best 27"+ non-HDTV for an HTPC?

Kaido

Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
Feb 14, 2004
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This might be better suited for another forum, but here it goes...

I've been screwing around with HTPC stuff for about six months and I want to build a seperate, dedicated HTPC within the next year.

I've got all the parts down except for a TV. I've been so focused on computer stuff that I've neglected A/V stuff and now I don't know what's good! :) I'm looking for something that is in the 27" - 34" range. I like the look of the flat-tube as opposed to the "bubble". I don't want it to be an HDTV because I'll just be recording and watching regular cable TV with it mostly, and every time I've seen an HDTV with a regular TV feed it looks like trash. I don't want a huge 55" rear projection or something similar because of size, cost, and picture quality (no projectors either...that's a different project :D) Oh and speakers don't matter because I'll be using a seperate set.

I did a little hunting online at Best Buy. I kind of like the "Daewoo 27" Flat-Tube Stereo TV with Component Video and S-Video Inputs" (Model: DTQ27U4SC). It runs for $250, not too bad...is Daewoo a good brand? Anyone have any luck with a particular brand? I'm not looking for anything too fancy...a set or two of RCA inputs and an SVIDEO input, silver or black, flat-tube, good picture.


If you're interested, here's the parts list:

-VIA EPIA MII 12000 1.2Ghz Motherboard (6.75" x 6.75")
-Morex Cubid 2699V case (a bit smaller than a VCR)
-Seagate 400gb 7200rpm ATA/100 hard drive (when it comes out)
-Slimline CD-ROM and floppy drive
-External CD/DVD burner
-Creative Labs Audigy2 ZS (7.1, THX certified, comes with DVD-Audio software) or M-Audio Audiophile 2496 (I might go with a receiver, dunno yet)
-Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-USB2 (USB 2.0 video recorder, low CPU utilization)
-SageTV v2
-Windows XP or 2000 (XP = faster but more resource-hungry; W2k = slower but more stable, imo)
-512mb Crucial DDR266 (Crucial for stability)
-Zoom Player Pro, Sonic Cineplayer DVD filter pack, and FFDShow (for DVDs)
-Foobar 2000 and iTunes (for music)
-SnapStream Firefly PC Remote
-APC UPS
-Gyration Ultra GT Cordless Optical Mouse, Compact Keyboard, and Compact Keyboard cover
-108mbps PCMCIA card (this EPIA MII has a PCMCIA slot in the back)

Just a small, quiet, low-powered wanna-be TiVo :) It's kind of a mix of parts I have, parts I want, and parts that aren't out yet.

Anyway, any recommendations (and info) are appreciated. Thanks!