Author Topic: CRT or LCD? (Read 2045 times)

republic · « **Reply #30 on:** January 08, 2007, 09:23:55 PM »

I have a 6ms Samsung Syncmaster 205BW. The 6ms produces very little blurring, usually the only time I ever notice is from something black to something very light...

No matter which LCD you get though, it will not seem as "fluid" as your CRT did. I don't notice it anymore, but when I do play on a CRT I'm left thinking "Boy...this is smooth". But the other benefits of LCD vastly outweigh that one small irritation.

Spatula · « **Reply #31 on:** January 08, 2007, 10:02:42 PM »

I was thinking about getting a LCD monitor sometime in the near future. Tell me if i get a LCD screen which has an 'optimum resolution' of 1280x1024 (like most 19" 3/4 screens), but ran AH at the lower res of 1024x768 (due to better framerates), would it not look as good as at its 'optimum resolution' or is that really only an issue for text etc???

CYLONN · « **Reply #32 on:** January 09, 2007, 12:40:36 AM »

Changing from a CRT to an LCD, I searched for many months before settling on the Samsung 931C, which replaces the 931BF.
It has great picture quality, no blurring and low 2ms respnse time.
This monitor is the official monitor of the World Cyber Games and once I tried it out, it was easy to see why.
It plays AH2 with no blurring, even in close combat. Takes a little bit for your eyes to make the adjustment to the difference in brightness and color vividness compared to a CRT.

Newegg sells this for under $300. Order by noon and pay $3.00 for rush order and receive it NEXT day, w/o paying extra for priority shipping.
If you've been skeptical up to now about switching from CRT, this is a very good monitor to take the plunge on.

Nomak · « **Reply #33 on:** January 09, 2007, 07:59:11 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Spatula
I was thinking about getting a LCD monitor sometime in the near future. Tell me if i get a LCD screen which has an 'optimum resolution' of 1280x1024 (like most 19" 3/4 screens), but ran AH at the lower res of 1024x768 (due to better framerates), would it not look as good as at its 'optimum resolution' or is that really only an issue for text etc???

No, it will not look as good. Whatever res LCD you buy plan on running things at that res.

Dont let that turn you off of LCD's though. Its worth the couple of bad LCD things to get all of the good LCD things.

republic · « **Reply #34 on:** January 09, 2007, 08:32:18 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Nomak
No, it will not look as good. Whatever res LCD you buy plan on running things at that res.

Dont let that turn you off of LCD's though. Its worth the couple of bad LCD things to get all of the good LCD things.

That is true. Sometimes a higher quality LCD can make lower resolutions look a little more appealing...but anything not native will always look "blurry".

Really AH should be able to run at high LCD resolutions with most any dedicated 3d card. But if your computer lacks the horsepower, you might could upgrade. If you have an AGP slot, a Geforce 6600GT or 7600GS might be the best 'bang for your buck'. If you have a PCI-Express slot, there are many many well priced cards to choose from.

The better field of view that a widescreen LCD offers, is amazing...once you go widescreen you can never go back.

Spatula · « **Reply #35 on:** January 09, 2007, 02:08:03 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by Nomak
No, it will not look as good. Whatever res LCD you buy plan on running things at that res.

Dont let that turn you off of LCD's though. Its worth the couple of bad LCD things to get all of the good LCD things.

How much worse will it look? If i was to buy a 19" LCD then i would have to upgrade my video card and/or CPU to get more framerates - or reduce the detail settings (....nooooooo...). Either that or get a 17" LCD which has a native 1024x768, but i really prefer my desktop being bigger than that, and dont want to have to replace it with 19 in 12 months.

republic · « **Reply #36 on:** January 09, 2007, 02:52:12 PM »

1024x780 will not look "horrible" sampled up to the 1280x1024, but it will not look near as good as a CRT at 1024x768. Basically like 'zooming in' on a digital picture.

Myself, I'd rather run the 19 inch at 1024x768 and make do until I eventually upgrade later, or make do with the occasional fps drop and run it at native 1280x1024. The difference between 17 and 19 doesn't sound much...but boy it sure does look nice. Better still, would be a widescreen...

Spatula · « **Reply #37 on:** January 09, 2007, 03:05:27 PM »

Yer, i def prefer a 19 over the 17... Might have to look at upgrading both the monitor and trying to get better FPS out of 1280x1024. Sigh... its never easy.

Brenjen · « **Reply #38 on:** January 10, 2007, 07:22:32 AM »

The worst thing I have found about the switch from CRT to LCD was my eyes. The LCD screen leaves my vision very blurry after a few hours, the CRT would cause them to burn after a long session but it's like they were trained to see that high speed refresh line that the cathode ray gun drew on the screen or something...it's weird & I can't explain it but the LCD does seem to have a negative effect on my vision for some reason & they are supposed to be better for your eyes lol

republic · « **Reply #39 on:** January 10, 2007, 08:38:25 AM »

Hmm, it's just the opposite for me. I have to spend most of my day in front of a computer screen, and after switching to LCD it was amazing relief! CRT's always seemed to go dark on me after a couple years of use, I just retired my first LCD after 5 years of great performance...only retired it because it's 15 inches were just too small.

But, if you are running the LCD at something under native, it can definitely make you feel like your going blind! lol Much like my LCD HDTV trying to display SD content. $:-\$

DAVENRINO · « **Reply #40 on:** January 13, 2007, 02:49:48 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by republic
SNIP-The better field of view that a widescreen LCD offers, is amazing...once you go widescreen you can never go back.

Sorry republic but I couldn't disagree more for AH. I played AH for 2 years on a 50" Panny 1280x720 display and the last 14 months on a 58" HP 1920x1080p. I use 1280x1024 because of AH's terrible field of view in a widescreen res. This has been previously discussed many times. The view is wider but chops off the top and bottom of your field of view. The bottom row of panel instruments is gone and you have to go to your fwd/up view much sooner. It is less problematic with a Track IR. I just bought a 19"1280x1024 LCD for my Guam rig and intentionally avoided 19" widescreens for nearly the same price. You need at least a 21" widescreen for the same real estate as a 19" 4:3.

All that said, AH looks AWESOME @ 1280x1024 on my 58" widescreen with my Hawaii rig:D

Skuzzy · « **Reply #41 on:** January 13, 2007, 03:05:14 PM »

The problem with the 16:9 aspect ratios and Aces High II has to do with field of view, as it pertains to DirectX. Most games use a 75 degree fielf od view (FOV). First person shooters are notorious for this.

It helps keep the frame rate up by cutting the distance shorter, faster for objects. To get to 16:9 aspect ratios, they simply switch to 90 degree FOV.

The wider the FOV, the father away the objects can be and still be detailed. Aces High uses a 90 degree FOV, by default. If you take it any wider, which you would have to do fir a 16:9 aspect ratio, then DirectX creates a fish bowl effect. It looks atrocious.
---

I detest LCD screens. They have yet to make one which can outperform a high end CRT. Unfortunately, you cannot get a high end CRT anymore. Damn shame too. I keep looking at the LCD crap and it is still crap. The best LCD models made are still far short of the quality of my CRT at home.

Now, I am pretty critical of monitors. I have seen what many consider good, and I consider it crap.

There is one thing an LCD cannot do that a CRT can. Produce precise color. It cannot be done on an LCD today. And it gets worse if you try it at different resolutions.

Brenjen · « **Reply #42 on:** January 13, 2007, 03:26:46 PM »

I use the digital vibrance on the rivatuner program, but I agree even with that the color is off & I can't seem to get it adjusted to be on par with the CRT, that & the slight blurring of names on fast moving ID tags are the two things I noticed the most with my LCD. Even being a 2ms response time unit it still blurs a bit. But all in all it's still not bad.

DAVENRINO · « **Reply #43 on:** January 13, 2007, 03:35:23 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by Skuzzy
The problem with the 16:9 aspect ratios and Aces High II has to do with field of view, as it pertains to DirectX. Most games use a 75 degree fielf od view (FOV). First person shooters are notorious for this.

It helps keep the frame rate up by cutting the distance shorter, faster for objects. To get to 16:9 aspect ratios, they simply switch to 90 degree FOV.

The wider the FOV, the father away the objects can be and still be detailed. Aces High uses a 90 degree FOV, by default. If you take it any wider, which you would have to do fir a 16:9 aspect ratio, then DirectX creates a fish bowl effect. It looks atrocious.
---

I detest LCD screens. They have yet to make one which can outperform a high end CRT. Unfortunately, you cannot get a high end CRT anymore. Damn shame too. I keep looking at the LCD crap and it is still crap. The best LCD models made are still far short of the quality of my CRT at home.

Now, I am pretty critical of monitors. I have seen what many consider good, and I consider it crap.

There is one thing an LCD cannot do that a CRT can. Produce precise color. It cannot be done on an LCD today. And it gets worse if you try it at different resolutions.

Skuzzy,
I remember your previous explanation of this subject. AH looks great on a widescreen as long as it is BIG enough.

There is some good info on widescreen gaming at this site-
http://forum.tigerdave.com/viewforum.php?f=1

I agree with you about CRT vs LCD. My 22" Mitsubishi in Guam died and I needed a cheap replacement that I could drag out there on the airplane. Besides I only play AH in Guam once a month at most.

I do love my DLP as a monitor. The colors are vibrant and accurate. This set has an advanced RGB color setting specifically for PC input through HDMI. BTW, (OT) we had a discussion when I got it about whether it would actually accept 1080p from future sources. It does. I use a 1080p upconverting Oppo DVD player and others are using 1080p Blue Ray and HD DVD players with this set. It was a gamble since this was the first set to accept 1080p through HDMI. I have had my PC connected through HDMI @ 1080p from day one.

StarOfAfrica2 · « **Reply #44 on:** January 14, 2007, 12:09:52 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by republic
Hmm, it's just the opposite for me. I have to spend most of my day in front of a computer screen, and after switching to LCD it was amazing relief! CRT's always seemed to go dark on me after a couple years of use, I just retired my first LCD after 5 years of great performance...only retired it because it's 15 inches were just too small.

But, if you are running the LCD at something under native, it can definitely make you feel like your going blind! lol Much like my LCD HDTV trying to display SD content. $:-\$

I have a 19" CRT at home on my computer. Cost me all of 119 bucks 4 years ago when my last 21" Sony died. As long as it keeps going it wont be replaced, and I'll shop for a used CRT before I'll buy an LCD for it. I have LCD's at work and half of them have died after just over a year of service. The power supplys fried on each and every one. Simple to get to and replace, but they dont sell them as replacement parts. Go buy a new monitor. Perhaps my stuff at work gets used a bit harder than home computers, but I have 2 there left that are still using CRTs, both of which are over 8 years old and run 24/7. One is starting to show some signs of burn-in, and will have to be replaced soon, but that one is the oldest and is 12 years old. Given my experience thus far, I dont see CRTs going away as a good thing.