Monitors Setup Recommendations. Budget: 1000+$

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oracio

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Hello,

I'm new to this forum, and I have to begin with and say that I'm glad I find you :)

I'm a graphic/motion graphic designer. Basically I spent about 12-14 hours in front of my screen. which means that it is a very important thing for me to have a very good monitor/s.
I've been using 2 vintage 19" ViewSonic VP930 for few years and it is time to upgrade..
My budget is 1,000$-1,100$.

I've been doing some reading, and I've came up with few setups and I wanted to know from you, the experienced users, what do you suggest and think.

1) 1X very very good and professional 24" monitor - such as the new NEC PA241W monitor (or the older NEC 24" 90 Series), or an Eizo.
from what I read it is going to be an amazing monitor. But I guess I'll have to wait a while until I could buy it in here (Israel), and my other worry is that it is only 24" monitor and I can't buy 2 of these right away, so I guess I'll have to keep one of my 19" monitors as a secondary monitor...

2) 2X good IPS 24" monitors - such as the new HP ZR24w. In this case I get 2 monitors for my budget but would I be able to enjoy a true professional monitor with this one? at first I was considering the Dell U2410. but after I read the customers experience with it (the pink tint, etc) I decided that I don't want to put my money in this monitor lottery.

3) 1X good IPS 27" monitor - the Dell U2711. from what I understand this monitor doesn't suffer from the same issues of quality that the U2410 has (if I'm wrong please tell me). so in this case I get only one monitor but a bigger size, but again my concern is how true the colors are, and how clear it is...

4) any of your suggestions would be very appreciated, I really want to upgrade my working experience with the best setup I can get from my budget.

Please let me know what you think,
- Uri
 
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Another option is to wait for the NEC PA271W. This way, you get an excellent professional 27" monitor and be happy for the next 5 years.
 
I thought about this option, but if the NEC PA241W costs 1080$ the 27" version could cost almost twice that... and from what I understand I'll have to wait atleast 4 months
 
oracio said:
I thought about this option, but if the NEC PA241W costs 1080$ the 27" version could cost almost twice that... and from what I understand I'll have to wait atleast 4 months
Click to expand...

I was all set for a PA271W until I learnt that it won't be out till this summer, so I got myself an u2711 instead (might still get the PA271W after it's released, we'll see). Now I'm using it with a u2410. I will say this, the extra resolution is a lot more useful than I expected. I don't know how color-critical work your graphics are going to be, so I'm not going to say just get a 2x ZR24w or a 1x u2711. Perhaps you can demo these monitors with your local dealers?
 
might be a dumb question, but I have to ask - the extra resolution that you get with the u2711, can you still read menu text, toolbars etc, or you have to get really close to the monitor.

It's a bit difficult in Israel to find these type of displays in demo rooms but I'll speak with the dealers that I know and I'll see...
 
oracio said:
might be a dumb question, but I have to ask - the extra resolution that you get with the u2711, can you still read menu text, toolbars etc, or you have to get really close to the monitor.

It's a bit difficult in Israel to find these type of displays in demo rooms but I'll speak with the dealers that I know and I'll see...
Click to expand...

I'm sitting around a little over 2ft from my monitor, no problem with the menu, toolbars, & documents so far.
 
oracio said:
did you have any problems with your dell displays?
Click to expand...

No, everything's the way they're supposed to be. I bought mine from eBay, but I also got the optional pixel/color-tinting checkup before they shipped it.
 
Oracio, hold onto your shekel's and buy a NEC.
You will thank me for this bit of advice if you decide to follow it, you will not be disappointed. They are simply just superior to standard consumer grade monitors.
 
Do you think I should wait for the new PA series or the 90 series is more than enough?
 
oracio said:
Do you think I should wait for the new PA series or the 90 series is more than enough?
Click to expand...
If I couldn't find a 90 series monitor right now at a good price, I would wait for the PA series.
I own a 2690 and I find it to be utterly brilliant.
 
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oracio said:
Do you think I should wait for the new PA series or the 90 series is more than enough?
Click to expand...

Only you can answer this question... if I were you, I'd wait for the NEC PA271W, as I don't really want to go back to 24" LCDs again.
 
I would get a good 30" IPS panel monitor. I'm not sure what software you use but for me working in 3dsmax and photoshop with that many pixels is awesome. If you don't already have a system to profile your monitor you should add that in as well but you will need that regardless of what you end up purchasing.

If you do any web work or work in any non color managed applications you should try and find a monitor that is a standard 72% NTSC gamut.

I think all of ~$1200 30" IPS monitors are wide gamut these days and the sRGB simulation modes are not good enough for professional work. You would probably be best off getting an older monitor in good used condition. Someone else here might know which old models are standard gamut and which of those are most desirable.
 
What about Eizo? such as the S2433, which is cheaper... anyone has experience with it or any Eizo?

@jenneth:
the thing is that in Israel everything is more expensive and it takes more time for new models to arrive, so if you will have to wait 4 months for the NEC PA271W I'll have to wait almost twice that...
So this is not an option for me.

@Solstice:
the 2690 is a bit over my budget (in Israel) but I'm considering it as well. I'm happy to hear that you think it is brilliant.

@AlecMoody:
I'm working with almost all of the Adobe CS4 Production Suite (especially with After Effects) and with Cinema 4D, Vue, SketchUp.
a good 30" monitor in Israel is sooo expensive (DELL 3008WFP costs here 2,500$) , and because of that people rarely buy it, so finding a used one is basically impossible...
 
Everyone will agree that Eizo make great products. Their best screens have the same features that also differentiate NEC's from average consumer grade monitors, hardware programmable LUT's & backlight uniformity correction.. NEC calls theirs 'ColorComp' and Eizo 'DUE / 'Digital Uniformity Equalizer'.

About the S2433, it's based upon a S-PVA panel and not H-IPS. Also it does not have any of those features above. It's a part of the less expensive FlexScan range and not the higher-end ColorEdge series from the company, not a bad monitor at all in fairness.. judging from the only proper review I could find of it (in German, on Prad.de). By all means, give Eizo serious consideration if you can get one that fits your needs at the right price.

The new 24" monitor from the PA series is going to be priced around 900 euro's within Europe. Uses the standard sRGB colour space (don't know if wide-gamut issues are relevent or not to your purchasing decisions).
 
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oracio said:
I'm working with almost all of the Adobe CS4 Production Suite (especially with After Effects) and with Cinema 4D, Vue, SketchUp.
Click to expand...
With applications like AE, C4D etc, and all their panels around, IMHO a single monitor does not provide enough real estate to work efficiently.
For any DCC, and compositing workflow I'd follow the route of two ZR24W which fit nicely in your budget and are native SRGB monitors.

Later on and with a hefty cashfolw from some project you could add a high end NEC/Eizo either a 24/27 or even better a 30'er..
 
I just spoke with my local dealer.
It took him 2 days to give me the NEC's monitors prices from the Israeli NEC importer.
and it's bad news:
first, the importer can't import the new NEC PA241W monitor, the dealer says that the importer told him that this product is unavailable for importation to Israel.

second, the quote that I received for the 2490WUXI2 is 1,200$ (before taxes!)
and for the 2690WUXI2 is 1,660$ (before taxes)

third, it will take 21 days for the monitor to arrive.

viva la Israel...
(if monitors weren't such a delicate product to trasport I would have import it myself from USA, and of course there is the warranty issue)
 
Update (spoiler - happy ending):

I spoke with a different local dealer whom I've been working with for ages, I don't know why I didn't contact him at first.

I told him that I want to buy a professional monitor, and from my research I want NEC or Eizo.
He told me right on the spot "NEC is not an option".
I was surprised for this firm and decisive answer, and I asked him why did he say that.
He told me that the Israeli NEC importer (there is only one in Israel), imports to Israel only the standard monitors, the professional monitors are imported per an order (that's why I got the 21 (work) days arrival estimation).
But it doesn't end there, because of that they don't hold in Israel parts and replacements monitors which means that if I have a problem, or hell, if I get a dead pixel after waiting 21 days I will have to wait another month to get a new one, and if the monitor need to be sent to a lab I'll be without a monitor for a month, because they will have to send it overseas!

So, yeah, as my dealer told me, NEC is not an option.

On the other hand, Eizo has a lab in Israel, which their technician got certified in Japan by Eizo (3 months training). They have all the parts in Israel, and a 5 years warranty.
So I decided and I purchased the Eizo S2433WE.
it costs the same as the NEC 2490WUXI2.
and I should receive it next week :)

The End.
 
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