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

I contacted him with these concerns, and he was very gracious about the deal. He didn't know much about the monitor and had just used the ebay ad for information. I explained to him that calibration isn't a standard thing and that it's very involved, and pointed him towards your posts in this thread (which by the way are hugely valuable, so thanks).

Anyway, something good came out of it. I now own a virtually brand new fw900 (rebranded HP) in what looks to be flawless condition. He drove it over from a nearby city and was very good about the whole affair (he's retired, and his son had given it to him as a gift about ten years ago so that he could enjoy Doom properly). It was too heavy for his desk and was also given an lcd as a gift soon afterwards. So as far as he knows (assuming his son got it brand new), it's only been used for a matter of hours.
 
Bought another one of these gems yesterday with a November 2003 manufacture date for $125 local pick-up (I'm in DC and the pick-up was in Ohio but had a friend who was traveling in that direction visiting family go pick it up for me).

So far, so good with this new monitor... *crosses fingers*

I now have 4 total (2 HP and 2 Sony) and an NEC FP2141-SB that I bought brand new off eBay about 2 years back (apparently the seller had bought a storage locker or something and had a few pallets of these bad boys brand new in their original box).


I'm in CRT heaven! Muhahahaha! :cool:
 
very nice :)

How can you tell the month of manufacture? When I hold down the OSD on the new one I just got, it says

2003-13

does that mean 3rd jan 2003, or 1st march 2003, or something else?

In addition to this one, I have a defunct one that might be fixable, and another in good working condition. And an IBM p275 in great condition, and a sony multiscan G400 in perfect condition which i'm gonna give away or sell, since I'm really out of space.
 
If you look in back of the monitor chassis, it should say the month and year.
Yeah, I’ve wondered myself what that number is after the year (I haven’t the slightest idea what it could be- the day \ month or vice versa could be it, but have no idea). Maybe someone else can weigh in…?
Heh, I’d make room :) But yeah, try posting it for sale so that another can enjoy the CRT goodness ;)
 
Bah101 said:
Bought another one of these gems yesterday with a November 2003 manufacture date for $125 local pick-up (I'm in DC and the pick-up was in Ohio but had a friend who was traveling in that direction visiting family go pick it up for me).

So far, so good with this new monitor... *crosses fingers*

I now have 4 total (2 HP and 2 Sony) and an NEC FP2141-SB that I bought brand new off eBay about 2 years back (apparently the seller had bought a storage locker or something and had a few pallets of these bad boys brand new in their original box).


I'm in CRT heaven! Muhahahaha! :cool:
Click to expand...
I live right around the corner in Baltimore
 
B'more, eh? Cool ;) How is it up there?

Ugh... it's sooo bad b\c the only game I play right now is RTCW (Return to Castle Wolfenstein) on the ECGN 24\7 Beach server :eek:
 
Bah101 said:
If you look in back of the monitor chassis, it should say the month and year.
Click to expand...

right you are :)

mine says march 2003, so i'm guessing it was 1st of march 2003

interestingly, even though this monitor is supposedly in much newer condition, the text is a bit jittery at 1900x1200 @ 85 compared to the older one. Might try getting a dvi-bnc cable and seeing what happens.
 
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Try buying a 5BNC to DVI cable from these guys: www.bluejeanscable.com
I personally own 2 of them.
These guys really know their stuff \ not too long ago I had them make me some custom speaker wire for my Creative Gigaworks S750 7.1 speakers :cool:
 
Bah101,

I'm about to pull the trigger on the DVI to 5 Male BNC Cable from bluejeanscable. I have a question though. I have a geforce 9800GT, which has dual link DVI

The bluejeanscable doesn't specify what kind of DVI (i.e. whether it's DVI-A or DVI-D or DVI-I). Should I assume that it's DVI-I?

Or are the connections on a DVI cable all generic, and it's only the video card's output port that is classified as such?
 
Pretty much every DVI connector on the graphics cards you will see are DVI-I, meaning that they are compatible with analog and digital signals. (And therefore, are compatible with all connectors)

Here's a chart to determine what type of DVI connector you have:
DVI_Connector_Types.svg
 
thanks very much!

btw for anyone who's interested, I'm close to halfway through reading this entire thread. I'm going to try to apply what I've learned in this thread, and will give updates if and when I learn anything.
 
Originally Posted by roberta
Widescreen Monitor page List [H]ardOCP
24" Widescreen CRT (FW900) From Ebay arrived
Reference Pages for Sony FW 900 on this thread
1. For most general links
65. Focus Pods Adjustment
84. Windas G2 default level adjustment
88. Maxdrive is increased for blacks Drive_Max to 250
91. Windas Installer
112. Gamma & Contrast
114. Link to pods
115.Focus Pods & Convergence
117. Pics to open monitor
118 .Drive max/contrast settings
126. ABL shutdown for contrast
141. G2 settings stock
143. Pics of G2 before and after
148. Windas guide for convergence test
151. Settings for color
160. Apply final step to save settings for convergence
171. Refreshrate Vista
184. Bezel replacement
191. Focus
196. Landing
204.Lower G2 to 130
216. DAT file (orginal)
234 .Black & Contrast Levels
248. White Balance RLC-2 Level converter
249. Correct Pins Setup for Windas
253. Damper Windas, White Point Balance, Uncle Vito
255. Anti Glare Film Removal
256. G2 problem Uncle Vito
262. ATI Driver Help
264. Degauss
266. Fixed Refresh Guide
273.RCL-2 Link
274 Big Link Page
275. Uncle Vito Gain Link
277. More Calibration Hints Uncle Vito
281.Find Drivers XP
282. RGB Video signals Graph
287. Calibration software
299. Windas Problems
302. Windas G2 Black Level
304.DVI to BNC Ati Fly
305. ATI CUT DVT Adapter Pins
309. Windas success Pin Links
312.Link to Remove Anti-Glare Screen
313.Guide Windas Convergence
314.ATI & anti glare removal
Made this quick reference list for myself when I got tired of searching this thread for quick answers!
Boiled down from 3 pages of a master reference guide
PS: Still needs updating and some link pics don't work anymore
 
Yup, what Joseph F said. I’m running on a vintage BFGTech GTS 250 myself and everything runs beautifully :cool:


Yeah, deff read this whole thread, lots of good intel (I know, as I read every single page and despite taking a while, it was worth it).
 
Wow, that cable arrived within 24 hours of ordering, and I'm in Canada. Very impressive!

Hasn't seemed to improved focus or jitter, but I think things are brighter with the BNC. Will have to experiment more carefully.
 
spacediver said:
Wow, that cable arrived within 24 hours of ordering, and I'm in Canada. Very impressive!

Hasn't seemed to improved focus or jitter, but I think things are brighter with the BNC. Will have to experiment more carefully.
Click to expand...

Honestly, you will probably see zero difference. BNC is only necessary for longer cable runs. With a 6ft cable it doesn't matter, that's what my research has shown me at least.
 
EnhancedInterrogator said:
Honestly, you will probably see zero difference. BNC is only necessary for longer cable runs. With a 6ft cable it doesn't matter, that's what my research has shown me at least.
Click to expand...

I agree. I was horsing around with BNC for months trying to get it working in all applications. My FW 900 came with them, so I was using them as the default cables. Finally I threw up my hands and switched to the standard VGA connection. To my surprise there was no difference between the BNC and the VGA display that I could see.
 
I think better quality/higher bandwidth capable cables have a bit clearer picture. However, not sure I'd be able to notice a difference between cables of the same general quality differing only by connector type...

Running signal though an adapter certainly can introduce a degradation...
 
SH1 said:
I think better quality/higher bandwidth capable cables have a bit clearer picture. However, not sure I'd be able to notice a difference between cables of the same general quality differing only by connector type...

Running signal though an adapter certainly can introduce a degradation...
Click to expand...

Well, none of the modern video cards support VGA out do they? I have an adapter at my video card that is DVI to VGA. Is there a way to connect to a DVI vidcard without using an adapter?
 
Poordevil said:
Well, none of the modern video cards support VGA out do they? I have an adapter at my video card that is DVI to VGA. Is there a way to connect to a DVI vidcard without using an adapter?
Click to expand...

That's probably true...maybe whatever the highest quality DVI to VGA/BNC cable you can find?

If using a one piece adapter, I have gotten a decent result by trying a bunch and going with whichever one produced the least additional shadowing or such...

(I had some very thick BNC to BNC cable left from a previous TV related setup, which I've combined with the DVI to BNC adapter from Blue Jeans Cable and it's perfect, but probably overkill...I just happened to still have the cable...)
 
Can anyone advise me as to how I could hook my Wii-U up to my FW900 for Monster Hunter?
I don't think HD Fury would be any use as the Wii-U doesn't seem to have any way to break out the audio.
Any advise appreciated.
 
Anybody else with ati cards have this problem? My screen wont leave 2304x1440. If i set the res to 19x12, I get black bars all around the 19x12 but the screen is still in 23x14 80hz. Never had this problem with nvidia.
 
UnclePauly09 said:
Anybody else with ati cards have this problem? My screen wont leave 2304x1440. If i set the res to 19x12, I get black bars all around the 19x12 but the screen is still in 23x14 80hz. Never had this problem with nvidia.
Click to expand...

i had that problem happen as well. I think i fixed it by setting the native desktop resolution of the fw900 to 1920x1200, and set the games res to 2304x1440. Then the screen switches to higher res when starting the game..

Also check yer catalyst options. there is a setting somewhere that causes the black bars.

But just try setting the native desktop resolution lower.. A fw900 isn't made to browse net and non-game or graphical programs at 2304x1440 resolution. In fact, some swear by a really low native resolution (something like 1440x900) and then make letters smaller in windows. It helps on making tekst less fuzzier on "older" fw900.

Bottom line of story: Don't forget that CRT are MADE to switch resolutions to the need of different programs.
 
Vito, have u ever shipped one or more FW900's to Australia, and if so, how much did that cost.
 
atwix said:
i had that problem happen as well. I think i fixed it by setting the native desktop resolution of the fw900 to 1920x1200, and set the games res to 2304x1440. Then the screen switches to higher res when starting the game..

Also check yer catalyst options. there is a setting somewhere that causes the black bars.

But just try setting the native desktop resolution lower.. A fw900 isn't made to browse net and non-game or graphical programs at 2304x1440 resolution. In fact, some swear by a really low native resolution (something like 1440x900) and then make letters smaller in windows. It helps on making tekst less fuzzier on "older" fw900.

Bottom line of story: Don't forget that CRT are MADE to switch resolutions to the need of different programs.
Click to expand...

I do have the desktop at 19x12. The screen is stuck in 23x14 though. Some games work fine as I run almost all my games at 19x12. Crysis 3 though will not leave 23x14, no matter the res i put the game at it just shrinks the image but the screen stays at 23x14. I may have to go back to nvidia.
 
UnclePauly09 said:
I do have the desktop at 19x12. The screen is stuck in 23x14 though. Some games work fine as I run almost all my games at 19x12. Crysis 3 though will not leave 23x14, no matter the res i put the game at it just shrinks the image but the screen stays at 23x14. I may have to go back to nvidia.
Click to expand...

just go to the window where you set resolution. select 1920x1200, and 60 hz, click apply.

After that, change it back to 1920x1200@85 hz. that should solve it then.

Leaving ati for these kinda problems is pointless really.. I think the setting in catalyst is about "allow resolution changes" or something. just browse all options, its an option about scaling or resolution changes. can't recall.
 
My FW also came with BNC cables 7 years ago. I noticed there was no difference in picture quality with the VGA cable, but I figured that could not be right. I started reading around the internets a bit and started discovering the better difference in picture quality will be achieved with higher quality cables. It's all about the shielding. I ended up buying a set of gold plated well shielded cables. Let me tell you the cable was nearly double the thickness of the cheap BNC cable. It is so heavy that I have to prop it up so it doesn't create a bad connection with the VGA adapter. I hooked it up and I immediately noticed a better image. It looked clearer and sharper with a bit more distinctintion between colors.
 
Pern_au said:
Sweden, the reason Australia cant have nice things?
Click to expand...

Well, you too have a lot of hot blondes :p But on a serious note, I fully understand that sending things literally half way around the world is quite a scary experience. Even with the best packing, you never really know what the customer is going to end up with. All credit to Uncle Vito though, the fact he helps people out diagnose problems, and of course repairs and refurbishes the products.

Not many people have the expertise and equipment required to carry out such work :) I know I am far short of that, I have changed a few capacitors in my time, but not a lot more :)

I really find it a shame though that it is such a black art, to get a combination of the right connection, cable type, cable quality, luck of the draw, then combine that with driver problems and such just to get a stable picture at the spec the screen is capable of, but I am sure the end result is worth the work.
 
Flybye said:
Let me tell you the cable was nearly double the thickness of the cheap BNC cable. It is so heavy that I have to prop it up so it doesn't create a bad connection with the VGA adapter. I hooked it up and I immediately noticed a better image. It looked clearer and sharper with a bit more distinctintion between colors.
Click to expand...

I got a DVI-BNC cable from bluejeans cable - came highly recommended. These things are REALLY thick like you describe.

One problem though: I can't seem to get the RGBHV cables secured properly. I've done the proper twisting motion, and the cables are in there fine and stable, but if I nudge one of the RGB cables slightly, I get bad ghosting, and then I have to fiddle with it to fix it. Means everytime I move my monitor slightly, or bump it, it can reghost and i have to readjust.

Perhaps this is a problem with the BNC input on my FW900 - I have another one downstairs so I'll try testing the same cable with it and seeing if the issue persists. But I was wondering whether anyone else had experienced this.

Another thing - I'm fairly sure that the picture quality is better than my regular DVI-VGA cable, but I'd like to be able to test properly. I tried getting setting up a dual monitor configuration where I could have both types of inputs simultaneously, and then use the input switch on the front of the monitor to quickly switch between, but wasn't able to get it working (see this thread: http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1757988 ).
 
Flybye said:
My FW also came with BNC cables 7 years ago. I noticed there was no difference in picture quality with the VGA cable, but I figured that could not be right. I started reading around the internets a bit and started discovering the better difference in picture quality will be achieved with higher quality cables. It's all about the shielding. I ended up buying a set of gold plated well shielded cables. Let me tell you the cable was nearly double the thickness of the cheap BNC cable. It is so heavy that I have to prop it up so it doesn't create a bad connection with the VGA adapter. I hooked it up and I immediately noticed a better image. It looked clearer and sharper with a bit more distinctintion between colors.
Click to expand...

Can you give the link? Mine isn't as sharp as my Dell P1130 CRT, even after adjusting the focus pots and with WinDAS, so I may try this.
 
Liggywuh said:
Well, you too have a lot of hot blondes :p But on a serious note, I fully understand that sending things literally half way around the world is quite a scary experience. Even with the best packing, you never really know what the customer is going to end up with. All credit to Uncle Vito though, the fact he helps people out diagnose problems, and of course repairs and refurbishes the products.

Not many people have the expertise and equipment required to carry out such work :) I know I am far short of that, I have changed a few capacitors in my time, but not a lot more :)

I really find it a shame though that it is such a black art, to get a combination of the right connection, cable type, cable quality, luck of the draw, then combine that with driver problems and such just to get a stable picture at the spec the screen is capable of, but I am sure the end result is worth the work.
Click to expand...

I ship my monitors all over the world, and everyone is very happy with the units they receive. When all procedures are followed by the customer, then there are no issues with the shipments. The flaw with the unit sent to Sweden was the amount of time it took before the claim was filed against the carrier. That was all...

In any case, the issue with the unit shipped to Sweden has been resolved...

Hope this helps...

Unkle Vito!
 
atwix said:
just go to the window where you set resolution. select 1920x1200, and 60 hz, click apply.

After that, change it back to 1920x1200@85 hz. that should solve it then.

Leaving ati for these kinda problems is pointless really.. I think the setting in catalyst is about "allow resolution changes" or something. just browse all options, its an option about scaling or resolution changes. can't recall.
Click to expand...

Leaving ati cause a quarter of your games are borked with huge black bars all around is a good reason imo. Also there is no scaling option for vga displays. Never happened with my 580gtx. Only happens with about 5 or 6 games but some of those games I cant run 23x14 cause of performance issues.
 
UncleVito, while you're here, got a couple questions!

While calibrating using WinDAS, would it be acceptable to use a second computer hooked up to the display in order to generate test patterns, instead of using a video generator?


You often talk about balancing white point with the three references of D50, 65, and 90. How do you set these different reference points? Do you use the OSD to set the temperature to those three respective temperatures? Or do you load up a different ICC profile (e.g. SONY_D65.ICM), or do you have to do both?
 
spacediver said:
UncleVito, while you're here, got a couple questions!

While calibrating using WinDAS, would it be acceptable to use a second computer hooked up to the display in order to generate test patterns, instead of using a video generator?


You often talk about balancing white point with the three references of D50, 65, and 90. How do you set these different reference points? Do you use the OSD to set the temperature to those three respective temperatures? Or do you load up a different ICC profile (e.g. SONY_D65.ICM), or do you have to do both?
Click to expand...

First of all, WinDAS/WinCAT does not generate any ICC profiles. Calibration profiles are generated during a software calibration process (x-Rite, ColorVision Spyder, Monaco Optix, etc.), not hardware calibration process which is what WinDAS/WinCAT does.

The video signal generated by the computer is dependent on the video board plus other factors associated with the video board. The digital video signal generator produces accurate patterns at exact bandwidth, dot clock and polarity, among others. If you want to achieve accurate color calibration of the GDM-FW900 and other Sony monitors, I do not recommend the use of a computer to generate patterns thru a video board. In the past, I have seen digital signal pattern generators in form of a board that can be installed inside a PC, but in this case, the monitor is hooked up to this board and not the video board.

The GDM-FW900 has four factory white points (D50, D65, D93 and sRGB). When you perform the white point balance in WinDAS/WinCAT, there is an order in which the white point will be adjusted and the program will prompt you to generate the correct pattern at the specific bandwidth, dot clock and polarity for each particular white point; then depending on the readings you get from the spectrophotometer or colorimeter, then you will do the adjustments in WinDAS/WinCAT. The order of white points are D93, D65, D50 and sRGB (which is self adjusting).

During WinDAS/WinCAT, the OSD is not used at all. The program controls all the internal parameters stored in the EPPROM of the monitor and all adjustments are made within the program then fed to the EEPROM via special probe which has a dongle. There are unlocked versions of the program in the web and the cable (probe) can be found on eBay.

Please BEWARE: Any erroneous information fed and/or changes made to the internal parameters will impact the functionality of the monitor, and it may render the monitor unusable. Believe me, it has happened and I have seen it many times in the past! While saving money is a good practice, please be fully aware of these risks before you venture with WinDAS/WinCAT.

WinDAS/WinCAT is not an user friendly application, and it requires the user not only to be familiar with the program and its features but to have the correct instrumentation in order for the program to achieve accurate results. That is why I strongly recommend to leave these procedures to the professionals.

Hope this helps....

Sincerely,

Unkle Vito!
 
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