Indestructible Hulk Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 A neighbor asked me to help her move some furniture yesterday from a friends house. Long story short, the house is going to be foreclosed on and everything has to go. They have a Sony Trinitron TV, relatively late model probably a 36" or so that I am considering for my man cave since I can get it for next to nothing. The problem is I already have a 42" LCD down there. It's a relatively low end TV but it works well. Lately I have been mostly just playing games down there and I absolutely love the way Atari games look on the 21" Trinitron in my son's room compared to the LCD, but I also like having a HD TV downstairs during football season. I am torn on whether or not to make the swap. I will be able to keep the 42" by moving it upstairs to so I could always trade back (with some backbreaking labor), but would you give up a 42" HD for an older CRT? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 If you want to use the TV mainly for older video game consoles, I would definitely take it. You're not really going to get a much better (or larger) CRT television for that purpose. This is assuming it's a 4:3 set, though, and not one of the oddball widescreen CRTs they made. However, these things are a BEAST to move, and this is coming from personal experience since I had one and had to practically give it away to get rid of it (and that was over five years ago). ..Al 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabriel Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 Take it. Good quality CRTs are getting difficult to find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 Take it. Good quality CRTs are getting difficult to find. This is true--certainly you can no longer buy them new. I can't imagine how many millions are being thrown out every year. ..Al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+pboland Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 A neighbor asked me to help her move some furniture yesterday from a friends house. Long story short, the house is going to be foreclosed on and everything has to go. They have a Sony Trinitron TV, relatively late model probably a 36" or so that I am considering for my man cave since I can get it for next to nothing. The problem is I already have a 42" LCD down there. It's a relatively low end TV but it works well. Lately I have been mostly just playing games down there and I absolutely love the way Atari games look on the 21" Trinitron in my son's room compared to the LCD, but I also like having a HD TV downstairs during football season. I am torn on whether or not to make the swap. I will be able to keep the 42" by moving it upstairs to so I could always trade back (with some backbreaking labor), but would you give up a 42" HD for an older CRT? Thanks! If it is next to nothing to get, get it! Figure out what to do with it later. I understand everybody's home situation is a little different. I have my HD 46" LCD upstairs in my living room. In the basement (man cave) I have two 32" CRT TVs. One is a JVC (composite input) the other is a floor model RCA (with composite and S-video inputs). Why not have both in your man cave. Think of it this way. If you put the CRT on (or near the floor) and mount your HD above it, you would have the best of both worlds. Just a thought. You might have to make a custom pedestal for the CRT. If the CRT is only about 12 inch off the ground, it will make it feel like and older style floor model TV. That should allow plenty of room above the CRT for your 42" HD LCD. I hope that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rybags Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 Good for older gaming but not so for TV. Why not just mount the LCD on the wall? New brackets cost a bit but there should be plenty of used ones going cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indestructible Hulk Posted May 18, 2014 Author Share Posted May 18, 2014 Thanks for the suggestions all! I hadn't considered keeping two TVs downstairs, but it probably won't work since I live in town house and the TV stand is currently in front of the basement stairs so there isn't a wall there to hang a TV from. The more I am thinking about this I think I'll go for it. I'm not sure of the model it is yet but it looks similar in style to this one, just much bigger and I noticed a set of buttons on the top of the set also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indestructible Hulk Posted May 18, 2014 Author Share Posted May 18, 2014 This is true--certainly you can no longer buy them new. I can't imagine how many millions are being thrown out every year. ..Al This is definitely a situation where the phrase "one man's trash is another man's treasure" is applicable. So many good CRTs are sitting in landfills right now. It really is a shame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess Ragan Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 Hell no. CRT is dead technology, and the screens are heavy enough that they're damn near impossible to move without giving yourself a hernia. I have one CRT, a very small Amiga monitor, and it weighs only slightly less than my LCD display. I'm in no rush to buy an even bigger one. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiLic0ne t0aD Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 If its a Sony Tritron 36" like you say, i wouldn't hesitate to get it.. Yes, they're very heavy and a pain to haul around but its the way to go in some cases and Sony s top-notch, even if antiquated by today's standards. I still do not have a modern flat panel HDTV and have been using my Toshiba 36" CRT religiously for a few years now, plenty of inputs and awesome picture. However, I plan to get 42" Sony Bravia when the moneys right.. It'll fit perfectly in the middle space of my huge entertainment center. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeculiarSatyr Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 Hell no. CRT is dead technology, and the screens are heavy enough that they're damn near impossible to move without giving yourself a hernia. I have one CRT, a very small Amiga monitor, and it weighs only slightly less than my LCD display. I'm in no rush to buy an even bigger one. This raises a good question....Will any CRT be worth its weight again? I've been to good wills that have a lot of old CRT TVs that they can't sell for 1 dollar each. I'm putting money into making my consoles playable on modern TVs currently but we'll see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hatta Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 The weight of these things is overhyped. Yes, it's big and heavy. Strap it to a dolly. Get two men to heft it up onto its stand. Not a big deal. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmetal88 Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 I wouldn't take a flat-tube Trinitron unless it was 27" or under. I used to have a 32" FD Trinitron WEGA set and it was a nightmare to move anywhere (I'm in college, so I'm not really staying in the same residence for long periods of time). I replaced it with a 32" Toshiba that also has component inputs, but has a more classic-style curved CRT, and even though the picture isn't as sharp as the Trinitron, it's so much easier to move that I won't be replacing it any time soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Armonigann Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 ...in a heartbeat..and then would regret it after I had to move it..one thing im definitely dreading to move is my arcade cab on the third floor of my town house...! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess Ragan Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 The weight of these things is overhyped. Yes, it's big and heavy. Strap it to a dolly. Get two men to heft it up onto its stand. Not a big deal. If you don't have a dolly, and don't know a guy, it IS a big deal. When my last television, a monstrous Sanyo with a 30-ish inch screen, died, I had to set it on a large sheet of cardboard and drag it to the dumpster near my apartment. The distance between the two couldn't have been more than thirty or forty yards, but it felt like MILES. I have an Amiga monitor, maybe 13 inches at most. It's a CRT, but I keep it around because I'm loyal to the Commodore brand and because there are a few things I might be able to do with it that I can't do with an LCD display. It can use light guns, while an LCD display can't. I might be able to connect my Sega Genesis to it with an RGB cable, if I can figure out how to make one (and the folks at AtariAge haven't been quite as eager to help me with this as I would have liked... oh well, fuck me). However, I wouldn't get a larger CRT than this. It's too heavy, has too large a footprint, and the picture quality is often not as sharp as an LCD display, Not to mention the fact that CRTs guzzle power like it's going out of style. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ledzep Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 Absolutely get it. It's large enough to watch for sports (not huge, but good enough) and if it's an HD Trinitron like you say, it is superior to every LCD and plasma out there right now. This is not up for debate, the image quality cannot be beat. The only gripes most people have are that, for a decent-sized set like the one you're considering, it's a bear to move (so is a refrigerator or a washing machine yet nobody ever considers not buying one because its so heavy) and they're only so big (Sony made one 40" CRT, most of their best ones were 36" like the one I have). Hands up the people who habitually move their TVs around once a week. Once a month. Uhuh, nobody. My TV sits on a steel Boltz stand (itself heavy for its size, like this one but without the wheels) and when I need to move the TV I slide them both out from the wall (wood floor, felt strips on the bottom of the stand, it resists but it moves). As a simple test for your viewing pleasure, watch a DVD or Blu-ray movie that you have on your 42" flatscreen TV. Hopefully something that has darker (night time, space, underground) scenes in it. Now, concentrate on just one corner of the TV image. Watch the digital noise swim around there, notice how the TV cannot decide what color that blue or black area should be. Then, watch the same scene on the CRT. No noise swimming around (comparatively, if there's residual film grain noise in the source that can't be avoided). Even better, compare something shot recently with HD cameras, like a music concert. My brother recently bought a new flatscreen TV. I let him borrow my Blu-ray calibration disc to defuck the out-of-the-box settings. Even afterwards, it was pretty good (better than how it looked in the store), but the noise was still there. My 10-year-old Sony Wega 36" picture looks better than his. Sure, it's a little smaller but I don't care, I can't stand that noisy garbage. And I can play old-school Atari 2600 and 5200 games on it as they were meant to be, 4:3 aspect ratio and with scan lines! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+GoldenWheels Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 Thanks for the suggestions all! I hadn't considered keeping two TVs downstairs, but it probably won't work since I live in town house and the TV stand is currently in front of the basement stairs so there isn't a wall there to hang a TV from. The more I am thinking about this I think I'll go for it. I'm not sure of the model it is yet but it looks similar in style to this one, just much bigger and I noticed a set of buttons on the top of the set also. Not sure what the odds are of you finding one but Sony also made a sweet stand for that line of tvs, with the stand designed just like the TV, the lines match and all that, etc. Very nice and if I ever see one it will be the only thing that will make me replace my 27 inch JVC. I want a Wega with that stand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indestructible Hulk Posted May 19, 2014 Author Share Posted May 19, 2014 Lots of good advice here, thanks all. I am going to get it, hopefully this week. Being able to play light gun games is the final decision breaker (not that there are that many on 7800 and I don't own any yet). I am not sure if it's the HD model, but I hope so. If my Atari plays as well on the larger screen as it does on my son's TV I'll be happy. Moving it will be a chore but I think it will be worthwhile. I really think the main reason manufacturers shifted to flat panel TVs is because they are cheaper to produce and much easier to ship. I have seen some newer TVs with a picture to rival a really good CRT but they are typically only the really high end ones. I doubt they will last as long either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roland p Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 Moving it will be a chore but I think it will be worthwhile.No problem if you are an 'Indestructible Hulk' 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R.Cade Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 I think you don't understand just how heavy this is until you try to move it. It will flat out break a modern wooden (particle board) TV stand. It takes more than 2 people and a dolly, unless someone really wants to get hurt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indestructible Hulk Posted May 19, 2014 Author Share Posted May 19, 2014 No problem if you are an 'Indestructible Hulk' I wish this was actually the case lol! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indestructible Hulk Posted May 19, 2014 Author Share Posted May 19, 2014 I think you don't understand just how heavy this is until you try to move it. It will flat out break a modern wooden (particle board) TV stand. It takes more than 2 people and a dolly, unless someone really wants to get hurt. It has a stand fortunately so I don't have to worry about finding one strong enough. You are right about the weight. They are heavy! Not impossible to move, but it will be a chore. My wife and I moved a 36" Sharp tube TV up to the bedroom of our townhouse about five years ago. The hardest part was lifting it up and over the railing since it was too bulky to make the turn. Needless to say it sustained some battle damage from scraping along the walls and even lost it's name badge in the process, but it still works. The picture on that one is only moderately better than that of a LCD TV for Atari games so I never considered swapping them. The Trinitron, however, has such a great picture I think the backbreaking labor will be worth it. Since it will be going downstairs this time it will be a bit easier and I hopefully won't have to move it again until we sell the house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HatefulGravey Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 I got one of these around that 36" mark at an auction a few years ago. They are heavy compared to the modern stuff, but we all put up with it a few years ago without complaining. You will find no better for classic gaming. Mine has more than enough input options and that turns into a big deal sooner or later. Sure, they are heavy, but how often do you have to move it? If I had to move it once a week I wouldn't do it, but most people don't have to move this thing for years at a time. In that case it is much more than worth the effort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoundGammon Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 Best of all...you can use your light gun! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bikeguychicago Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 I got a 32" Sony off Craigslist for free. At the time I saw 36" ones that weren't much more than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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