BF $199 19" LCD @ staples. Samsung 914v, is this LCD any good?

[Slvbeard]

Got 2 from Staples early this morning. They both look great!

I'm happy...

 

[Tokar]

got mine as well...

The box says max resolution is 1280x1024@75Hz.

I had no issues setting the refresh rate at 75 in windows...


Its really nice and really bright. No DP's here either.



In the box:
Monitor
Monitor base which requires attachment
1 Power Cable
1 VGA Cable which is pre-connected to the monitor (but can be disconnected)
1 Driver CD

 

[cronuss]

Hey guys,

I picked up a 914v for my first LCD today 🙂


I think it's awesome so far, but I'm having some trouble...

The thing is SO BRIGHT. It's amazingly bright and washed out unless I really mess with the settings.

I managed to get it to look okay, so I thought, but then I was playing World of Warcraft and my wife on my old CRT next to me had brown dirt for the ground whereas mine was a heavy maroon color.

I messed with it a bit more, thought I got it... then I went to google and looked at some images.

The colors, mainly the red, on mine seem to be very neon and vibrant... to the point that they look fake. On her CRT they look dull but more real.


I'm having trouble getting my brightness/gamma and colors to just look normal.

The gamma seems to be pumped way up, and the only way I can change it is in software.. which doesn't translate well to my games.

Then there's the gamma "modes" in the menu... what exactly are those doing? I like MODE 3 but it seems to make things very red/magenta.


Any help, please?

 

[saltedeggman]

Originally posted by: cronuss
Hey guys,

I picked up a 914v for my first LCD today 🙂


I think it's awesome so far, but I'm having some trouble...

The thing is SO BRIGHT. It's amazingly bright and washed out unless I really mess with the settings.

I managed to get it to look okay, so I thought, but then I was playing World of Warcraft and my wife on my old CRT next to me had brown dirt for the ground whereas mine was a heavy maroon color.

I messed with it a bit more, thought I got it... then I went to google and looked at some images.

The colors, mainly the red, on mine seem to be very neon and vibrant... to the point that they look fake. On her CRT they look dull but more real.


I'm having trouble getting my brightness/gamma and colors to just look normal.

The gamma seems to be pumped way up, and the only way I can change it is in software.. which doesn't translate well to my games.

Then there's the gamma "modes" in the menu... what exactly are those doing? I like MODE 3 but it seems to make things very red/magenta.


Any help, please?

welcome to the forums !! mate

 

[Tweakin]

Originally posted by: aircooled

Originally posted by: Slvbeard

Originally posted by: aircooled
dont buy anything without DVI inputs.

The advantage of digital signals for LCDs is of somewhat less importance now than it was a few years ago. Analog signal processing has improved to the point where major differences in image quality can be difficult to detect. Unless you're a pro photographer, a prepress professional, or someone else who needs superprecise, top-notch image quality, you should be fine using a CRT or an LCD on an analog signal. (CNET)

Link to CNET article...

I don't care what that says. I'm talking real world. My LCD has both DVI and Analog inputs. My video card has both DVI and Analog outputs. I can tell you first hand that the difference in the two is VERY obvious, and DVI wins hands down. I also have 20 analog LCD's at work, all suck compared to the cheapest LCD with DVI.
It is very noticeable.

Then you must have one great set of eyes as I use multiple LCD's, both digital and analog and I can see no difference in the "real world". I'm currently using a Samsung 912N at home off a 9600XT (analog) and at work I have a Dell 19" (Analog) sitting next to my Samsung 193P (Digital) and I see no difference. Way back when, analog signals would be degraded by EMF, but that is not the case anymore as the A/D and D/A convertors have improved 10 fold.

 

[justshawnf]

Originally posted by: cronuss
I think it's awesome so far, but I'm having some trouble...

The thing is SO BRIGHT. It's amazingly bright and washed out unless I really mess with the settings.

...

Any help, please?

I got one at BestBuy and had this trouble too, then I realized that I wasn't looking at it straight on. It took me a while to figure out that the stand does allow you to tilt the screen. Hold in the middle and tilt in or out until the brightness spots go away, then adjust the settings.

At least that worked for me. 🙂

 

[cronuss]

It's not the tilt.


I managed to get it to look great, almost perfect, using their MagicTune color calibrator... took a while to figure out but I got it.

Now my problem is that my settings don't seem to be carrying over into my games!!

 

[hifi]

Originally posted by: czech09

Originally posted by: FAS284
I just bought the Acer AL1914B 19" from newegg for $249.99 free 3 day shipping, no rebates. I had been searching for an LCD for a week and looked through all the black friday ads and just could not find a good deal WITHOUT rebates. If you don't mind the rebates, wait til BF and buy the Mag 19" from Best Buy for $169.99 AR + tax. The AL1914B is one of the best monitors on the market and it looks very crisp (at least it did to me in the compusa store). It will be arriving tomorrow and i cannot wait! 🙂

Lol wait till a bunch of dead pixels show up then you won't be so amazed by it lol j/k. I'd never buy an LCD from newegg just because of their crappy guarantee on the pixels.

i guess i was lucky when i bought the Princeton 19" with no dead pixels...

 

[SoulAssassin]

Originally posted by: cronuss
Hey guys,

I picked up a 914v for my first LCD today 🙂


I think it's awesome so far, but I'm having some trouble...

The thing is SO BRIGHT. It's amazingly bright and washed out unless I really mess with the settings.

I managed to get it to look okay, so I thought, but then I was playing World of Warcraft and my wife on my old CRT next to me had brown dirt for the ground whereas mine was a heavy maroon color.

I messed with it a bit more, thought I got it... then I went to google and looked at some images.

The colors, mainly the red, on mine seem to be very neon and vibrant... to the point that they look fake. On her CRT they look dull but more real.


I'm having trouble getting my brightness/gamma and colors to just look normal.

The gamma seems to be pumped way up, and the only way I can change it is in software.. which doesn't translate well to my games.

Then there's the gamma "modes" in the menu... what exactly are those doing? I like MODE 3 but it seems to make things very red/magenta.


Any help, please?

Exact same situation here, also couldn't play BFII at 1024x768. Image was shifted to the left w a black bar taking up about 1.5" on the right side. Installing MagicTune now and will report back but as of now it definitely has a washed out feel to it. I already cranked the brightness down to 6 and contrast down to 60 (out of 100).

 

[TechnoKid]

Well my 'rents got one, but it doesn't even power on. Only two cables to hookup; doesn't power on regardless of whether or not the vga cable is plugged in or not. :thumbsdown:

 

[Tokar]

Same issue.

The thing is ridiculously bright. I guess this is a good monitor for 0-light rooms...lol.
There are some predefined color settings for Text, Internet and something else but they are marginally different from one another.

I like that they included the Cable organizing hook on the rear of the monitor, something which the Samsung 213T has as well.

 

[brainwave]

I bought one of these 914V monitors at Staples for $199. It is an excellent analog monitor, for routine office purposes. If you need DVI, don't buy this monitor. From what I can tell from Samsung.com there is no difference between the 913V and the 914V specs. The picture is bright, with reasonable OS controls and text is sharp. Mine has no dead pixels. It is a basic 19" monitor and was an excellent buy at the price.

 

[Slvbeard]

I thought it was way bright too, but once I set the Gamma to 3 with the front panel it seemed fine.

You can also use the MagicTune software. Download it and the drivers from the Samsung site, just to make sure you have the most recent version.

One thing I found out reading the manual, the optimal resolution for this, and probaby all other LCD's this size, is 1280x1024.

They also suggest a refresh rate of 60hz...

 

[frankqfrank]

I got mine at Staples, so I am waiting on the easy rebate. Do you think it's possible to also redeem THIS rebate even if you bought it from Staples, it appears to be a manufacturer's rebate and since the Easy Rebates don't require the UPC it is probably worth a shot.

 

[thirtythree]

Originally posted by: frankqfrank
I got mine at Staples, so I am waiting on the easy rebate. Do you think it's possible to also redeem THIS rebate even if you bought it from Staples, it appears to be a manufacturer's rebate and since the Easy Rebates don't require the UPC it is probably worth a shot.

It says it needs to be purchased from a participating retailer, which, one would assume, Staples is not.

 

[TechnoKid]

exchanged for another one just today, works well now. I dont find it to be too bright at all at a setting of 30.

 

[curiou5]

Got a dead pixel on day 1

*sigh*

 

[topquark7]

I got 2 LCD monitors on BF, Samsung 730B (17", 8 ms, DVI) as well as the 19" Samsung 914v (19", 12 ms, no DVI) for $200 each. I'm having a hard time making up my mind as to which one to keep & which one to return 🙂
Does the 8 ms response time & DVI inputs justify the smaller screen size considering I got both of these for the same price? When compared side by side, I see virtually no difference in the quality.

 

[SoulAssassin]

Originally posted by: thirtythree

Originally posted by: frankqfrank
I got mine at Staples, so I am waiting on the easy rebate. Do you think it's possible to also redeem THIS rebate even if you bought it from Staples, it appears to be a manufacturer's rebate and since the Easy Rebates don't require the UPC it is probably worth a shot.

It says it needs to be purchased from a participating retailer, which, one would assume, Staples is not.

If the Staples easy rebate comes within the 30 days that you need to submit this rebate by, it might be worth the .37 to see but I doubt it as well. I'm just barely paranoid enough that I would wait till the Staples rebate check clears before mailing it. 🙂

 

[Tiamat]

I hooked it up to my gf mother's computer. This replaced an old gateway 17" CRT. Its pretty nice, had a stuck blue subpixel on the left side. She only does email, and web browsing so its good enough for that. Dunno bout gaming and such.