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Monitors for Mac Pro Post Production Setup

G

g.man

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 25, 2008
15
0
I'm about to buy 2 flat panel monitors for a Mac Pro system running Pro Tools for sound post. This will be similar to a Final Cut Pro or Avid setup in that I have a main monitor for editing work and one for viewing the film. I was wondering about getting two 24" TN lcd panels like the Samsung 2443BW. But since I'm going to be using one for editing and one for viewing the film I was thinking it might make sense to buy one TN panel for the editing and one TFT lcd monitor like the Samsung T240 to for viewing the picture. I have sometimes worked with flatscreens for editing and Sony monitors for viewing the picture via a canopus box and the image on that is superior to the flat panels. I work with quicktime DV PAL most of the time.

Any advice on this setup or on the difference between the TN and the TFT panels?
 
how accurate does your colouring have to be?

you might like to take a look at the Matrox MXO box.
 
Matrox MXO, while great, needs to be considered if one of the i/o's the OP is recording is on the Matrox, which is another question entirely.

Furthermore, hate to break it to you, but the T240 is a TN panel as well. The cheapest IPS panel that I know is the Dell 2009WA, an e-IPS panel, that will not dither for colour but at the same time will not have the same viewing angles as a regular IPS (if that matters) and is only 1680x1050. PVA and IPS panels cost more, and then you have to be careful on the manufacturer because often there will be a panel lottery.

What is your budget?

EDIT-*facedesk*Sorry, I got confused - if you are not doing any colour work whatsoever, any monitor should do.

Something I never really understood was the TFT-panel label. According to wikipedia, TFTs are *VA and IPS monitors.
 
thanks for the info. No, I'm not doing any color or photo/graphics work. It's more important for me to get the 1920 x 1200 resolution, which I gather is pretty expensive in a 24" ips panel?

Having said that, I was thinking of the T240 for getting a better image for the films I'll be working on in PT. The Sony CRT monitors are excellent for that and I was looking for something more toward that clarity in a flat panel, as I don't have a lot of room for a CRT. I was wondering if the TFT panels were more in that direction. Looks like they are TN panels with a more glossy image?
 
g.man said:
thanks for the info. No, I'm not doing any color or photo/graphics work. It's more important for me to get the 1920 x 1200 resolution, which I gather is pretty expensive in a 24" ips panel?

Having said that, I was thinking of the T240 for getting a better image for the films I'll be working on in PT. The Sony CRT monitors are excellent for that and I was looking for something more toward that clarity in a flat panel, as I don't have a lot of room for a CRT. I was wondering if the TFT panels were more in that direction. Looks like they are TN panels with a more glossy image?
Click to expand...

Depends what you consider expensive. You can get the 24" HP LP2475w for under $550 now.
 
DV will look absolutely horrid when blown up on a flat panel. You need a CRT production monitor for what you do. It doesn't need to be expensive. Unless you are working in HD, this setup is completely wrong for you.

JVC makes some nice monitors that would suite you.

You want something like this...

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/286529-REG/JVC_TMA210GU_TM_A210GU_21_Color_Video.html#features

286529.jpg
 
Yes i know, like I said in my original post, that´s the kind of monitor I'm used to using when I work in edit suites. But they tend to be pretty big (deep) (especially the 20"-21" inch ones) so I was thinking if there was a comparable flat screen solution for a home setup to save space?

So what I'm thinking now is either:

1. A JVC or Sony CRT and a canopus box (would have to find the space for it though)

2. An IPS panel. (There is the 22" Dell ultrasharp 2209WA for example)
 
If you don't care about colour accuracy just get anything cheap. Once you're using it you won't know the difference. There is a lot of bull spoken about viewing angles etc.

Just get a well reviewed cheap 24" flat screen.
 
JesterJJZ said:
286529.jpg
Click to expand...

I've got two of these JVC units, or at least a sister, collecting dust. They are nice value. But...LCD is the way to if you don't want your friends laughing at you. Only 5X more expensive! I've got two of these 2050W and they're the bomb.

Anyway... point being they make excellent LCD video monitors these days.

549011.jpg
 
dagomike said:
I've got two of these JVC units, or at least a sister, collecting dust. They are nice value. But...LCD is the way to if you don't want your friends laughing at you. Only 5X more expensive! I've got two of these 2050W and they're the bomb.

Anyway... point being they make excellent LCD video monitors these days.
Click to expand...

DV looks bad on flat panels especially if it's interlaced...you've got bigger problems if you worry about what your "friends" think of the gear you use.

If you're editing SD material, you really should be monitoring on SD screens. Besides, it's the end result what really matters. Use the right gear, not just what "looks" cool.

I work mostly in HD now, but I still get some DV work from time to time. For that I go back to my CRT, nothing beats it for DV work. Even with HD, it's nice to be able to see what it will look like downconverted to SD. A good CRT is a good investment regardless. They are cheap now so it's not a hard choice.
 
If your just doing anything but serious printwork, than any well reviewed TN panel will suffice. If you want the ultimate picture quality for video, a S-PVA panel would be best. If you are doing printwork, than an IPS would be best although S-PVA does quite well in this arena as well.

Also, E-IPS has the same viewing angles as H-IPS from the reviews so far.

Refer to this post for more info on most common panel types.
https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/7510384/
 
i always laugh when i hear people talk about viewing angles.

I view my screen from one angle - square on. Who cares about an extra 20 degrees of viewing angle. Are people so lazy they can't move their feet 18 inches to get a proper look at the screen.
 
fluidedge said:
i always laugh when i hear people talk about viewing angles.

I view my screen from one angle - square on. Who cares about an extra 20 degrees of viewing angle. Are people so lazy they can't move their feet 18 inches to get a proper look at the screen.
Click to expand...

Its all about uniformity. You move your head an inch vertically on a tn and the color rapidly shifts.
 
Since the OP is just interested in editing the sound, and watching the playback on the second monitor, then the 2 cheap 24" LCDs should be fine.

OP, have you considered using the playback monitor, above the main editing monitor? I have used this setup before and like it. It works well even having the 24" editing LCD with a 19" placed above it and slightly back, so the pixelization isn't so bad on SD material.
 
These Sony's are worth it

I can testify that these Sony monitors are amazing. Working for a production office, every station has one of these screens and no matter what resolution is being put to the screen it looks incredible. If you have the money to afford one of these monitors they are well worth it.
 
I have the NTSC JVC monitor and it's great for SD and DV work.

Don't use a HDTV unless your doing HD output.
 
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