Looking into 22" (20" viewable) CRTs to replace my dying 19"...

[Booty]

I want to keep it in the $500-600 range, if at all possible. Newegg has an iiyama that caught my eye, but I've also been looking at the Samsung 1100DF.

Any thoughts?

I don't want a flat panel because 1) desk space isn't an issue, 2) I game and want a larger screen because the monitor sits a little further away from me than on your average desk.

 

[Alptraum]

I would look at the Mitsu Diamond pro 2070u. I have an earlier model (the 2040u) and its a great monitor. I have the Sony G520p as well (though these seem just about impossible to get now) but its not quite as nice as the Mitsu. Heh, now that I have gotten my first LCD once I get my next one (213t) both of those CRTs are going though. I just don't like them anymore compared to LCD.

But if you were dead set on getting a CRT I would go Mitsu/NEC.

 

[Jadow]

NEC/Mitsu is the best

 

[yhelothar]

Get a shadowmask. AG on 21" have a lot of problems. I've owned 4 different P275 and 2 different Dell P1110, so I'm speaking from personal experience. 2070U has blurry text at anything greater than 60Hz @ 1600x1200. It also has a lot of dirt under the screen, as reported by many 2070U users here. So I say save yourself the hassle and get a Viewsonic G225 or Samsung1100df

 

[Alptraum]

Originally posted by: virtualgames0
Get a shadowmask. AG on 21" have a lot of problems. I've owned 4 different P275 and 2 different Dell P1110, so I'm speaking from personal experience. 2070U has blurry text at anything greater than 60Hz @ 1600x1200. It also has a lot of dirt under the screen, as reported by many 2070U users here. So I say save yourself the hassle and get a Viewsonic G225 or Samsung1100df

I read a lot of those dirt posts and that was weird. I have owned a number of Mitsu and one NEC monitors over the years (all 22"/21" with the exception of one 19") and never had any issues like that. Though since I have not purchased on in awhile maybe their QC is not so good. But I have never had any issues like that with mine. Nor on my Sony 21". AG has been fine for me at 21"+ sizes. I prefer it to SM quite abit as well. Of course now I prefer LCDs to both, heh.

 

[high]

my NEC 22" is killer. And yeah for Aperature Grill over SM forvibrance of colours, etc....

 

[yhelothar]

yep aperture grills are very vibrant, but they're blurry when you got the vibrance(brightness/contrast) cranked up, and it's hard to get the colors to line up perfectly(convergence)
My P275s are awesome(sharpness wise) when I have the brightness and contrast at 40 and 85 respectively, but they aren't much more vibrant than my shadowmasks at that setting.

 

[Bucksnort]

Originally posted by: virtualgames0
Get a shadowmask. AG on 21" have a lot of problems. I've owned 4 different P275 and 2 different Dell P1110, so I'm speaking from personal experience. 2070U has blurry text at anything greater than 60Hz @ 1600x1200. It also has a lot of dirt under the screen, as reported by many 2070U users here. So I say save yourself the hassle and get a Viewsonic G225 or Samsung1100df

You have no idea what you are talking about and it sounds like you dont know how to properly setup a monitor either. And yes I have a Mitsubishi.

[2070U has blurry text at anything greater than 60Hz @ 1600x1200]
Yea right, lol. It couldn't be your crappy video card heaven forbid.

 

[Alkali]

Originally posted by: Jadow
NEC/Mitsu is the best

ditto

see my sig

 

[Jadow]

I got the NEC FP1350X 22inch AG about 2 years ago and it rules. It's got DVI too! DVI on a CRT! It rawks!

 

[TimisoaraKill]

NEC/Mitsubishi Diamond Pro 2070u is a fantastic monitor , i have one @ work , i like Sony also but you can't beat the newer Nec/Mitsubishi .

 

[Wag]

I like my Philips 202p4, which was $450 shipped from Newegg.

 

[nRollo]

I have a NEC FE2111SB, I like it a lot. I have it set at 16X12X32, 85Hz right now, it is not blurry. For gaming it is teh roxor.

$579 at newegg

 

[LoneWolf1]

ViewSonic P220FB 22" PerfectFlat CRT Monitor

Specifications:
CRT Type: 22" (20.0" viewable) CRT, 90° deflection, PerfectFlat CRT
Dot Pitch: 0.25mm aperture grille [at center], 0.27mm aperture grille [at corner]
Max / Optimal resolution: 2048x1536 @ 68Hz / 1600x1200 @ 87Hz
Frequency / Bandwidth: fh: 30~110kHz; fv: 50~180Hz / 235MHz
Input Connectors: 15-pin mini D-sub, BNC x 5 (RGB HV)
Features: ARAG® screen treatment
Dimensions & Weight: 20.0" x 19.8" x 19.7" (WxHxD), 67.1 lbs

 

[Bucksnort]

Anyone else aware that Viewsonic does not manufacture their monitors? This below is from Channel marketing. Im not saying Viewsonic is not a good monitor of course, I just found it interesting. Also I was chatting with NEC tech support before I bought my Diamond Pro. I asked at the end if he had any tips for me before I bought it. He said the ultrabright modes are meant to be used judiciously on all the monitor brands now that are incorporating that feature. Overuse can shorten the monitors life expectancy.

[ Rush says several vendors win awards year after year, not so much because of their revolutionary products, but instead because of their channel sales, marketing and support programs. "These can make or break a company," she adds. In her opinion, Western Digital understands this. ViewSonic does, too. It, after all, is winning favor within the channel despite the fact that it doesn't even manufacture the products that bear its name.

There are four monitor manufacturers in the first rank--Hitachi, Mitsubishi, NEC, and Sony. All of the others, including some big names like Nokia, are a step behind the Big Four. One of the biggest names of all, Viewsonic, apparently doesn't actually manufacture monitors. They OEM them from various Pacific Rim sources, which means that we could each buy the same model of Viewsonic and find that the two monitors had actually been made by different manufacturers.]

 

[BenSkywalker]

NEC FP2141 or the Mitsu 2070(same monitor) if you can up your budget a little bit- best gaming monitor on the market hands down.

 

[Socio]

First,

I strongly suggest, regardless which monitor you go with that you make sure it can do at least 1920X1200 resolution. With HDTV coming in to its own now, Microsoft?s successful push for HD content on the PC and HD-DVD's just around the corner you are going to want to display some of this content on your PC, maybe not right away but I can guarantee eventually you will and you will need that high resolution to do it.

Second,

I would go with a widescreen monitor, it is much better for what I mentioned above and if you play games, most new games are being released with widescreen resolutions allowing you to see more of the game on your screen which really enhances the gameplay and gives you a bit of an advatage playing online ( easier to see enemy before they see you).

Third.

Here is one sweet deal on a Sony 24inch widescreen CRT monitor and it does a whole lot more than 1920X1200! I have one of these bad boys myself, this is probably the second best CRT monitor ever made, the first being an IBM T221 and it costs over 5 grand!

Sony GDM FW900


Unfortunately this is a refurb, but these monitors are hard to come by now because Sony just discontinued them along with there entire line of other CRT's in favor of LCD's. It is still worth checking out and as long as they give you a good warranty it is well worth considering.

 

[Wag]

That guy is ripping people off. You're not going to find a FW900 for less than $1500.

The Sony GDM-W900 is the older monitor you typically find refurbed. Nice monitor if you can find a decent one for around $700. Make sure you have lots of desk space- the thing is a tank!

I really like my Philips 202p4. Philips is a really underappreciated brand. For $450 I got a nice shadow-mask that's pretty much on-par with the more expensive NEC/Mits in picture quality.

 

[yhelothar]

2 out of 5 : "Sent me a broken Monitor, Replied to emails late, took a month to get a new monitor, sent me a worse one (atleast it works..for now), very unprofessional, stay away"
Date: 04/03/2004 Rated by Buyer: Steven G.
1 out of 5 : "not what i exspected"
Date: 03/26/2004 Rated by Buyer: Dennis J.
1 out of 5 : "Feb 1 ordered a "GDM-FW900", Feb 20 rcvd a damaged year 2000 "Sun GDM90W10". Shipper won't honor insurance & Seller won't rtn phone calls as of Mar 8. -- not happy!"
Date: 03/08/2004 Rated by Buyer: trjames
3 out of 5 : "Item was in slightly worse shape than described. Shipping too a long time (although it may have been the fault of the shipping company). E-mail responses were timely but extremely brief."
Date: 02/26/2004 Rated by Buyer: kalevala@earthlink.net
1 out of 5 : "An old, worn out computer monitor was advertised as "Like new," and now I'm having a very hard time trying to get a refund. A pretty sleazy way to do business. Stay away."
Date: 02/13/2004 Rated by Buyer: fires003



NUFF SAID!

Hitachi made some of the best monitors, too bad they discontinued their monitors when everyone flocked to aperture grills.

 

[Booty]

I'll check out some of the NEC/Mitsubishis this weekend - I've always heard good things about them. I'm probably honestly never going to run this thing about 1600x1200, so just as long as it stays sharp and crisp with a decent refresh rate at that resolution I'll be satisfied. I'm not the pickiest guy around when it comes to monitors, but if I'm going to spend the cash for a new one I might as well do it right.

 

[Socio]

Originally posted by: virtualgames0
2 out of 5 : "Sent me a broken Monitor, Replied to emails late, took a month to get a new monitor, sent me a worse one (atleast it works..for now), very unprofessional, stay away"
Date: 04/03/2004 Rated by Buyer: Steven G.
1 out of 5 : "not what i exspected"
Date: 03/26/2004 Rated by Buyer: Dennis J.
1 out of 5 : "Feb 1 ordered a "GDM-FW900", Feb 20 rcvd a damaged year 2000 "Sun GDM90W10". Shipper won't honor insurance & Seller won't rtn phone calls as of Mar 8. -- not happy!"
Date: 03/08/2004 Rated by Buyer: trjames
3 out of 5 : "Item was in slightly worse shape than described. Shipping too a long time (although it may have been the fault of the shipping company). E-mail responses were timely but extremely brief."
Date: 02/26/2004 Rated by Buyer: kalevala@earthlink.net
1 out of 5 : "An old, worn out computer monitor was advertised as "Like new," and now I'm having a very hard time trying to get a refund. A pretty sleazy way to do business. Stay away."
Date: 02/13/2004 Rated by Buyer: fires003

Whoops!

I did not even look at this sellers ratings, I never even new Amazon had seller ratings, looks kind of like the way EBay does it. and to think I almost bought that monitor my self!

Still if you can find a deal on one of the newer versions of the Sony GDM FW900 I would grab it, it is one sweet monitor. Sony just discontinued making this CRT along with the rest of their CRT line in favor of LCD so finding a new one is pretty hard now.

 

[yhelothar]

www.azatek.com sells a few 24" widescreen monitors for $500.. they aren't the GDMFW900 but the older version, that is only Vertically flat(meaning it curves out from left to right). I personally didn't have too good of an experience with their GRADE A monitors, which seemed more like GRADE B to me.

 

[BFG10K]

If you're going to go 21/22" make sure you can do 2048 x 1536 at a usable refresh rate.

Sadly the 21" Sony G520 is no longer available.

 

[hytek369]

Originally posted by: Alptraum
I would look at the Mitsu Diamond pro 2070u. I have an earlier model (the 2040u) and its a great monitor. I have the Sony G520p as well (though these seem just about impossible to get now) but its not quite as nice as the Mitsu. Heh, now that I have gotten my first LCD once I get my next one (213t) both of those CRTs are going though. I just don't like them anymore compared to LCD.

But if you were dead set on getting a CRT I would go Mitsu/NEC.

i agree, i had 2040u for a year and loved it. now i am running on the 2070u. both are great products and cheap.