Buying a U3100 - couple questions

[Ceifeirot]

The dot pitch (.71mm) is really good for arcade games, but will I be able to read frontends' text? Like when I'm selecting games, what do you people do to make it so you can read it? Increase the font size? How large does the font have to be in order for it to be readable?

I've found photos of the U3100 running a game, but none of text/FEs. If someone has a U3100 or a monitor with similar dot pitch, I'd appreciate it if you could show me some pictures.

Also, I don't think so, but does it make much difference between the two versions of the tubes inside the U3100? The "A-Grade" and the cheaper one. I thought I read that the cheaper one is used in arcade machines anyway. The refurb model I want to buy ($230) is the cheaper tube, which is why I ask.


I was going to buy it straight from Wells-Gardener, but I found http://www.americangaminginc.com/products/ has it too. Does anyone have experience with them? They don't list their prices on the site, I'm going to call to see how it compares.


Thanks! 

[JoyMonkey]

If I remember correctly, AmericanGaming&Electronics was bought by WellsGardner a while back, so they're just like a WG sales office now.

Don't know much about the U3100, sorry. I've got a D9100 and it kicks ass!

[Ceifeirot]

What dot pitch is your monitor? Could you provide maybe the Spy Hunter test and one of a frontend running?

Could you relate your experiences with readability of frontends?

[JoyMonkey]

It's listed on Oscars monitor comparison page with a SpyHunter sample.
The 9100 an XGA monitor and doesn't give an authentic arcade look, but the really high resolutions make vector games look awesome.

[Ceifeirot]

Ah, that's kindve hi-res for what I'd like. The U3100 is svga/vga which is good enough for me, and provides a bit of color bleeding which I like.

Does anyone have any insight on the dot pitch and the legibility of text in the frontend?

[Zapper]

Ceifeirot, I have one of the higher quality U3100s in my cabinet. I usually run it at 640x480. 800x600 doesn't look as good, I get a big black gap on the right side of the screen so I rarely use that mode. The quality is much lower than a PC monitor but you can read stuff in windows explorer and frontends like EmuLoader, but it is a bit of a strain on the eyes. I think the U3100 is a decent monitor for a cabinet but if I was buying one right now I'd consider a low-res monitor with an ArcadeVGA. I have a low-res in my vertical cabinet and plan on replacing my U3100 with a low-res sometime in the future.

[Ceifeirot]

Why do you suggest that over the U100? Doesnt that further limit the games you can run?

Also, could you please post a photo of the frontend on the u3100? Thanks.

[juggle50]

I have a U3100 and love it!!  I use normal dpi and have it set to "extra large font" (located in the appearance tab in the display properties)  and I use MAME32 set to font size 14 with a dark background and light blue lettering to see it even better.

I used my cocktail cab (with the 3100 monitor) for about a year as my main computer and used Word and Excel frequently.  I did not use explorer)  While not ideal for Microsoft Office (It could give me a headache if I worked on a paper for longer than an hour)  I think it's perfect for a MAME32 Cab.  Provided you mess with the settings to your liking I think you will find it surprisingly clear for a low res monitor.

Buy the refurbished as it is so much cheaper.  I remember the Well Garner guy telling me that there is no noticable difference between the A model and the cheaper one.

These pictures do it no justice with the glare. 

[Zapper]

Here's a pic of my U3100. I have it set at 640x480 60Hz with the screen stretched out so the games totally fill the screen. You see the monitor refresh in the pic but while playing it's not noticable to us carbon based lifeforms. Also it looks a bit dark, that's the original tinted glass that came with my Williams cabinet. The font sizes are whatever the default is for WindowsXP.

[Ceifeirot]

Thanks, its not nearly as blurry as I thought it would be.

I ordered one today Thanks for the input guys.

A real arcade monitor would look better with games, but its also a hassle to work with, has problems with DOS/windows, is even less legible with text, etc.

[Ceifeirot]

I got an email saying alank replied, but I don't see it