Upcoming new monitor purchase, need some advice

I'm a gamer, going to build a new rig soon, and doing some research on pricing and such...

Monitors.... what are the pros and cons of going LCD over CRT?
I know LCD has a crisper display and much less weight, but they're alot more expensive, and I'm worried about ghosting and such.

The advantages for CRT... cheaper, bigger resolutions and size, no ghosting, but they're heavy and take up alot of desk space

So I need some advice... here are some of the monitors I'm considering

ViewSonic P225FB 22" Perfect Flat Monitor

NEC/MITSUBISHI FP2141SB-BK 22"

ViewSonic VP201s 20.1" LCD Monitor rather expensive

BenQ FP731 (Black) 17" LCD Monitor Its small compared to the others

Ghosting is not an issue with the 16ms and faster units. I have a 20" IBM Thinkvision L200P and the only drawbacks are that its picture is somewhat less vivid than my old Trinitron was, and like all LCDs, it has one native resolution (mine is a microscopic 1600x1200).

As far as those picks go, I'd get the Viewsonic LCD. Basically the same as mine, albeit less expensive. It will serve you quite well for all forms of gaming.

that BenQ will ghost, you need 16ms or faster like was ststed. Has anyone heard anything about that new 12ms BenQ 17"?

haven't seen it for sale yet.

Really, the CRTs are looking better and better, I can't ignore the fact that they have higher resolution, size, better dot pitch, AND they're $500 less.

Yes CRT's are better for gaming but LCD's are better for space. It all depends what you want to do. I dont like having a huge monitor in front of me... I think LCD is easier on the eyes but I do not do heavy gaming (I do play games but not hardcore).

dot pitch doesnt matter much on LCDs .267 is the standard more or less... look in the sticcky of what to look for in LCDs to know what you want, but CRTs offer better gaming monitors if u have the space.

if you dont mind some blurriness in motion video, then i would get an lcd. also read my PM.

Thanx for the PM... you're right Jo-Jo, the pros for CRT blow LCD away.

cool... if you need opinions on a montior, PM me.

Probably will get the NEC CRT, links in my first post.

awesome choice.

I'd suggest looking for a good refurbished or off lease trinitron monitor before shelling out for a new one. I got a 21" trinitron for a little over $200 and it's in mint condition.

What does it mean when they say "refurbished"?

Refurbished is when some nub returned it because he couldnt plug it in...(it happends) it broke(glass maybe,scratch,setting adjustment key didnt work,). BUT it was returned and fixed but since it was returned and it can no longer be sold as "NEW" it becomes "REFURBISHED" shouldnt be anything wrong..i mean monitors just normaly work,dont, or crap quality. So one from www.newegg.com or any other secure site SHOULD(sometimes refurbs can be bad but not normaly) be fine

Also i have a samsung 955DF i got it for 220 and its awsome, but i hear that the highest end samsung is the best.(Mine is .20 DP and dyna flat

refurb means anything...
anywhere from used, to reconditioned, remanufactured.

to be safe, i would buy it new. when a crt tube is defective, its defective. can they refurb ram or cpu? remember what i told you about holding value.

Jo-Jo would you mind sharing your PM with the community?

Nanidin said:

Jo-Jo would you mind sharing your PM with the community?

Click to expand...

please respect me, as i respect everyone here...

private message- non-public comunication.

mindwarp, i changed my mind...

i think if money we put money the money aside, i would have to say that the newer lcds are quite awesome. i was just at 'J and R computer world' and tested the response times on some of the latest 16ms lcd's. they are nice! and as far as the interpolated pixels, it isnt that bad... not as good as crt, but i think its fine considering all the pros for the lcd. now i didnt see or play a fast fps game on one, but i did see some avi and mpegs videos- and i was impressed, and very shocked. sorry for ignorantly expressing myself without really seeing whats out there.

my only 2 major problems with the lcd's were the native resolution and the ghosting effect. but later only applies to the older, first generation lcd's.

good luck on your purchase. i still think youll be happy with your final desicion, whichever model you select. if possible, try to view the montior, the actual display, before you buy it.

LoL, I find this interesting AND intregueing all at the same time. Too bad im just a little bit too late on this thread. Let me just tell you I have both the viewsonic p225fb and the viewsonic vp201s. My viewsonic 22 inch crt is just over a year old and my 21 inch lcd is just over a month old. First of all, The monitor I was using before my 22 inch crt was a 19 inch kds avitron. When I got the 22 inch crt, I noticed a definate difference in size (obviously) and alot more color depth. Upon further experience with my 22 inch, I noticed that in certain spots of the screen, my text was not sharp. It was noticeably blurry in the bottom right corner of the screen. No matter how much I tried to adjust this, I just couldnt sharpen the text enough to suit my 20x18 eyesight. Also, there wasnt any kind of factory option that I could find that would automatically set the tube to factory settings. Only one year has passed and now My monitor " I believe" is dying. It tries to go into sleep mode alot for a split second with a black screen and then pops out of it as quickly as it went in. I find that this is becoming more and more on a daily basis. Now for my vp201s, I hooked this "supposed 16ms monitor" up one day and got on my favorite first person shooter. I was not the deadly accused cheater I normally was. I started paying lots of attention to it and found that when I would move the video would blur unlike a crt. I also found that the video would jerk unlike a crt. I was also sick to my stomach to find out that if I turned around real fast, the video would RIP!!!!! I run top of the line equipment and my video card is no exception. ( herc. 9800xt) I decided to try yet ANOTHER first person shooter. Guess what? SAME RESULTS! Now im thinking I spent 1300 dollars for nothing! I hooked up both my 22 inch crt AND my vp201s in Unison for 2 weeks. My assumptions were correct. The LCD just couldnt cut the mustard. Its not fast enough! It rips, blurs and jerks when playing first person shooters. My crt was WAAAAY smoother hands down No denying it! 16ms? Maybe!..... Maybe a damn lie too! I bought this monitor because in the march edition of computer shoppers magazine there is a viewsonic ad thats STATES..... NO GHOSTING OR JERKING. Now Viewsonic will NOT refund my money. I will NEVER buy another Viewsonic product for the rest of my life. There is one last option with the lcd I can try. I have heard that the dvi cables are not very good and I need a HEAVY DUTY shielded one. I dont know if that would stop any ghosting or jerking but its possibly worth a shot. Whats 50 dollars when you just WASTED 1300??? If I were you or Anyone, I wouldnt buy any viewsonic. They Lie about response times, they lie in advertisements, and their warranty only replaces bad monitors with either repairing yours or refurbs. I will say this........................... My brother has a 21 inch Sony trinitron and I swear to you his has ALOT better picture than my crt..........


btw....................... vp201s compared to p225fb,........ the vp201s had alot crisper text and was brighter, but the crt had ALOT deeper RICHER colors..... ...................... depends on what the person likes.... DONT BUY VIEWSONIC!!!

If you go for the NEC FP2141 there are two holes on the side of the monitor to adjust the sharpness if by some chance you notice the blurry text at the edges of the screen. I am not sure if the Viewsonic CRT you listed has that option.