I am considering a pair of new monitors. I see good reviews in magazines, but when I review comments from users the monitors don't measure up. Any recommendations? I am thinking under $1000 each.
Posted by Lindy Martin on April 17, 2012 at 6:55 AM
Hi Patrick. I recently got a second hand Apple Cinema display that I really like. It does need time to warm up but graphically, it is good. There may be a few of those at the apple stores - refurbished etc or on line. I have also tried the NEC monitors and found them to be good as well. Good luck in your search.
Posted by Brad Mangas on April 17, 2012 at 8:07 PM
I would seriously consider the NEC line of Spectraview monitors such as the 27" Widescreen Professional Graphics Desktop Monitor
MODEL: PA271W-BK.
You hear much about the Apple Cinema displays but what you usually don't hear is that the color gamut of Apple displays is smaller and thus don't match up to a true wide gamut display, so you end up paying more and getting less. But it says Apple.
Posted by Paul DeCesare on April 18, 2012 at 1:43 AM
NEC is a great monitor but is probably a bit above the price range. I recently bought the Dell U2711 on sale, about $800 delivered. I'm thrilled with it now but it took nearly a week to get there. Wide gamut monitors take some TLC and a change of workflow, at least for me. First, I finally figured out that in order to use my Spyder3Elite colorimeter on this thing, I needed to set the colorspace to Custom, not any of the AdobeRGB/sRGB/blah blah blah colorspaces provided. Also, after you get a good profile set up, you need to tweak up the brightness a bit, otherwise the white will look yellowy and sparkly due to the non-glare coating. There's a point where it gets too bright and you don't want that, but work with it and you'll tweak it in after a few tries. Lastly, and this applies to all wide-gamut monitors, you can kiss Internet Explorer goodbye, even version 9, and also Microsoft Picture Manager if you run Windows and use that for quick viewing of JPEGs, because Microsoft doesn't get it yet: those are NOT color-managed programs. They are preset for sRGB, and on a wide gamut monitor, you will get severely blown out pukey reds and oranges, visiting the same websites you're used to. You'll need to use Safari or Firefox, both being color-managed browsers, and for fast image viewing on Windows, they have the Windows Photo Viewer now in Win 7, and it is color-managed also. Naturally Bridge and Photoshop and Lightroom are as well. I still use IE9 often, and am just used to the excessive warm tones. Anyway, the point of all this is to not get swayed by the gripes from reviewers about the NEC and Dell 27" wide-gamut monitors with the "sparkly coating", it just takes a little tweaking to get it right.
"I would seriously consider the NEC line of Spectraview monitors such as the 27" Widescreen Professional Graphics Desktop Monitor MODEL: PA271W-BK
I have the Multisync P221W. It's a wide gamut screen. I use the SpectraView calibration software and the NEC-branded EyeOne colorimeter. The software and colorimeter will set you back additional $, but , if you are considering getting two wide-gamut screens it will be worth the money. The SpectraView system is excellent and easy to use. Adjustments to color, white point, black point and color temperature are done automatically, and the profile is automatically saved and applied. Note that this is on a Windows-7 system. I can't speak for how it works on a Mac, but I would assume that it is equally straightforward.
--P
Posted by Keith Bauer on April 19, 2012 at 2:26 PM
The SpectraView system is excellent and easy to use. Adjustments to color, white point, black point and color temperature are done automatically, and the profile is automatically saved and applied. Note that this is on a Windows-7 system. I can't speak for how it works on a Mac, but I would assume that it is equally straightforward.
I use an NEC 2690 WUXI with Spectraview color calibration. I can attest to Preston's assertion that it works equally well on a Mac. Fabulous monitor, easy, accurate color calibration.
I have the NEC referenced by Brad. It came with its own calibration system. The monitor and calibration system work like a charm. But they ain't cheap.
I too am in the process of purchasing a new monitor, and ended up getting the NEC wide-gamut 27" monitor with the Spectraview calibration device. I've done a LOT of research on monitors lately, and this is the one that people are really talking up. Yes, it is a bit more expensive, but not nearly the cost of an Eizo or similar - even so, it is VERY accurate.
Discussion
7 repliesMODEL: PA271W-BK.
You hear much about the Apple Cinema displays but what you usually don't hear is that the color gamut of Apple displays is smaller and thus don't match up to a true wide gamut display, so you end up paying more and getting less. But it says Apple.
I have the Multisync P221W. It's a wide gamut screen. I use the SpectraView calibration software and the NEC-branded EyeOne colorimeter. The software and colorimeter will set you back additional $, but , if you are considering getting two wide-gamut screens it will be worth the money. The SpectraView system is excellent and easy to use. Adjustments to color, white point, black point and color temperature are done automatically, and the profile is automatically saved and applied. Note that this is on a Windows-7 system. I can't speak for how it works on a Mac, but I would assume that it is equally straightforward.
--P
I use an NEC 2690 WUXI with Spectraview color calibration. I can attest to Preston's assertion that it works equally well on a Mac. Fabulous monitor, easy, accurate color calibration.