Radeon 9800pro to HDTV, which method?

CHollman82

Gawd
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Aug 15, 2002
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I am trying to use my TV as my monitor. I have a 30" Phillips widescreen HDTV that has HDMI, svideo, and component video inputs. I bought a DVI to HDMI adapter cable and connected it that way first. It worked very well except for one major problem: overscan. The overscan was so bad I lost half of my task bar and start menu, and couldn't click the x button to close maximized windows..

Next, I tried connecting the svideo port on my card to one of the svideo inputs on the tv. This also works pretty well, no problems at all with overscan. The only thing is it looks a little bit "muddier", not as good quality. Also, this method does not work in 1080i, the highest res I can go (at 16x9) is 720x480.

The other option I was looking at but haven't tried yet is using an official ATI adapter to convert the DVI out to a component out and then use component cables to connect to the TV. Would this be better quality than the svideo cable? Would it have problems with overscan like the DVI cable? I'd hate to throw another $50 at this but I'd love to get it perfect...
 
if you get a quality cable, the DVI->Component route will give as good a picture as straight DVI, up to 1080i. Try to find someone you can borrow an adapter from to see if it does solve your problem.
 
Honestly, i'd give the dvi/hdmi route a little more work since these issues are fairly common. Researching the AVS forum ought to help with overscan/timing issues and software needed. Have you tinkered with powerstrip yet?

If all else fails then you could go with bboza's advice and try the ati component adapter.
 
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Yeah I've tried powerstrip and my TV doesn't like it at all, tiny adjustments to the front or back porch make my TV go black and have to be restarted. I could try the component cables but I want to know if anyone has used them and if the work well and don't overscan because the svideo cable doesn't overscan at all so I know its possible.
 
I know a lot of people often compromise with their overscan issues and just live with it. It would bother me personally but your overscan doesn't sound too too drastic. Is there any way of "shrinking" explorer a tad so the buttons fit within the viewable area? (within some control panel that is).

Sorry for the generic answers, but i luckily haven't had this issue, and i haven't had enough coffee today ;)

edit: maybe do a search on your specific hdtv at AVSforum perhaps?
 
I have but my TV is a brand new model and the only mention of it that I found over their was a thread to say that it just came out and is a good cheap crt widescreen.
 
I am about to buy a 9800Pro 128MB from Newegg just for that. My 9600 died and it looked like hell on my Sanyo HDTV with HDMi and Component. I was told the 9600 sucks for TV out though. Then I bought the XGI Volari V8 (Single not Dual) and it sucks, TV out was Great!! But what good is it if all the games crashed? I mean even older games like Quake3 and Aliens VS Predator.
I have the DVI to HDMI adaptor and used it with the 9600 and it worked well, I may use it with the 9800 .
Is the 9800 better than the 9600 for TV display?
Would the 256MB work better than the 128? No point in more money if the extra 128MB nets me nothing.
CHollman82: My only advice to you is to use POWERSTRIP..It will adjust everything! just use a notepad and write down every tweak you do and change one thing at a time.
 
^^^

For a 9800pro 256 megabytes means near-nothing, check out our [H] deal forums for the deal on the rosewill 9800 pro for $114 with coupon code. I sorta doubt its tv-out will be better than a 9600, but then what do i know? ;)
 
Here's my take on the situation,

The reason your S-Video doesn't have overscan problems is because s-video is a 480i signal. This is also why it looks more "muddier" ie. you can't invent data that isn't there because it isn't being sent. The tv then up-converts this 480i signal to its native resolution (whatever it may be).

The tv's native resolution is key. Somewhere, someplace you have to figure out what it is for your tv. Each tv can vary depending on model etc. You may have to do this via trial and error using Powerstrip.

The bottom line is to take SJetski71's and girff30's advice and stick with the DVI->HDMI cable and then change one thing at a time.

After you find a higher resolution your TV doesn't have overscan problems with it means one of two things:
1. You found a resolution that the tv can upconvert/downconvert accurately
-OR-
2. You found the native resolution.
 
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