HD grading monitor shortlist

[Mark Petereit]

Flanders Scientific LM-1760W – 17”
Res: 1366×768
HD-SDI, component, DVI-I, optional 3Gbps SDI
Overscan/1:1 scan
Waveform (Luminance, RGB, YRGB Peak)
Vector Scope
Exposure Level Indication with LUM Coloring feature
Color Temperature Selection
Gamma Selection (1.0~2.8)
Contrast: 900:1
£1637.72
https://www.shopfsi.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=LM-1760W

[Chi-ho Lee]

Flanders all the way. I have their 2450W and it’s is truly great. I came close to buying a JVC but am glad I went with the FSI.

CHL

Chi-Ho Lee
Film & Television Editor
Apple Certified Final Cut Pro Trainer
http://www.chiholee.com

[Catalin Brylla]

Thanks. The Flanders monitor looks good, but they don’t seem to sell it in Europe (UK). They ship it internationally, but if there are any problems, or I need technical support it will get tedious.

[Chi-ho Lee]

Yes, I understand your hesitancy towards a manufacturer not on your home turf. From the four models you listed, I’ve only seen the JVC and it looks great but the viewing angle is tiny. So if you will be the only person using it in your suite, then the viewing angle won’t be as much of an issue but if it will be a screening monitor for a few people then I really think the viewing angle will be an issue. Unless everyone swaps position so they can be dead center.

The Panasonic is good and lots of people use them as a client monitor to wow them but not quite a reference monitor.

CHL

Chi-Ho Lee
Film & Television Editor
Apple Certified Final Cut Pro Trainer
http://www.chiholee.com

[John Knapich]

We have the JVC and it works great. It is connected via Kona Lhe, SDI and never fails. Have had it two years and still running.

FCP 6.06, OS 10.5.8 2x3GHZ Quad-Core Intel Xeon, Kona LHe, Dulce Duo-eSATA 8 Drive, 4TB Raid.

John Knapich
Creative Director/Partner
Assembypix.tv

[Walter Biscardi]

Flanders Scientific should be on your list as well. The 1770W is $2,695 US and along with it’s 24″ brothers make up the best Grade 1 grading monitors under $10,000 both for HD and SD. That’s what we replaced all our Sony CRT monitors with.

https://www.shopfsi.com/Ultra_Light_FSI_17_inch_hd_broadcast_monitor_p/lm-1770w.htm

Also a great company to work with. You can save $200 US by going with the 1760W.

Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Editor, Colorist, Director, Writer, Consultant, Author, Chef.
HD Post and Production
Biscardi Creative Media

“Foul Water, Fiery Serpent” featuring Sigourney Weaver coming soon.

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[Rafael Amador]

Not ure if will fit in your budget, but don’t miss the “HP DreamColor”. The only affordable 10b monitor for CC.
Have a look to the review of Jeremy Garchow here in the COW.
Rafael

http://www.nagavideo.com

[Catalin Brylla]

Thanks for all the responses.

I gather the Datavideo monitor is off my list.

Rafael, I checked out the HP Dreamcolour and reading all the posts on this forum suggest that it is rather good for graphics and animation.

Walter, I’ve put the Flanders on my shortlist, but the problem is that they do not have a branch in Europe, so I need to think about this. You have been using the Panasonic, right? Would you say they are good (enough) for grading HD? It doesn’t have SDI, but I would use component or HDMI from the card.

[Walter Biscardi]

[Catalin Brylla] “You have been using the Panasonic, right? Would you say they are good (enough) for grading HD?”

Nope, we’ve never used the Panasonic. We tested it here and it’s not good enough for grading. Light spill from the corners and milky blacks. I love Panasonic cameras, but not their monitors.

As for being in Europe, Flanders Scientific has hundreds of sales in Europe, Australia, and beyond and they have no problems servicing their equipment from the U.S. FedEx brings the monitor back here and they usually turn it around the same day.

Also, they have a 30 day money back guarantee so if you don’t like it, you return it and get your money back. It’s essentially a free demo in your facility. I don’t think the others offer that choice.

I tested Panasonic, Sony, TV Logic and Flanders Scientific monitors here over a 1 year period when we were making our decision to make the switch from our broadcast CRT monitors. FSI was the first one I saw that finally matched up with our CRT and after seeing the prices, it was an easy choice. Their service after the sale has been fantastic and the fact that they have updated the menus and operations about 30 times now in just over a year of ownership show that they listen to their customer requests. They also throw in free calibration of your monitors as long as you own them.

There’s nothing on the market I’ve seen that comes close to these monitors in this price range. Heck even some displays that are much more expensive look identical or worse than these.

And as for the HP Dreamcolor, the FSI 10bit and the HP Dreamcolor use the exact same panel. But that’s where the similarity ends. All of the electronics behind the panel are completely different for FSI and because of this the FSI is a much better and more accurate grading monitor than the HP. The HP is great for graphics and while folks on here have touted it as a video grading monitor, it has the same floating white point issue similar to a plasma screen. So the colors are never fully accurate or stable. It’s a great low cost option, but not as accurate as the FSI.

As you can tell, I’m a fan of these displays. We currently have a 1760W, 1770W and 2 of the 2450W’s. When we open our new facility in the fall, we will have 9 or 10 of them so all the rooms match up. For my money, these are the best displays I’ve purchased.

Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Editor, Colorist, Director, Writer, Consultant, Author, Chef.
HD Post and Production
Biscardi Creative Media

“Foul Water, Fiery Serpent” featuring Sigourney Weaver coming soon.

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[Catalin Brylla]

Thanks Walter. I will definitely put the FSI into my shortlist and try it out for 30 days 🙂

Re the Panasonic, you mention in several other posts that you have been using the TH (or TX) Plasma range as client monitors, and the colours looked very similar to the grading monitors, so you would recommend it as a low budget solution. Or am I missing something?