New monitor... 1440p 120Hz IPS vs. 3 X 1080p 60Hz IPS

[Eggbert]

Hi everyone,

I am in the market for a new monitor(s). I am considering either a 27" 120Hz IPS, or a 23"/24" 60Hz IPS with a view to turning it into a triple monitor setup down the line. Budget is about £350 for the initial 1 monitor setup. Used for gaming and photography/video editing. So:

27" 120Hz: As far as I understand, the only moderately affordable ones for the layman are coming out of Korea, with a number of caveats (blacklight bleed, dead pixels, only 120Hz after an overclock etc.). I can deal with these caveats as long as picture quality is good, the monitors can hit 120Hz with no problems. Picture quality is my number 1 concern (by which I mean colour reproduction, sharpness, contrast, brightness etc.). I have a lot of flexibility with other aspects like response time, build quality, inputs, adjustment flexibility etc. I am looking at a QNIX or X-STAR at the moment.

24"/23" 60Hz: These are a little easier to source so I think I have narrowed the choice down to the Dell u2412m or u2312hm. I would be using this monitor with a view to upgrading it to a triple monitor setup in a year or two when I have the cash. I think I would miss the extra refresh rate though, and the overall setup would end up being more expensive.

An extra thing: I want glossy monitors in both cases. This is a slight issue with the Dell 24"/23" models as I don't think they come with glossy options. Again I can deal with this, as long as the picture quality is good as I mentioned before. But in an ideal world it would be a glossy monitor.

I realise these are pretty specific requirements and that post was quite long so:

TL;DR
- Going with either 27" glossy 120Hz IPS or 24"/23" 60Hz glossy triple monitor setup
- 27" would have higher refresh rate, be cheaper, and be easier for my PC to push
- Triple monitors would be more immersive but lower refresh rate, be more expensive, be easier to deal with because I don't have to overclock/deal with dead pixels etc., be harder for my PC to push
- Looking at QNIX or X-STAR models for 27", Dells for 23"/24" but am open to other suggestions

So, which option do you think is better? And what monitors would you recommend within your choice?

Thanks

[Pleiades]

Are you going to be using them for work or critical functions? If so, go for a locally-sourced 60hz one from a brand that you trust.

I have 2 of the Korean imports and I wouldn't encourage anyone to buy one unless they were enthusiasts who could put up with the potential hassles & pitfalls...

YMMV but both mine have different issues (see previous posts), ones that I'm not fussed about for gaming, browsing and general home use. But for serious work some people might not find the compromises involved acceptable...

[JimmyBoy]

I don't know if its all of them but I also hear those Korean ones do not support hdcp, which, depending on your intended usage might not even be a problem

[Pleiades]

I don't know if its all of them but I also hear those Korean ones do not support hdcp, which, depending on your intended usage might not even be a problem

Yes, good point JimmyBoy. The overclocking ones have just the one DL-DVI socket and don't support HDCP. Also no OSD.

[Moragg]

My X-Star is Oced to 120Hz. Once calibrated, the average deltaE is ~0.5 which is unnoticable to the human eye. The only reason it is this high is that I chose not to neutralise the black point, where dE went up to 1.1

With no correction I got a contrast ratio of 1200:1, with a correction of 0.2 it went down to 900:1

This was done with an X-Rite COlormunki Photo (high end spectrometer) but if you have a good monitor you should be able to get very good results.

If you actually require a monitor for colour-critical work - professional photography/video editing - I would have to recommend a dell instead, purely for how quick their RMA is and length of warranty.