Recently I have been thinking about our little homemade arcades cabinets we call in the competitive fighting game scene as “setups”. With all these advances in technology today there is so much more to consider when purchasing a display device, because even televisions have become more than just that in recent years.
It is quite overwhelming to traverse across a sea of products and companies without a boat or a navigator. Luckily today you have a guide or at least a starting point. I will first narrow it down to a target audience. This article is intended to direct the weary tireless world warrior to finding the ideal monitor to deal massive amounts of pain and shatter dreams, through fighting games of course.
Before we delve into this subject let’s cover some background information and shed some light on misinterpreted facts.
Response time is the rate in which a single pixel changes from black to grey then back to black. It is in no way shape or form related to the Latency issue we feel when playing our time sensitive games. However it does go hand in hand with ghosting. Ghosting is the after image effect that occurs during the motion of objects on screen which happens when the pixels transition from black to grey then back to black.
Fortunately for the rhythm game players out there, there is calibration tests built in to these games to help offset this latency for more accurate game play. However, for all the fighting game players out there we have to rely solely on the hardware we are gaming on.
Investigating the cause of this bandit called latency would lead you down two paths. Scaling and Processing.
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Scaling, either up or down, is caused when a console sends a signal to the display device that is not its native resolution. This is most common when playing retro consoles on a HD display device. Processing is a much broader range of issues. Which vary with options equipped on specific display devices, like OPC, general image enhancing processes and signal encryption protocols such as HDCP.
The goal is to minimize latency as much as possible without sacrificing visual appeal and functionality. For those of you who are thinking, Why does it matter? I’ll just play on a 50 lb. 32 in. CRT that has no lag. Well that answer is actually very logical and totally acceptable if you enjoy playing the newest generation of games with fuzzy pixels. It totally rejects the premise of our search for equilibrium.
Some basic steps that should be implemented are:
· Playing games at their native resolutions. This helps minimize the Scaling process.
· Turning off optional processing resources that your display device has active. Some of these cannot be come inactive without the aid of third party products such as HD Fury II.
· Using the VGA analog signal output is more optimal for gaming. If your console does not inherently support VGA output you would have to purchase a third party converter box, HD Pro Box and other devices like it.
From here on you have eliminated most of the factors that you as the user can control. Now it’s all up to the display device, which is the hardest part for the consumer to decide on because it is not advertised at all. Testing methods have been discovered and implemented which is what these listings are based off of, which is an article for another time.
After researching various sites I have located two reliable sources of information.
For HDTV tests:
For LCD PC monitor tests:
For those of you that don’t want to delve into the politics of a decision making process and just want to be told what to buy skip on ahead to "Here's the verdict". For the rest of you let us ask ourselves, what are we looking for?
- Price- The wallet is the first driving force to our purchasing decision. Although this fact, for the most part, will be ignored until the final decision it is definitely a very strong decision making factor.
- Audio- Built-in speakers are essential for portability and a must for tournaments. Carrying all your gear with you is a hassle even without worrying about a sound bar that runs on batteries or on a DC power source.
- Input options- HDMI is very convenient but also a headache to deal with sometimes. Its functionality is over the top but HDCP is an unnecessary pain to deal with and within the age of updating dashboards and firmware makes this security protocol more convoluted and cumbersome but so much easier to stream and record content. VGA is a stable and the best way to display “lag less” game play. DVI, the HD replacement for VGA D-sub connections. A lot of untapped potential concerning console games.
- The Stand- Totally superficial. This subject is totally up for discretion.
- Display size and resolution- 1360 x 768 is the resolution setting we will be using most of the time. The higher the resolution the more pixels can be displayed at a time which adds to the detail of the image. Screen size is also subjective. 27” seems to be the standard for cinematic viewing while max HD resolution is, 2560 x 1440.
- Power consumption- Right alongside price point this is the next subject that will be considered. It affects the consumer in the long run. If you are an avid gamer that plays more than 4 hours consider this as a selling point.
- Outstanding features- New technologies in displaying prowess and even USB ports for increased functionality should be considered especially if you game on your PC as well.
After looking at the entire spectrum, I have compiled a list of monitors with estimated 10 ms input latency or less. Feel free to use this document for research purposes only and not for any profit what so ever.
Here’s the verdict:
a. Pros:
i. Below average input latency.
ii. VGA/DVI-D/HDMI.
iii. Relatively light.
iv. Integrated stereo speakers.
v. Price point.
b. Cons:
i. Limited Ergonomics.
ii. Average power consumption.
iii. Limited Features.
a. Pros:
i. Integrated stereo speakers.
ii. Price point.
iii. Ergonomic.
iv. Good input latency and response time scores.
b. Cons:
i. Limited display inputs.
ii. Limited features.
a. Pros:
i. Great resolution and display features.
ii. LED backlighting.
iii. Feature rich.
b. Cons:
i. Relatively high latency and response time issues.
ii. High price point.
iii. No integrated stereo speakers.
iv. Little display input options.
v. Heaviest of the bunch.
a. Pros:
i. Virtually no input latency.
ii. Wide variety of display inputs.
iii. Very ergonomic.
iv. Low power consumption.
v. Feature Rich
b. Cons:
i. No integrated stereo speakers.
ii. Everything else is average.
V. Honorable Mentions:
i. Pros:
1. 120 Hz refresh rate.
2. 3D compatible.
3. Variety of display inputs.
4. Below average input latency and response time.
ii. Cons:
1. High price point.
I hope this article helps shed some light on the problematic relationships between the competitive gamer and high definition displays. As technology grows so does this shady region of input latency and ghosting. Hopefully as long as we test our equipment, spread information about what we want from manufactures and make smarter financial decisions can we really expect this relationship to find fruit like we once did in our Cathode Ray Tube days of the past.
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