TFT to make the most of a 8800GTS

GraemePaul · 9 Jan 2007 at 00:07

Hi Folks

I am currently in the process of planning a new build based on the 8800GTS and 680i chipset and was wondering what you would advise as a suitable TFT to make the most of the GPU.

I would also like to have the option to watch movies on this TFT too so I dont want a panel that has too much noise on movie playback. The option to have HDCP support would be nice.

I was also wondering if now is the right time to take up a 24" panel as the two that are the favourites (BenQ & Dell) still appear to have bugs that need working out and I dont know if the premium you pay is worth the extra inches (however with the price on the Dell this could become a mute point soon).

Thank you

Graeme

bilston · 9 Jan 2007 at 15:17

Can recommend the Dell 2407 to no end. HiDef videos do look good on it. DVD's well, not so good. That is the case with all LCD's im afraid.

I think the Dell comes with HDCP too. No HDMI though. This is where the Benq is ahead. Depends if youre going to hook an external HDDVD player up to it or not.

GraemePaul · 9 Jan 2007 at 22:37

Not sure about the external HD DVD player but thanks for the opinion. Would my money be wasted if I did not get a 24" widescreen LCD? Or is a high Quality 20" or 22" a better all round choice?

fish99 · 9 Jan 2007 at 22:58

Only advantages 20" and 22" have are price really. Something like the Dell 24" is every bit as 'high quality' as anything you will find in the 20" and 22" sectors. If anything the smaller screens are generally lower quality, especially since all the 22" and about half of the 20" are TN+Film with the associated limited viewing angles.

The only exception to that would be the NEC LCD20WGX2, which is possibly the best gaming widescreen around thanks to it's speed, but the Dell is still quick, and the IPS panel in the LCD20WGX2 is poor for movies.

LCDs don't add noise, they just bring it out a bit more and make it more noticeable. Software playback through windows also seems to make the noise worse and offers poor upscaling IMO. Playing DVDs through my 360 on my Dell 2007WFP and they look fine. Play the same DVD through WinDVD in windows and it looks quite a bit worse. So it's not all the screens fault. I've read you can use the NR filter in ffdshow to fix movie playback through windows.