Problem connecting a new LCD monitor to an "old" PC

Morbius1 · 04-22-2008, 04:02 AM

I am new on this forum and I hope that I am posting at the right place.

I have an old PC equipped with an NVIDIA GeForce2 MX/MX400 graphics card (a "legacy" card which I acquired in the early 2000's) that I have been using with several 15" and 17" LCD monitors without any problem.

I have just acquired a new 24" LCD monitor (Samsung SyncMaster 245B) and all my attempts to connect it to this PC have been unsuccessful so far. According to the manufacturer Samsung, this monitor should be operated with a refresh rate of 60Hz at its native resolution of 1920 x 1200. The problem I face is that, when I set the refresh rate at 60Hz, the image I get is larger than the screen. By setting the refresh rate to 70Hz, I get an image that exactly fits the screen but then, all the text appears blurred on the monitor. I have spent hours trying to tweak the card using the NVIDIA control panel. I use Windows XP SP2 and I have the latest NVIDIA drivers (v. 93.71) but I also tried previous drivers versions. I have also installed the driver for the monitor. But no success.

I am almost sure that there is no problem with the 24" LCD monitor as I have seen it working fine with other PCs. Is it possible that there is some incompatibilty between the GeForce2 graphics card and this type of monitors? Or is there any possible tweak that I haven't found and that would solve the problem?

Could someone possibly help?

zaknafein72 · 04-22-2008, 05:33 AM

Does your VGA card have a VGA port or a DVI port? I'm not positive, but I don't think that native resolution is possible without using a DVI interface. If that is the case, you would need to get a new card with a DVI port to use the monitor correctly.

Morbius1 · 04-22-2008, 08:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zaknafein72

Does your VGA card have a VGA port or a DVI port? I'm not positive, but I don't think that native resolution is possible without using a DVI interface. If that is the case, you would need to get a new card with a DVI port to use the monitor correctly.

My video card has a VGA port only. But I can't understand why you say that native resolution can only be achieved through DVI. In fact, I achieve native resolution on this card through VGA with some smaller 15" and 17" monitors. Why would it be different with the 24"?

zaknafein72 · 04-22-2008, 07:39 PM

I'm probably wrong. Read this article:

Resolution Problem

and this one:

[SOLVED] No Native Screen Resolution

That might solve your problem.

Morbius1 · 04-23-2008, 11:43 AM

Thanks for your input, zaknafein72. I've read those articles. I did the unplugging/replugging of the monitor cable recommended by "UncleMacro", but it did not give any results. In the 2nd article, he also mentions an application called "PowerStrip". That looks interesting, and I'll try if this appli could help.

04-22-2008, 04:02 AM	#1 (permalink)
Morbius1 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 3 OS: Windows XP SP2	Problem connecting a new LCD monitor to an "old" PC I am new on this forum and I hope that I am posting at the right place. I have an old PC equipped with an NVIDIA GeForce2 MX/MX400 graphics card (a "legacy" card which I acquired in the early 2000's) that I have been using with several 15" and 17" LCD monitors without any problem. I have just acquired a new 24" LCD monitor (Samsung SyncMaster 245B) and all my attempts to connect it to this PC have been unsuccessful so far. According to the manufacturer Samsung, this monitor should be operated with a refresh rate of 60Hz at its native resolution of 1920 x 1200. The problem I face is that, when I set the refresh rate at 60Hz, the image I get is larger than the screen. By setting the refresh rate to 70Hz, I get an image that exactly fits the screen but then, all the text appears blurred on the monitor. I have spent hours trying to tweak the card using the NVIDIA control panel. I use Windows XP SP2 and I have the latest NVIDIA drivers (v. 93.71) but I also tried previous drivers versions. I have also installed the driver for the monitor. But no success. I am almost sure that there is no problem with the 24" LCD monitor as I have seen it working fine with other PCs. Is it possible that there is some incompatibilty between the GeForce2 graphics card and this type of monitors? Or is there any possible tweak that I haven't found and that would solve the problem? Could someone possibly help?

04-22-2008, 05:33 AM	#2 (permalink)
zaknafein72 Registered User Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 136 OS: xp	Re: Problem connecting a new LCD monitor to an "old" PC Does your VGA card have a VGA port or a DVI port? I'm not positive, but I don't think that native resolution is possible without using a DVI interface. If that is the case, you would need to get a new card with a DVI port to use the monitor correctly.

04-22-2008, 07:39 PM	#4 (permalink)
zaknafein72 Registered User Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 136 OS: xp	Re: Problem connecting a new LCD monitor to an "old" PC I'm probably wrong. Read this article: Resolution Problem and this one: [SOLVED] No Native Screen Resolution That might solve your problem.

04-23-2008, 11:43 AM	#5 (permalink)
Morbius1 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 3 OS: Windows XP SP2	Re: Problem connecting a new LCD monitor to an "old" PC Thanks for your input, zaknafein72. I've read those articles. I did the unplugging/replugging of the monitor cable recommended by "UncleMacro", but it did not give any results. In the 2nd article, he also mentions an application called "PowerStrip". That looks interesting, and I'll try if this appli could help.