The Best CRT TV for Retro Gaming (For YOU) - Retro Bird

I actually ended up with 5 CRTs during my CRT hunt a few years ago.
I happen to have one of each primary category mentioned in your video, a 27" Sony like yours, an HD CRT, and a PVM:
Sony KV-27FS120
Toshiba 30HF84
Sony PVM-14N2U

I also have:
Sony KV-19TS20
Sylvania 6509DD (9" portable TV, built-in DVD player, complete with a carrier bag)

Some of these might need calibration and new capacitors. I'm starting to look into repair services that can do those for CRTs. Meanwhile, I've also placed an order for some steel carts that double as both a TV Stand and a means to move the TV around a bit easier.

If you have any particular thoughts on these models or recommendations, I'd be interested.

Finding CRT TV's are hard to find now even locally. I purchased a 13-in Samsung TV through eBay, but found the screen to be a little too small so I did some more searching. I lucked out and was able to get a 27-in Trinitron for $90 on Facebook marketplace. Man that thing is heavy, it both me and my brother to carry it. I'm very happy with going up a size. I would also suggest getting a cart with wheels to store your TV on. It makes it so convenient to switch over between consoles and it doesn't take up as much space as a real TV stand. Thanks RetroBirdGaming for making this video to convince us to get these TVs to relive our childhood memories ❤😂

I rescued a 24" Philips with component inputs from being abandoned near the dumpsters, because of the component inputs. It's now my daily driver. It sits atop an AV cart that I can wheel anywhere around the place quickly in an emergency. It replaced a 19" Samsung that I RGB modded, because the Philips is bigger and because component video is just as good as RGB. RGB signals are fed through analog transcoder into the component inputs, looks fantastic.

Why anyone would want to game on a 2 ton brick the size of a dumpster is beyond me. Yes, the picture may look better but you gotta weigh the pros and cons of a CRT vs HDTV's. I will never forget throwing out the last CRT in my possesion over 10 years ago. Good riddance! For the record, I am an avid gamer and I own almost every console from the NES to the current gen of consoles. I am not some boomer who does not understand the appeal as to why someone would actually want a CRT in this day and age.

Loved the video. You forgot to mention explicitly that HDCRT input lag breaks zapper compatibility.

27” is he most common as it was the “standard” size most people had in their living room.

How do you find someone in your area to cap and tune a CRT for gaming?

I have one or the 2005 iART TVS and the focus is way off. I am sure it needs a cap and tune to get back to better than factory looks.

Zenith

I recently joined the crt gang. I got me a Beovision 1. I love it!

You’re right, I only had to get rid of grandpas oxygen machine to make room for the crt. I didn’t like it anyways because I couldn’t smoke in the house.

I have about 7, or so....here's some of them.....Samsung TXM3096(W or X) HF.... 36 Inch CRT JVC I'ART (not sure the model ill check and update this comment when i can).....(computer) eMachines eVIEW 17F3 1770.....Panasonic PVQ-1300WA....Apex GT2015DV

I use a 27 inch hacked with rgb on jungle ic I soldered the rgb lines on rf jacks and put in a switch

Emulated games look good enough for me. Nothing beats the original SOUND of the games though. I do miss that.

I was walking my dog around my neighborhood and saw a great condition KV-36XBR200 4:3 480i analog Trinitron flat screen sitting outside for a bulk pickup. It is 230lbs (about the weight of a refrigerator). I also have a Panasonic 13 pro CRT-monitor (has b&c hookups) and its a featherweight in comparison to the 36". My wife was soo pissed when i brought it home 😅

I wouldn't go too nuts worrying about brand or even what inputs it has. I've owned 3 Sony Trinitrons of various sizes, all with component inputs that I was never really satisfied with. Then I grabbed a 19" Sylvania off the side of the road that is composite only and my games have never looked better.

I've got a massive 27 '' Akai CRT. I had never heard of the brand before, but it certainly doesn't look bad.

I had heard that it was a Japanese company or something, but I'm not 100%. It had the rights outputs I wanted being component and S-video.

It took me and someone else to even get it in my room though. I won't look forward to moving that sucker

😊

Modern games on a CRT are amazing. (I never ditched CRT's for gaming. Their "response time" is RIGHT FKN NOW!

i got my 20 inch crt from my work when I was 20. i was cleaning out the upstairs storage and I came across this really dirty little crt that used to be a security camera monitor in the 90s. i asked my manger and she said I could have it for free. cleaned that little sucker up and now I can watch my old star wars vhs tapes and play on PlayStation 2. its the little things in life that can give you the most joy

A CRT is nothing compared to some of the furniture I’ve hauled around.
I love my RCA TruFlat.

I just got a telefunken for free from a coworker and it sure enough lived up to it's name. Cause like an old tv technician once said:"Hat's erst gequalmt und dann gestunken, war's bestimmt nen Telefunken!" Or in english:"if it smoked and stanked, it sure was a telefunken!" 😂 Well it first blew out twi caps on the power supply wich i changed. Worked fine for two months until it started to made noise and begin to flicker... Now i just replaced the flyback aaaand for now it works just fine. I just hope it stays this way🙃

I’ve always loved this channel and have been watching this video over and over again for a while now, I finally got my own crt! And it’s one of the most amazing pieces of tech ever made. ( it’s a General Electric GE TV 26GT62)

you know what they say: best CRT is free CRT

I have a really big 32inch Toshiba af it is specifically the 32af62 it is razor sharp I love the crt too much

I love his humor in the video. It really makes it worth the while.

I find Sony overrated but the easiest brand to find. I prefer the brightness and color impact of the early 2000s Toshiba models (the ones with component video), but they are a little harder to find.

Do you really talk like that or is it for the videos? it's epic and works so well

This made me consider plasma tv for 480p Wii stuff which… could be very interesting. I’ve tried Wii on hdcrts but it’s not as magical as ppl say it is. Now I’m hunting plasma sets which is a new hilarious group of Facebook market sellers

I prefer the look of a consumer CRT as well plus you can get them in bigger sizes. I would say though that statement I just made falls apart when you see one of those high end HD-BVMs that cost 6 grand. Those things are just perfection. For anything not just games and modern games too.

I don't judge people for their cable choice but I do judge people for playing retro 4:3 games on a flat-panel stretched to widerscreen. 😂

You mock the woodgrain vintage crt but I have actually seen that thing in a game room with another normal crt on top and its friggin sick as.

Hey based on what seems to be your preference, I got my hands on a 2003 20” Sony Trinitron Wega CRT and WOW that aperture grille makes NES and SNES games look gorgeous, especially with that contrast turned up just a little bit higher. I am so glad I found this set!!

Just found this channel. Incredible love your content.

I literally found a FREE 27" Sharp on the side of the road today.. left unsold from an estate sale. Keep hunting fellas... They're out there

Nothing special about scanlines. It's essentially visual distortion, and the interlaced image means you are playing games at 30fps @ 60hz. If you didn't grow up playing on a CRT, go find a used Pioneer Elite plasma being thrown out and you will get enhanced color fidelity, low input latency, and great motion resolution of CRTs, but you'll also get great deinterlacing as well as the ability to play modern consoles on it.

I got a 14 inch. Its fine

Where's your HD CRT?

I picked up two Sony years ago when people were just throwing them away. Been storing them at my parents house but they are getting mad I have two big crt tvs sitting at their house.

I picked up a 36" Sony Trinitron the other day. It turned on at the original owners house, but was caked in like an inch of dirt and dust. So I wanted to clean it before bringing it into my house. I opened up the back of it to vacuum it out... and now it no longer turns on. I'm worried the circuit board was damaged when I took the plastic back off.

Im so mad. I got it for free, and I cant find any others available in my area currently, and it was heavy as hell, so bringing it home was a challenge. And now it wont turn on at all. I dont know what to do with it now.

Thanks for the video and for your fun channel.

I recently got myself a beefy 32 Wega Trinitron. (Boy its heavy!) I really enjoying it so far!

Since the CRT is one of the main pieces of a retrogaming setup, I'm a bit nervous about it dying on me and not being able to enjoy the setup anymore.

It's a 2003 model. I'm guessing it won't stay alive for another 20 years. Should I look for a spare before CRT are no longer availbable on the second market?

What is the average lifespan of a CRT. Did you ever have a CTR die on you? Was there a specific reason?

I would like to know if you think that having a spare CRT is pure anxiety or not such a bad idea.

I loved this Trinitrons. Even i loved Sharp TV. Call me Fanboy

Love your video , informational and Funny

I personally use a VGA CRT monitor, normally at 1280x960, but I have RetroArch set to 640x480 (this monitor naturally has scanlines at 480p). I love it.

Just got a Sony Wega for free from my aunties storage unit. I rescued it from the bin as my parents were going to throw it out!

what is retro without scanlines

While these suggestions are all excellent (Sony, JVC, pvm/bvm, etc), I have to add that sometimes a lower-quality crt can be a better experience, especially with PS2-era stuff. I have a Zenith from the early-2000's. A real "K-mart special" of a tv. I find that its lower-quality phosphors react more slowly to change, making the flicker of 480i completely disappear. In contrast, a Sony Trinitron that I used to use would have terrible flicker in games like Stella Deus, where some of the hud elements used interlacing to achieve transparency. Those fast phosphors from better tvs made those parts of the screen headache-inducing.

Thus I conclude that high-quality crt tvs are best for 240p games, while cheaper crts handle 480i better. Of course, with my small sample size, I could be mistaken.

I owned three diff sizes of Vega, 24inch, 27 and 32. The larger one was bought brand new and eventually broke down after many years of service. The colours were screwed uo so we gave it away for someone to fix and use. I was also damn heavy and we wanted to swich to a lighter LCD. The 24inch onw was not used a lot so I sold it for almost the same price I boght it used. The 27 inch one was the lone survivor and still sits in the corner of my room. I have a full LED setup for streaming, gaming and TV so the CRT is only used for retro PS1/2 games. Also have a Sony VCR with some VHS tapes and a DVD recorder as well. So glad to find another retro gamer channel talk about the good old times :)

I love my Bang & Olufsen MX4200, in my opinion the best you can get.

Got a free 29" Toshiba and 14" Philips a week ago. Love them.