4k monitor with no G-sync. Good idea?

[Monoten]

I'm thinking about purchasing a 4k HDR 10 monitor (to be more precise the LG 27UK650-W) Thing is, it doesn't have G-Sync. Now I don't play a lot of demanding games on my pc. The most demanding would be witcher 3. My videocard is a GTX 970, considering the prices of video cards, I'm not planning on changing it. I was only wondering if I keep the settings a bit low, it will still run good. Anyone has any experience with it?

[FeilDOW]

I run a non gsync 4k monitor with a 1080 ti and have good experiences with dropping a AA and dropping some settings to high if needed but a 970 will fall flat on it's face at 4k. stick with 1080p untill you have a GPU to handle games at 4k.

[Rumpelcrutchskin]

Would not bother with anything less then GTX 1080 or better yet since it's Freesync monitor then RX Vega 64:

https://www.amazon.com/Radeon-Overclocked-2048-Bit-Express-STRIX-RXVEGA64-O8G-GAMING/dp/B0782PSHJ3/

[Sceles]

4K LG OLED owner here and my advice is to buy a monitor that runs at 100Hz or above instead and anything but TN panel.

4K works badly as a desktop resolution because most programs have not been designed to be used with high DPI monitors. You need to set the desktop resolution to 1080p or 1440p to use Windows comfortably, then run games in fullscreen in 4K. I also do not notice any difference in games between 1440p and 4K even though I'm looking at the TV only from 1,5m away. My friend has a 4K monitor and says the same thing. Because of this I usually run my games at 1080p in 120Hz mode(my TV can do 1080p@120 but 1440p and 4K are only 60Hz) and my friend runs them at 1440p.

As for HDR, it just makes everything look super bright and I usually keep it off in all games that support it. I don't understand why people are so hyped about it. Must be all the marketing, I guess.

Edit: Might as well say my thoughts about OLED since I'm in the position to do so: if you have a bad TV or a monitor and then transition to OLED you might notice a significant improvement, but the truth is that the other TVs and monitors in the same price range have roughly the same image quality. The real advantages of OLED are seen only in a dark room, with high contrast content. My previous TV was Panasonic's Viera plasma and honestly it was not any worse image-wise.

[igloosfolly]

4k here at 60hz with two gtx780's to drive it unless you can SLI or have a very powerfull card you will be at 30fps or worse. It has been worth it to me details in games really shine.

[Monk]

OLED for a monitor is kind of risky, how often do you need to run the screen repair feature, the burn in on static images like a desktop or a games UI is brutal and can ruin the screen.

As for no gsync, I wouldn't do that (or freesync if on team red), been running some games on my 4k TV recently for a bit of couch gaming and the tearing is horrible lol, it's only turn based stuff but tearing while scrolling g etc is something I've not suffered in years due to gsync.

As for trying 4k on a 970, just don't even waste your time, a single 980 wasn't really enough for 1440p (which is why I went sli at the time) let alone 4k and the 980 was a considerable step up from the 970.

Keep your cash until you can afford a much faster new GPU at the same time (the next gen from nvidia us due/expected between July and October), the new line up of nvidia cards could put 1080 performance at about 1060/1070 prices which would atleast somewhat cover 4k needs at a more reasonable price, though, not maxed out.

[EliteGamer]

Yes you need G-SYNC at 4K more than any other resolution if you want to have a nice picture combined with a smooth gaming experience.

[Sceles]

Originally posted by Monk:

OLED for a monitor is kind of risky, how often do you need to run the screen repair feature, the burn in on static images like a desktop or a games UI is brutal and can ruin the screen.

The only notable burn in I have on my screen is from the first few hours of use, it happened very quickly and the pixel refresher feature couldn't fix it. After that one I have gotten only slight retention every now and then, I think. The things people say about OLED burn in are not a lie but they're still very viable for gaming and PC use as long as you use a screensaver and don't go overboard with oled brightness. I would still not recommend OLED for computer use though, or for any other use tbh.

[Monk]

Ah fair enough, for me, given the crazy price of oled I think any burn in at all would freak me out lol, I considered going to oled for my new TV, but decided the price to size wasn't quite worth it yet for me (double the price for a smaller 55inch screen than the 65 inch LG IPS ended up with), though some of the deals on oleds were crazy at the time, maybe next year if I save up ... Alot?

[Monoten]

Originally posted by EliteGamer:

Yes you need G-SYNC at 4K more than any other resolution if you want to have a nice picture combined with a smooth gaming experience.

I guess you probably don't know a 4k with G-sync monitor which supports HDMI 2.0? I also use my monitor for my PS4 pro and I can't seem to find one.

[mluthanen]

Originally posted by Monk:

OLED for a monitor is kind of risky, how often do you need to run the screen repair feature, the burn in on static images like a desktop or a games UI is brutal and can ruin the screen.

As for no gsync, I wouldn't do that (or freesync if on team red), been running some games on my 4k TV recently for a bit of couch gaming and the tearing is horrible lol, it's only turn based stuff but tearing while scrolling g etc is something I've not suffered in years due to gsync.

As for trying 4k on a 970, just don't even waste your time, a single 980 wasn't really enough for 1440p (which is why I went sli at the time) let alone 4k and the 980 was a considerable step up from the 970.

Keep your cash until you can afford a much faster new GPU at the same time (the next gen from nvidia us due/expected between July and October), the new line up of nvidia cards could put 1080 performance at about 1060/1070 prices which would atleast somewhat cover 4k needs at a more reasonable price, though, not maxed out.

Tearing? Have you tried enabling Vsync and dialing back some graphics settings? I've always used a television for games and I always have Vsync on. I simply never would play without it, so I adjust my video settings accrodingly. Screen tearing is for console peasants. :)

Also, even old video cards can run lots of older/modest games at 4K or close. I used to have a couple 680s and a 1080p television and I ran lots of games much higher than native for the improved anti-aliasing.

A 970 can't run Shadow of War at 4K with everything dialed to maximum (my system can't even almost do that), but it damn sure can run hundreds of games at well over 1080.

[EliteGamer]

Originally posted by Monoten:

Originally posted by EliteGamer:

Yes you need G-SYNC at 4K more than any other resolution if you want to have a nice picture combined with a smooth gaming experience.

I guess you probably don't know a 4k with G-sync monitor which supports HDMI 2.0? I also use my monitor for my PS4 pro and I can't seem to find one.

I don’t think any current 4K G-SYNC monitors have HDMI 2.0. Far as I know, all current 4K G-SYNC monitors have HDMI 1.4. I know the upcoming 4K 144hz HDR G-SYNC monitors will have HDMI 2.0, but they’re enthusiast monitors with a enthusiast price tag, so not an option for most people. It would be more suitable to use a PS4 on a 4K TV with HDMI 2.0 and just use a monitor for PC use. You won’t get any benefits connecting a console to a monitor e.g. G-SYNC won’t work with PS4.

[Arvaos]

I think you should go for 1440p with G-Sync personally.

Even a 1080Ti can not sustain 60FPS at ultra settings on the latest games, especially if you intend on using ReShade or graphical mods as well.

It will be a couple of years before we see a card that is capable of 4K at 144Hz with G-Sync. For now, go for 1440p at 144Hz.

[Monk]

Yes I turned vsync on but that doesn't fix tearing like gsync does, as for settings, everything was maxed out and way in excess of 100fps, 200 in some cases before vsync due to the kind of games and my hardware.
As for hdmi 2.0, could just use a display port to hdmi converter to plug the PS4 in.

[mluthanen]

Originally posted by Monk:

Yes I turned vsync on but that doesn't fix tearing like gsync does, as for settings, everything was maxed out and way in excess of 100fps, 200 in some cases before vsync due to the kind of games and my hardware.
As for hdmi 2.0, could just use a display port to hdmi converter to plug the PS4 in.

Strange. Vsync completely eliminates tearing for me if enabled in the game's settings and Nvidia Control Panel.

[Monk]

If it's all you are used to perhaps, but gsync spoils you frankly, mainly saw it while scrolling around, plus, input lag sucks, but, couch gaming for me tends to be turn based so not a big deal, I couldn't play without gsync these days in any kind of game where I have to actually react and move around.