[brozozo]

I'm on the market for one, and I'm a relative noob when dealing with them. How important is response time? Can you guys recommend me a brand or model?

edit: I'd like to keep it below $250.

[CP5670]

Acer AL2051W. It's the best overall LCD under $550 right now, and it's only $200.

The response time matters to some degree, but they all ghost anyway. When you get to the fastest LCDs, you start having to compromise a lot on other factors (there is one exception to this, the NEC 20WMGX2, but it's quite expensive). It's better to cut back a bit on the response time and get better image quality, which is essentially what the AL2051W offers.

[Ashrak]

i have my eye on Samsung 226BW, but thats probly out of the 200$ price range

[IceFire]

Anything that is 8ms or lower will provide a good gaming LCD.  Then you want to make sure your contrast ratios are high.  The better monitors on the market have 1500:1 and 2000:1.  Keep an eye out for those and ignore anything that is really low like 500:1 or 700:1.

[CP5670]

Most of the numbers don't really mean anything and should be ignored. It's particular models you should look at. A monitor with an 8ms response time can have a true average response of anywhere between 12ms and 35ms, while any contrast ratio over about 600:1 is automatically BS since conventional LCD technologies are simply not capable of more right now.

[Shade]

There must have been some kind of numbers inflation going on since I got my LCD. If those numbers are anything to go by, mine has no contrast at all and updates like a slideshow. Yet, I rarely see any ghosting even when actively looking for it, and it has no problems with pitch black, bright white and all the colours of the rainbow. Something is just not right about the numbers advertised these days.

[foolfromhell]

I got this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001096&Tpk=226BW
2 MS RESPONSE TIME!
Never seen ANY ghosting on this baby!
And its 22" too. Its $50 more than your price range,. ($299 after mail in rebate), but it owns.
if you get extra cash, I recommend this.
And its 1680x1050, which is the best resolution under the $700 price range. and the viewing angle is underexxagerated on the specs list.
Plus, its HDCP compatible

[CP5670]

There must have been some kind of numbers inflation going on since I got my LCD. If those numbers are anything to go by, mine has no contrast at all and updates like a slideshow. Yet, I rarely see any ghosting even when actively looking for it, and it has no problems with pitch black, bright white and all the colours of the rainbow. Something is just not right about the numbers advertised these days.

It's been going on for several years now. The best thing is to just ignore the numbers and go by internet reviews and user opinions instead.

The perceived ghosting depends a lot on the person and the type of game. I have a 90GX2 on my work rig (uses the same Samsung LTM190M2 panel that most 2ms 19" screens have) and I can see enough ghosting to make certain games borderline unplayable, mainly FS2 and D2X-XL. Some other games look just fine to me.

I got this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001096&Tpk=226BW
2 MS RESPONSE TIME!
Never seen ANY ghosting on this baby!
And its 22" too. Its $50 more than your price range,. ($299 after mail in rebate), but it owns.
if you get extra cash, I recommend this.
And its 1680x1050, which is the best resolution under the $700 price range. and the viewing angle is underexxagerated on the specs list.
Plus, its HDCP compatible

Except for the response time and size (not necessarily a good thing, since the dot pitch is also higher), that one is inferior to the cheaper AL2051W in every way. There is also a panel lottery going on with it and you have no way to tell whether you'll get the original Samsung panel or a crappier AUO panel.

[foolfromhell]

2" is worth the larger pixel size.
Plus, I got mine at a store, so I didnt gamble on the panel.

[CP5670]

It's not worth the 6-bit panel, matte coating and worse viewing angles though, not to mention the $100 extra cost.

To be fair, the AL2051W is ridiculously cheap at the moment for what it is. Almost everything looks like a bad deal in comparison to it.

[foolfromhell]

The coating is glossy on mine and the viewing angle is pretty awesome. Almost 180 degrees

[CP5670]

Maybe they added the refractive coating on one of the newer revisions, as the original one didn't have it. I doubt the viewing angles are all that good though, which is what one would expect since it's a TN. The image won't actually start to fade until the extreme edges but you get subtle color shifts long before that. (actually, the 22" monitors are large enough that there is a slight color difference between the left and right edges of the screen from any one viewpoint)

[brozozo]

Thanks for the help, CP!

[Janos]

LCD Soundsystem is much better

[brozozo]

I'm North American scum.

[kv1at3485]

I keep this link handy, just in case I get the sudden urge to replace my trusty CRT.

[Ulala]

Acer AL2051W. It's the best overall LCD under $550 right now, and it's only $200.

What would you say about buying two of these for a dual monitor setup? Would it be better to just purchase a single monitor for $400 instead?

[Shade]

Well, if that Acer is the best LCD under 550$, logic dictates that you should go with one or two of the cheaper, better LCDs and not the more expensive, worse LDC.

[CP5670]

What would you say about buying two of these for a dual monitor setup? Would it be better to just purchase a single monitor for $400 instead?

Not a bad idea, although you should make sure that two widescreens are not too wide for what you're doing. In general, if you just want extra desktop space, two or three smaller monitors will always be much more cost effective than buying a large one of the same area. If you're looking to play games though, you can only use only one monitor at a time in most cases.

I keep this link handy, just in case I get the sudden urge to replace my trusty CRT.

xtknight's thread is awesome, better than a lot of professional review sites. It has been in progress for almost two years now, although was recently split to improve forum loading times.

[Ulala]

How about this one, aside from being TN? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824254026