alacritymedia
Active member
LCD Monitors
LCD Monitors
Is the key differentiator between LCD monitors for computers and those sold for video playback just the connectors? On the retail shelves at the consumer level there is wide pricing disparity between those labeled for computer use and even the smaller flat panel TVs. With the explosive growth of web video delivery and USB 2.0 based TV tuners the line is rapidly blurring. I am under the impression that the LCD panel blanks are made by a short list of fabrication facilities in Asia. What aspects of LCD displays, other than the target market, should matter to us as image creators? Its got to be more than just response times.
In the traditional Broadcast space the Sony Luma series LCDs have a terrible reputation. The Panny BT series have been more popular; the 17" is around $3K and has lots of professional features including HD-SDI and is marketed as having a baked in LUT that mimics CRT gamma, color, etc - it looks decent and is very portable; the 26" version looks much better with deeper blacks, richer saturation but is less portable, costs close to $5K and only offers 768 by 1,366 resolution. For that kind of money I want my 1080.
I had a chance to see the JVC 24" LCD at the DV Expo in LA. It looked decent sitting there in the middle of the brightly lit room but until I had a chance to see it in a proper viewing enviroment I couldn't recommend it to anyone. It does not have the PIP waveform that the Panny does which IMHO is the best feature of the BT series. In any case, none of the Pro LCDs look as good as they should at the prices they are charging. Pro CRTs used rare earth phosphors and beefy power supplies that separated them from the consumer versions and justified a higher cost, but at this stage of the development of LCDs for pro video I just don't see it except maybe from...
eCinema and CineTal are looking to sell you LCDs for use in electronic cinema aquisition that use 3D LUTs but they start at $10K and go up rapidly once you add the features you are likely to want. The current eCinema monitor looks darn good and they are hinting at new units for NAB including a 15" 1080 rig sans some of the high end features for $5K. If it looks as good as the current $14K unit it would blow away the Sony, Panasonic and JVC - though with a bit less screen real estate which I am cool with since it would be more portable. Anyone interested in a field monitor big enough to see what you're getting and small enough to include in a fly pack? It will be on my hit list at NAB '07.
Blair S. Paulsen
RedOne #19
LCD Monitors
Is the key differentiator between LCD monitors for computers and those sold for video playback just the connectors? On the retail shelves at the consumer level there is wide pricing disparity between those labeled for computer use and even the smaller flat panel TVs. With the explosive growth of web video delivery and USB 2.0 based TV tuners the line is rapidly blurring. I am under the impression that the LCD panel blanks are made by a short list of fabrication facilities in Asia. What aspects of LCD displays, other than the target market, should matter to us as image creators? Its got to be more than just response times.
In the traditional Broadcast space the Sony Luma series LCDs have a terrible reputation. The Panny BT series have been more popular; the 17" is around $3K and has lots of professional features including HD-SDI and is marketed as having a baked in LUT that mimics CRT gamma, color, etc - it looks decent and is very portable; the 26" version looks much better with deeper blacks, richer saturation but is less portable, costs close to $5K and only offers 768 by 1,366 resolution. For that kind of money I want my 1080.
I had a chance to see the JVC 24" LCD at the DV Expo in LA. It looked decent sitting there in the middle of the brightly lit room but until I had a chance to see it in a proper viewing enviroment I couldn't recommend it to anyone. It does not have the PIP waveform that the Panny does which IMHO is the best feature of the BT series. In any case, none of the Pro LCDs look as good as they should at the prices they are charging. Pro CRTs used rare earth phosphors and beefy power supplies that separated them from the consumer versions and justified a higher cost, but at this stage of the development of LCDs for pro video I just don't see it except maybe from...
eCinema and CineTal are looking to sell you LCDs for use in electronic cinema aquisition that use 3D LUTs but they start at $10K and go up rapidly once you add the features you are likely to want. The current eCinema monitor looks darn good and they are hinting at new units for NAB including a 15" 1080 rig sans some of the high end features for $5K. If it looks as good as the current $14K unit it would blow away the Sony, Panasonic and JVC - though with a bit less screen real estate which I am cool with since it would be more portable. Anyone interested in a field monitor big enough to see what you're getting and small enough to include in a fly pack? It will be on my hit list at NAB '07.
Blair S. Paulsen
RedOne #19
