Best 30" monitor for editing

[Jonas Bendsen]

The time has come to move up from the 24" 2408WFP to something in the 30" range. For a brief time I considered just another 24", but I think I'd like to be able to view full resolution 2k (2048x1024), and a monitor maxing out at 1920x1200 just isn't going to get me there.

The "big three" at the consumer level seem to be the Apple 30" ($1799), the Dell 3008 ($1399, and some actually say the 3007 ($1299) is better), and the HP LP3065 ($1299). Bumping up to the "next level" gets you into the HP DreamColor LP2480zx (though $1999 will only get you 1920x1200 and 12ms response time on a 24" monitor) and the Eizo CG301W ($4400 --more than doubling the price of the most expensive in the other category).

I know there are others (Samsung, Gateway, etc.), but those seem to be the cream that has risen to the top of the reviews and forums.

I will be doing some first look color, etc... but I'm not going to fool myself into thinking that I'll be able to work magic with consumer or pro-sumer level equipment when it comes to color considerations (hopefully, funding will allow for DaVinci at the color stage).

I use an Xrite EyeOne color calibrator that does the job pretty darn well, so at least I am "doing the best I can" by not just accepting what I get from the factory or simply trying to set the screen manually.

I just need a good, solid monitor, that will do it's job and be the best it can be (size, color, speed, etc...) for hopefully under or around $2,000.

I'll most likely be driving it with an Nvidia FX4800 (on a PC), but that's probably up for debate as well (the card, not the platform).

Opinions? Suggestions? Thoughts?

Thanks!

[Virgil Kastrup]

I'm using the HP monitors on a fx4800 card. 3065 for 2K, 2480zx for, well... color and I'm pretty happy with them.

[Barry Gregg]

I had both of my Samsung 214T monitors die within a few weeks of each other. I'm looking for a 30" to replace them. Also wondering if folks have recommendations.

I would never buy another Samsung ever again. It took them 7 months to honor the warranty.

[Alexander Mejia]

I've found that "the best LCD" depends on your operation, as one does not offer all of the benefits that you'll want.

The monitor landscape changes all the time, so I'd suguest taking a look at this frequently updated source and do some research.


http://forums.anandtech.com/messagev...readid=2049206

Right now I use one of the HP Dreamcolor Displays (LP2480ZX) and have been pleasantly surprised with how it stays consistent across the studio without modifying the graphics card LUT, so it's real useful for XBOX360 game consoles (our target platform), however it's only 24" monitor.

We find the Dreamcolor very great for our workflow since we can quickly check what something looks like at 709 color space and 601, since game consoles can be outputting at both.

Remember that you're going to most likely be stuck in sRGB land with 99% of monitors you buy for your PC. If you can live with that, or have software translation for that in your software that you use, then you'll be fine.