Dell 24″ LCD Monitor Question

[Cory Mckechnie]

Based on all the positives, I picked one up last night. The CAD pricing was $100 cheaper than the USD price, so the pricing is certainly more appealing than the Apple displays.
Thanks again all,
Cory

[Anthony Willis]

I think the Dell 2407 WFP is a great monitor, especially for FCP and AE. However, I think two monitors is not quite as practical as you might think especially in wide aspect ratios. Having two 4:3 monitors is a legacy of Avid Media Composer suites really.

One of the suites I use regularly has two of these Dell monitors and it is just too wide a screen area for proper use. Apple have made FCP work very well with one large screen. When I work on this FCP machine I often end up cursing the awkward area and reverting to the standard workspace on one screen. In fact using one of these 24 inch monitors as an HD display is pretty good…

But, I would seriously suggest you consider a single 30 inch Dell or Apple display. FCP and AE are glorious with this kind of screen area, far better than two 24s…

You will have so much more room for your timeline and you don’t have to glance a few feet away to see your record viewer pane!

You may not agree, but I think you should try it out.

Cheers,

Anthony

[Cory Mckechnie]

Thanks Anthony, I was going to pick up two Apple 20″ monitors initially but when I saw the price of the Dell I couldn’t resist. However, as you say, my concern was two 24″ monitors might be a little much for both editing and my desk space. I ordered the one to see if there would be enough room with just the one 24″ monitor.

Which leads to my next question. At work I actually only use the second 20″ Cinema Display for my bin and was thinking that at home I might keep my (much more expensive at the time 🙂 Viewsonic CRT for toolbars, bins, etc and use the 24″ Dell for main program stuff. So my question is, do I have to worry about shielding or interference from the CRT damaging the Dell? And if so, any thoughts on making sure my shiny new monitor doesn’t get damaged?

Thanks.

[Anthony Willis]

Cory,

I’m afraid I don’t know whether there would be any issue with interference from the CRT, I very much doubt it. Maybe someone else will be able to clarify that.

I think your plan is a pretty good one, as an extra monitor for bins etc does free up the space on the main display. I still feel that Apple has made this edit suite work remarkably well on a single wide aspect monitor. You may find the new Dell you’ve ordered is just perfect by itself! Then you don’t need to have a vast CRT placed next to a elegant and space saving LCD…

Also, CRTs and some LCDs radiate too much light for the clarity and contrast they provide. This not only dries your eyes, but can lead to headaches and fatigue. I find the Apple 23 inch LCD more tiring to work with than the Dell 24 inch.

Maybe it is time to ditch the CRT completely, just like the manufactures have. I think they are only superior for interlaced television playback.

Cheers Cory, good luck!

Anthony

[Chris Borjis]

Are any of you using the newer “HC” series that claims a 90% NTSC color gamut?

How much more improved is the color and contrast on that?

I have the regular 2407 that came out 3 years ago.

[Jimmy Brunger]

Our 3D designer has the 30″ version of the Dell HC…it looks good, but not vastly better than my 20″ ones.

I too was going to go for 2 x W/S 20″ LCDs (2 x 24″ W/S originally, until I measured how much spec I’d need!) but I work with a Wacom and 2 x 4:3 monitors definitely suits me better. Much more porductive for switching between apps and having a diff one in each mon.

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[Walter Biscardi]

[walter biscardi] “We run the Dell 2407’s in our edit suites and they are pretty much equal to the Apple’s. We only use them for computer displays and not for external video display.”

As a follow-up, we just placed an order for a Dell E248WFP for our third edit system. After looking at the specs of the 2407WFP and this monitor they seemed identical except the E24 does not have the analog video inputs which we don’t need.

Price was only $349 vs. $699 for the 2407. I’ll let you know how it looks when it gets here.

Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Biscardi Creative Media
HD and SD Production for Broadcast and Independent Productions.

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[James Dunn]

Cory,
How did your monitor work out? Do you like the new Dell? I’m looking at the same monitor for a new mac pro. It has received mix reviews, but some impressive ones such as in this forum.
James

[Cory Mckechnie]

Howdy James, I LOVE the monitor!! I’m even using it with my PC with VGA connection until the new MacPro arrives, so I imagine i’ll like it even better with DVI. If you’re interested (not sure about the American site) but http://www.dell.ca have it on for $599 again (which is what I got it for when I ordered).

Sriously, go for it. No complaints at all from here!!

[James Dunn]

Hi Walter,
I was curious to know what you think of the image quality of the Dell 2407WFP that you mentioned ordering back in January? I’m in a similar position as Cory; making the transition to a PowerMac 8 core and trying to decide on a monitor. Up until now we’ve been using a 24″ iMac, which has been just fine, but we need more horsepower.

Am considering the Apple 23″, but am interested in cutting some costs. My work is 70% writing and the rest audio/visual, using FCP and adding in Logic Studio. Visual for reading/writing is key, presuming with that covered, images should be fine.

ps: have also enjoyed your samples on the web. We created one on post Katrina, too, for GE.

Thank you!
James