4:3 Best way to go Amiga 3000 with Cybervision 64?

[matt3k]

Thinking about replacing current LCD on my Amiga with a new one.

Is a 4:3 LCD the way to go? Or is wide screen LCD just as good these days?

Is there a model or brand that would be really nice?

Thanks!

[corpsicle]

Running my Picasso IV in 1280x720 without any issues whatsoever.

[Heiroglyph]

I've been using 16:9, but make sure the monitor has the option to show 4:3 screens centered and not stretched, otherwise most games will look really bad.

Edit: now that I think about it, a decent size 4:3 monitor might actually be better if you play a lot of games or have a weaker video card.

[matt3k]

Will a cybervision 64 with 4mb ram be enough to use 1920x1080?

[Framiga]

nope. (not even with a 8 bit screen)

[matt3k]

Running my Picasso IV in 1280x720 without any issues whatsoever.

Is that is 16 bit?

[corpsicle]

I beg to differ.

My picasso iv does 1920x1080 interlace in 256 colors at least.

Proof: http://corpsicle.posterous.com/138809780

I cant imagine a cybervision 64 would not manage it ?

[Framiga]

and who on earth would actually use a GFX card in that way?

[Ami_GFX]

My personal preference is for a 4:3 monitor. My Cybervision 64 with 4mb video ram can do 1280x1024 in 16 bit non interlaced mode but not at a sync rate that is usable on most monitors. 1024x768 24 bit non interlace is also a bit touchy but not as bad. It requires a monitor that can do a vertical sync of 56hz. 16 bit 1280x1024 works best at around 50hz vertical which most monitors can't do. My current Amiga monitor is a Cornea CT1702 which can do both NTSC and PAL--50Hz--frequencies on the 15 pin RGB port. It also has composite and s-video inputs which are handy for a video toaster. The lowest vertical frequency it can sync to is 48hz. It doesn't even blink when I switch from NTSC to PAL in scan doubled native Amiga modes.

To do 16:9 properly it would probably be best to program a custom video mode. The preset modes that come with Picasso 96 and Cybergraphix 4 are from an era when 4:3 was the standard. I've never owned a Picasso IV but a quick look at its specs says it can do 1280x1024 in 24 bit non interlaced which the Cybervision 64 can't do, so I think it would work better in 16:9 modes.

[Motormouth]

There are two issues here:

1:  The amount of memory
2:  The Ramdac

First the memory X rows * Y lines * z bytes/pixel = amount of needed memory
example 640x480x24 bit color would be 640*480*3 = 921,600 bytes or just shy of one megabyte.

The second issue is more problematic and very chip set dependent and even video memory dependent.  Also some the "faster" amiga supported chipsets like voodoo 3 do not support all interlace modes.  Eitherway, this is very dependent on resolution, bit depth and refresh rate.

[Damion]

The CV64 and PIV really start losing performance above a 1024x768x16 screenmode. Unfortunately, that leaves only 15" panels. Eizo made some outstanding 15" LCDs, while no longer produced it might be worth searching for one. Another benefit is they handle 50Hz just fine via VGA, and you can adjust them for perfect PAL displays (games) with the image covering about 80% or so of the screen area. Ultimately, you trade screen size for overall quality.

[magnetic]

I'd say go 4:3 as the native screenmodes that look best on the LCD should work with your CV64. And at 24bit. 1024x768.

Even if you could do the widescreen modes its low colour depth so defeats the gfx card!