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looking for cheap Studio Monitor 1080p advice
  • fatpigfatpig

    Hello guys,

    I am currently using an old 15" LCD monitor as my preview device, which is not very accurate. I do not have the need for a real studio monitor. what bothers me about this solution is the black level.

    Today, still all TVs start with black at 16 of 255 shades as opposed to 0 of 255 shades in a PC monitor. (This is my understanding, correct me if I am wrong) At least, What looks grey on a PC monitor is often times still black on a TV.

    I was thinking about getting a small 1080p TV as a monitor, but maybe you have better suggestions.

    I am looking for a small Monitor for my working space (maybe around 20") that has TV black levels. Or would you suggest changing that in the graphics card config...?

  • 10 Replies sorted by
  • Vitaliy_KiselevVitaliy_Kiselev

    You can just get good and cheap monitor.

    Check LG IPS based monitors, they have many and many are with passive 3D even (this year models). Monitors have full range.

    In LG LCD TV you can usually adjust range in any of expert picture modes.

  • fatpigfatpig

    Thank you, when you say Full Range- this means it is not clipping the black- and I suppose this is not a feature with these monitors, is it? Yes I have a large LG TV, which supports adjusting the range.

    Is using a TV a common practive for cheap solutions?

  • Vitaliy_KiselevVitaliy_Kiselev

    Is using a TV a common practive for cheap solutions?

    I have no idea.

    All TVs usually have some issues, most of the time it is part of image processing that can't be turned off. As far as I know it is issue for all LG TVs for many years. On latest models issues are minor. This is intentional thing.

    I suggest to check 27" IPS monitors with 3D from LG. They are available both locally or on ebay from Korean sellers.

  • fatpigfatpig

    Thanks I did not know about those. They look great! But adjusting the range wont be a feature there, will it? How do other people manage to grade for the right range?

  • sicovdplassicovdplas

    Buy a second hand Eizo, and a colorspider - best setup is dual monitor (eizo + LED or IPS monitor) and dubble checks here are done on iPhones and Lcd tv's

  • Vitaliy_KiselevVitaliy_Kiselev

    @sicovdplas

    Advice seems too general. Good EIZO monitors are extremely pricey, and old second hand I see is mostly crap.

    LED or IPS monitor

    LED is backlight tech and IPS is LCD panel tech.

  • sicovdplassicovdplas

    Buy 2nd Hand Eizo's 22" 16:10 pre/hd or the FullHD Series, you can grab them for 200-300 euro's, with DVI or VGA, or if you're lucky HDMI

    IPS is fine, but the brightness levels and colors are not very accurate and have way too much value, same goes for LED, too much blue & green, and it really depends on the Backlight on IPS if it's a good panel, we don't like the edge lit panels.

    Wé managed to grab 2 of these http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/249422/eizo-flexscan-s2243w-zwart/specificaties/ (the older version which is more bulky but same specifications)

    For 200 euro,- each. And in general the color representation of the Eizo is next to perfect, problem with cheap monitors such as LG is that the colors don´t show correctly, you can calibrate, but it´s a hell of a job to get them matching.

    Best cheap option is to calibrate your monitors you have right now, and review grades and exports on mp4´s on your iPhone, or buy Apple TV and check there.

  • Vitaliy_KiselevVitaliy_Kiselev

    @sicovdplas

    And in general the color representation of the Eizo is next to perfect, problem with cheap monitors such as LG is that the colors don´t show correctly, you can calibrate, but it´s a hell of a job to get them matching.

    You need to calibrate monitor anyway. Always (and periodically). And arrange proper workplace.

    And I still do not understand this obsession with iPhone, or (?) Apple TVs.

    I really can't support idea to get second hand monitors (as you absolutely do not know their state).

  • sicovdplassicovdplas

    Always check it when buying/collecting it, ours are fine. the iPhone and iPad's have a very accurate colors, most likely what your client will see, with a little less vivid colors from the gloss finish from the iPhone/iPad

    Calibrating is a must, every month atleast, also if you wanne do it perfectly paint the walls 18% gray and also keep distance of your monitor atleast 50-100cm ;)

  • Vitaliy_KiselevVitaliy_Kiselev

    Plus you suggest S-PVA monitors and PVA (or MVA) are known for some issues.

    What is a more serious issue for graphics/photography users is the so-called "contrast shift" or "gamma shift" that is inherent to PVA matrices. This means that the halftones will shift in brightness when viewed off-centre. This is a major problem as you only need to move your head a few centimeters to notice it. With a panel of this size, simply moving an image from one side of the screen to the other will result in a visible change as you drag the window across. This is the reason we don't buy cheap TN panels in the first place! Except, TN panels change contrast when you move your head up and down. PVA panels change (and quite significantly) when you move left to right. This is arguably even worse, as monitors are wider than they are tall, and typically you'll stay at a constant height when sat in front of a computer.

    if you wanne do it perfectly paint the walls 18% gray

    This suggestion is meaningless. You need to pain using neutral gray paint, and it is proper lighting that can make it 18% gray (but 18% is not really cruicial).

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