Need feedback on a 27 " multisync arcade monitor purchase

[lordtodd75]

OK, I have been googling multisync monitors for over an hour. I have come up with wells gardner, betson and bill labs monitors, all of which seem to be discontinued. Betson has a 27" multisync available, but I only found one review stating it wasn't a very good monitor. Bill labs I think had a 29", which won't fit in my cab and I just read Ken Laytons sticky on wells gardner, yikes!

If I am going to spend upwards of 600.00 for a monitor I want it to be top notch. So tell me byoac community, where have all the good multisyncs gone?

[Jeff AMN]

Check here: http://niemandisplays.com/

[scurvy]

i never heard a bed review of the 27 inch betson.. and its on sale for $369.. i'm picking one up soon.

[lordtodd75]

Thanks for the quick response, do you guys have links to any reviews???

[scurvy]

http://www.retroblast.com/reviews/betson.html


only one i could find, you've probably read it.

btw nice riki-oh image.. that movie rules! 

[shorthair]

Ah! - I missed this sale, last year.  If wanting, what I think is top notich, customer service, check out Nieman. Otherwise, nab a Betson before they go back up!

[segasonicfan]

If you want THE BEST monitor available get a Nanao.  They are hard to come by but I am sure you can score one for under $600.  So many people refer to it as the finest on the market and I am getting one soon for myself.  The chassis is definitely a work of art and the tube is quality too.

I've heard bad things about Betson monitors and their Wells Gardner (D9200?) counter parts.  The Betson review I read from Retroblast looked promising, but they only tested in with MAME.  I have been told that they are not well suited for CGA video.  Not to mention they are WAY overpriced.

I suggest getting an older much better monitor.  The older WGs are fantastic, I just finished setting up a new one I got in.  But if you want THE best, get a Nanao...


-Segasonicfan

[grantspain]

the nanao are a very good quality monitor

[MonMotha]

I've heard bad things about Betson monitors and their Wells Gardner (D9200?) counter parts.  The Betson review I read from Retroblast looked promising, but they only tested in with MAME.  I have been told that they are not well suited for CGA video.  Not to mention they are WAY overpriced.

I can say that my Betson/Kortek looks just fine at about any resolution I've thrown at it: standard, medium, VGA, and even 800x600 isn't too bad (the large dot pitch of the screen becomes a bit limiting at this high resolution that no arcade game uses).  TMNT looks just the same as it did when I was playing it years ago as does MK2, and NFL Blitz looks great, too (these all running from real hardware, not in MAME).

There are only two problems I've noted: the degaussing isn't all that great, and it fails to properly separate some composite SD sync signals, most notably those from playstation/PS2 based systems like the Konami System573 or an actual PS2, causing some "tearing" near the top of the screen.  Using separate sync (if possible) fixes this.

I'd say it's a fine monitor at a reasonable price (when on the sale that Betson seems to run with some frequency).

I've heard of nothing but trouble with the new WG monitors from all sorts of sources, and the one I've had the "pleasure" of using didn't impress me that much.  The Billabs is supposedly decent, but a few people reported them blowing up within hours of turning them on (though customer services was helpful). I can't really comment on the other popular multisync arcade monitors out there today.

[squirrellydw]

Billabs BL27CB0P is still on there site.  An what is a Nanao?

[MikeQ]

I had a Billabs burn up on me after about a month.  I left the monitor on for a month after getting it for the sole purpose of burning it in.  Usually if something is going to go wrong it will happen early.

Billabs sent me a new chasis which I swapped.  I left the new monitor running for a month and it survived.  I've had it for a little more than a year and no troubles.

It's a nice looking monitor and can support 1024x768 which is nice since I play PC games on it too.

[squirrellydw]

I had a Billabs burn up on me after about a month.  I left the monitor on for a month after getting it for the sole purpose of burning it in.  Usually if something is going to go wrong it will happen early.

Billabs sent me a new chasis which I swapped.  I left the new monitor running for a month and it survived.  I've had it for a little more than a year and no troubles.

It's a nice looking monitor and can support 1024x768 which is nice since I play PC games on it too.

You are the reason  iwant this monitor

[tetsu96]

I've got 2 Betsons, and I love them both for how I use them.  I only have a PC connected and I double up games resolution with 50% scanlines when I emulate, looks fantastic.  When I run @ native resolutions, they also look spot on but the scanlines are very pronounced.  Not a big deal in horizontal games, but it's a bit distracting in vertical games.

The Billabs I'm sure is pretty fantastic too, but since they're flat screen, they veer a bit from a true arcade feel so I passed on them.

Since the Egret3 and Atomiswave cabs use flat screen monitors, they probably look spot on for the newer games.  For older ones, not so much.

Now the WG monitors, there's a LOT of horror stories about them so no matter what you pick, you're doing better than you would with a D9200 (note - there may be worse monitors out there, but I don't pay that much attention).

[ahofle]

When I run @ native resolutions, they also look spot on but the scanlines are very pronounced.  Not a big deal in horizontal games, but it's a bit distracting in vertical games.

Any chance you could take a picture of this monitor on a standard res game at the native resolution?  I've heard this mentioned a couple times now (pronounced scanlines) and would really like to see it.  It's probably the one thing holding me back from getting one.  I don't really want to buy an arcade monitor only to have to run it at non-authentic resolutions.