Looking for a big monitor.

[Monty]

I was looking to get a iiyama visionmaster pro 514, mainly because it can do 2048x1536 at 85hz , though through some research on it i found that quite a few people gave it bad reviews saying its got poor picture quality .

I was wondering if anyone has got one of these beasts and can tell whether this is true or not.

As for the main subject, anyone got some good suggestions (if the iiyama one is not so good) on a monitor to get, mainly for gaming (so not so keen on tft's). Since its a monitor and its gonna last quite a fews years prize is not a big issue, but obviously i aint dishing out a few grand for one .

Monty

 

[Guden Oden]

Dell 2405FPW... Only monitor I'd consider upgrading to myself.

 

[ANova]

Todays LCDs are more then adaquate for gaming as long as you get one with a 16ms or less response time.

My suggestions would be the Dell 2405FPW, Viewsonic VP231wb, or BenQ FP231W.

 

[BRiT]

Almost all CRTs will have pour picture quality when compared to an LCD for textual displays, such as emails, im-ing, web browsing, and message forums. It has to do with the analog video signal they use. The difference between DVI and Analog video sources for these is night and day. With that said, I absolutely love my Dell 2405. It is immaculate for day to day usage.

I have a 20" CRT Miro Pressview XL capable of doing 1800x1440 @ 80Hz. I don't use it at all. It has been replaced by the 2405 and my second monitor is a Planar 19" LCD.

 

[Monty]

whats the average lifespan of the 2405 (wouldnt want to spend that much money and have it die on me in a couple of years ), as i have heard tft's die fairly quickly compared to crt's, and then theres the chance of dead pixels.

and are there any upcoming upgrades for the 2405, gonna be a while before i get enough spare money to buy that.

and ofcourse, cheers for the suggestions

Monty

 

[Saem]

If you want it on the cheap and don't mind used, check out hospital radiology departments, they're huge, they're amazing quality, with BNC connectors, making them even hotter.

 

[zidane1strife]

Those lcds seem overpriced, a few more inches shouldn't cost $100s dollars.

My $229 lcd screen(19" 1280x1024), has better contrast(550:1), and faster response(8ms) than those.

 

[swaaye]

I have never personally seen a LCD that is brighter, sharper, and has equal or better contrast than my 2005FPW or 2405FPW. Got the 2005FPW for $500 and the 2405FPW for ~$800. You gotta watch for the coupons at fatwallet.com. It makes every laptop I've seen in the last few years (5-6 different ones), and the 19" NEC LCD we have at work look like pure shit. Sure there are probably better screens. But not a 24" for $800 or so.

2405FPW scored a 9/10 in Maximum PC's latest issue because of it's insanely low price for a 24" widescreen LCD, its 9-in-1 flash reader, 4 USB ports (actually the 2405 has a powered hub built in), and TONS of inputs (on the 2405: DVI, DSUB, Component, Composite, and SVideo.. It also has picture-in-picture so you can use it as a monitor and a TV at the same time. Split the screen in two or put one of the inputs in a small window. Tons of options. These Dell screens have retina-burning brightness. Seriously. I have to turn the brightness way down to not hurt my eyes! I put my old 19" Samsung Syncmaster CRT next to the 2005FPW when I got it and it was so awful in comparison...dark, blurry, washed out... that I couldn't use them together at all. Not to mention the convenience of the LCD size..

Dell's screens get my vote all the way.

 

[zidane1strife]

I have never personally seen a LCD that is brighter, sharper, and has equal or better contrast than my 2005FPW or 2405FPW. Got the 2005FPW for $500 and the 2405FPW for ~$800. You gotta watch for the coupons at fatwallet.com. It makes every laptop I've seen in the last few years (5-6 different ones), and the 19" NEC LCD we have at work look like pure shit. Sure there are probably better screens. But not a 24" for $800 or so.

2405FPW scored a 9/10 in Maximum PC's latest issue because of it's insanely low price for a 24" widescreen LCD, its 9-in-1 flash reader, 4 USB ports (actually the 2405 has a powered hub built in), and TONS of inputs (on the 2405: DVI, DSUB, Component, Composite, and SVideo.. It also has picture-in-picture so you can use it as a monitor and a TV at the same time. Split the screen in two or put one of the inputs in a small window. Tons of options. These Dell screens have retina-burning brightness. Seriously. I have to turn the brightness way down to not hurt my eyes! I put my old 19" Samsung Syncmaster CRT next to the 2005FPW when I got it and it was so awful in comparison...dark, blurry, washed out... that I couldn't use them together at all. Not to mention the convenience of the LCD size..

Interesting, I just glanced over the features and missed most of those. Such could justify the price, in comparison mine's pretty basic(only the reg connection, and built-in speakers.), but it suffices for gaming.

Dell's screens get my vote all the way.

Their high-end lcds, I doubt their bundled low-end stuff's anywhere decent.

 

[Skrying]

I personally have 4 Hyundai L90D+'s. I love them dearly. I personally when looking at LCD's didnt want a massive screen (reason why I didnt go with the Dell's) and the 19inch screen of the L90D+ is great for my business (and my home use). I pretty much love them, they look great.

 

[ANova]

whats the average lifespan of the 2405 (wouldnt want to spend that much money and have it die on me in a couple of years ), as i have heard tft's die fairly quickly compared to crt's, and then theres the chance of dead pixels.

LCDs actually last much longer then CRTs. Over time CRTs dim and become fuzzy, when that happens you might as well throw them away. LCDs also get dim over time as the fluorescent tubes wear out, these however can be replaced at much less cost and the picture will stay as sharp as the day you bought it. Not to mention the size of them in contrast to CRTs as well as the amount of money you would save on your electrical bills.

Of course LCDs do have their downside like everything else, primarily inferior contrast ratios to that of CRTs and the possibility of dead pixels. But to be honest, one or two dead pixels is hardly noticable out of some one million plus of them and most companies are willing to replace any monitor that has more then a certain amount. Dell is typically among the best regarding this.

 

[Saem]

You can have a crt serviced and they'll regain their clarity, AFAIK.

 

[nutball]

Dell are doing a deal on the 2005FP (the smaller brother of the 2405) at the moment, they're a smidge under £400. At that price, get two for the price of a 2405

 

[MuFu]

The 2005FPWs are awesome apart from the backlight bleed issue that plagues most examples of all three revisions (A00-A02, Mexico and UK). Mine's not a particularly bad example but it's going back - the bleed is really distracting when watching films in low lighting conditions.

Still, it's a hell of a deal for <£400 and you might get lucky.

 

[Monty]

2005fpw would be nice, but like i said, im looking for a BIG monitor, something i can watch films on as well, currently i have a 19inch dell crt so i want something much bigger than that. I may just go for this 2405fpw, perhaps it will go down in prize in the next couple of months .

Monty

 

[Reznor007]

You can have a crt serviced and they'll regain their clarity, AFAIK.

Yes, usually all that needs to be done is to replace a few electrolytic capacitors on the deflection board, and maybe adjust the focus knob(and once in a great while the convergence rings). I work as an arcade repair tech and have to do monitor repair all the time. I've seen 25 year old CRT's looking brand new with only $10 worth of parts and about 30 minutes of my time.

 

[PC-Engine]

Yes, usually all that needs to be done is to replace a few electrolytic capacitors on the deflection board, and maybe adjust the focus knob(and once in a great while the convergence rings). I work as an arcade repair tech and have to do monitor repair all the time. I've seen 25 year old CRT's looking brand new with only $10 worth of parts and about 30 minutes of my time.

Isn't the flyback pretty expensive?

 

[Guden Oden]

I've seen 25 year old CRT's looking brand new with only $10 worth of parts and about 30 minutes of my time.

How much of the user's time? A week total in the mail is probably not unrealistic, not to mention the hassle of packing it for transit (the original box for a large-screen CRT is just obnoxiously huge). Good luck even getting it to the post office by the way without a car, my 19incher weighs over 25 kilos for just the monitor itself. 24 inch, you're likely looking at 30-35...

CRTs are such stoneage tech, it really deserves to die.

 

[Gubbi]

How much of the user's time? A week total in the mail is probably not unrealistic, not to mention the hassle of packing it for transit (the original box for a large-screen CRT is just obnoxiously huge). Good luck even getting it to the post office by the way without a car, my 19incher weighs over 25 kilos for just the monitor itself. 24 inch, you're likely looking at 30-35...

My 22" weighs 42Kg, so definately not for lugging around.

CRTs are such stoneage tech, it really deserves to die.

Until something with similar image quality comes along they will live on, in a smaller and smaller niche though.

Cheers
Gubbi

 

[Monty]

looks like the 2405fpw is the only way too go.