SOVLED! Does a good monitor help with gaming?

When you are done with the selection of main computer components, one of the most important things in gaming is your monitor. On the other hand, you might be a console gamer and want to make the most out of it with a good monitor. It is easy to get confused about whether or not to pay some extra money to buy a monitor with good specifications for gaming.

The truth is, you just need to match the refresh rate with the expected FPS in your console or gaming PC. If the FPS is high and refresh rate is low (e.g. 120 FPS with 60 Hz Refresh Rate Monitor), you can experience stuttering and various other issues while gaming. For 120 FPS gaming, you should at least have a 144 Hz gaming monitor. There are several monitors that come with variable refresh rates but for high-end gaming solutions, a matching or higher refresh rate is always a good choice.

The same concept applies to both PC and console gaming. A specific type of console will be capable of offering a number of FPS on different games. So, in this case, as well, you will have to choose the monitor. Getting a monitor with a low refresh-rate while having a very high-FPS is like bottlenecking your gaming experience just because of your monitor.

People think that even a cheap monitor with a low refresh rate and any response time will not put any barrier while playing their desired games on any number of frames per second.

Well, the most common monitors out there are 60hz, 144hz, and 240hz. So, for gaming, the higher the refresh rate, the better it is for you. Switching from a low-refresh rate monitor to a high-refresh-rate is always an exciting thing to do.

But, is there is a point in going for a high-end monitor with high refresh-rate?

Well, in this article, we are going to discuss all the things you should know before you make your decision.

What makes a monitor good for gaming?

The most important things which you should always find in your gaming monitor are resolution and refresh rate. Some people would argue that the size of the screen, brand, or resolution are the most important things but that’s not true in gaming. Here, you have to focus on some other things.

There are a lot of things to say but the next main thing about a gaming monitor are that it should have a low input lag. The lower the input lag, the faster will be the images displayed on the monitor once they are processed by the graphics processing unit.

In other words, a gaming monitor is designed specifically by keeping the low response time, high-response rate in mind. So, it might not be a good fit if you are too curious about color accuracy, sharpness, etc. But, for a sharp response, lower response time and high refresh-rates are really very important.

The gaming monitors can still be perfect to use for general applications. But, don’t expect the same results as you get with those big 4K monitors at almost similar price tags. A good gaming monitor is always focused on quick reactions and snappy outputs.

How to choose the monitor’s refresh rate depending on the FPS?

Well, when it comes to the selection of the right kind of monitor for gaming, it becomes very important to pay close attention to its refresh rate. A high refresh rate is really very important when you know your system is going to offer a huge number of frames per second.

But, choosing the monitor’s refresh rate as per the FPS is pretty easy. You just have to match the FPS with the refresh rate in Hz. For example, if you know you are going to get around 60 FPS in games using your computer, there is no point in going for a monitor with a refresh rate higher than 60 Hz.

It is always good to go for a high refresh rate monitor even if the FPS is low. But, you are not going to get any additional benefit in FPS just because its refresh rate is higher.

However, a low refresh rate and high FPS can ruin your experience with phenomena like ghosting and stuttering. So, if you know you have a pretty powerful computer and it can throw >100 FPS on all your games, you should go for a monitor with 144Hz.

Also Read: Does RAM Affect Gaming?

Does monitor resolution matter for PC gaming?

Definitely, it matters because it determines the number of pixels on the screen and hence the display quality. But, there could be several situations to keep in mind here. The main one is your console’s, and PC’s specifications. If the system can’t run a game on 1080P resolution, your 1080P or 4K monitor is not going to make the best use of its hardware resources.

So, yes, you will have to pay your attention to the monitor’s resolution. But, it is important only when you know your games are going to run on very high resolutions.

A lot of gamers would like to reduce the resolution of their games so that the FPS can be increased. In this case, you would always want to have a monitor with a high refresh rate and not with a high resolution.

In a nutshell, you need a high-resolution monitor such as 2K or 4K monitors only when you know your system or console will be capable of giving that high-resolution to the monitor while playing any game.

What is the purpose of high-end gaming monitors?

I am telling you that you can always choose between the high-resolution and high refresh-rate when picking up your monitor. But, if you have a good budget, you can also pick the monitors specifically designed for gaming. HP Omen, Acer Predator, and Asus TUF Gaming monitors are some of the top examples of leading gaming monitor series.

Basically, these gaming monitors are specifically designed to work with gaming rigs and consoles. They generally come with high resolutions, high refresh rates, and lower response delays. However, the color accuracy, sharpness, and some other display features might be compromised in some products.

But, these monitors are going to help you achieve the best results in terms of response times and utilizing the best from the available FPS.

How a good monitor will enhance your gaming experience?

When I say a good monitor, I am saying it by keeping the gaming applications in mind. So, a good monitor for gaming will have low response times, a high refresh rate, and everything else that can enhance your gaming experience.

So, a good gaming monitor will generally allow you to reduce your response time as much as possible. So, when you press a key on your monitor or joystick, a good monitor will help you reduce the total time the system will take to show this change on the monitor.

Also, a good monitor will simply let you experience the games in the best manner depending on the total frames per second. In simple words, a good gaming monitor will have very less or no interference or delays to offer in any kind of gaming.

So, basically, a good monitor will allow you to offer you sharp response time which can actually help you while gaming. In competitive gaming, this monitor will help you have a better edge over your opponents.

Conclusion: Does a good monitor actually help in gaming?

Definitely, a good monitor is one of the crucial hardware if you are a serious gamer. Even if you are a hobbyist gamer but always want to get the best gaming experience, it might not be possible without a good monitor.

So, if you are building a custom PC and arranging the components on your own, make sure to keep a good budget for a high refresh-rate monitor. If possible, just go for a monitor which is developed just for gaming. The same thing will apply to console gamers as well.

However, if you know that you are not going to achieve very high FPS using your PC or console, your perfect gaming monitor with top-end refresh rates will not be able to enhance your experience in any way. So, make your monitor’s decision depending on the kind of games you want to play and the expected FPS from your system/console.

Thanks for reading!