Which cable do I need for 144Hz gaming: Can HDMI do 144Hz?

A comprehensive look at the various display cables to see which is best for gamers who need 144Hz refresh rate support

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For many gamers, getting a 144Hz signal to their gaming monitor is hugely important. To achieve this, first, we must get a better understanding of refresh rates and how they impact our viewing experience – alongside the limitations of certain cable types. 

Refresh rates are one of the most fundamental factors that make a monitor’s imagery smooth, so it’s understandable that gamers want the highest refresh rates possible. 

The display port and cable you use is an extremely important part of your monitor/PC setup – as not all cables offer the same performance levels. For that reason, we’ll be looking through some of the various options available and concluding with which cable you need for 144Hz gaming. 

So, let’s waste no further time and dive straight into it!

What is a Display Port?

A display port is pretty much what it says on the tin – a port (found at the rear of your display) that is used to connect your PC to your monitor. For many, choosing a display port couldn’t be less important. However, in reality, choosing the correct display port and cable for your setup is essential. 

Due to the limitations of certain cables, not all can provide you with a 144hz gaming experience. This is down to the amount of bandwidth they can transfer at any given moment. So, for example, a 1080p 60hz monitor is going to require less bandwidth than a 4K 144Hz monitor.

For that reason, we need to make sure that the cable we choose is suitable for the monitor we plan to use. Despite many modern panels utilizing the latest display port technology, older users might still be unsure of what cable is best for 144Hz gaming. 

Fear not, we’re going to take a look at all the major cables to see which is best for your specific needs. 

DisplayPort

A lot of people reading this might not be aware of what a DP (DisplayPort) is – mainly because it’s been sitting underneath the superiority of HDMI for years now. Whilst this is the case, the DisplayPort is actually the more impressive of the two standards. Since its arrival, DisplayPort was targeted towards hardcore gamers and computing that required higher resolutions whilst still being able to achieve maximum refresh rates and deeper colour depth. 

DisplayPort comes in the shape of a 20pin connector and is widely being considered as the go-to connector for gamers and computer enthusiasts alike. HDMI was primarily designed with consumers in mind, think TV’s, DVD players, Blu Ray players, and so on. DP, however, was specifically designed to accommodate higher resolutions and max refresh rates – which from a gaming perspective is absolutely essential, especially now G-sync is becoming more popular and mainstream.

DisplayPort 1.2 is capable of 3840×2160 (4k) at 60hz or alternatively, 1080p at 144hz, whereas DisplayPort 1.3 – which was introduced back in 2014 – has the capacity to accommodate 8k at 60hz and 4k and 120hz. Moving closer to the present day we are met with the latest version of DisplayPort standard which is 1.4 and was published by VESA. DP 1.4 is the first of its kind to take advantage of VESA’s display stream compression technology which allows for 3.1 compression rates and virtually no visual losses. It makes use of the type-C connector which enables seamless high definition video output.

Can HDMI do 144Hz?

HDMI (High Definition Media Interface) was developed well over 10 years ago and, as stated above, was designed with the everyday consumer in mind. However, since technology is now moving faster than ever, HDMI has had to adapt to accommodate a whole plethora of new technologies and capabilities – especially now Displayport is becoming bigger in the market and has abilities that earlier HDMI versions do not.

The earlier versions prior to HDMI 2.0 were fairly limited in what they could produce in terms of output. Take resolutions and refresh rate for example. An HDMI 1.4 would be limited to 3,820×2160 (4k) at 30Hz. However, if you are making use of a GPU with 4K compatibility, HDMI 2.0 will be able to produce 4k at 60Hz – double that of the 1.4. If you are familiar with refresh rates within the gaming universe you’ll be aware that the higher the better. Thus why all video output connections are trying to push the envelope where this is concerned.

The most recent update of HDMI comes in the form of its 2.1 iteration and has been equipped with forward-thinking technology that is far ahead of what we require in the present day. It has the ability to accommodate 8k at 60hz, 4k at 120hz, and everything in between right up to the 10k. Furthermore, it supports a high dynamic range whilst increasing its bandwidth capacity to 48GPs. The only way HDMI has been given this facility is via its new ultra-high-speed cable which includes uncompressed 8k video output with HDR.

Best HDMI 2.1 monitor

DVI

If you’ve ever connected a monitor to a PC in the early 2000s then you will undoubtedly know what a DVI connector looks like but might not know what technology it accommodates. DVI in the modern age is dying out rapidly but still to this day every GPU comes equipped with a DVI connector, just in case. New GPUs that make use of DVI, however, can accommodate both visual and audio output when connected to a DVI to HDMI connector, you know if that’s your kind of thing. Single link cables support up to 1920×1200 resolution whereas a dual-link cable can support up to 2560×1600 all at 144hz so for gamers this is still a very viable option. Unfortunately, DVI does not support 4k so if that is what you crave then you will have to opt for the HDMI or DisplayPort options.

VGA

VGA is the old boy in this article and has been used since visual displays were first brought to consumers. VGA was an analogical video-only cable output that isn’t supported by many consumer products today – mainly TVs due to their lack of audio output. VGA has basically all but died out these days and can only be found in old laptops, PCs, and some projectors – offering little versatility in today’s market but worth touching on regardless.

Which cable do I need for 144Hz gaming?

Well, that really comes down to the monitor you use and the amount of bandwidth you use. That being said, here are the limitations of some popular cables and what resolutions they can output at 144Hz. 

For those looking to output 1080p content at 144Hz, users will need either a Dual-link DVI, DisplayPort, or HDMI 1.4 (or better) cable. That being said, do note that some bespoke monitors are locked to 60/120Hz when using HDMI 1.4. 

For anyone looking to achieve 1440p content at 144Hz, you will need at least an HDMI 2.0 or DisplayPort 1.2 cable. If you’re looking for a 4K experience at 144Hz, HDMI 2.1 or DisplayPort 1.4 (with DSC 1.2) are the base requirements. 

If you have any questions regarding Display port cables and which are best for various resolution/refresh rates, feel free to drop us a comment in the section below.