24" Widescreen CRT (FW900) From Ebay arrived,Comments.

could you take a close up picture of each to compare the sharpnesses? i'm curious as to how much of an improvement the f520's 0.22 grill brings

I can try! :) I have a crappy iPhone camera though that can't possibly do it any justice. Functionally the difference is that I can take the F520 to a little bit of a higher resolution than the Artisan and have it still be useable (all text is readable without too much effort). Max resolutions are below:

GDM-F520 - 1920x1440 (75 hz or 85hz - 75hz is clearer)
GDM-FW900 - 2304x1440 (75hz or 80hz - again 75hz is clearer)
Artisan - 1792x1344 (75hz or 85hz - 75hz is clearer).

EDIT: I guess I'm trying to say that the 0.22mm pitch is nice but it's not a dramatic increase from the 0.24mm pitch.
 
http://m.ebay.com/itm/321475974144?nav=SEARCH
wtf is this real
edit: nvm i thought these are the sgi branded fw900s for a second :p

@jbl for me i can force any resolution i want with cru as long as its under the hsync limit. could you compare the three at a similar vertical res? e.g. 1600x1200 and 1920x1200

though i guess 1600 isny enough to show the advabtages of the f520's grill i guess
 
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http://m.ebay.com/itm/321475974144?nav=SEARCH
wtf is this real

@jbl for me i can force any resolution i want with cru as long as its under the hsync limit. could you compare the three at a similar vertical res? e.g. 1600x1200 and 1920x1200

though i guess 1600 isny enough to show the advabtages of the f520's grill i guess

I've tried and my iPhone camera fails. :( I can't give you the high-res images you want.
 
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dam... thanks for trying
subjectively, how do your monitors compare in terms of sharpness?
 
Only thing I notice that tends to drift is the white balance.

i think in windas the wpb procedure never uses the old values and just defaults to some stuff like 100 100 100

or did you note the values for the final values you set during the last time you went through windas and compare?

for your artisan, would you mind posting the gamma curve (measured in hcfr or something) that results from the automated calibration?
 
i think in windas the wpb procedure never uses the old values and just defaults to some stuff like 100 100 100

or did you note the values for the final values you set during the last time you went through windas and compare?

for your artisan, would you mind posting the gamma curve (measured in hcfr or something) that results from the automated calibration?

For your first point, I believe you're correct. Every time you start the procedure, it seems to default to some setting. After 9300K is set, then when it comes time to set 6500K, it defaults to the 9300K values (and then uses the set 6500K values as the starting point for 5000K). Personally, I like this approach because after you nail 9300K, it gets easier from that point on. Essentially, you just keep lowering blue (and adjust any errors in red and green in the process) until you've gone through all of the steps and have everything on point.

I can tell when the unit has drifted if I simply take a measurement while it's warming up. In this case, my F520 was warming up at 9300K and was showing x = 0.287 and y = 0.297. So in this case, red drifted a little and green may have drifted ever-so-slightly. My FW900, after a year of use, has not seemed to age one bit. First pass to nail the 6500K luminance still only took a value of 58 on the drive slider. According to Unkle Vito, this means the tube has very little use. Personally, I expect my flyback transformer to crap out before this tube does. I did not take a measurement of my FW900 before I started the procedure because I had the intent to recalibrate it.

Pictures are coming soon. I may consider selling one or some of my GDM's. I don't have room for all of them anymore. It's kind of rough because all of them are in fantastic shape and every one of them is a beauty to behold.
 
does your fw900 have the antiglare film? i wonder how much of a difference that makes to the required drive

my g520p with the film needs around exactly 100 for the 9300k drive; dont remember values for 6500k. from everything i can tell the monitor hasnt been used heavily yet

my fw900 which i think is near death needs ~170 last time i checked and the tube is quite blurry
 
I am so sorry for this late reply but I was out of the country... Your recent posting for the failure modes is the correct one.

Have a nice and safe New Years Eve!

In that case, my monitor's issue would seem to involve the ABL Protector.

Given that and that it worked briefly after being turned off for 8-12 hours, does anyone have any recommendations as to how i should proceed?
 
Azurfel, do you have WinDAS and the cable?

I do not, as this is the first time i have had any significant issue with the monitor that lasted more than, like, a day.

If getting one might help and the price is something i can afford i will happily do so.
 
You can probably get one for about 3 dollars :)

Here's the sort of cable you need (and you may need to download and install the drivers for it to work properly).

there are a few copies of windas floating around. Here's one. If you're running windows 7, the instructions in the description of this video may help.

Attaching the cable to the service port monitor is a bit tricky, but very doable. It's easier if you remove the cabinet assembly (see Section 2-1 of service manual, although you can probably figure it out yourself), but with a bit of tedium and a flashlight, possible to do without removing the cabinet assembly. The order that you connect the pins, from top to bottom, is black red green white. (gnd, +5v (also known as standby, tx, rx).

Once you've got the cable, installed the driver, installed WinDAS, and connected the cable, post back here for more guidance.
 
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You can probably get one for about 3 dollars :)

Here's the sort of cable you need (and you may need to download and install the drivers for it to work properly).

Would this one work?
If so, i would rather pay $3 extra and get it within a week, as the one you linked estimated a month or more for delivery.
 
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I am so sorry to hear that this happened to you. I am so glad that you insured the shipment. My guess is that it was probably destroyed in transit, and FedEx is claiming it as "loss"... In my 25 years of shipping 30x30x30 boxed GDM-FW900 via FedEx, I have never lost a single unit the way you did... Again, I am so sorry for what happened.

Should you decide to make a purchase, let us know.

Merry Christmas to you and to all the GDM-FW900 enthusiasts and professionals on this forum!

Sincerely,

Unkle Vito!

Unfortunately Unkle Vito you we're right. I drove to the fedex center today only to find that the fw900 was damaged. Such a shame to see a good unit go to waste. I am getting a claim processed now. As soon as it is completed I am purchasing a unit from you.
 
does your fw900 have the antiglare film? i wonder how much of a difference that makes to the required drive

my g520p with the film needs around exactly 100 for the 9300k drive; dont remember values for 6500k. from everything i can tell the monitor hasnt been used heavily yet

my fw900 which i think is near death needs ~170 last time i checked and the tube is quite blurry

My FW900 does not have the antiglare film. Yeah - a 170 indicates that your tube is washed out and on its way out. My FW900 isn't as sharp as my F520, but text is doable at 2304x1440 75hz.
 
Unfortunately Unkle Vito you we're right. I drove to the fedex center today only to find that the fw900 was damaged. Such a shame to see a good unit go to waste. I am getting a claim processed now. As soon as it is completed I am purchasing a unit from you.

Woohoo! Do post pics and impressions. Not many people on this forum get an A+'er.
 
VGA splitter arrived today, and I have a bunch of new WinDAS cables too (the latter will allow me to calibrate more than one unit without having to remove the cable from my primary unit). So I should be able to do side by side testing of the antiglare vs non antiglare soon :)

just need to muster up the will to set up DSLR and figure out a line spread function methodology
 
Woohoo! Do post pics and impressions. Not many people on this forum get an A+'er.

Sure thing! I have an SGI FW9011 on the way as well Fingers crossed, say a prayer that the shipping God's are kind. The FW900 that was damaged was a nice unit from ebay,and It was tragic to see it damaged. I have been waiting to get a FW900 for a long time. I am going to purchase a unit immediately from Unkle Vito as soon as I am reimbursed by fedex. I am very excited to buy. A grade A+
 
Sure thing! I have an SGI FW9011 on the way as well Fingers crossed, say a prayer that the shipping God's are kind. The FW900 that was damaged was a nice unit from ebay,and It was tragic to see it damaged. I have been waiting to get a FW900 for a long time. I am going to purchase a unit immediately from Unkle Vito as soon as I am reimbursed by fedex. I am very excited to buy. A grade A+

I understand. I have an A+ GDM-F520 from him. I'm definitely a bigger fan of the 520 than the 900, but it's all about personal preference. If I didn't have an F520 I wouldn't complain about only having my FW900. :)
 
Is the Sony 21" CDP 520 Monitor‏ comparable to the GDM F520? I have a guy who wants to sell me one with very low hours on it for $300. I might bite if it is basically the same monitor as the GDM.
 
Is the Sony 21" CDP 520 Monitor‏ comparable to the GDM F520? I have a guy who wants to sell me one with very low hours on it for $300. I might bite if it is basically the same monitor as the GDM.

The GDM-F520 has .22mm dot pitch & G520 is .24 mm so the image won't be as sharp, I had a G520 before my FW900 and it had a great picture which was plenty sharp IMO, I also liked how the G520 had a Picture Effect button which allowed you to toggle through preset picture modes (Dynamic, Professional, Standard). Dynamic mode gave the picture a boost in contrast beyond the scope of whats adjustable by the user so these weren't just simple contrast / brightness presets ( I was a little bummed to find the FW900 lacked this feature).

Spec sheets for G520 & F520:

https://docs.sony.com/release/specs/cpdg520_sp.pdf

https://docs.sony.com/release/specs/GDMF520_sp.pdf
 
Is the Sony 21" CDP 520 Monitor‏ comparable to the GDM F520? I have a guy who wants to sell me one with very low hours on it for $300. I might bite if it is basically the same monitor as the GDM.
The GDMs (F-series) were Sony's prosumer line. Aside from the screen differences (finer dot pitch etc) many supporting components are better quality compared to the CDP (G-series). IIRC the MSRP difference between the two was at least several hundred dollars.
 
Okay thanks for the replys. If the CDP has a larger dot pitch I believe I'll pass and stick with my 27 inch LCD. My main reason for picking it up would be picture quality and resolution. If I go back to CRT it has to be the GDM520, FW900 or possibly a Viewsonic p225f.
 
Unfortunately Unkle Vito you we're right. I drove to the fedex center today only to find that the fw900 was damaged. Such a shame to see a good unit go to waste. I am getting a claim processed now. As soon as it is completed I am purchasing a unit from you.

I am wondering how this unit was packed inside the box, and which box they used... The packing of these units is very specialized and expensive, and not every packing outfit is capable of doing it correctly.

Also, have you contacted FedEx to check if they can let you have the damaged unit as "scrap"? If you can pursue them to o that, you may be able recover some internal components that are very scarce and hard/near impossible to find.

The claim should take 5-7 working days to complete. Find out who the claim's representative for your claim is and keep bugging him/her until they mail you the check.

Lastly, I want to wish you and everyone in the Forum a Happy and Safe New Year 2015!

UV!
 
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The GDMs (F-series) were Sony's prosumer line. Aside from the screen differences (finer dot pitch etc) many supporting components are better quality compared to the CDP (G-series). IIRC the MSRP difference between the two was at least several hundred dollars.

The Sony GDM (F and C models) series were the professional models (Premier Pro), whereas the CPD (G and E models) were the consumer models. The main differences were the quality of the tubes and the individual features of the units.

Hope this helps...

UV!
 
Is the Sony 21" CDP 520 Monitor‏ comparable to the GDM F520? I have a guy who wants to sell me one with very low hours on it for $300. I might bite if it is basically the same monitor as the GDM.

Not even close... Is like comparing apples to oranges... Different chassises, tubes, components, and features.

Also, how is the seller determining the "low hours"? Has he measured the emission level of the tube? Has he establish the level of adjustment (0-255) of the unit in the first pass by performing a WPB and taking readings on a IRE 100 background at D93, D65 and D50? What was the level of the adjustments and what instruments did he use to perform the process?

Hope this helps...

UV!
 
I am wondering how this unit was packed inside the box, and which box they used... The packing of these units is very specialized and expensive, and not every packing outfit is capable of doing it correctly.

Also, have you contacted FedEx to check if they can let you have the damaged unit as "scrap"? If you can pursue them to o that, you may be able recover some internal components that are very scarce and hard/near impossible to find.

The claim should take 5-7 working days to complete. Find out who the claim's representative for your claim is and keep bugging him/her until they mail you the check.

Lastly, I want to wish you and everyone in the Forum a Happy and Safe New Year 2015!

UV!

FedEx shipped the unit back to the seller to file the claim. They listed it as undeliverable on account of the fact I refused to accept it with the considerable damage. The seller was very cooperative and is filing the claim. I hope it is processed as soon as possible.
 
Is the Sony 21" CDP 520 Monitor‏ comparable to the GDM F520? I have a guy who wants to sell me one with very low hours on it for $300. I might bite if it is basically the same monitor as the GDM.

i have one myself. it's a very good monitor but i think the gdm series are a bit more polished/refined in every way.

my only complaints for my particular monitor are:
0. 0.24mm grill instead of 0.22mm. but it's not a huge deal
1. geometry slightly imperfect around the center. not fixable with windas hard to notice except when scrolling text.

everything else is pretty much perfect... or as good as i can imagine a crt monitor can possibly be.

$300 though... i don't think it's worth unless you want to become a crt collector :D or unless you live somewhere where it's rare to find these
 
FedEx shipped the unit back to the seller to file the claim. They listed it as undeliverable on account of the fact I refused to accept it with the considerable damage. The seller was very cooperative and is filing the claim. I hope it is processed as soon as possible.

If the seller shipped the unit, then the seller needs to file the claim. If the seller paid the shipping and declared the value of the unit, then the reimbursement check will go to the seller.

Now, if FedEx determines that the unit was not properly packed, then the seller will loose the claim and will get no reimbursement $ from FedEx. If I were you, I would get a hold of the FedEx claim representative who is handling the claim and find out what is the decision on the claim.

Hope this helps...

UV!
 
Not even close... Is like comparing apples to oranges... Different chassises, tubes, components, and features.

Also, how is the seller determining the "low hours"? Has he measured the emission level of the tube? Has he establish the level of adjustment (0-255) of the unit in the first pass by performing a WPB and taking readings on a IRE 100 background at D93, D65 and D50? What was the level of the adjustments and what instruments did he use to perform the process?

Hope this helps...

UV!

He had the monitor listed on Craigslist and eBay claiming that he bought it new, plugged it in to make sure it worked, then put it away in storage. So it was his word only regarding how few hours were on the monitor. Anyway, it isn't what I'm looking for. Originally I thought it was the same as the GDM, but you guys straightened me out.

I am not totally CRT less. My PC monitor is now LCD but my TV is the super fine pitch XBR 910, 34 inches of gaming goodness and champion of console display! Haha, happy new year to all you CRT nuts :)
 
I was looking at CRT monitors on ebay, and stumbled upon this:

8QtNaeL.png


The shipping cost, WTF???
 
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