TN Gaming Monitor or IPS All Round Monitor

Gams

Junior Member
Sep 7, 2013
7
0
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I'm going crazy to decide what to buy (I've put my order on hold and could use some help).

I ordered all the components to build a PC that I'm going to use for photo/video editing and my kids will use for gaming (I might start dabbling also ;D).

For the video card I ordered an NVIDIA GTX 770, and for the monitors I had ordered two Benq XL2420TE gaming monitors (144Hz, 1ms response time, 1080p).

I almost immediately put the order on hold when I started learning about the difference in TN vs IPS panels. TN are much faster (better for gaming, but the picture is horrible and colours are not accurate), and IPS (potentially higher resolution much better colour and image quality available, but possibly too slow for gaming).

I then started considering getting PA249Q from Asus (1920x1200, 6ms, 76Hz) which has top notch colour and image quality but I'm wondering if it will be too slow for gaming.

Another option is to get 1 of each monitor but that probably wouldn't work out that well.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Rob.
 

cusideabelincoln

Diamond Member
Aug 3, 2008
3,274
41
91
If you play competitive FPS and take it somewhat seriously, 120 Hz is the way to go.

If you just play single player games or casual multiplayer games, IPS is the way to go. The motion blur or minimal input lag won't make any difference for single player games. But for the fast paced action of first person shooters, 120Hz (and lightboost) provides a noticeable advantage. You can still do well with a 60 Hz monitor and be competitive, but 120 Hz just makes tracking your enemy easier.
 

Black Octagon

Golden Member
Dec 10, 2012
1,410
2
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OP is doing photo and video editing...if color accuracy is even slightly important to his efforts here then he will NEED an IPS or PLS based display.

OP: why not go for 1 fast 'gamer' TN and put 1 'pretty' IPS alongside it? Best of both worlds?
 

ShintaiDK

Lifer
Apr 22, 2012
20,378
145
106
OP is doing photo and video editing...if color accuracy is even slightly important to his efforts here then he will NEED an IPS or PLS based display.

OP: why not go for 1 fast 'gamer' TN and put 1 'pretty' IPS alongside it? Best of both worlds?

You dont need a TN:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tX6Wau5K6mw

I keep being amazed how good the TN manufactoprs are at selling discount panels at overprice under false assumptions to people.
 

Gams

Junior Member
Sep 7, 2013
7
0
0
OP is doing photo and video editing...if color accuracy is even slightly important to his efforts here then he will NEED an IPS or PLS based display.

OP: why not go for 1 fast 'gamer' TN and put 1 'pretty' IPS alongside it? Best of both worlds?

Thanks for your response, I'm wondering the same thing about mixing monitors. I've read some people online mention that mixing them is not a great idea. Probably because of the resolution differences between a sharp IPS panel and a 1080p TN panel.
 

Gams

Junior Member
Sep 7, 2013
7
0
0
If you play competitive FPS and take it somewhat seriously, 120 Hz is the way to go.

If you just play single player games or casual multiplayer games, IPS is the way to go. The motion blur or minimal input lag won't make any difference for single player games. But for the fast paced action of first person shooters, 120Hz (and lightboost) provides a noticeable advantage. You can still do well with a 60 Hz monitor and be competitive, but 120 Hz just makes tracking your enemy easier.

Thanks, I guess I could always get a couple of nice IPS now and then if we get more into gaming we could always buy a TN in a year or so!?
 

BrightCandle

Diamond Member
Mar 15, 2007
4,762
0
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I keep being amazed how good the TN manufactoprs are at selling discount panels at overprice under false assumptions to people.

If you read the comment you can hear the guy telling you how much lag he is feeling, how bad the ghosting is etc. You can't watch a 30 fps youtube video and see these effects, for one the frame rate is just too low and secondly its too low quality.

The choice is based on what is most important. Do you intend to game to a high level or do you intend to edit video/images at a high level. General home user red eye removal does not need and IPS monitor and playing farmville equally doesn't need a 120Hz screen. Being realistic about your actual need can potentially save you a lot of money here.
 

Teizo

Golden Member
Oct 28, 2010
1,271
31
91
IPS without question. Once you see the image quality, there is no going back. 5ms is plenty good to making ghosting virtually non-apparent.
 

PPB

Golden Member
Jul 5, 2013
1,118
168
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Image Quality comes regardless of it being IPS or TN. The FUD regarding IPS having superior quality comes from the fact expensive IPS monitors usually ship with better quality/wide gamut capable backlighting. You can even have a true 8/10bit panel, but without the proper backlighting tech behind it, it will still act like a 6b+dither one. The budget IPS monitors have the same or sometimes even worse color gamuts than most TN panels.

IPS has:

-Better Horizontal view angles

at the expense of:

- Low contrasts (washed out blacks), worse response times at the same price vs TN monitors, IPS glow.

TN panels have:

- Better response times at the same price of a IPS monitor

at the expense of:

- Low contrasts like the IPS ones, poor view angles.

It's just a matter of taste. If you plan to use your monitor as a TV and want to be able to watch it from all angles, i would go for a IPS. But beware, going for a IPS doesnt necessarily mean better color quality. Im right now posting from a budget IPS panel with the same color gamut as most TN panels we usually see. If you are able to dump some extra bucks, you can go for a wide gamut IPS one (such as the likes of a Dell U2413) but the wide gamut comes with a price.

I would personally go for an IPS one, but investigate a bit further and search for models that can go over the 60hz spec. 75hz is a nice stopgap between the normal 60hz and the over-hyped to death 120hz.
 

spat55

Senior member
Jul 2, 2013
539
5
76
If you are going to buy two, get a 1440p IPS, and a 120hz TN panel, or you could go and get a Korean monitor and try and overclock it?

Options are:

Buy a Korean overclockable monitor.

Buy one IPS and one TN.
 

imaheadcase

Diamond Member
May 9, 2005
3,850
7
76
I think we are all waiting for a 1920x1200 IPS 120+hz 24+ inch monitors. SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY! :D
 

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
1
0
I just tried my first IPS panel and was not impressed at all. its was the LG 23EA63V-P and I have already boxed it back up. black was grey and if I turned down the brightness enough to where it did not blind me then I could see almost nothing in dark scenes. Dead Space 3 looked like crap compared to other monitors I have used. and regardless of the claims, the viewing angles were hardly any better than my old TN panel Dell.

I think some of you are flat out full of crap or either borderline blind. its like you just want to like whatever you have bought that you don't even see the flaws. I am now at the point where I think I will never be able to find a new gaming monitor that does not piss me off.
 

Zap

Elite Member
Oct 13, 1999
22,377
2
81
my kids will use for gaming (I might start dabbling also ;D).

How old are your kids? What games do they currently play? At what level? Merely single player or some online? "Clan" type semi-competitive play? Tournament level "make a living at this" kind of play? What games do YOU envision playing?

IMO people obsess over things like this too much. For every one person with a strong opinion on what type of monitor to use, there is probably another fifty who honestly haven't thought it was an issue.

I have owned monitors using several panel technologies. I think I have two MVA monitors (an original Soyo Topaz, HP Elite L2201x), a couple of IPS (Dell FPW2005, two Samsung 305T Plus) and a few TN (Acer Ferrari, IZ3D 22", some AOC 24"). I play all kinds of games, including some semi-competitive FPS (rather, I used to). I think I can sit down at any of these monitors are play whatever game I wanted to play with no serious issues if I didn't make myself think about it.

There are some visual differences, such as viewing angles (TN looks bad when viewed from above). Some of the screens are glossy. The older Dell monitor looks a bit washed out compared to the newer monitors (not sure if aging backlight, or just the design). Otherwise, they all seem to work fine.

I do notice lag, however, with my 55" Haier HDTV. Horrible, horrible lag. D: But none of the monitors have it noticeable enough to hurt my gaming.
 

Teizo

Golden Member
Oct 28, 2010
1,271
31
91
My IPS did not come to life until I changed the input to Ycrcb444. RGB was still washed a bit. But, after I changed that in the NV Control Panel the colors really popped.

There is absolutely no denying the IQ superiority of IPS vs TN imho. That doesn't mean TN's look like crap, but this Acer I have is vastly superior to any TN panel I've ever owned.

Opinions on the matter vary, but for me it is IPS all the way. Especially now that they've gotten the response times down to 5ms.

This is the model I'm talking about here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009483
 
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skipsneeky2

Diamond Member
May 21, 2011
5,035
1
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Some say my u2412m isn't a true ips monitor but i tell you its not bad,viewing angles are very good for what i do and often times i watch movies laying down on my bed as my pc is in the bedroom and doubles up as a television and the u2412m presents zero issues with blurring and the colors are just incredible and the adjustable stand is awesome.

Would have to most likely buy something like the dell 27'' u2713m ultrasharp in order to find a true replacement to this monitor but at $700 its a hard sale right now,the catleap monitors seem cheap,affordability and kind of fun but they seem hit and miss...
 

Elfear

Diamond Member
May 30, 2004
7,127
738
126
Thanks for your response, I'm wondering the same thing about mixing monitors. I've read some people online mention that mixing them is not a great idea. Probably because of the resolution differences between a sharp IPS panel and a 1080p TN panel.

I have an IPS and a 144hz TN panel right next to each other and it doesn't bug me even with 2D Lightboost enabled on the TN panel. I don't notice a huge difference in color quality but I don't do any sort of photo editing where I might be more picky.

The main advantage the IPS has is productivity because of the size and resolution. The TN is definitely better for lack of motion blur (120hz Lightboost is amazing).

After owning the TN panel for a few months I find myself gaming on it and using the IPS for productivity and surfing.
 

blackened23

Diamond Member
Jul 26, 2011
8,548
2
0
This answer depends on what you use your PC for. Do you game and ONLY game on your PC? If so, a lightboost panel may work for you. But I can assure that good high quality IPS panels basically trounce lightboost panels in terms of quality outside of gaming - and IPS panels are completely fine for gaming as well.

If you spend even a small percentage of your time doing non gaming tasks on your PC, my vote goes to the IPS panel. I can appreciate lightboost, but having seen these TN panels in action, they just look horrible on the desktop for any type of real work within Windows.
 

cmdrdredd

Lifer
Dec 12, 2001
27,052
357
126
I just tried my first IPS panel and was not impressed at all. its was the LG 23EA63V-P and I have already boxed it back up. black was grey and if I turned down the brightness enough to where it did not blind me then I could see almost nothing in dark scenes. Dead Space 3 looked like crap compared to other monitors I have used. and regardless of the claims, the viewing angles were hardly any better than my old TN panel Dell.

I think some of you are flat out full of crap or either borderline blind. its like you just want to like whatever you have bought that you don't even see the flaws. I am now at the point where I think I will never be able to find a new gaming monitor that does not piss me off.

So you picked one of the lowest priced and least feature rich IPS monitors and use that as your bases for "all IPS suck."?
 

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
1
0
So you picked one of the lowest priced and least feature rich IPS monitors and use that as your bases for "all IPS suck."?
and where did I say that all IPS monitors suck? so many people tout how much better IPS is over TN so I gave one a chance and was not impressed. but since I did not like it then the excuse is that it was a cheap IPS with hardly any features? ok sure
 
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cmdrdredd

Lifer
Dec 12, 2001
27,052
357
126
It WAS a cheap IPS...one of the cheapest ones out there. You can't compare a $300 TN to a sub $200 IPS and draw any conclusions about the panel technology. It's not an excuse, it's reality.
 

Unoid

Senior member
Dec 20, 2012
461
0
76
Go IPS.

Ideally get an overclockable 90-120hz 1440p IPS (if you have the power to push the fps that high of course), Note however that there's annoyances involved with overclocking these Panels. Blurred horizontal lines at higher hz, patching drivers, custom color profiles, etc.

Even gaming at 1440p 60hz is enjoyable.

If you don't have the power to push games at 1440p 90-120hz, then it really depend son if you're a big time fps gamer or not. Do you NEED 120hz+? then get a TN 1080p 120+hz monitor.

I enjoy my 1440P overlord at 90hz (100+ gives me line blurring which is annoying) but I need a high OC on the cpu and SLI 680's