Wow this thread is really great. Very informative!
I'm looking for a little advice. I have a Sony PVM-1351Q and an Olympus OEV203. I've posted an album comparing the picture quality of each, and i'll gradually explain why…
http://imgur.com/a/B3yRJ
First of all, ignore the dull colors on some shots. Both look vibrant in real life, it's just hard to capture that on my iPhone. Now that's out of the way, I'll do a mini review of each.
Sony PVM-1351Q 13" 450 TVL
Tack sharp. Even though it's only 450 lines (and some wouldn't touch 450 with a 10 foot pole), at about 2-3 ft playing distance it looks amazing. Really crisp and bright, and the low TVL has a certain charm to it.
The size is perfect for desktop gaming, and doesn't look too bad on my desk next to my computer. I work in the TV industry, so when I'm working from home the monitor does double duty as my video production monitor – you know, like Sony originally intended!
Olympus OEV203 20" 600 TVL
First of all, it's kind of huge compared to the 13", and look ridiculous on my desk. Might have to make some sort of retro gaming cart setup for it. Anyway…
For those unaware, it's actually a rebranded Sony PVM-20M2MDU (I opened it up to adjust the focus and noticed it literally says 'Sony' all over the inside

). They're going for about half the cost of the Sony equivalent on eBay. It's a great monitor overall, but as you can see it looks a little on the soft side compared to my 13" Sony. Like I said, I attempted to adjust the internal focus pot but I couldn't get it any better. The convergence looks ok too i think.
If I'd never had the Sony I'd be over the moon with the Olympus, but as it stands now I'm kind of wishing it was as sharp as the Sony. I'm thinking that the softness is a symptom of it being 'only' 600 TVL, yet 20" in size. It seems that the vast majority of 20" PVM's / BVM's are 800 / 900 / 1000 TVL. Thoughts?
Seems like a 600 TVL 20" can never be as sharp as an 800 TVL, or indeed even 13" 450 TVL. I guess there's just too few lines being stretched over too big an area. For example, look at these comparisons I found (the Blue Falcon pics) showing how a 600 vs 800 TVL differs in sharpness
http://67.227.255.239/forum/showthread.php?p=181242894
Does anybody have any opinions on the 240p TVL sweet spots at varying TV sizes? I'd be interested to see a 13" 600 TVL and a 20" 800 TVL.