Sijun Forums :: View topic - LCD or CTR? What do you use and what do you recommend?

Chris-Mayernik · Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2006 3:31 pm

I am currently using a sony trinitron multiscan 400ps and it's been broken for a while now, to the point where It's hard to tell the difference betweens values. Anyways I'm looking on getting a new monitor or lcd for digital painting and I wanted to know what you think I should get.
right now I'm looking at the dell Dell UltraSharp 1905FP 19-inch Flat Panel Monitor. I would really like to get a LCD so I can have space to put my wacom tablet on my small desk but if CTR is the way to go I wouldnt mind getting one. I'd say my price range is 400 dollars or less. Your thoughts?

B0b · Posted: Fri Feb 10, 2006 2:34 am

Formac 2010 - i see they run for about $410 in the US. i love mine its an amazing screen Smile

neff · Posted: Fri Feb 10, 2006 7:58 am

yehaw! today i joned the formac 2010 club too. its soo cool Very Happy

Brilliant Colors and good contrast.
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nafa · junior member Member # Joined: 01 Aug 2004 Posts: 47

I am using the Dell 1905FP to my regret. Its panel suports only 6 bit color depth so relying on dithering to simulate most of the 16.2 million colors claimed in its specification.

Go for one that supports 16.7 million colors if color accuracy is import to you.

Chris-Mayernik · Posted: Fri Feb 10, 2006 11:49 pm

Thanks for the replies. I really liked the dells cause they could swivel. I really want color accuracy and I'm glad you told me about the dell cause I was just about to buy one. The formac looks nice and you guys say its good so I'm going to look into that one more. maybe model a card board cut out of it and see how it looks on my desk... haha or not.

B0b · Posted: Sat Feb 11, 2006 3:29 pm

i've since put a black background behind the display to help with colour accuracy Smile

DJorgensen · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2006 1:03 am

I have a huge corner desk for my nice crts. I still use my NEC MultiSync FE990.
And I have a stack of other large crt monitors at my disposal if I need (comes from working in the computer industry).

I still have it in my head that lcd=no when it comes to good colors, all angles and no grain. I have seen a lot of new ones that are great, but I am not going to worry about it until I have the funds for something like that.

Hey B0b, what are the specs on that panel anyway?
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B0b · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2006 3:06 am

Formac Gallery� Xtreme� 2010

Native resolution 1,600 x 1,200
24-bit MVA Active Matrix display technology
20.1" viewable screen
300 nits brightness
700:1 contrast ratio
Ultra-wide viewing angle: 170� horizontal & vertical, 160� conical
12 ms pixel response (grey-to-grey) (trouble with manufacturers claiming response times is that they all choose different amounts of colour to measure to get the fastest time on paper)
Weight: Approx. 16,8 pounds (7.7 Kg)
Dimensions: 21.5" X 19" x 8.125" (W x H x D)

DJorgensen · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2006 4:00 am

hmm not too bad.
Response time really doesnt matter for artists.

Looks like a winner~
Hey does it have that gloss type screen like what sony has been doing?
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B0b · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2006 5:37 am

the anti-glare??

it has anti-glare i can't see any reflection in my display

blehblehbleh · junior member Member # Joined: 10 Mar 2004 Posts: 40

Get a TFT with (S-)IPS or MVA/PVA technology, not TN+Film.

B0b · Posted: Wed Mar 01, 2006 2:56 am

balistic · Posted: Wed Mar 01, 2006 7:04 am

It seems like that Formac display isn't being made anymore, is that right?
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brian.prince|light.comp.paint

B0b · Posted: Wed Mar 01, 2006 8:25 am

first i've heard..

buntaro · Posted: Sat Mar 18, 2006 9:10 am

I do professional graphic design work, (catalog photography and design), and although I use both LCDs and CRTs I rely on the CRT for critical color work, and I think most professional folks still do. The LCDs are getting much better, but even the wide viewing angle ones aren't as trustworthy in my opinion. The stuff I do is going to press, so color accuracy is vital, if you're not sending stuff to press an LCD could be fine.

Regards, Buntaro

B0b · Posted: Sat Mar 18, 2006 11:24 am

i'm a graphic designer and send stuff to press all the time, i also do photography which i edit on the Formac.. the formac is a true 24bit TFT or else i wouldn't have bought it.. in fact it has a better gamut range than my mitsubishi 19" 930SB..

balistic · Posted: Sat Mar 18, 2006 4:53 pm

The Formac definitely isn't sold anymore, at least in the US. Nothing on Froogle or ebay.
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B0b · Posted: Sun Mar 19, 2006 1:31 am

you've got 1 day 7 hrs to grab this one from ebay Canada Wink

http://cgi.ebay.ca/Formac-GALLERY-2010-PLATINUM-20-TFT-NEW_W0QQitemZ8778746122QQcategoryZ171QQssPageNameZWD4VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

i wonder why the rest of the world still sells them, but they're not available in the US.. have u tried contacting formac? www.formac.com

ebuyer.co.uk has 61 of them in stock atm - how about contacting ebuyer.com and asking them if they'll get one in?

buntaro · Posted: Mon Mar 20, 2006 7:37 am

BOb
I haven't used a Formac but the viewing angle color shifts, even in the wide angle LCDs, still make me nervous.

Buntaro

B0b · Posted: Mon Mar 20, 2006 8:44 am

ur safe upto 170deg with the formac Wink

wasssup · Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2006 8:16 pm

I got a Formac 2010, it's one of the best displays I've ever seen. Brilliant colour range and design. Adjustment options are a bit limited, but the colour is so good that there's no need to calibrate it manually really.

I just ordered a Dell 2405, have been reading reviews and stuff. People keep winging about the response time, nah, it's just 1/3 the price as a 23inch apple cinema display, I can live with it. Anyone has experience with Samsung displays? I've heard they are quite amazing.

balistic · Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 6:59 am

wasssup: make sure the Dell's got a true 8-bit panel, not one of their 6-bit dithery ones. I know the color depth varies by model with Dell.
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B0b · Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 8:04 am

the newer Dells seem to be ok

did i mention that Formac's displays are Pantone approved? Wink

neff · Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 1:53 pm

uhm, in germany you're still able to buy one formac Confused

Click
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rv_el · Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 11:07 pm

I'm looking to switch to LCD's too. I'm trying to find out as much information as i can, and as i go i see that there is no end to it! This 6/8/24 bit screen depth thing is new too me and nobody seems to point it out in their specs. I need the monitor to be good for digital art and game developement, yet at the same time i want a very large one that would be good for, well, anything else such as playing Xbox games.

I was wondering about Widescreen. Is there a way to crop the wacom tablet so that it works within the regular aspect ratio? Or is there a way to crop photoshop in? How does that work? is it pretty simple?

I'm taking my time with it, and so far i've been looking at the Samsung 32inch. But i'm wary of its resolution, plus the whole widescreen (non-standard) thing. Thats too much money to spend to mess up my artwork and setup Smile

.

B0b · Posted: Wed Mar 29, 2006 5:05 am

LCD TV isn't as clear as TFT Monitor - my coder has a 23" and the quality from his Laptop is pretty damn poor even HD ready LCD TV's have a max res of 1366x768.. thats pretty damn poor when you want to work at high res..

you can adjust the area covered by the wacom tablet in the control panel..

NeFF it seems that you can pretty much buy a Formac all over Europe.. its just the US that have the stock problem..

balistic · Posted: Wed Mar 29, 2006 7:23 am

rv_el: Viewsonic is notorious for not listing the bit-depth of their panels, because they use crappy 6-bit ones to improve their response times. If you look at the specs of a display and it says that it does 16.7 million colors, you're good to go. Avoid any that say 16.2 million, or that don't list their color depth at all.
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brian.prince|light.comp.paint

wasssup · Posted: Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:09 am

balistic, yeah as bob mentioned, the Dell's new screens seem doing pretty good in colour depth. The only problem with Dell is it doesn't support HD input. But since I won't use it as HDTV anyway, can't be bothered really.

rv_el, don't worry about the wide screen ratio. Wacom and Photoshop work fine on it. I'm using a Dell 24 inch wide screen as my primary display, it works pretty much like a dual-17inch-display set without the gap Smile

B0b · Posted: Wed Mar 29, 2006 2:49 pm

that'll be 17,18+19" TFT Wink

they all display 1280x1024 max Wink

its only until you get 20"+ that the res increases..

Mon · Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 12:24 am

I'm gonna buy the Formac now just becaause of you guys..!
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