[Goldwaser]

This is, broadly, the situation at hand- I work at a small video studio by a dual screen system currently equipped with two 17" MAG monitors. lately one of them began to flicker and, obviously, wishing to replace it, i ran into a bit of a mess.
My questions are- should i buy a 19" screen? if so what brand? is there anything else i should take into consideration?
The budget at hand is about 550$, give or take, and the main feature i'm looking for in the screen is that it would not tire the eyes too much as I sometimes find myself doing twelve hours shifts (are LCDs recomended?). That and long durability.

[B0b]

what res are u running..

only 20" TFT's run @ 1600x1200+

19-17" only run 1280x1024 - 17-15" 1024x768

[Goldwaser]

Currently I'm working at 1024x768 but that's only for the better refresh rate (more than that and the refresh rate drops from 85hz to 70). Anyhow, I'm pretty sure i'll go for CRT, I've heard some bad things about TFT image quality. Also, is there any difference working with monitors of varied sizes and even resolutions?

[Riven]

Not all monitors are created equal, but if you do a little research, and stick to the respected brands (Sony, NEC, LaCie, Viewsonic, Samsung, etc.) you should do well. Try also to get a CRT with a flat screen (most of them are these days anyhow)

1024x768 is probably the highest resolution you want to go for a 17"
1280x1024 for 19"
1600x1200 for 22"+

You'll want to display the highest resolution your monitor can handle with a refresh rate of 85Hz +. This will ease eye strain if you are using the machine for long periods of time.

Though LCDs are becoming more and more affordable, colour correction and the fact that you can get a really nice CRT for the price of a mediocre LCD makes the choice still pretty clear.

For $550, you can certainly get a nice monitor. I've been super happy with my LaCie 19" Electron Blue http://www.lacie.com/products/product.htm?id=10037 and that will come in at around $379

[B0b]

lacie monitors are just re boxed mitsubishi tubes.. save some bucks and buy a mitsubishi if your looking @ lacie..

example -

LACIE ELECTRON 19 BLUE IV MONITOR �340.73
Viewable Size 18"
Device Type Display / CRT
Max Resolution 1920 x 1440 / 73 Hz
Dot Pitch / Pixel Pitch 0.24 mm

MITSUBISHI MONITOR 19 CRT PRO930SB BLACK 60000771 �270.23
Viewable Size 18"
Device Type Display / CRT
Max Resolution 1920 x 1440 / 73 Hz
Dot Pitch / Pixel Pitch 0.24 mm

refresh rates are different depenind on the person, but anything over 70Hz is acceptable for long exposure to screens, but remember no matter what refresh rate u run you have to have a 10 minute break away from it every 2hrs to exercise your eyes..

i used to run 1600x1200@70Hz on my old iiyama vision master pro back in '96, so 1024 on a 17" isn't the highest res for a 17"..

i currently run 1600x1200@75Hz on my 19" so again 1280x1024 (which isn't aspect ratio on most CRT's only on LCD's) isn't the highest res

and i'm running 1024@75Hz on my second display which is a 15" (until i get another 19")

for 22"+ i'd b looking @ res of 1920x1440@75Hz or more

[Drew]

[Goldwaser]

Thank you all for replying, i'll probably go for a Viewsonic 19", the 21" just seems overdoing it .

[B0b]

viewsonic P90f is like gold dust over here, but if u can grab one, they look the dogs and not too expensive either

[Goldwaser]

It's exactly what i had in mind, thanks B0b.

[B0b]

yeah its .24 dot, but it does 1600x1200@85hz!