Personally my GPU creates negatives which I develop in my black room and then run through a film projector. I find that the 6 hour input lag makes me more patient, and the fidelity and charm of film is really quite something.

Notice high sound quality and lack of wasted words? He is what the business world calls a "pro." Outstanding!

By far one of the best channels for sim racing. Cool, humble, and well educated. Another well explained video for a beginner such as myself. Thanks so much Chris.

I found racing in VR, while better, more of a hassle to get set up and harder for longer races. And being that I can't just jump into a race meant I was playing less often.

Chris, highly considered, well thought out, quality content as usual. Your standard for content is just remarkable. There’s just so much care taken in this videos and it shows. I’m just here letting you know it’s appreciated. I’ve noticed your incredible knack for ingame cinematography and the like. I know it’s your niche so how well it’s done isn’t at all surprising. I’d be COMPLETELY fine with a “showcase” video of just your cool in game shots. A video that truly focuses, no holds barred, on your specific interest. Actually come to think of it, I can’t think of any yt video I’ve seen that does the same.

Am amazed at the clarity of your vids. The best I have seen, And I have seen alot of sim racing vids .. Cant wait till VR catches up .

Hi Chris, I'm racing on triples and I couldn't agree more with you, all the pro's you discuss are the reasons I play on triples, but the cons you discuss are also the reason I'm looking into ultrawide 1440p. Thanks for the great content as usual, you're just so easy to listen to without losing interest.

I've come to the exact same conclusion for my own channel actually but it's good to hear a professional say it as well! :p For filmmaking or even running those beautiful modern games graphics triplets can be a pain, and with all the peripherals us simracers already use that's something I'd like to avoid tbh, anyway great video and thanks for the insight!

Nice video Chris, it all boils down to peoples preferences as well as circumstance. For many watching their primary focus is on Sim racing where as for you it looks like your focus is more on creating content and exploring the technology rather then spending countless hours racing. So your current set up suits you perfectly.

Glad you mentioned the large amount of space a triple monitor setup needs. I use VR and an old TV for sim racing and a 144hz monitor for regular gaming. Still takes up less space than triple monitors would.

Thank you so much Chris for sharing your ideas and experiences on this matter. Although I love triple monitor setup (not got one yet), I am also a video maker, I never thought about video production problems I might have in future.

Thank you so much for making an actual youtube video instead of a glorified advertisement. You got straight into the topic, discussed it thoroughly without wasting any time, had great visuals to keep the eyes busy while the ears were listening, and the video isn't even that long. It almost felt too sudden the way this video ended because I'm so used to another 60 seconds of bullshit at the end of a youtube video. I think I'm going to check out more of your content if it's all like this. Bloody awesome.

Chris, you are so freakin' wise and mature and polite and professional, i feel like every simracer should watch your videos

I use to use a single 43 in TV as my sim racing set up for a very long time. I do a lot of sim racing car painting. I finally moved up to a triple screen set up several months ago and it was one of my best sim racing decisions. Better for the racing, as what was described. But from the outside racing, productivity side, it did wonders. I'm able to have photoshop on one screen, reference pics on the next, and then youtube/netflix/etc on the last.

Great video, quality content as always! I'm a single monitor kind of guy and absolutely love my 49" Samsung Superwide!

Have the 49" Samsung G9 Odyssey now for 2 weeks. Its awesome. iRacing running with solid 120fps (1080TI GPU & Intel 8086lim CPU) in 5120x1440 resolution. love it. I am coming from a 50" 4K TV.

I use 49" Super Ultrawide. It's mazing for literally everything I use my pc for. Gaming Music Production Film watching General multi-tasking Random Internet stuff. All of it. I'll never go back.

that song with the beep in it every 30 seconds drives me nuts man! PLEASE change it haha. Love the videos otherwise

I had my first triple screen setup in 2013. By 2015 I was tired of various headaches and the massive amount of space it took up and heat it created. Went back to single monitor until this year. I now have 2 monitors side by side, one high-refresh VA curved for gaming, and one flat-panel IPS for productivity. This is the best setup I've ever had. I will probably never go back to 3 panels.

i think this is a very important topic, where we could and should go much deeper. i think it's good that youtubers are talking about it. personally, i would never limit myself for my youtube channel. it really hurts me to hear that you miss your triple setup.

Great video! I started with 34" ultrawide, moved to 3 x 27" and then to VR, for me theres no way back, but i can fully understand your reasons for one single monitor!

Great video! I've experienced all 3 major options (single, VR, triples) in the past 6 months and have settled on triples as my preferred setup. Coming from VR, I struggled dropping to a single screen, specifically with consistency hitting apexes. With triples I'm able to hit apexes as well as VR but race in much more comfort and have higher visual fidelity at the same time. Granted, the only reason this is possible is due to a fortunate eBay listing for a factory refurbished graphics card (nVidia GTX 1080Ti) that can push 3x 1080p at maximum details in all titles (except ACC).

You're turning YT content creation into an art. Keep doing what you're doing... I will enjoy my triple setup for you ;).

In my recent return to simracing, I more or less stumbled on using my old 48" Sony FHD TV as a single monitor. Beyond the obvious graphical issues of sitting less than 1m from a large 1080p monitor, the immersion was an enormous step up, from the 27" panel I used briefly. Now, it doesn't hurt that the TV has a low felt input lag, but for the price, (free) and ease of use I couldn't be happier. I will most likely be switching to a 4k screen in the near future but, I really don't think it will give my any real change in the actual driving experience. I have it on a Sim-labs stand, and tucked down right behind the wheel base. Happy camper in single land. Haven't used a tripple though.

Went from a single 1080p, to a Valve Index. Not going back is the theme in my case. Obviously my old regular GTX 1080 is getting a decent workout of the newer titles, but this will be solved in due time. Nothings beat the natural feeling of freely looking around while driving, it does require some adaptation at first.

Simple is just absolutely beautiful. Your rig and your Vr helmet🏁

Great video as always, Chris. I actually just transitioned from racing in VR 100% of the time to using triple monitors. I made the switch because I was starting to get severe eye strain from the poor resolution in VR, but was hesitant to switch because the depth perception and spatial awareness that VR provided. I can say that after a week on triples and I SHOCKED by all the details I was missing by racing in VR. The main con is that the 3D environment of VR felt more natural, but the clarity, FOV, and scale of triples took that format over the top for me. I don't see myself going back to VR anytime soon.

This is the best background kind of music i heared so far in a talk on KZfaq.

Firstly as always great content, Chris. I have raced on a single screen, ultra wide, triples and VR and while VR offers the most immersion and my fastest lap times and consistency, after about an hour my vision and brain start going wonky. If I could handle more VR I would race exclusively in VR. After an hour or so I switch over to my triples. When it comes to triples vs ultra wide, the only advantage my triples have over the ultra wide is the extra FOV and a slight bit more immersion - as Chris said, peripheral view is the race/track and not my physical surrounds. I think at the end of the day it’s all personal preference, and there’s no winner, it’s what works for you and your setup.

Very informative video as always. I had a 24" single screen before getting triple 27" - the difference in immersion is obviously massive but also came at a price that I'd say you would really need to be into simracing to commit to. But in terms of usability a single screen can still work great, Get it as close to your eyes as possible and get the FOV right, even tough the fov is really small it's still very important. Luckily there are virtual mirrors, helicorsa etc. to help with the visibility/awareness to the sides.

very informative Chris.

After 6 months using triples, i came the same conclusion of yours, and i went back to single monitor about a month ago. My wallet is very angry that this video was not released 6 months ago.

I currently use VR but do miss triples from time to time, mostly using the timing screens and such and the more casual experience vs strapping on headset. I definitely don't miss the room it took up as you pointed out! (i was using 40" TVs, it was great but huge) Having a single nice large screen works pretty well when i don't feel like messing with VR. And it also reminds me why I went to VR in the first place!

I've gone from a single monitor when I started to then trying triples out, which was great after a few hours of tweaking, then back to a single monitor (with some VR thrown around in that time as well). I found that with the way I set my triples up it didn't interfere with my daily workflow as I never used surround (could never get it working the way I wanted) But I ultimately ditched the triples for an ultrawide that I felt was the best of both. Extra FOV on either side but no hassle with the setup. Mostly just plug and play. And when it came to recording gameplay I just capture a 16:9 image inside of the 21:9 screen and if you set things up correctly in OBS (I 'edit' in OBS to make the actual edit easier) no one can usually tell. I do have a separate capture source for 21:9 in special cases but it's rarely used. Ultrawide has seriously improved my awareness while racing but hasn't halted my (here we go) 'creative workflow' like, as you said, triples sometimes could. Oh and to top it off, 1440p 21:9 with an 1800R curve just looks SO GOOD!

the thumbnail of this video is a little bit genius, your attention to detail does not go unnoticed chris

Went from 34" ultrawide to triple 32" curved monitors and it's pretty game changing in terms of immersion as well as judging corners / sightlines in races!

I switched from triple 1080p monitors to a single 1440p once I got my VR setup dialed in. I like the single higher-resolution screen for most games I play and VR for my sims (driving and flight). I have been very happy with this setup so far. However, I did have to temporarily run a second vertical monitor for Microsoft Flight Simulator until they support VR. Otherwise all of my ATC and GPS/map panels were over my flight controls.

I'm very conflicted, I went from a 21:9 to a RiftS and while I have many issues with VR I'm struggling to go back. I think Triples are the answer for me, but I lack the space for a dedicated rig right now. VR has been really impressive but the inconvenience of...well just about everything when you have a tv strapped to your face, not to mention the heat and discomfort after 30/40mins means that Ive just ended up driving less. =(

Chris, Any chance that we can get a different background song/beat in the next video? This one has been rubbing me since it debuted 3 videos ago tbh. It’s mostly the high note that pierces through everything, goes from background to foreground there.

I just upgraded to triples a few weeks ago. I am running 32" Viewsonic 1440p and love it. I have an RTX 2070 and I am getting about 55fps to 65fps in AMS2, PC2, AC, Grid 2019, Dirt 4, Dirt Rally 2.0, etc. The only game I struggle with is ACC. I need to really lower settings to try and get 40fps, so it is not worth playing on triples. Sticking to a single monitor for ACC I get almost 90fps with high settings. Looking to upgrade to an RTX 3080 or RTX 3080Ti next summer so then it shouldn't be a problem.

Your reasons seem 100% valid. I use an ultrawide myself as my PC isn't sim racing only and really triples, switching back and forth, is just annoying. I just want to get in and go.

I have an ultrawide monitor for regular gaming and have a TrackiR 5 from playing space games, so I have had a great time using these without needing to fork out for a triple screen setup with less hassle to a VR (as the iR emitter lives on my headphones). It allows you to get the extra FOV when needed and focus on apex's and mirrors/opponents but still great visuals at 3440x1440.

I was about to swap my VR for triples and now I am not so decided anymore. Thanks for your feedback Chris, will help me to take the right action.

I’ve been using a 50” 4K on XboxOne. I’m looking to move to PC gaming for VR reasons. But my most recent beneficial setup alteration is with telly stand. I’ve used an industrial shelving unit to allow my rig to slide right up underneath the telly. Felt groggy until I’d condition myself. But that feeling of immersion is fantastic being up against the screen. I can position myself in-game so I’m virtually sat in the car.

Really informative video! Just one question. Have you ever thought about going ultrawide as it seems to be a good middle ground between immersion but without losing the productivity factor? Just a thought and I would like to know! Thanks and great vid as always! :)

My transition in the last year looks kinda like this: Single - Triple - VR - Triple again - Ultrawide Like you said every setup has his pros and cons and so has everybody to find his best compromise as well.

I was about to consider a triple 1080p AOC 32' screen setup, after playing on one right now. This video made my decision going on halt for some more time. Might just stick with what I got right now.

one thing i like about the VR side of it is that you get stereoscopic 3d. none of the other options offer that. Great video by the way. thank you :)

Glad someone brought up Helios. It really can help. Or using methods that don't require enabling surround/eyefinity... but that can be hit and miss from game to game. I agree though desktop usage with Surround enabled is a PITA. When I went to VR recently, I decided to dismantle my triple screen and use a 21:9 monitor for flat screen racing (and other gaming). 21:9 is decent, but if I get the chance I might upgrade to a 32:9 for flat screen racing (unless I decide to upgrade my VR first to something higher resolution like the G2).

Those are valid points although I would still put a triple screen setup above any other monitor based setup out there. Personally, I took the VR road about 5 years ago and it was the best decision I have ever made (Sim-wise). It was Not a smooth transition, it was difficult at first and took some adapting but boy am I glad I stuck with it. Combined with a reasonable priced motion platform (Next Level) it gives you the best gaming experience you could get.

Thanks for the informative video! - What did you end up with in terms of FOV and looking into corners? Correct FOV or a compromise?

I ditched my triple screen set up about a year ago. I replaced it with a curved 144hz 49inch ultra-wide. Initially, I did it because the triple setup was taking up too much space in my man cave. When I mounted the Ultra-wide, it became clear that once the race starts, the immersion level is just the same for me. The ultra-wide was also easier to move and orientate differently in the room. I use VR now and then, but still prefer the comfort of a screen system. As you mentioned in the video, there are all the cons of a triple, which I can agree on. The ultra-wide proved a perfect compromise for me personally.

Tried singlescreen and VR, and imho VR blows everything out of the water if you can stomach it, otherwise i believe triples would work the best. That single-seater experience you get is just something else, my friend actually started to watch f1 because of that. What i like is having perception of depth and seeing how far i am from something or how close I am to someone, and all that naturally by turning my head (to be fair, same could be achieve with trackIR, only without depth). Plesae don't kill me for having my opinion :D

I’ve tried going back to single a couple of times over the years but I just can’t get immersed like I do in triples. I enjoy VR sometimes but that can be a hassle getting in and out of all of the time. When high fidelity wireless VR becomes the standard then I’ll make that switch. Until then it’s triples for me.

Fantastic closing statement about how it's always a compromise

I think if you want a great middle ground between all setups, I think either VR or a single ultrawide screen will do the job with cost savings in performance as well. But I do get jealous of triple monitor setups though XD. Need space for that lol

Love my triples but i can see why youd go with a Single screen. Great video Chris

The background music sounds just like the intro to Dance Yrself Clean... I spent the whole video waiting for a drop that never came.

Yeah I agree, I’ve never had triple screens (not yet) but I’ve had an Oculus rift for a while and while it gives you really great spatial awareness, the screen door affect, plus the fact that I need to wear glasses, just ruins it for me. I find myself needing to squint in order to see the next corner if it’s a decent length away, making hard braking zones at the end of long straights hard to get right sometimes. I think I’d prefer triple screens, since I already prefer my 35inch curved monitor.

Went from single to triples...mid 27 and 2x 24s bought on black friday. Learnt very quickly that matching monitors is pretty crucial as the sides were brighter and more vivid which meant I had to dial them down to get everything to match, and even then being slightly colourblind it wasn't perfect or easy. I've since changed the mid 27 for a 29" ultrawide which just about matches the 24s in terms of height and fits (just about) in my relatively limited space. Were I to do it again I'd probably angle the rig a litle more and look to save a bit longer and buy 3x matching 27s with smaller bezels and set it all up from there. Otherwise though, the additional FOV is fantastic, I'm a much better racer now in terms of safety and my general immersion is fantastic...for what I paid for the two extra monitors (£80 each, brand new) I really can't complain.

We stuck with a single screen in the beginning since we anticipated for VR, but that took longer than we expected so we did experiment with triples for a short while, like you said, it's great but the setup was far more complicated and time-consuming. No longer care for triple now that VR is awesome in sim racing.

Nice to hear about the pros and cons you've experienced. I have more things to consider now xD

I bought a VR last week. It's so much fun!

Bro i love your content!

Started my rig with VR, but rather quckly went to a 34 inch 1440p ultra wide. Image is way sharper, rig is more easy to use. Just way less fideling arround. Thinking about upgrading to a 49inch ultra wide as i got one of those at my desk and love it

For enjoyment when racing nothing can beat VR for me now. The sense of depth just makes everything come to life. I did recently pick up a 34" ultrawide and it's still a pretty good experience with the wider field of view on offer, and streaming on a single display is much more straightforward than in VR.

Personally triple screen definitely made me faster, and mostly because of that corner point you mention. Not only can I keep an eye on my apex, but I'm a lot better at timing when I should start getting into a straight line again and using the entire track. But I get your frustrations with trying to record. I've run into the same issues.

*vr has entered the chat*

Using a single 4K 27 inches monitor for 4K/60Hz simracing with graphics maxed out. I favor image clarity and graphical quality over multiple screens or super high refresh rates. 4K is awesome and it looks so clear in the distance, especially in long straights

My wallet and I have been through the lot. Triples, VR, and Projection. After 21 years sim racing here I sit in front of my Asus 27" 2560x1440p single monitor, and I'm going to share a secret... It's all you need. Upgrade your wheel and pedals, run a single screen, tell your wife she's beautiful and buy her something nice.

I'm persnnally using VR, and I couldn't go back to a monitor, I think ever. It's so immersing even though the technology is still rather new. I can't wait until the headset get even better. Field of view is something I would like to see improved, for an even greater sense of speed. Resolution isn't the best in the headset, but you quickly get past that when you're in the heat of the moment. I'm all about immersion so it's a no brainer to me! Thanks for coming to my VR Ted talk, good video otherwise!

I use a 27" 21:9 ultrawide screen, much better all around view, without the bulk of a triple screen. And a small 3.5" display mounted on the wheelbase as a dashboard.

I understand the reason to go to a single screen for content creation..since I'm not i stick with triples..and I love my triples when running endurance races and VR for shorter races.

I use a single 34" 1440p ultra wide for my sim rig. It is the perfect compromise for me.

Good video. I am perhaps an oddball. I got into sim racing with VR. I have since moved to a triples setup with 180 degree FOV, and I cannot imagine going back to VR. Sim racing in VR is far more fatiguing to me, and the limitations when “stuck” in VR can be frustrating. I think overall VR is more immersive, but triples are more enjoyable, and I am definitely faster and have more awareness with the massive FOV. Chris is definitely right on the downsides though. I’ve spent countless hours getting them calibrated both physically to achieve 180 FOV, as well as in the sims themselves. And I’ve definitely been forced to commit this computer 100% to sim racing. With VR, I was able to keep my computer at my desk and still use it for gaming, and just run the headset to my sim rig. but now all my ports are being used for the monitors affixed to the sim rig.

I'm soon to be using my new LG 4k 120Hz Oled C1 55" with Tobii 5 when my YawVR2 arrives.

Great analysis. I have had triples for three years and wouldn't go back. It does mean that I am looking for a graphics card update to play ACC at greater than 40fps, though.

hi Chris, thx 4 video. For racing, if I have an HP G2 (headset) which just arrived, will I be ok with a Intel 6800K CPU and a 2080Ti GPU? or should i not even plug it in and try it?

I've recently ditched the triple 22" 1080p monitors for one, 34" curved 21:9 ultrawide (actually I've left one of those 22" as a secondary monitor for productivity, but I race on the ultrawide only). The main 2 reasons were: 1. Throw out the window the annoying need to set up the nvidia surround each time i run a sim, then to rearrange my triple screen desktop when I turn surround off. For some oblivious to me reason nvidia didn't manage to make that transitions a 1-click job with saved presets. No, each time all settings for monitors positions and bezel correction gets all scrambled. 2. Improve the experience for anything but sim racing: other games, videos and even productivity (one big main monitor and a smaller secondary works better for me than 3 identical but rather small screens) I am sim racing at a regular desk, not a dedicated sim rig, so ditching the triple screen setup meant that I could also ditch the fixed, triple monitor stand that needed to be set up pretty far away from the desks edge. As the new monitor is on its own, regular stand I can move it around my desk and actually move it closer to my face when sim racing. That accompanied with an ultrawide form factor, a generally bigger screen and the fact that it's curved means that I didn't give up almost any horizontal FOV, and actually gained some vertical. I can finally see the dials of the virtual car with a correct fov setting, so I could ditch some of the hud elements and gain more immersive experience.

I personally went to Ultrawide 49" Samsung G9 with a TrackIR after many years with triples. Now that I have a dedicated sim rig, I realized I wouldn't want to sacrifice 3 DP ports just for triples when I have 3 monitors wall mounted for gaming / work productivity. This issue was even worse when I had the Valve index before happily returning. Just with the monitors I had at the time I was cable swapping on a 1080ti. I have found with a real simrig I can have the screen close enough with enough FOV to make up for probably 60-70% of triples. VR is far more immersive but without actually turning your head, you don't just automatically get an increased FOV. I will say though, the ability to sit up and look over a car using VR is second to none. Not even track IR can simulate that as well.

you are so right about everything you said, triples is an exercise in compromise

I run two 1440p monitors with a single ultrawide in the middle. Works great for me. I get too motion sick for VR, so triples was my way to go.

Great video! Personally about to spring for a 32:9. I've had a 21:9 in the past....touch too narrow. Currently have tripples....touch too wide, I can't play Codemasters games because of the stretch, and I hate the bezels. The price of a 32:9 is the major hurdle at this point.

Well, at the end of the day, it’s your rig, have it your way. Thanks for the video, enjoy your day too! Regards John

how much adjusting do you have to do getting the 3 screens set up? How much extra work do you have to do get the wheel the set up just right for the proper driving perspective? Lastly was there any extra stuff you had when adjusting on the same game to different cars?

Speaking of resolution vs frame rate, I do all my PC gaming on the couch hooked up to a 4K Sony TV which is a few years old. It also supports 1080p at 120fps. And guess what? I have it set to 1080/120 all the time. I'm utterly not worried about squeezing 4K out of my RTX 2070 right now. Gimme those frames!

My ideal setup will be a single super ultrawide screen with a TrackIR system. No bevels splitting my view, and the ability to see further to either side with a slight turn of the head. I saw a video of someone with that setup and immediately stopped wanting a triple screen setup. To me, it's perfect

You have a Kemper? Awesome! What kind of music do you play?

I use 1440p ultra wide.. given my space limitations it is the best compromise however once I get more space I will get another ultra wide . I use a ryzen 3950x a EVG RTX 3090 FTW3 128 gigs of ram and recently got a Fanatec podium DD1 and I will be buried with the thing I love it.

Great video... from my personal perspective. I have both triple screens and a Valve index as i wasn't sure which way i would prefer, After many hours i have come down on the VR route as my preferred route. Its so much more engaging and visceral. Not ideal for you as a KZfaqr... But to race? Damn! Hard to beat - I used to race in RL for several years and one thing NO ONE mentions is how VR triggers muscle memory like no flat representation ( single or triple ) I have ever experienced can...

Excellent video. I used to want triple monitors but for the reasons you said (deep pockets, space) I decided not to pursue. Recently got a Rift S and man I see why VR is the way for a lot of people. Sure, my 1070 doesn't like it, but that's an "easy" fix. But damn being able to actually turn your head to see around a corner is awesome. Although VR can have a need for deep pockets if you want the latest and greatest but that's the case anyway with wanting that.

Been using VR (G2) for almost a year now, I couldn't imagine going back to triples.

After tallying up the cost, I'm going to side step triples and go with VR. Yes my graphics card might do slightly better with the triples, but VR will be a much cleaner setup.

I use a single 27 inch 1080p monitor on my desk, and it's perfectly fine. I also use a 4:3 old as hell screen as a secondary monitor for Discord and stuff like that, so my GTX 1050 TI wouldn't handle much more on highest settings.

I'm just gonna get an ultra wide (maybe curved) until I can deal with VR. Much easier to manage, especially if you get any kind of motion setup

I guess the same might apply to wide screen monitors as well given that some cropping may be needed for video creation...

Ultra wide 21:9 is a good middle spot between triples and single 16:9. I know there 32:9 too but those are not very affordable yet

I recently went from Triples to a single 35" ultra-wide and VR. I did love the Triples but they were only 60hz and I wanted at least 100. I just couldn't afford to buy three new 100-120hz monitors. I was also buying a new PC at the time so buying 3 new high refresh monitors was just not possible. Plus, since I wanted VR as well, that was another expense on top of it all. The triples were great but I don't miss the amount of space they took up. As and added benefit, I'm getting much better FPS with the single at 100hz than I did with the triples.

I was gonna buy triples but because of lack of space and my wife being a hater I had to "settle" for VR. When I tried racing on a monitor again after a while of using VR exclusively I realized I can't go back anymore. The ability to look ahead into a corner and the fact you get proper depth perception just completely sold me. Not to mention immersion.