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Monitor-Age : Choosing a good gaming monitor.

looking for a 22 - 24 inch monitor for use with a 360 and ps3; would a monitor native at 1680 x 1050 yield a better picture for 720p output than one native at say, 1440x 900 or even at 1366x768? I'm trying to find out if the quality at 1680 x 1050 is any greater than it is at 1366x for 720p since it can't do 1080p res at 1920x anyway.
 
Question to those who play with monitors...

If you don't use them on your desk, how far away do you sit to play? I am considering buying a 20-22 inch monitor and will be sitting probably 6 feet back. I'm hoping it's not too bad.
 
Leatherface said:
I just bought a new monitor over the summer. Originally I was all about samsung, but after a little research and testing I went for this one (22" btw):

070421_diy_hpw2207_0012h.jpg

I have it. You should buy it. It's fucking awesome and (IMO) has a much better picture quality than the Samsung 226BW (which I owned for a couple of days and then exchanged for the HP).
 
Big-E said:
If you are looking at the 226BW get the 226CW. Its the revision of the B and is an S panel.
Oddly enough, looks like Best Buy only carries the 226CW, so I guess I'm in luck. Newegg however only has the 226BW. odd.
 
MidgarBlowedUp said:
Sony GDM-FW900 Flat Widescreen 24" FD Trinitron CRT

Got mine, Refurbished, from Accurateit for about $450 6-7 months ago.


They've gone up in price a bit, but this is the correct answer.

This monitor >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> everything in this thread.
 
moowear said:
looking for a 22 - 24 inch monitor for use with a 360 and ps3; would a monitor native at 1680 x 1050 yield a better picture for 720p output than one native at say, 1440x 900 or even at 1366x768? I'm trying to find out if the quality at 1680 x 1050 is any greater than it is at 1366x for 720p since it can't do 1080p res at 1920x anyway.


I would assume 1366 x 768 would be best for 720p output since that's the native res of most smaller 720p flat panel tvs. Not sure though.
 
MidgarBlowedUp said:
Sony GDM-FW900 Flat Widescreen 24" FD Trinitron CRT

Got mine, Refurbished, from Accurateit for about $450 6-7 months ago.
Correct. There is no other answer. I got one from Craigslist pro calibrated for $300 a year ago and this beast has nothing but impressed time and time again. Everything else is just playing catch up.
 
donkey show said:
Correct. There is no other answer. I got one from Craigslist pro calibrated for $300 a year ago and this beast has nothing but impressed time and time again. Everything else is just playing catch up.
I hate you people in America. It was going to cost me about $1500 to get one imported, seeing as no-one is selling them in the UK. :(
 
Is there a monitor that properly handles 1:1 and overscan over HDMI yet?
When I was shopping for one in the fall, the closest thing was the BENQ's 24" but the multiple firmware versions were a bitch to keep track of. In the end, I went for a 32" 1080p HDTV because it seems like HDTV's handle PC output better than monitors handle console/HD output.
 
andrewfee said:
I hate you people in America. It was going to cost me about $1500 to get one imported, seeing as no-one is selling them in the UK. :(

:lol Some place around mine literally has dozens of them. I'd get one but that thing weighs more than everything I have on my PC desk put together and it's too long from front to back for my setup.
 
usea said:
bad choice
What the hell? I'm using a Dell monitor right now. I think it's a re-branded Sony Trinitron, although I'm not entirely sure (it could just be based on the design, as the patent expired). A fantastic monitor nevertheless.

The WUXGA screen in my laptop was excellent as well. The only complaint is that I don't have the hardware to push that sort of resolution for games on my laptop. The whites could also use a bit of work, but the blacks are great.
 
God forbid that a 2'x2' square on one's desktop be "wasted" in the name superior image quality and gaming performance.
 
also question :

Looking at the LG vs the Samsung :

LG :
LG - 19" Widescreen Flat-Panel LCD Monitor
Model: L196WTQ-BF | SKU: 8273101

------------
#
Warranty Terms - Parts
3 years limited
#
Warranty Terms - Labor
3 years limited
#
Product Height
9.2"
#
Product Width
17.3"
#
Product Weight
10.1 lbs.
#
Product Depth
15.1"
#
Monitor Type
Widescreen flat-panel LCD
#
Screen Size
19"
#
Viewable Screen Size
19"
#
Maximum Resolution
1440 x 900
#
Aspect Ratio
16:10
#
Response Time
2 ms
#
Brightness
300 cd/m²
#
Portrait and/or Landscape Viewable
Landscape
#
Contrast Ratio
3000:1
#
Flat Display
Yes
#
TV Tuner
No
#
Inputs
D-sub, DVI-D with HDCP
#
Compatibility
PC and Mac
#
Zoom/Focus Control
Yes
#
Outputs
D-sub, DVI-D with HDCP


Samsung :
Samsung - 19" Widescreen Flat-Panel LCD Monitor - High-Gloss Black
Model: 906CW | SKU: 8400438

------------
#
Warranty Terms - Parts
3 years
#
Warranty Terms - Labor
3 years
#
Product Height
14.3" with stand (12.25" without)
#
Product Width
17.6"
#
Product Weight
4.2 lbs. with stand
#
Product Depth
8" with stand (2.3" without)
#
Monitor Type
Flat-panel LCD
#
Screen Size
19"
#
Viewable Screen Size
19"
#
Maximum Resolution
1440 x 900
#
Response Time
2 ms
#
Brightness
300 cd/m²
#
Contrast Ratio
1600:1
#
Flat Display
Yes
#
TV Tuner
No
#
TV/Cable Ready
No
#
Picture-in-Picture
No
#
Inputs
1 D-sub, 1 DVI-D
#
Compatibility
PC and Mac
#
Vertical Frequency
56-75Hz
#
Horizontal Frequency
30-81kHz
#
Power Consumption
42W

Am I right in assuming the Samsung doesn't have HDCP handshaking but the LG does?
 
I was thinking about a samusing Syncmaster 24' myself.


But im not sure... there is a 30' aswell. but is 30' too big? your sitting close to the screen!


also a 30' is so much more expenssive than a 24'!
 
well if it's on a desk and you have a keyboard on your desk then yes 30" is a bit too big. I've had a 26" HD LCD on my desk (borrowed my dads Aquos) and it was a bit too big for my taste.
 
My advice is to just got for one of the 22" monitors. I for one am soft on Sceptre's. They generally have great prices and great inputs. Their Gamer series of Naga's are great and have HDMI, but they have gotten sorta rare.
 
VictimOfGrief said:
also question :

Looking at the LG vs the Samsung :

LG :
LG - 19" Widescreen Flat-Panel LCD Monitor
Model: L196WTQ-BF | SKU: 8273101

------------

I've got that LG monitor, actually. Got it at Circuit City. I hook my 360 up to it via the VGA input (and use the DVI for my PC).

It's good in the sense that there is no ghosting and the built in scaler (?) is quite nice (so despite running 360 games at 1280x720 instead of its native 1440 x 900, they still look nice). But on the other hand, and this drives me crazy, the viewing angle isn't as big as I'd like. It says 170' I think, but if I slump in my chair, it gets darker. And the manual it came with was a joke - only 2 pages.
 
Okay I got my Samsung 226bw 22'' delievered just a bit ago. And its an A panel. I guess not as bad as the C from what I understand, no S though. :lol

I'm paranoid about the color issues of it a bit still. Although it does come with two programs to tweak the colors and gamma, which is nice. The blue ended up getting toned waaaay done. I'd still like to double check it though. Are there really no decent, free, programs I can double check with to make sure its all good?
 
Kadey said:
I'm never wrong when it comes to electronics. Seeing as how every single Dell monitor in the last three years have gotten great ratings for gaming use. Overpriced? Maybe, but that's why buy them during sales and with coupons and google checkout for half that.

Wow, so much for humility. You're never wrong with electronics? Well you're flat out wrong here.

I have owned many Dells and still own a 2407 and they are good at best, but they are FAR from the best monitors out there. The 2407, by itself looks good, until you put a CRT next to it and then you realize it's shortcomings. Gray blacks, banding in some cases, uniformity issues etc. Again, I say this as an owner of a 2407 who has compared and owned many other monitors from other vendors. I don't even think it looked or performed better than my Apple Cinema Display.

Picture001.jpg


Nothing beats a good ol' CRT and I was able to get one of these from Craigslist for only $250. It's what I use now primarily, and I moved the 2407 to the guest room. I'll probably sell it.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00004YNSR/?tag=neogaf0e-20

It's been mentioned a few times, and yes it's not a light LCD, but do yourself a favor and get it. It can be found for less than $350 on Craigslist and E-bay.

If not, then BestBuy sells the Apple Cinema Display. You got $200 off already. I actually liked it better than any Dell offering. So you can go that route since mail ordering is out for you.

acd2.jpg
 
dark_preacher said:
maybe 3 years ago.

lcd's have easily surpassed crt image quality at this time. the only sacrifice is blacks.
That's crazy.

CRT features vastly superior motion handling, contrast ratio, color accuracy, resolution handling, etc. I've been using a CRT for the last couple weeks now and the difference over the LCD I was using for PC gaming is insane. Games look incredible on a CRT and no LCD comes close to the richness and high quality motion of a CRT. I remember again why I love 60 fps. CRT also handles lower resolutions much better than an LCD. 1024x768, for instance, is butt ugly on an LCD...but looks lovely on a CRT. I'd say that 1024x768 with 4x AA produces a smoother image for games than a higher resolution LCD running at its native resolution. Of course, CRT can do much higher resolutions than that and look even better.

LCD is superior for Windows usage, but a CRT trumps it for gaming. No contest. It just feels so rich. If you are going from a CRT to an LCD for gaming, prepare to be disappointed.
 
dark10x said:
LCD is superior for Windows usage, but a CRT trumps it for gaming. No contest. It just feels so rich. If you are going from a CRT to an LCD for gaming, prepare to be disappointed.

correct
 
btf1980 said:
Wow, so much for humility. You're never wrong with electronics? Well you're flat out wrong here.

I have owned many Dells and still own a 2407 and they are good at best, but they are FAR from the best monitors out there. The 2407, by itself looks good, until you put a CRT next to it and then you realize it's shortcomings. Gray blacks, banding in some cases, uniformity issues etc. Again, I say this as an owner of a 2407 who has compared and owned many other monitors from other vendors. I don't even think it looked or performed better than my Apple Cinema Display.


Nothing beats a good ol' CRT and I was able to get one of these from Craigslist for only $250. It's what I use now primarily, and I moved the 2407 to the guest room. I'll probably sell it.


It's been mentioned a few times, and yes it's not a light LCD, but do yourself a favor and get it. It can be found for less than $350 on Craigslist and E-bay.

If not, then BestBuy sells the Apple Cinema Display. You got $200 off already. I actually liked it better than any Dell offering. So you can go that route since mail ordering is out for you.

-

Where did I say they were the best? Hmmm? I recommended them. As a casual consumer and for overall useage, recommending him something 50+lbs and taking up a huge amount of space is completely out of the question. Thanks for being salty. And it's funny how you completely missed my point and tell him about a monitor that uses the very same panels as the Dell yet are far more expensive.
Some of you elitist people need to stop thinking far up your asses and put yourself in the person's shoes before you even think about anything.
 
VictimOfGrief said:
How exactly is it a shame? CRT's are a waste of space.

Because the only categories LCDs win are size, weight, and power usage. CRTs are better in every other category, and substantially better in some of them.

dark10x said:
That's crazy.

CRT features vastly superior motion handling, contrast ratio, color accuracy, resolution handling, etc. I've been using a CRT for the last couple weeks now and the difference over the LCD I was using for PC gaming is insane. Games look incredible on a CRT and no LCD comes close to the richness and high quality motion of a CRT. I remember again why I love 60 fps. CRT also handles lower resolutions much better than an LCD. 1024x768, for instance, is butt ugly on an LCD...but looks lovely on a CRT. I'd say that 1024x768 with 4x AA produces a smoother image for games than a higher resolution LCD running at its native resolution. Of course, CRT can do much higher resolutions than that and look even better.

LCD is superior for Windows usage, but a CRT trumps it for gaming. No contest. It just feels so rich. If you are going from a CRT to an LCD for gaming, prepare to be disappointed.

LCDs run Windows better? Maybe, but only if you use the LCD's native resolution as your desktop resolution... I've used low resolutions for years now, so I don't know if I'd even say that for me. I run Windows at 1024x768 on my new (Vista) PC; on my old one that I had untilearly this year (running WinME), I used 800x600. I just didn't like how small everything seemed in ME at 1024x768, and because I have a CRT monitor, that was the only factor. Vista looks better at higher resolutions, though, so I use 100hz 1024x768 (60hz is eye-hurtingly awful looking on CRTs in Windows, I'd say...), and it looks fantastic. For a monitor, most of the time I'm still using my same old 17" Dell CRT that I got with the old computer (1600x1200 max resolution, which is way above anything I'd ever want to use in Windows); the place I got the computer from only offered LCDs and I didn't really want one... I've used one with my computer, and while the small size and light weight was great, I'd never want it as my main display. The drawbacks are just too huge. A larger CRT would be nice, though... that would support higher resolutions for gaming... I've always run games (that let you change their resolution) at much higher resolutions than Windows itself. I use 1280x960 in a lot of games now, it'd be nice to bump that up a notch.

I will admit that in Windows Vista some of the biggest drawbacks to LCDs are gone -- that is, that they do a REALLY, REALLY bad job of display DOS resolutions of 320x240 or 320x200 or others like that -- because Vista doesn't allow fullscreen DOS mode and DOS emulators like DOSBox use a 640x480 scaled resolution, I believe, but even there... as I said, just look at how awful 640x480 looks on an LCD! I tried playing Starcraft on an LCD once... the difference was huge. CRTs, meanwhile, can display pretty much any resolution below their maximum all equally well, with no input lag, no ghosting, higher refresh rates, perfect colors... try using a CRT and then an LCD and play a few games (particularly ones that weren't released in the last couple of years and don't support your LCD's native resolution) and the differences will become immediately obvious.

Oh yes, and you can touch CRT screens. They aren't squishy like LCDs... :) I will admit that LCD monitors do look really cool, though, and the space they free up on your desk is quite nice.
 
Update :

I just got my 19" L196WTQ LG Widescreen monitor hooked up this afternoon and I must say it blows the SHIT out of my older 6 yr Hitachi 19" monitor.

I am so f'ning happy. Highly recommend it to anyone looking for a 19" Widescreen. Man, I'm in love!

Oh and the DVI and VGA are HDCP so I smell console hook up in the near future. Just f'ning awesome! :D :D :D :D :D
 
Leatherface said:
I just bought a new monitor over the summer. Originally I was all about samsung, but after a little research and testing I went for this one (22" btw):

070421_diy_hpw2207_0012h.jpg
I heard these had some terrible backlight bleeding unfortunately :/ How is yours?
 
Any CRT fans out there care to recommend a good widescreen CRT monitor for use with the PS3/360? I'm shopping around now, and I don't want to go with an LCD monitor if I can avoid it, for the reasons given by others in the thread.
 
vissione said:
Congrats. You traded your PS3 though, so what do you care about HDCP? VGA ports dont have HDCP anyway...

To everyone else. The HP monitors are awesome. I have the 24" model. TN means reduced viewing angles, but dead it looks gorgeous!!
well maybe getting another next year depending... :D
 
I just got the Samsung 216bw
I hooked up the DVI and the other connection to my 7800 GS and I was wondering what the difference is between analog and digital and why when I switch to digital I get a blank screen....

Is there something else I need to be doing?

Or is that just if I have a source other than my computer going into the monitor?
 
dejan said:
I'm currently looking for a new monitor, too. My favorite so far is the 24'' version of that baby (HP Pavilion w2408h). Awesome interpolation, 1080p, 1:1 pixel mapping and hdmi. The only drawback is the TN-panel and the glossy display.
You mean as opposed to a matte anti-glare coat? That's really more of a matter of taste.
 
Dell 2707WFP user here. Short of EIZO, the best performing monitor at the time of release.



Now, I'd go for the 3008. Double DVI, DisplayPort and other nice gadgets. But probably out of your price and real-estate range seeing your considerations
 
Tisan said:
I heard these had some terrible backlight bleeding unfortunately :/ How is yours?

They don't. Well, they might, but not more than any other monitor. Mine has almost NONE at all, the screen is totally black, but my Samsung 226BW had like 3-4 cm at both the top and the bottom.
 
I have the 22" Acer that a couple of others mentioned. Looks great, and the dual-input of DVI and VGA means I can have both the PC and 360 going at the same time. Handy to flip over to the PC to surf for guides instead of throwing the controller like I used to :D
 
One thing you should watch out for - some monitors say they support HD but they only support 1080i (most notably monitors without any HDMI sockets). But even the HDMI monitors sometimes only take a max 1080i input (most DELLs!). You really need to check for Full HD support - ie. 1080p.

Another thing some cheap monitors do is accept hdmi but then convert it to analog internally to get into whatever cheap-ass video processing chip they've put in there. (I had this with a Benq monitor and it gives you lovely ghosting even though you are connected via hdmi)

The aquos TV/monitors are a really good solution but they are more expensive.
 
hteng said:
are all these monitors HDCP compliant? i'm hoping to get one for my PS3

I have one of the Dell 2407WFP-HC monitors and it supports HDCP over DVI(and does 1080P). It also came with a Belkin PureAV dvi to hdmi cable that I can plug straight into my PS3.
 
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