Yet another monitor question

Right now, I am using a 42" Panasonic Plasma which I do love very much, however my complaint right now is that I sit about 2-3' away from the TV, and it causes eye strain. Now this was not a problem before when I sat perhaps 4-5' away, but since it turned into a computer monitor, that is when I noticed the issue. My question is this: I could easily sell it and the PS3 which I never use anymore, and buy a nice monitor. The hard choice I am having right now is do I get a 27-30" display, or do I get 3 good 24" monitors and rock a 3 monitor setup.

As far as what I use it for, this is mainly used as a gaming setup, movies (I sit in the computer chair to watch them), writing, and youtube.  The computer right now is simply a Macbook Pro 13", which will soon be changed over to a gaming PC (If I did the 3 monitor setup, I would start with 1 for now, and then get the other 2 with the PC). I like the idea of the field of view with the 3 24" monitors, but I also like the bigger 30" monitor for movies.

This goes back to my original problem though of eye strain. I'm not sure if it is due to the plasma display, it being so big, or if it is simply because I am not use to seeing something so close up and it will eventually go away. This is what makes me think maybe the 30" monitor would be nice, but EyeFinity just looks so amazing for gaming and productivity. Anyone have any experience with this? Any recommendations?

If you go with a large monitor, be sure to get a higher resolution than 1080p. There are 1440p and 1600p monitors out there, almost twice as many pixels compared to 1080p. The 1440p monitors are usually IPS panels, which have the best viewing angles and best colour reproduction. It offers a cinematic experience. I always find that 30" 1080p monitors cause the image to look stretched. If your budget doesn't permit 1440p, you can pick up a nice 23-24" 1080p monitor for half the cost of a 1440p. You could get an IPS panel at that resolution. If you decide to go with a higher pixel density monitor or a multi-monitor setup, be sure to back it up with GPU horsepower.