Greylite in, seems dark ... yadda yadda

[Avrus]

So I really like the look of the greylite, but the monitor seems very dark now.  It looks like adjusting the contrast through the video card seems to do well, can anyone share their adjustments (contrast, brightness or gamma) or what they did to make it "pop"?

Thanks!

[Fozzy The Bear]

So I really like the look of the greylite, but the monitor seems very dark now.  It looks like adjusting the contrast through the video card seems to do well, can anyone share their adjustments (contrast, brightness or gamma) or what they did to make it "pop"?

That's exactly why I don't use it.... It does look great when you turn up the brightness and contrast on the monitor. BUT it really kills the tube. It's having to work that much harder to produce the image you need. Admittedly the contrast ratio impoves masively when you use a dark tinted front glass like that but at the expense of the lifetime of your screen.

Best Regards,
Julian (Fozzy The Bear)

[Avrus]

So I really like the look of the greylite, but the monitor seems very dark now.  It looks like adjusting the contrast through the video card seems to do well, can anyone share their adjustments (contrast, brightness or gamma) or what they did to make it "pop"?

That's exactly why I don't use it.... It does look great when you turn up the brightness and contrast on the monitor. BUT it really kills the tube. It's having to work that much harder to produce the image you need. Admittedly the contrast ratio impoves masively when you use a dark tinted front glass like that but at the expense of the lifetime of your screen.

Best Regards,
Julian (Fozzy The Bear)

But I'm not adjusting it on the monitor, just the video card so really ... I can't see it impacting the life of the monitor.

[Avrus]

Running it through that monitor calibration software the contrast and brightness levels show as fine so ... it's all good.

[fixedpigs]

But I'm not adjusting it on the monitor, just the video card so really ... I can't see it impacting the life of the monitor.

regardless of how you adjust the settings...the end result is the same...the hardware producing whatever signal it's receiving is the one doing the work...

so it doesn't matter who tells the monitor to be brighter...the monitor is the one that is still having to be brighter...

[RandyT]

so it doesn't matter who tells the monitor to be brighter...the monitor is the one that is still having to be brighter...

This is true, and running the monitor brighter will have some impact on longevity.

That being said, it's no different than a TV using a dark tinted picture tube to give you those high contrast ratios.  They must do the same  things, but they do it more transparently through range adjustments in setup menus.

So it's probably not something to be terribly concerned about.  I've been running a monitor for 3 years straight (24 hrs a day) with dark plexi and a pumped up output.  No problems yet.  Just don't leave it burning the same image into the screen all of the time. 

RandyT

[TelcoLou]

What are the benefits of using tinted plexi/glass/lexan?

[RandyT]

What are the benefits of using tinted plexi/glass/lexan?

This thread had some examples, but they aren't linked properly anymore.  The images may be mirrored here somewhere.

Lots of information there otherwise.

RandyT

[TelcoLou]

What are the benefits of using tinted plexi/glass/lexan?

This thread had some examples, but they aren't linked properly anymore.  The images may be mirrored here somewhere.

Lots of information there otherwise.

RandyT

Awesome stuff! Thanks for the link, It's much appreciated .. I just got a Happ plastic bezel today and will be fiddling around with it later tonight .. this smoked plexi idea may well have taken out a lot of guess work for me

 

[Paladin]

After I got my greylite, I noticed the same thing.  I'm using it on a computer monitor to play Tempest only.  I took a break after getting the cab all together, and need to start messing with software and monitor settings.  Here's a picture of the monitor with stock settings behind the greylite.

[Dustin Mustangs]

I just got mine installed and I thought it seemed a little darker than needed to hide the tv.  Totally happy with the picture however (once I tweeked my tv's settings).  I can't remember exactly, but I think my brightness went up a good 25% and I think I also bumped my contrast and picture slightly too. 

Also, my actlab guns work fine through it (some report problems with this).

[fixedpigs]

here's a huge tip...

if you are undecided on whether or not you want to use tinted glass...just go to a local glass shop and ask for a sample of whatever you're looking for...they will hook you up with a piece(7"x12" in my case) that you can use to look through...i was amazed at the real life differences...the colours don't bleed anymore...!

[TOK]

I had to turn my brightness up about 20%. I don't care if it wears the monitor a bit quicker, it looks so much better that it's worth it. This one has also been running for about two years with zero loss in image quality.