Originally posted by: Teej
Hey guys...I'm totally confused about gamut and what it means to me. I'm looking to get a 24" 1920x1200 IPS display for working on (NOT graphics work) but also for watching movies/TV and playing the occasional game.
1) If I go with a wide gamut screen (is that 102% NTSC?), will movies and TV look oversaturated and will the colours be different from watching it on a really good TV?
Yes, it's going to be oversaturated because most of those match sRGB (including HDTV), not even 100% NTSC. I am not sure what wide gamut TVs do, really, but bottom line is that the picture isn't going to be accurate!
2) For my uses, am I better off with a 72% NTSC screen (and is that "standard gamut")?
Wide gamut doesn't really make movies or TV uncomfortable to watch. I would say go for whatever you can find. But, if you are a digital media editor or photo editor then that's when you should be paying attention. TV on a wide gamut LCD doesn't look bad, and most people probably even prefer it that way. It's just not going to be accurate, that's all.
3) What kind of colour gamut do most HD television screens have, or does it vary?
It varies but if they want to be accurate then they will be sRGB. If they want to "look vibrant" (i.e., for the store) they will have high contrast and wide gamut and not be calibrated properly.
4) If I am better off with a 72% NTSC, does all this mean that the only screen which optimally fits my needs is the NEC MultiSync LCD2490WUXi-BK, or have I missed something?
Thanks...it's been difficult figuring some of this stuff out.
I think you'll be just fine with a wide gamut screen. Most of us are. It's not going to be *that* off on *most* scenes. But there are a small group of people I think that just can't stand a wrong color tint here or there.
And wide gamut is the future. There are a couple media players out there with color management (mplayer w/ unofficial patch, and Media Player Classic with a shader).