HD/SD monitoring
by Matt Stalker
on
Aug 29, 2006 at 4:46:58 pm
Hello,
We are migrating our infrastructure toward HD/SD capability, and recently purchased a Sony LMD-232W monitor. There was discussion about CRT vs. LCD, but since the difference in cost is so dramatic, we opted to try LCD (we've previously always used CRTs for SD work). The monitor looks pretty good at HD res. Good color, crisp, clean image. Unfortunately, this monitor also needs to work at SD, and here it seems to fail. When working at SD, so I'm told by tech support at Sony, the image is scaled to the native resolution of the monitor, with bars on either side. The problem is this: The image looks like 720x486 that's been scaled up drastically! The image is soft, and the edges are aliased. We had expected to monitor both SD and HD "pixel for pixel", not scaled up or down versions of either one, which the guy at Sony tells me is not possible (he suggested I spend the extra $15,000-$20,000 for a BVM series HD/SD BVM series CRT). My questions are as follows: Is anyone else trying to use this particular monitor for both HD and SD work and having a better experience? Is anyone using a different LCD monitor that allows them to view both HD and SD "pixel for pixel"? We are seeking the most affordable, professional, HD/SD broadcast monitor out there.
Thank you,
Matt Stalker
hp xw9300
2 x Opteron 285 dual cores
4 gig RAM
nvidia quadro 4500
decklink multibridge extreme
sony LMD-232W
Matt Stalker
Center City Film & Video
mstalker@ccfv.com
Re: HD/SD monitoring by bruce alan greene on Aug 30, 2006 at 1:52:44 am
I have the 17in Panasonic LCD HD monitor. (It also comes in 26in")
SD scaled up to the 720 pixel resolution looks pretty good when connected by Svideo or component connections. HD downconverted by my AJA downconverter looks pretty soft though. Probably due to the downcoverter box.
I have not compared the SD perfomance of the monitor to the Sony, but at demo by Panasonic (use grain of salt) the Panasonic performed much better than the Sony at HD resolutions. Certainly the blacks are much darker on the Panasonic monitor.
The Panasonic monitor is only a 720P monitor, but displays almost all formats. A couple weeks ago I had it on a set side by side with a Sony 21" CRT and it looked just about as sharp as the CRT when displaying live 1080Psf. The CRT had better blacks though and is probably more color accurate though we managed to match them up pretty well color wise by adjusting the the RGB of the Panasonic.
Varicam/Steadicam Owner
Los Angeles, CA
www.brucealangreene.com
Most of the newer LCD monitors do a good job with HD, but they're not as good with SD. It's just the nature of the technology. Sony BVM-series CRT monitors remain the standard for evaluation/critical monitoring in high-end post, telecine and color correction, but they
Re: HD/SD monitoring by FischTale on Aug 31, 2006 at 11:43:05 pm
I'm having the same dilema with my mixed HD/SD world of editing! I'm in the process of upgrading everything in my edit suite and the only solution that I have found that will give me both uncompromised SD and HD viewing is two different monitors. For my client viewing area I'm going to have both monitors on a lazy susan and I'll just spin it around for whichever format we're working on!
I just haven't found a monitor that can show both without giving up too much quality in either direction. I would also love to hear more opinions out there from anyone who has found a single monitor solution.
Re: HD/SD monitoring by Michael Slowe on Sep 13, 2006 at 2:59:34 pm
I edit in 8bit uncompressed HD and did not want to go to the expense of HD monitoring yet and kept my old Sony CRT PVM-14 (can't quote exact model just now). The lead from my Media 100 HD is component but Svideo from decks and the picture is pretty darn good with of course 16:9 / 4:3 switchable.
