24" Panel - Which of these 3:

[nightelph]

I've been researching panels for two weeks. I will be using it for PC gaming and PS3 gaming. So the BenQ with dual inputs is a plus.

PLANAR PX2411W (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824016092&Tpk=PLANAR%2bPX2411W)

ViewSonic VX2435WM (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824116079)

BenQ FP241VW (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824014133&Tpk=BenQ%2bFP241VW)

Personally I think all three cabinets are hideous, so its not a factor here. My PS3 comes tuesday and I'd like to make this purchase asap. I appreciate the info.

[nightelph]

Come on, I know you're out there! Ah well, I'm leaning towards the BenQ for the connectivity options.. damn its hideous.

[narcotis]

why not this one? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001234

It has a better responce time than any of the 3 you listed, ad is at least $100 less expensave than the others.

But on the other hand the ViewSonic is an actual 1080P which will be the moast benificial for a PS3, since it is a hi def device.

[PhysX]

benQ

[nightelph]

why not this one?

The Samsung 245BW would be the logical upgrade from my 226BW.. but I'm fed up with TN panels.

Thankx PhysX.

[Shiggity]

If you got extra cash to burn, the samsung 245T 24" LCD is pretty sweet.

http://www.anandtech.com/displays/showdoc.aspx?i=3221

But the BenQ is the best out of what you listed. +1

[Vengance_01]

You want this BenQ. It has perfect 1:1 mapping on the PS3 and XBOX 360.

BenQ G2400W http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824014158

[nightelph]

Dang, I guess I do want that one.. Is it a TN panel? For the price and viewing angles, thats what I'm led to believe.

[thideras]

Dang, I guess I do want that one.. Is it a TN panel? For the price and viewing angles, thats what I'm led to believe.I've read a few reviews, but no one seems to know. I'm sure it is comparing pictures to other non-tn panel monitors.

Even at that I'm going to be buying it shortly, it gets awesome reviews :)

[imposter]

I have heard good things from the BenQ. Might want to also check out the westinghouse 24inch, that thing is amazing. (if it works) =(.

[nightelph]

Yeah I'd looked at the westy, but the reviews weren't solid. I went through the whole dell 2407wfp-HC education process.. what a let down. I really love the connectivity on these, I don't want to have to buy an hdmi switchbox. Thanks guys, even if this Benq doesn't have the best colors I may invest in a calibrator.

[Thund3rball]

Nightelph, the BenQ you picked is probably the best panel for your needs and it is definitely a P-MVA. The G2400W mentined is a TN panel I can confirm, so go with your first choice :)

Edit: Oh and I always recomend a calibrator. Good plan :thup:

[nightelph]

Grr, I new it had to be a TN. Alright, 28" wide, fugly FP241VW here I come!

[nightelph]

BenQ FP241VW... Purchased!

[Thund3rball]

Nice, hope you enjoy it!

[nightelph]

YA, can't wait. Man talk about embracing function over fashion! I'm that kind of guy, tho so I'm sure I won't even notice it after a week or two..

[narcotis]

What is a TN panel, what does TN mean/

[thideras]

What is a TN panel, what does TN mean/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid_crystal_display#Twisted_nematic_.28TN.29

[nightelph]

Or for more practical information: TN panels are less costly to manufacture, and those savings are passed onto the consumer. They have fast response times, usually 2ms. The downside to all this is the viewing angles suck, and the colors aren't 'as good' as an mva or pva panel. I.E. on my Sammy 226bw (whoops, that got sold today!) if I lower my head three inches, the top quarter of the screen goes black. :( But if you just put it on your desk and look straight at it, well most people don't have a problem living with the incredible deal they got.

[Vio1]

i love my 24" dell.

[nightelph]

i love my 24" dell.

Which one do you have? The 2407 rev.X? or the newer -HC (ghostacular)? Sorry, I had been set on the new dell, and the more I read between this forum and on [H] I realized it'd be the wrong choice for me. :(

[nightelph]

The BenQ and PS3 came today.. Setup went fine. The Benq looks awesome. Right off the bat I can tell the colors look nicer. Runs HL2:E2 on max details full rez flawlessly. Response time isn't my old 2ms, but it still looks great, no regrets there. Starting to like the PS3 a lot. Blu-ray looks great! I recommend this monitor to all.

[Thund3rball]

Which one do you have? The 2407 rev.X? or the newer -HC (ghostacular)? Sorry, I had been set on the new dell, and the more I read between this forum and on [H] I realized it'd be the wrong choice for me. :(

Ya the 2407 rev A03 and A04 are fantastic screens. We have an A03 in our dept at work and my friend has an A04 with slightly better colour and of course 1:1 pixel mapping. But the -HC from what I know is a big disappointment. Really too bad cuz the the previous 2 models were so good :\

Glad you are likin the BenQ and PS3, sounds like a great setup :thup:

[nightelph]

Man my hands and back are sore from too much gaming!

Anyways an additional note on the BenQ: the brightness homogenity is not perfect. Its brighter at the four corners when the screen is mostly black.

Interestingly the change from a 19" 1280x1024 screen to a 22" 1680x1050 killed framerates. However the move to 1920x1200 did lower things a BIT, but not nearly as drastic. I'm referring to source based games but also DiRT which really taxes machines. I suppose this is where that 88gtx shines! I haven't tried crysis yet... :(

[Thund3rball]

Ah yes the only problem with such a nice big screen, pushing all those pixels. Hm do I smell 780i and SLI or maybe dual 3870x2 in your future? :drool:

[PhysX]

BenQ FP241VW... Purchased!

Excellent choice :)

[nightelph]

Hm do I smell 780i and SLI or maybe dual 3870x2 in your future? :drool:

HA, this computer was built last august, I don't want to get rid of a mobo that quick. The secondary x4 slot could be put to use I guess. Maybe another 88gtx! In all likelihood I'll get a geforce 9800gtx when they come out Q1 '09 [unconfirmed]. That'll show these pixels whose boss!

As a side note with the PS3 playing spiderman 3 I noticed it didn't take up the full screen. It was letterboxed but way more than the 110 pixels difference of 1200 vs 1080. Is this just the way the movie was made?

[Thund3rball]

Movie aspect ratios are all over the place. I don't have Spiderman 3 but I have 2 and I just randomly picked 2 other movies from my collection to give you an idea of the different aspect ratios.

In my image below, the black border is a 16:10 box that represents your monitor. The coloured boxes simulate the area on the screen that the movies would use, leaving the rest as the letterbox. Make sense?

http://img405.imageshack.us/img405/1997/aspectsau5.gif

So looking at these we see Spiderman 2 has an aspect ratio of 2.40:1 and leaves the largest letterbox on the screen. Night at the Museum uses more of the screen than the other two movies with its aspect ratio of 1.85:1. If you look through your collection you will see how much these aspect ratios can vary on movies.

[thideras]

Wow, I had no idea that different movies had different aspect ratios O.o

Is there any reason for that???

[Thund3rball]

Wow, I had no idea that different movies had different aspect ratios O.o

Is there any reason for that???

Basically it's up to either the director's preference or a characteristic of the equipment being used. Check out the wiki :)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspect_ratio_(image)

[nightelph]

Thanks thunderball. Spidey3 also has an aspect ration of 2.4:1, I had assumed every 1080p movie was done up in 16:9. Still looks great on the new screen! As for other Blu movies, so far all else I've got is Underworld. Hi-Def Digest (http://www.highdefdigest.com/) is a pretty good resource. They've got a forum and lists of all HD titles and ratings on audio, video, etc of each disc.

Does anyone know if a calibrator can fix brightness homogenity? Its a little brighter in the corners than it should.

[Thund3rball]

No a calibrator will not even out the backlight distribution on your screen. Backlight bleed, which is what you are seeing, is all too common on LCD panels. Some are definitely better than others. Usually the more you pay the better it is but that's not always the case.

[nightelph]

Yeah I didn't think it would. Wait, thats why they're called colorimeters! I suppose if I wasn't happy with the b-bleed on my BenQ I could return it for another.. but thats a real pita; the thing weighs like 30lbs. They only time I recognize it is when I switch inputs and theres nothing on the screen momentarily, then I forget about it.

[Thund3rball]

I wouldn't bother with the RMA if you only notice it when you switch inputs. Depending on how you have the settings, calibration may help a little with the bleed, basically by lowering your brightness if you have it set too high according to the sensor.

For instance my monitor can do 300cd/m2 but IMO that would cause my eye sockets to smoke and my corneas to burn out - LOL. When I did the calibration the sensor and software liked 190-200cd/m2 and that's what I got it at now. This is plenty bright enough even in a bright room, for me. And each panel is going to be different so maybe play with your settings and see if you can lessen the bleed. Just make note of your current settings before messing around ;)

[nightelph]

OK, thanks. I watched Underworld on BR last night. Its a pretty dark movie, and there were few spots I noticed it. I'll play around. Thanks again!