DVI support with new LCD monitor

[strich]

I purchased a Samsung 19" LCD 960BF two weeks ago and discovered that it has DVI support. Well, luckily, my video card (Geforce 6800 GT) has a DVI slot, so i plugged in the DVI cable and got nothing but a black screen and the indicator from the monitor that it wasn't receiving a signal. The Samsung website and owners guide that came with the monitor gives no information on DVI hookup (or even how to use the monitor itself). I went back to the retailer and they said that as long as the card supported DVI support, it should be plug in play and should work right out of the box. Unfortunately, it's not. Do i need to find a special driver for the card/monitor to support the DVI connection and if so, where can i find it? I've scoured Nvidia's site and they have nothing that i've found and the Samsung site is useless.

Can someone give me some ideas as to how to get the DVI connection to work?

thanks much!

 

[marketsons1985]

You probably already checked this...but make sure your monitor is set to digital input. I have my LG set to "auto" so it detects if it's DVI or VGA, but double check that.

Sorry that's all I can give...

 

[speedlever]

Wish I knew what to tell you. I have an eVGA GF6600GT card with DVI out and am running Forceware 81.98 drivers. When I hooked up my 970P via DVI, it came up just fine. From the included CD, I only installed MagicTune 3.6.

Out of curiosity, what video drivers are you running on your 6800GT card?

I'd verify the cable was good too... just in case.

 

[strich]

I'm running the 81.98 driver as well.

Is there another way (other than connecting from the monitor to the card) to tell whether the cable is bad?

I will check my monitor settings (i assume you meant thru the display options, marketsons) is set to digital. I don't recall seeing that as an option though. I guess i need to check the Nvidia tab on the display settings too to see if there is an option for digital settings.

I did dig a bit further and discovered that the Magic Tune has a tab to set the monitor to digital, but that won't do me much good if it locks up before i can get it set. I'll continue searching, but thanks for the ideas, Speedlever and marketsons1985.

Have you two seen a noticable difference in the display when set to digital? I've heard that it's much sharper and more vivid colors. I'm a gamer, so i'm looking forward to even better looks than what i've already benefitted from with the monitor, even in analog settings.

 

[speedlever]

Is there another way (other than connecting from the monitor to the card) to tell whether the cable is bad?

What comes to my mind is either:
1) try your DVI cable on another rig to verify the cable
2) try another DVI cable on your rig

I have not tried another connection other than DVI with the 970P. I have no idea how it compares to an analog connection. Maybe sometime when I have time I'll play around with it.

BTW, my MagicTune 3.6 Option/Source select is Digital. I think it likely defaults to that if it detects the DVI connection (a guess on my part).

I rarely game... so my application and usage may not be of much help.

 

[strich]

I'd love to try another cable, but they run $60 a piece. I'll use that as a last ditch option. I'm going to try reinstalling Magic Tune and try to get that running and try the digital setting in the tab it's offered.

thanks again Speed

 

[speedlever]

$60? Ouch. Where are you buying DVI cables for that much?

I picked up a DVI cable for ~$15 here:
http://tinyurl.com/cxfzp

I doubt shipping would be very high if you don't have a local branch near you.

Edit: I see the link above didn't carry over the details. Look under Cables/video cables for the DVI cable you need.

 

[strich]

Well, i have to admit that i haven't looked much.

That price was at Best Buy who isn't really known for their cheap prices. I did see that Newegg has them for the same price as the site you offered. Problem is, my monitor needs at least a 10 foot cable as my box sits on a separate rack away from my desk. But i can't imagine that even a 10 foot or longer would be too much more.

 

[Rage187]

Originally posted by: strich
Well, i have to admit that i haven't looked much.

That price was at Best Buy who isn't really known for their cheap prices. I did see that Newegg has them for the same price as the site you offered. Problem is, my monitor needs at least a 10 foot cable as my box sits on a separate rack away from my desk. But i can't imagine that even a 10 foot or longer would be too much more.

never EVER EVER buy any cables from bestbuy.