Hz gaming

[Dawelio]

Hey guys,

So since you guys are the pros here, I thought I would ask you guys regarding this question... as from what I've heard is that if you have 144fps constantly in a game, you can run an 144Hz monitor at 144Hz. The same with 120fps at 120Hz.

Is this true or what is really the thing regarding this?...

 

[MadShadow]

If I wanted to, I could get 30fps on a 144Hz monitor, but there wouldn'y be much point in it. I think high refresh monitors are about taking advantage of the high frame rates that some graphics cards can put out. Even if you can't hit 144fps, a 144Hz monitor might still be usefull, because it results in a more fluid experience. SeekaX will love to tell you all about it

 

[Dawelio]

If I wanted to, I could get 30fps on a 144Hz monitor, but there wouldn'y be much point in it. I think high refresh monitors are about taking advantage of the high frame rates that some graphics cards can put out. Even if you can't hit 144fps, a 144Hz monitor might still be usefull, because it results in a more fluid experience. SeekaX will love to tell you all about it

Yeah.... that's true. I think I kinda formulated myself incorrectly.

I mean, what do you really have to do in order to run a 144Hz monitor at 144Hz?...
But that is true though, hence why I'm planning on getting the ASUS VG248QE.

 

[MadShadow]

Yeah.... that's true. I think I kinda formulated myself incorrectly.

I mean, what do you really have to do in order to run a 144Hz monitor at 144Hz?...
But that is true though, hence why I'm planning on getting the ASUS VG248QE.

When you buy a 144Hz monitor, its going to run at 144Hz. There's nothing special you need to do or anything.

 

[Dawelio]

When you buy a 144Hz monitor, its going to run at 144Hz. There's nothing special you need to do or anything.

Yeah... but I don't really think you'll fully utilize the monitor to it's full potential if you only get like, let's say about 65fps?... If you get what I mean here?.

 

[NeverBackDown]

That's why you need higher end hardware.

 

[Dawelio]

That's why you need higher end hardware.

Exactly, exactly my point... and then what is that exactly?, is it just the GPU we're talking about or?...

 

[NeverBackDown]

provided you have a quad core i5/i7 then ya its the GPU. Dual core i3's aren't far behind but it'll struggle to keep up with the GPUs that you will need to hit 144hz. Intel quad cores are really the only way to go for very high frame rate gaming, since they can handle any GPU you throw at em.

Also depends on the game. If its CPU dependent then don't expect to hit near 144fps. If its all GPU then you're gonna need some serious power to hit and stay near 144fps.

 

[Dawelio]

provided you have a quad core i5/i7 then ya its the GPU. Dual core i3's aren't far behind but it'll struggle to keep up with the GPUs that you will need to hit 144hz. Intel quad cores are really the only way to go for very high frame rate gaming, since they can handle any GPU you throw at em.

Also depends on the game. If its CPU dependent then don't expect to hit near 144fps. If its all GPU then you're gonna need some serious power to hit and stay near 144fps.

Intel i7 4790K, R9 290 Vapor-X?... And in Battlefield 3 & 4, New Call of duty game (the one with the booster suits/backpacks) and Crysis 3.

Not at 144Hz then, but maybe 120 then?...

 

[SeekaX]

144hz makes a difference at pretty much every framerate, even though it gets more effective the higher your framerate gets (even beyond 144fps). Remember that refreshrate doesn't equal framerate.
I'd happily explain in more depth, but typing on a phone kind of sucks.

 

[Dawelio]

144hz makes a difference at pretty much every framerate, even though it gets more effective the higher your framerate gets (even beyond 144fps). Remember that refreshrate doesn't equal framerate.
I'd happily explain in more depth, but typing on a phone kind of sucks.

Well once you get a chance on a real PC, I'd happily read it all mate

 

[Master&Puppet]

What people are getting at here is the difference between the refresh rate of your monitor and the rate at which your PC can produce the images.

A monitor's refresh rate, measured in Hz, is the number of times per second that the monitor displays an image. Most monitors have a refresh rate of 60hz meaning that it will literally ask the GPU for the next image to replace the one it is currently showing 60 times per second.

GPUs on the other hand are making the images, not simply displaying them. The amount of images they produce varies greatly depending on the amount work required to make each image and the performance of the GPU. A more complex image on a lower performance GPU will take longer than a less complex image on a powerful GPU and so on. This is done on a frame by frame bases so that if a scene comprising of complex images is followed by a scene comprising of simple images then the GPU will get through the second series of images quicker and a tool like fraps would report a higher frame rate (fps) .

So the complications arrive when the gpu and monitor do not match their performance. For example:

If you have a 120hz monitor but your GPU is only producing 60fps at a particular scene then you will only see 60fps. The monitor may be able to refresh faster but all it can do is use the same image twice because the GPU hasn't made the next frame yet so it will display the same image again until the next one comes along.

On the other hand if you GPU is producing 120fps but the monitor is only rated at 60hz then the GPU is working hard for no reason because the monitor is going to ignore every second frame because it can't display them quickly enough and you would still see 60fps.

The ideal would be to try to match the workload on the GPU so that it produces the same number of frames per second as the monitors refresh rate. I. E. When the monitor asks for the next frame the gpu has just got it ready.

In reality this is impossible because the workload on the GPU changes constantly but you can get close depending on the game (some games have a very smooth workload where others will have dramatic differences in image complexity from one scene to the next).

There are various tools you can use to help such as v-sync and/or a frame rate limiter which change the relationship between the gpu and the monitor but they also add complications.

 

[SeekaX]

What people are getting at here is the difference between the refresh rate of you monitor and the rate at which your PC can produce the images.

A monitor's refresh rate, measured in Hz, is the number of times per second that the monitor displays an image. Most monitors have a refresh rate of 60hz meaning that it will literally ask the GPU for the next image to replace the one it is currently showing 60 times per second.

GPUs on the other hand are making the images, not simply displaying them. The amount of images they produce varies greatly depending on the amount work required to make each image and the performance of the GPU. A more complex image on a lower performance GPU will take longer than a less complex image on a powerful GPU and so on. This is done on a frame by frame bases so that if a scene comprising of complex images is followed by a scene comprising of simple images then the GPU will get through the season series of images quicker and a tool like fraps would report a higher frame rate (fps) .

So the complications arrive when the gpu and monitor do not match their performance. For example:

If you have a 120hz monitor but your GPU is only producing 60fps at a particular scene then you will only see 60fps. The monitor may be able to refresh faster but all it can do is use the same image twice because the GPU hasn't made the next frame yet so it will display the same image again until the next one comes along.

On the other hand if you GPU is producing a 120fps but the monitor is only rated at 60hz then the GPU is working hard for no reason because the monitor is going to ignore every second frame because it can't display them quickly enough and you would still see 60fps.

The ideal would be to try to match the workload on the GPU so that it produces the same number of frames per second as the monitors refresh rate. I. E. When the monitor asks for the next frame the gpu has just got it ready.

In reality this is impossible because the workload on the GPU changes constantly but you can get close depending on the game (some games have a very smooth workload where others will have dramatic differences in image complexity from one scene to the next).

There are various tools you can use to help such as v-sync and/or a frame rate limiter which change the relationship between the gpu and the monitor but they also add complications.

That explains most of it.
I just have to add that if you have a 60hz monitor and your GPU manages 60fps that doesn't mean you are fully utilizing those 60fps. The monitor still might grab a frame twice or skip a frame. 144hz updates more often, so it's more likely that a 144hz monitor will display all of the frames the GPU produces for the right amount of time. So yes, there is a noticeable difference even at 60fps.

 

[Dawelio]

What people are getting at here is the difference between the refresh rate of you monitor and the rate at which your PC can produce the images.

A monitor's refresh rate, measured in Hz, is the number of times per second that the monitor displays an image. Most monitors have a refresh rate of 60hz meaning that it will literally ask the GPU for the next image to replace the one it is currently showing 60 times per second.

GPUs on the other hand are making the images, not simply displaying them. The amount of images they produce varies greatly depending on the amount work required to make each image and the performance of the GPU. A more complex image on a lower performance GPU will take longer than a less complex image on a powerful GPU and so on. This is done on a frame by frame bases so that if a scene comprising of complex images is followed by a scene comprising of simple images then the GPU will get through the second series of images quicker and a tool like fraps would report a higher frame rate (fps) .

So the complications arrive when the gpu and monitor do not match their performance. For example:

If you have a 120hz monitor but your GPU is only producing 60fps at a particular scene then you will only see 60fps. The monitor may be able to refresh faster but all it can do is use the same image twice because the GPU hasn't made the next frame yet so it will display the same image again until the next one comes along.

On the other hand if you GPU is producing 120fps but the monitor is only rated at 60hz then the GPU is working hard for no reason because the monitor is going to ignore every second frame because it can't display them quickly enough and you would still see 60fps.

The ideal would be to try to match the workload on the GPU so that it produces the same number of frames per second as the monitors refresh rate. I. E. When the monitor asks for the next frame the gpu has just got it ready.

In reality this is impossible because the workload on the GPU changes constantly but you can get close depending on the game (some games have a very smooth workload where others will have dramatic differences in image complexity from one scene to the next).

There are various tools you can use to help such as v-sync and/or a frame rate limiter which change the relationship between the gpu and the monitor but they also add complications.

Wow, that was so worth waiting for dude! Loved reading all that, this is what tech forums is all about. Most people would say "Google it" etc, but most of the time I don't really get what they write there, the way you just described here is perfect. Atleast for me. Absolutely love it dude, thanks for this awesome explanation!

That explains most of it.
I just have to add that if you have a 60hz monitor and your GPU manages 60fps that doesn't mean you are fully utilizing those 60fps. The monitor still might grab a frame twice or skip a frame. 144hz updates more often, so it's more likely that a 144hz monitor will display all of the frames the GPU produces for the right amount of time. So yes, there is a noticeable difference even at 60fps.

So basically... if I would grab the ASUS VG248QE 24", then it would pretty much be a win win, even though if my GPU can't handle enough FPS for this monitor to refresh at that rate?... if I've understood it correctly.

@Master&Puppet - So games like example Battlefield 3, Battlefield 4, Crysis 3 and Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare?... how will they do in the context of what you wrote?
Will they work good on that specific monitor I stated, with an Sapphire R9 290 Vapor-X?...

Thanks guys for your inputs so far!

 

[SPS]

Also, some games are FPS locked - I think CoD:AW is 91 in multiplayer?

 

[SeekaX]

So basically... if I would grab the ASUS VG248QE 24", then it would pretty much be a win win, even though if my GPU can't handle enough FPS for this monitor to refresh at that rate?... if I've understood it correctly.

@Master&Puppet - So games like example Battlefield 3, Battlefield 4, Crysis 3 and Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare?... how will they do in the context of what you wrote?
Will they work good on that specific monitor I stated, with an Sapphire R9 290 Vapor-X?...

Thanks guys for your inputs so far!

Your GPU is quite a bit stronger than mine, i doubt you will have any problems running games at 80-100fps, you will notice a huge difference.
Also take a look at http://www.blurbusters.com/easy-lightboost-toastyx-strobelight/. Works with 120hz and 144hz displays and eliminates tearing and motion blur. Definitely worth it.

 

[Dawelio]

Your GPU is quite a bit stronger than mine, i doubt you will have any problems running games at 80-100fps, you will notice a huge difference.
Also take a look at http://www.blurbusters.com/easy-lightboost-toastyx-strobelight/. Works with 120hz and 144hz displays and eliminates tearing and motion blur. Definitely worth it.

Okay, well sorry for missunderstanding me... the Sapphire R9 290 will be in my future build, at the moment I have a simple Sapphire HD6950.
The reason I stated the R9 290 with the ASUS monitor is cause that is the system that will become my main rig in the not to far distance future.

 

[Dawelio]

Hey again guys, sorry for double posting here... but can DisplayPort utilize the 144Hz of my ASUS VG248QE monitor or do I need DVI or HDMI?...

As I have my center monitor for gaming (displayport) and my other 2 monitors for productivity (DVI-I and DVI-I (not sure if those are the correct ones, but you guys get my pont)

Thanks!

 

[Dawelio]

I have another question regarding Hz and monitors... is there a way to configure a software or the monitor itself to run at for example 120Hz while idle and browsing internet. And then as soon as you load up a game, it auto changes to 144Hz?...

 

[NeverBackDown]

I have another question regarding Hz and monitors... is there a way to configure a software or the monitor itself to run at for example 120Hz while idle and browsing internet. And then as soon as you load up a game, it auto changes to 144Hz?...

Pointless to do so. And no there isn't.. because it's pointless.
You would need to do it by changing the refresh through the control panel advance monitor settings.