I'll be viewing HDV over firewire..i know its not an HD monitor...but should that matter for the simple use I'm using it for. ...or would I be better off buying a dell 20inch LCD monitor to use as a production monitor?
I have 4 of those JVCs at the college I work for so, yes, I like it..
If your ultimate destination is still NTSC television, I'd say that this monitor is an excellent choice.
If most of your work is for the web or other display formats (projection, etc.), then I'd consider the Dell 24" as it gets rave reviews here and, at 1920 x 1220 pixels, is a true HDTV monitor.
BTW, Color Bars and How To Use 'em is an excellent tutorial on how to set your monitor up properly.