Ray,>>Dell are offering the 2407 widescreen monitor at a very attractive price (UKP610) until the end of August and I'm sorely tempted.<http://www.ykwong.com/checkemon.html) but neither display any serious issues in Desktop mode. My specs are different than yours (below) but I'm quite pleased with both monitors. My $0.02 .Regards,jbDell XPS 600 XP Pro SP2 D 955EE 3.46MHz Dual Core/HT FSB @ 1066MHz 2x2MB Cache2x1GB DDR2 PC2-5300 @ 667 MHzEVGA e-GeForce 7900 GTX 512MB GDDR3 PCIe x16Dell 2407WFP, DVI direct to the Dell 2407/ Dell 2007FP 20", DVI-VGA adapters (Mac Intel mini Core Duo 1.66GHz, D8300 3.2 GHz P4/9800 Pro off of the iomega KVM box)

You meant Mammoth :-) I've seen your other thread and made the connection.

I haven't ordered the Dell yet and I'm considering the drawbacks of 2D panels and widescreen displays. I understand virtual cockpits work fine in widescreen. As I have GoFlight units for radio and a Aerosoft MCP for my autopilot I won't use the mouse that often so virtual or full forward view may suit widescreen better.But, I may well consider the Viewsonic if I decide to stay with 4:3 - thanks.

JB,Thanks for posting! Now that I have a owner can I ask you a couple of questions please?1. What widescreen resolutions are available in Control Panel / Display other than the native of 1920*1200?2. If you run at lower than the native (as I will have to do until I get a faster system) does the banding problem show itself? Dell advise it's resolved at 1920*1200.Sorry, one more... Do you fly with 2D panels visible and if so how do you get on with the display?Thanks!

Ray,>>...can I ask you a couple of questions please?...<>1. What widescreen resolutions are available in Control Panel / Display other than the native of 1920*1200?<. Amusing though...Bottom line, native 1920x1200 looks *great*. There are also options with the nvidia software for the 7900GTX (I'm running sw v. 84.56) that allow different scaling options for the monitor. I use 'Fixed aspect ratio scaling'. May explain why my resolution tests may not match others .>2. If you run at lower than the native (as I will have to do until I get a faster system) does the banding problem show itself? Dell advise it's resolved at 1920*1200.<> Do you fly with 2D panels visible and if so how do you get on with the display?<.Overall, my experience with the two Dell FP monitors has been excellent. As always, ymmv...Regards,jb

Hi jb,Thanks for all that very useful info especially the available widescreen resolutions. It's interesting that you don't get 1680*1080 (14:9). A friend of a friend who has the 2405 and 2 7800GT's (SLI) does get this resolution which might have been the best for me to run with a 9800 Pro 128Mb. I may not get that resolution with such a relatively slow card which would mean buying the Dell was a waste of time.If the quality of the display really falls off once you move away from the native resolution I may have to rethink whether it would be wise to buy this monitor until I have built a new system.But here's the catch. I wanted to wait until DX10 came out and compatible graphics cards were available before I built my new system with Vista loaded. The new card would be capable of running 1920*1200 and the investment in the Dell 24" would be justified. But it looks like it's going to be a while before DX10 hardware is available which puts everything on hold.And there is the problem of 2D panels. Although I fly the PMDG737 most of the time I don't use their panel or CDU as I have the Project Magenta glass cockpit running on a separate computer. My FS9 screen is a full forward view. However, I also fly Concorde and need to have a properly displayed 2D panel. A widescreen display could not provide that without black bars left and right.I'm wondering if a conventional 4:3 display may be a better option. Okay, the highest resolution would only be 1600*1200 (as though that's a problem!!) but it has the benefit of being compatible with my 2D panels and would be big enough to still provide a good sized view.Is your 20" Dell a 4:3 or widescreen model? I guess it's a 4:3 as you say the 2D panels look great. I'm starting to think that until such time as FS supports widescreen 2D panels it may be prudent to stay with a conventional 4:3 display.BTW, the back of the monitor should have a tag showing the revision number but as you bought it in June it's probably A02. Failing that the packaging will show it assuming you have kept it.I'll ruminate a bit more over this. It's a lot of money and I need to spend wisely. Whatever I do I'll report back here.Thanks very much :-beerchug

What exactly is "banding"?Also I wonder running dual monitors can you run them at different resolutions set up to clone? I am thinking about a direct comparison between my new LCD TV and my old CRT :)

Hi Par,Here's link to a review on the 2407 and the banding problem. It's easier to show you a picture than try to describe it . It's about the fourth set of pictures down that pagewww.widescreengamingforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4203Although you can run two monitors at different resolutions the visual effect would look very strange especially if you include a panel.Why not drag the FS window to each screen in turn and take a screen shot and then compare the screen shots? You could even post the images here so we could all enjoy the fun!Cheers,

Ray,>>If the quality of the display really falls off once you move away from the native resolution I may have to rethink whether it would be wise to buy this monitor until I have built a new system.<>Is your 20" Dell a 4:3 or widescreen model?<<4:3, running VGA (DVI-VGA adapter) mode through the iomega KVM box with the Mac mini and Dell 8300, both @ 1600x1200. The Mac is visually perfect, not so much so with the the Dell 8300.Fwiw, I did a test re-install of FS9 on the Dell 8300 3.2 GHz w/9800 Pro 128MB. Doesn't really cut it anymore, having the XPS box now. Not sure about the missing resolution...if Newegg had another EVGA 7900GTX in stock I'd report on SLI mode . Unfortunately, the 7950 GX2 has known (maybe) issues with the XPS box I've got...could be folks installing cards on under-powered boxes. One thing I have noticed: Those that run AMD chips seem to be the one's that have 7900 series card fail. D 955EE Intel chips, no problem .Edit: Yep, A02, on the box the 2407WFP came in...thanks for the heads-up there :-)Regards,jbWindows utility links: [a href=http://exmixer.com/]exmixer.com[/a]FS9 box:Dell XPS 600 XPPro SP2Pentium D 955EE 3.46MHz Dual Core/HT FSB @ 1066MHz 2x2MB Cache2x1GB DDR2 PC2-5300 @ 667 MHz1xOEM SAMSUNG HD160JJ/P 160GB SATA II/NCQ2xSeagate ST3160827AS 160GB SATA I/NCQOEM TSSTcorp CD-RW TS-H292B, SONY DVD-ROM DDU1615EVGA e-GeForce 7900 GTX 512MB GDDR3 PCIe x16Dell 2407WFPSB X-FiViewcast Osprey 230 vid capturePlextor 716UF external Hi-Speed USB2.0/FW DVD-RW/CD-RW

Hi jb,<>That was my original intention but having just downloaded and run the FSX video and seen how underpowered my current system is I think my priorities have changed. I'm not prepared to wait until well into next year before DX10 cards appear and are resonably priced and on top of that the need to install Vista to see DX10 benefits.So I'm going to build a new system based on the Core 2 Duo as soon as the mobo and processor are available and get a X1900GT card to enjoy FS9 and FSX. I've seen enough of FSX to know a new system will do it justice once I have a fast processor and card.To spend a large amount of that budget on a large monitor that would require my 9800Pro to run at even higher resolutions would be folly. And you confirm the 9800Pro doesn't cut the mustard any more.I'm excited about FSX and I want to enjoy it. That requires a new system and even on a 17" display I will enjoy it.Thanks for the info on the 20" Dell. Until I can make a firm decision on a monitor I think it best to hold fire. Glad you got the A02 - that is still a great monitor and it might even be back on the agenda once the new system is built.Many thanks,

Ray,Sounds like all good decisions.>>I'm not prepared to wait until well into next year before DX10 cards appear and are resonably priced and on top of that the need to install Vista to see DX10 benefits.<.I'm also looking forward to FSX and hopefully my finances will support new HW choices then. BUT, FS9.x ain't too bad right now on a decent box, and at the end of a day doing residential computer installs it reduces my tendency towards committing felonies by at least half .As to the 9800 Pro, nice card, at the time.>>Thanks for the info on the 20" Dell. Until I can make a firm decision on a monitor I think it best to hold fire.<http://exmixer.com/]exmixer.com[/a]FS9' box:Dell XPS 600 XPPro SP2Pentium D 955EE 3.46MHz Dual Core/HT FSB @ 1066MHz 2x2MB Cache2x1GB DDR2 PC2-5300 @ 667 MHz1xOEM SAMSUNG HD160JJ/P 160GB SATA II/NCQ2xSeagate ST3160827AS 160GB SATA I/NCQOEM TSSTcorp CD-RW TS-H292B, SONY DVD-ROM DDU1615EVGA e-GeForce 7900 GTX 512MB GDDR3 PCIe x16Dell 2407WFPSB X-FiViewcast Osprey 230 vid capturePlextor 716UF external Hi-Speed USB2.0/FW DVD-RW/CD-RW

Hi jb,<>I normally buy the latest OS when it becomes available and probably will when Vista emerges. I'll then watch the AvSim forums for opinions on whether it helps FSX run better than XP with all other factors the same.Some time after that I'll look at DX10 cards but I want to get plenty of mileage out of my X1900XT first. It all depends on whether DX10 transforms FSX in the same way that graphics acceleration changed FS98. That was a stunning improvement.<.>>:-lol Well you certainly have a good system and yes, once Ground Environment, enhanced mesh and Ultimate Terrain are added FS9 is transformed. FRom my early look at FSX it will improve that look by a considerable margin.<>Difficult. That would make a decision so much easier. I'm surprised a TFT would run as hot as a CRT but my room is a reasonable size so it shouldn't be a problem especially in England! :-hahExpect more news after the kit is procured.Cheers,

Hey JB,I found your comment on the AMD/7 series failures very interesting. I have a 7900 GTXOC 690/1750 that I run with an FX-57. A few weeks ago I started noticing really weird graphic anomalies. Even though the card was factory OC'd I started downclocking it to see if it would help any. Dropped down to 660/1700 and I was ok for a while but sure enough the anomalies started to come back. I am nopw back to stock at 650/1650 but my air conditioning went out two days ago. Just for personal reasons, I don't run my systems when the ambient temp is higher than 80 in the room because I do not let any component on my system above 40 degrees so they are off right now until the AC guys get here at 1 and I get the air fixed. I just found your comments very interesting considering my situation and I guess I add further evidence to your claim...Too bad my 7900 is already a few months old and well beyond an RMA...$500 video card gone to [email protected] cool,-PaulOh yeah, I also run the 2405 with dual 19's, you can see my link below for my setup but I LOVE the 2405... -PPrimary RigLiquid CooledAMD FX-57 @ 3 gigsAsus A8NSLI-Premium2 gigs Corsair XMS PC3500LL 2 3 2 6 1TXFX 7900 GTX 690/1750XFX 7800 GTX 515/135024 inch Widescreen LCDDual 19 inch LCD'sRaid-0+1PCPower and Cooling 1khttp://home.comcast.net/~psolk/3monitorsa.htmlBackup RigAMD 4000 San Diego @ 2.72 Gigs Kingston Corsair XMS CL2XFX 7800 GTX 515/1350 Raid-0

Ray:You might be able to post on the DELL forums--there are many of them for every peice of hardware you can think of and they are incredibly useful. I've always gotten replies with good advice in the shortest time over there; beats phone tech support by miles.I suspect your set-up might not have the juice to power the 2405 screen at 1920x1200x32 bit which is what you really should run FS9 in. I am very happy with my 2405 (I have an ATI X850XT PE card inside a 3.80Ghz DELL XPS Gen 4) and must say that even the 2D panels )fo which I have many) look stunning with no particularly significant distortion of any of them. I still use the 3D panel largely for eye candy views during flight and don't find them as exciting as others do. Give me a good solid 2D with big gauges and clear fonts and I'm a happy camper.I use a DELL 1901FP LCD on the side for running FSNavigator and other instruments under the same ATI card.The DELL 20.1 LCD is also beautiful and was excellent with FS2004 as an intermediate monitor till I could buy the 2405. I use it for internet surfing and mundane stuff such as word processing amongst other non FS stuff now (what a waste!)JS

Hi JS,In a week I've completely revised my priorities - not once but twice. It's just as well I'm not the impulsive type!The Dell 24" is on hold for the time being. You're quite right saying the 9800Pro is not up to the task of doing justice to such a high-resolution display.That will require a new graphics card which in turn will require a new mobo and new processor and RAM. In short, a new system. The fly in the ointment is DX10 and compatible graphics cards. I was going to build a Core 2 Duo system with a good DX9 card but I might only get 6 months out of a card that is going to cost around 300UKP and that doesn't make a lot of sense.So for now I'm biting the bullet and waiting for Vista and DX10 cards. Hopefully I won't have to wait too long. Once I have that system then the Dell looks a good bet. Thanks for the tip about their forum. Closer to the time I'll pay them a visit.Have you considered FS FlightKeeper? It has a much better moving map (Ai aircraft are shown) as well as being a excellent flight monitor package. It would certainly be ideal on that 20" :-)Cheers,