Monitor setup:using small LCD HDTV monitor
 

I have a Sony NTSC broadcast reference monitor and a Dell CRT monitor (M992) and am thinking about adding an LCD monitor to my postproduction setup (largely due to space reasons). Does anyone have a small LCD HDTV monitor as part of your postproduction studio or would i be better served to keep with a regular (Dell) LCD monitor? I will be using Vegas 6.0.

if you go LCD, there is no reason to go on TV LCD.
PC LCD will give you true HD resolution, real digital connection and a lot of control on the picture (most display card are offering RGB and gamma control).
And the price is a lot cheaper and you can use as computer monitor.
Dell screen are ok, but you can find a lot of brand (video7 for example) doing bigger screen for cheap with a lot of input.

TV as part of setup
 

I'm curious about having a TV in my postproduction setup. I've heard the best way to edit in post is to be able to view (previews for example) on a tv, so you can see what it's actually going to look like for the client/family member. Does anyone use a tv in their postproduction setup, and if so would they recommend an LCD HDTV monitor. I'll add that space is a factor, as I have very little of it left in my "studio." Thanks for the info and knowledge.

since pc monitors do not have interlaced capability, i'd have to wonder what kind of hd footage you will be editing... progressive or interlaced?

aren't real crt hdtv's pretty expensive? i'd have to go with the pc monitor for just that reason :-(

Anyone have experience with using a Sony PVM-series monitor for HD?

You can get something like a PVM-14L5/1 (B&H shows $1.6k plus shipping)
and the add-in HD SDI input card ($2.7k USD??)

I'll be using Vegas 6, mainly 24p. I think I will end up going with a
17-19inch LCD PC monitor to complement my other equipment.
Can someone point me to a link or good web site that talks about the minimum requirements or suggestions for a LCD monitor used for DV editing? For example, I'm unfamiliar with refresh rate. I'm guessing that the higher the number, the better.

I've changed my mind and am no longer considering the $280 LCD HDTV monitor.

Monitor Setup
 

My situation is that when I edit a piece and view it on my Apple Cinema Display and/or an analog lcd monitor, it doesn't quite look like it does on a tv. Typically my pieces wind up looking better on tv, then they do when I preview them on my monitors. I also have had the experience of not sizing pictures correctly when doing slideshows. I think I have that figured out, but I had heard it was a good idea to have a tv hooked up to your editing system so you could preview your edits on the tv, as well as, on the computer monitor.

FCP displays video (on computer monitors) differently than Vegas does.
FCP: Expands things out into 0-255 color space when paused (black at 0,legal white at 235). Shows blacks at 16 and whites at 235 when playing.
Typically displays one field (NOT both), except when zoom = 100% or when playing.

Vegas:
Proper way to set things up is this:
SD: No excuse not to use external monitor preview. This gives the best results.
HD(V): Because of the cost of external displays, it may make more sense to use a computer monitor. Use the computer monitor as the "external" display/monitoring device under the Vegas preferences. Select the color management setting (not called that), and select the "studio RGB" setting. It should now be a lot closer.

I was wrong in my guess. I've discovered that the lower the number (response time) the better for viewing video. That is, 16ms is faster than 25ms.

Is 16ms suitable or would a faster rate be the way to go??

Dale - to my understanding the ms issue is only an issue with fast motion (so important for games). A little while ago 16ms was thought to be a good figure for games. I personally don't think I'd notice the difference between my cheap (but good) CMV720 (8ms, 450-1 brightness) and a 16ms jobby. There are other factors to consider (which I'm not sure of), but brightness is important, perhaps more than ms response from what I understand.