Ok so I got this CML174B

[Oni]

Its pretty nice, but HORRIBLE at dark shades. I have a Compaq TFT7020 and the same background on both of them, and the Hitachi doesn't diplay part of it because the color changes are subtle. Of coarse on a CRT you can see them clearly, even on my TFT7020 I see it clearly. I wonder if the Planar PX171M has this problem.
Also I plug the monitor into DVI, and it runs in Analog, the monitor's OSD won't let me select Digital mode. The OSD also won't let me select anything in the Graphic/Text menu. Other options are Graphics, and just Text, and I can't move onto either of them for selection.
I'm also curious, you other CML174 owners, what contrast ratio, and brightness do you get best results at?

Gosh I'm such a nerd sometimes, but then again arn't we all.

 

[kyuss]

Hello,

I bought one two weeks ago. You may have seen some posts about 3 dead subpixels i got with it. Still waiting for a reply on a change from Hitachi.

I am running it in analog mode, with a Geforce 2 MX card.
Let's talk about the colors and darkness/brightness:
I have to say i am really disappointed with it, and i can't believe all the nice words in the reviews i read about this monitor.

Colors: horrible. i'm not an expert, but it's impossible there are 16M colors... i can't watch movies or photos in this monitor... it's too artificial, TOO MUCH. come on, people... there is a huge difference between this and a regular crt... maybe mine is faulty, but i don't think so...

darkness/brightness: horrible. if i want to work with text, i have to set brightness and contrast both to ZERO (white areas are like burnt, too bright), and i lower my nvidia drivers for alpha, brightness and contrast properties too! when displaying images it's really dark, and well, i can't imagine design jobs with this.
the pros about this monitor for me: it's an lcd, so i guess i have less eyestrain (just one week testing though), and the response time: no ghosting here.

i'm sorry to post these things, but this is my experience with the cml174.

cheers =)
kyuss.

 

[markwinter]

I too have just received the Hitachi CML174B...having worked with Apple/Dell laptops, i have to say that i am very happy with this LCD. I too noticed that the brightness factory setting was too high..ie:100%, so i turn my down to about 50%, but at the same time (i use an ATI Radeon 9700 pro)i have to turn the brightness setting up in the graphics card setting (not by much, only about 10% higher tran default).

My brother had similiar problems with colour/brightness (he uses the TI4200), but after upgrading his graphics card drivers to the latest update, he too is also very happy with this LCD (we both play MOHAA, and i have to say that there is zero ghosting, but on some MOHAA maps, especially inside buildings etc, i have(had) problems with the dark areas, until i adjust the in game settings, now everything is OK)....so my advice is to patiently adjust the settings to your liking as this is definately the best LCD that i have used.

As for the OSD menu settings, i too cannot switch from analog to digital and visa versa. I don't think that this is a fault, as my brother too has the same problem (?).But remember, when in LCD mode, you lose many of the OSD settings...this is normal!.

As for colours, this LCD beats them all(in my opinion)....i havent tested the LCD in analog mode extensively (and why would you want to when you can use the superior(?)digital mode (DVI))...i wonder if there are any benefits between the two modes..anyone?.

 

[flamethrower205]

the reason they say colors r so vibrant and bright is that when you have a moving object, and lcd with higher response time naturally won't be able to reach the peak color shift in time so the color looks dull/washed out. Since the CML174 has better rt, colors often will become what they are supposed to.

"If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough."
- Mario Andretti

 

[flamethrower205]

btw, guys, if you don't like this monitor return it. Why should you have to deal with something you paid good money for but don't like? Newer and better tech will come out and make a mockery of the CML174.

"If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough."
- Mario Andretti

 

[syscho]

Hi guys, I'm new to this forum. Anyway, I had my CML174B for about a week and I am so happy with this monitor. Unlike most of you, I happen to like the brightness of the monitor and I have kept the brightness to 100. Call me weird but I like it better this way. The only problem have to be, as some of you have mentioned, the dark shades. But I think with some adjustments it should be okay even if it doesnt totally solve to problem. I've played around with the settings quite a bit and after a while I went back to the factory setting and it seems like the best setting to me.

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by syscho on 02/03/03 08:39 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[Oni]

I've tweaked the monitor and colors are a little better now. Still not really as nice looking as my TFT7020, but the LCD is excelent in games. Not once did I *feel* a difference from my CRT. Ghosting wasn't aparent at all.
Does anyone know if the PX171M has the same darkness issues of the hitachi?
From a logical stand point I was wondering how they could get 16ms response time. Could it be from reducing the number of darker shades? If there are physically less shades to cycle through, dark colors can turn to light colors faster? Just an idea, I could be totally wrong, and off of how LCDs actually work.

Gosh I'm such a nerd sometimes, but then again arn't we all.

 

[flamethrower205]

hmm, wouldn't the crystals still have to shift as much? Gosharks prolly has a good explanation.

"If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough."
- Mario Andretti

 

[GoSharks]

Impossible to define “colors are a little better now” and “not really as nice as my TFT7020” this is way to subjective. Everyone’s eyes are different.

The CML174 and the Planar both use the same panel thus I would expect both to exhibit the same characteristics. Remember that there is some variation in every monitor built, like fingerprints no two are exactly the same. Anyone who ever tried to color calibrate a monitor can testify to this.

Kyruss - Hitachi’s policy is 5 dead sub-pixels maximum.

Jim Witkowski
Chief Hardware Engineer
MonitorsDirect.com


<A HREF="http://www.monitorsdirect.com" target="_new">MonitorsDirect.com</A>

 

[OLDSKOOL]

Errrr h8 to put a spolier on ur comments m8

BUT........

According to Dear old Tom the Hitachi actually performs(color wise) better in Analog mode.

So maybe u should try the analog mode lol.

 

[markwinter]

I compared the analog mode with the digital mode, and i have to say that in digital mode, there was a definate improvement on the text, it was much sharper than in analog..anybody else compared the two modes?

 

[OLDSKOOL]

What about the colours....were they the same or better/worse???

Cause in toms review he's gives 2/5 for colour in digital mode and 4/5 for colur in Analog mode.

Hence the final 3/5 colour score as a average.

Ive herd really good stuff bout the hitachi but also some negative stuff....im about to order this monitor some time this week so n e further comments would b grately appreciated.

im currently using a 3 yr old 19" Relisys which is ok but i get eyestrain after bout 45mins to 1 hour!!!!!

 

[flamethrower205]

What's ur refresh? Are you buying a CML striclty for reduced eyestrain? if so I highly reccomend you try some of the new CRT's. It's very subjective, but I found that my TFT7020 causes me more eyestrain compared to my 15" Sony CRT or FE791SB.

Hilbert space is a big place.

 

[zlcd]

amazing how people put down CML174. I've been using it for 3 month now and I am more then happy to own one compare to Viewsonic VX900. Games, DVDs, Pictures I do it all with my CML174. Colors are great, response time is great and I am not just saying it, it sits next to my 19 inch Viewsonic CRT that I compare with.

One thing it's too bright for my taste, but I put it on 0 and it's good enough.

As far as viewing angle being too limited I don't see how it can be a problem, don't you people usually sit in front on the monitor and not on the side? Unless, of course, you have group of people watching DVD on it, that's when I see it has an issue.

Of course there will be other monitors with even faster refresh rate, but until then CML174 is among the best ones for gaming and movie viewing. For graphic design I wouldn't recommend any LCD though.

 

[flamethrower205]

a) That light issue you describe is what concerns me a great deal about lcd's. U turn down the brightness but there's still light leakage and thus eyestrain from it being too bright
b) I do graphics design among many other things
c) I'm real picky with viewing angle- I don't like to have my head locked in 1 position carefully calculated so the lcd looks ok. I kinda just plop down and look around every now and then (and move around in my chair a lot too).
d) w/ 140º viewing angle, there still is a slight difference even when carefully position in the top and bottom, and to me that's very annoying.

Hilbert space is a big place.

 

[flamethrower205]

Hmm, I notice I've been giving my arguments against a lot of the time. I'd like to hear your arguments justifying spending extra cash on an LCD.

Hilbert space is a big place.

 

[zlcd]

I am not going to argue about that, but I will tell you why I prefer to have LCD over CRT

First of all, the size of it, I just don't like having bulky CRT on my desk all the time, I have compact size computer desk and when I had 19 in ch CRT it took 80% of the desk space, with LCD I have 90% desk space available. I don't have room for a bigger desk and I would like to have a place to write.

Lower energy consumption. about 3x less then CRT. It makes a big difference when you have your computer on all day long.

No Radiation (CRT have slight radiation from the tube). No more headaches and my eyes don't hurt. Also I don't feel like my head is about to explode after sitting 10 hours in front of CRT.

That's probably all why I am leaning towards LCDs...

 

[markwinter]

I didn't notice any difference with the colour....having used many (and i mean literally many ie:at least 50 different models of LCD's) models of LCD's, i have to say that at present, the Hitachi rules....the only annoying (only at first) feature of the Hitachi is that when viewing dark colours, some adjustment is required (but once you have adjusted the settings, i found eveything ok)....but apart from that..it probably is the best LCD on the market at the moment, especially when playing games.

 

[flamethrower205]

"No Radiation (CRT have slight radiation from the tube). No more headaches and my eyes don't hurt. Also I don't feel like my head is about to explode after sitting 10 hours in front of CRT."
About the radiation- do you not go outside either, cause ur getting just as much radiation from a crt.....
About the eyes feeling better, etc. I've noticed part of it is psychological- ya think it's better, so you disregard some of the symptoms (no offense or anything, I mean I myself have thought that too). Fact of the matter is a good crt w/ good refresh rate won't cause much eyestrain either.

Hilbert space is a big place.

 

[zlcd]

I don't really think it's a psychologial, I've been using CRTs for more then 10 years now and they always gave me the same problems. Red eyes, headaches... I used to sit 10 hours in front of CRT and then the next day I got up I feelt like I had a hangover.

Anyway, CRTs are still good for some things, but there is no future for them, LCDs are taking over and I am sure in just a few years many companies will drop CRT production completely.

 

[flamethrower205]

That was 10 years ago. New CRT's are rather different. Yes CRT's several years ago made u feel pretty bad (I found I had to limit myself to no more than 6-8 hours in front of my 15" 7 year old sony, unless I wanted my eyes to hurt like hell the next day). However, now I can sit 10 hours straight w/o any probs- LCD on the other hand was around 2 hours before my eyes hurt.

Hilbert space is a big place.