View Full Version : Monitor woe..............
Hi all. I have a problem with I think my monitor. I have two hard drives C and D. Yesterday 'C' decided not to play anymore and I had to reinstall winXP home on my 'D' drive. Since then, there is a gap to the left of the screen about an inch wide and the screen goes off to the right, I presume a further inch that way if you get what I mean. To be able to see the top right corner of a web-page I have to adjust the monitor knob all the way to the left until it comes into view. Then I have to adjust it more to get it 'square ' looking. There is still a black gap to the left but It is smaller and I can see the full screen allbeit a bit condensed. I have looked in the control panel under Display/display properties/settings. All looks well there, colours and screen resolution look right, so I am a bit stumped with this.
Any clues where I should be looking.???? :confused:
Many thanks,
Brl.
If it was OK till you reinstalled XP on a different drive, my guess would be frame rate/screen refresh rate. If that's set at a speed the monitor can't handle, it will do strange things.
Right-click on your "desktop" (not in any program) and you should get a little panel, with "Properties" as the last item. Left-click Properties, then "Settings" then "Advanced". Depending on your monitor/display card/driver, you will get different screens here, but somewhere in there you should see something like "Monitor" with a screen refresh rate measured in Hertz.
Pick a lower number from those on offer, and see if that changes anything. Experiment to find the best setting. Lower numbers usually give better display on things "static" but might not work so well on high-speed games.
A setting that's too high could, in theory, damage your monitor. Never had it happen, but been warned about it.
If the computer tells you that you need to restart Windows to use the new settings, then look in the same "Advanced" settings for one that will "Apply the New display settings without restarting." Saves a lot of faffing about.
Keef, you are an absolute star mate....!! :ok:
Changed it from 75Hz to 60Hz and its fine now.... Nice one, thanks. :)
Naples Air Center, Inc.
3rd Dec 2003, 12:27
BRL,
If you are running an LCD Monitor 60Hz is fine. If you have a CRT Monitor, you should look at running a refresh rate closer to 85Hz. Anything above 60Hz would be better, since a CRT running at 60Hz will cause fatigue and headaches with most people.
Just try a new refresh rate and then use the controls on the monitor to readjust your monitor. (Monitors have memory and will remember a different setting for each refresh rate.)
Take Care,
Richard
Richard
The "60Hz headache" is a US thing, because the mains frequency in the USA is 60Hz and the two "beat" to cause flicker (or other subliminal effects).
The UK mains frequency is 50Hz, so not a problem at 60Hz refresh rate.
Agree, though, that the highest useable rate for any given resolution is best - as long as it doesn't exceed the design limits of the monitor and overheat bits.
goates
4th Dec 2003, 00:44
Something that can help you find a suitable resolution and frequency is the "List All Modes" button under the Advanced Settings->Adapter tab. It will display all possible combinations of monitor resolution, colour depth and frequency that your monitor can support. Generally the higher the frequency, the easier it is on your eyes.
goates
Thanks all. The options I have regarding Hertz are 56, 60, 70, 72 and 75. I had a look at what goates suggested and that is pretty much the same.(but a lot more options). There is no noticable flicker or anything untoward so i guess 60 is ok. If I go higher it starts to look funny.
Thanks again
Brl.
Ausatco
4th Dec 2003, 09:36
People's sensitivities to this vary.
Australian mains freq is 50Hz, but a 60Hz CRT screen seems to me to flicker quite badly, yet Mrs AA and the guys in the office have no problem. I usually set mine up to 72Hz.
Had to work at a temp location not so long ago. The screen was flickering away at 60Hz, so changed it to 72. The monitor auto shut down to protect itself, and wouldn't come out, even with a system restart, so I couldn't change it back.
Had to find an unlocked office, steal another monitor, swap them over, change back to 60Hz, swap monitors back again. Thankfully the "borrowed" replacement was happy at 72Hz.
Managed to do it all without being sprung:O That's the main thing - Thou shalt not get caught!:ok:
AA
Tinstaafl
4th Dec 2003, 10:00
Getting caught is OK as long as you have 'plausible deniability'. Ask any politician or bureaucrat. :suspect:
Front_Seat_Dreamer
4th Dec 2003, 15:16
As a general rule of thumb I suggest looking into the distance just above your monitor if you can see the screen flicker with your peripheral vision then I would advise to up the rate.
Screen doesn't flicker when done as above but one of the lights in the ceiling in my main bathroom flickers a bit.... :D
Naples Air Center, Inc.
4th Dec 2003, 23:06
Keef,
Thanx for the info, you learn something new every day. ;)
BRL,
Glad to hear you are all set.
Take Care,
Richard
Mac the Knife
5th Dec 2003, 01:34
Most modern video card drivers have a utility that lets you centre and resize the screen. You shouldn't have to plonk around with refresh rates. The monitor controls are really just for fine adjustments. Have you got the correct driver for your card or are you just using the generic Windows SVGA driver?
60Hz looks like a flickering screen door to me (and most people - unless they have an old monitor with long persistence phosphors). 72Hz was, I think the VESA/SVGA standard and I'm running comfortably at 85Hz.
Well, we've found out the general area of BRL's problem. There may be a residual fix to make, but it's likely that if the screen image is seriously displaced at 75Hz, something in the system can't handle that speed.
I've had Windows load the wrong video driver (ie the basic one), with the inevitable results, but it's never been so finely balanced that it worked OK at 60Hz but not faster.
If BRL tells us what monitor and video card he's using, we can check whether he needs a newer driver or whether 60Hz is the probable max.
Mine has a range of rates from 60Hz to 100Hz. To be honest, I can't see any difference (at 1024x 768) between any of them. It doesn't flicker at 60Hz.
Timothy
5th Dec 2003, 22:14
Speaking personally, I simply cannot look at a 60Hz screen for more than a few seconds. If I am on a customer's site and looking at one of their screens, the first thing I do is always to take the refresh up to a minimum of 75Hz.
Incidentally, if the correct monitor is installed in Windows, there should be a tick box saying "Only show modes supported by monitor" or something very close to that, and then it should be safe to use any of them.
I am delighted to have a large laptop with a large TFT screen and therefore never having to use CRTs.
W
You lot have got me worried now, I don't see any screen flicker at all so I am worried my old eyes are going a bit and my 6monthly medical is due soon...:uhoh:
As for the monitor it is an old Phillips, looks a few years old, got it off a mate whan my old one went black.!!! I don't think I have ever loaded a driver for it, I don't have a disk or anything I just plugged it in.
I don't know what video card I have, all I know is there is a tv out thing on the back somewhere. How do I get the details of the video card?
Worried from Brighton........... ;)
OK BRL - stop right there. You've got the right setup. If it works for you and you don't see flicker, it ain't broke and don't fix it.
WCollins is a particularly aware critic, and used to quality (like GNS530). If he were to visit my humble study, I would turn up the refresh rate to 90Hz (not 100Hz, because that may "beat" with the mains frequency and cause him headache).