PC Gaming & Home Theater???

[imported_Drychtnath]

Hello, first time poster here. I am a huge PC gamer. I reciently got a new PC with all the bells and wistles. (AMD 4,000+, 2GB corsair, SLI 2x nvidia 6800 GTs) and I am after a new monitor.

I am currently looking at the dell 2005FPW widescreen 20.1 inch monitor. However, I see this as a time to update my 12 year old television at the same time. Is it possible to buy a 42-50 inch HDTV plasma or LCD/DLP television and connect it to the PC via S-video out, AVG, or DVI?

Also, how will it look? If I am surfing the web, will all the icons look huge and fuzzy? Will the graphics on games look out dated and mis-shappen? Or will it look amazing while playing games? For example, will half-life 2 blow me away? Or is the monitor a much in picture quality?

I dont know what the 1080i or 1080p means or anything. And the HDTVs have resolution, I dont understand that either. I know on my computer the smaller the resolution the bigger my icons get. Some TVs have like 850x600 or something for resolution. Does that mean my icons will be the size of my head?

Thanks for the input guys.

 

[Matthias99]

Originally posted by: Drychtnath
Hello, first time poster here. I am a huge PC gamer. I reciently got a new PC with all the bells and wistles. (AMD 4,000+, 2GB corsair, SLI 2x nvidia 6800 GTs) and I am after a new monitor.

I am currently looking at the dell 2005FPW widescreen 20.1 inch monitor. However, I see this as a time to update my 12 year old television at the same time.

Is it possible to buy a 42-50 inch HDTV plasma or LCD/DLP television and connect it to the PC via S-video out, AVG (sic -- think you meant VGA), or DVI?

Yes (though it will look like crap), probably not, yes (assuming it has DVI/HDMI in, and it will not look like crap).

Also, how will it look? If I am surfing the web, will all the icons look huge and fuzzy? Will the graphics on games look out dated and mis-shappen? Or will it look amazing while playing games? For example, will half-life 2 blow me away? Or is the monitor a much in picture quality?

It will look like any other monitor with the same resolution as your HDTV. Be aware that many HDTVs will only accept inputs at 480p (640x480), 720 (1280x720), and 1080i (1920x1080), and some do not accept 720p!

Most LCD and plasma TVs with DVI input will also accept inputs at their native resolution, at least if you play with the timings and resolution settings a bit. AVSForum has a lot more information on this topic.

I dont know what the 1080i or 1080p means or anything.

They're HDTV resolutions.

480i = 640x480, interlaced (this is what SDTV is).
480p = 640x480, non-interlaced (ie, progressive scan).
720 = 1280x720, non-interlaced.
1080i = 1920x1080, interlaced.
"1080p" = 1920x1080, non-interlaced. This is not a "real" HDTV standard yet, and the only display I know of that can truly display this res natively is the Dell 2405FPW.

And the HDTVs have resolution, I dont understand that either. I know on my computer the smaller the resolution the bigger my icons get. Some TVs have like 850x600 or something for resolution. Does that mean my icons will be the size of my head?

The resolution is just like the resolution on a computer monitor. 😕 Your desktop will look just like you're running it at the same resolution on a computer monitor, but bigger. Most TVs have a VERY low dot pitch compared to computer monitors (e.g., most 40-50" plasmas are only ~1280x720 res, whereas a 17" LCD computer monitor would be 1280x1024), but are designed to be viewed from ~10-15 feet away.

I would suggest doing some searching/research, and/or checking out AVSForum. There is a lot of info out there on this stuff.

 

[imported_Drychtnath]

Hmm. I have been researching this for about a week now LOL. Would really like some more input.

 

[bob4432]

Originally posted by: Drychtnath
Hello, first time poster here. I am a huge PC gamer. I reciently got a new PC with all the bells and wistles. (AMD 4,000+, 2GB corsair, SLI 2x nvidia 6800 GTs) and I am after a new monitor.

I am currently looking at the dell 2005FPW widescreen 20.1 inch monitor. However, I see this as a time to update my 12 year old television at the same time. Is it possible to buy a 42-50 inch HDTV plasma or LCD/DLP television and connect it to the PC via S-video out, AVG, or DVI?

Also, how will it look? If I am surfing the web, will all the icons look huge and fuzzy? Will the graphics on games look out dated and mis-shappen? Or will it look amazing while playing games? For example, will half-life 2 blow me away? Or is the monitor a much in picture quality?

I dont know what the 1080i or 1080p means or anything. And the HDTVs have resolution, I dont understand that either. I know on my computer the smaller the resolution the bigger my icons get. Some TVs have like 850x600 or something for resolution. Does that mean my icons will be the size of my head?

Thanks for the input guys.

just out of curiosity, what did you pay for your rig?

what is your preference? do you want a plasma? or a t.v.? regardless make sure it has vga or dvi inputs.

 

[The Boston Dangler]

Panasonic makes quite a few HDTV's they say can be your monitor. I'd say it's a great second monitor. They have almost every plug you might need. Mitsubishi has Firewire. Panasonic has VGA and HDMI, which is second generation DVI. Different plug, but you can easily use an adaptor, since it's pin-compatible.

AVSforum and Keohi.com are great sources of info. Check their sites, and you can decipher this in no time:

I have a 43" Panny. I use 720p component inputs from my ATI AIW 9800pro. The vid card's DVI (primary) feeds the Samsung 172x 17" lcd monitor 1280 x 1024. Both look great, but each has it's place. Despite desktop overscan issues with the Panny, games, movies, videos, Winamp visuals all look great both. But largely text-based things like email and internet forums do better on the 17, due to the high rez.

 

[imported_Drychtnath]

I have been all over the AVS forum and can't find awnsers to what Im looking for. Basically, for pure hardcore gaming only, is a monitor a better bet then a 40-50 inch HDTV?

as for the PC, I dont remeber exactly, it was when the 5500 aurora had SLI option. They don't have that option anymore and have to go with the 7500 aurora. I think it was around $2,700 though.

 

[The Boston Dangler]

The monitor would be a little better all-around, but smaller. The HDTV would be slightly shabby, but BIG. If you connect a HDTV to the comp, be sure to check the manual for the manufacturer's stand on PC's. For example, Panasonic states my TV should be used with a computer. Many others say DO NOT connect a PC.

You can connect both easily a vid card with dual DVI outputs. I'm not familiar with SLI setups, but you shouldn't have problems.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

I have my computer connected to an Infocus 4805 projector and a 19" NEC monitor. My projector is only ED, but games and movies look amazing on it. For text, I really like my monitor. I really like having both connected.

If you have a budget for a big HD set, why not get the big set for gaming and such and also get a $250 or $300 CRT monitor and have both?

 

[Pr0d1gy]

You will most likely need to download the Powerstrip program if you get a non-monitor TV. You keep asking for more info, but the first person who responded told you pretty much everything you need to know. Figure out which TV you like best & then go to AVSforums & find the official thread for that particular HDTV. It should have pages of info from current owners of the TV & include some info on how to use your computer with the HDTV.