Hi all again,
Another query to pick your brains...
LCDs for graphic work, running a G5 twin 2.7 w/ GeForce 6800 Ultra 256, 2gb RAM (only).
30inches is out of the question due to costs.
Am looking @ 22 -24 inches and Dell is looking good.
ACDs are great but again, costly. My budget maxes out @ 1K. Any ideas? Any specials out there?

Cheaper screens have a viewing angle of below 170 which makes them not quite there for pro/semi pro use as I found in this great article from another post that describes LCD technology basically: http://www.lcdresource.com/lcdtech/

Very grateful to hear from you...

VB

Dell often does deals for their 24" display for $999. Sometimes even with additional things thrown in. In fact, that deal is on right now.

http://www1.ap.dell.com/content/prod...hs1&l=en&s=dhs

That would be my choice.

100% get the dell 24" or the 27" i'd still prefer the 24" because of all the inputs it has and its great viewing angle, contrast ratio etc. its a wonderfully made monitor.

Thought it was so... with gaming mouse and headset. Yet the stand-alone 24" is still @ 1199!
Do you use one?

I would buy one in a second if only I had the money.

Don't get a 22" or a 27" for graphics work - they have lower pixel densities. And since they are cheaper panels, one would assume that they have lower colour reproduction quality. I don't know if that's true or not... Either way, go for a 23/24".

Good point. Is there any reference out on the net somewhere that lets one look-up the panel model numbers used in various Dell (and other) monitors?

Cheers
Steffen.

forgie,

That's quite interesting info. Would you have a source? it would be good to post it if so, as the lcdresource page I mentioned. be interesting to find out for sure.

I'm also told that colour is no longer a big issue if you use a calibration tool. But hey, the price difference points to what you say.

I've read similar to what forgie has mentioned, in that 22"/27" panels are lower quality than 20"/24", and considering how cheap 22" screens are compared to 24" or even 20", it seems natural to assume they must be inferior in some way.

Anyway, check out this link:
http://www.pureoverclock.com/article641.html

if by "graphics work" you are referring to photography and image composition related jobs, there is only one choice: Eizo ColorEdge. The only LCDs on the planet with Adobe Colorspace certification, with integral 12-bit hardware calibration, and the only LCD screens that can match a CRT for gamut range and accuracy. They also have the widest viewing angle ever (almost as good as a CRT) and are also the only LCDs on the planet you can soft-proof from with accuracy. However, they are not cheap, with their flagship model bumping the A$14,000 mark, and their cheapest is A$5,800.

Next in line are CRTs. Take your pick, but get a trinitron-technology tube.

If you are insistent on a flat screen with the gamut accuracy of a CRT, but don't want an Eizo, either wait for Toshiba's SED screens or invest in a Bang & Olafsen high resolution plasma display ... but be prepared to hock the BMW.

After that, there's the AG Neovo X-series LCD screens. Optically bloomed crystal overlay, wide viewing angle, and a gamut that comes close to CRT. A no-dead-pixel guarantee and long warranty helps offset the high price tag.

Behind the AG Neovo are the Apple displays -- they too have a crystal overlay with an optical blooming layer for enhanced colour accuracy, but their actual LCD arrays are bog-standard (the same arrays are used in Dell and Philips panels, for the most part) so you will suffer the inevitable loss of accuracy at low lumency. LCD screens are not capable of a true black.


Brains

What you say is true Brains. However my budget is 1K this time. I currently use 2 21" trinitrons (CRT) and they are both heading the way of the Howard government. Both screens are so blurry that working is almost impossible. I can replace one with another CRT I have, but thought a TFT would go OK. It seems that the Analogue to DVI connection apparently causes some 'loss' and true digital works best for these machines. I have always preferred CRT/Trinitrons but cannot assume with confidence that these will work well on the system. Can you shed light?

If you've the desktop-space to support a pair of huge glass bottles, and feel better knowing they're accurate, then do so -- you can still source quality large-screen CRTs for reasonable prices, and yes you can use them on your existing G5, the 6800 should be able to push true 16.7 million colours to quite high resolutions. Newer CRTs have a tighter pitch-focus than old ones, but the phosphor would still be rated to 3 years of perfect accuracy, longer if you invest in a small suction-cup calibrator.

You won't notice any preceptible signal-differentiation or loss by using a simple DVI-to-SVGA adaptor, if you opt for a non-digital CRT.


B.

Don't forget the fact that CRTs are basically radiation guns pointing straight at your head. I used to get blurry vision and dizziness after using a 21" Trinitron CRT for more than an hour at a time. When I switched to LCD, I noticed that I no longer had the slightly disturbing side-effects while using my computer.

forgie and Brains
That's my concern at the moment - I do long (I mean long) shifts at the monitor, and CRTs, beautiful as they are seem to be a health risk. I now need (low-fi) glasses to see up close! It's just a shame LCD technology is so expensive. I suppose Trinitrons were expensive once also.
Best scenario is to run a 24" LCD for all major palette work and a CRT to confirm colours, if that is possible. Is it? Will the dual DVI inputs take a 24" LCD such as the Dell and a 21" CRT?
Thanks guys

tripwu is selling his 24" dell for $650 in the sales forum!!!