What monitor to put with U2311h?

[Prophet21]

Okay I bought the Dell U2311h (thanks to PCM2), and i'm very happy with it, need to get used to the difference from my TV though, as that was shocking.

Okay so I want to get another monitor for a dual screen setup.

should I get another U2311h, a U2410 or the HP ZR24w?

I was originally going to get the U2410, but looking at the price... It's making me look at alternatives, but then I think i'll always think what will it be like to have the U2410.

What's your opinion on what I should get, I'm a student and will be gaming, editing photos, Photoshop, 3D design, watching films, doing coursework, programming (computer science student), I also produce music.

Thank you.

Another note is that I'm getting the new xbox slim soon and will be using it on the U2311h that I have at the moment with a DVI to HDMI converter, my Graphics card has a HDMI output, can that be plugged into the display port with an adapter so I dont have to keep taking out the DVI adapter, I dont really want to use the VGA. (or I could just connect my xbox to the U2410 if I get it and deal with the black bars)

Thank you again.

 

[PCM2]

Definitely another U2311H in my opinion. It's always best to have the same screen size, resolution and (as close as possible) overall image in a dual screen setup (in my opinion). I think the U2410 is also a great monitor but I think the price is a bit steep for an "additional" monitor esepcially for a student. It's quite heavy and difficult to move about too if that would be an issue.

 

[Mr.Nick]

Wouldn't to go with the same model be the most sensible option?

 

[Prophet21]

I suppose, but I thought that having the option of 16:10 would help. And more pixels.

I guess your right, The vertical space is already a little more than the 1050 my TV displays, and i'm happy with the U2311h.

This is what my setup looks like right this second. So you can see how chunky that TV is.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v208/reecegoddard/IMG_0312.jpg

I think you right, I should get the U2311h, I dont feel I would get that much out of the U2410 except the connectivity, which you can work around with adapters...

Also could you tell me if a HDMI to displayport works okay?

EDIT: My graphics card has 1 DVI, 1 VGA and 1 HDMI... I have 1 DVI to HDMI adapter so I can plug my xbox into the monitor, should I just use VGA to connect to PC? Or should I buy a displayport to HDMI to use for PC connection? Ive read that the VGA is'nt very accurate.

Or should I buy a new graphics card with dual DVI? and get a DP to HDMI for the xbox?

Google DP2HDMI2.

 

[PCM2]

Haha somebody is in a spending mood huh? Modern monitors are actually very good at handling the analogue signal from a D-sub/VGA and there is generally very little difference in quality. Some monitors that have digital inputs actually just come with a standard VGA cable as compatability is great and there are (probably) no real problems with image quality. Having said that I always prefer digital inputs perhaps because it just doesn't feel right using analogue - I dunno it just annoys me and I'm a bit paranoid about it despite my knowledge telling me otherwise. Personally I'd go with the HDMI to display port option unless you need another graphics card for any other particular reason(s).

 

[Prophet21]

No my graphics card is sufficient for any game I have played so far. So I will have to have one monitor on dvi, the other on VGA, and then connect my xbox to the dvi port using the dvi to hdmi converter I already have.

The thing is, I need my crappy tv to play xbox then for now. Because it has a component output. Until I get the new slim model (hdmi) for my birthday in 2 weeks. Will order the monitor a few days before then.

Thanks again PCM2.

 

[Phoenixdancer]

HDMI to Display port doesnt work well, best adapters are DVI to DP and VGA to DP.
If you avent got a DP port on your card dont use it imo

 

[PCM2]

HDMI to Display port doesnt work well, best adapters are DVI to DP and VGA to DP.
If you avent got a DP port on your card dont use it imo

I suggest in that case Prophet connects one monitor with DVI and one with VGA and has a hard look to see if there are any differences. On the likely event that he doesn't he can connect everything up just fine and we're all happy.

 

[Prophet21]

Okay just got the second monitor... and on VGA it doesnt look good at all... Whites are grey, and everything is blury compared to the DVI next to it.

Is there any way to make my DVI to HDMI adapter... to a DVI to 2 x HDMI adapter that can accomodate my monitor and xbox?

EDIT: Okay I fixed the greyness, it was my graphics card thinking my monitor was my tv and using the same settings I used on that. But text looks SOOO blurry on VGA, just like my TV was. Is there any way to fix this?

 

[wiak]

did you check resolution and timing try powerstrip
analog can be a bitch, and i highly recommend using DP, its a supiror technology

what graphics card do you have?
most cards can output 2x DVI or 2x DVI+HDMI

only amd radeon 5000 series and higher can output to 3 or more displays

so with a 5000 series you can setup
DP to 1x U2311H
DVI to 1x U2311H
HDMI to HDTV
Xbox 360 to the 2311H that is connected with DP

with a 6870 you can
DP to both 2311H
HDMI to HDTV
Xbox 360 to one of 2311H that is connected to DP
and still have a lot of HDMI or DVI left

btw there are cheaper active DVI to DP adapters out now, that are certified by amd for eyefinity, so they are known to work a lot better than apples crappy adapters