Help Choosing a 4K Display

User Support Hub Hardware & Peripherals
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1

Like going to the store to buy a toothbrush, being presented with so many choices that I completely short circuit, I’m having the same issue with choosing a new display.

Perhaps, I should start with what I have and why I want to replace it.

First, I have a tapered corner desk that is 100% utilized for MSFS only. I sit about 2 feet away from my current display and, since it’s a desk in a corner, I can’t really fit a massive TV-sized display. ~42” would be about as big as I’d be able to do without the entire thing seeming clownish or feeling like I’m in the front row at a movie theatre.

Currently, I have an Asus VG289Q1A 28” 60Hz 4K display. I’ve been basically satisfied with it, except for its HDR capability — due to a low nit value it blows out the whites so badly, that I really cannot use HDR as the horizon, as viewed from the cockpit (due to the sim’s eye adaptation), is just a blast of detail-less white.

I’ve been fine with focusing on achieving a 60 FPS frame rate, but with AMD now offering frame generation (I have an RX 7900 XTX), I’ve been curious about utilizing it for those times when heavily loaded airports, aircraft, etc. really strain the FPS. With the display I’ve got, I just cannot get FG to work, most likely due to the low refresh rate.

So, after a search for “high end 4K display” I came away a bit frustrated as most of the reviews don’t detail the nits the recommended displays are rated for. Since HDR is one of the things I’d really like to take advantage of, a high nit value is going to be key. I also see displays are now offering refresh rates as high as 240Hz, but do I really need that much refresh rate for Flight Simulator? Many of these displays seem like stupid money, such as 32” for $1800.00?

Too many choices, to me, is no choice at all and my head hurts.

I know many of you are like me and you have a dedicated Flight Simulator “station”. Given that is the case, I’m looking for recommendations for a display that would suit my needs.

3

You ever thought about going Ultrawide? Especially if you are only 24" from Monitor?

4

Absolutely. Most of them seem to be 1440.

Again, I’m quite lost at sea here (see toothbrush aisle comment…).

6

On sale right now on Amazon for $1099…you have to measure to see if it will fit your corner.

SAMSUNG 49" Odyssey G93SC Series OLED Curved Gaming Monitor, 240Hz, 0.03ms, Dual QHD, Display HDR True Black 400, FreeSync Premium Pro, Height Adjustable Stand, LS49CG932SNXZA, 2023

7

This is what I was a bit worried about.

Frankly, beside the obvious aviation part, I’m here for the visuals. I love how the sim looks, so my focus for choosing a display is definitely going to be on this apsect.

8

That one is a 1440p. Color me stupid, if need be, but I’m struggling to not think going from 4k to 1440p is going backwards.

9

I would recommend that you look at one. Do you use a head tracker?

10

Yes, a Tobii.

11

I’ve got a similar awkwardly placed desk rig and I’ve been very happy with my LG 32GQ950-B. It’s a 32" 16:9 4K nano-IPS LCD with decent HDR (DisplayHDR 1000) and reasonable VRR option (144 Hz with g-sync/freesync).

It handles the brights in MSFS very well; daytime flights look fantastic. Nighttime shows the relative weakness of LCD for extreme darks (any bright lights within each ‘dimming zone’ bump it up from being able to use the darkest blacks) but I’m happy with that trade-off so far. (If you really love night flight consider an OLED monitor, but IIRC they tend to be more expensive in this size/quality.)

I’ve recommended this monitor several times on this forum and I’m still happy with it. :wink:

12

I was, honestly, hoping you would show up here. I know you recommended that display on a different thread re: HDR. I’ve watched it go from $800+ up to $1000(!) since that time. I probably should have jumped when you first mentioned it.

When I looked at it yesterday, I couldn’t figure if the price was some oddity due to it being an older model and, you know, Amazon gets weird like that sometimes. (2 left!)

I even went to LG’s website to see what they had that was comparable, but I just couldn’t make sense of their offerings.

It’s a year or two old model now, right?

13

Sitting that close you will not see the distortion at the edges and when you turn your head your non-distorted view will remain where you are looking. 1440P is the vertical resolution (monitor is not as tall due to being UW).

14

Yeah, it’s a couple years old now so stock is very wonky. :smiley: If you find a good deal on it it’s great :smiley: if you don’t it’s expensive :smiley:

15

Right, I do understand that. I’m still really unclear about the 1440p vs. 4k thing with gaming displays. I fully understand the resolution elements, it isn’t that I’m confused or unclear on the basics or concepts. It is more that I have a 4k display now and I love the look of the graphics. I’m still struggling with the idea that I’m going to lose vertical resolution if I step back to a 1440p.

I know there are arguments about if the display is less than X size and you’re sitting close you’re not really going to see the difference, etc., but if I’m going to make another investment in hardware, I don’t want to regret it or feel like I made some compromise that bites me later.

They must have an upgraded/newer model, no? I wish it was easier to make sense of these things.

16

It still seems to be their LCD current model in that segment, if I’m reading their (very confusing) website correctly. :wink:

They have an OLED the same size now which’ll have better darks in HDR but may not reach the brights; I can’t speak to how well it works for MSFS but it’s similarly expensive so shrug. :smiley:

17

I just looked up the horizontal dimensions and the 47" is going to hit the right-hand wall. To my left is a sliding glass door and, if I rotate my desk more to the left to make room for the right side, the left side will be in the path of the door.

I need a dedicated room for my sim station! (maybe when the boy heads off to college, I can steal his old room…)

Sigh, for sure.

18

Just let him play it sometimes. When I left home my parents just filled my old room with tchotchkes. :wink:

19

LOL!

10 characters.

20

Do you have any Best Buy stores or Microcenters near? You really should go look at monitors first hand. I can also tell you getting a descent OLED monitor will make a vast improvement to visuals in MSFS when utilizing HDR. Nighttime flying will be an entirely new experience.

21

I wholeheartedly agree with you on this. A reconnaissance mission is in order.

This is one of my great enjoyments in the sim, as it is.

22

Mine as well, I have a stinking suspicion that we are in the minority.