Best OLED gaming monitor?

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Jonpachi
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Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Jonpachi »

I have a great gaming monitor, but I've now been fully spoiled by the OLED Switch and I'm starting to really want a full-size display that features it. Shmups are a must. I'd like to find something that has a super low refresh rate (0.5 or less), and ideally with rotation for Tate. I've been on the hunt, but thought I'd ping this channel for some help. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
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Guspaz
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Guspaz »

There are not currently any OLED gaming monitors on the market. Only one has been announced so far, the upcoming Alienware AW3423DW, a 34" curved ultrawide with a 3440x1440 resolution.

If you want to game on an OLED today, your only choice is a TV (or one of those "monitors" that use the LG TV panels), not a monitor. The LG OLED TVs are available in as low as 42" for 16:9. They are not ideal for use as monitors, though some people do it anyway.

I would wait a few years for more QD-OLED monitors to hit the market, since Alienware's ultrawide doesn't seem to meet your needs and will likely be very expensive. Or just try to pick up a 42" LG C2 TV or something, with the caveat that they're not intended for monitor use.
thebigcheese
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by thebigcheese »

LG has (had?) a few OLED monitors (yes, actual monitors), but they are outrageously expensive and you might as well just get a TV at that point. As much as I also love OLEDs for gaming, they are really not great for general computer use, at least not yet, so there hasn't been much push for them.
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Jonpachi »

Hmm interesting. I have an Asus "Tuf Gaming" monitor that I mostly love, but the black levels are not great. It's fantastic for bright arcade games like shmups, but falls apart if I'm playing a modern 3D game.

I don't mind using a TV, as this is something dedicated to just gaming. I'm not looking for any computer usage on it. This just needs to be something with a refresh rate on par with a gaming monitor.
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Fudoh
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Fudoh »

There really isn't much out there yet.

There's a 15.6" inch OLED 4K display available via Amazon ($900/900 EUR), which is supposed very nice, but way too small of course (I'll still get it some day - just for fun). The brandnew 32" LG OLED monitor (16:9) is 3.200 EUR over here, which might be reasonable to some, but it just seems so stupid, when the 42" OLED TV this summer will be less than half of that 32" display (I know, not really the same tech, but you get the idea).

I have had a 42" Sony LCD for gaming for many years and it's actually quite a nice size, so I would really recommend looking into the 42" LG OLED. With the 42" OLED TV you at least know what you're getting, since the 55" ones are really the defacto gaming standard by now.
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by tongshadow »

Just wait for the LG C2 42".
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Guspaz »

thebigcheese wrote:LG has (had?) a few OLED monitors (yes, actual monitors), but they are outrageously expensive and you might as well just get a TV at that point. As much as I also love OLEDs for gaming, they are really not great for general computer use, at least not yet, so there hasn't been much push for them.
They're 60 Hz professional monitors, certainly not gaming monitors. The 15.6" OLED displays are also 60 Hz and thus not suitable for gaming.

But yes, if you need something in the near future, the 48" LG C1 or 42" C2 televisions are going to be the closest thing. I'm sure the Alienware will be fantastic, but it's an ultrawide and will cost a fortune (since QD-OLED is bleeding edge). The LG C1/C2 are 4K, 120 Hz, quite low lag, and support VRR (g-sync/freesync). However, to fully drive them you will need either an HDMI 2.1 graphics card (like an nVidia 3000 series) or one of the very few DisplayPort-to-HDMI-2.0 adapters (which internally use DSC to get enough bandwidth, since HDMI 2.1 has more bandwidth than DP 1.4).
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orange808
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by orange808 »

Fair enough, but given that new games won't run at 4k 120Hz with max detail and ray tracing, I don't know if 120Hz is a deal breaker for everyone. There's also the shortage and extreme prices for new video cards. I guess you could set the game to 120Hz and hide the real refesh rate using Gsync/Freesync, but it's not really going to hit that.
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Guspaz »

I'd argue that 120 Hz is the more important part, so you're better off dropping down to 1440p120 or even 1080p120 rather than go for 4K60, though then you don't need HDMI 2.1 to drive that. However, by outputting at 4K120, you can take advantage of various spatial and temporal resampling techniques from a lower resolution, like NIS, FSR, DLSS, XeSS, etc. Whatever you think of the purely spatial scalers like NIS and FSR, they'll still do a better job than the TV/monitor's internal scaler. Some internal scalers in games will also do TAAU, which kind of sits between FSR and DLSS in capability.

You also need a VRR window that is at least IIRC 2.4:1 to do low framerate compensation, so except for the old hardware gsync ones, you're unlikely to find a 60Hz monitor with LFC. Meaning that you actually need a 120 Hz display to be able to drop down below 40 FPS or 48 FPS or whatever the minimum the 60 Hz VRR display could do. I mean, sure, there's still value in a 40-60 Hz VRR range, but by getting a 120 or 144 Hz monitor, you can go all the way down to 0 FPS without problems.

And of course there's latency to take into account. 60 Hz professional/portable/etc. monitors are probably not going to be quite as focused on latency as a 120 Hz or 144 Hz gaming monitor.
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by fernan1234 »

The sub-pixel structure of LG WRGB panels also makes them far from ideal for monitor use (presuming you'll be sitting close to it on a desk).
Nugs
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Nugs »

Gigabyte makes one, it is basically a LG C1 with less TV features and a Display port plug.

https://www.gigabyte.com/Monitor/AORUS-FO48U#kf
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Guspaz »

Yeah, there are a few of them like that, some of the products from the nVidia "BFG" program too, but ultimately they're just TVs with a DisplayPort jack stuck on. Most of them even still have remote controls.
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by tacoguy64 »

I been happy with my LGCX48 as my PC gaming monitor so far, but might not be what you are looking for. Beautiful picture on that thing, and I got it with the best buy warranty so i feel a little bit safe for extra burn in protection. So far though, no burn in yet. I don't really play as many retro games on it tho, mainly playing newer games on PC. I am doing a bit of web browsing on it. The only downside i say is that 48' inch might be too big for normal PC use, i have to sit a bit further back. Hopefully they can work themselves down and get us monitors between the 32-40 inch side, or smaller.
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by bobrocks95 »

orange808 wrote:Fair enough, but given that new games won't run at 4k 120Hz with max detail and ray tracing, I don't know if 120Hz is a deal breaker for everyone. There's also the shortage and extreme prices for new video cards. I guess you could set the game to 120Hz and hide the real refesh rate using Gsync/Freesync, but it's not really going to hit that.
Running an RTX 3080 and horrible availability aside I can hit 4K 120Hz in plenty of games. It would be insane to give that up. More demanding games usually give you resolution scaling options, so you can render the UI at 4K and render the game at say 80% of 4K. Control at max settings including full ray tracing runs great at 1440p, 80-120 fps. Just played through Ghostrunner at a locked 4K 120. Anyone still playing PC games with a 60Hz monitor is really missing out.

Anybody I know would absolutely trade resolution/graphics settings for a higher frame rate.
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Josh128 »

You also need a VRR window that is at least IIRC 2.4:1 to do low framerate compensation, so except for the old hardware gsync ones, you're unlikely to find a 60Hz monitor with LFC. Meaning that you actually need a 120 Hz display to be able to drop down below 40 FPS or 48 FPS or whatever the minimum the 60 Hz VRR display could do. I mean, sure, there's still value in a 40-60 Hz VRR range, but by getting a 120 or 144 Hz monitor, you can go all the way down to 0 FPS without problems.
This is good advice. Being able to drop below most monitors lower VRR limits of ~45-40 with LFC is a game changer and well worth it, IMO.
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Jonpachi
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Jonpachi »

Thanks for all the suggestions! Gonna do a bit more shopping.

This is the one I have for reference: https://www.newegg.com/black-asus-tuf-g ... 6824236991

It's pretty rad for shmups, but I just got a PS5 and now I'm looking for something that can run full-spec games better.
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Guspaz »

If it's for game consoles like the PS5 or XBSX, then an LG C-series OLED TV of whatever size is right for you is going to be a good option.
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orange808
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by orange808 »

bobrocks95 wrote:
orange808 wrote:Fair enough, but given that new games won't run at 4k 120Hz with max detail and ray tracing, I don't know if 120Hz is a deal breaker for everyone. There's also the shortage and extreme prices for new video cards. I guess you could set the game to 120Hz and hide the real refesh rate using Gsync/Freesync, but it's not really going to hit that.
Running an RTX 3080 and horrible availability aside I can hit 4K 120Hz in plenty of games. It would be insane to give that up. More demanding games usually give you resolution scaling options, so you can render the UI at 4K and render the game at say 80% of 4K. Control at max settings including full ray tracing runs great at 1440p, 80-120 fps. Just played through Ghostrunner at a locked 4K 120. Anyone still playing PC games with a 60Hz monitor is really missing out.

Anybody I know would absolutely trade resolution/graphics settings for a higher frame rate.
I have a beamer here that does 240Hz at 1080p.

Meh.
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by bobrocks95 »

orange808 wrote:
bobrocks95 wrote:
orange808 wrote:Fair enough, but given that new games won't run at 4k 120Hz with max detail and ray tracing, I don't know if 120Hz is a deal breaker for everyone. There's also the shortage and extreme prices for new video cards. I guess you could set the game to 120Hz and hide the real refesh rate using Gsync/Freesync, but it's not really going to hit that.
Running an RTX 3080 and horrible availability aside I can hit 4K 120Hz in plenty of games. It would be insane to give that up. More demanding games usually give you resolution scaling options, so you can render the UI at 4K and render the game at say 80% of 4K. Control at max settings including full ray tracing runs great at 1440p, 80-120 fps. Just played through Ghostrunner at a locked 4K 120. Anyone still playing PC games with a 60Hz monitor is really missing out.

Anybody I know would absolutely trade resolution/graphics settings for a higher frame rate.
I have a beamer here that does 240Hz at 1080p.

Meh.
You ever pop it back into a 60Hz mode and suddenly feel gross though? I definitely do.
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Re: Best OLED gaming monitor?

Post by Guspaz »

I switch between my 144 Hz gaming monitor and my 60 Hz office monitors daily, so I'm constantly faced with how laggy 60Hz feels by comparison. I used to use the same monitor for both so I was switching the gaming monitor between 144Hz and 60Hz based on the input, and yikes that was brutal. I used some custom timings to convince the intel graphics to spit out 72 Hz instead of 60Hz, and that actually helped a lot.
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