6-bit vs. 8-bit LCD's - a Dell or not?

[Cody_7]

Hi everyone,

I got a 26" LG LCD HDTV (Specs are Here) and for various reasons, i'm kind of fed up with it... and thinking of replacing it with a 24" LCD monitor.

I thought the Dell UltraSharp 2407WFP (Specs Here) would be a great choice because it has a high resolution of 1920x1200, has a variety of connectors including S-video, and Component connectors built-in. I've heard mostly good reveiws about it, and some bad...

My question is, would a model like this Acer AL2423Wdr be a better choice? I ask this because the Dell is supposedly 6-bit color as opposed to true 8-bit which causes color banding, and doesn't display true 16.7 million colors. I compared my 19" Sony SDM-HS94P to the 26" HDTV that i'm replacing, and I see lots of colour banding on the 19" in places that I don't in the 26" HDTV. So, i'm thinking my 19" is also a crappy 6-bit LCD... so I really wouldn't notice the difference between the Dell.

Any advice? - Thanks!

 

[strangestranger]

well, i can't really help as i only have the 2405fps. i can say that it is an excellent monitor.

i have heard they have done a few revisions to try and sort some issues out. if you have any concerns, i would pop over to the dell forums. you will find some actual users of it who should be able to help.

 

[Cody_7]

Well, I did alot of research this morning, and it appears when the newer ones, including the 24" came out, they switched to "6-bit + 2-bit dithering" which creates colour bands, especially around dark colours, that the true 8-bit ones apparently didn't have.

I found out that they use 6-bit monitors now to reduce ghosting on LCD's (which, unless you bought one in 1999, usually wasn't extremley noticable in my opinion). Thanks to all the retards who complained about a slight smear when using an LCD, many of which seem to be here at TH forums acting as "die-hard, LCD ghosting is horrible and sucks" kind of people. Ghosting was gradually improved over the years, but companies now reduce the color, which causes banding to reduce the response time instead of finding real solutions to reduce ghosting.

Now most companies are sneaky and say the 6-bit ones are "16.7 million" colors, when really, they can produce (using "dithering") 16.2 million, which leaves ~500,000 colors that can't be made and you see wierd pinks and greens in some shades of gray for example. That's the deal with the Dell 24" monitor. Like you mentioned, Dell released two new revisions (A01, A02) to try and correct some of the colour issues. I believe the actual monitor panel does display all of the colors correctly, but somewhere with Dell's Firmware it causes colors to start banding and looking strange.

Even though the Dell seems to be 6-bit like I described above, I think I will get it. I looked closley comparing my once $800 Sony 19" LCD and I think it's 6-bit also. I won't notice the difference... and I really would enjoy the great design of the Dell 24".

Any other feedback / comments / suggestions from you guys would be extremley helpful!