[skawster]

I'm looking into building a new PC and this time I've decided to go with a multi-monitor setup. The majority of the time I'll be running Visual Studio but I've recently tried my luck at coding for the web not sure if that makes any difference. I'm not going to game a lot and if I do it will be mostly RTS titles, desk space isn't a big problem.

I am pretty much set on the new Dell Ultrasharps and was going to buy three U2515Hs but after some thinking realised that two U2715Hs would actually give me more screen real estate so I figured I'd go with those. I'm kind of hesitant, sure two monitors would suit my needs better as I would have one "main" monitor and a secondary one as opposed to having three monitors which would be more straining on the neck and the extra 240 pixels on the 27" do seem quite handy for displaying text.

Basically it boils down to triple 24" 1200p monitors or dual 27" 1440p monitors, any input is much appreciated!

P.S. Is the PPI of the 27" 1440p a big change coming from a 1200p monitor?

 

[Peter Nixeus]

I suggest going with two 2560x1440 monitors if your video card have the outputs to support it. The extra real estate and the PPI is perfect for a 27" especially if you are looking to code or develop stuff. The PPI is a big change from a 1200p monitor (I used to own a 28" 1920x1200) and you will notice you can have a lot more stuff on screen - you also won't have to deal with the clutter of 3 monitors. Once you go 2560x1440 you don't want to go back.

 

[Ultisym]

What is the price difference between the two 27" screens and the three 24" screens? What GPU are you running and what RTS games are you playing?

Both setups can potentially satisfy what your after. There is usually more clutter with dual monitor setups since these users typically run the factory stands and triple screen users are more likely to buy the appropriate stand. I have a dual monitor setup at work and a 3+1 setup at home and use every last cm of desktop space. If you do go triple screen, budget for a decent stand.

 

[skawster]

Thanks for the replies, much appreciated!

So the shift from ~90PPI (1920x1080 @ 24") to ~108PPI (2560x1440 @ 27") is pretty noticeable? Will it strain my eyes too much?

I will most certainly buy a stand for the monitors because my desk space is vital as it doubles as a work bench for electronics work, I'm still debating if I should maybe get one that bolts down since it has a much smaller footprint but the adjustability isn't that great.

Gaming wise the only more recent RTS titles I play are CoH2 and Sins of a Solar Empire, which both don't require a lot of oomph and I'm ok with lowering the settings if need be, I already settled on a GTX 970, I have my whole build planned out for more than a month but the monitors were kind of a difficult decision.

Since I am leaning towards the 1440p side might I ask if there are any good alternatives to the Dell U2715H, it seems like a pretty great monitor and the thin bezels are awesome but if there are better contenders from different manufacturers out there I'm more than happy to consider them too. Dell also has great support here where I live so that was what partly made almost immediately set on their product. Oh and the 2 27" are 130 euros more expensive than the 3 24" but I am able to live with that but I may I say that the U2715H isn't cheap by any means.

One more thing I was meaning to ask is if IPS is more eye-straining than TN? My current monitor, an 8 year old 24" Samsung is a TN panel and although I have used IPS panels quite a lot I never did so for extended periods of time so I was never able to compare these two aspects.

 

[Ultisym]

Quote:

Originally Posted by skawster

Thanks for the replies, much appreciated!

So the shift from ~90PPI (1920x1080 @ 24") to ~108PPI (2560x1440 @ 27") is pretty noticeable? Will it strain my eyes too much?

I will most certainly buy a stand for the monitors because my desk space is vital as it doubles as a work bench for electronics work, I'm still debating if I should maybe get one that bolts down since it has a much smaller footprint but the adjustability isn't that great.

Gaming wise the only more recent RTS titles I play are CoH2 and Sins of a Solar Empire, which both don't require a lot of oomph and I'm ok with lowering the settings if need be, I already settled on a GTX 970, I have my whole build planned out for more than a month but the monitors were kind of a difficult decision.

Since I am leaning towards the 1440p side might I ask if there are any good alternatives to the Dell U2715H, it seems like a pretty great monitor and the thin bezels are awesome but if there are better contenders from different manufacturers out there I'm more than happy to consider them too. Dell also has great support here where I live so that was what partly made almost immediately set on their product. Oh and the 2 27" are 130 euros more expensive than the 3 24" but I am able to live with that but I may I say that the U2715H isn't cheap by any means.

One more thing I was meaning to ask is if IPS is more eye-straining than TN? My current monitor, an 8 year old 24" Samsung is a TN panel and although I have used IPS panels quite a lot I never did so for extended periods of time so I was never able to compare these two aspects.

I had the stand and then switched it over to the single bolt through the desktop. I much prefer this method. The only adjust ability your losing is of course where the stand is bolted to the desk. Is that something you really change a lot? As for running 3 screens, i flippin love COH2 and AOEIIHD and starcraft. The extra real estate makes these games more fun to me. But you will of course get some with the 27" screen too. A single 970 would play these games across triple screens with good results. It would be nice if you knew someone with a surround or eyefinity setup so you can try it out. But im liking the 27" screens as well. Im going to pick up some for the office though it wont be as expensive as some of the ones your looking at.

As for IPS vs TN you will get a lot of personal opinion there. Thats one of those things people can argue about all night. I cant personally tell a difference in eye fatigue etc as long as I take the time to set brightness etc to my liking.

 

[skawster]

I was looking at the Ergotech stands but their dual stands only support 24" or smaller monitors, they have the triple stand which also has a quite flush base so I'm wondering if it's possible to mount two 27" monitors on that stand, should send them an inquiry.

 

[Ultisym]

Quote:

Originally Posted by skawster

I was looking at the Ergotech stands but their dual stands only support 24" or smaller monitors, they have the triple stand which also has a quite flush base so I'm wondering if it's possible to mount two 27" monitors on that stand, should send them an inquiry.

This is who i bought from, ive only purchased a couple of stands but so far have been happy with what I got. Some of them get pricey. http://shop.easymountlcd.com/LCD-Monitor-Stands_c2.htm

 

[Smanci]

Quote:

Originally Posted by skawster

One more thing I was meaning to ask is if IPS is more eye-straining than TN? My current monitor, an 8 year old 24" Samsung is a TN panel and although I have used IPS panels quite a lot I never did so for extended periods of time so I was never able to compare these two aspects.

I think the main source of eye strain is backlight PWM dimming. Your old Samsung probably has that.
I didn't find any negative effects going from 24" 1080p to 24" 1440p. I find it easier for my eyes since everything is pinpoint sharp, has more depth and the new monitor is flicker-free.

 

[MarylandUSA]

If you're willing to stand while working, consider using three 25s, each running 2560x1440,. mounted in a single column. I use a similar setup: three 16:10 Lenovo L220X monitors, each 1920x1200, mounted to an $80 vertical triple-monitor stand:



I can partition my works areas with great flexibility and only two horizontal seams, stretching a window vertically across the upper two, the lower two, or all three monitors. In the photo shown above, I'm filling all three screens with Microsoft Word 2010.

That's my home setup. At work, I use two Seiki 39 4K monitors, again standing up, enjoying a ridiculously ample 16 million pixels and 1270 square inches.

 

[skawster]

Thanks for the responses guys!

Ultysim, those stands look very sturdy I hope they're available somewhere in the EU.

Smanci, I actually completely forgot about that backlighting is the main eye-strainer and surely the new LED technology should be easier on the eyes compared to CCFL.

Maryland, Those setups look sweet, since I am going to be staring at text 90% of the time I am afraid of going for such a high PPI monitor (my first choice were the 25" 1440p Dells) but I soon realised that a lot of programs still have problems with DPI scaling, even though I'm not a front-end developer so debugging UI elements isn't something that I do much I do use Linux and VIM frequently and from what I've read both have issues when it comes to DPI scaling. The 39" do look great but unfortunately I have no room for such a setup.

P. S. Which keyboard is that? Looks even crazier than a Cherry Ergonomic

 

[MarylandUSA]

My keyboard, used at work and at home, is a $110 Kinesis Freestyle2--the version featuring up to 20 inches of separation-- slanted on a $180 Kinesis Multi-Tent accessory.

 

[Smanci]

Quote:

Originally Posted by skawster

Surely the new LED technology should be easier on the eyes compared to CCFL.

It's actually the opposite

CCFL is much better if PWM is used because it doesn't have the ability to "blink" as fast as an LED - meaning that you will get less pronounced flicker and less artifacting.
Of course, DC backlight will not have this issue.

 

[skawster]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smanci

It's actually the opposite

CCFL is much better if PWM is used because it doesn't have the ability to "blink" as fast as an LED - meaning that you will get less pronounced flicker and less artifacting.
Of course, DC backlight will not have this issue.

Just checked on TFT Central and the U2715H uses DC so yay!