What size monitor do you use?

[BrianP]

I am currently using a 19" LG Studioworks monitor for my video/graphics/misc workstation. It's a huge step up from 17" but I wonder if 21" is a worthwhile upgrade. The only program that suffers from lack of real estate is Premiere--so many windows and palettes fighting for space with the timeline.

What monitor are you using? What brand? I suppose I should also ask about screen resolution -- I don't like to squint at tiny icons so I have a relatively large 1024x768 on my 19" screen.

[wkulecz]

Try 1280x1024 on your 19" It might solve your Premiere space problems. You won't get more "space" unless you show more pixels.

On cheap systems I'm happy with 1152x864 on most 17" monitors (at least with G200 or G450 cards). On my most used systems I have 21" running 1600x1200. My 21" is ~15.4" wide so resolution is 1600/15.4 ~ 104 dpi which I find very readable and really looks good for photos. 96 dpi is generally considered "optimum" for all but the highest (~120-150 dpi) and lowest (72dpi) end monitors.

My main system at home is PCI Voodoo3-2000 running 1152x864
as primary on 17" and an AGP G200 running 1600x1200 on 21" as secondary. Photoshop rocks on this setup. My main editing system is a G450 running 1152x864 on a 17" monitor with DVDmax enabled to a 13" NTSC monitor. Also very nice.

Unless you are 3D gamer I'd spend ~$65 for an OEM G450 (www.newegg.com) and run a TV with A/V in, or NTSC monitor with DVDmax enabled (go thru the line in of your VCR to an old TV). You can make your Premiere preview windows really small to make space for everything else since previews, scrubs, single frame advance, etc. all play out DVDmax. The G450 is the finest 2D video card I've ever owned and is great bang/buck!

I salivate at the rumors of MSP6.5 working correctly with DVDmax feature! but Premiere is pretty darn nice with this setup.

--wally.

[Sciascia]

Marvel G400 using a LG 99 something or other (19", cheap and pretty sharp) at 1600*1200. I turn on the use 125% size fonts and large icons (I think). 22" NTSC TV (also LG). Not that I am a big fan, but I was stationed in Korea for sometime.

And yes I do wear glasses and they are like my system, tweaked just a little bit so that I can see better.

Ulead MSP 6 with DVDMax enabled. Using the timeline window at 704*480 enables scrubing to show up on the TV and I am very happy with it. I don't see the need to upgrade for sometime. Don't have the money either...

[Brian Ellis]

21" Nokia 445G at 1024x768 (I'm an old geezer and have difficulty discerning small detail, so I don't go to a higher res.). Being badly presbyopic (nearly said presbyterian, there! ), I wear +3.5 dioptre glasses when working with computers and reading (Varilux lenses for some other uses, but they're a PITA with screens, as I have to tip my head too far back for comfort ) for comfortable viewing at ~45 cm

However, I'm quite impressed with a small LCD screen (13.1" I think) on a laptop at 1024x768. It gives a nice, crisp image and I'm seriously wondering whether a large flat screen may not be a better bet if I save up my Saturday pennies. Anyone any experience?

[Dr Mordrid]

19" KDS/Avitron 195T Trinitron (.24). With a Matrox card you can use their Sony GDM-W900 presets on this monitor. This means that if you can extend beyond KDS's 1600x1200 limit to Sony's 1920x1200.

I use 1280x1024 for normal use, but often I go to 1600x1200 or larger when editing.

I find 19" more than enough, but then I'm an "old geezer" fortunate enough to have 20/10 vision.

Sorry Brian

Dr. Mordrid

[wkulecz]

Just got a couple of 17" ViewSonic LCD panels in the lab. They really look good! 1280x1024 is the "native" resolution that works out to ~96dpi on the screen. These rotate to give a portait view, since most of my photoshop work is portait format I could learn to like this. We haven't installed the "pivot" drivers yet so don't know how well it really works with existing software.


I've been planning to upgrade to matched pair of 21" monitors over the 21" and 17" I'm using now, but after seeing these ViewSonics (~$800-900) I questioning what do I need more -- pixels or deskspace?

--wally.

[Brian Ellis]

This is probably a stupid question but, with Marvel or similar, where video and graphics are on the same card, does the extra load of increasing the resolution/colour depth affect the video performance?

[Dr Mordrid]

Only if you get nuts with it. I don't have major problems with captures @1280x1024, but I edit in a higher rez.

Dr. Mordrid

[wkulecz]

Sciascia,

Tried your MSP6 704x480 preview window trick and it doesn't fix scrubs not going out DVDmax for me on W2k with G450 drivers 5.52. Also tried 720x480 since that's DV native size. Still no go. Did you change anyting in Ulead32.ini as well? or are you on win9x?

--wally.

[dchip]

What size monitor do you use?

I still use a 4 year old 17" IBM P70 at 800x600. It refreshes at 85Hz and is easy on my eyes. Not as much screen "real estate" as I would like to have but I also don't do a whole lot of editing. So, do flat-panel LCD's have a future in NLE?

[wkulecz]

Do LCD panels have a future in NLE?

Let me put it this way. The current crop of LCD displays for comptuers is at least an order of magnitude better in terms of viewing angle, color, brightness, contrast etc. than the LCD panels on any camcorder I've seen.

I've snubbed LCD displays until this year's models!
The colors don't shift with viewing angle, the viewing angle is wide enought to not be a problem. They work. Price is the only problem now.

--wally.

[Sciascia]

Wally

I am using the HW MJPEG codec, that ma have something to do with it. I haven't tried DV yet, so it may be a little different. I ust bought a new digital camera and for the money and accessories I probably could have bought a DV cam. Oh well, it is a noce camera anyway.

[Greebe]

Here's a LCD flat panel worthy of NLE use

http://www.viewsonic.com/products/lcd_vp230mb_o.htm

[Brian Ellis]

Very nice, Greebe. Will you send me a couple for beta testing?

[Ghydda]

What happended to all those 15"??? I am still hanging on with 1280x960@70 on my single Hansol 501P. It still amazes me how good and sharp picture it actually produces at this (too) high resolution.
Anyway, I don't have the cash to shell out for Sony's 16:10 monitor.

Ghydda