LCD/Plasma/CRT/DLP - questions

[Concept]

Yeah, I thought exactly the same thing, and thought my screen was messed up I guess VGA will have to be the connection of choice for the 360, although I'm waiting until the official MS leads are available freely, at decent prices. And I'll have to stump up for a VGA switchbox.......

I agree - it's unthinkable now that Microsoft has put so much emphasis on high-definition connections that Sony won't offer component/VGA/(and possibly)HDMI connections straight from the off.

A switchbox is going to be a must next year. I guess VGA/HDMI will be the RGB of the next generation.

[themanwithapc]

I agree - it's unthinkable now that Microsoft has put so much emphasis on high-definition connections that Sony won't offer component/VGA/(and possibly)HDMI connections straight from the off.

A switchbox is going to be a must next year. I guess VGA/HDMI will be the RGB of the next generation.

Yup, I'm glad I didn't pass over the chance to have VGA in my TV and go for the Panny now. VGA seems like a godsend.

[demon9k]

In PGR3, a lot of it is solveable by turning the brightness down (which is what GAME did to an extent, but up close you could see it) - the problem is the game is actually darker by default than the 360 dashboard (haven't tried other games), so the settings have to be altered between the two.

There is an option in PGR3 to select what type of screen you are viewing the game on, have you seen that?

[themanwithapc]

There is an option in PGR3 to select what type of screen you are viewing the game on, have you seen that?

I remember that, but that just messes with your brightness settings as far as I can see.

[Baseley09]

Baseley09 - It does come across that way, and does feel like your jumping into the deep end at first... but once you cross over to the world of LCD/Plasma/DLP HD screens, you never look back. In fact, it makes a person particularly anal about their video/image quality.
My gran bought a gorgeous CRT TV last year, thought it was the most gorgeous picture ever and that nothing could possibly better it... but that's just because I didn't know what a truely crystal clear image looked like.

If you get a screen with decent RGB support (i.e something like the LG screens, not the Samsung), make sure it has HD-Ready certification, and make sure it has all the connections you want (VGA or DVI-I is essential for me, for example... but could be useless for others), then your sorted. It's simpler than it looks, cause you just get the screen to suit your needs. But I can see why it all feels a bit iffy at first.

For sure, I want it to be good and I want to be in.....I wouldnt want to knock anyone but this thread is interesting, it's starting to sound like a list of casualties for those that jumped in with low cost units in the wake of Xbox 360.

It's good to know that there are screens out there that have good RGB support, it was seeming a little strange that most units carried scart connections yet it was complained about quality wise left & right.

Is this progressive scan malarky any good? Is my DVD player over component w/prog scan gonna out do normal RGB scart? Ive never seen it, would like to be clued

[themanwithapc]

For sure, I want it to be good and I want to be in.....I wouldnt want to knock anyone but this thread is interesting, it's starting to sound like a list of casualties for those that jumped in with low cost units in the wake of Xbox 360.

It's good to know that there are screens out there that have good RGB support, it was seeming a little strange that most units carried scart connections yet it was complained about quality wise left & right.

Is this progressive scan malarky any good? Is my DVD player over component w/prog scan gonna out do normal RGB scart? Ive never seen it, would like to be clued

The nature of the internet means most of the time, you only see the bad things of a product. Hook up a 360 through component or VGA to one, and you will never want to go back to CRT using RGB scart. If you manage to get yourself a good upscaling DVD player like the Oppo, and watch your movies through that, I'm sure you'll really appreciate the difference.

LCD's do show up any shortcomings of a poor signal, so things like RGB won't be as good as your CRT, although I've found most things to be perfectly acceptable and watchable.

[Concept]

Despite the comments on the ghosting, I still wouldn't go back to standard definition. The increase in resolution and 16:9 size make a huge difference (this is my first widescreen set for personal gaming use).

I don't think standard definition will do many games justice (imagine the likes of MGS4: GotP, Team ICO's next work, Team Silent's next work, Capcom's output in 1280x720 with the hardware/texture work to properly exploit the increase in resolution). It's a salivating prospect, and I think that's why many others (and myself) have jumped on board... because the future is already here with the 360, and it'll only get better from here on in.

[Concept]

demon9k - cheers, I'll check that out.

[FelixofMars]

I notice most of these have DVI input for monitors, from what I can tell anyway?!

Does anyone have a good recommendation for a TV for PC gaming or a decent monitor that supports console gaming, I am not really fussed about TV input as long as I can hook up consoles/PC with decent res and refresh.

[Concept]

The LG I'm using has DVI, and comes with a DVI-to-DVI cable and a DVI-to-VGA cable out of the box. It also has HDMI for future-proofing for the storage formats in development (probably PS3 too).

The 26LX2R has a specific PC mode where you can refine the RGB signal over VGA, and it's pretty outstanding. I'm using it now to type this message.

[Dock]

I notice most of these have DVI input for monitors, from what I can tell anyway?!

Does anyone have a good recommendation for a TV for PC gaming or a decent monitor that supports console gaming, I am not really fussed about TV input as long as I can hook up consoles/PC with decent res and refresh.

Hey there My Samsung TV has HDMI, but I have a DVI-HDMI cable for my DVD player. I didn't have much joy with DVI from my PC, but apparently I was setting the wrong resolution. VGA input from the PC looks amazing though, and of course 720p from the xbox looks great.

What's your budget, and how big a TV do you want? LG (like the one in the office) and Samsung seem the most popular choices at the moment.

PS The Gold frog is best, followed by green frog. The order is printed on the back of the frog!

[mid]

Just for reference, according to The Guardian House Of Fraser might be worth a visit, TV buyers. Loewe make stunning TVs most of the time, so a 32" LCD model for ?1099 is a huge bargain. ?799 for a 23" Panny LCD is pretty good, too.

[sj33]

Is this progressive scan malarky any good? Is my DVD player over component w/prog scan gonna out do normal RGB scart? Ive never seen it, would like to be clued

I am not convinced true Progressive Scan is *that* much better than interlaced mode ran through a decent deinterlacer. A quick comparison with my LG running F-Zero GX in 480i over RGB showed the difference wasn't as profound as I was expecting.... it's the same resolution remember, so if the image is properly deinterlaced, the end result is going to be more down to how well the TV deals with the connection standard (and the Lg handles RGB very well).

In reference to DVD's specifically, most people will be satisified with 480i RGB if they just watch the odd film. Anyone who has huge collections of anime or something like I do might want to invest in something better.

[Dock]

The LG seems to be the best choice for current gen gamers, AFAICT, because of its great RGB input. The samsung I have has lousy RGB input, and I still can't get a good picture with my Sega Saturn even trying the XRGB2+ (it gives 'unsupported mode' error... waste of £100... ¬_¬). The Samsung is an amazing TV, but yes, it's crappy for old consoles and probably the most unfortunate thing about it.

[Concept]

That's why I'm keeping my old television for precisely that reason. Only next-gen games will take proper advantage of 720p native (or higher) sets.