This is the quintessential TV for classic gaming.

[STICH666]

 

3 Composite/S-Video

2 RF input

Video out which is great for editing

A super woofer which is not joking. It rattles the games in my shelves at max volume.

[BDW]

Damn That is a nice TV! Kind of outdated but that is perfect for classic gaming!

[STICH666]

Very outdated (circa 1992) but it gives the best picture I have ever seen in standard definition.

Edited July 26, 2009 by STICH666

[mattyg]

That is 'da bomb ! v.nice !

[CGQuarterly]

Very outdated (circa 1992) but it gives the best picture I have ever seen in standard definition.

 

That's because you have never seen one of your consoles hooked up to an RGB monitor. That being said, that is a VERY nice TV you have there.

 

Chris

[STICH666]

Thank you. Where would I get an RGB monitor?

[MN12BIRD]

They are hard to find for us here in North America. They are common over in Europe were it was a standard. RGB is the best possible picture on a CRT. Its similar to VGA if you think of your old computer monitors. I've never seen an old TV around here that took RGB but I have seen a few "monitors" for video editing that had it.

[STICH666]

They are hard to find for us here in North America. They are common over in Europe were it was a standard. RGB is the best possible picture on a CRT. Its similar to VGA if you think of your old computer monitors. I've never seen an old TV around here that took RGB but I have seen a few "monitors" for video editing that had it.

Casa Blanca video editors had them if I'm not mistaken.

[+GroovyBee]

RGB is available on European TVs with SCART/Peritel connectors. Getting RGB out of your console is the hard part.

[CGQuarterly]

Just regularly check Craigslist for Sony PVM monitors. They pop up pretty frequently. PVMs generally have composite, s-video, and RGB inputs so they are really the ultimate gaming monitor. The only input they don't have is RF, but you can just buy an RF demodulator for your really old systems. You can also use eBay to search for local auctions that allow for in-person pickup. You should be able to get one for about $100. Most game systems output RGB at the AV port in the back and do not require modification. You just need to get the right cable. I should really type up an RGB primer type of thing. I think a lot of people think it is more complicated than it is.

 

Chris

Edited July 26, 2009 by Jibbajaba

[Video]

Wow, AWESOME TV dude, that looks like itwas even intended to be a gamer's (or entertainment center) TV, even has the custom for that TV stand to put your stuff in.

 

Where did you get it? (with it as complete as that, I'd guess you bought it new)

 

Yeah, I got an old 19" monitor with RGB, never hooked anything up to it though beyond the computer, as I odn't have any RGB stuff (or no cables, and I'm not good with modding)

[STICH666]

Wow, AWESOME TV dude, that looks like itwas even intended to be a gamer's (or entertainment center) TV, even has the custom for that TV stand to put your stuff in.

 

Where did you get it? (with it as complete as that, I'd guess you bought it new)

 

Yeah, I got an old 19" monitor with RGB, never hooked anything up to it though beyond the computer, as I odn't have any RGB stuff (or no cables, and I'm not good with modding)

It was actually my Grandmother's TV believe it or not. She had a lot of money back in the late 80's to mid 90's. So she had one hell of a setup. I got it from her after she died of cancer 5 years ago . Since then we have only had to repair it once. (faulty power supply)

[SRGilbert]

What size is that? I'm using a 32" Toshiba CRT that is ok, but I'd love to get a nice 36" Sony, especially if I can find one with component inputs.

 

You are spot on though, Sony's from that era are very nice.

[STICH666]

What size is that? I'm using a 32" Toshiba CRT that is ok, but I'd love to get a nice 36" Sony, especially if I can find one with component inputs.

 

You are spot on though, Sony's from that era are very nice.

37" Wouldn't go any bigger.

[SRGilbert]

What size is that? I'm using a 32" Toshiba CRT that is ok, but I'd love to get a nice 36" Sony, especially if I can find one with component inputs.

 

You are spot on though, Sony's from that era are very nice.

37" Wouldn't go any bigger.

 

Awesome, that's gotta weigh 500 pounds!

[+thanatos]

Mine is similar, a 32" Trinitron XBR, circa 1998. The front speakers are built-in on the sides of the screen, and it also has large woofers on the rear 'cone' of the case, but instead of facing up like yours, they are on the sides. Sound from it is awesome.

 

You can kind of see how the front speakers look here: http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=147404

 

Got it the year before they started making flat-tubes. The downside is it's not a flat-tube, the upside being the flat-tubes used like 50% more glass, so they are ridiculously heavy.

 

And I agree, the Sony tubes are amazing for classic gaming. Plenty of inputs, (Including a front composite and S-video) and even a component input (which baffles me, since HDTV didn't exist yet)

[STICH666]

What size is that? I'm using a 32" Toshiba CRT that is ok, but I'd love to get a nice 36" Sony, especially if I can find one with component inputs.

 

You are spot on though, Sony's from that era are very nice.

37" Wouldn't go any bigger.

 

Awesome, that's gotta weigh 500 pounds!

Never weighed it but I'd guess around there. I'm a pretty big kid (5'10" at 235) and I could barely shuffle the thing into place down here. It took 2 hefty guys to get it down here and even they had a hard time. Here's some pics of the damage this thing caused to my stairs.

 

Edited July 27, 2009 by STICH666

[+thanatos]

What size is that? I'm using a 32" Toshiba CRT that is ok, but I'd love to get a nice 36" Sony, especially if I can find one with component inputs.

 

You are spot on though, Sony's from that era are very nice.

37" Wouldn't go any bigger.

 

Awesome, that's gotta weigh 500 pounds!

Never weighed it but I'd guess around there. I'm a pretty big kid (5'10" at 235) and I could barely shuffle the thing into place down here. It took 2 hefty guys to get it down here and even they had a hard time. Here's some pics of the damage this thing caused to my stairs.

 

I believe you on that. Once a friend bought a 36" flat-tube. It took three of us, and we are not small guys. We wanted to kill him. "I can't wait for it to be delivered, I want it today!". And there were no stairs involved with this one. Stay away from flat-CRTs! Kind of like a couch vs. a sofa sleeper. Don't do it!

[Jetboot Jack]

Back before I left the US to return to the UK I had a 40" Sony Wega CRT, it did 480p, had component and RGB inputs, sweet TV, WONDERFUL PQ and great for old and new consoles - when I had to find a home for it it took 4 of us to get it into my friends truck to take away, damned thing weighed a HUGE amount!!!

 

sTeVE

[cimerians]

I have a Sony TV almost exactly like that one, it was the best for classic gaming. I gave it away to my parents but I always wish I still had it.

 

My LCD is great that I use now but I had to mod my Atari 2600 and CV. I also use emulation.

 

I kind of want to get that Sony TV back.

[akator]

Sony CRTs have always been nice. We had a Sony Wega 36" CRT that my father gave us when he went HD, but no more. Problem was, the TV was (1) too big and heavy for use to move, and (2) it took up too much space. I wish we could have kept it, but *sigh* it wasn't practical. When we moved last year it went to a charity

[pinball22]

We bought a Sony HD CRT off Craigslist last year to be our gaming TV after our old one broke... it was all three people could do to get it into the house.

[Mike 01Hawk]

Very nice, I'd love to get a SONY, but they just weren't any on ebay/CL when I had the urge to get a TV....

 

I was lucky enough to get a CRT HDTV just as they were being phased out of Best Buy.

 

 

At the end of 2007 I finally decided I was going to get a new TV so I could hook up all my game systems that were gathering dust in my closet. Now I wanted to be a purist and get a CRT but as you know CRT was on it's death bed in late 2007. Well, I took the plunge and got a Samsung Slimfit 30inch 16:9 CRT (TXT-3093) @ the local bestbuy for $525. Yeah.. it was expensive, but it was probably the best I could get that would provide the best of both worlds..... CRT so it'd be easy on my "SD" sourced systems, yet HDTV so the PS2 and going forward would look amazing as well. This thing has connections out the wazoo!!! I'd love to go SCART or RGB, but I need to just take my meds and realize I will never have 'perfection'.

 

Anyway, this TV plays nicely with the systems I've thrown @ it. I think there might be a bit of lag induced during play. I was playing Super Mario World on the SNES and my jumps seemed to be just a wee bit off, but I think that may be due to my crappy controller or just the fact that I'm a bit rusty with the game, after playing a bit longer on the game I got used to the feel. I'll need to test it out some more to make certain there isn't any noticeable lag introduced while gaming on this tv.

 

 

So, here are the systems and how they're hooked up and my quick impressions. Note, audio is over RCA L/R except for the HDMI connection. Stereo sound is produced by the TV, not separate speakers (which is something I may need to tackle down the road if I want 5.1 from the later systems).:

 

1) NES -> Composite -> Colors are a bit bloomy/blurry, but very liveable, there are issues with Super Mario Brothers, you can see extra background pixels on the left hand side, but I guess that's just the nature of the beast when it comes to overscan I think it's called.

 

2a) SNES -> Composite -> Same bloom/blurry as the NES, but liveable

2b) SNES -> S-video -> Colors are much better defined, also the clarity is a bit higher, BUT it does introduce the 'mask' (dither?) effect. It's a trade off to decide between the anti-aliasing affects of Composite, or the crisper/more-colorful image quality of S-Video

 

3) 3DO -> S-Video -> Works as expected. Good god the birth of 3D was very painful!!!

 

4) N64 -> S-Video -> Same dither issues using S-Vid like the SNES. Also, same problem with 3DO, the teething stage of 3D stinks!!! (I can fallback to Composite if I wish on the N64)

 

5) Gamecube -> Component -> Absolutely amazing, very impressive (tested F-Zero on it)

 

6) PS2 -> Component -> Very nice as well, (tested GT4 and SSX Tricky)

 

7) Xbox360 -> HDMI -> Eye candy galore as can be expected.

[STICH666]

Wow now that's a nice TV. My setup is as follows.

 

Xbox/PS2/Gamecube/Dreamcast - S-Video through Gamestop combo cable (Input 1) Excellent picture but the PS2 has a standby and has to be unplugged or the other consoles won't have sound

 

Saturn/PS1/N64/Genesis - Composite through Gamestop switcher (Input 2) Amazing quality

 

NES/Master System - Composite mono through 2 Y-splitters (Input 3) Very sharp picture

 

2600/Colecovision - RF through jury-rigged switch (AUX RF Input |Top one|) A shitload of interference with the 2600 but the Colecovision looks great.

 

Cable box/Turbografx-16 - RF through auto switch (RF Input 2 |Bottom one|) The Cable is fine but the Turbografx must have a weak signal because it doesn't fully override the Cable signal.

Edited July 28, 2009 by STICH666

[MetalSlime23]

This thread makes me jealous

 

I have an old RCA console TV for my classic gaming systems. It's about 27" and I absolutely love it. I like your TVs better though!