16:10 ratio

[Nox1]

I've been looking into the 20WMGX2 for my next monitor, but the 16:10 ratio is uncomfortable to me.

One thing I cannot stand is a stretched or distorted image because the 16:10 ratio isn't supported in whatever I'm using the monitor for. My concerns are gaming, windows desktop, and using the monitor as a TV (directly connected to a stand alone DVD player or HDTV source).

Has anyone found it difficult adapting to the ratio? How's the compatibility for gaming and movie watching using a stand alone player as well as a PC? Anyone have a DVD player that upscales DVDs to 720p/1080i? How is the image projected on the 16:10 ratio?

Thanks.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Someone who owns that monitor specifically will have to answer this one - but several other LCDs have the option to fix the aspect ratio (eg, don't stretch a 16:9 to 16:10). IIRC, I could force my old Samsung 172W (1280x768) to do 1280x720 with black borders.

- M4H

 

[1Dark1Sharigan1]

There should be a setting in the video card driver that lets you pick the scaling method used for your LCD.

Also, most games now support 16:10 resolution, and even if they don't natively there are websites that have fixes that allow you to run in 16:10 in most modern games.

Also if you have an nvidia video card, you can always make custom resolutions in the driver panel. You can also use Powerstrip for this purpose . . .

 

[Nox1]

M4H,

I see what you're saying about switching the ratio mode. It's just like an HDTV. I did a quick search fr your 172W and found this review (pictures of what you mentioned): http://www.hytekcomputer.com/Reviews/samsung/172w/5.shtml

I wonder if the 20WMGX2 does that.

Dark,

I have a 7800GT, so desktop res should be fine.
I found a website: http://www.widescreengamingforum.com/
There's a lot of fixes and workarounds for games. Though, 1680x1050 is awfully high for my system (A64 3000+, 1 gig ram). I hope the lower 16:10 resolutions look decent on the 20WMGX2.

 

[josh6079]

I would be curious as to what are all of the 16:10 aspect ratio resolutions. It would be nice to know when trying to tweak the most performance out of an application. I've heard that 1280 X 800 is one low 16:10 resolution, but I haven't tried to use it yet. Is 1680 X 1050 the lowest 16:10? I mean, the resolutions that are higher than that are pretty well known but I haven't really heard of lower ones.

 

[Nox1]

Josh, here's a bunch of 16:10 ratios:

640x400
800x500
1024x640
1280x800
1440x900
1600x1000
1680x1050
1920x1200

 

[1Dark1Sharigan1]

Your GT should be able to handle 1680x1050 fine for many games with AA/AF (HL2, BF2, Quake 4, Farcry etc.). . . but for games like FEAR or COD2, 1280x800 is probably your best bet

 

[framerateuk]

If you want to game in widescreen you really do need a top spec graphics card to get the most out of it.

Ive got a dell 2405 (native res 1920x1200) and i play almost all my games in that res no problem with my 1900XTX (including fear at full details (minus soft shadows, and the physics on medium)). But i did have to drop to 1440x900 (on fear) or 1680x1050 (most other games) with my 7800GT.

If your monitor scales well, you might notice that a lower res with AA looks almost as good/better than the native.

Playing DVD's and stuff just have black bars at the top or bottom of the screen. Or you can strech it, denepds what you prefer. Streching 16:9 to to 16:10 isnt to bad, but it is noticable if your looking for it.

 

[Nox1]

Hmm...if a 7800GT is good enough for some high res gaming, then something is bottle necking my system. For example, I barely get out of the 40's in Quake4 @ 1280x1024 no AA/AF. Most of the time I play at 1024x768, and that's not much of an improvement with the fps, and it's still choppy at times (no aa/af).

I can't imagine playing at 1680x1050 with aa/af.

AMD 64 3000+
Biostar 6100 (nvidia 410 matx board)
EVGA 7800GT CO
1 gig Corsair VS
Windows XP pro

 

[peleejosh]

Its your cpu. overclock it to around 2.4 and there wont be much of a bottleneck. Also wouldnt hurt to get another gig of ram.

 

[bjc112]

I love 1680x1050..

 

[pulsedrive]

Originally posted by: bjc112
I love 1680x1050..

QFT