I recently finished building my new PC (specs in sig) and the one thing I haven't upgraded yet is my trusty old 19" CRT monitor. My video card (GeForce 7900GT) only had DVI inputs, but I just hooked up the included adapter, and that works well enough. It would appear that CRT monitors are going the way of the dinosaur...I've been thinking about upgrading to a nice LCD monitor that can play games (FS2004, other first person shooters like battlefield 2, etc...)I've been doing a lot of online research, but I would really like to hear some practical opinions from real gamers out there. I just want a good 19" lcd for gaming. Nothing that will break the bank. I just play games on my PC, and some other occasional work. I'm not watching movies on the PC.A few questions:-is the 1280x1024 native resolution a problem on fs2004 2d panels? I am still a 2d panel holdout, resisting virtual cockpits as long as possible (actually I can use them well enough with small GA planes like the RealAir stuff). -I read a lot of user reviews on Newegg with people complaining about dead pixels. Is this a common problem? It seemed like there were a lot of complaints on certain monitors, and less on others. -What kind of improvement? What kind of improvement will I see going from CRT to an LCD with a DVI connector? I wish I knew someone locally with a LCD hooked up which I could try. I hear all about LCDs and how good they are, but all I have really seen is displays on laptops. I go to my local electronics stores, but their display models don't show much to really show off the picture. Thanks in advance! I know there is lots of information out there, but it really helps to get feedback from fellow flight simmers out there!

Hello,Only a few months ago, I had the same reluctance to chuck out my 21' CRT. It was old and had fading colors after an incredible amount of "playtime" but instead of waiting to have it brake down on me in the middle of something important, I started looking for a replacement.Unfortunately, a 21' CRT is hard to find these days (when living in Belgium anyway) and quite expensive to.So I went out to find me a decent TFT.I found one in the lineup of Viewsonic (VX922) and I'm really happy with it.The max resolution is no problem for any 2D panel as far as I'm concerned and it has a DVI connector too. Refresh is at a 4 ms enough to run most games fluently and once you are used to the view, I'm sure you won't go back.My two centsLuc 'Glaudrung' BrusselmansBelgium

Hello, I have just updated to a Viewsonic VA912 19" and I am very happy with it.My FS works equally as well. I now have two monitors linked up and it makes life so easy when you can show for example radios and navigation panels on one screen and the cockpit on the other. Hope ths helps,I found it quite difficult to come down on a particular monitor. Alan

No reason to hurry to LCD. If your CRT is still fresh and it has a got tube like Trinitron or Diamondtron it will most likely feel to be a downgrade... So just keep it if you don

Good advice. I changed from a 19" Trinitron to a Viewsonic VA912B and it did, indeed, feel like a downgrade. The Trinitron was, by far, the better monitor. Mine was a space issue, but if that's not a problem, I'd stick with the CRT if it's one of the good ones.Doug

Thanks for the feedback. I forgot to mention, space is not a problem on my desk. I've got lots of room, and my good old CRT is working just fine. I think I'll stick with my trusty old monitor until something goes wrong with it.

Craig,Like you, I had been considering getting my first LCD display for a long time and had done lots and lots of research on the different panel types, brands, and the pros and cons. In last Sunday

Hi Graig,I was also concerned about getting a LCD to replace my 5 year old Dell Trinitron monitor (still looks great, never any problems).I read about the pixel problem as well as slow refresh, ghosting etc. Many computer sales people said LCD's wouldn't be good for FS9 as they couldn't keep up with FS movement etc. I also read some forums where people had pros and cons of both.To make a long story short, I bought a HP F1905 19in LCD to go with my new HP computer and the LCD is GREAT (computer too)! Works extremely well for FS without any pixle or ghosting problems at all. I'll continue to use my Trinitron until it stops, but only on my old computer - never for FS anymore. I use the new computer for FS only.Suggestion: If you want to learn more about good LCD's, try www.pcworld.com Then search the site for "top ten lcd" or something like that. They did an extensive article about what they considered the top ten LCD's. Mine was one of them, and I agree with all of their comments.Hope this helps.

As far as 1280x1024 aspect, yes it does distort the 2d panel some. But I find that in windowed mode with the title/menu bar and taskbar, the remaining window space is just about right for a 4:3 aspect.My Sammy 930B seems OK in FS9. It seemed to be about middle of the pack on specs.Today you might consider a 20" wide screen such as Dell. Go windowed and use the extra space for an FMC/GPS panel or something. IIRC an ACES team comment sounds like at least default panels will base on 1024x768, but maybe 3rd party could use WS modes.It seems like digital (DVI) IN is much preferred over analog (VGA).scott s..

>As far as 1280x1024 aspect, yes it does distort the 2d panel>some.If there is any distortion, it is negligible - at least when using and viewing the default panels. Other than image quality, I see essentially no difference in appearance between 1024X768 and 1280X1024. Either the difference is too negligible to see, or the default panels have a designed-in accommodation for that resolution change.

Here's a comparison of a 1280x1024 display using the default CS172 2d panelWindowed/maximized with taskbar I measure the actual FS9 window to be 1280x947 approx 4:2.96http://forums.avsim.net/user_files/151323.jpgFullscreen:http://forums.avsim.net/user_files/151324.jpgYou can see the vertical distortion with the 4:3.20 aspect.scott s..

You're splitting hairs, Scott. Even accepting that your red circled images (I don't know how the circle was created) accurately depict a difference, they show that it is minute and negligible.Craig asked the question "is the 1280x1024 native resolution a problem on fs2004 2d panels?" and the answer is clearly no. With wide screen there is an issue - with 1280x1024 there is not.

LCD's are much better than CRD, if you are going for bigger LCD Screens like the Dell 24" widescreen or something like that. Then Its awesome. No contest. LCD kicks butt.If you are just going to replace the CRT with the same size LCD, then you would only save physcial space in your desk. You may as well hold out till prices fall on Big screen LCDs.Manny

LCDs are not "much better" than CRTs - both have advantages and disadvantages.Remember when choosing larger LCDs that all have a native resolution. If you are able to run your application at that resolution, fine. If you need a lesser resolution as things become more demanding then you are reliant on how good the scaler is on the LCD(and/or graphics card).Some LCDs offer 1:1 pixel mapping for lower resolutions without scaling but then you have borders.

Well, I