Enhancing Your Flight Sim Setup: Choosing Between Ultra-Wide or Multiple Screens

It's exciting to hear about your new flight simulation setup! You're on a great path, and deciding between a large, ultra-wide screen or multiple monitors can indeed significantly impact your experience. Let’s dive into both options to help you make an informed choice.

1. Single 49" Ultra-Wide Screen
Advantages:

• Seamless Display: With no bezels interrupting your view, a single ultra-wide screen offers a continuous and immersive visual experience.
• Simplified Setup: Managing one monitor is straightforward—less wiring and fewer settings to tweak.
• Wide Field of View: Ultra-wide monitors typically offer excellent horizontal field of view, which can be great for scenic vistas and broader horizon lines.

Considerations:

• Limited Vertical View: The vertical field might be limited compared to a multi-monitor setup, possibly affecting the simulation of pitch and elevation.
• Aspect Ratio Issues: Some software may not fully support ultra-wide resolutions, potentially leading to stretched or cropped visuals.

2. Triple 29" Monitors
Advantages:

• Expansive View: Three monitors provide a wrap-around effect, enhancing depth perception and peripheral vision, which is crucial for flight simulation.
• Flexible Viewing Angles: You can adjust each monitor separately to create a more enveloping setup that mimics cockpit windows.

Considerations:

• Bezel Interruption: The gaps between screens can slightly disrupt the visual flow, which might be distracting.
• Complex Configuration: More screens mean more cables and potentially more complications in achieving synchronicity and uniform color calibration.

Practical Recommendations:
Given your powerful custom build, performance should be less of a concern, allowing you to choose based on preference for immersion and realism. Here’s what to consider:

• Intended Use: If you're aiming for a setup that's closest to looking out of an actual cockpit, the triple screen setup might serve you better. The ability to look slightly to the side just by turning your head adds immensely to the realism.
• Space and Budget: Consider the physical space you have available and your budget. Three monitors and their mounts can take up considerable space and might be more expensive.
• Future Flexibility: With a triple monitor setup, you have the flexibility to use the screens for other tasks, like multitasking with different applications on different screens.

From my knowledge, both Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 and X-Plane 12 support multi-monitor setups quite well, so either choice should work seamlessly with the latest software.

Ultimately, the choice between an ultra-wide and multiple screens should align with your preference for immersion, realism, and space utilization. Whatever you decide, you’re in for a treat with the visual experience that modern flight simulators can provide.

Happy flying!