Picking a Monitor is the Hardest Part

A little help... I am building myself a new rig for my home office. It's going to be used for all my work, but the part I'm trying to make sure it can handle well is photography editing.

I want a display that allows color calibration, and I've been looking at the EIZO ColorEdge series of monitors. Such as the CG2420. But really, the are so many brands, and so many options, that when it comes to picking a display I'm having a hard time sifting through it all, and figuring out what I should get. You know, you read a review, but it's 3 years old, and who knows how much has changed...

I know I want IPS, and probably LED. EIZO makes legit stuff, CG top of the ColorEdge line, then CX, then CS. NEC makes good stuff, but I don't know much about them. Dell has some good monitors too, but also some junk. The thing about EIZO, is that getting a ColorEdge, puts me at about a 24" monitor. I'm used to using a 22" (literally measured corner to corner), as well as my laptop's 11.5" display. I like have two monitors, or one huge one.

But mainly, I really need to be able to color calibrate my display. I like that the EIZO can pivot 90 degrees and use fullscreen portrait when editing a portrait oriented photo. Just a little help here would be appreciated. I'm so close to finally buying everything and building this sucker. But starting to feel lost with the display choice. Any help is much appreciated.

I used to work in tech for a long time, and haven't bought a premade computer (aside from a laptop or smartphone) since my parents got me a Dell back in the mid/late-90s for college. Just to give you an idea of the system I'm building, here's what going to be driving the monitor:

CPU: Intel i7-7700K - overclocked probably, that's mostly for fun

RAM: Minimum 32 GB (as 2x16), leaving room for expansion to 64 GB, at DDR4-2400 minimum, but again probably overclocked to ~3200

Motherboard: still deciding on specifics, but something like the ASUS Maximus IX Formula

OS Drives: I'm planning to dual boot Windows & Linux on SSDs connected via M.2 (rather than being bottlenecked by SATA). I just wish Photoshop & Lightroom ran on Linux.

Data Drives: I'll have an internal HDD on SATA III for editing, I have been considering the possibility of actually putting another SSD on PCIe slots for my working drive, but maybe not. Long-term storage is done on a Drobo 5C, giving me protection against a drive failure.

Graphics: I'm not planning on getting a separate GPU to run in the PCI slots, I think the onboard GPU on the new Kaby Lake i7's are sufficient for photo editing. I don't game.

I don't do photo editing and that kinda stuff but I have a hackintosh for my work at my home office and I bought LG 34UC98-W for my setup.
It is a curved monitor and I don't know whether you'll like it or not but for my work it is really good. It is 34" curved QHD IPS panel and it displays really good color gamut.

Even it has lot of different ports at back which include HDMIs, USB Type-C, USB 3.0s and also Thunderbolt - if you want to make it a dual monitor setup in future.

The one thing that I like most about it is the height adjustable stand which makes really easy to adjust heights when used by people with different heights.

I will recommend you to check it out once. It is currently $869.99 on Amazon which is $40 less than the price I paid for it.

Here's the link if you need - https://www.amazon.com​/gp/product/B019O78DPS​/

And, yes this monitor was reviewed by Unbox Therapy and I bought it after seeing his video review.

I have an LG 27" 4k IPS screen mu67 that I think has been superseded by a newer model. I have calibrated it and it is very accurate at the same time I also use an old HP IPS screen (24") for thumbnails mail, file browser if you already have a screen I would strongly recommend having a two monitor set up.
I use an SSD for my current photographs and a second one as a scratch/lightroom libraries/ working on drive it does speed up use with faster load times for LR and opening/saving of images as always your milage may vary. I went with a reasonable GPU that could drive a 4K screen not sure how the current gen motherboards work on that regard, it did speed up some bits in PS and LR but not by much.

Thanks for the feedback. I will look into both of those monitors. My current display is an old Acer 22" LCD. The LG that MikeJohnson recommended is about half the cost of the EIZO I am looking at. There is just so much to learn to know what is really worth paying for and what is excess bling I don't need. But I really want to pull the trigger and start building this system before my current laptop dies on me. I'm used to having several working computers in case one fails then I still have something to work on. Right now I just have this one laptop and it's telling me it's getting old and unreliable.

But I really want to get a new system going soon, as my photography business is starting to grow faster than it has in the past. Getting some of my photos on display for sale in local restaurants/coffee shops, etc. I'm going to start getting booths at festivals/events. And so a color calibrated display is essential for my work now. I can't keep working with this laptop screen and Acer crap LCD. It just makes no sense to shoot photos through several grand worth of camera gear and edit on a crap display. That was ok when this was more of a hobby, but now as I am becoming more professional and growing this business, it's wholly unacceptable.

I also need to get my new website finished. That's taking longer than expected, but I need it to launch by end of month, as my "day job" is going to get back up to full speed once construction finishes on the brewpub.

MikeJohnson wrote in post #18269262
I don't do photo editing and that kinda stuff but I have a hackintosh for my work at my home office and I bought LG 34UC98-W for my setup.
It is a curved monitor and I don't know whether you'll like it or not but for my work it is really good. It is 34" curved QHD IPS panel and it displays really good color gamut.

Even it has lot of different ports at back which include HDMIs, USB Type-C, USB 3.0s and also Thunderbolt - if you want to make it a dual monitor setup in future.

The one thing that I like most about it is the height adjustable stand which makes really easy to adjust heights when used by people with different heights.

I will recommend you to check it out once. It is currently $869.99 on Amazon which is $40 less than the price I paid for it.

Here's the link if you need - https://www.amazon.com​/gp/product/B019O78DPS​/

And, yes this monitor was reviewed by Unbox Therapy and I bought it after seeing his video review.

I have read many articles that suggest that although fine for general computing use, the curved monitors are not so nice for image editing and graphics work. One of the issues being that unless you are exactly centered straight lines across the screen can look curved, and conversely some curves end up looking straight. Personally I don't think I would be wanting to invest in a curved screen monitor in the larger sizes without first seeing one in the flesh. I would also want some very good return options so that I was able to try the thing out editing a good number of images. When I got my new computer last year I went with a pre-built system from Dell, and included one of their Ultrasharp series of monitors. I went with the UP2715K, with it's 27" 5K (5120×2880 px) LG panel, the same one as Apple use in the 5K "Retina" iMac. The OP's system will be fine running any monitor he wants up to 4K size. If he want anything higher resolution he is going to need a separate GPU. The 5K on the Dell monitor requires paired DP1.2 connectors, and doesn't have Thunderbolt 3.

Alan

Take a look at the ViewSonic VP series of displays, or the NEC SpectraView series. You can't go wrong with either, at a fraction of the price of the Eizo displays.

Personally, I'm a huge fan of the ViewSonic displays. Every VP series display I have owned has been spectacular, and their customer support (should you need it) is second to none.

BigAl007 wrote in post #18269760
I have read many articles that suggest that although fine for general computing use, the curved monitors are not so nice for image editing and graphics work. One of the issues being that unless you are exactly centered straight lines across the screen can look curved, and conversely some curves end up looking straight. Personally I don't think I would be wanting to invest in a curved screen monitor in the larger sizes without first seeing one in the flesh. I would also want some very good return options so that I was able to try the thing out editing a good number of images. When I got my new computer last year I went with a pre-built system from Dell, and included one of their Ultrasharp series of monitors. I went with the UP2715K, with it's 27" 5K (5120×2880 px) LG panel, the same one as Apple use in the 5K "Retina" iMac. The OP's system will be fine running any monitor he wants up to 4K size. If he want anything higher resolution he is going to need a separate GPU. The 5K on the Dell monitor requires paired DP1.2 connectors, and doesn't have Thunderbolt 3.

Alan

Oh yeah, I meant to discuss this... I have yet to see *any* convincing reason to have a curved display at all. Especially for a television. The reason screens in movie theaters are curved is because the light is being projected from very far away. If the screen wasn't curved, the image would be distorted. I would much rather see the money spent in making a curved display spent on technology that actually does something beneficial.

EDIT: And thank you for the tips about being able to run anything up to 4K.

Oh yes, that could be a problem. I wasn't able to figure out this thing because I don't do photo editing on my computer.

I have yet to see any convincing reason to go above 2K on a small, desktop monitor. I'd rather have a pair of Dell Ultrasharp QHD monitors in 25" or 27".

bumpintheroad wrote in post #18270734
I have yet to see any convincing reason to go above 2K on a small, desktop monitor. I'd rather have a pair of Dell Ultrasharp QHD monitors in 25" or 27".

Yeah, the EIZO ColorEdge CG2420 is a 24" at 1920x1200.

https://www.adorama.co​m/eicg2420bk.html

The EIZO ColorEdge CX271-BK-CN is a 27" that goes up to 2650x1440, not quite 4k, but certainly more than 2k.

https://www.amazon.com …fRID=35RP3QB04Y​4BD9C79MAR

I generally tend to refer to QHD (2560x1440) as 2K. I guess 2.5K would be more accurate, but I'm lazy.

For the price of the CX271 I would rather buy a pair of 27" Dell Ultrasharp QHD monitors and a Chinese Cintiq (LCD drawing tablet) clone.

bumpintheroad wrote in post #18270849
I generally tend to refer to QHD (2560x1440) as 2K. I guess 2.5K would be more accurate, but I'm lazy.

For the price of the CX271 I would rather buy a pair of 27" Dell Ultrasharp QHD monitors and a Chinese Cintiq (LCD drawing tablet) clone.

I've got a Wacom Intuos... it's not a display, but it certainly makes some PS work much easier using a pen than a mouse. I actually got it is part of a bonus package when I was buying, I think my Canon 24-70 f/2.8 L II, which was a pretty sick freebie. I wanted something like it anyways. and it's sized pretty much perfectly on my desk.

My laptop is a Lenovo Yoga, which folds all the way back to become basically a tablet. When it dies, I might just get myself a tabelt. My fiancée will have a laptop if I need a full on computer on the go. But the folding into a tablet is nice for showing my portfolio when I go into a coffeeshop or the like to get my work on display there.

This is one of those areas where I just don't know enough to know where the value is. A friend who a year or so ago was mentoring me on my photography and editing skills is a big fan of the EIZO displays. But it's that kind of thing where you buy one and don't keep up with the changes for years. He's said that just because he like EIZO then, doesn't mean it's the best way to spend my money now. I'm definitely going to look at the NEC, LG, Dell and ViewSonic displays. I'll never again spend my own money on Apple hardware, so it's not even worth my time to look at them.

I definitely appreciate your input, everyone's input. For me, figuring out everything inside the computer is much easier. If the EIZO really isn't worth double the price, that is a lot of money to be spent elsewhere! I already have an x-rite color munki, so don't need the calibration camera to be built into the display itself.

heldGaze wrote in post #18270984
I've got a Wacom Intuos... it's not a display, but it certainly makes some PS work much easier using a pen than a mouse. I actually got it is part of a bonus package when I was buying, I think my Canon 24-70 f/2.8 L II, which was a pretty sick freebie. I wanted something like it anyways. and it's sized pretty much perfectly on my desk.

My laptop is a Lenovo Yoga, which folds all the way back to become basically a tablet. When it dies, I might just get myself a tabelt. My fiancée will have a laptop if I need a full on computer on the go. But the folding into a tablet is nice for showing my portfolio when I go into a coffeeshop or the like to get my work on display there.

This is one of those areas where I just don't know enough to know where the value is. A friend who a year or so ago was mentoring me on my photography and editing skills is a big fan of the EIZO displays. But it's that kind of thing where you buy one and don't keep up with the changes for years. He's said that just because he like EIZO then, doesn't mean it's the best way to spend my money now. I'm definitely going to look at the NEC, LG, Dell and ViewSonic displays. I'll never again spend my own money on Apple hardware, so it's not even worth my time to look at them.

I definitely appreciate your input, everyone's input. For me, figuring out everything inside the computer is much easier. If the EIZO really isn't worth double the price, that is a lot of money to be spent elsewhere! I already have an x-rite color munki, so don't need the calibration camera to be built into the display itself.

The Colour munki while a good bit of kit can be at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to the monitors with hardwear colour profiling support. Most of them seem to rely on using the i1Pro device to make use of those features. You can though still use the Colour Munki, but it becomes a software only solution, as with a "normal" monitor.

Alan

heldGaze wrote in post #18268831
But mainly, I really need to be able to color calibrate my display.

Any display can be calibrated. Just buy a colorimeter.

In terms of resolution to size, a 27" really only needs to be 2650x1440 because of the close viewing distance. Any more than that and you're really not getting any meaningful benefit.

Tony-S wrote in post #18276407
Any display can be calibrated. Just buy a colorimeter.

In terms of resolution to size, a 27" really only needs to be 2650x1440 because of the close viewing distance. Any more than that and you're really not getting any meaningful benefit.

Yeah, I have one of those external camera things for calibrating my display. It's an old crappy Acer 22" that is about 10 years old now though. And while I don't know the specs off hand, I'm pretty sure the color gamut it can display isn't as wide as a high end display built specifically for photographers.

Also, I guess it depends by what is meant by "meaningful benefit". I really like using higher resolutions on monitors because it gives me more "space" to work with. Icons & text are smaller, etc. I'm one of those people who truly uses "windows". I do a lot of work beyond photography on my computer, and I like to be able to have several applications open and side by side on screen. When working with file management I'll sometimes have 3 or 4 explorer windows open at once allowing me to see into different locations and move files around more easily, as just one example. Working with Word documents or Excel spreadsheets, I'll very often have at least two documents displayed side-by-side. So the resolution thing isn't just about looking at images for me.

After spending 6 hours waiting for some batch processing to complete on a shoot I did this past week, I am so excited to be close to actually building this new computer finally. A 3 year old ultra-slim laptop just doesn't have the power to do the things I need to be doing in a timeframe that is acceptable. I've researched everything down to the fans and motherboard header connections. I've got 3 motherboards on the final list that I need to just make a decision between, two different kinds of RAM are on my final list, but I need to double check their specs and measure the space in my case again. My top choice of RAM may be too tall to fit with the CPU heat sink/fan I am getting. And then this display thing. Everyone has their own opinions and I like listening to them all. I really like working with multi-monitor setups. So perhaps instead of getting two displays of the same type, I will get 2 different brands. This will allow me to learn a bit more about my own preferences, the longevity of the brands, etc. And then the final piece to choose is the power supply. The PSU in the computer itself will be determined after doing the math to figure out the power requirements of the build. But I also need to get a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply), because unlike a laptop, when the power goes out a desktop can get damaged. And in this house, our circuit breaker blows fairly frequently. Setting up a UPS with a timer of about 60-90 before initiating a shutdown when power is lost will give me ample time to go reset the breaker.

But switching from this old laptop to Intel's latest flagship processor, and overclocking the CPU & RAM is going to be one happy day for me in March.