Quote:
Originally Posted by
KillerT2 /forum/post/0
Well, the screen size is open for change I guess
This is a good approach - I especially like the idea of keeping the display as a monitor, then upgrading around it.
Which particular models do you have in mind that will fulfill these requirements? The new Pio's & Panny's?
Thanks for the positive comments regarding the approach.
Your point about size is well taken. I see screen size, resolution, viewing distance, and desired viewing angle as a problem to be worked out. I personally want a large viewing angle. Either I sit very close to a smaller screen or a bit further back with a larger screen. Either way, resolution will limit me to how close I can sit for any given screen size and, therefore, limit my viewing angle. The assumption, of course, is that I sit back far enough to eliminate SDE from intruding into the PQ.
While I am sure that resolution will continue to evolve, it seems that 1080p will be a platau for at least a while. Still I can envision 1080p material scaled effectively to 2x that resolution. I also think that 1080p will allow displays in the range of 60-80" to look quite good from a close enough distances to give a satisfyingly wide viewing angle; as I recall, the 70" Qualia looked quite good from 7-8' or so.
I am still trying to learn more about hardware and just where certain logical processing functions are physically carried out along the signal path depending on the signal type and format. I think it is only with this information that I will be able to intelligently configure a system for optimal flexibility and PQ.
I believe that the drive component is integral with the glass component. I guess that if you supply a digital RGB signal to the display and achieve 1:1 mapping, the display will perform the least processing; converting the RGB signal via DACs in the drive component into voltages to drive the sub-pixels. I need to confirm this guess through a better and lower-level understanding of the signal path.
I think the above bypasses color decoding in the display (the signal is already RGB) and so any deep color support would be in the external processor although the drive component would need to be able to deal with the finer gradations of signal accompanying deep color decoding.
Alternatively, a fully processed signal except conversion to RGB could be sent on to the display and color decoded there.
As you can see, there is a lot to consider even if you want to use the display as a "monitor" as the monitor may still do some signal processing.
As far as your question about specific brands, the use of a display as a monitor does raise some interesting questions. That is why I went through my incomplete rambling about signal path above. Let me give you an example. I like NEC primarily because they have the best processing. But as a monitor, certain processing becomes irrelevant as it will be bypassed. So basic glass characteristics along with at least the drive electronics become more important and the color decoder too if you want the display to also perform that function.
Yes I like Pioneer, and NEC, for their single glass pane with a bonded, film, filter layer. It can make a noticable difference in PQ. I also like their variety of picture adjustments, but again some of these adjustments become moot, are bypassed, when the display is used as an RGB monitor.
So I would just love a 60" or better 70" 1080p "new-technology" (such as the announced Pioneer) plasma with rather full HDMI 1.3 support preferably including deep-color support if I were to still use its color decoder.
One more thought. If you take this approach, you need to decide up front whether the display will start out, for some years, as a full display and only years later be upgraded to monitor status via the addition of some improved external processing or whether it will begin life in your system as a monitor, perhaps with an AV receiver having an advanced video processing chip such as the SI Reon/Realta. If the former, then all the display's native processing capabilities remain important for the early years of its use. For now, that would be NEC but who knows what advances other makers will achieve in the next year or two.
Finally, perhaps makers will just incorporate these advanced processing chips directly into the displays obviating the need altogether for external video processing. In this case, an opposite approach is preferable. SDI players, providing a signal as close to that carried on disk and processed the least is sent to the display which performs ALL the processing.
Just more food for thought. It does surprise me somewhat though with all the discussions on this forum about displays and PQ that more attention is not given to signal path considerations and thus coordination among components along that path.
Cheers,
Gary
