ATI X1200 Resolution problems

[keith_leitch]

I have been having a problem changing resolutions with this video adapter. I had posted this elsewhere as I believe it might be obliquely related to PVRx2 loading, as described below.

Recently, I upgraded my HD Rearpro TV to an LCD flat panel (a Hisense, if it matters). After the usual struggle to soothe the drivers, I managed to get this going in a variety of progressive resolutions, though the latest version of Catalyst Control Centre will not even acknowledge the possibility of interlaced resolutions other than 1080i.

Often, the output to my monitor will vanish entirely. There are times when putting the device into SLEEP and bringing it out again restores the video, and times when it does not. This seems to be related to changing resolutions, particularly changing from 1080i to any hidef progressive resolution (720p and 1080p).

Occasionally, the resolution changes correctly, but when it does it sometimes "blue screens" me as a result. I'm fairly sure this has only happened when changing to 1080p.

I would like to think that I could change resolutions more freely, but in the short term, I am trying to "lock" the system in 1080i to prevent this problem. This works to an extent. I load Catalyst Control Centre and apply the 1080i profile. For days, the system loads and remains in 1080i, with only two problems:

1) When I perform a scheduled restart, the BIOS loader displays in 800x600. This means there is a resolution change after Windows loads, which sometimes blanks the screen, though SLEEP can usually recover it. If there's a solution to this, I would appreciate it.

2) Here is where PVRx2 comes in: After a few days, something causes the system to enter 1080p resolution, without my permission, whenever I load PVRx2. This blanks the screen permanently; any number of SLEEPs or restarts do not help. The only solution at this point is to enter safe mode, do a system restore to a week earlier, and restart again.

Sorry to go on so long. Obviously, there are a lot of interrelated problems, here, but I would appreciate any ideas for solving any of them.

[pBS]

it sounds like you are using some video player that has set to change resolution when playing fullscreen....it only changes when someone runs that player...
[it's supposed to put it back at original resolution]
try Cat 8.11 on that adapter....works great on all the x models..

but why are you changing resolutions? only the bios screen should change anything..
win and playback should stick to one resolution, the highest your monitor can display..
allowing gbpvr to scale aspect to fit...
not necessary to change resolutions for video sizes...
use the highest progressive resolution for the display, set to 60hz refresh...
using 1080i may seem like it looks better, but it's interlaced so only half, and puts strain on card cuz it then has to deinterlace pic, then re-interlace it to send out to display...double duty...
[they can't skip it unless you're set to *exactly* the resolution of video...to the line..for every video..no longer feasible with hd]

[stustunz]

hes in australia so it should be 50hz if your tv will allow
piece of shit samsung i have doesnt let me

[keith_leitch]

it sounds like you are using some video player that has set to change resolution when playing fullscreen....it only changes when someone runs that player...
[it's supposed to put it back at original resolution]
try Cat 8.11 on that adapter....works great on all the x models..

but why are you changing resolutions? only the bios screen should change anything..
win and playback should stick to one resolution, the highest your monitor can display..
allowing gbpvr to scale aspect to fit...
not necessary to change resolutions for video sizes...
use the highest progressive resolution for the display, set to 60hz refresh...
using 1080i may seem like it looks better, but it's interlaced so only half, and puts strain on card cuz it then has to deinterlace pic, then re-interlace it to send out to display...double duty...
[they can't skip it unless you're set to *exactly* the resolution of video...to the line..for every video..no longer feasible with hd]

Thanks for your reply. Are you suggesting that Catalyst Control Centre version 8 will behave more reliably than version 9?

Your solution is a good thought, but I learned very early to stop my videos (and, in fact, exit PVRx2) before changing resolutions. All my resolution changes occur with only the desktop and any open "My Computer" windows showing. This still leads to the problems I described.

There are several reasons that I need to change resolutions, or at least change video modes. The most important is that I am in Australia, but immigrated from Canada; this means that half the time, the video I watch is in PAL at 50Hz, and the other half in NTSC at 60Hz. I also use Graphrecorder to stream American TV from the Internet into my player, so, again, the reproduction is better at 60Hz.

As to the resolution itself; I can see, or imagine I can see, a difference when the video lines do not match the output. In other words, a 720P source doesn't look as good to me in 1080p as it does in 720p. I could be imagining this, and it is certainly a subtle difference.

However, something that isn't subtle is that my current video adapter/CPU adapter doesn't handle certain sources in 1080p. Yes, I will upgrade, but that is longer-term.

Of course, I also can't control the switching after a reboot (unless somebody knows some magic).

Finally, I understand and agree with your comments about interlacing. However, since my system currently kaks itself when switching to 1080p, but far less often when switching to 1080i, the appeal of 1080i is fairly self-explanatory. I would certainly prefer to keep it in 1080p, but until I solve the "bigger problem," I have no choice.

[pBS]

ahh, yes that is a unique situation...mixing pal and ntsc never easy..
might want to check for firmware upgrades for your tv. from what you describe it's mostly the tv not cooperating...
cat 8.11 just works better for me than newer versions, notably the vertical sync...
but for pal it might not be the best version, tho it is the only one i've found that behaves properly out of the box...

there is a resolution changer that lets you target monitor to act on, if you think that may help...i'll see if i can't dig it up...i seem to remember someone using it who also had similar situation...

[mikeh49]

I have limited experience in this area, and none with 50Hz, but here's what I've found with a Sony 720p LCD TV.

By far the best picture with a DVI to HDMI connection is with the PC resolution set to 1366X768 , which is the PC resolution recommended in the TV manual. In either ATI or Nvidia control panels, selecting the "TV" resolution of 720p looks terrible.

Using the 1366X768 setting, GBPVR and any other player (VLC, MPC, KMplayer) looks great with anything I have recorded (firewire from STB) or streamed from the internet (American TV).

So, my recommendation would be to try setting the adapter to the TV's "native" resolution.

[pBS]

found that resolution changer that works on selected monitor only...uses windows calls..
with it you could make batch files for 1080p,720p,etc
[probably only needed if you ave multiple monitors conected]

to solve the blanking issue, you might want to check out devcon, to re-initialize the monitor like in device manager to wake it up...
basically it can do a remove then re-add of the monitor on the fly, possibly bringing it out of blank screen, which is what i think is happening for you, it loses the monitor detection when changing vid resolution...
[win checks to see if monitor can display new res. before changing it]
it can also detect which drivers are actually running to see if monitor is detected in batch files..
so when it blanks, see if it goes missing from hardware list...if so, just re-add it..

to see what monitors are active:
start /b devcon findall @display\* & set /p t=

[keith_leitch]

found that resolution changer that works on selected monitor only...uses windows calls..
with it you could make batch files for 1080p,720p,etc
[probably only needed if you ave multiple monitors conected]

to solve the blanking issue, you might want to check out devcon, to re-initialize the monitor like in device manager to wake it up...
basically it can do a remove then re-add of the monitor on the fly, possibly bringing it out of blank screen, which is what i think is happening for you, it loses the monitor detection when changing vid resolution...
[win checks to see if monitor can display new res. before changing it]
it can also detect which drivers are actually running to see if monitor is detected in batch files..
so when it blanks, see if it goes missing from hardware list...if so, just re-add it..

to see what monitors are active:
start /b devcon findall @display\* & set /p t=

I'd be interested in the resolution changer, although I have tried using nircmd.exe, rc.exe and Catalyst Control Centre to change resolutions with the same result.

I hadn't thought of the TV's firmware, and will investigate this: although, it works flawlessly in every resolution when connected to my commercial PVR. I can see that this would be different, as the PVR is undoubtedly just "sending orders" without checking for a response, whereas Windows would do some detection before ordering the change. Nevertheless, I doubt I will be able to convince the TV manufacturer that this is their problem.

I had also thought of using devcon as a "workaround," to remove and reinstall the driver. I will give this a try when time permits. Do you think this would simulate the behaviour of the driver when the system enters sleep and then reawakens? Does anyone know if there is any other way to do so?

At the moment, I have only one monitor connected, so there is no way for me to check status once the screen is blank.

[keith_leitch]

So, my recommendation would be to try setting the adapter to the TV's "native" resolution.

I'm intrigued by this, so I dug out my TV manual for a look. The specs list available modes (480i, 720p, etc.) but not their resolutions. There are resolutions listed in a "PC" section, which refers to the TV's VGA input (640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, 1280x1024 60Hz).

The only other resolution actually listed is in the technical specifications, and there is only one: "Screen Resolution 1920x1080 Pixels". Do you take this to mean tha the TV's native resolution is the "standard" 1080p?

[stustunz]

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