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We Played Modern Games on a CRT Monitor - and the Results are Phenomenal :
It's true. Running modern games on a vintage CRT monitor produces absolutely outstanding results - subjectively superior to anything from the LCD era, up to and including the latest OLED displays. Best suited for PC players, getting an optimal CRT set-up isn't easy, and prices vary dramatically, but the results can be simply phenomenal.
The advantages of CRT technology over modern flat panels are well-documented. CRTs do not operate from a fixed pixel grid in the way an LCD does - instead three 'guns' beam light directly onto the tube. So there's no upscaling blur and no need to run at any specific native resolution as such. On lower resolutions, you may notice 'scan lines' more readily, but the fact is that even lower resolution game outputs like 1024x768 or 1280x960 can look wonderful. Of course, higher-end CRTs can input and process higher resolutions, but the main takeaway here is that liberation from a set native resolution is a gamechanger - why spend so many GPU resources on the amount of pixels drawn when you can concentrate on quality instead without having to worry about upscale blurring?
Are there any Soylentils here who still use a CRT for gaming? If I could just find a CRT with a 65-inch diagonal, and a table that could support the weight...
(Score: 3, Insightful) by bradley13 on Saturday October 12 2019, @11:04AM (4 children)
A lot depends on the CRT quality, which in turn depended on the price you were willing to pay. I used top-of-the-line Viewsonics for many years. No vibration, incredibly sharp, I could run at 2048x1536 resolution - which was almost unheard of in the day.
Today's LCD panels? A fraction of the price, and they are at least as good. Sure, you have to set them to your preferences (brightness, contract, temperature, etc.), but you had to do the same with the CRTs.
I threw away all my CRTs years ago, along with my vinyl records. Technology progresses.
Everyone is somebody else's weirdo.
(Score: 2) by hemocyanin on Saturday October 12 2019, @03:58PM
I wonder how many low back disk herniations have been avoided by the move away from CRTs and vinyl. I got rid of my records in 1992 in preparation for a cross country move. In the mid 2000s I got rid of the CRTs. In both cases, I saved an enormous amount of dead weight and would never go back. I think the nostalgia for this stuff, comes largely (not completely of course) from people who didn't have to live with these things on a daily basis.
(Score: 2) by Common Joe on Saturday October 12 2019, @04:42PM (1 child)
You know one thing that CRTs excelled at compared to today's LCD? They had knobs. It was a lot easier to adjust. Otherwise, I'm totally with you. I prefer LCDs overall.
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Sunday October 13 2019, @02:57PM
Knobs. KNOBS! Geez yes. Gimme a damn knob, or button, enough with the crappy onscreen controls already!
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Sunday October 13 2019, @03:31AM
I also became a ViewSonic bigot -- sharper picture and better color. Never had one that would do 2048x1536, tho -- do you remember which model?
My eyes still find a CRT more restful, but anymore it's not worth the space or the bother, so ... flatscreens.
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.