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by Peter H. Putman, CTS
Projector Performance
Brightness 111.5
cd/m2
ANSI Contrast 103:1
Peak Contrast 176:1
Color Temperature 7717K
Average Uniformity 78%
Princeton Graphics is not well known for producing consumer video
monitors - their forte has long been computer displays, and good ones at that. But
they have decided to jump into the HDTV fray with the AF3.OHD, a 30" (30"
image area) direct-view CRT monitor with a 16:9 tube and a wealth of input connections.
The tube itself (made by Toshiba) has a dot pitch of .63mm vertical and .73mm horizontal,
about what you'd need to show SVGA on a 27" to 29" 4:3 monitor.
This monitor gives you all the jacks you'll need, including not one but a pair of
Y/Pb/Pr BNC jacks. (Got two set-top boxes? You're in business!) There are also composite
video (BNC), S-video (DIN) and 5xBNC jacks for RGBHV, RGBS and even sync-on-green
YUV for progressive-scan component signals. (An internal line doubler converts 15.75
KHz composite and component video to 31.5 KHz progressive scan.) You can also connect
a computer to show VGA, SVGA, and even XGA graphics - but you'll be limited to a
60 Hz maximum refresh rate. Each input has its own stereo connectors to feed the
internal 5 watt speakers.
On the test bench, the monitor produced 111.5cd/m2, using the ANSI nine-point measurement.
Brightness uniformity was 86% in 4:3 mode and 78% in 16:9 mode. Contrast clocked
in at 117:1 ANSI and 168:1 peak when displaying a 1024x768 checkerboard, and 103:1
ANSI and 176:1 peak over the full 16:9 image area. The normal color temperature setting
results in a measurement of 7717 degrees on center, with a maximum color shift of
553 degrees across the full image. (Color temperature can be preset to 6500, 5400,
or your own preference.)
This monitor does a very good job with a variety of video sources. S-video from DVDs
including Fifth Element, Concert for Montserrat and Video Essentials
had excellent contrast, sharpness, and color fidelity. I also fed in scaled
video through Faroudja's DVP-2200 digital video processor with even better results,
running widescreen video as an 800x600/60 frame progressive signal. HDTV test signals
revealed a little misconvergence of the electron guns in a few places - nothing major,
but fine text patterns at 1920x1080 were hard to read.
Dimensions: 32" x 23" x 23"
Weight: 143 lbs
Imaging Size: 30" diagonal viewable area
Imaging Device: Horizontal in-line electron gun, slot mask
Dot Pitch: .63mm vertical, .73mm horizontal
Web Site: www.prgr.com
PHP Evaluation:
Brightness 8 White Balance 9
Contrast 8 RGB Quality 10
Hue 10 Video Quality 9
Saturation 10 Uniformity 8
RGB Scaling 9
© 1999 Peter H. Putman / Intertec Publishing
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