Hi guys!
I’m in the market for a new monitor. I have someone local offering a LG 27" 4k IPS freesync monitor 27ul600 for $250. Seems like an awesome deal but I’ve been specifically looking for a 2K monitor since I am more interested in frames and smoothness than 4K. My pc specs are i7-9700k @4.9Ghz, 32GB RAM, GTX1080ti. Will running the sim at 2k resolution on a 4K monitor look bad?
With TAA antialiasing on (it is the default) and using the “render scaling” slider to set your rendering resolution separately from the screen, results are in my opinion quite nice – and it’s a great way to trade off between GPU render time and quality.
I have a 4K (2160p) screen which I have set to 70% render scaling, which means it renders the simulation slightly higher than 1440p, then scales it up to 2160p and combines it with any menu rendering directly at 2160p. I find this looks really nice, though I haven’t compared it native rendering on a 1440p or 1080p monitor.
For me running at anything below 80 on the render scale on a 4k monitor I can see a noticable drop in quality.
If it was me Id get what you set out to get especially if frames and smoothness matter.
I have exactly the same specs than you and run the sim on 52inch TV in 4k, looks awesome. Fps in high plus clouds in ultra around 30 at big airports. Payed around 300.
I’m using a 43" 4K LG TV (in PC mode - lower input lag and proper Chroma for text).
I think it looks fantastic in 2K but once I finally (if ever) can get a new GPU, I’d like to “try” and run in 4K.
Agree with DORRAGER - I keep render scale at 80 or higher. Definite drop off in my experience at 70 (for example - the leading edge of the A320 wing loses it’s chromy look and becomes pockmarked)
Personally, I like having the option to upscale my image when equipment permits but still having flexibility to go to 2K or even 1080P if required.
Good Luck!
Here is my comparison.
@PushinSixty said:
I have a LG Nano85 series 4K/120Hz that I occasionally use with MSFS 2020. However, 95% of the games I play are online multiplayer and I prefer to play them at 1440P to obtain as many FPS as possible. Also from having the opportunity to use both 4K and 1440P back to back and simultaneously, I became a 1440P diehard user. The bump in resolution to 4K isn’t as significant enough as gaining 30-40% performance. It’s somewhat a compromise I made once I saw my games running side by side (4K vs 2K).
@Vibsttontium said:
With TAA antialiasing on (it is the default) and using the “render scaling” slider to set your rendering resolution separately from the screen, results are in my opinion quite nice – and it’s a great way to trade off between GPU render time and quality.
I have a 4K (2160p) screen which I have set to 70% render scaling, which means it renders the simulation slightly higher than 1440p, then scales it up to 2160p and combines it with any menu rendering directly at 2160p. I find this looks really nice, though I haven’t compared it native rendering on a 1440p or 1080p monitor.
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My monitor = TCL 65" 4K 60 Hz, WINDOWED, 3840x2160
I9-9900K, 64GB, GTX 1660 TI, Z390 MB.,M.2 Samsung 970 EVO Plus NVMe PCIe 3.0
FS2020 General Options - Fixed
==================>
PC
Display Mode = Windowed
Full Screen Resolution 3840x2160
Ultra
V-SYNC = on
Frame Rate Limit = 30
Nvidia Options - Fixed
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Ultra HD
Desktop Size = 2k, 2560x1440
Perform Scaling on GPU or Display-doesn’t matter
Scaling Mode = Aspect Ratio
Override Scaling Mode set by Game or Display NA
Refresh Rate = 30 Hz
TAA
2nd EDIT follows:
SUMMARY
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For FS2020 Options, General:
For FS2020 Options, General:
Screenshot - 2k Monitor, FS Scaling =100
4K Monitor, FS Scaling = 100
Note: Forum will not let me upload the 4K screenshot.
Forum has a max size of 5 MB for uploads.
But the picture looks exactly the same. (maybe the monitor is upscaling. I don’t know)
It just has a lower FPS.
I have a LG 27UK850-w quite a high quality IPS panel capable of doing 400 nits peak brightness.
I don’t really notice a difference @ 80 / 90 % render scaling which is around 3000 x ---- pixels.|
but when you drop to 70% which is close to 1440p it looks quite blurry
Thanks! That’s what I was trying to find out.
ok guys… here is something i ran into by accident. let me explain… Or skip to the last sentence… I used to run 3 40" 1080p tvs spanned into 1 with NVidia 1080 on my old pc. Bought a new one for fs20. 9900k 4.68g 32g 2080ti with m2 drives. I found spanning 3 display’s in fs20 was frame hitter… meaning it gets choppy landing at LAX with high settings. so i went to 1 1080p display with trackir. Walmart has a 50" 4k tv on sale for $200. made me wonder how this sim will run in 4k. to test it i ran a long hdmi cable to the mancave big screen tv. 65" 4k. I ran great… minimal frame hit with beautiful graphics. obviously im not gonna run that big display 18" in front of my face. so i shut everything down and hooked my 1080p back up. fired up the pc and made sure all my display were correct then fired up fs20. I was in developer mode to test the higher resolution when i quit the sim to reboot. when the sim came back up on my 1080p display i could hardly read the developer menu bar. so i checked the sim settings and it remembers my last 2160p setting even tho w10 says its a 1080p display. so now i have 4k resolution on a 1080p display. ini i can do that in sim by sliding over the resolution but thats a bigtime frame hitter. im running 4k with zero frame hit at 100 slider setting on a 1080p display.
Just did myself a favor … was using an AOC 27 inch 1080 monitor (with RTX 2070 Super and I7 9700K and 64 GB DDR4 2133>3333 MHz) and just bought an ASUS VP3UQ 31.5 inch 4G 60 Hz monitor - $390 … just set up and experimenting with settings … seems infinite number of things to adjust … though can’t figure out how to undock cockpit to put on the older monitor … using the nVidia GeForce game filter for hue, color, brightness, contrast, sharpness, etc, though, fps drops from 60’s to 30’s … 
settings somewhat confusing to me … that is, nVidia control panel - resolution, scaling, DLDSR stuff, MSFS render scaling (vs DLSS) - think I still need a higher level of rendering though, as some buildings still have the lack of definition or wavy or apocalyptic look up close (unless this is the limit of the photogrammetry) …
Nice monitor! Not only nice but should provide incredible graphics for a long time. I am using a monitor very similar to yours and I have fairly consistent 50-60 FPS except at crowded airports.
As for settings, stepping up to a 4k monitor means using new settings. First, use a new DisplayPort cable, not. HDMI. Second, check the manufacture’s support website for a specific Windows 10/11 driver. Windows usually only uses a generic monitor driver.
Initially don’t try using different rendering settings or configuring HDR until your monitor is adjusted to what performs best for you. For most of the NVIDIA settings, use the 3D setting to use the application settings. This avoids setting conflicts between MSFS and NVIDIA. Depending on the NVIDIA filters you are using, there shouldn’t be any FPS drop unless you use SHARPEN+.
Send me a message if you would like additional info on the settings to use for MSFS.
HDMI is fine as long as the GPU, the cable, and the monitor all support a suitable version of HDMI. However DisplayPort will AFAIK always be fast enough to run 4k at 60 Hz.
Thank you very much for your feedback ! … didn’t know that the HDR could be turned on or off (its only level 10 though), I will have to try to undo the Sharpen+ filter on the GeForce system, switch HDMI (HDMI driver may not be the newest one) and DisplayPort cables, check for specific monitor driver …
Do you know to what degree my “old” AOC 27 inch 1080 monitor “taxes” the RTX 2070 Super (if being only used for internet stuff) ? … also, can I “undock” the in cabin view like on FSX ? (to put on the old monitor) …
I assume you want to use both the old and new monitors on the same GPU. Depending on your graphics settings, the 4k monitor could use all or most of your GPU. I don’t use more than one monitor. Many users have two or more monitors and run them in various configurations. Performance is very dependent on graphics settings in NVIDIA Control Panel.
Switching the HDR (10) on prevents me from micro-adjusting the abundant settings color, hue, sat, bright, contrast, etc, which is more important … also using the GeForce filter settings, as well as sharp … current fps 40-45 … Just ordered a new base for it, as it does not have vertical, horizontal rotation, and very little tilt adjustment …
