CurtPalme.com Home Theater Forum

[Brennithechamp]

Hey guys! I'm completely new to projectors, but found a BARCO 708s for sale and am very heavily considering switching to it! I'm good at tinkering and am going into College as a Computer Engineer but I have a few concerns regarding CRT projectors.

The first one is lighting. The projector will be going in my Dorm room and I'm wondering if slight ambient light is okay, or does my room have to be completely dark? I can make blinds to shut out light but still can't guarantee they'll be perfect.

My second concern is the image quality. I will be using it mostly for gaming and watching movies, and the video will be fed from a Denon AVR-391 and I'm wondering if the image will be comparable to a 720p DLP projector? I know that because of CRT there are less or no pixels which is a huge plus, but the only experience with CRT I have is old CRT and rear projection TVs, and from memory the images from those are less than favourable.

Thanks for reading and dealing with my newness to this whole thing!
Brendan

[mx83toy]

Get some curtains for those blinds the darker the better... be very careful as crt's are very addictive before you know it you have 15 or em laying around in bits

[Curt Palme]

REad this:

http://curtpalme.com/CRTPrimer.shtm

The 708 is a good unit... if the tubes are OK, and the chassis doesn't puke. It's one of the less reliable sets out there, but can be fixed and if the tubes are OK, then it can throw a great picture. It is a 720p set only, it can't lock to a 1080p image, not that you need that anyway.

Assuming the set is under $100, grab it regardless, and play and learn. If it's over $100, let us know how much, as the seller may be way overestimating what the (former) $18K projector is now worth.

As mx83 says, if you get addicted, you'll be trolling Craigslist weekly looking for a newer better unit, but the 708 is a good start.

Overall, a DLP will look sharper, but the CRT will look more natural by far.

[Curt Palme]

REad this:

http://curtpalme.com/CRTPrimer.shtm

The 708 is a good unit... if the tubes are OK, and the chassis doesn't puke. It's one of the less reliable sets out there, but can be fixed and if the tubes are OK, then it can throw a great picture. It is a 720p set only, it can't lock to a 1080p image, not that you need that anyway.

Assuming the set is under $100, grab it regardless, and play and learn. If it's over $100, let us know how much, as the seller may be way overestimating what the (former) $18K projector is now worth.

As mx83 says, if you get addicted, you'll be trolling Craigslist weekly looking for a newer better unit, but the 708 is a good start.

Overall, a DLP will look sharper, but the CRT will look more natural by far.

[AnalogRocks]

[AnalogRocks]

[mx83toy]

I've had mine at 1080p but start off at 720p looks great at that res... Other cool thing they they are newb friendly as the have a component in use input number 45 or 6 mines been busted for awhile read the manual it will seem like a different language but will make sense when you get going... They are a cool machine hd 145 colour corrected lens's (very sort after) schemflug adjust ect ect leave electronic focus even the g2 alone till later on

[CasetheCorvetteman]

Itll still do 1920x1080i though Curt!!

In the right conditions itll smoke a 720p DLP in my opinion.

[Jeremy112]

Even at 720p, or at 1366x768 (which is what I use for a PC to the NEC XG) CRT can blow away 1080p, just for the pure smoothness of the image while moving. The colors, the REAL contrast ratio, man it makes me want a G90 all over again!

You can use a CRT in ambient light, sometimes I don't dim it down all the way since its nice to be able to see other people when using the computer with the projector. I can see the reflected light, but since its about 10 feet away from the screen it really isn't that bad.

Completely dark is when CRT makes its move on you though

[AnalogRocks]

[AnalogRocks]

[CasetheCorvetteman]

This is why I drink my drinks in a 1ltr stainless steel milkshake cup... Stays colder longer too

Use the torch app on your phone!!

How come you don't use 1600x1200 on that XG? Or even 1680x1050?

[Brennithechamp]

[CasetheCorvetteman]

Need to see tube faces, and that has none.

The projector is worth more if the tubes rate good. If they had wear from being installed too far back, they aint worth dik.

You could probably find an NEC for that price, and itll be a much more capable projector, being EM focus, having better convergence etc......

[Curt Palme]

Yeah, the outside case says nothing as to the condition of the tubes. He might not let you take off the lenses, so if nothing else, shine an LED flashlight through the lenses with the set off, and compare the tube faces to this:

http://curtpalme.com/TubeCondition_RatingChart.shtm

Keep in mind that the lenses will mask tube wear, so if you see an '8' condition, it's more likely a 6 or so with the lenses off.

Tubes are no longer available, and were $700 each when new, so unless you find mint used tubes (I have a couple), replacement tubes are going to be more than what you paid for the set. Make sure he has the remote for it as well, they are also expensive.

You can usually get a decent pix out of a set with a bit of tube wear, it just won't be perfect. If it has tube wear and no remote, then the set is overpriced. It's a buyer's market right now, so offer $100 and see what happens.

[Curt Palme]

Yeah, the outside case says nothing as to the condition of the tubes. He might not let you take off the lenses, so if nothing else, shine an LED flashlight through the lenses with the set off, and compare the tube faces to this:

http://curtpalme.com/TubeCondition_RatingChart.shtm

Keep in mind that the lenses will mask tube wear, so if you see an '8' condition, it's more likely a 6 or so with the lenses off.

Tubes are no longer available, and were $700 each when new, so unless you find mint used tubes (I have a couple), replacement tubes are going to be more than what you paid for the set. Make sure he has the remote for it as well, they are also expensive.

You can usually get a decent pix out of a set with a bit of tube wear, it just won't be perfect. If it has tube wear and no remote, then the set is overpriced. It's a buyer's market right now, so offer $100 and see what happens.

[Brennithechamp]

I've found an old NEC XG110 here http://ottawa.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-sell-electronics-NEC-XG110-Projector-W0QQAdIdZ344930712

Fro what I've read it appears to be known as a good projector! It does say something about the endges being brighter than the rest because of use as a monitor. Any ideas?

[Curt Palme]

Guaranteed that's tube wear. XG tubes are harder to find than 708 tubes!

But see, look hard enough, and they're everywhere. 99% of my sets come up from the US, so check Detroit as well if you go into the US...

[Curt Palme]

Guaranteed that's tube wear. XG tubes are harder to find than 708 tubes!

But see, look hard enough, and they're everywhere. 99% of my sets come up from the US, so check Detroit as well if you go into the US...

[Brennithechamp]

Do you think the tube wear will be a big issue? It says 4500 hours use, how much are they rated for? Also states isn't an option unfortunately just cause the border is a big hassle, although shipping might work!

[kal]

[kal]

[AnalogRocks]

[AnalogRocks]

[Curt Palme]

Brenn, tube wear is like trying to judge a car engine. If driven/set up properly, they will last 8000-10,000 hours, sometimes even more. Problem is, the NEC tubes wear very quickly, and NEC was conservative with running to the tube face edge, so they wear more quickly than other sets typically. Same with the later model Sonys. Based on the description, you can safely think that the G and B tubes are going to be toast, making the set worthless.

Still, it's a higher end set than the 708, but unless you want to spend $500-1000 on a mint set of XG tubes (I have one set here), you won't find tubes for the XG.

[Curt Palme]

Brenn, tube wear is like trying to judge a car engine. If driven/set up properly, they will last 8000-10,000 hours, sometimes even more. Problem is, the NEC tubes wear very quickly, and NEC was conservative with running to the tube face edge, so they wear more quickly than other sets typically. Same with the later model Sonys. Based on the description, you can safely think that the G and B tubes are going to be toast, making the set worthless.

Still, it's a higher end set than the 708, but unless you want to spend $500-1000 on a mint set of XG tubes (I have one set here), you won't find tubes for the XG.

[Jeremy112]

[gjaky]