2 Monitors for Photoshop - IPS?

D

dja2k

n00b
Joined
Sep 5, 2006
Messages
18
I am looking to buy 2 monitors for my dad to work Photoshop and might as well buy two identical ones. He is using traditional CRT monitors at the moment because he's never liked LCD viewing angles where the top looks different than the bottom. They said to go for IPS LCD monitors, but there aren't too many good reviews on the current selection. Does he really need IPS Monitors for Photo Editing or are there some good sub $250 TFT ones now? Thanks

dja2k
 
Definitely IPS. I'm using TN and I've always noticed a pretty big quality difference vs CRT when doing photo editing. Photoshop for me is just a hobby so it was a loss I accepted at the time, so for your dad you'll definitely want the much better quality.

The good ones are NEC, Dell, and LG.

You might also want to consider the difference going to matte is also a loss when doing fine detail editing. If he's used to glossy he might not like it. Apple makes a glossy IPS, not sure if there are any others ATM.
 
That Apple 27" is great but the price isn't. He is looking to spend $500 - $600 or so on both if they would benefit him more than using some washed up CRT monitors. At my local Best Buy, they have the LG IPS236V that I can go check out, but reviews aren't that hot for that one.

dja2k
 
CRT>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>LCD for photo editing.

The aggressive AG coating ruins whites and light colors, all you can see is the dirty/grainy/chrystalized look rather than the actual colors on most IPS panels.

I am currently using a CRT and monitor with light AG coating which is much lighter than that found on the IPS panels/most TN's, and can't see through the grain with certain colors.

There is the Dell ST220T Review, which is glossy, but your dads CRT is pretty much gaurenteed to be better. My CRT was cheap back in the day (500$ in 1999) and it is still better than most mid-high end LCD's for photo editing after calibration.

Just tell your dad to get a colorimeter if he doesn't have one, like the Eye One Display 2 or DPT-94.
 
Last edited:
Hey already used an Eye 1 calibration though he still says he wants to upgrade, I don't know, just thought I'd ask for some advice.

dja1k
 
Tell him no IPS panel comes even close in terms all around performance (high contrast/deep blacks, viewing angles and color reproduction+consistency) compared to a CRT.

The glossy dell is the closest, but it does not have an A-TW polarizer and can come with tinting+backlight bleeding. At only 21.5" I can't see a CRT being happy give the other issues.

The IPS panels that do use an A-TW polarizer either have low contrast compared to a CRT+AG coating (NEC 2490), or have high contrast, but have banding issues+aggressive AG coating (2,000 $ HP Dream Color).
 
If he wants new monitors, I will show him the HP P1230 22" CRT's I see on Ebay. Supposedly those are for high-end graphics and video production or gaming due to it's great color accuracy. Right now he is using a Samsung CRT and some cheapo brand Trinitron CRT, so those should be an improvement. From what I read, those HP's are NEC's that have a 98% color gamut to accurately reproduce vivid colors and details.

dja2k
 
dja2k said:
I am looking to buy 2 monitors for my dad to work Photoshop and might as well buy two identical ones. He is using traditional CRT monitors at the moment because he's never liked LCD viewing angles where the top looks different than the bottom. They said to go for IPS LCD monitors, but there aren't too many good reviews on the current selection. Does he really need IPS Monitors for Photo Editing or are there some good sub $250 TFT ones now? Thanks

dja2k
Click to expand...
For sub-$250 don't bother with LCDs for photo editing.
The contrast is NOT the most significant parameter for editing photos. Soft-proofing requires a monitor typically in the range of 300:1 to 400:1 either way. This isn't movies or gaming. You need a monitor with a consistent gamma coefficient at all accepted luminance levels and as precise colors in a given working space as possible so that you're able to know what the printed output is going to be like, if you apply a profile of the printer to the image you're editing.
CRT contrast is an interesting measurement, since they have way more crosstalk than LCDs, so bright to dark transitions will look softer than it actually should. That's also why serious review sites also benchmark CRTs using checkerboard patterns.
Editing the same areas on a LCD which NCX thinks have low contrast is actually extremely tiresome for the eyes - most of the details in the blacks are not captured by the eyes due to the bright regions. Actually, i've done a lot of photo editing while soft-proofing was enabled - it was just so much easier and comfortable.
CRTs have so many different issues, and I wouldn't tout viewing angles and color reproduction (as in precision) to be any "pro" in comparison to A-TW equipped IPS panels. But I do agree that the current crop of current lo-mid-highend IPS monitors is catastrophic... i.e. it could have been so much better. :(
 
I hate my IPS display (U2711) in Photoshop. I'm just doing some for-fun projects at the moment, I wouldn't want to do any professional work on it! For me the AG coating really makes it unusable for professional graphics work, if you really want to work on a professional basis I wouldn't recomment IPS at the Moment. The alternatives aren't great either, I would wait for PLS if you can.
 
with just $600 for both you are looking for dual Dell u2311 or equivalent e-ips panels.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top