I just upgraded my 27 inch 1920x1080 with an Asus 32 inch curved 2560x1440p . 165 hz refresh rate with HDR feature and display port connection. Although only 2k it delivers a substantial clearer picture with much smoother movements. My old monitor also was not capable of v-sync or g-sync settings. It looks like 30 fps locked delivers a smoother flight than limiting fps through the nvidia control panel. So far, very pleased.
I was thinking about getting a 4k monitor but was advised in the forum that there would be too much of a performance drop with my GTX 2070s.
When I bought my current rig this time last year, I bought it specifically for MSFS. But I had no idea what difference a monitor makes. I just knew that I wanted to get the most bang for my buck with processor, graphics card and ssd. But I really knew nothing about monitors.
Placebo effect as they never went higher than 5 in the first place and I even think that’s now been knocked back further (possibly 2 is now the limit).
I’m currently in the market for a new monitor, and I’m convinced it will be a 4k. Why? Not for gaming. For productivity tasks a spacious desktop is something I consider essential. There’s no reason why I can’t run my Windows desktop in 4k, yet run my games in a lower resolution to preserve performance. Modern computer monitors easily and seamlessly perform upsampling in hardware, so having to always run at your monitor’s native resolution is no longer needed. The only drawback is the $$$$$ required to purchase a large gaming monitor in 4k, but I’m betting that it will be worth saving up for. And when I eventually have a PC capable of 4k graphics at a good framerate, I’ll already have the screen to display it on.
As above, for others considering 4K, definitely choose the 4K unless it lacks other features you need. Just set games to run at 1440 or even 1080 for performance if needed. Those resolutions scale and look great. MSFS actually has a really good built in upscaler, which lets the UI run at 4K and scales the 3D world to 4K at high quality and relatively low GPU cost.
When you’re not playing games, you get the 4K crisp text and in future, or for less GPU stressful games, you can run at full res.
If you can,try Vr before splashing out on a big monitor, I’ve just given away my 3440x1440 curved monitor as since getting a Q2 it was more of a handicap than useful. A pair of 1920x1080s are fine for productivity apps…
A 1080p 16:9 monitor is 1920 x 1080 pixels, or 2,073,600 total pixels
A 1440p 16:9 monitor is 2560 x 1440 pixels, or 3,686,400 total pixels
That 77.7% more pixels than a 1080p screen. I recently upgraded to a similar spec 32” LG 1440p monitor, and the increase in usable screen real estate is striking. Honestly, to me, 1440p is just about the perfect sweet spot for MSFS - substantially sharper than 1080p, not as performance-demanding as 4K, and even a 3070 can maintain a solid 40 - 75 fps with everything set to Ultra across the board in any conditions anywhere in the sim.
I upgraded from a standard 1080p non-HDR monitor to this one:
-ASUS VG27WQ1B 27-inch, WQHD (2560x1440), curved display, 165Hz refresh rate
Driving it with this, via Display Port:
-EVGA RTX2070 Super FTW3 Ultra with 8GB GDDR6 VRAM
Running at 2560x1440, render scale 100%, most settings on Ultra (although I do keep the Terrain LOD at 100-150 due to my CPU).
BIG difference from my old monitor. I would’ve gone bigger/better on the monitor, but as you said, I think 1440 is the sweet spot. And… I ran out of money
I have a similar experience. I switched from my old 1080p 16:9 monitor to a 1440p UW (3440 x 1440 = 4,953,600 pixels) driven by an RTX3080. It maintains 40+ fps almost everywhere, with Ultra settings. I love having that extra viewing area to the sides.
I went for a Sumsung 49" CRG9 ultra-wide curved display. That’s 5120x1440 (dual QHD) with all the latest features. It’s fantastic with MSFS and even better for productivity. Not dealing with two displays and the bezel breaking things up is a game changer. I like it so much I bought another for work. Several co-workers that have seen it have since upgraded too. I think it’s a great value for what it is ($1,000).
My gaming rig has no problems running MSFS smoothly full screen:
i7-10700F 2.9 Ghz
RTX 2080 Super
