Moniter about to die; some thoughts on possible replacements?

[Vostok]

Yes my moniter was manufactured in 1994, so sue me. This Packard Bell 15" 1511SL (received in high school as part of a Pentium 60 rig ^^) has been a real champ over the years, and has never given me much fuss or fit, except that in the last few years it suddenly gets dimmer for no apparent reason, by which i give it a good whack on the side to correct it. Well, finally, something major has happened - ive lost most of the red color over most of the screen except for the far left hand side.

First, is there anything i can do to realign or fix this problem? Say a magnet on the side or somesuch?

If not, and assuming most people hear will berrate me for using such an old moniter, any thoughts about these possible replacements?

Hitachi CM-615 17": seems to have excellent dot-pitch (.20"), moderate refresh rates at higher resolutions, very cheap. Cons: apparently some blurring at sides?

Samsung Syncmaster 755DF 17": again, excellent dot pitch, moderate refresh rate at high resolutions (i probably won't be going over 1024x768 any time soon), cheap as well. Cons: again, some blurring or distortion?

I guess the questions are: dot pitch; does it matter? Aperature Grill vs. Shadow Mask? Screen size vs. resolution w/ regards to dot pitch: ie. a small dot pitch on a medium screen has more resolution than a large screen with a large dot pitch?

Although i can look up reviews, i was hoping some people here had some experience with these moniters above. Unlike the rest of a computer, moniters don't decrease in price at the same rate, and bying a moniter is something that should last for years. However moniters are still not cheap and my budget is tight. As far as games, i play mostly RTS and Simulation games.

Duron 950 w/Swiftech mc370a
ECS K7s5a
256mb Crucial DDR 2100
Radeon LE 32mb
Turtle Beach Santa Cruz
Maxtor 20gb 5100 rpm
some cdrom 52x drive
other perpherials

 

[AluminumStudios]

A few months ago I bought a Viewsonic A70 (i'm not sure if they make this exact model anymore.) It was cheap (~$170), not they (or their comparable replacements can be found for less.) I've been most happy with it - the color is bright and accurate, it is clear with no blurring toward the edges, very minimal moir patters which can be adjusted by the many on-screen controls.) It's a very solid product.

I actually bought and returned several more expensive monitors before I found this one. I bought a KDS brand monitor that used a Sony FD Trinitron screen. It had a flaw in the glass that I didn't see until I had it home and on. The 2nd one had a focus problem on the edges. I said screw it and bought a Sony 17" FD Trinitron. It really annoyed my eyes after staring at it for a short while - they are not good for text. I looked at a Samsung flat CRT, but it was dim and didn't have very good contrast. All of these cost more than my el-cheapo Viewsonic that I love.

 

[Dat]

i got a samsung 753df for like $150 shipped from dell + $30 rebate...
its the best bang for the buck.

if you got cash to spare - I like my sony g400s - they are nice

if you got even more cash - a buddy of my got the sony F520 ($1300) - super nice

 

[murphy55d]

I got the same deal on the 753DF...I like it a lot.

 

[Vostok]

Thx AluminumStudios looking into that moniter after i finish typing this response...

Thx for the recommendation on the 753ds; has anyone heard or seen the Samsung 700(nf?) model? Its supposedly an aperature grill rather than shadow mask and is around 200$.

 

[KeyserSosa]

Yeah for quality vs price the A70 is the best around. I bought one a few years ago and I've had no problems with it. Viewsonic make good monitors.