CRT Monitors

[WaxHaX0rS]

I'm thinking about getting a CRT monitor to run dually with my LCD. The main reason is because the LCD is not perfect for gaming. It has good response time, but ghosting is slightly noticeable and the colors are not perfect. It's also annoying to be stuck in 1280x1024 without it having look crappy. It's also a 6-bit panel. I'm thinking maybe use the LCD for general use and the CRT for movies and gaming. Anyway, is there anything special to look for in CRT's? Or is it such an old technology that it doesn't really very a whole lot. Would I be fine just picking up someone's old used Dell on ebay? If I can get away with only spending $150 for a 21" Dell on ebay as opposed to a brand new one for $300, and there is very little difference, I would like to know. I tested games on amy dad's old 17" non-flat monitor that came with his Pentium II Dell and it looked much better than my LCD. So I'm thinking anything that's flat and remotely new would be just fine for me. I'm thinking of maybe getting a cheap used 21" Dell on eBay. Any suggestions?

 

[happy medium]

http://www.azatek.com/pricelist.asp?CID=59 Mabe you could try here.

 

[Thug Esquire]

I suggest getting a 20" flat-screen CRT.

 

[BillyBobJoel71]

get a crt ONLY if it is a high quality one, because alot of them are cheap and just plain suck. nice ones are very worth the money. however, i cannot stand looking a crt for a long time considering even 85 hz gives me eye strain, i have to constantly adjust the screen geometry and that the text is not a sharp. even though my lcd is not for gaming, it is a very nice Sony and looks beautiful. also, a crt that is 19 inches across may weigh over 60 pounds, and higher brightness and resolutions makes a more fuzzy image. if you run a 17 inch crt at 1280x1024, it should be fine. another note: only get flat screen crts!!! the curve is so annoying and distorts the image. crts also have a problem in which the screen might change size if you pull up a bright white screen after doing something that is darker. plus, they get really crappy over time and give so much damn heat. they also take 10 seconds to warm up and emit radiation (you can even hear the electron gun scanning.) only get a high quality crt for gaming, but use the lcd for text as you won't get as much eye strain, plus the contrast is way better on text. last note: an object moving across a black screen on a crt will have a ghost trail that may be twice as long as the object, while on an lcd no such thing occurs (although the edges of the object may look fuzzy).

 

[WaxHaX0rS]

So far I've got: get a good one, the sucky ones suck. Anyone know how to tell which are the sucky ones?

 

[fierydemise]

a good moniter would be anything made by NEC (not the accusync series) or anything ending in tron

 

[WaxHaX0rS]

Like Trinitron? Why not accusync, because it's not flat screen?

 

[fierydemise]

Trintron, diamondtron, ect. As for the accusync its low quality and lower Hz then other NEC moniters, just make sure to grab something with 85Hz at the resolution you plan to use day to day, you don't have to worry as much about the resolution you use for gaming but keep it above 75Hz just to be on the safe side.

 

[WaxHaX0rS]

I see a lot of these Sun Trinitron monitors and they are usually going cheap... why is that... is there anything wrong with them?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi...em&category=41807&item=5208414847&rd=1

 

[fierydemise]

link?

 

[WaxHaX0rS]

Yeah, there it is, sorry.

 

[fierydemise]

nothings wrong with it, its just not new although the low price does make me suspicious, check out azatek.com most of the moniters there are high quality and really cheap (just make sure its "grade A")

 

[CP5670]

Be very careful with NEC; this has been my experience so far with their top consumer CRT:
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=31&threadid=1616179&enterthread=y

Seems to be a recent phenomenon. My older monitor is an NEC 21" Accusync and it isn't nearly as good as one of these, but it works properly.

I see a lot of these Sun Trinitron monitors and they are usually going cheap... why is that... is there anything wrong with them?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi...em&category=41807&item=5208414847&rd=1

There are quite a few of those where I work; they look pretty bad with text at least and have refresh rates similar to that Accusync I have, but I'm not sure if they are any different from Sony branded ones.

 

[fierydemise]

You have a point quality control has gone downhill, my feeling is that with quality control as low as it is getting a refurbished moniters is just as if not less of a grab bag.

 

[ponyo]

Originally posted by: WaxHaX0rS
I see a lot of these Sun Trinitron monitors and they are usually going cheap... why is that... is there anything wrong with them?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi...em&category=41807&item=5208414847&rd=1

yeah, those monitors are older than dirt and probably grade B. CRT lose about 1/2 of their brightness and color after about 2-3 years depending on usage.

 

[EvilManagedCare]

I just picked up a 19" CRT from Samsung. I believe the model is the 997 DF. I'm happy with it. Nice, crisp picture. My only complaint is it's actually a tad bright, even when settings are adjusted to low brightness. Got it for $179 at Best Buy and it is a HUGE improvement over my 15" monitor.

 

[AnnoyedGrunt]

CRT quality has taken a dive since LCD's started getting less expensive.

CRT's have problems with clarity, geometry, and convergence.

If you can find a good one though, the color reproduction and contrast is outstanding, and you won't have ghosting or anything like that.

I would STRONGLY recommend buying a CRT from a local shop, and personally opening the one you will take home in the store and checking it out before you leave.

I went through 3 Viewsonic P95f+ monitors before I found one to my satisfaction. If I had ordered online I would have spent as much in shipping as I did for the monitor itself.

If you look at recent reviews of even the highest end monitors, you will see that getting a good one seems to be the "luck of the draw".

Even though I really like my CRT, I will probably not buy another one again. In some ways my 7 year old Iiyama is higher quality than my brand new Viewsonic (but too small unfortunately).

Anyhow, my only recommendation (and I think it is extremely important) is to check out the monitors in person and view the one you will be buying before taking it home.

-D'oh!