Need to check my work laptop bookmarks etc. But don't get your hopes up - first blue laser optical drive prototype was built in 1989, i think. And it took so many years to create viable technology - bluray. When we first heard about 500+ Gb holographic discs? 15 years ago? Still not available. TFT LCD displays - same thing - 30+ years before affordable commercial solutions
Official CRT discussion thread! Post what CRT you have, debate the best CRT's you've seen, and the best CRT's available! I'll start off by saying the PVM-20L4 is one of the best CRT's ive seen, but the 20 inch screen is way too small, and as much as i love scanlines, they are a little too harsh on this in my opinion, and 480i sources are interlaced quite jaggedly. Also in terms of CRT who else finds it only possible to play in the dark? sunlight is a CRT's worst enemy. Are there like antiglare CRT covers you can buy? that'd be great.
You started a very similar thread yourself, just a few months ago: http://www.assemblergames.com/forums/showthread.php?51225-CRT-Discussion-thread
What can be played with direct sunlight? Nothing. That don't means that you need to play in the dark. Lamps will not interfere with any TV. Of course I like to play in the dark in a closed environment with nice sound and no external interferences, but saying that's only possible to play in the dark is silly. The bad thing about CRT is that the manufacturers were never clear about the capabilities of the tubes. Some of them said about 590 lines, etc. Sony said about 900 lines. Weird numbers that only a person with special hardware could verify. To make it easier, you have what, 5 types of tube? 1 - Conventional round tube (RF, Composite, S-Video, Component) 2 - Conventional flat tube (RF, Composite, S-Video, Component) 3 - Slim flat tube (RF, Composite, S-Video, Component) 4 - HD round tube (RF, Composite, S-Video, Component with progressive scan, HDMI) 5 - HD flat tube (RF, Composite, S-Video, Component with progressive scan, HDMI) You can't say that one is "better". Because any HD tube will be worst for 480i sources. But a slim tube is always the worst option, because of geometry and color issues.
For most gaming I use a 51" Samsung plasma and an XRGB-mini. But I use a 14" Sony BVM CRT on my workbench for testing stuff, and for certain games I like to sit down at my workbench and play there. The 14" size seems small but it's no problem when you sit in a chair close to it. Smaller CRTs usually have a better picture. Remember when you're only dealing with 480 lines spread over a larger physical space, it's bound to look worse than 480 lines spread over a smaller physical space.
You might want to see someone about that memory loss! Threads merged, anyway! p.s. Philips made allegedly adaptive televisions, whereby the screens would adjust if sunlight hit them. I doubt they worked!
A list of CRTs I own? Hmm. Off the top of my head: Mitsubishi 14" Multisync Monitor (PAL, monochrome, hercules, CGA, EGA, VGA) Sony PVM-1442QM 14" Sony PVM-2950QM 29" 2x Dell P1130 21" Hitachi CM771 19" Commodore 1084S 14" No-name "VM1400" amber monochrome 12" Also there's my PVM FAQ thread over hmyah: http://www.assemblergames.com/forums/showthread.php?47216-The-PVM-FAQ
You don't need to be in complete darkness to use a CRT. Direct sunlight can make it difficult to see the screen, but that's true of almost any display. A normal level of indoor lighting shouldn't affect CRT performance. Although, certain games - like survivial horror - are sometimes better played in the dark, because it adds to the atmosphere. One my CRT computer monitors came with a vinyl cover thing that attaches to the top and sides to reduce glare. I'm not sure where it is at the moment; I've never really needed to use it.
You just need a video signal with vertical lines and a magnifying glass. A video card at a high resolution displaying test images could be the signal source. "TV lines" is a function of dot pitch and vertical amplifier bandwidth. Not really, I suspect you're speaking specifically of CRT HDTVs, not the tubes in general. A HD CRT can be great at 480i or even 240p under the right circumstances, but they will look "different" in most cases. Usually their dot pitch is finer, and bandwidth much higher which leads to a very sharp "emulator" look. If a monitor isn't specifically designed with a 15 kHz mode the raster's focus can't be lowered to a point where the lines converge for 240p, so you get really prominent scanlines similar to those from "scanline generators" (IMO this is bad since it's inaccurate to the SDTV experience). If a monitor can be de-focused enough to converge, and the contrast overdriven to regain brightness, you could have an awesome 240p/480i picture on HD tubes. A ton of TV lines/extremely sharp game pixels. Sometimes though a lower dot pitch is a nice characteristic since it makes the experience more "analog". Since I like this look, my personal favorite combination are SD tubes paired with a HD chassis--arcade monitors. They're excellent through 31 kHz. Above that and you really need a finer pitch to discern small text, unfortunately. HD video still looks good.
ooooh whats the Sony PVM-2950QM 29" like? my 20 inch is fab, albeit a bit small for a REALLY engaging experience
Ive only got 2: a Sony FD Trinitron KV-40. Huge, and makes my Saturn games look sexy. and a Sony VPH-2020Q1 CRT projector, with an 80 inch Visionmax screen. Only used for when guests are over.
20" is a little small by current standards, but it's totally useable, even at a good distance. The nice thing about a 20" CRT is that it's about the biggest CRT that can be carried by one person. And they're still fucking heavy at that. Once you start to get into the 29"-32" range, you really need at least two people to move it. If you're like me and you end up moving around a lot, having a display that you can carry by yourself is an advantage. Another nice thing about a 20" display is that it's a good compromise between size and pixel density. Much larger and the pixels start to get pretty big, especially if you're playing an older console. I say "pixel", but that term doesn't really apply to CRTs. You know what I mean, though.
very true indeed... I never took into account the size of the monitor and the advantage of a smaller monitor. would it not be a bad idea having two monitors? 20 inch PVM for n64, snes, ps1, 29 inch for my Ps2, Gamecube, (and maybe wii u)?
PVMs take a beating over the years, but do they usually function well when buying? I'm considering getting one at some point over the next year but I kind of expect them to come with some problems being so old.
Thank you for the explanation. Yes, I was talking about TVs, not computer monitors. I'm thinking the "official way", I mean, the connections should be the supported by the manufacturer, so no VGA possibilities for anything older. I thought before about making/using a program that draw lines and shows numbers with different colors to try to obtain the information about the display. But seeing some infomation about how technicians calibrate theses displays, I believe that's already something that checks that on their laboratories, so if the "special hardware" already exists, it must be pretty accurate, with information regarding interlaced signals, geometry, maybe "anything" that exists for these calibrations/checks. They use so many things that I don't know about... They twist a screw and the thing is done! n.n Yeah, RGB is not something that I pursue. I'm biased to the "brand new" thing. And finding a brand new crt tv today is really hard. I bought one more last year, though. OCD, perhaps? =p And don't really like mods to add to that above. Even if they can bring really good things.
the pvm 20L4 was released in 2001/2 and a full service costs anywhere between 20-180 pounds (parts unincluded) should your TV be broken, or munted Mine came with less than 500 hours use just for perspective, and works perfectly, and it cost a mere 40 pounds
