Monitors and displays (3)End of a CRT eraIn my collection, different PC displays accumulated over time withcomputers, PCs, sometimes as part sources which have been surprisinglyrepaired. From simple TV-like displays with green screens, to complexmonitors with digital control circuits. Here is a small travel aroundthese.
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Don't forget to look at some PCs, as they also have monitors tocomplete a set.The first LCD monitors could be seen in notebookcomputers in 1990s, but their poor response time, bad contrast andlimited colour depth made them insufficient for graphics or even advanced office applications.In 1980s and 90s monitor contained a large vacuumtube which shown, with few tens of Watts expense, usually acceptable picture. Of course CRTs became more and more energy-efficient - startingfrom switching converters, which could turn the display off when notused to higher efficiency of electron beam and deflection circuits.However, the later displays were made the worse the quality was.Finally, expensive LCD monitors became more affordable and offeredbetter quality - more because CRT became worse than LCD better.Although the first usable LCD displays became available around 1997,their price was comparable to 4-8 CRT displays and quality of picture,especially dark images, was much worse. Many of them required dedicatedvideo board too.The last CRT displays, Samsung, LG or Eizo, were made around2005.
There were good and bad displays in this era.Why LCD screens replaced tubes? There are a few reasons. First,they were smaller and more energy-efficient. Taking the powerconsumption, the typical LCD took about 50W while CRTs could usetwo times more, and 'panels' occupied less space.Second thing was the fashion.
Presence of flat screens in lots of moviesand visions of the future made the panels chosen despite of their worseimage quality. The third, and probably the most important thing was theupgrade path. Upgradingyour CRT display and video board is independent - you can usemany resolutions with one CRT, switch between themif e.g. Game doesn't run well, and quality loss is small. In LCD,monitor is bound to resolution, so upgrading video board makesuser more likely to buy a new display, and buying a display makes usersmore likely to buy new video boards. This made display manufacturers pushLCDs to the market by all costs.
Here we can see the last of CRTs, fromtimes when LCDs were already present on the market.An LCD from 1999, poor quality, but it was flat.Generally, what I found about quality:EizoNecPhilipsIiyamaSonyDellOther. However, every manufacturer hasbetter or worse models.
More, if you plan to get Eizo, better reservemuch space on the rear of desk because this monitor doesn't get narrowon the rear (more, its rear lifts up).Philips 107E4Approx. Year:2002Type, connector:DB15, VGA, 1280x1024CRT:17' colourAround 2000 Philipsrefreshed their 'SoHo' (Small office/Home office) series oflower-end displays. They had smaller capabilities thanBrilliance series, being made for operation in home or officesystems.107E was the 'base' model with the most basic functions likeOSD, and not much more. The CRT's surface is not flat, which wasa new technology in early 2000s. However, it is Philips, so itstill gives an acceptable picture with good colours.Manual isstillin Philips site.Philips Brilliance107T5Approx.
Year:2003-4Type, connector:DB15, VGA, 1280x1024CRT:17' colourWith monitors like this one, a wholeCRT era ended, with bulky tubes being replaced by smaller flatLCD monitors (however, still displaying smaller amount of colorsand incapable to show black). This is one of the more advancedmonitors, it has a few interesting features not commonly foundin other displays.
First, its screen surface is totally flat.Not round, not barrel-like, but flat, which was a new thing in2000s. Next, its power switch operates in soft mode.Additionally it has more advanced OSD and a LightFrame modewhich increases brightness of the picture, but not a wholepicture. It was a software-hardware solution, in which by usingsome software it was possible to increase parameters only onspecific areas, e.g. With video or picture viewed. The result,unfortunately working only in Windows 9x, 2000 and XP, isinteresting and indeed works surprisingly well.
Unfortunately itdoesn't work for Linux even where there is afor it available - analyzing sources it still draws bitmap formonitor's controller like Brilliance 105's configuration.The display has been purchased from surplus in quite nicecondition and it is still used. Contrary to 21-inch displaysthese units were not forced to work on maximum parameters ofcomponents, so they can outlive many LCDs with poor capacitors.Manual isin Philips website.Nec MultisyncFE2111SBApprox. Year:2004Type, connector:DB15, VGA, 1600x1200CRT:21' colour, flat-screenA semi-professional large-screendisplay with nice contrast, brightness and sharp picture. It hasonly one input, and, unfortunately, quite large margin aroundCRT so having two of them won't make a good dual-screenexperience.Its OSD has quite large intelligence with auto-adjustments, afew presets and advanced settings.I still use it with Macs.Eizo FlexScan F56Approx. Year:2000Type, connector:BNC, Sun 13W3, 1600x1200CRT:21' colourOne of the first professionalmonitors which became available in 'second-hand' marketsimultaneously with its factory distribution - new items weresold in some places until 2003, although the construction isfrom late 1990s.
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Its screen is not flat, but its picture is niceand sharp when maintained properly. It has BNC inputs, typical for high-end display unitsbut also a Sun-compatible input. The downside is that itneeds active cooling so it has a fan.Unfortunately some units may have blocked menu. Then, and togenerally tune it properly, a cable with software are needed:Eizo FlexScan F931Approx. Year:2003Type, connector:BNC, DB15, 1600x1200CRT:21' colour, flat-screenAlthough the T-line is known as thelast Eizo's CRTs, this one is also quite late. It has a flat21-inch screen and, as all Eizos, configurable OSD menu withmodes and tuning options. Comparing to older F56, these weremore 'maxed out' and had more problems coming with age.I still use Eizos with my desktop PC.
They are large andpower-consuming, but the picture quality is very good and darkcolours are dark colours.Dell P1130Approx. Year:2004Type, connector:DB15, two-input, 2048x1536CRT:21' (?) colour, flat-screenOne of the last CRTs,with Sony Trinitron picture tube.
These tubes offered a verygood quality, but required complex circuits. This is a Sonyunit, branded as Dell.
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However, there are some disadvantages. First,the border around screen is large so having dual-screen is aproblem. Another problem is the CRT, which becomes brighter and brighter with age, so itneeds a re-adjustment. Fortunately the tuning can be done with ahardware hack. Another problem is the screen size, Trinitronshad a bit smaller viewable area than other tubes.Sansung SyncMaster955DFApprox. Year:2002Type, connector:DB15, VGA, 1600x1200CRT:19' colour, flat-screenA 19-inch CRT with flat screensurface. This is a 'budget' Samsung from the 'better quality'line containing, among others, for example 957 model I alsohave.
The OSD is simple, but sufficient. Only some pre-definedsettings cannot be easily explained.The picture is acceptable, however tuning the focus is a bithard, there are no holes for it. And convergence. Anyonetried?Although this model seems to have support for some kind ofregion brightness boost, like Philips units had, Ihaven't made it running.
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Contrary to 957MB, this one has no USBor other maintenance ports.I got two Samsung displays on a 'takeitawayfromme'conditions and it looks like they are OK.Keeping in case Eizo fails:).SamsungSyncMaster 957MBApprox. Year:2003Type, connector:DB15, BNC, 1600x1200CRT:19' colour, flat-screenA better model from theflat-screen line, later it became a standard one.
It has aflat-screen CRT, with relatively nice picture quality. This one has two inputs, VGA and BNC.
It alsohas a USB port, but not for USB switch, common in displays from2000s - in this model it is used to tune the display bysoftware. Although there is even afor it, I haven't managed to get it working.There was a similar 957MB, but without BNC, detachable VGA cableand USB tuning support. However, the last Samsung CRT monitors were themodels with buttons on the right side of CRT, they wererelatively good.Next part.