That Sceptre is indeed an 8 bit which is really good for that price. You can tell if its 6 bit or 8 bit by the number of colors its advertised to display, 16.7 million colors would be 8 bit. If its 16.2 million colors, that is deceptive because its 6 bit and can actually only display 260,000 colors. Most 19" LCDs you will find for under $400 will be 6-bit. In most cases, you can't tell the difference with the naked eye, but in some games like FEAR, you will notice slight color banding on a 6-bit LCD.
Back on CRT vs. LCD, like I said, get a CRT if gaming is the ONLY thing you plan on doing with your PC. Outside of games, a CRT looks dull and washed out compared to a good LCD. I went out and proved it this weekend, because I was considering going back to a CRT because of how everybody raves about them for gaming.
A great number of gamers are CRT fanatics who have never had the chance to use a good LCD. Sure, there are a few advantages CRTs have in gaming such as resolution changing and deeper blacks, but the issue with blacks is easily offset by getting an LCD with a good contrast ratio. The resolution issue is one area where a CRT wins hands down, LCD makers haven't addressed this issue yet, but they probably will in the future. With the newer LCDs with 8ms or less response time, the CRT doesn't have near as big of an advantage in games. Plus, it takes less space, looks nicer, and is much easier on the eyes.
