CurtPalme.com Home Theater Forum

huggy · Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 6:40 am Post subject: Is it too late for CRT?

Hello all,long time lurker and avid follower of crt but have never taken the plunge.
I have a 720p lcd digital projector which I have been happy with as far as average viewing however,when it comes to blacks.........well......... Shocked

.
I have a friend who has a well set up crt and am absolutely in love with the pic this thing throws,I mean for an xg1351 the image is just SO 3d and the depth to the image is just mindblowing,and them blacks.........OH them blacks......it makes my display at home look like a horses ass.
Prior to this I had demoed numerous 1080 displays,lcd,dlp and lcos and nothing has drawn me into a movie as much as this lonely old dinosaur xg.
So I started to think,rather than upgrade to a 1080p digital,is it too late to get into crt?
I have never had a crt before and have no experience with electronics.I can setup all my ht equipment and thats about it.
Is there a digital under 10k that can produce a very similar image which one of you di-hards has seen and would recommend,or am I pushing sh*t uphill?

If I do this I want to go the whole hog and go a cine 9 or 909,as I only want to do this once.

I know this is a site dedicated to crt but if I can get some unbiased opinions I would greatly appreciate it.

antorsae · Joined: 16 Jul 2006 Posts: 297

I agree with you that if you do it, get a Cine9 (the 909 is probably too noisy).
My recommendation:

- Watch the best digitals under 10K (RS2?) vs. the hi-end CRT.
- Wait 2 months. Cedia is just around the corner and new stuff (digitals) will be shown.
- If you go CRT, have a pro install it.

Getting the Cine9 will almost guarantee that you are not bitten by the CRT upgrade/mod bug. I got myself Marquees Ultras 9500 and I've been modding/tweaking them more than anything else (I like it too). With a Cine9 there is no real possibility to mod.

Gino · Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 8:20 am Post subject:

I agree with Andres... but to go the whole hog, you have to blend 2 of them and do CIH cinemascope Wink

HighDefDude · Joined: 02 May 2008 Posts: 20 Location: Netherlands

Hi huggy,

I took the plunge about a month ago, wit a very mint Barco 1209, serviced by curt.
Now it runs perfectly with my top of line BluRay laptop at 1600x1200 pix.
DVD's are 60% more beautifull and BluRay...can't explain, but somehow, every time I get back from work, I can't resist to switch it on.

But indeed, they are big, heavy and proper setup is much, much more dificult than with modern digitals. The advantage of this is that there is no modern digital (that I know of) with an image-setup that flexible!

The big 9" monsters have the advantage of producing plenty of light: I have a very satisfying 100" image with brightness/contrast at 36/48. Which means super long tubelife! (another advantage)
(be advised that the video software of my laptop has an bunch of internal settings as well, up to RGB-gamma, so 36/48 might not do in your case..)

Well, the only thing I can say is: I took the plunge, and am very happy with it..

All the best from Holland,

HDD.

Brian Hampton · Joined: 22 Apr 2006 Posts: 1173

Hi,

Every type of display technology has it's limitations. Perhaps the biggest (or maybe only) limitation to CRT is resolution capabilities (uniformity may also be a limitation).

Luckily,.. Many CRTs will resolve 1080p and this looks to be a new standard that is likely going to be around several years at least.

I believe CRT's have the most natural colors and I can lose myself in the video quality... it looks natural and real and I love it.

As time goes on,... it may become impractical but for the time being CRT Front Projection has never been better.

Blu Ray and my CRT FP = the best I've ever had.

-Brian

VideoGrabber · Joined: 09 Apr 2006 Posts: 933 Location: Michigan

antorsae,

good comments overall, but...

> - Wait 2 months. Cedia is just around the corner and new stuff (digitals) will be shown. <

is a good prescription for not getting anything. So in 2 months, new stuff will be shown. Of course, it will hold the promise of being better than anything out there. Then months later, someone will get review units and provide an evaluation, which won't be quite as good as hyped. Then months later you can wait for them to start shipping. By then, CES will be "around the corner", and you may as well see what new stuff is coming along then. Ad infinitum.

huggy already has a good feel for what a top-notch CRT will bring him. So your advice to look at the better digitals, like the RS2, will let him see for himself their strengths and weaknesses. Undoubtedly, he'll see how far they've come since his current digital, and he can decide whether their remaining deficiencies are outweighed by their ease of installation, etc. compared to a CRT.

jamsys · Joined: 29 Jun 2006 Posts: 152

Take note of what screen size you want to use... Many of the medium end Digitals wont go big..... I am still on the fence w/ my Cine8 (zenith) and digital but havent found a digital that can go 120" in a decent price range.... The Sony SXRD comes very close..

**Curt Palme** · Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 8:13 pm Post subject:

I think my license plate frame should read:

'It's NEVER too late for CRT'

Smile

huggy · Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 10:10 pm Post subject:

Thanks guys.
My screen is 120" and is one of the reasons I've kept my current digital, I feel most of the newer 1080p units will struggle to light it up the way I have it now.

I have a friend who is exceptional at setting up crts,so setup is a non issue.Size and bulk are not important as my room is dedicated.
I will try to see an rs2 and hope the image is as good if not better than the xg.

Pricewise,an rs2 will be cheaper than a 909 by about 40% so the rs2 would have to come close to a 909 for me to buy it.
Anyone with a 9", demoed a rs2? Comments would be appreciated Thumbs Up

garyfritz · Joined: 08 Apr 2006 Posts: 12088 Location: Fort Collins, CO

You might want to check out this thread over at the "other" forum ...

emdawgz1 · Joined: 14 Mar 2006 Posts: 7949

The issue is not the crt but you yourself.

CRT is not a point and shoot solution. It requires thought, a bit of maintenance and care. But it rewards you with the best home theater setup possible.

So if you want quick and easy, go digital. If you are willing to do a bit more.... CRT can be the answer.

Halo1963 · Joined: 18 Apr 2006 Posts: 54 Location: Brisbane Australia

Huggy
Couple of other points
Most people on this forum started with lower end CRT projectors and worked their way up to the high end units they now have in both cost and skills

You can still get Sony 12xx cheap to have a play with and make your mind up from there

As others have said it is more about you (and your budget)

Just my 2 cents worth hope it helps

huggy · Posted: Tue Aug 05, 2008 8:47 pm Post subject:

All valuable points.

I decided to not to go all out with a 909,however I've pulled the plug on a 1209s.This I believe will give me an indication of what a good crt is capable of and is not too expensive that it prevents me from playing around with setup and tweaking Shocked

Thanks for all input guys and I will start a new thread once the beast arrives.

JustGreg · Joined: 07 Mar 2006 Posts: 3098 Location: Kenosha, WI

Mark_A_W · Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 11:45 am Post subject:

Who's your friend? Anyone we know?

And I hate to say it, but the newer 1080p digitals will probably be brighter than even a 9" CRT. I still think it will be fine on a 120" screen (how wide is that in metric units? I can't think in stupid units and it's the width that counts).