3 ms·

That’s pretty cool. I had always hoped someone would do something similar with CRTs. A modern CRT would be killer for gaming and retro computing.

ggm 4y ago
Arguably a CRT is just a highly specialised Valve anyway.
idonotknowwhy 4y ago
I've been looking into this. Apparently it's a lot more complex. 1. Couldn't be made at scale now due to regulations around the lead. 2. Seems like a lot of the knowledge is lost too. I found a factory on alibaba who can manufacture Crts with new old stock tubes, but their minimum order quantity is 500 and who knows what the quality would be like. Couldn't get them to do a "sample run" of 10 for me either
- mrob 4y ago
  Wikipedia links a page from "Springer Handbook of Glass" [0], which shows a diagram of the typical construction of a CRT tube. The lead glass is only used for the sides and back, with barium+strontium glass used for the front. It looks like use of lead glass is only a cost optimization, and the whole thing could be made from barium+strontium glass. As there is no other technology that matches CRT latency and motion quality when used with fixed 60Hz content (e.g. most console/arcade games), it should be possible to sell new CRTs at high enough price to make this viable. [0] https://books.google.com/books?id=-ka9DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA1367 https://books.google.com/books?id=-ka9DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA1367
systems_glitch 4y ago
The thing with that is, it's way cheaper to use what already exists. The "we need new CRTs" thing seems to come up all the time, when the reality is they're still readily available as long as you're not depending on them being free and/or available right this second at a retail location near you. Same reason we (Glitch Works) haven't done a new 8-bit ISA Ethernet board. They're still available for $5-20 basically any time you want one.
- hakfoo 4y ago
  I think the tube infrastructure is a bit harder than the physical tube. You might be able to get, say, a VGA monitor but need to hook up a composite-only console, and that means a hairball of adaptors and converters. I could see some merit in a generic "chassis" kit-- it would have all the important inputs and geometry controls, but be buildable to drive a range of common picture tubes salvaged from old monitors and TVs. Might even be a chance to upcycle TVs and monitors where the original chassis was crappy and unreliable.
  - toast0 4y ago
    Generic chassis are available on aliexpress. Reviews I've seen aren't great... It seems to be better to repair the existing chassis if possible, than to use these, but there's not always an existing chassis, so.

ggm 4y ago

Arguably a CRT is just a highly specialised Valve anyway.

idonotknowwhy 4y ago

I've been looking into this. Apparently it's a lot more complex. 1. Couldn't be made at scale now due to regulations around the lead. 2. Seems like a lot of the knowledge is lost too. I found a factory on alibaba who can manufacture Crts with new old stock tubes, but their minimum order quantity is 500 and who knows what the quality would be like. Couldn't get them to do a "sample run" of 10 for me either

mrob 4y ago
Wikipedia links a page from "Springer Handbook of Glass" [0], which shows a diagram of the typical construction of a CRT tube. The lead glass is only used for the sides and back, with barium+strontium glass used for the front. It looks like use of lead glass is only a cost optimization, and the whole thing could be made from barium+strontium glass. As there is no other technology that matches CRT latency and motion quality when used with fixed 60Hz content (e.g. most console/arcade games), it should be possible to sell new CRTs at high enough price to make this viable. [0] https://books.google.com/books?id=-ka9DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA1367 https://books.google.com/books?id=-ka9DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA1367

systems_glitch 4y ago

The thing with that is, it's way cheaper to use what already exists. The "we need new CRTs" thing seems to come up all the time, when the reality is they're still readily available as long as you're not depending on them being free and/or available right this second at a retail location near you. Same reason we (Glitch Works) haven't done a new 8-bit ISA Ethernet board. They're still available for $5-20 basically any time you want one.

hakfoo 4y ago
I think the tube infrastructure is a bit harder than the physical tube. You might be able to get, say, a VGA monitor but need to hook up a composite-only console, and that means a hairball of adaptors and converters. I could see some merit in a generic "chassis" kit-- it would have all the important inputs and geometry controls, but be buildable to drive a range of common picture tubes salvaged from old monitors and TVs. Might even be a chance to upcycle TVs and monitors where the original chassis was crappy and unreliable.
- toast0 4y ago
  Generic chassis are available on aliexpress. Reviews I've seen aren't great... It seems to be better to repair the existing chassis if possible, than to use these, but there's not always an existing chassis, so.