Main > Main Forum
arcade & and pc montior both 19" inches is there noticible a size difference ?
(1/5) > >>
rlemmon:
I know PC monitors are a little smaller due to the case but my 19 inch flat screen PC monitor looks mighty small compared to a arcade game w/ a 19 inch monitor i was looking at. It looked 2 - 3 inches bigger.  Would I gain a pretty good amount of space by switching to a arcade monitor ?

What do you think guys ?
NoOne=NBA=:
I would go with a 21" PC monitor if you have a choice.
Those two are almost identical in size.
The main driving force for me in that choice is vector games.
They look GREAT on a PC monitor, and passable at best on an arcade monitor.
FrizzleFried:

--- Quote ---They look GREAT on a PC monitor, and passable at best on an arcade monitor.
--- End quote ---

You must have your priorities in order when you make your decision.  If you go with a PC monitor,  YES,  vector games will look better.   You will also have an easier time setting things up.   But you WILL NOT GET AN AUTHENTIC LOOK with 95% of the games out there (any standard res game will not look authentic...even with the scan line trickery that MAME can produce).   Yes,  as indicated above,  Vector games will look substantially better...Medium and Hi-Res games will look much better (no interlacing),  but since the vast majority of MAME ROM's are standard res,  this is something to think about.

I disagree that Vector games look "passable at best" on an arcade monitor.   I play Tempest nonstop on my arcade monitor and it looks pretty damn spiffy....though NOT as smooth as a standard PC monitor would display of course...but my Donkey Kong looks 100% authentic!
Crowquill:
As mentioned, a 21" PC monitor is almost identical in size to a 19" arcade monitor.

I was actually going to use an arcade monitor, but then I ran across a 21" monitor at Goodwill. I haven't regretted using the PC monitor, but there are a few factors to consider:

How authentic do you want your arcade experience to be?

How difficult will it be to mount the PC monitor? Many 21" monitors don't have detachable bases, and some cabinets may make it difficult to get it mounted at a the correct angle to the front.

u_rebelscum:

--- Quote from: rlemmon on January 03, 2007, 11:10:56 pm ---I know PC monitors are a little smaller due to the case but my 19 inch flat screen PC monitor looks mighty small compared to a arcade game w/ a 19 inch monitor i was looking at. It looked 2 - 3 inches bigger.  Would I gain a pretty good amount of space by switching to a arcade monitor ?

--- End quote ---

TVs and arcade monitors are sized by the viewable diagonal.  PC CRT monitors are sized by the tube's total diagonal, even though you "loose" about 2 inches with the cover (depending on CRT type).  Now, some PC CRTs do include a viewable size; use this when comparing against TV or arcade sizes.
Navigation
Message Index
Next page

Go to full version