LCD Replacement for 4:3 SVideo TV

[HeadRusch1]

I built my MAMECab using a 20" Dynex (or something, whatever x-brand BEST BUY sold 5+ years ago) television, its currently connected to my old MAME PC using SVIDEO output from an ATI 7500 video card. 
It has that near-arcade monitor low-rez look and feel, combined with the washed out and slightly blurry images that come when a computer tries to drive a TV. 

I currently have a bezel setup over the monitor that has a 22" 4:3 opening.  So it takes into account the TV Glass and a little bit of the TV's bezel and worked fine.

Problem is, the TV is crap...and its getting a little flaky, and I figure its only a matter of time before I am replacing it.

I dont want to go with another CRT solution, I'll go with a lighter, and thinner, LCD panel.  Yes I know I give up that 'authentic CRT goodness' look but I have my reasons.

Am I to assume that the biggest 4:3 one can still hope to find would be about 20" diagonal?  The cab itself has about 23 and a half inches of width...so something like a 25" 16:10 monitor would probably be what I could go for in widescreen, but I HATE to have to cut a new bezel if I don't have to.

Do they make 21 or 22" 4:3 LCD panels?  Did they?  Do they still sell em even if we are talking about refurbs?

Or am I looking at a new 25" or so LCD panel as my only solution at this point.

Thanks in advance...

[Blanka]

Bezels for LCD's are pretty easy. Can you remove the glass from your cab with ease?

About LCD's:
Still available today is de HP LP2065. It's an awesome 4:3 screen. IPS panel (The thing Steve Jobs woohs about) and close to no input lag. Probably the best 4:3 gaming display with wide angles and no lag.
Yesteryear you had a bunch of 21.3 inch options too, maybe some are still for sale brand new. We talk Samsung 213T/214T here, NEC 2170/2190, Eizo S2100, stuff like that. Check classifieds for those, but I can tell you, anyone that has such a screen is not going to trade it for todays crap with ease (yes todays crap! 2007-2008 screens are generally better!). The IPS ones are faster, the PVA ones have better blacks, but sometimes that comes with a steep inputlag.

25-27 inch panels in good quality for a good prince do not exist any more as well. They phased out in 2009 too. I have a LG W2600HP 25.5 inch 16:10 in my cab, and damn that is an awesome screen. You won't see a comparable display for the price they asked for it the coming 2-3 years. I bought some eol Acers 2723 screens, and the PVA panel in that gives the best subjective image quality of any computer LCD screen up to today (It was also used in the Dell 2709, 2707 and the Samsung 275T). The new Apple 27 inch sure is sharper with its zillion pixels, but the wide gamut and deep blacks of this 27 inch PVA panel make it pop out more for games (and easier to drive, as Apple's 2560x1440 is a headache for most video cards).

Todays 26 inch TN screens are 1920x1080, and thus similar in vertical height as a 21 inch 4:3 screen.
But if you mount that HP 20 inch VERTICAL, you will need at least a 32 inch TV to match its vertical size!

[HeadRusch1]

Bezels for LCD's are pretty easy. Can you remove the glass from your cab with ease?

No glass actually, never got around to adding it.  Because the TV itself was a flat panel I felt the additional layer of glass would look odd.

About LCD's:
Still available today is de HP LP2065. It's an awesome 4:3 screen. IPS panel (The thing Steve Jobs woohs about) and close to no input lag. Probably the best 4:3 gaming display with wide angles and no lag.
Yesteryear you had a bunch of 21.3 inch options too, maybe some are still for sale brand new. We talk Samsung 213T/214T here, NEC 2170/2190, Eizo S2100, stuff like that. Check classifieds for those, but I can tell you, anyone that has such a screen is not going to trade it for todays crap with ease (yes todays crap! 2007-2008 screens are generally better!). The IPS ones are faster, the PVA ones have better blacks, but sometimes that comes with a steep inputlag.

Hmmmm..thanks for the model numbers...I think because of the width of my cab I am potentially looking at a 25" panel, and I'm probably going to need to rethink my bezel options, not sure I want to spend $200+ on an older, used 21" just to fit my bezel. 

25-27 inch panels in good quality for a good prince do not exist any more as well. They phased out in 2009 too. I have a LG W2600HP 25.5 inch 16:10 in my cab, and damn that is an awesome screen. You won't see a comparable display for the price they asked for it the coming 2-3 years. I bought some eol Acers 2723 screens, and the PVA panel in that gives the best subjective image quality of any computer LCD screen up to today (It was also used in the Dell 2709, 2707 and the Samsung 275T). The new Apple 27 inch sure is sharper with its zillion pixels, but the wide gamut and deep blacks of this 27 inch PVA panel make it pop out more for games (and easier to drive, as Apple's 2560x1440 is a headache for most video cards).

My cab doesn't get quite the use that I'd likely notice the image quality differences (remember, I'm using a Brand-X 20" CRT right now), but I'll have to think about my options.  I see I can get a 21" monitor used in the $200 to $300 range, but I'm not sure thats the smart move.

Thanks for your writeup and suggestions!

Todays 26 inch TN screens are 1920x1080, and thus similar in vertical height as a 21 inch 4:3 screen.
But if you mount that HP 20 inch VERTICAL, you will need at least a 32 inch TV to match its vertical size!

[Blanka]

As I told you, that old 21 inch second hand is probably still better than most options today. At least no-one made a TN panel that size. So any old 21 inch 4:3 screen is at least suitable for vertical mount cause it always has gorgeous viewing angles!