for $199.99, dunno why they just jumped up $20 ea). As said above though, viewing angles/color reproduction won't be 100%.

-Erik

TN panels are mostly 6 bit per pixel these days and have limited viewing angles compared to ips/pva.

You may notice the limited viewing angles in portrait even more so.

The Dell U2410, their 27" model as well as the current and previous HP 24" pro monitors are all IPS screens.

Fresh off the press:

Dell's new 21.5-inch U2211H and 23-inch U2311H UltraSharp screens go for $280 and $300, respectively, and they've got that viewing angle-friendly, color accurate IPS tech all the kids are rocking these days. DisplayPort, DVI, 1,000:1 contrast ratio

Link:

http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/dell-pumps-out-a-pair-of-new-ultrasharp-1080p-ips-lcds-asks-a-p/

I have P2310Hs (TN panels) and viewing angles aren't really an issue when in landscape mode. Unfortunately they are plain awful in portrait mode...your head has to be in the exact right position and even then one edge of the screen is darker than the other.

I'm thinking of ditching Eyefinity and going for one or two 30" IPS panels.