Best 34" 21:9 Screen for Gaming

Hi All,

I am going to buy a new screen and could use some advice. I have been reading many reviews on the LG, Dell, Acer and Samsung offerings. What I found surprising is different reviews give different opinions.

Can you guys help me out. Cost isn't an issue.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Acer-XR341CK-bmijpphz-34-inch-UltraWide/dp/B0111MRT90
This is FreeSync version, but there supposed to be GSync variant as well.

 

I have dual AMD 290s water cooled, so gsync wont help me till my next upgrade

 

That one (from Amazon link) is FreeSync (aka AMD tech). You didn't specify what kind of GPU brand you have, so I just mentioned that there will be a GSync version later, just in case

 

Will 2 x wc R9 290 in Crossfire be able to play most games on ultra with the 3440x1440 Resolution (Wicher 3, BF4, Company of Heroes 2)?

If so the Acer Predator is being ordered!!!

 

Acer Predator X34 is a GSync model, aka not for you. What you need is Acer XR341CK.
As for performance, I can't help you with that. Will have to Google on your own.

 

The recommendation is correct... you want the Acer XR341CK, for about $880.
Amazon link:

It literally checks off just about everything you could possibly want in a monitor:
34" 3440x1440 ultra-wide resolution
IPS panel.
Matte display
Fantastic color calibration (out of the box)
Greater than 60Hz.
Variable Refresh Rate

I'd also recommend you get a VESA mount for this monitor, as well. It is compatible with 100mm VESA mounts. I use this one for my own 34" ultrawide monitor. ( link). Because this screen is so large (and curved), it is critical that it is positioned in the sweet-spot of your vision and posture. Otherwise, you're going to get a lot of neck and shoulder strain tilting your head up/down to view the monitor. You can get away with imperfect monitor positioning on a smaller 24" 1080p display. But for 34" 3440x1440, you absolutely want to spend the $40 to get a proper VESA mount.

A resolution of 3440x1440 will be about 40% more pixels than a 2560x1440 display. So you'll be absolutely fine with 2x AMD Radeon R9 290's (4GB VRAM) in Crossfire. I run 3440x1440 on a single GeForce GTX 980, which is about 30% less powerful than your crossfire setup.

Be sure to buy a DisplayPort cable (if you're currently using HDMI), since you'll need DisplayPort to both drive the 34x14 resolution and use FreeSync. Other than that, enjoy the new toy! Once you go 34" ultrawide, you'll never go back. It is SO much better than 16:9 4K displays, due to the immersiveness of the wide screen and ratio.

 

Thanks!

It is being delivered in the next 12 hours! And so is the display port cable!

 

It has just been setup and WOW!!!!

I used the display port and enabled Freesync.

A few questions please:
1) Do I want to enable GPU Upscaling? I thought so but wanted to check?
2) Is there anyhting I should setup on the monitor or in Catalyst Control Center?

 

Congrats! It's a fun toy, isn't it? Getting that monitor is like win-in-a-box.

Send pictures!

 

Really nice!

Not a good photographer but here you go.

 

Hotness.

 

Loving it

 

Witcher 3 is only getting 15 fps on ultra with dual 290 wc

Should I disable Vsync?

Should i set maximum fps to unlimited?

 

I spent most of today researching 34" 21:9 monitors. I will be buying a dual GTX 980m SLI laptop to drive it, either the ClevoP870D or MSI G80 Titan. I want the curved version of these monitors so that rules out most.

The new X34 Predator G-Sync compatible is very expensive, does not really go over 100hz refresh, and is already, per a reddit post today, being recalled for hardware issues. More than a few owner reviews have not been very positive, to say the least. I shall let others bleed on this tech edge for once.

The Acer Predator ( as the OP just bought, and seems happy with ) XR341CK, the less expensive version (because your not being gouged by Nvida), supports FreeSync, and a 75hz refresh rate. However, I will have Nvida cards, and this monitor drops frames (per TFT Central review) while using 75hz refresh rate and the Nvida GPU, so this is out for me.

The LG monitors are all fine, as far as I can tell but LG does not include a VESA mounts out of the box, so they are out. Apparently you can request VESA mounting hardware from LG, but I need it from the get go. Some do support Thunderbolt, which would have been nice.

The Samsung S34E790C Curved 34" also looks good, but it is still cost a little more than I want to pay. It is also not an IPS monitor, but a VA, which has benefits and some drawbacks.

For my needs, I have settled on the Dell U341W Ultrasharp. I do some FPS, but more strategy games than anything else. All the above monitors do somethings better than the Dell, but the Dell does somethings better than them. However, I trust Dell's build quality and warranty over the others, and it's $100 less. Before I buy, I am going to take another look at the Samsung and have to decide if the extra $100 is worth it since I am straining my budget with two quality (Ergotron) monitor arms, two quick release VESA brackets, (so I can move monitor between Truck and home) and a $3500 laptop, some compromises have to made, or so I keep telling myself.

One thing to remember is that these monitors require serious GPU hardware to utilize properly, at least for gaming. A 970m (or AMD equivalent) or better is highly desirable if you game with it, and to fully utilize them, a GTX 980 (note, no "m") or two GTX 980m in SLI is needed, depending on settings a refresh rate.

 

Don't run on ultra.

Turn down anti aliasing. Turn off hairwoeks. Turn down shadow detail level.


Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

 

It is news to me that LG monitors don't support vesa mounts.

I have an LG 34UM95, and used it with a 100mm vesa mount right out of the box.

Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

 

Do what Kent said and also lower foliage setting.

By the way, congrats on your new monitor. Hope you will enjoy it

 

Congrats. I want(ed) the Acer X34 G-sync but holding out until there's more positive feedback and issues get sorted.