[H8R]

Ok, first off let me state that I am just too mentally burned out these days to do computer peripheral research. So don't flame me for not searching through hundreds pf posts to find what people are rockin these days.

So -

My old monitor is crapping out.

By old I mean....

well.....

It's a Sony G500.

Here's a review of this model from March 2000 -
http://www.thetechzone.com/reviews/monitors/sony/cpd-g500/index.shtml





So I need a new one. I want something in the 22" - 24" range. For about $200.00 or less.

You guys are the uber-nerds. Now it's time for Thunderdome of Geek Opinions. Tell me what to get. The person with the winning suggestion gets to live. All others die of shame.


GO!

 

[binary visions]

General purpose monitor? Gaming? Photos? All of the above?

 

[binary visions]

Also, the only reason I got rid of my Trinitron several years ago (and the monitor dated back to 1994) was because I moved and didn't want to haul such a giant piece of hardware. Go CRT

 

[H8R]

General purpose, graphic and photo work. No gaming other than maybe Scrabble.

Occasional dvd playback.


I'd keep the giant 80 pound crt but the picture looks like blurry washed out ass at this point. I might bring it to my shop and use it as a TV or something.

 

[narlus]

a few months ago i got a Dell 22" IPS panel monitor for $225 shipped. by far the cheapest IPS monitor i could find, and i really like it. but color accuracy probably isn't a major consideration for you?

 

[syadasti]

a few months ago i got a Dell 22" IPS panel monitor for $225 shipped. by far the cheapest IPS monitor i could find, and i really like it. but color accuracy probably isn't a major consideration for you?

For $200 more you can get a 32" IPS 1080p monitor/HDTV. I've heard of various gamers using them with PCs:

Amazon.com: LG 32LH30 32-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV, Gloss Black: Electronics@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41cvfIdj6HL.@@AMEPARAM@@41cvfIdj6HL

 

[crohnsy]

have you tried degaussing your crt?

 

[H8R]

have you tried degaussing your crt?

Oh yes, that fixes everything on CRT's that are over 10 years old that have seen constant use....

COME ON PEOPLE.

 

[Westy]

Have you tried squinting?

 

[syadasti]

Oh yes, that fixes everything on CRT's that are over 10 years old that have seen constant use....

COME ON PEOPLE.

I do know people who have done this. Make sure you use an electricians/insulated screwdriver though:

If you feel comfortable fiddling around inside a monitor (responsibility disclaimer here), you can try this:

Open it up, including the metal shielding. Find the "ultor" electrode connector on the conical part of the CRT (heavy wire going into a"suction cup" looking affair -- it'll have fine black dust all over it). Trace it back to the plastic object at the other end of the wire. That's the high-voltage transformer.

On the side of the HV transformer (probably the one facing towards the edge of the board) will be one (or possibly two) plastic shafts with screwdriver slots in the top. There will probably be something that looks like paint "gluing" them in place. Those are the focus adjustment(s). Now that you know where they are, you can probably put the metal shielding back together and get to the adjustments through holes in it (make them if you feel like it and they don't exist).

Fire up the monitor and arrange for it to show an image where sharpness would be evident. Let it run until it's good and warm -- thirty minutes, say (very slight changes inside the CRT due to thermal expansion can change the focus). *Slightly* twist the focus control for best overall sharpness (if there are two, the one labeled "1" is for the center of the screen and "2" is for the corners; work them alternately for best results). Don't worry about the paint on the shafts; the first twist will crack it loose, and you don't have to replace it with anything.

Sometimes, focus changes just due to the effect of age on the focus adjusters themselves.

You can do this with another person or in front of mirror to make it easier on checking adjustments.

 

[Ciaran]

Have you tried squinting?

He's old, he squints at everything.

 

[H8R]

Ok, does anyone want to actually make a suggestion other than "spend over twice what you budgeted for on something too big" or "stick a screwdriver in it"?

Looking at this Asus 23.6":
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236052

 

[H8R]

He's old, he squints at everything.

Shut up, kid.

 

[valve bouncer]

Ok, does anyone want to actually make a suggestion other than "spend over twice what you budgeted for on something too big" or "stick a screwdriver in it"?

Looking at this Asus 23.6":
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236052

I was looking at a 23" Samsung at the shop the other day, first Samsung product I've ever seen here. According to one of my students who works for Toshiba, Samsung's tech is as as good as anyones. Anyway, was around the $250 mark here, so knock 10-20% off for the US and you might have a goer?

 

[IH8Rice]

Samsung's tech is better than anyones.

fixed

 

[valve bouncer]

fixed

Ha. I'm sure you're well aware that no person in Japan will under any circumstances agree that anything Korean is better than anything Japanese but you're probably right. My student does speak highly of Samsung and he ought to know, he designs LCD panels. I've only specifically asked him about TVs but next time I see him I'll ask him about monitors. Not this week though, he's in Korea!

 

[binary visions]

Ok, does anyone want to actually make a suggestion other than "spend over twice what you budgeted for on something too big" or "stick a screwdriver in it"?

Looking at this Asus 23.6":
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236052

I think at that price point you're going to get a lot of generic TN panels and that's fine but there won't be a lot to choose between them.

I bought a 22" Gateway (the FPD2275W) at that price point, and it was pretty decent, nice inputs, nice on screen controls, and to be perfectly honest the appearing and disappearing capacitive buttons were neat. I also used, for a year, a 22" Samsung of the same price range. Which was also pretty decent.

You give up viewing angles and pure color accuracy but hey, it's a $200 monitor and you get a whole lot of screen real estate for that price.

I guess my point is, at this price point, you can over-analyze it. There are lots of decent displays out there. I like the looks of that Asus - nice and big with good resolution.

 

[IH8Rice]

Ha. I'm sure you're well aware that no person in Japan will under any circumstances agree that anything Korean is better than anything Japanese but you're probably right.

and thats why us Japanese are stubborn. after working for a Japanese company for 5 years and my father working for one for 40 years, we both can agree that the Japanese are stubborn when realizing that the Koreans are making a damn good panel at a damn good price

 

[Silver]

and thats why us Japanese are stubborn. after working for a Japanese company for 5 years and my father working for one for 40 years, we both can agree that the Japanese are stubborn when realizing that the Koreans are making a damn good panel at a damn good price

I find that incredibly funny, actually. The Koreans did to the Japanese what the Japanese did to the Americans.

 

[IH8Rice]

I find that incredibly funny, actually. The Koreans did to the Japanese what the Japanese did to the Americans.

well, not entirely...at least in this industry.

the Japanese essentially cornered the high end market when no one else was really making these types of products. whereas America had no company that did such a thing (in tv's of course.)

Koreans started making CRAP products at lower prices, then decided to buy the business away from all the Japanese companies by offering cash incentives to their respective dealers.
with the business shifted towards their product, they slowly started to release great products.

basically, the Koreans and Chinese killed my industry by offering stupid pricing. they were able to do this because the companies are partly owned by their respective countries, thus providing a huge influx of money into the company.

 

[H8R]

a few months ago i got a Dell 22" IPS panel monitor for $225 shipped. by far the cheapest IPS monitor i could find, and i really like it. but color accuracy probably isn't a major consideration for you?

Was this the 2209WA?

 

[narlus]

yes. very happy w/ it.

 

[H8R]

yes. very happy w/ it.

Ok, I might pull the trigger on that one if it goes back on sale.

How is the screen real estate? I am used to using a 4:3 20" CRT, so I am a bit concerned the overall height will seem lacking. (I'd lose about 1.25" of height)

Have you tried it in portrait mode?

 

[narlus]

i have not tried it in portrait mode, as i've got an older Viewsonic right next to it.

you will definitely lose a bit of vertical, as i think the resolution is something like 1680x1020?

 

[binary visions]

H8R, I went from a 19" 4:3 LCD (same screen size as your CRT) to a 20" 16:9 LCD.

The adjustment period was pretty brief. Realistically, the minor difference that was noticed in vertical viewing space was more than made up in what I consider to be a more natural, usable screen real estate (i.e. I can now place windows side-by-side, most of my browsing isn't done full-screen so I have viewing of things like chat or status windows off to the right, etc.)

Also, while you lose physical size, the actual loss will be dictated by what you're currently running for a resolution.

I have considered, off and on, getting a second monitor for editing portrait photos. I'll probably do it eventually but it's not a big priority at the moment.

 

[IH8Rice]

H8R, I went from a 19" 4:3 LCD (same screen size as your CRT) to a 20" 16:9 LCD.

did you go to a LCD tv or computer monitor? most computer monitors are really 16:10

 

[binary visions]

did you go to a LCD tv or computer monitor? most computer monitors are really 16:10

Yes, it's actually 16:10. I was using 16:9 more as a generic shorthand for "widescreen".

 

[IH8Rice]

Yes, it's actually 16:10. I was using 16:9 more as a generic shorthand for "widescreen".

gotcha

 

[H8R]

So it turns out the Sony G500 has a brightness blow-out problem that is ubiquitous -

http://www.fixya.com/support/t106443-sony_cpd_g500

I am going to attempt the fix.


In the meantime my limited research has landed me two choices:

Dell 2209WA (can be had under $250 on sale)
22" 1680 x 1050
e-IPS

or

NEC EA231WMi
23" 1920 x 1080
e-IPS

After using a CRT for so long I simply cannot stand most TN panels out there. I never realized how bad they were until I went out and looked at a few dozen. How do people look at these all day?

I'm inclined to save for the NEC.

 

[H8R]

Oh and every Samsung TN panel I looked at were the worst of all. Super washy and shifty.

 

[johnbryanpeters]

I'm still using a Samsung SyncMaster 950p on my desktop at home - everyplace else I have flat panels (Dell and HP). Color and effective resolution are just flat-assed better on the CRT and I hate the wide-aspect ratios on the flat panels. Eventually I will be forced to succumb.

 

[H8R]

Ok, I spent a few hours last night reading up. It's down to these three e-IPS offerings:


Dell 2209WA 22". Great reviews. In the outlet now for $199.00, although I've read the outlet monitors are a crap shoot. 3 year warranty though.

NEC EA231WMi 23". About $315.00 shipped. Very good reviews. Warranty is average 3 year parts/labor, no advance exchange like the Dell unless you pay extra.

Viewsonic VP2365wb 23". Around $315.00 as well. A few good reviews, but not much out there. Some reports of not-so-brightness, which is weird because it's supposed to be the same 23" panel as the NEC, which doesn't seem to have that issue as far as I've read. 3 year, zero bad pixel warranty is nice.

 

[IH8Rice]

Dell Ultrasharp ftw....love my 20" and 24"

 

[binary visions]

I don't see a great reason to pay a ~60% premium over the Dell to get the NEC...

 

[narlus]

i've been very happy w/ my Dell, and it's funny to throw an image from it to my old Viewsonic to see the difference in a complete A/B fashion. it's noticeable. and i though the Viewsonic was perfectly serviceable.

 

[H8R]

I don't see a great reason to pay a ~60% premium over the Dell to get the NEC...

Slightly larger screen, 1920x1080, (it might also serve as a 1080P HD monitor), integrated speakers/headphone jack, VGA, DVI and Displayport. 22" is plenty big but a 23" is closer to the vertical height I'm accustomed to.

Also, the 2209WA just jumped to $230.00 at the outlet, so the diff is smaller. If I keep my eyes peeled the NEC might go on sale somewhere low enough to jump on it.

If Dell made a 23" e-IPS at 1920x1080 they'd make a killing.

 

[H8R]

Either way I will be stoked to run one in profile mode. I can work on sleeve print designs @ 100%!

 

[H8R]

22" is plenty big but a 23" is closer to the vertical height I'm accustomed to.
.

I actually looked at this again, turns out a 22" @ 16:10 has a bit more vertical height than a 23" @ 16:9.

I went with the 2209WA from the outlet. $206.00 with coupon. (plus CA tax...grumble)

Quad core machine, Win 7 and an eIPS panel by next week.


Now to figure out how to put the Ubuntu box in the shop as a RIP station. Still trying to figure out how to make GIMP or Scribus do halftone output to Ghostscript. Win XP was a pain in the ass with native drivers. I swear the CUPS drivers were written by students at Hogwarts.

:headache:

 

[H8R]

Holy SH!T this monitor is rad.

 

[dump]

It's a Sony G500.

I used to have that monitor - remember paying around $500 for it in 2002(ish).