I'm looking to buy a new monitor but I'm really struggling to make any choises. I have been thinking about 16:9 LCDs, 21" CRTs (4:3) and basic 19" LCD... I'm looking to be spending around 300-500€ but can't decide what should I get.

What I want:
- good, fluent and fast LFS experience
- the display must be capabable of doing at least 1600x1200 on desktop with good quality (text writing, 3d-modeling, skinning and light picture editing. I watch some movies once in the while too...)
- no need for speakers/usb
- pivot feature would be nice

(I have a 7800GT graphics chip, so I can use the dvi connection...)

I will probably be using the display for years so I want something extraordinary

Any suggestions? I have been looking for a while but haven't yet found anything really interesting yet.

*goes to wait in the corner*

EDIT: didn't think 2/3 -screen solution...hmm, too expensive, I guess...

Generally 19" LCDs dont do 1600x1200, only 1280x1024. Dont get a CRT, I fell you will regret it unless you really do have the space. So that leaves you with widescreen LCDs (monitors are usually 16:10 format) or a 20" or larger LCD.

The issue with widescreen is with a 20" screen you're looking at 1680:1050 res I believe, which might be enough, I dont know. With a standard 4:3 20" LCD you get 1600x1200, but I'd say you'd probably be looking at around 500 euros (cant find euro button on this keyboard) for a new one.

So far my 2 candidates are Philips 190X5 (19") and LG L2000C-SF (20"). But I really need to look for more choises

So I'm thinking about a 20" but 19" isn't bad either. That LG L2000C-SF should be able to do 1600x1200 but I don't have yet found out if it is a good display for gaming...

And I think I just raised the max cost to 550€ (let's try to keep it under 600€ )

EDIT: for euro: press Alt Gr + e ?

Quote from Hyperactive :

So far my 2 candidates are Philips 190X5 (19") and LG L2000C-SF (20"). But I really need to look for more choises

So I'm thinking about a 20" but 19" isn't bad either. That LG L2000C-SF should be able to do 1600x1200 but I don't have yet found out if it is a good display for gaming...

And I think I just raised the max cost to 550€ (let's try to keep it under 600€ )

EDIT: for euro: press Alt Gr + e ?

One rule which i learnt from Deals On Wheels - Never go lower than you decide at first. Or in this case, stick to your first agreed budget... If you are not bothered about how much you spend, maybe look at a HD ready screen with TV capabilities... I saw a screenshot of one on another thread!

You can't do much better without your budget biting the bullet.

MONITOR!
HERE!
-> http://www.bdog.fi/cgi-bin/net ... te.pl?tuote=1081407300112

EDIT: And that's already 0.90 euros over your budget!

Find any LCD display that has a response time of 8ms or LESS, and then you're set. You might find that some are commonly around 12ms, but find the lowest you possibly can and you will have a great display with hardly any noticeable ghosting

And yes, find something that can reach 1600 x 1200 aswell. A 19" or higher screen should reach 1600 x 1200 no problems, otherwise having a 1280~ native or something is just crap.

Oh and chances are, 500 euros is the price you'll pay for the requirements you have in mind... possibly an even higher price.

Quote from Tweaker :

Find any LCD display that has a response time of 8ms or LESS, and then you're set. You might find that some are commonly around 12ms, but find the lowest you possibly can and you will have a great display with hardly any noticeable ghosting

And yes, find something that can reach 1600 x 1200 aswell. A 19" or higher screen should reach 1600 x 1200 no problems, otherwise having a 1280~ native or something is just crap.

Oh and chances are, 500 euros is the price you'll pay for the requirements you have in mind... possibly an even higher price.

Ehh... check my previous post?

Quote from spankmeyer :

You can't do much better without your budget biting the bullet.

MONITOR!
HERE!
-> http://www.bdog.fi/cgi-bin/net ... te.pl?tuote=1081407300112

EDIT: And that's already 0.90 euros over your budget!

But it's 523.60€ here

The upper limit is 600€ and that should cover all (posting, cables etc..)

Spankie, nice looking monitor, I need to "learn" more about it (but it fails to some degree: http://www.mikrobitti.fi/nettijatkot/2006/05/20litut/)


So no talks about 16:9 monitors yet? Should I just forget those and settle for a nice 20" 4:3 lcd?

I was looking at widescreen LCDs at one time. The Dell 2005fpw seemed the best bet, it can be had for about £300 in the UK if you know where to look, but in the end it looked a bit gimicky to me.

You get much better screen space with a conventional 20" 4:3 format, and the 16:9 screens have the disadvantage that some games/programs wont run in widescreen resolutions, however LFS does.

Quote from Hyperactive :

But it's 523.60€ here

The upper limit is 600€ and that should cover all (posting, cables etc..)

Spankie, nice looking monitor, I need to "learn" more about it (but it fails to some degree: http://www.mikrobitti.fi/nettijatkot/2006/05/20litut/)


So no talks about 16:9 monitors yet? Should I just forget those and settle for a nice 20" 4:3 lcd?

I was browsing for rack gear when I read your thread and that Samsung came up first from quick search. It's again one of these scenarios: cheap, fast, sharp - you can pick two qualities.

Quote from spankmeyer :

I was browsing for rack gear when I read your thread and that Samsung came up first from quick search. It's again one of these scenarios: cheap, fast, sharp - you can pick two qualities.

Hmm, what might I get if if I chose fast and sharp and for how much

EDIT: hmm, crt seems suddenly a lot safer option...
EDIT: anyone here who has this: http://www.viewsoniceurope.com ... ducts/LCDProf/VP2030b.htm or this: NEC 20WMGX2 (no link?)

Quote from spankmeyer :

Ehh... check my previous post?

I wasn't responding to your post, and whats wrong with mine??? That LCD is more than 500 isn't it?

Quote from Hyperactive :

Hmm, what might I get if if I chose fast and sharp and for how much

EDIT: hmm, crt seems suddenly a lot safer option...
EDIT: anyone here who has this: http://www.viewsoniceurope.com ... ducts/LCDProf/VP2030b.htm or this: NEC 20WMGX2 (no link?)

If price is an obstacle and you absolutely positively have to work and play with the same monitor, then you could say that CRT has some definite advantages; minimal ghosting, superior colour rendering and more flexible resolutions comes to mind.

I just bought one of these, very happy with it.

http://www.memoryexpress.com/i ... ayProductID=7671&SID=

I got a Compaq 22" CRT for Xmas, it will run at 2048x1536@75Hz, cost £750 new / €1100, but I got it for £100 2nd hand on ebay, 3 years old and in very good condition. If you have the space for a large CRT, don't buy new (no choice nowadays anyway), ebay is your friend.

So the ghosting will be a problem with an lcd monitor if my upper price limit is 600? Or the picture quality? (if it really takes it, I am willing to make it 700€, but not more. I would really not like to pay more for a monitor...)

As I said earlier, all I do is play [3d shooters and LFS], write, use some cad programs and do some light picture editing (skinning and some photos). Is it true that there is no decent lcd/tft monitor under 700€?

EDIT: And as you can see, I'm a bit confused as some tests say some monitors are good and in some other tests/comparisons they are last/worst...

Quote from Hyperactive :

So the ghosting will be a problem with an lcd monitor if my upper price limit is 600? Or the picture quality? (if it really takes it, I am willing to make it 700€, but not more. I would really not like to pay more for a monitor...)

As I said earlier, all I do is play [3d shooters and LFS], write, use some cad programs and do some light picture editing (skinning and some photos). Is it true that there is no decent lcd/tft monitor under 700€?

EDIT: And as you can see, I'm a bit confused as some tests say some monitors are good and in some other tests/comparisons they are last/worst...

600 euros will get you a really nice flattie, don't worry!

Good choices (cutting some corners):
-Samsung, Viewsonic, big brands etc. Good warranties, good panels, though ironically most brands use the same panel.
-under 10 ms latency (measuring methods vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, but nominally under 10 ms is good for even fast 3D-shooters).

It looks like I'm going with this: http://www.viewsoniceurope.com ... ducts/LCDProf/VP2030b.htm

I still have my suspicions but I just have to convince to myself that I won't buy a crt anymore

EDIT: And I just ordered it. And if I don't like it, you will hear it