My 27" CRT TV Is Done.

[BarontheFirst]

Alternatives? I like retro gaming. I built a Mame cabinet just for it. However, in my experience most of the games do not look good on a 1080p monitor. Would I be better of using a 720p TV? I am thinking the lower the resolution the better off I might be or is there another alternative I am not aware of?

I can't believe CRT is all but gone...…. Think a few 13" with a built in DVD or VCR still exist but that's about it and I would never put such a small screen in my cabinet. It was built around supporting a 27" TV. Lucky for me it is also wide enough for a 27" wide screen LCD.

Not sure if it makes a difference as well but I have not decided if I am going to put a PC back in or simply go with a Raspberry Pi 3 B+. I like some of the footage I see threw the Retropie emulation. It appears to make the games look better and I have no interest in new games. Think my biggest issue is my light gun. My favorite games. I have zero interest in a Aimtrak right now..... Really hoping we get some better tech soon.

Sorry for the rant. The loss of my screen means conversion of cabinet and change. Things I hate. So please help a guy out with any suggestions you might have from personal experience.

[Arroyo]

One 27” CRT coming up.....

https://na.suzohapp.com/products/monitors/49-2715-00

[BarontheFirst]

One 27” CRT coming up.....

https://na.suzohapp.com/products/monitors/49-2715-00

While I thank you for the link and it is nice to see the option available it is over my budget and I have already began my cabinet modifications for a LCD wide screen. By over my budget I just mean my wife would never let me hear the end of it. LOL

She still doesn't understand why I simply will not junk the entire MAME cabinet. On the other hand she is happy that I was able to scale it down in size no longer having a 27" tube TV inside. Guess I got some thinking to do. I mean the conversion and VESA support method I decided on isn't too difficult to reverse.

[Arroyo]

If your intent on an LCD then I’ll refrain from suggestions, but if budget is a concern you can also pickup a 27” TV for next to nothing on your local craigslist and then mod it to accept the signals from your Arcade.  If interested I can post links.

[BarontheFirst]

If your intent on an LCD then I’ll refrain from suggestions, but if budget is a concern you can also pickup a 27” TV for next to nothing on your local craigslist and then mod it to accept the signals from your Arcade.  If interested I can post links.

If you wouldn't mind. I will give them a look for sure. Still it might be too late. I really don't think with how much I slimmed it down that I could put a 27" TV back into it without it sticking out the back.

It isn't that I am against the LCD. I am just concerned with picture quality. I mean I know emulators can do a lot but there is still something lost in my opinion.

[lettuce]

One 27” CRT coming up.....

https://na.suzohapp.com/products/monitors/49-2715-00

Is that just one monitor or do they have a truck load of new stock?....shame im in the UK. 

[lettuce]

A compromise could be get a 42"+ sized 4K TV and place it into the cab vertically, this way you still can retain the physical aspect ration of a CRT screen. A 42" sized TV orientated vertically should give a similar size to a 27" CRT screen also vertical games can also benefit from this setup.

The caveat to this though is make sure what screen you get has good viewing angles as your not positioning the TV screen in the normal horizontal position. A way to make sure viewing angles are good is get a IPS panel TV rather than TN.

[Arroyo]

If your intent on an LCD then I’ll refrain from suggestions, but if budget is a concern you can also pickup a 27” TV for next to nothing on your local craigslist and then mod it to accept the signals from your Arcade.  If interested I can post links.

If you wouldn't mind. I will give them a look for sure. Still it might be too late. I really don't think with how much I slimmed it down that I could put a 27" TV back into it without it sticking out the back.

It isn't that I am against the LCD. I am just concerned with picture quality. I mean I know emulators can do a lot but there is still something lost in my opinion.

Most TV’s don’t have a good connection, you can always use S-Video but it’s a compromise.  If you want arcade quality connection you can mod most TV’s that have color On Screen Display (OSD).  You have to open up the TV and do some soldering but a lot of people have done it.  If you are going to do it, it seems like you should avoid TV’s from the 2000’s as the digital chassis seem to be more finicky about accepting a wider range of frequency’s as they varied a lot from game to game.  A 90’s model would most likely be better, but no way to know for sure without trying it yourself.

Here’s a link to the folks that have done the mod extensively:

https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=56155

You can also search YouTube videos to see people doing it to get a sense.  Here’s a couple of examples:

[Arroyo]

One 27” CRT coming up.....

https://na.suzohapp.com/products/monitors/49-2715-00

Is that just one monitor or do they have a truck load of new stock?....shame im in the UK. 

Haven’t seen any indication of limited inventory....

[BarontheFirst]

If your intent on an LCD then I’ll refrain from suggestions, but if budget is a concern you can also pickup a 27” TV for next to nothing on your local craigslist and then mod it to accept the signals from your Arcade.  If interested I can post links.

If you wouldn't mind. I will give them a look for sure. Still it might be too late. I really don't think with how much I slimmed it down that I could put a 27" TV back into it without it sticking out the back.

It isn't that I am against the LCD. I am just concerned with picture quality. I mean I know emulators can do a lot but there is still something lost in my opinion.

Most TV’s don’t have a good connection, you can always use S-Video but it’s a compromise.  If you want arcade quality connection you can mod most TV’s that have color On Screen Display (OSD).  You have to open up the TV and do some soldering but a lot of people have done it.  If you are going to do it, it seems like you should avoid TV’s from the 2000’s as the digital chassis seem to be more finicky about accepting a wider range of frequency’s as they varied a lot from game to game.  A 90’s model would most likely be better, but no way to know for sure without trying it yourself.

Here’s a link to the folks that have done the mod extensively:

https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=56155

You can also search YouTube videos to see people doing it to get a sense.  Here’s a couple of examples:

For the record I did use S-Video but I also used an Act-Labs light gun it was kind of a must at the time and it worked great. I will take a look at those links. Thanks

[keilmillerjr]

There is more used crt’s on Facebook marketplace in my area than lcd’s. Its fading away, but it’s not all but gone. I guarantee I can get a crt within walking distance.

[Zebra]

Betson also has those new 27" Makvision Tri-sync CRT monitors. They're a little cheaper than Happ too.


If $500 is more than you want to spend, maybe say what your budget is.

Unless you get lucky on a used one, any decent monitor is going to cost around $500. Sony made a 20" 480p LCD but you never see them for less than $700.

There are a few Ikegami TM20-17r 20" CRTs on eBay but they are also $400-$500.

If money is that tight, there are still plenty of free or nearly free CRT tv's on Craigslist. Just get a newer Sony model with component video.