Is a PC monitor a viable alternative to a LCD tv for 360/ps3 gaming?

Zephos

so long story short i'm curious exactly of the question that is the thread title.

would something like this With a set of VGA cables be a reasonable alternative to a similar sized LCD tv?

from what i can tell the Tv's tend to run a bit more expensive and i'm just curious about trying to save some money here.

Cabezone

I use my Dell 2707 with my xbox 360 over component.

Arrath

I play my Xbox on a 22" widescreen LCD over VGA, works great. I actually tend to do better on it than on a 42" Plasma TV.

Zephos

just from a "thinking about it" type of brain activity i have going on, i mean, yeah i'd like a 40+ inch TV but some of these 22 inch monitors go for pretty cheap.

what type of distances do/can you play at, i'm usually laying in bed maybe 6 feet or so from the screen.

Arrath

It does double duty as my computer monitor :P

So, being on my desk, I'm 3 1/2 or so feet away.

Dehumanized

6' away from a 22" screen would require quite a lot of squinting

Zephos

Dehumanized wrote: »

6' away from a 22" screen would require quite a lot of squinting

Yeah that's what I'm kind of figuring here looking at the space i have. Also would make it difficult possibly for split screen action which i do from time to time.

mcdermott

Zephos wrote: »

Dehumanized wrote: »

6' away from a 22" screen would require quite a lot of squinting

Yeah that's what I'm kind of figuring here looking at the space i have. Also would make it difficult possibly for split screen action which i do from time to time.

Yeah, a computer monitor will not be good enough for split-screen or large distances.

I make it work just fine (a 24" monitor, using HDMI for the Xbox, but I'm usually only sitting like 3'-4' away), but it might not be optimal for you.

Spoit

VGA cables would work fine for the 360, but be aware that you need a DVI with HDCP, a HDMI, or component imports to be able to use it with a PS3

Sanders

Personally I rather be 2 feet away from a 20 inch monitor than 6 feet away from a 42 inch TV, but that is me.

There is a couple of things to keep in mind. 1) Most monitors (such as the one you linked) don't have built in speakers, and those that do generally suck, while an LCD TV most likely does have speakers. So you'll have to work around that. You can't pass sound over VGA, so unless you have an elite 360 and get a monitor with HDMI, you'll need external speakers. 2) I would aim for a monitor that does one of the 360's resolutions as it's native resolution. I believe that includes:
640x480
848x480
1024x768
1280x720
1280x768
1280x1024
1360x768
1920 x 1080

They also added 1440x900 and 1680x1050 support (letterboxed).

Beltaine

Also be aware that some monitors with an HDMI port just will not work with a PS3.

I have an Acer AL2416W that refuses to display my PS3 via HDMI.

But my Acer X263W works fine. In fact, I have my PC on DVI, the 360 on VGA, and the PS3 on HDMI and can just switch between them using the OSD of the monitor.

Dehumanized

Yes, the monitor you use must support HDCP. The AL2416W does not.

mcdermott

Sanders wrote: »

Personally I rather be 2 feet away from a 20 inch monitor than 6 feet away from a 42 inch TV, but that is me.

There is a couple of things to keep in mind. 1) Most monitors (such as the one you linked) don't have built in speakers, and those that do generally suck, while an LCD TV most likely does have speakers. So you'll have to work around that. You can't pass sound over VGA, so unless you have an elite 360 and get a monitor with HDMI, you'll need external speakers. 2) I would aim for a monitor that does one of the 360's resolutions as it's native resolution. I believe that includes:

640x480
848x480
1024x768
1280x720
1280x768
1280x1024
1360x768
1920 x 1080

They also added 1440x900 and 1680x1050 support (letterboxed).

First, I didn't realize that the Xbox had so many native resolutions...good to know. I figured it just did the standard 480/720/1080.

And yeah, PC monitor speakers are nearly always garbage. But, to be honest, most LCD TV speakers are garbage too. I wouldn't even try to play most games on my TV's speakers....even a cheap stereo amp with a set of $100 bookshelf speakers blow it out of the water on both volume and range (as well as separation).

On my PC monitor, I'm using a fairly cheap ($50) set of 2.1 speakers that would probably also kick my TV's ass in a head-to-head sound comparison. The monitor has an audio-out jack (headphone) that passes through the HDMI sound input, it works pretty well.

Point being, built-in speakers are hateful and you shouldn't use them.

Beltaine

360 allows resolution selection based on what connection it's using.

Once you plug in the VGA kit, it unlocks all those crazy resolutions.