The manufacture of cathode ray tubes requires the use of metals such as lead, cadmium and mercury in addition to highly toxic phosphorus compounds – and in some cases the performance standards demanded by broadcast monitors mean that fluorocarbons continue to be used in the production of their electronic components. In short, our beloved CRT monitors have become enemies of the environment...
It is expensive for manufacturers to produce image tubes today, due to the need to develop production systems that allow them to avoid paying pollution penalties. This leaves a concern: where then do the large quantities of low-cost conventional TVs that flood the market today come from? In general, from countries with low environmental standards, quite easy to identify.
However, the interest in environmental management does not suppress what is incontrovertible for engineers and filmmakers alike: The available flat screens do not reach the level of performance sufficient to replace CRT monitors for technical control.
In fact, in many installations the usual practice is to replace most monitors with flat screens, usually LCD. But in most cases the place of honor is still occupied by a broadcast-type CRT monitor, increasingly expensive and difficult to get and maintain.
Now, what is it that allows us to qualify a monitor as equipment suitable for technical control? The EBU and SMPTE recommendations present us with three basic requirements:
- Gamma, brightness and contrast that allow to appreciate the image variations both in the black and white ends and in the intermediate values, without biases or errors of gamut and without color contamination in blacks or whites.
- Adjust to a standard color temperature – usually 6,500ºK or 9300ºK.
- Consistent performance over long periods of time even in harsh conditions.
The truth is, most of the flat screens available until a few months ago fail in all these aspects, and this happens simply because of limitations inherent in their architecture.
Next we are going to make a default revision by default that will allow us to appreciate to what extent we are approaching the moment when we can replace our CRT screens with peace of mind...
