Planning on getting a new system and was looking forward to a clean flat screen monitor.But I don't know what the main difference or advantage is between LCD or CRT type monitors.I use my pc mainly for gaming.My old compaq is not up to par with the newer games so I'm gonna get one last pc!If they decide to make games that a 2.8 gig 500 mb ram etc pc wont be good enough than its time to find a new hobby!RPGs don't (in my opinion) need to have a 2000 dollar upgrade every few yrs!,to be able to play the newest games..So I'm going for a good custom built pc that should last or at least could be easily upgraded ..Thanks for any info..

Put as simply as one possibly can, the LCD do not have the same refresh rate as the CRT so if you're going to do a lot of gaming on it you may consider to go for the CRT.

LCDs have limitations with refresh rates and are to persistent for some games - bright colours tend to leave a trail. But this is most noticable with fast action quake-a-likes, for RPGs they are adequate. Perhaps more of a problem is that they have one native resolution that they like, and if you try and run in a different resolution it has to be stretched onto the native one. Not a problem if 1024*768 is all you want to run in, but some old game demand lower resolutions, and many newer ones look best in higher resolutions which are completely unavailable.

Whereas flat screen CRT technology has its drawbacks, typicaly in order to support the screen without curvature it has structural elements which are visible within the CRT itself.

Best thing to do is to go and see some of these in operation, by which I mean play a game on them rather than just stand their nodding as the salesman completely fails to give you an accurate impression of what it can do.

Unless you are willing to spend upwards of $2000 to $3000 on an LCD, you'll be very disappointed when playing games.

LCD's show an image by turning pixels on and off. Since there is a set number of pixels for each monitor, attempting to run resolutions other than the native will causes stretching and flattening of the image. If you're LCD's native resolution is 1600 by 1200 you'd better have a real good video card to play some of the more advanced games at that resolution.

Ghosting is a big problem for all but the most advanced LCD's, where the LCD cannot keep up with the video card, so the image tends to be "streaking" during high frame rate games such as FPS's or intense graphics.

Basically to run an LCD for gaming you need to look at about $2500 for a good LCD and another $500 for a video card.

I use a High Def Digital 32" TV set as my computer screen and I have the ATI 9800 XT video card. That way I get crystal clear Graphics when I use it as A computer screen. It is also crystal clear when I use word and want to read the print unlike regular TV screens that are a little blury. If you can afford it then this is the only way go, at 800 X 600 and everything up to 1600 X 1200 I have no trouble what so ever. all my games look fantastic on it.
I bought it to watch digital High-Def TV shows but ended up hooking it up to my computer since there just are not that many dital TV shows.

[ 03-06-2004, 03:39 PM: Message edited by: TheCrimsomBlade ]

I have a 17" LCD, and the refresh rate and resolution can be problematic. It's not terribly obvious though since I have a fairly powerful graphics card hooked into it, but yes, there are problems when playing some games. I still prefer it over my old CRT though, just due to the small size and weight, and I'm not nearly as big a gamer as I used to be.

<span style="color: lightblue">There is one other main difference which you may want to consider: CRT monitors produce large amounts of radiation. Said radiation is known to cause brain cancer. In case you didn't know, cancer generally isn't good. Last I checked, LCDs weren't known to produce this radiation.

On ghosting, my mother has an LCD - not a new one, either - which doesn't have that problem. It also seems to work quite well at any resolution you care to mention, and supports refresh rates higher than my newer CRT - which I want to replace at the earliest opportunity, because of the countless display problems I have with it (most noticeably, I *cannot* stop the display from curving at the edges).

I have both a 17" CRT and a 17" LCD, for gaming i would deffinatly prefer the CRT (which is on my computer). Also using the LCD for gaming or multimedia etc. it doesn't seem to be able to show black, it shows only lighter shades of grey and to over come the problem of not being light it has a "light" inside to brighten the image, although the picture is very clear the colours aren't so good nor is it good at resoloutions differing from 1024*768.

I read somewhere that some LCD monitors also have the problem of displaying gradual shades of colors, thus sometimes colors appear to be sort of "layer" like of different shades.

I would still prefer CRT because it is still the cheapest around, and the best for gaming. Once the price of high-end LCD monitors become available, I would seriously consider that for my next monitor.

[ 03-07-2004, 10:13 AM: Message edited by: Paladin2000 ]

In a technical and photoshop based world the LCD cannot be touched.

If gamming is your realm then only a CRT will do.

The big Sony 21" flat CRT is the current top dog for most wallets.
Here: http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/SY_DisplayProductInformation-Start;sid=Ty_m7Zs3LMTmqNt8Hbzs5tQ5nJ7O3Vuh8O4=?Cat egoryName=cpu_Displays_CRT&Prod uctSKU=CPDE540&Dept=cpu

The even larger (you need a big desk) Sony 24".
For an extra deep wallet here:
http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTE...24%22&Dept=cpu