Your pick for best CRT for classic gaming?

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MetalSlugger

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I recently got a Sony XBR960 CRT, and although it's godly for HD all of my classic systems look like rotten ass on it. I figured they would, but it was still disappointing.

So I started doing some research on what the best classic gaming CRT is (mostly from this thread on GAF), and from what I gathered:

*Sony broadcast/professional monitors or old Commodore monitors are the best, but they're not ideal for me since I'd have to spend money on extra cables/adapters and the small screen size wouldn't work for my 4-player N64 nights

*4:3 60hz Sony Trinitron FD flatscreens are the best consumer models but can have geometry/post processing issues

*Some people swear by curved screen Trinitrons from the mid-late 90s, or by connecting SCART through a converter to SD TVs with component inputs

*Samsung GXTVs are the most awesomely tubular to the max gaming TVs on the planet, but have a tiny screen and are impossible to find

Does anyone have any input on this? Right now I'm leaning towards a Sony KV-36FV310 but they seem pretty scarce around here. The only things I will be connecting to this TV will be classic cartridge systems (specifically N64 for local multiplayer).
 
Any 90s-early 2000s 4:3 CRT should suit you just fine. If you worry about scanlines for video gaming, as in you want it, don't get the silver Trinitron. I personally don't, and that fat Trinitron is my all around tv, bright vibrant colors and pretty nice detail.
SCART means that you have to personally mod your consoles to use that feature, which means opening up your system and connecting wires from the video output chip into an SCART connector, which aren't common in the states.
 
old sony tritron wega is my tv of choice. The real trick is to not go super big. You gotta remember up until about 2000 or so a 32in tv was considered really, really big so older games werent really optimized to be played on that size. I have i think a 27" wega and i consider it just about perfect for old schooling. Step back to the ninties and that was considered pretty big. Playing old games on a too technical tv will never make them look good.
IF your curious just troll craigslist for free crt tv's and give them all a go. thats how i got mine and i tried several before i settled on it. The ones i didnt use i just gave away again.
 
Goodwills will typically price the old CRT TV's between $1-4 (mine usually does $0.99), mostly universal across the board regardless of their quality. This means you can find awesome CRTs for classic gaming for cheap.

If you want to go one step further, you can try bringing in your system of choice and seeing exactly how it looks on the floor. This sounds weird, but I've seen people test DVD / VCR players the same way, as long as you don't mind sticking out a bit (and the manager knows what you are doing).

Out there for sure, but also very CAG.
 
This CRT cost me $15 through craigslist.

f1ce7890.jpg
 
[quote name='detectiveconan16']Any 90s-early 2000s 4:3 CRT should suit you just fine. If you worry about scanlines for video gaming, as in you want it, don't get the silver Trinitron. I personally don't, and that fat Trinitron is my all around tv, bright vibrant colors and pretty nice detail.
SCART means that you have to personally mod your consoles to use that feature, which means opening up your system and connecting wires from the video output chip into an SCART connector, which aren't common in the states.[/QUOTE]

I was under the impression that the 310s still had scanlines. Oh well, that would be a PITA anyway.

I always check the thrift stores around here but most of them have a VERY limited CRT section, and most of those TVs are broken/shit. No idea why, especially since our main thrift store is gigantic and has a billion of everything else.

Based on the specs, size and WOOD CONSOLE AWESOMENESS I've settled on this Sony Trinitron XBR...now to find a vehicle to transport it in.

[quote name='ryosnk']This CRT cost me $15 through craigslist.

f1ce7890.jpg
[/QUOTE]

I shit you not, that is the EXACT TV I wanted but after months of daily eBay/CL/etc. searching I gave up.
 
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Man, I wish I could find a working GXTV too... had one way back in the day, but foolishly sold it in college..... played alot of ps1 games on that thing (lived in a small apartment at the time).

I currently use a cheap emerson flat glass crt that I got cheap at a thrift. I surprisingly looks very good with old school games. It even has Svideo and Component inputs too.
 
[quote name='ryosnk']This CRT cost me $15 through craigslist.

f1ce7890.jpg
[/QUOTE]

Isn't that the TV that was advertised as "Built for gaming"? I remember Best Buy trying to sell a TV like that and that I wanted it, but was not allowed to buy it.

As for what I used in the past was an old Sony Trinitron. I think it might be just a 20 inch however I'm not sure. I have not used it in over 10 years. I know it came out when the flat screens were just starting to come out. The damn thing is still huge, but the screen is flat.

Having it would always make me laugh when the thin screens came out and people called them a flat screen.
 
Those just look ridiculous to me, especially as the speakers are bigger than the screen.
I've also heard that looking for those old CRTs once used in video production are also nice or something.
 
[quote name='detectiveconan16']I've also heard that looking for those old CRTs once used in video production are also nice or something.[/QUOTE]

I've seen a few of them on CL but from what I've read they're a pain in the ass to set up, requiring SCART cables/adapters/etc. Plus most of them are too small for my 4-player N64 plans.
 
I picked up that 32XBR70 this past weekend, and after a few days of tweaking the picture looks great. The tilt is a little off and you have to push a hidden switch in the back to access the service menu but other than that this TV is awesome. Great colors/clarity and SCANLINES AWRIGHT
 
KV-XXFV310 (XX being the size) is clearly the best 4:3 consumer set. I've extolled its virtues in the GAF thread.
 
[quote name='Zing']KV-XXFV310 (XX being the size) is clearly the best 4:3 consumer set. I've extolled its virtues in the GAF thread.[/QUOTE]

Your info in that thread was awesome, thanks!

Since you actually own the 310: are there scanlines, or does it smooth everything out?
 
As a kid, I owned a Samsung GXTV. It was cheaply made (the doors caused the speaker wire to sever within 3 years), but output some very good pseudo surround sound (I thought there was a cricket in my room while playing Final Fantasy VIII). The picture is too small though, so I don't believe it's worth it.

There's a 20" Sony KV-20FV12 in my childhood bedroom which I used from 2000-2010 every day. The picture is so clear, I was able to hold my own in Call of Duty 4 through composite cables. It puts out a great picture to this day.

The low-end Wega sets started looking worse around 2003. I think they relocated their tube manufacturing around this point. I am not sure when the KV-27FV310 models were produced, but those look like higher-end sets so this warning might not be applicable.

Overall, the Sony Trinitron TVs are my favorite for SD.
 
Sony BVM is the best.

Sony PVM is more affordable and still excellent.

Running RGB into those monitors is the best video output you can get for old systems that output in 240p.

 
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