Advice Regarding A Monitor 3440 x 1440 34"

JohnnyBravo

JohnnyBravo

JohnnyBravo

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17 Apr 2012
Posts
6
Hello,

I recently got a new PC with a Nvidia 2080ti graphics card and would like to see the benefit of the card by buying a new monitor. I am currently using a BENQ 2420 24" 120HZ Monitor and would like to improve my gaming experience.
I have been researching monitors for a few months now and still can't find my ideal monitor, One that suits my pocket, my system and my gaming needs and gets the best use of the graphics card.
I have kind of narrowed it down to the following products but still open to other suggestions:-

MSI Optix MPG341CQR
Alienware AW3420DW - 120hz
LG UltraWide 34WK95U
Gigabyte G34WQC-EK - 144hz

Ideally I would like the monitor to have the following spec:-

3440 x 1440 Resolution
Minimum 120hz Refresh Rate but Ideally 144hz
G-Sync Compatible
1 ms response time
Display Port Connection 1.4
Thunderbolt 3 Connection If Possible but not essential.

Maximum cost £1000.00

I seem to keep coming back to the Alienware AW3420DW for some reason as it looks like a really nice monitor and meets most of my spec needs but it is at the top of my price range. I have viewed the Nvidia monitor range and would like one of the Nvidia G-SYNC ULTIMATE range but they are out of my price range unfortunately.
I have read a lot of posts on different forums regarding it being a 'monitor panel lottery' and people posting images of dead pixels, light bleeding etc and also poor returns processes from some suppliers/manufacturers and I have become a little sceptical towards spending a large sum of money and not being happy with the monitor for one of the above reasons.
The spec of the Gigabyte G34WQC-EK looks very similar to the Alienware one but the price difference is vast and I was wondering why this is? Is there really a difference of £500.00 on two monitors with similar spec?
Will I really be able to tell the difference between the two monitors and will it be a £500.00 difference?

Any advice and your thoughts would be appreciated because I am going to take the plunge very soon and purchase one of the above monitors!

Thanks!

Johnny Bravo :)
 

gwishy

gwishy

gwishy

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7 Feb 2018
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42
Hi Johnny.

Lots of reviews online you should have a read through. A £1K budget would take you into pretty high quality territory, so ignore the G34WQC. It's on permanent pre-order, with no reliable ETA, and doesn't have Thunderbolt or USB-C. Both of those connectors are mainly used by the professional market instead (where a 144Hz refresh rate isn't a selling point) so you may be struggling to find a 34" ultrawide 1440p which is going to combine the gamer-focused 144Hz refresh rate, alongside the creative-focused Thunderbolt/USB-C.

The panel used in the G34WQC is the same Samsung VA screen used in a number of other budget (£400-£500) 34" ultrawide monitors, and they all seem to suffer from issues with screen flickering when FreeSync/G-Sync is enabled. The iiyama GB3466WQSU-B1 uses the same panel - type "GB3466WQSU" into the search box on this forum, and you'll see a few long-running threads with lots of people having to send monitors back and get the firmware updated by iiyama. Sometimes this fixes it, others have continued to have problems and had to either disable FreeSync or drop the refresh rate down from 144Hz.

Re G-Sync, most FreeSync monitors are compatible with it - it's driven by the NVidia graphics driver for the card, instead of a G-Sync chip inside the monitor - monitor reviewers generally check this and mention if there were any issues. NVidia don't have the testing resources to certify every possible monitor on the market, so their official list is never going to be exhaustive.

If you type "best ultrawide monitor 2020" into a search engine, you'll get a good range of roundup reviews from the experts. The LG 34GN850 will give you everything you need except a USB-C/TB connection, so that would be a good avenue if you can revise your must-have list, otherwise, I think your budget's going to have to go up.

Good luck with your search.
 

JohnnyBravo

JohnnyBravo

JohnnyBravo

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OP
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I think that having read lots of reviews about the Alienware, LG, AOC, MSI monitors and also read comparisons I am going to choose the Dell Alienware AW3420DW out of the lot.

It seems to come out best or at the top end of most reviews and the warranty situation and guarantee of 3 years has swung it for me.

But I don't seem to be able to find it on the Overclockers site to order it? Has it been removed or is there just no stock or has it been discontinued?

Can anyone give me a link to it please?
 

JohnnyBravo

JohnnyBravo

JohnnyBravo

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OP
Joined
17 Apr 2012
Posts
6
So.... I finally took the plunge and pulled the trigger on The Dell Alienware AW3420DW monitor yesterday!

I noticed that it had been reduced by a full £100.00 on a very well known site with a river in South America lol

These monitors are normally priced between £999.00 and £1099.00 and even on the Dell site they are £969.00 so at just £899.00 it seemed like a good offer not to be missed.

The only thing that I am unsure about is the delivery date doesn't appear to be a specific date but offers a 2 week window so maybe they have to order the monitors from Dell before they can ship them out to customers. Normally when I order from them I get a definite date for delivery but not in this instance.

I am hoping that the monitor is brand new and not one that has already been sold and returned, although I am ready for that process to happen if it does. I just hope the one I get is n perfect condition with no bad pixels etc.

Fingers crossed that I win the panel lottery! :)

Update....

When I checked the site later today it had been reduced by another £50.00!! So I cancelled my order at £899.00 and re-ordered at £849.00 :)

JB :)
 
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