From CRT to Flatscreen

[Meian]

I've used a CRT monitor for years as I was informed they were better for quick paced gaming. Recently, I've been told that there are flatscreens that can replace my CRT for the same performance. Main reason I want to change is because the heat that my CRT monitor gives off is quite apprent...

I am a total newbie when it comes to monitors so are there any good monitors to transistion from CRT to flatscreen? Lets keep it at a nice price though

[Cephius]

What size monitor do you want? A 17 or 19 inch will be pretty cheap, a 20 or 22 widescreen will be in the 200-300 range, and 24+ are very expensive. The main thing you should look for in a gaming monitor is the response time. A higher response time can lead to ghosting in fast-moving games. Something around 2-5ms is what you should look for.

[Meian]

What size monitor do you want? A 17 or 19 inch will be pretty cheap, a 20 or 22 widescreen will be in the 200-300 range, and 24+ are very expensive. The main thing you should look for in a gaming monitor is the response time. A higher response time can lead to ghosting in fast-moving games. Something around 2-5ms is what you should look for.

I'd like to get the same size as the CRT monitor I have which I believe is 20 inches

[Cephius]

Well looking quick on newegg, this Acer and this Samsung seem like good deals. Acer models are ok and I really love the Samsung monitors I've owned.

[Reality]

CRT's generally go up to ~120hz which directly equates to your framerate in games, as a screen that refreshes at 120 times per second, means you will not see "Image Tearing" everytime the screen refreshes, vs an LCD which at most are going to be ~75hz (You can find 100hz LCD's, but they're very expensive), and most often than not 60hz. when a game is running at a higher framerate than your refresh rate, you'll see a tearing/flickering effect

also, CRT screens are better at displaying dark scenes, retaining image quality and colors when there are a lot of darks/blacks filling the scene, whereas LCD's suffer in dark scenes (image detail will generally be lost)

one thing to keep in mind about LCD refresh rate vs CRT refresh rate, is that the flickering/tearing you'll see on a CRT due to framerate being higher than refresh rate, is a bit different than what you'll see on an LCD

an LCD will "Ghost" the image more than flicker, though in a lot of games.. and I can't explain it, my 24" Soyo WS LCD will definitely have image flickering/tearing (half the screen will tear as the image is being displayed)

this effect isn't supposed to occur, or at least not noticably, on LCD's but I seem to have no problems seeing it. I also have no problems seeing the "Rainbow effect" on DLP televisions either, so maybe my eyes are different lol

[Epical]

We recently got this monitor in at work, and my god it looks beautiful (both the actually shell and image quality). It's a bit more for the 22" range (they have 22, 24, 25.5 inch models), but it's very, very nice. Should this monitor (LG 204WT) go belly up soon, that will be the one I get to place it.

[Reality]

We recently got this monitor in at work, and my god it looks beautiful (both the actually shell and image quality). It's a bit more for the 22" range (they have 22, 24, 25.5 inch models), but it's very, very nice. Should this monitor (LG 204WT) go belly up soon, that will be the one I get to place it.

no way i spend $299 for a 22" when you can get the 24" Soyo I'm using at office max for 279.99, which has the chance of being a SPVA panel rather than the crappy TN panel that 22" Samsung uses

some people prefer TN screens, but I think they're terrible looking

[Epical]

no way i spend $299 for a 22" when you can get the 24" Soyo I'm using at office max for 279.99, which has the chance of being a SPVA panel rather than the crappy TN panel that 22" Samsung uses

some people prefer TN screens, but I think they're terrible looking

That's cool and all, but last I checked this wasn't a thread about seeing which you personally would prefer. The OP said he's very limited in terms of LCD knowledge, so I threw a monitor at him because I have first hand experience with how nice it is. I'll keep in mind you like the 24" Soyos though!

[Isiolia]

Keep in mind that TN panels, while having a narrow viewing angle and poorer color reproduction, generally have the fastest response times (and the lowest prices). Since price and response time seem to be his main concerns, a TN panel would probably make sense.

I prefer non-TN panels as well, just sayin'.

[Meian]

CRT's generally go up to ~120hz which directly equates to your framerate in games, as a screen that refreshes at 120 times per second, means you will not see "Image Tearing" everytime the screen refreshes, vs an LCD which at most are going to be ~75hz (You can find 100hz LCD's, but they're very expensive), and most often than not 60hz. when a game is running at a higher framerate than your refresh rate, you'll see a tearing/flickering effect

also, CRT screens are better at displaying dark scenes, retaining image quality and colors when there are a lot of darks/blacks filling the scene, whereas LCD's suffer in dark scenes (image detail will generally be lost)

one thing to keep in mind about LCD refresh rate vs CRT refresh rate, is that the flickering/tearing you'll see on a CRT due to framerate being higher than refresh rate, is a bit different than what you'll see on an LCD

an LCD will "Ghost" the image more than flicker, though in a lot of games.. and I can't explain it, my 24" Soyo WS LCD will definitely have image flickering/tearing (half the screen will tear as the image is being displayed)

this effect isn't supposed to occur, or at least not noticably, on LCD's but I seem to have no problems seeing it. I also have no problems seeing the "Rainbow effect" on DLP televisions either, so maybe my eyes are different lol

In the end, CRT will outperform LCDs then?

[Reality]

In the end, CRT will outperform LCDs then?

for competitive gaming (tournaments), where 100+ frames/sec is required for precise mouse movement, CRT's are king, but if you're just wanting to play some casual PC games, LCD's are preferred IMO, especially considering that most prefer 16:10 aspect ratio, and 16:10 CRT's are expensive as bleep~

[Isiolia]

In the end, CRT will outperform LCDs then?

If you're an extremely competitive gamer, as in, if we cut you, you bleed Bawls...then yeah. Otherwise, nah.

Technically, it's the same thing with TVs. LCDs also can have input lag, especially if not being used in their native resolution. The fraction of a second delay can be noticeable to some people. That's why you'll see some TVs offer a "game mode" that tries to reduce this.

Generally speaking, the pros of LCDs outweigh the cons. Use less power, produce less heat, inflict less eyestrain, etc. Most LCDs now are perfectly able to do a 60fps display without ghosting, which is fine for nearly any gaming.