Upgrading monitor...choices

Electro_Ham

I have my laptop plugged into a 24" LED monitor via HDMI. The monitor has no speakers, but, plugs into my hi-fi amp via a headphone socket to L + R phono plugs.
I like the set up, however, I'm considering getting a bigger screen. I would not want to sacrifice resolution, which I believe to be 1980x1080.
I have Sky, but only to the main TV in the living room. I also have Sky go on Laptop.
Which 'screen should I go for in the 27''-32'' range. (32" would be pushing the dimensions of the space though)
I'm currently sitting 39'' (1m) from the screen and this is the usual distance I sit.
There's smart tv's that might interest me, but, what would be the benefit considering the screen is connected to a laptop?
Thanks in advance.

sweepy

I use a 43” Samsung 4kTV with my MacBook Pro and it’s wonderful Logic is a breeze as it’s easy to see from a distance for remote record etc etc and the Mixer page is actually usable . 

Electro_Ham

sweepy said:

I use a 43” Samsung 4kTV with my MacBook Pro and it’s wonderful Logic is a breeze as it’s easy to see from a distance for remote record etc etc and the Mixer page is actually usable . 

  Thanks for the very quick reply. I should have said sub £200 is the budget. I'm not sure 4k will be in the sub £200 though. 

sweepy

They are getting there, I paid £425 over a year ago so I imagine £300 would get you one these days 

crunchman

4k will give you seriously small fonts etc on a 27" monitor.  I have a 27" QHD (2560 x 1440) which is about right.  Wouldn't want 4k on this size though.

Fretwired

crunchman said:

4k will give you seriously small fonts etc on a 27" monitor.  I have a 27" QHD (2560 x 1440) which is about right.  Wouldn't want 4k on this size though.

^^

That's what I have .. for 4K you need a really big monitor.

wibble

crunchman said:

4k will give you seriously small fonts etc on a 27" monitor.  I have a 27" QHD (2560 x 1440) which is about right.  Wouldn't want 4k on this size though.

5K iMac 27" here (5120x2880)

don't forget it's down to how well your OS and applications support and handle HiDPI (Retina display in Apple speak)

octatonic

wibble said:

crunchman said:

4k will give you seriously small fonts etc on a 27" monitor.  I have a 27" QHD (2560 x 1440) which is about right.  Wouldn't want 4k on this size though.

5K iMac 27" here (5120x2880)

don't forget it's down to how well your OS and applications support and handle HiDPI (Retina display in Apple speak)

This, and you can always rescale if it is a problem.

Axe_meister

I've always found that TVs offer poor picture quality when used as a monitor. I know it theory they shouldn't, but the software tends to optimize for movies and moving images that makes static ones often look blurred and colors overly saturated

sweepy

Axe_meister said:

I've always found that TVs offer poor picture quality when used as a monitor. I know it theory they shouldn't, but the software tends to optimize for movies and moving images that makes static ones often look blurred and colors overly saturated

4k TV’s actually do work very well with excellent colour balance and no motion issues even with the MacBook Pro although you do use both HDMI and Thunderbolt in parallel 

Sporky

27/28" is a bit of a sweet spot for monitors. Either WUXGA or UHD at that size - there's surprisingly little in it cost wise, and Windows 7 or later can scale so that menus aren't too small.

UHD does give useful extra detail for multi-window work or anything like CAD, photos and so on. I have a pair of 27" UHD Dells and that's a very useful setup.

Sub £200 though you may be best sticking to full HD. Anything higher resolution may be an IPS panel at that price, so crappy colour and brightness uniformity, and poor viewing angles.

octatonic

Axe_meister said:

I've always found that TVs offer poor picture quality when used as a monitor. I know it theory they shouldn't, but the software tends to optimize for movies and moving images that makes static ones often look blurred and colors overly saturated

That tends to depend on refresh rate.
A lot of cheaper TV's will only do 30hz.
If you spend a bit more (usually 50% to double) then you get a 60hz refresh and it looks much better.

Sporky

octatonic said:

Axe_meister said:

I've always found that TVs offer poor picture quality when used as a monitor. I know it theory they shouldn't, but the software tends to optimize for movies and moving images that makes static ones often look blurred and colors overly saturated

That tends to depend on refresh rate.
A lot of cheaper TV's will only do 30hz.
If you spend a bit more (usually 50% to double) then you get a 60hz refresh and it looks much better.

Also a lot of low cost 4K TVs have crappy scaling - frequently it's an HD scaler that processes the image a quarter at a time. No real problem for telly, but massive latency for PC or gaming use.

57Deluxe

I want a 27" monitor that I can use for Cubase but also link to a Set top box and watch Freeview occasionally - -what to look for?

My Set Top has HDMI and other sep AV outputs

Electro_Ham

Thanks guys.

Samsung 27" S27E330H HDMI 1ms Full HD Monitor

looks like it would be ok and it's well within budget at about £150. The only thing is, I'm not sure if it has a headphone socket, as that's where I get the sound to plug into my integrated amp in the current setup.