27" 2560x1440 IPS vs 27" 120hz TN

[cmdrdredd]

Why are the korean monitors so much cheaper? Are they using lower quality panels? I'm really interested in the Cat Leap one. I didn't know the 30" (2560x1600?) IPS monitors could be so cheap (~$600). Are those any good?

LG builds panels for Dell and Apple. The catleap panels are Apple Cinema display panels that aren't certified (read: rejected) by Apple or LG's quality control. I've heard varying stories about how it works but one that makes sense is this.

There are different grades of panels. AA, A, A-, B etc. LG tests a sampling from a batch and if there are defects that Apple would reject they take that batch and they go in another section and are sold off as A or A- depending on the problem found. Apple will take AA only but companies like Acer might accept an A. What you buy when you buy a catleap is a Apple Cinema display panel built by LG but with a flaw. Could be off on color, have a couple stuck pixels who knows. These are put in a cheap plastic housing with very basic wiring and a basic PCB with limited input functionality and sold in Korea for very low prices. You have almost no warranty on them, but for $300 you have a chance to get a monitor that is pretty darn close to an Apple Cinema display in quality and those screens are selling for $1000. Since the batch is sent to the reject pile, you actually have a chance of scoring one that is near perfect or actually perfect. The problems with these generally come with the cheap housing and stand used as well as some cheaper electrical components on the PCB.

Most report backlight bleeding, some minor hue issues, and some reports of a couple bright or stuck pixels. Others reported some dust between the screen and the LCD panel. The stand is wobbly and you can tell the build quality just isn't the same as a Dell or Apple panel. However, the quality of them if you get a pretty decent one is actually quite good. Especially when compared to a TN panel.

I never liked them for gaming, but going the SLI route I was going to either do 120hz and maybe 3D, or go up in resolution. Having seen 2560x1600 in a couple games I decided to get a catleap (2560x1440)for myself and try it with my system and the games I play. If I like it I keep it. If I don't I figured I can sell it easily online and then buy whatever 120hz panel I wanted. Since these come from Korea and you don't know what you're going to get, buying one from someone in the US is safer especially if they have tried it and can tell you anything you need to know about it quality wise.

 

[RussianSensation]

I have heard that people who play StreetFighter IV on PC report that with vsync on it's impossible to do certain moves and combos because your input comes way way too late. Games like this, people are counting each frame individually to time a move correctly. You absolutely must have vsync off lol.

I'll add that input lag is not the only reason where Vsync can have a negative side-effect.

"Essentially this means that with double-buffered VSync, the framerate can only be equal to a discrete set of values equal to Refresh / N where N is some positive integer. That means if you're talking about 60Hz refresh rate, the only framerates you can get are 60, 30, 20, 15, 12, 10, etc etc. You can see the big gap between 60 and 30 there. Any framerate between 60 and 30 your video card would normally put out would get dropped to 30. If you're playing a game that has a framerate that routinely stays above your refresh rate, then VSync will generally be a good thing. However if it's a game that moves above and below it, then VSync can become annoying. Even worse, if the game plays at an FPS that is just below the refresh rate (say you get 65FPS most of the time on a refresh rate of 75Hz), the video card will have to settle for putting out much less FPS than it could (37.5FPS in that instance). This second example is where the percieved drop in performance comes in. It looks like VSync just killed your framerate. It did, technically, but it isn't because it's a graphically intensive operation. It's simply the way it works." - Link

In modern games with some form of AA and everything maxed, GPUs can often go well below 60 fps. 30 fps Vsynced on the PC is not fun. Triple buffered-Vsync also doesn't work all the time.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Ya and I wish triple buffering was allowed at the driver level with DirectX. Would make me happier in some titles.

 

[gothuevos]

Appreciate all the replies.

So I ended up buying one yesterday as part of a new build. No signal. Had heard some things about it not actually turning on until loading into windows, but luckily I had a 2nd monitor around that I plugged in and worked fine, so all other components are fine. Installed windows and it still just sits there at "no signal." The included DVI-D dual link cable works fine with another monitor. Tried but outputs on the video card as well as even the onboard VGA and DVI and same results. Taking it back for an exchange, hopefully it was just bad luck but low threshold obviously for taking it back for good if anything acts up.

I'll let you guys know how it turns out.

 

[flopper]

You got super eyes?

I get eyestrain with 60hz, all gone with 120hz screens.
its severe and a huge issue and leads to headaches.
IPS looks superb and is fantastic but for me 120hz is a life saver.
Until IPS get 120hz I continue with my TN 120hz screens.

60hz is highly noticeable, the brain adapts to any enviroment but once tried 120hz and compraded to 60hz, people dont want to use 60hz.

 

[Carfax83]

I recently bought a Catleap Q270 myself since my Samsung 305T Plus is starting to fail. I'll probably get it on Monday (damn that shipping was fast considering it came all the way from S.Korea!), and after I set it up, I'll post a short review..

It was a choice between the 27 inch S-IPS screen or a 3D gaming monitor for me as well, but the low rez of the 3D monitor turned me off. There's no way I could drop down to 1080p after being on a 30 inch monitor for so long!

 

[Pottuvoi]

I'll add that input lag is not the only reason where Vsync can have a negative side-effect.

"Essentially this means that with double-buffered VSync, the framerate can only be equal to a discrete set of values equal to Refresh / N where N is some positive integer. That means if you're talking about 60Hz refresh rate, the only framerates you can get are 60, 30, 20, 15, 12, 10, etc etc. You can see the big gap between 60 and 30 there. Any framerate between 60 and 30 your video card would normally put out would get dropped to 30. *snip*" - Link

In modern games with some form of AA and everything maxed, GPUs can often go well below 60 fps. 30 fps Vsynced on the PC is not fun. Triple buffered-Vsync also doesn't work all the time.

This is where 120hz monitor really has the edge on 60hz ones.
It adds possible framerates of 40, 24, ~17 .. thus reducing the wait time for next vsynced frame to half.

 

[toyota]

I get eyestrain with 60hz, all gone with 120hz screens.
its severe and a huge issue and leads to headaches.
IPS looks superb and is fantastic but for me 120hz is a life saver.
Until IPS get 120hz I continue with my TN 120hz screens.

60hz is highly noticeable, the brain adapts to any enviroment but once tried 120hz and compraded to 60hz, people dont want to use 60hz.

I thought you were being sarcastic when you posted that nonsense in another forum...

 

[PrincessFrosty]

Once you've used a calibrated IPS, you never go back.

Bum I'm sure somebody will say the same about 120 Hz.

Depends what for...I had a nicely calibrated 30" 2560x1600 IPS panel and switched to a 120Hz TN panel recently for gaming and 3D, most competitive gamers would "never go back" on 120Hz once they've felt the benefit.

Bottom line is that these monitors both have their pros and cons:

The TN - Faster refresh rate and pixel response time is better for gaming, if you want ultra smooth games at high frame rates the lower resolution of 1080p is favourable as it's less harsh on your GPU.

The IPS - Better quality image hands down, better viewing angles, better colour reproduction, the higher resolution gives a much better defined picture at 27" with a much higher PPI

I'd suggest that if your gaming doesn't include fast paced games where accuracy matters such as FPS games online and racing games, and you have no interest in 3D in future then I'd go for the IPS. Casual gaming is fine on an IPS it's really just the competitive gamers who will have interest in the 120Hz TN. Based on your game selection I'd personally go with the IPS.

I love my IPS but after playing BFBC2 for the first time in about a year on my new 120Hz TN panel, with a crazy high frame rate with my new 2600k OC'd, I was really gobsmacked at how smooth it was, oh it's also fucking cool in 3D.

 

[alexruiz]

I'm using an Auria 27" for about a month with a GTX 670...

Here is my take:

Noticable Input Lag with V-Sync Turned on - but I think most monitors have input lag with V-SYnc on anyways.

With V-Sync turned off = no noticeable input lag and it does not affect my Battlefiled 3 gaming... in fact I had my best scores and most kills with this monitor. I don't notice any jerkiness or ghosting during my 5 hour gaming sessions. I have always played with V-Sync turned off anyways... and ATOT members that played with me will tell you I'm not a camper either... I rush and kill so quick reactions and responsiveness is important to me...

The colors and real estate is gorgeous... I'm never going back to TN panels again...

The Auria 27" has multiple inputs, so you can use it for Macs or easily go multi-monitors in the future...

I have the same monitor and I am curious. At least in mine, I cannot go higher that 1080p though HDMI or VGA. It upscales to fill the screen, but it is still 1920 x 1080. I know it is not the cable or the video card (HDMI 1.4 cables tried with HD7770s, HD7850s or HD7870s)

As clarification, the monitor has displayport in addition to DL-DVI, HDMI and VGA. If you have a laptop and want to go the full resolution, your machine better have displayport.


Alex
PS. Displayport and DVI work at 2560 x 1440 in mine.