2405fpw lcd vs this refurbed Sony CRT

[alnoa]

Any monitor gurus have an opinion on this monitor?

http://www.azatek.com/details.asp?iid=786

Im thinking about buying it instead of waiting for the next sub 800 2405 deal. Besides the obvious fact that this monitor will take up a lot more space then the 2405, can someone give me some opinions on how this monitor compares? Im assuming the CRT is better in all respects except for use of desk space?

Im going to pair one of these monitors with a inspiron 6000 laptop with integrated graphics, and im worried about how the integrated card will deal with these monitors. I believe the dell site says that the 2405 works with the integrated card, but im not sure what "works" means(does it support the highest res?).

BTW, I do realize that this is a refurb, but im not one who demands something to be new for the sake of being new and could care less about what badge is on the monitor itself.

 

[cbehnken]

Well only a few issues:

1. Viewable area is 1.5" less than the 2405
2. 6 month warranty as opposed to 3 year from Dell
3. The inspirion VGA out probably won't look the best on either monitor at high res.

Otherwise it's a beast. I've never heard of anyone who owned one complaing about it. I think they were like 2000-2500 new, so it's truly a professional piece.

 

[Insomniak]

LCD > CRT in every aspect except resolution flexibility.

LCD 4 lyfe.

 

[alnoa]

Ok... decided that I would go with the 3 year warranty and get the Dell, thanks for the input guys.

 

[Phantronius]

Dell 2405FP for life!!!!! Die CRT's, die!!

 

[klah]

Read this thread: http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=31&threadid=1688477

 

[jiffylube1024]

I like how they casually leave off the weight for that screen. It's 92.6 lbs by the way, and peak power is 170W! Remember 24" CRT = 22.5" visible also.

So, the 2405 fpw wins in size (24" visible, much smaller footprint and considerably less desk space used), power consumption, brightness, flexibility of inputs (it includes component video for HDTVs, not to mention the ability to use the DVI for HD input)

The Sony wins in colour accuracy, flexibility in changing resolutions.

IMO depending on what you prefer, either is better in gaming and text (personally I like the LCD text better, and personally I like the super brightness and sharpness of a 12ms or less LCD versus the zero-ghost image of a CRT).

Yet another point for the LCD is one of the key words in your title: refurbished. There could be unforseen problems down the line...

 

[Golgatha]

Still love my Eizo T766...just a perfect picture.

 

[cbehnken]

Originally posted by: Golgatha
Still love my Eizo T766...just a perfect picture.

I hardly think someone looking for a 24" monitor would consider an 19"

Oh and why do they recommend a 5:4 resolution (1280x1024) for a 4:3 monitor. Yeah that'll look professional..

 

[JRW]

Aw you could've gotten an actual Sony FW900 model with a 3 year warranty for less than Azatek's HP OEM offering on Ebay. Me and about 10 others have bought one from the same seller and have no complaints ,it is by far the best Gaming monitor you can buy right now

 

[Markbnj]

It'll be gorgeous. And huge. And heavy. And hot. And there is no guarantee the geometry will be spot on.

And it has wires holding the mask in place. I never liked trons.

I'd get the Dell.

 

[JRW]

Originally posted by: Markbnj
It'll be gorgeous. And huge. And heavy. And hot. And there is no guarantee the geometry will be spot on.

And it has wires holding the mask in place. I never liked trons.

I'd get the Dell.

Huge / Heavy & Hot ..perhaps,But how many times do you actualy move your monitor ? I always hear this weak excuse from LCD users! .. Anyhow when I shop for a monitor im looking for best image quality, FW900 has the advantage in black levels(by far) , color accuracy , viewing angles(by far again) , able to run mutliple widescreen resolutions without losing image quality, you're not forced to buy a 7800GTX SLI combo just to run 2405FPW's 1920x1200 native res with good performance , fluid framerates & motion without worry of 'respone times' ,plus the ability to run games at a higher framerate with Vsync due to higher refresh rates ,such as 1680x1050 @ 100hz or 1920x1200 @ 100hz.

Also I've never been bothered by the 2 *extremely* thin & nearly transparent damper wires wich are only visible on a white backround, The increased contrast /color vibrancy & image crispness on Trinitrons makes it well worth it over a Shadow mask based CRT. Also because of Shadow masks design they tend to have poor geometry wich only gets worse over time due to heat , Trintron's wire design makes them unaffected by heat so geometry is much more likely to remain good in the long run, in fact my 3 year old FW900 still has *EXCELLENT* geometry.

I found someone that actualy owns both 2405FPW & FW900 (pic here)) and even he says himself he plays games on the FW900 and does any extended text work on the LCD, I agree LCD does have the nicer text output but im running my FW900 at 1680x1050 @ 100hz and text looks great.

I'm not saying 2405FPW is a bad monitor by any means but I still prefer a high end CRT over LCD when it comes to movies and especially gaming.

 

[ITPaladin]

I should get my HP version of that Sony in tomorrow or the next day.
My former Viewsonic PF790 was AG and I never EVER noticed the wires when I was not looking for them.
Analistic people complain about the wires IMO.

The seller told me the Sony costs more than the HP he is selling because of the color. If you don't mind the HP color it is cheaper to have it $75 less than the Sony.

 

[JRW]

Originally posted by: ITPaladin
I should get my HP version of that Sony in tomorrow or the next day.
My former Viewsonic PF790 was AG and I never EVER noticed the wires when I was not looking for them.
Analistic people complain about the wires IMO.

The seller told me the Sony costs more than the HP he is selling because of the color. If you don't mind the HP color it is cheaper to have it $75 less than the Sony.

Ah cool, let me know how you like it and be sure to run the Image Restoration option anytime after the first 30 minutes of warmup.

 

[jotosuds]

these huge monitors off of ebay are seriously a steal. my Dell P1130 was only $120. local pickup. you can't beat that for 21" of hotness and if you're actually bothered by the two wires.... the only way i see them is if i get up close and look.

those 24" must be insane.

 

[remagavon]

I have one of the Sony's (HP re-badge). The geometry is nowhere NEAR spot-on. It's impossible to get even within 5% of correct. I would say that it is about 15% askew, but I can handle it. There is also a whitish streak down the center of my monitor, which I didn't notice for a few days (you can only really see it when dragging windows around on the desktop, not at all in games). I left the seller positive feedback, and due to that I haven't bothered complaining. I would love to have one of these that is perfect, but being 3 years old it is going to be hard to do that.

I like the resolution flexibility, but LCDs do have perfect geometry, and the response time isn't that big of a deal on newer screens.

 

[Mojoed]

Originally posted by: JRW
Aw you could've gotten an actual Sony FW900 model with a 3 year warranty for less than Azatek's HP OEM offering on Ebay. Me and about 10 others have bought one from the same seller and have no complaints ,it is by far the best Gaming monitor you can buy right now

I agree. If you have the space, don't mind the heat and energy costs, this CRT beats the Dell for gaming. (My humble opinion of course) And yes, I have used BOTH and I do OWN the 24" Sony CRT.

 

[JRW]

Originally posted by: remagavon
I have one of the Sony's (HP re-badge). The geometry is nowhere NEAR spot-on. It's impossible to get even within 5% of correct. I would say that it is about 15% askew, but I can handle it. There is also a whitish streak down the center of my monitor, which I didn't notice for a few days (you can only really see it when dragging windows around on the desktop, not at all in games). I left the seller positive feedback, and due to that I haven't bothered complaining. I would love to have one of these that is perfect, but being 3 years old it is going to be hard to do that.

I like the resolution flexibility, but LCDs do have perfect geometry, and the response time isn't that big of a deal on newer screens.

Sounds like your monitor was mishandled or dropped Your symptoms certainly arent related to normal CRT aging, personaly I would've asked the seller to do an exchange for another unit ,from what ive heard he's a really cool guy.

 

[remagavon]

Originally posted by: JRW

Originally posted by: remagavon
I have one of the Sony's (HP re-badge). The geometry is nowhere NEAR spot-on. It's impossible to get even within 5% of correct. I would say that it is about 15% askew, but I can handle it. There is also a whitish streak down the center of my monitor, which I didn't notice for a few days (you can only really see it when dragging windows around on the desktop, not at all in games). I left the seller positive feedback, and due to that I haven't bothered complaining. I would love to have one of these that is perfect, but being 3 years old it is going to be hard to do that.

I like the resolution flexibility, but LCDs do have perfect geometry, and the response time isn't that big of a deal on newer screens.

Sounds like your monitor was mishandled or dropped Your symptoms certainly arent related to normal CRT aging, personaly I would've asked the seller to do an exchange for another unit ,from what ive heard he's a really cool guy.

Now I don't even have the box or packing materials. It does annoy me too, dammit! I didn't think

It sucks too because now I won't be able to sell it on the net when I want to get rid of it. I'll have to try to pawn it off on one of my friends around here I guess. It's not noticeable in games like I said, so they would probably be fine with it heh.

 

[Velk]

Originally posted by: JRW

Originally posted by: Markbnj
It'll be gorgeous. And huge. And heavy. And hot. And there is no guarantee the geometry will be spot on.

And it has wires holding the mask in place. I never liked trons.

I'd get the Dell.

Huge / Heavy & Hot ..perhaps,But how many times do you actualy move your monitor ? I always hear this weak excuse from LCD users! .. Anyhow when I shop for a monitor im looking for best image quality, FW900 has the advantage in black levels(by far) , color accuracy , viewing angles(by far again) , able to run mutliple widescreen resolutions without losing image quality

You claim weight is a weak excuse, but then raise viewing angles ? 8)

The FW900 is very, very big and heavy. There's a lot of people that would be unable to carry it by themselves. There's a lot of computer desks which won't support the weight over time. There's a lot of desks of any type which don't have enough depth to have both it and a keyboard at a usable distance from it. All things that can be worked around, but still a significant consideration when buying it.

Also I've never been bothered by the 2 *extremely* thin & nearly transparent damper wires wich are only visible on a white backround,<snip> in fact my 3 year old FW900 still has *EXCELLENT* geometry.

Some people don't notice LCD motion blur, some people are driven nuts by it. Some people don't notice the damper wires, some people are driven nuts by them. It's just one of those things you have to evaluate for yourself. That your FW900 has excellent geometry doesn't really matter in an LCD comparison, as even the cheapest DVI lcd on the market has flawless geometry.

 

[Markbnj]

[Your symptoms certainly arent related to normal CRT aging, ]

I've had high-end CRTs come out of the box with crappy geometry, back when a good one cost $1000. It's the nature of the beast. It can often be tweaked back into allignment with the panel controls, and you notice looking at the history that over time OEMs added more and more adjustments specifically for this reason. I had one $1100 Nanao that had to go back for adjustment.

LCDs aren't as smooth panning around in games as a high-refresh CRT, no question. Just a personal choice on the tradeoffs.

 

[entropy1982]

Hmm, I have a 2020U Mitsubishi Diamond pro. It is 22''... it is kinda getting old. Do you guys think 400 bux would be worth the upgrade to the sony? What would be the advantages, other than size of course/

 

[5150Joker]

I'm not going to bother reading any of the posts and just give you the truth that you seek:

If you are an avid gamer that plays competitively and likes a razor sharp smooth response, the 2405 will not touch a high end CRT no matter what LCD lovers may say. While some of them won't notice a difference between the two because they are casual gamers, a hardcore gamer will see it right off the bat. However, if you are a casual player or one that doesn't take competitive gaming so seriously, then the 2405 is clearly the better choice since it weighs much less, will have better 2D and have more screen space.

 

[CP5670]

OP: Since you're going to run it off integrated graphics, I'm guessing that you don't care about gaming performance. For general windows applications you probably wouldn't notice much of a difference between the two in image quality unless you're doing Photoshop work or things like that.

Now I haven't seen an FW900 in person, but there was a 2405 where I used to work and to be honest, I wasn't that impressed with it for graphics and motion. I mean, the big size was great and light colors looked bright and vibrant, but it ghosted somewhat more than I was comfortable with (more than some other LCDs I have seen) and black colors and dark gradients (like shadows) viewed in pitch dark ambient lighting looked terrible, which is standard fare with LCDs. Also, you are limited to 60hz over DVI at that resolution, which can be an issue for some games. It was great for text though especially with the swivel feature, and the monitor itself looked very elegant.

These days, when it comes to high end CRTs a lot depends on the quality of the particular sample you get. If you get a perfect one, it will have geometry and focus/sharpness that's easily comparable to any DVI LCD along with all the other advantages of a CRT. The one I have right now is like this. But there are lots of duds out there, both bad ones straight of out the factory (poor QC on the tube manufacturer's part) and ones that were mishandled during shipping, so you never quite know what you're getting. Even though a used FW900 can be found for half the price of the 2405, it's something of a gamble now because of this. Sony isn't giving any warranties on its CRTs at all anymore from what I've heard, although NEC/Mitsubishi still covers its models if you manage to buy a new one like I did. Of course, if you get a good one it will easily beat the more expensive 2405 in every way as far as gaming is concerned.

A lot of the usual LCD advantages that LCD fans talk about have nothing to do with the image quality, but portability and convenience (size, weight, power consumption, availibility of brand new ones, etc.). These are definitely things to consider and may seal the deal depending on your preferences, but they should be distinguished from actual display performance and quality, where the only LCDs that can touch a good CRT cost several thousand dollars.

The FW900 is very, very big and heavy. There's a lot of people that would be unable to carry it by themselves.

You can just get a friend to help you get it on your desk. Two people should be able to do it without much trouble, and while a bit inconvenient, it's a one-time thing. My monitor isn't quite as heavy (about 70lbs I think), but I and my dad were able to lift it together very easily.

Hmm, I have a 2020U Mitsubishi Diamond pro. It is 22''... it is kinda getting old. Do you guys think 400 bux would be worth the upgrade to the sony? What would be the advantages, other than size of course/

Might be a good idea. Or you could get the one I have, which is especially great due to the superbright feature and extreme refresh rates. The 2020U is a pretty old model these days and some of the newer CRTs are quite a bit better than the earlier ones. Although if you have no problems and good image quality with yours then you might want to stick with it, since it's hard to get a CRT in good condition these days. (see what I said above)

 

[Madellga]

Originally posted by: alnoa
Any monitor gurus have an opinion on this monitor?

http://www.azatek.com/details.asp?iid=786

Im thinking about buying it instead of waiting for the next sub 800 2405 deal. Besides the obvious fact that this monitor will take up a lot more space then the 2405, can someone give me some opinions on how this monitor compares? Im assuming the CRT is better in all respects except for use of desk space?

Im going to pair one of these monitors with a inspiron 6000 laptop with integrated graphics, and im worried about how the integrated card will deal with these monitors. I believe the dell site says that the 2405 works with the integrated card, but im not sure what "works" means(does it support the highest res?).

BTW, I do realize that this is a refurb, but im not one who demands something to be new for the sake of being new and could care less about what badge is on the monitor itself.

Most arguments used here are not correct. The contrast one, nobody mentions that CRT screens have issues with reflection, which doesn't happen with LCDs.

Instead of writting an article, I will provide you the following link:

http://www.behardware.com/art/imprimer/511/

This a very good website and the review addresses most LCD x CRT issues.

You can decide for yourself.

Have fun.