Help! Which Sony TV for Retro Gaming!

[IKilledLassic]

Hey all,

I've recently run into two behemoths of televisions in the form of Sony, for free. The eventual goal is to use one of them primarily (like 98% of the time) for retro gaming i.e. Atari, NES, SNES, Genesis, SMS, Sega CD, Saturn, and PS1.

The two models are a 2002 36xbr800 and a 2003 34xs955. The XBR is not HD ready, as it does not have HDMI inputs, but DVI inputs. The XS does have HDMI inputs and is widescreen. Neither of those points really apply for what I'm trying to use them for. As they are both fucking gigantic, I am allowed to only keep one. I understand one has Super Fine Picture, the other not, etc. But, which will classic games look the best on? Will the widescreen affect this? I probably have about a week to decide which to keep.

As far as I can tell, the picture is OK on both. There is a nick on the screen of the xs955. They both power on, have a gazillion inputs, etc.

Any help in this area would be much appreciated.

Thanks DP's!

IKL

[RCM]

I have the last version of Sony's widescreen 34 inch CRT HDTV and dig it. But if I were getting a TV just for retro gaming (out of these two) I'd take the 4:3 model (if I'm thinking of the right TV) simply because you'll want to play them in that aspect ratio which should give you more screen for your buck. If the 2002 model is an HDTV I'd suggest getting an upscaler like an XRGB 2+ or 3 along with the appropriate cables so the old games will really pop at you graphically.

I hope this helps!

[Ryaan1234]

http://www.dailyicon.net/magazine/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/sony01dailyicon.jpg

[IKilledLassic]

http://www.dailyicon.net/magazine/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/sony01dailyicon.jpg

Sweet.

[Zing]

I've recently run into two behemoths of televisions in the form of Sony, for free. The eventual goal is to use one of them primarily (like 98% of the time) for retro gaming i.e. Atari, NES, SNES, Genesis, SMS, Sega CD, Saturn, and PS1.

The two models are a 2002 36xbr800 and a 2003 34xs955. The XBR is not HD ready, as it does not have HDMI inputs, but DVI inputs. The XS does have HDMI inputs and is widescreen. Neither of those points really apply for what I'm trying to use them for. As they are both fucking gigantic, I am allowed to only keep one. I understand one has Super Fine Picture, the other not, etc. But, which will classic games look the best on? Will the widescreen affect this? I probably have about a week to decide which to keep.

The "super fine pitch" tube won't make the slightest difference for your gaming, in regards to resolution anyway. You'd have to sit extremely close.

The two things you should compare are geometry and blooming. For geometry, check that there is no mis-convergence (colors not lining up) as this is the hardest to fix (usually impossible without opening the set). For blooming, a test pattern would come in handy. You want the screen to not "grow" in size when there is a lot of white on the screen. This is affected by the size and quality of the power supply. Some models have better supplies.

Otherwise, I would definitely choose the 36xbr800, as it is a 4:3 set and every single system you listed is 4:3. Playing 4:3 material on the 34" set is equivalent to a having a 28" set.

[IKilledLassic]

The "super fine pitch" tube won't make the slightest difference for your gaming, in regards to resolution anyway. You'd have to sit extremely close.

The two things you should compare are geometry and blooming. For geometry, check that there is no mis-convergence (colors not lining up) as this is the hardest to fix (usually impossible without opening the set). For blooming, a test pattern would come in handy. You want the screen to not "grow" in size when there is a lot of white on the screen. This is affected by the size and quality of the power supply. Some models have better supplies.

Otherwise, I would definitely choose the 36xbr800, as it is a 4:3 set and every single system you listed is 4:3. Playing 4:3 material on the 34" set is equivalent to a having a 28" set.

Thanks for all the help man.