Sony Trinitrons

[I.M.O.G.]

If I can pick up a good trinitron for a good price I would like to.

What is the difference between different trinitron models? Is there much difference between trinitron models?

What other types of CRT's have a really good reputation - I know trinitron is a good buzz word to look for, but what else should I know?

What do you think of this monitor (http://www.azatek.com/details.asp?iid=429)? It also comes in white for cheaper. (http://www.azatek.com/details.asp?iid=482)

My birthday is coming up and I might ask for a monitor for it. Black would be ideal, but not mandatory.

I don't know much about CRT's and I don't see a guide like there is for LCD's. I know the smaller the aperture grill the better and the higher the refresh rate per resolution the better. Anything else I should know?

[teezer]

your eyes will thank you for a trinitron ~~~ bought my first one 5 years ago (p70, built feb. 1996 & still using it) after some searching and found out about the ibm p-series of trinitrons ~~~ supposedly it was the best that sony made, have 6 of them and nary a problem, and still am blown away by the colors and clarity at times

i set up the monitor placement first, the distance and height i think are critical, and in my case a 17" seems perfect @11" up and 23" away ~~~ i have a 20" and wasn't as comfortable overall, at least for me

btw ~~ when asked what should i buy? ~~i say, walk into a store that sells sony and a bunch of other brands that has a wall of tvs on and look for the best picture, and i bet you it says sony on it

[fac_29]

I agree. I have a Black 17" Dell Trinitron which i just picked up yesterday and its superb. Much better than my old Dell Philips monitor for picture quality, which in itself was a decent monitor. Not bad for a £40($70) refurb, and its only just over a year and a half old. Has a max res of 1600x1200 which it can do at 85hz, not bad at all for a 17". Does 150hz at lower resolutions. With it being black it goes so much better with my system...Black keyboard, black speakers, silver & black mouse and silver case. Looks so much nicer than my old white/beige monitor...

That 21" you posted looks very nice, and personally i'd have to go for the black but i dont think its worth that much more than the white one just because its black...A good max res for a 21" is 2048x1536 i'd say, the max on that is 1800x1440. If your never gonna be runnin at so high resolutions it doesnt really matter anyway and you'd probably pay a lot more for a quality monitor that can do that res.
It dont say what refresh rates it can do at different resolutions but if it can do 85hz at all res's i'd be very happy with it...I know a few ppl who have actually got higher than the actual rated refresh rates with their Trinitrons and had no problems.

Seein as you aint payin for it, go for the Black Dell Trinitron :D You wont regret it, they look so much cooler than the white ones :cool:
Unless anyone else can put you on to a better monitor for the same price range?

EDIT: As a side note i have to say i agree with Teezer. I have a 10 year old Sony TV and its still going strong where most other makes would have packed in by now, or at least had some problems. The picture quality and features on it are better than newer Tv's some of my mates have bought. They are renowned for their quality and reliability in the TV market, so i trust that extends to the monitor market too...What more could you ask for?

CUE: "Sony Monitor Horror Stories" :D

[DaddyB]

I would agree that the picture quality on a Trinitron is second to none but I will never buy anything with the sony name on it again, literally everything I have that was made by sony has broken or performs poorly. My Dell Trinitron is certainly flawless but Sony seems to have a bad quality control problem; many of their TVs/monitors have severe geometry problems.

After buying my Dell (w/Trintron) I was so impresed with the picture quality that I bought a 27" Trinitron Wega but it had bending in the top and bottom left side of the picture...after some debate I decided to keep it (not being the type to hassel around with warranties and returns if it can be avoided). After owning the TV for about 2 years I was watching it one night when the screen flashed bright blue and the picture cut out, still under warranty I had it repaired which took about 2 weeks and since then the geometry and focus of the entire screen is way off. A friend of mine (movax on the forums) bought a 19" Trinitron which also had geometry problems.

I was actually reading this forum to see if I could find any reccomendations on other monitors for my main rig. From what I gather viewsonic and NEC are good choices. For TVs I hear Toshiba is the way to go.

If you want something comparable to a trinitron make sure it's an aperture grille, make sure it has .27mm dot pitch or lower and perhaps most important make sure it will do a decent refresh rate at the res you will be using (and keep in mind that you may be using the monitor 5 years from now so the res you use may be higher by then). These are essentially the things that seperate the different models of all monitors.

I think I will be getting the Viewsonic P95F+B 19" but if you get a good Trinitron there is nothing better, unfortunetly it seems to me that getting a good one is luck of the draw.

[mrgreenjeans]

I ran a Sony CDB400 for 3 years untilI went LCD, and in those days it cost what an LCD does today. In fact I still use it in the shop for repairs, etc. I'd sell it but as you noted, the shipping would probably be more than the units worth as a resell. I highly recommend the monitors.
Secondly, i've got numerous Sony products and have never had problem with them above normal. And when I did, their warranty covered every issue. My TIVo crapped one evening and the next day I had a knowlegdeable tech on the phone who had it up and working within 15 minutes, and stayed on the line while he waited for me to undertake the tasks he recommended.
In general, if I purchase an item and it doesn't function correctly, I will immediately take action to correct it. With in 30 days I'll return it to the retailer and exchange. If your product wasn't working correctly when you got it and you took no action, why be surprised when it finally gives up. Complain as soon as you notice the problem. It's your right as a consumer. They're only rights if you chose to excersize them.

[SimGuy]

IMOG,

I picked up a used Dell P1110 from corporate-lease (Grade A) from a local distributer up here for $315.00 CDN.

Yes, it's beige and it's heavy (75 LBS), but it's leagues better than the old Invar Shadow Mask (ISM) monitor I had before.

Max resolution is 1800x1440 @ 60 Hz, but runs natively at 1600x1200@85Hz.

Based on the Sony Trinitron FD Aperture Grille tube, it offers a 0.24ag dot pitch and realistic colors (black is actually black, white is actually white).

Onscreen controls include adjustments for everything you can think of (geometry, convergence, color, etc..).

It supports dual Sub-D (15-pin) VGA inputs with a source selector switch on the front.

Driver support is included in Windows Me, 2000 & XP offering all supported refresh rates and resolutions.

I'm quite happy with this monitor, offering comperable performance to the best-in-the-world Sony GDM-F520 CRT (minus a few resolutions, the BNC input connector and the USB ports), at a fraction of the cost.

My only problem with it? I've got my old ISM monitor right next to it and any time I turn the ISM monitor on, the P1110 shakes all funny (due to EMI). Additionally, any time the monitor changes resolution or refresh rates, it takes upwards of 5-7 seconds before the change is completed. :)

Would I buy it again? Yes, in a heartbeat, especially considering the POS I had before. :)

[Oklahoma Wolf]

Sony's QC for CRT technology has varied a lot over the years... I have a 1986 vintage 27" TV from them that has a dying CRT with a terrible picture, yet the electronics are near bulletproof. Conversely, my main rig's monitor, a Sony made Dell P991 has a wonderful FD Trinitron CRT but the electronics are starting to glitch out at times. Not too big a deal for me - in my years as an electronics tech I've learned to accept some quirks with most Sony made stuff (and I can repair the big problems). My other rig also has a Sony made Dell - older than this one - also has a dying CRT with decent electronics.

Personally, I don't buy Sony unless it's a refurb or discounted to be more like the competition - the quality isn't there to justify the higher price tag to me. I've had to repair too much Sony stuff to be blinded by the brand name alone. My own preferred brands are Hitachi and Mitsubishi, both of which seem more consistantly reliable over the years than Sony.

[bdomz]

I also have a Dell P1110 and it's an great monitor. For reading text though I still prefer my 17" monitor at work. I don't know the 21" just seems too big in this regard and my eyes get tired much quicker. Doesnt really make sense I know. But for games and movies this is truly an awesome screen.

[twitch579]

i have a 21' sony Multiscan G500 that i picked up in the paper used for 185 buks, its about 2 years old and it rocks, i am firm believer in trintron technology , always have always been, i was originally looking for a dell trintron since my friend has a 19, but i stumbled upon the 21 inch monster and will never go smaller. I cant really explain the difference but its there, everything on a trintron display just look better!!!! I would highly recommend buying trintron. Most magazines like maximum pc rate the Sony F520 as the best monitor ever made hands down like 3 years in a row, and they gave it that award because of trintron quality, the same trintron quality thats found in all sony display's. I beleive if no my history correct, Sony won a award for the trintron design a while back, not really sure what medal it was but im sure u can find it. My advice, i wouldnt get anything else! Yes and they do weigh like 4 times as much as any other monitor, it took me and my friend to get this thing in the house.

[{PMS}fishy]

If you are looking for the same quality of the Sony, with out the price, look at the Mitsubishi tubes. They are the Diamondtron, how fitting.

[cack01]

I too have a 21' sony Multiscan G500. I got it as a refurb and its looked great for three years and counting. Sometimes it will give me a loud hum, but I really believe trinitrons are great monitors. I've taken girls out that weighed less than this monitor though. :)

[twitch579]

its also cool knowing that my monitor cost like over 1,000 dollars when it was new.. Like i ever could have afforded that!

[Oklahoma Wolf]

Originally posted by twitch579
Yes and they do weigh like 4 times as much as any other monitor, it took me and my friend to get this thing in the house.

If you think that's bad, come visit me and try hauling around my 27" Trinitron cabinet TV from '86 - weighs a good 200lbs easy :p

[robjen]

I believe that there are a few companies out there that use the sony guts and rebrand them. I beleive KDS Avitron is one of them