Gateway's FPD2185W: a 21in widescreen 2005fpw killer!

I just picked one of these up

No dead pixels, i have backlight bleeding, in each corner

and for the life of me I cannot get this monitor to go to 1680x1050 at 75hz?

Where is the damn Device driver for this monitor?

All I got was eztune garbage when it came.

Also I have buzzing in my monitor until i crank the brightness to like 87

:(
 
Well, I just picked mine up from BestBuy and I am not happy with it. My old monitor is a ViewSonic VX800 so that I what I have sitting next to the Gateway in clone mode for comparison.

I have a noisy computer and as soon as I turned it on I heard the buzz. I get very audiable buzzing at brightnesses less than 88. 88 is great for watching videos but it is really much too bright for basically anything else. I really need to have the brighness set down to about 50 for it to be acceptable to work at and there is no way I am going to get used to the buzzing. I don't have to put my head anywhere near the display to hear it, I can step back across the room and it is still quite obvious. The real killer of this monitor is the color shift. It is totally unacceptable. The image changes dramatically as you move your head around. If i look at it from the side the colors are much closer to my ViewSonic. Normally I would not care, I don't go bobbing my head around normally however looking straight on you loose a significant amount of detail in the darks. It is enough to make the screen look muddy/low-contrast when there are darks. I would much rather have the monitor be slightly washed out than loose a good chunk of detail on the low end. Need For Speed Most Wanted is too dark becasue of this.

The dot pitch (the size of everything) looks to be basically identical to the 18" Viewsonic. Widescreen is very nice. HL2 looks quite awsome. The response time of this monitor is excellent; there is basically no streaking. The grey gradient is better than the Viewsonic, even at the bottom of the scale. There is backlight bleeding in an X pattern near the corners as found by others here but other than on a totally black screen it is not noticable.

I have left the brightness at 40, which is about perfect, for a few hours and proceeded to go about my normal activities and the buzzing is quite annoying. The display has been on for a few hours so it isn't a warm-up issue. I am unfortunatly taking this one back and I don't think I'll bother with another.

Some more observations, updated as I continue to play:
* When I hooked up my video camera to the composit input the buzzing stopped immediatly. I'm guessing that is because it ramps the backlight up to 100% and modulates the brightness in software.
* VGA and DVI look exactly the same to me. The VGA auto config is very good.
* PIP works fine and looks good. The transparency is a neat feature.
* I like that you can dim the power LED. It was bright enough to be annoying. I would really like to be able to turn it off.
* Widescreen isn't the best for everything. The extra resolution is nice but so far the application that benifits from it the most is Flash, since I can have the stage and a nice big window for writing ActionScript open at the same time. It is also kinda nice, but certantly not required, in Dreamweaver as the code for some things can get rather long on a single line. Games and video are of course awesome.
* The base mechanism is great. It is very easy to slide it up and down and swivel, although tilt and pan require a reasonable amount of force. Everything feels very solid with very little creaking and poping.
* The display stays very cool. My Viewsonic would get hot to the touch around the top while this is barely warm.


Photos (click for the full 5MP):

The backlight. 4 second exposure, backlight set on 40.


Gradient. Click here for the original PNG.



SD video from TV Tuner. Sorry about the flash.


HD Video (Coral Reef). No, the display is not really that grainy, that's just the camera.
 
I ordered Dell's 2005fpw because this gateway monitor has the buzzing issue and I'm not pleased with how the Xbox360 looks via component. I should be a happy camper when the 2005fpw arrives.
 
Stephen2002: Nice review. All those issues are encountered by me as well. Not to mention the HD quality on this monitor is not impressive. It's too dark. I will be returning this monitor to Best Buy as well.
 
Gmeister said:
Yes, you can do this. I own a 7800gtx. What I do is go the digital panel settings, and then select the radio button "fixed aspect ratio". Everything that is displayed on screen will keep the correct aspect ratio. I tested this out by changing my screen resolution to 1280x720. The output on my monitor was exactly what I wanted in terms of keeping the 16:9 aspect ratio on my fpd2185w.

Also, if you want an exact 1:1 pixel mapping (ie... 800x600 will take up exactly those amount of pixels on the monitor with no scaling), then select the radio button named "centered output".

So as long as you get a solid midrange Nvidia card, you should be set to go.
Click to expand...

A follow-up message to let everyone know what I've learned.

First, the NVIDIA FX 5500 cannot support this monitor in DVI. It says it right there on the box, "Flat-panel display support with resolutions up to 1600 dpi..." Of course, I had to learn the hard way, and returned the Mad Dog FX5500 to get a PNY GeForce 6600 (not GT) AGP 256mb which supports flat panels up to 1900x1200. Remember, I'm not a gamer and price is important.

Here's the interesting part: Since my objective is to use 4:3 aspect ratio resolutions in letterbox for certain purposes, I was disappointed that I was unable to do so. Turns out, the newest nvidia ForceWare 81.98 driver has (mistakenly?) lost the "Digital flat panel settings" menu item that allows the nvidia 6600 to send letterbox resolutions to the Gateway 2185 screen.

I rolled back the drivers to the 81.95 version and, Shazam! The menu reappeared and all works as it should. Don't know if the menu item deletion was intentional, but lets hope it was a bug and will be restored.

Also, I'd like to report that the tech support at PNY was top notch. The very patient and courteous techie spent a lot of time working through the problem with me and found the workaround (and promised to report the bug to nvidia). Here's my vote for PNY -- tech supprt like that is hard to find these days!

Cheers,

Charax
 
Charax said:
A follow-up message to let everyone know what I've learned.

First, the NVIDIA FX 5500 cannot support this monitor in DVI. It says it right there on the box, "Flat-panel display support with resolutions up to 1600 dpi..." Of course, I had to learn the hard way, and returned the Mad Dog FX5500 to get a PNY GeForce 6600 (not GT) AGP 256mb which supports flat panels up to 1900x1200. Remember, I'm not a gamer and price is important.

Here's the interesting part: Since my objective is to use 4:3 aspect ratio resolutions in letterbox for certain purposes, I was disappointed that I was unable to do so. Turns out, the newest nvidia ForceWare 81.98 driver has (mistakenly?) lost the "Digital flat panel settings" menu item that allows the nvidia 6600 to send letterbox resolutions to the Gateway 2185 screen.

I rolled back the drivers to the 81.95 version and, Shazam! The menu reappeared and all works as it should. Don't know if the menu item deletion was intentional, but lets hope it was a bug and will be restored.

Also, I'd like to report that the tech support at PNY was top notch. The very patient and courteous techie spent a lot of time working through the problem with me and found the workaround (and promised to report the bug to nvidia). Here's my vote for PNY -- tech supprt like that is hard to find these days!

Cheers,

Charax
Click to expand...


I'm using the 81.98 drivers and the digital flat panel settings are available to me.
 
Dazog said:
I just picked one of these up

No dead pixels, i have backlight bleeding, in each corner

and for the life of me I cannot get this monitor to go to 1680x1050 at 75hz?

Where is the damn Device driver for this monitor?

All I got was eztune garbage when it came.

Also I have buzzing in my monitor until i crank the brightness to like 87

:(
Click to expand...

What video card are you using? You should update the drivers of you your card to the latest version. New driver versions support 1680x1050. After installation, EzTune will need to reinstall the rotation drivers, click the OK or YES button to do this.

Tim-in-CA
 
likewise on the device drivers - ive got 1600x1050, but i cant get anything higher than 60 hz and it just says "plug and play monitor" - anyone know where to get the device drivers for htis monitor?
 
I just took down my gateway and purchased a dell (got it for 425 locally from someone) It works great, and looks great. The picture on this is VERY smooth looking and pleasing to my eyes. I got lucky too, no backlight problems and only 1 dead pixel in the very bottom left (yay!)
 
Gmeister said:
I'm using the 81.98 drivers and the digital flat panel settings are available to me.
Click to expand...

What card do you have? Maybe the missing flat panel menu item problem is specific to the 6600 (not GT)?

Charax
 
It's surprising to me to see people having issues with the monitor and their graphics cards... I'm using an ancient Radeon VE 32MB DDR that's about 5 years old with the DVI-D (that old card has a DVI-I port on it that works to DVI-D)... maybe I got lucky, in which case I'm not goin g to change a thing!

It plays movies, and does all my apps without a hitch... touch wood ;)
 
I'm still curious if anyone knows why the picture over components using 480i is brighter than that of 480p and up.
 
Gmeister said:
I'm using the 81.98 drivers and the digital flat panel settings are available to me.
Click to expand...

Follow-up. Based on your input, I did a complete uninstall of all nvidia stuff, manually removed the folders, then reinstalled 81.98 drivers; the flat panel menu is now available. Must have been something left over from the MX 420 or FX 5500 that caused the missing menu.

I'm now happily using the nvidia 6600 (not GT) with FPD2185W and loving it.
 
Has anyone tried this monitor with a Gamecube?

I tried it with the composite, and the image was really, really bad (much worse than when playing on a TV).

If it's worth it, I might try to find a set of Gamecube component cables.
 
SystemERRor said:
Has anyone tried this monitor with a Gamecube?

I tried it with the composite, and the image was really, really bad (much worse than when playing on a TV).

If it's worth it, I might try to find a set of Gamecube component cables.
Click to expand...
That's because the image is being stretched to fit the fpd2185w.
 
SystemERRor said:
Has anyone tried this monitor with a Gamecube?

I tried it with the composite, and the image was really, really bad (much worse than when playing on a TV).

If it's worth it, I might try to find a set of Gamecube component cables.
Click to expand...


Yeah, I play mine with this monitor as well as PS2 and XBOX 360... it looks great, but you'll see the flaws with the image generated by the cube (I.e. jaggies... texture gradients... and more)... BUT, that's no fault of the monitor's... rather, now you're able to see what the GameCube REALLY looks like... but trust me, it's not a problem... you'll get used to it. I use a component switch to change between the consoles. I use this one herehttp://www.jvc.com/product.jsp?modelId=MODL027406&pathId=93&page=1
... and some Monster cables too hook it up.
 
Got a new replacement for my old one which died, so far no dead pixels will report back after running the tests again.

Still the same Blacklight X that everyone has and this is a OCT 2005 Week 44.
 
I just bought HD component cables for my ps2 and I connected it to the RGB component input on my monitor, but nothing posts, All I kept getting is a message saying No Sync over and over again! ???????? Please help. the component cable I got has the RGB inputs and a red and white input for sound I believe. Also the box says that the RGB inputs are Y, Pb, Pr and audio inputs are L and R
 
Has Anyone configured this monitor yet to the proper Levels, for Brightness and Contrast on DVI?
 
OlIv0rIolI said:
I just bought HD component cables for my ps2 and I connected it to the RGB component input on my monitor, but nothing posts, All I kept getting is a message saying No Sync over and over again! ???????? Please help. the component cable I got has the RGB inputs and a red and white input for sound I believe. Also the box says that the RGB inputs are Y, Pb, Pr and audio inputs are L and R
Click to expand...


Are you using the official SONY one's? You shouldn't have a problem with them if they are. If you're using third party cables, try and bring them back... if that doesn't help, then bring back your monitor... it does work, I have it working on mine.
 
the cable is made by shark. I didn't find any made by sony at Best B. I seriously hope that it isn't the monitor! I don't want to be heartbroken
 
You might want to hook your PS2 up using a composite wire, go into the config on the dashboard of the PS2, and change the component video out from RGB to Y Cb/Pb Cr/Pr and then plugging in the components.

I don't remember having to do this, but when I have the components hooked up and switch to RGB, the screen blanks out.
 
Lepy said:
You might want to hook your PS2 up using a composite wire, go into the config on the dashboard of the PS2, and change the component video out from RGB to Y Cb/Pb Cr/Pr and then plugging in the components.

I don't remember having to do this, but when I have the components hooked up and switch to RGB, the screen blanks out.
Click to expand...

where is the dashboard to change the signal from red yellow and white to RGB? How do u exactly edit the output? and what is composite and where can I buy them if it's not what I have already? I am a noob when it comes to consoles

here is a link to what I am using http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...t&productCategoryId=cat08190&id=1126592233517
 
OK, here's one for those who think they are running the FPD2185W in DVI mode at 75hz --

When I add a 1680x1050x75 resolution to my graphics card selections and set the monitor to run at that setting, why does the OSD information menu still show that I am at 1680x1050 x 59.7hz with input reading digital/DVI?

Note that the manual does not list a 1680x1050x75 mode, even though it says the native screen resolution is 1680x1050 (75hz).

Cheers,

Charax
 
Charax said:
OK, here's one for those who think they are running the FPD2185W in DVI mode at 75hz --

When I add a 1680x1050x75 resolution to my graphics card selections and set the monitor to run at that setting, why does the OSD information menu still show that I am at 1680x1050 x 59.7hz with input reading digital/DVI?

Note that the manual does not list a 1680x1050x75 mode, even though it says the native screen resolution is 1680x1050 (75hz).



Charax
Click to expand...


I think the vid card feeds the display 75, and then it gets downsampled (or something) to 60hz....now, all I can tell you is that it made a HUGE difference in the gradient transitions on my display by forcing a custom 75hz refresh @1680x1050 in the NV control panel....
 
where is the dashboard to change the signal from red yellow and white to RGB? How do u exactly edit the output? and what is composite and where can I buy them if it's not what I have already? I am a noob when it comes to consoles

here is a link to what I am using http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...d=1126592233517
Click to expand...

Don't put a disc in the drive, and the "dashboard" (more an xbox term) will come up. Its under the system config option.

I also bought those madcatz cables to test out component output for my PS2 and xbox. They work, though the PS2 just displays garbled text when the xbox is plugged in too.

Also, I upgraded my 6800GT drivers from 81.95 to 83.10 (not my first driver upgrade when using this monitor), and the Nvidia display option in the NV control panel only listed the monitor as a "digital display" instead of "FPD2185W".

I downgraded to 82.12 and the same thing is happening. EzTune's autopivot stopped working and said I was veiwing the analogue input instead of the digital input, and I lost all rotation function through the NV panel before uninstalling EzTune.
 
Plug an optical cable into the PS2's optical output and your reciever's optical input. Make sure to set the optical out setting in the PS2 browser.

Its as simple as that, though the PS2 doesn't use true surround, mainly Dolby ProLogic.
 
Got mine yesterday, no dead pixels and no humming. It's on my dvi-i cable now, might get a dual cable tomottow. This monitor is great! Pooldoc
 
Latest thoughts/opinion:

-I purchased the speaker bar from Gateway's website, and ran into one big problem: it doesn't fit with the DVI cable I had been using. I bought a 90 degree adaptor cable from DVIGear, and was able to finally mount the speaker bar. It barely fits with the component cables i'm using though (Phillips brand). It seems as though Gateway never bothered to test the fit of the speaker bar with anything other than the VGA cable they ship with the monitor.

-The speaker bar is surprisingly good, sound wise. I have my Mac Mini hooked up to it for listening to my iTunes collection.

-After switching my main system to DVI, and hooking my Mac and Linux systems up with a KVM through the VGA connector, I haven't had a single problem with losing video sync.

-My current Brightness/Contast setting for DVI is: 80/54.

After a month of using this monitor, I am still thrilled with it. Performance, image quality, everything is excellent.
 
Don't u just hate it when a bunch of friends come over and they see pictures whatever displayed on ur monitor and starts pointing and touching the screens with their fingers. And when u tell them to not touch the screen, they just make it worse by touching it more!!! :mad: I wish I had punched them in the face, that'll show them to mess with me by leaving trails of finger marks on my perfect display :D. Sorry for the ranting, but I am just pissed because it took me a while to clean the grease off and I also noticed a tiny little hair thin scratch. Damn their dirty fingers.
 
BigIrish said:
I purchased the speaker bar from Gateway's website, and ran into one big problem: it doesn't fit with the DVI cable I had been using. I bought a 90 degree adaptor cable from DVIGear, and was able to finally mount the speaker bar. It barely fits with the component cables i'm using though (Phillips brand). It seems as though Gateway never bothered to test the fit of the speaker bar with anything other than the VGA cable they ship with the monitor.
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, Gateway has got VGA on the brain, for sure. If you look at the manual, they're continually nagging you to make sure you hit the auto-adjust button before messing with the other adjustments. The problem is, the auto-adjust button only works with VGA!
 
I haven't seen anyone mention this before; am I the only one who's seeing it? (Maybe I'm the only one using this monitor as a TV?)

Until I figure out what I want to do for a high-definition signal, I'm watching TV on this monitor by feeding in an S-video signal from my VCR. If I use picture-in-picture to view the signal, it's OK, but if I view it as the main display, even with the scaling option set to 1:1, everything looks wider than it should. The black bars on the sides are only about an inch wide. I measured the picture and it comes out to an aspect ratio of 1.5, which is actually closer to 16:10 than 4:3! I haven't tried composite yet because I don't have another set of cables handy and I haven't tried component from a DVD player because I play DVDs on the computer. It's weird that the PIP image comes up in the correct aspect ratio, so I wonder if the scaling is screwed up in fullscreen mode. (If it wasn't for the PIP being correct, I'd wonder if the VCR was putting out too much overscan or something.)
 
Has anyone gotten a Newer build date than week Oct 2005 Week 44?

I read some people's OSD says v1.1

If you have these can you post and let me know?

I may take mine back and wait to see if they fix this buzzing noise, since I Watercool my pc i can hear it above my idle pc sound :(
 
Dazog said:
Has anyone gotten a Newer build date than week Oct 2005 Week 44?

I read some people's OSD says v1.1

If you have these can you post and let me know?

I may take mine back and wait to see if they fix this buzzing noise, since I Watercool my pc i can hear it above my idle pc sound :(
Click to expand...
Yes, I have OSD ver 1.1 and I still have the buzzing and dark component output problems. The 2005fpw is my solution.
 
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