SiphonX

Birthday just passed... I got a whole bunch of money now to buy electronic goodies. On the list...new mouse/kb, speakers, games, and ATI 'fix card. I'm confused about the monitor though, right now i'm using a 17" CRT Flat Screen, it looks fine, and does it's job, but it's pretty damn bulky and doesn't really match my room too well w/ it's protruding ass. I'd like to buy an LCD but I hear games look like shit on those, is this true? Does anyone have screenshots er something?? Also worried about dead pixels...if i'm dishing out 500 bucks, I'll be really pissed if it's not perfect , thoughts? opinions? thanks.

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meff

Depends on which type of LCD you get..

When I used to have my Dell 8200 with the UXGA screen, games looked fine to me.

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messy

I've been wondering about this also. I hear that it's more of a matter of the LCD refresh rate. They typically can't refresh the images fast enough to keep up with the current fast paced games, so they tend to look a little "jumpy"

I'm sure someone here can shed some light on this. I'm dying to get my hands on a 18" or 19" LCD.

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Ganguro

dont bother.. seriously.. i work with consumer and industrial grade display systems from plasma screens down to your average CRT monitors/t.v.'s
For the cash and performance.. you're better off with the CRT. Plus you really just want the lcd to "look cool" dontcha? , come on..admit it!

feelgood

What good is a screenshot gonna do? It's just gonna show what the monitor is showing, not how the monitor is showing

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messy

Well, duh!

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Scape

uh i got an LCD and my games look awosme

Rabid Bunny

I too have an LCD to play games on, games look fine. Although, I'm never one to really notice anything minute details about how things look.

Distraction

It's been my experience that unless you have a really small desk area or lug your comp around to a bunch of lans, a nice big screen CRT is the way to go.

LCDs are great, don't get me wrong. But unless you intend to spend a crap load of cash on a really good LCD you're not going to get the performance that you would with a CRT.

My advice would be to spend that cash on a nice Sony flat screen CRT. Maybe even have some cash left over for some of the sweet new games that have just come out.

catback

A typical under $1,000 LCD won't look good for performance gaming because of the slow refresh rate (i.e. the pixels can't change fast enough to keep up with the changing frames). Not to say there aren't LCD's that are as good as CRT's for gaming but they typically cost $1,000 - $2,000 and screen size isn't what you'd be paying extra for (~$1,800 for a real good 17").

Krycheck

What matters most on a lcd is response time. This is the time a pixel take to change from one color to another. 20ms or less is suppose to be concidered best for gaming. The slower the response time the more "ghosting" you'll get.
I've been shopping LCD's too and looks like you should to expect to play $500+ for a good 17" LCD.

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Lasereth

I wouldn't buy a 17" LCD. A 15" LCD is the equivalent of a 17" CRT monitor which is plenty of resolution for the whole family. Get one with a low MS like catback or Krycheck said or it's a waste. You can tell the blur even while using the mouse in Windows if the LCD has a slow enough response (most of them). Games are even worse -- the response time is the biggest aspect to look for when buying one. I plan on getting one when someone gives me an extra $400 for a 15" one with low MS. I'll stick to my 70 dollars a pop 17" CRT now though.

-Lasereth

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SiphonX

well, i spent about 1,000 at best buy today... crazy ass day after thanksgiving sale. i ended up buying a nice Viewsonic 17" LCD... it set me back about 450 but it doubles as a TV. It's really nice, not one dead pixel, good times. New video card too, Radeon 9200, i just needed a nice 100 dollar 128 meg card. Call of Duty and WC3 are both running pretty sweet and crisp @ 1024 right now, no complaints so far.

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Lasereth

I hate to thread-gank, but I have to comment: take that videocard back and get a GeForce 4 TI4200 for the same price. Please.

-Lasereth

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Moonduck

I've got a Radeon 9k series. Gotta agree with Lasereth and say get the GeForce TI4200 instead.

SiphonX

eh, screw it. it's already installed, i'm too damn lazy to return it and get the GeForce TI4200. It's cool w/e, I change my video card once a year so this Radeon should last me 'til this time around next year.

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Lasereth

Man, you don't understand -- the Radeon 9200 is already behind. It has the raw power of perhaps a GeForce 2 Ultra. It will barely last now, much less a year from now. It's your choice though, I'm just saying there's a card at least two times as powerful as that Radeon 9200 out right now for the exact same price: GeForce 4 TI4200.

-Lasereth

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YaWhateva

Radeon 9800XT. Ya go with that.

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SiphonX

lmfao, Radeon 9800 XT. Perhaps i'll pick that up in a year. How much is it? 499? Gotta admit though, looks pretty sweet w/ that fan on it. gah, i feel a rant coming on... here it goes. alright, last night i was reading console specs and things like 64 megs of ram, and 733 mhz processor come up on the data sheet, and then you think, god damn, the games run so damn nice and smooth on those things. whats the point in spending 200 dollars or more on a graphics card when that same amount of money can buy you an xbox, 2 games, and xbox live, or anyother console for that matter. In Longhorn i'd like to be able to set up a seperate user account dedicated to gaming where all background processes that aren't needed could be turned off to aid in performance, can this be done now? i am so confused, some1 help me!!!!!!!!

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BuddyHawks

I would take a LCD over a CRT any day.
I've have a CRT for years and switched to LCD last year. Everything just looks so much better.
Get a Samsung 17 inch LCD. Best decision I've ever made.

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firebirdta

I also have a Samsung LCD. It is amazing. As far as gaming, there is no distinguishable difference between my LCD and my CRT, except that the LCD has a much clearer picture.

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Lestat

I picked up a Princeton 17" LCD at Costco for $369. I do a lot of gaming. No ghosting problems and it looks awesome.

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