Sony PVM-20M2MDU

Sorry for the length of this post. If you just want the gist of it, head down to the bottom and you'll find a brief summary.

So I recently bought a Sony PVM-20M2MDU 20" CRT video monitor. It's the same line of monitors they used to use for professional video and broadcast setups, but this particular one was intended for medical use. I have a .pdf of a pamphlet for it, and it appears it was supposed to be used with microscopes and endoscopes. It's a fairly new model - 2001.

Getting this thing to my house was a bit of an ordeal. Since this thing weighs a ton, shipping for it was really expensive, almost as much as the monitor itself.

The guy I bought it from was not very smart in that he did not pack it worth a shit. He put a thin layer of bubble wrap around it and a flimsy cardboard box. I don't know what he was thinking. As you might expect, it was pretty much destroyed in transit. There were several large dents in the chassis, and the power button had apparently fallen out, so it was useless.

After getting a bit pissed at the seller, he agreed to send me another one, since he had 3. It apparently cost a lot more to send the second one. This time he actually packed it well, with lots of thick styrofoam all around it. It arrived in very good condition, with no visible damage. There are a couple little marks on the front, but that's really not a big deal. Overall, very nice condition. The whole thing was a little infuriating, but he made it right so it's all good I guess. He likely took a loss from the whole transaction.

So, my impressions of the monitor itself:

Fucking amazing. This is the best image quality I've ever seen on a CRT. Everything is clear and crisp, and with vivid colors. One thing I like about CRTs is the kind of glow they have, unlike the glow of an LCD. This thing is huge, too. It's like a giant microwave oven - a cube, basically.

Most CRT's have sort of a downward curve towards the back. PVMs, for the most part, are cubes. You could put tons of stuff on top of it, if you wanted. It's a fairly attractive device, too. A solid beige, like old PCs. You don't find many TVs in that color. And it has lots of cool buttons and dials on the front. A real professional piece of equipment.

Right now, I've mainly been playing PS2 and Wii (Gamecube) on it, because it accepts component input. By the way, it has inputs for composite, S-Video, RGB, and component. I bought it with the intent of connecting old consoles to it via RGB, but I'm having difficulty building the cable necessary for that.

So I've noticed that the PS2 seems to look better than the Gamecube over component. I think it probably has something to do with the fact that a lot of the PS2 games I have don't use antialiasing, whereas most GC games do. So edges look super sharp on PS2 games - like an arcade game, but even better. PS2 and Gamecube games on this thing look like VGA, except for the fact that they're interlaced. And like I implied before, this thing looks better than any PC monitor I've ever used.

My Wondermega also looks amazing over S-video. If I didn't know any better, I would swear it looks just like RGB. My N64 looks pretty good over S-video too. Not nearly as good as the Wondermega, but it still looks better than anything I've ever seen an N64 do before.

I eagerly await the day I finish the SCART to BNC adapter I'm making. In the process of building it, I destroyed several female SCART connectors. I'm out now, so I had to order new ones. They'll probably be here in a week or two.

In the meantime, I may try to see if it's possible to salvage what I have. I was basically finished with this one connector, and then one of the pins broke off. So infuriating. I have no doubt that when it's finally finished, my Super Famicom and Saturn are going to look great on it.

It's really cool playing my other systems on it. In my opinion, this is the absolute ideal way to play older videogames. If you really care about getting a quality video signal out of your consoles, it really doesn't get any better than this. I had very high expectations before getting it, and it has exceeded them by a long shot.

Brief Summary: I just bought a Sony PVM-20M2MDU 20" CRT video monitor. It's a beige, cubed shaped medical monitor. The first one got destroyed in transit, so the guy sent another one. I absolutely love it. The picture quality is the best I've ever seen on a CRT. I've tried PS2 and Wii (Gamecube) on it via component. I'm in the process of building a SCART to BNC cable, but I've had some difficulty. I can't wait to see what RGB will look like.

Pictures (they really don't do it justice):

 

Seems neat, I'd like to have one of those. By the way man, 100 pounds isn't heavy, haha. I've been drunk and carried a girl that weighed around 130 up my stairs, to my place, to my bed. So yeah, but I guess I had a bit extra motivation, haha.

 

It's heavy, trust me. I haven't weighed it so I don't know exactly how heavy, but it's definitely heavy.

 

I want one to pair with my PS2. Very nice image there..

Are you in the UK or not? More impacting if you're in the US. Must be hard living without RGB..

 

Nothing beats CRT. :thumbsup:

 

I want one! How much should I expect to pay for the 20"?

 

Yeah, I'm in the US. I bought this monitor for the RGB, basically.

Exactly.

I paid $75 for it, but the shipping was $50. You might be able to find one for less, especially if you live in an area that has a lot of them.

 

I wouldnt mind one from 125$, those things look great.

 

$125 is a fine price including shipping, especially if it's in good nick (a lot of PVMs have seen harsh use and have problems). Mine was £50 I think, but I had to collect, which added at least another £20 in fuel (it was a couple of hours drive away, it was an excuse to visit a mate though).

And shit yeah, are they ever heavy. I went for a 27" one, it weighs a fucking tonne. I can just about lift it floor to table on my own, any further and it's a two-man job. Thankfully the bigger ones come with handles top and bottom. I can't understand why normal CRTs didn't come with handles, I guess it's an aesthetics thing but it doesn't half make moving them around easier.

I'm guessing it doesn't support 480p component? I haven't heard of a PVM that does yet (or anything above 480i, for that matter) , but it's not like I'm an expert. Mine doesn't do component at all, which is a shame, but on the up side it does have regular SCART sockets which make RGB so much simpler.

 

I said I was drunk, and she was willing. I don't black out from alcohol, I just get loosened up and a bit more laid back and goofy.

I tend to be romantic when it comes to carrying women, lol, but she must be an idiot for letting a drunk guy carry her.

 

My god that is beautiful. The pictures can't possibly do it justice but it still looks amazing. Been looking for something like this for some time now, CRTs scale resolutions far better than LCDs do given native resolution bits.

Even one on eBay right now nearby (in state but still) for a bit over $100 shipped...

 

Aw, man... I just realized I hit 2K 30 posts ago and I forgot to commemorate it. Oh well, better late than never... WOOOOOO!!! :cur_sonic::mario::flamethrower::evil::Rock: :luigi: :033:

Edit: Also, I finished the SCART side of the cable I'm building. I tried to solder the BNC connectors I had, but found that it was just too difficult. I'll probably buy some RCA connectors tomorrow and then use the RCA to BNC adapters I have.

 

These monitors are great. Once you've seen one in action, you wouldn't want anything less really. It's good to do your homework before purchasing, as some models are +20 years old now and have probably seen a hard life.

I wouldn't mind one of those 'BVM' studio grade ones, like >>this<< ray:
The last time I checked I think they were going for around GBP£5,000 !!! :-0

 

Yeah, I'm sure I'm not the only one keeping an eye out waiting for BVMs to drop in price

People still want big money for the decent sized ones, though (you can find the dinky little 9" or 14" ones for realistic price ranges on ebay or tv-bay, but who cares about those)...

 

Schools that offer courses in Video or TV Editing probably have some of these monitors and will part with them for cheap.

I'm sure there were several of these Sony monitors at our editing stations. Small ones, too.

In deplorable shape, though, if I remember.

 

Pimp.

 

That's probably true. I actually go to such a school, but I never bothered to ask about that. Oh well, I doubt the ones they have are are as nice as this one anyway.

Alchy: Tell me more about BVMs. Are they just HD widescreen PVMs? Are they actually CRTs?

I finished my SCART to BNC (actually RCA, now) cable. I was worried at first because I was getting a fuzzy, distorted picture, and then I realized that the cables I was using use composite video for sync. Luckily I have one that uses pure sync, but it has no grounding for audio. So I guess I'll have to do a little modding... :evil: