New Asus PG329Q monitor compatibility with old Asus Strix GTX960

[Ciber]

My old monitor was flickering and turning itself off so I just got a new PG329Q monitor. I still have my old GTX960 though which works but there is an issue. I connected them via displayport and when I turn the PC on I get one long beep and three short beeps which means 'No VGA', but the PC does still get to windows. My guess is this is due to the GPU not being fully compatible with displayport despite having the socket. Having searched around there are some options but I'm not sure about the pros and cons.

Switching to HDMI is an option I'm considering. Will I lose out on HDR or VSync anything by using HDMI?

Another option is I think I can change a setting in the monitor to use Displayport 1.1 instead of 1.2. I'm not sure If that will make me lose HDR or anything either TBH.

I've also found a VGA BIOS/firmware updater from Nvidia, not Asus, which is intended to fix this. Will this lose the factory overclock and fan curves from my GPU, potentially making my card slower and noisier? I need all the performance from the card I can get! Plus I like silence during desktop use. As far as I can find out there will be no firmware from Asus for this.

[Terbinator]

Switching to HDMI is an option I'm considering. Will I lose out on HDR or VSync anything by using HDMI?

Gsync does not work over HDMI 2.0 ports - HDMI 2.1 only so you will need to stick with DP for Gsync.

DP 1.2 also has enough bandwidth for 1440pHDR 170Hz gaming at 8 bit, and 10bit at 120Hz.

[DanceswithUnix]

Firstly that monitor is G-Sync compatible (ie FreeSync), not old school G-Sync with the Nvidia module built in. AIUI that means your GPU isn't going to get that feature, which is a shame but you are off the proprietary G-sync bandwagon so your next GPU onwards you should be fine so I think it's the right choice. As a bonus, a fixed high refresh rate I find takes most of the stutter out of iffy games compared to an old fixed 60Hz panel so you aren't losing that much there.
I haven't done the calculations, but 1440p at 175Hz sounds an awful lot for an hdmi connection, so you might lose some top end frame rate options. But if it works...

I would google how to back up your existing video BIOS, or try and get a copy of the one you have from ASUS. Updating that was my first thought, so if you can make that really low risk with a way to roll back...

[Ciber]

Gsync does not work over HDMI 2.0 ports - HDMI 2.1 only so you will need to stick with DP for Gsync.

DP 1.2 also has enough bandwidth for 1440pHDR 170Hz gaming at 8 bit, and 10bit at 120Hz.

Switching to DP1.2 sounds like the best option then. Thanks

[Ciber]

Firstly that monitor is G-Sync compatible (ie FreeSync), not old school G-Sync with the Nvidia module built in. AIUI that means your GPU isn't going to get that feature, which is a shame but you are off the proprietary G-sync bandwagon so your next GPU onwards you should be fine so I think it's the right choice. As a bonus, a fixed high refresh rate I find takes most of the stutter out of iffy games compared to an old fixed 60Hz panel so you aren't losing that much there.
I haven't done the calculations, but 1440p at 175Hz sounds an awful lot for an hdmi connection, so you might lose some top end frame rate options. But if it works...

I would google how to back up your existing video BIOS, or try and get a copy of the one you have from ASUS. Updating that was my first thought, so if you can make that really low risk with a way to roll back...

I did wonder if my old GPU is even capable of Gsync or HDR. In which case it's a moot point if that will work or not over DP1.2 or HDMI anyway. I'll try DP1.2 first then HDMI.

I don't much fancy messing with the video BIOS TBH. Particularly with any GPU at all being overpriced and hard to find. It would probably cost £170 to get just another GTX960 which is what I paid for it new how ever many years ago. If I could easily buy another GPU I'd be happy to mess with it but then I would have bought a new GPU already anyway!

[Ciber]

I went into the system setting of the monitor and the option were Displayport 1.1 or Displayport 1.2+HDR. In the manual it said you can select 1.4 or 1.2 if your GPUisn't compatible with 1.4. Presumably the screen has already chosen 1.2 to work with the GPU. I selected 1.1 and first off I'm limited to 60hz refresh rate so that's not great.

[Ciber]

Having changed to DP1.1 the beeps are still happening so I'm back to DP1.2. I checked on the box for the GTX960 and it says it's compatible with DP1.2.

[Terbinator]

I did wonder if my old GPU is even capable of Gsync or HDR.

I believe it should be able to do HDR at the very least. I was running 1440p120 HDR on a 980Ti.

[Ciber]

I got around to getting the HDMI cable out of the loft and using that instead of DP and the beeps are gone and no downsides that I've noticed. Running at 144hz. Not sure if variable refresh is working as it should but I wasn't sure if that was working with my old GPU anyway.

[Super_Ace]

I don't think you're going to get VRR because only the RTX 3000 supports VRR over HDMI. I used to have a GTX 970 and I'm sure only the GTX 1000 support gsync compatible. As soon as I upgraded to a 3080, I've got HDMI VRR working and my monitor has freesync and that works through being gsync compatible.

[Ciber]

Thanks for confirming that. BTW did you get the 3080 for a sensible price or was it £2000 or something?

[Super_Ace]

I got the FE from scan at MSRP, cost me about £660. If you're interested, I'd suggest subscribing to channels like FE partalert on telegram. Then it's a waiting game and you have to be lucky to because they get sold quickly. To save time, I'd recommend already being signed into scan with your payment info saved. https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&so...kB9WxFic5WSF1i

[Ciber]

Thanks. I'll have a look.

[Ciber]

I got the FE from scan at MSRP, cost me about £660. If you're interested, I'd suggest subscribing to channels like FE partalert on telegram. Then it's a waiting game and you have to be lucky to because they get sold quickly. To save time, I'd recommend already being signed into scan with your payment info saved. https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&so...kB9WxFic5WSF1i

I've been watching FE Part alert and I saw 3070FE listed but they all went so quick I had no chance!

I've noticed that there is some stock of ATI cards now and the prices don't seem as high. £480 for a 6600XT for example. I know there is a downside in that they lack DLSS.

[Super_Ace]

I guess I just got really lucky because it was my first genuine attempt at getting a GPU. I'd read about horror stories of the AMD drop system and that really put me off so I didn't even look into how Nvidia was selling the FE cards. I'd say around mid day and evening are good times to look out for the Nvidia drops. Plus usually when other regions are having drops, you can expect UK to be coming up.

Although FSR and DLSS are different technologies, they have the same aim of better performance. The 6600XT does support FSR and you can watch some comparisons to decide if that suits your needs. I'm surprised that AMD still do not have a direct store for the UK and not shipping any of the reference cards here.

I'm speculating but Ethereum mining profitability is decreasing day by day, and the energy price hikes expected in April will only further hurt miners. This should mean more supply of second hand cards at reasonable prices. Then the issue I guess is with scalpers hoarding cards.

I really hope you get lucky with a 3070 drop becuase it is a beast of card

[Ciber]

I've been lucky enough to get a 3070ti FE so thanks for the tips. I was aiming for a 3070 but I wasn't able to click on that fast enough. They all go so fast it's like trying to get concert tickets!

Unfortunately the displayport problem still persists with the new GPU so that points at the mobo. Might there be some BIOS setting I can change?