[SOLVED]GFX Blue Dot Corruption only at 120hz against dark backgrounds?

[sparkuss]

[SOLVED] - Luckily appears to have been the DVI cable - Thanks to all

I've been trying to figure out a GFX corruption issue and I'm hoping for some insights from the forum. I'm hoping for a solution other than running less than native refresh.

Specs: Acer GD235HZ, 1920x1080 @120hz, HD 6970 @stock and all drivers current. Win7-x64. Dual-link DVI connection.

I keep getting a blue dot corruption in certain dark areas, dark overlays in browser and in games. It's always blue dots. It never covers the entire screen and always seems to have a bounded area.

Here's what it looks like in the browser and in games at full screen:

Here's a closeup of a small solid portion from another part of the browser screen:

This seems to only occur at 120hz set in monitor and only in certain dark areas as far as I can tell. It doesn't seem to affect FPS or game-play and only appears as a visual artifact, but I'd still like to figure out a solution other than not using my native refresh rate. And if it is any consequence this same monitor has the high pitched whine when in Excel when at certain page zoom resolutions also @120hz.

Any ideas on where to start troubleshooting or anyone with similar experience is welcome.

Thanks all.

 

[digitaldurandal]

Do you have access to another 120hz monitor or another computer capable of pushing the 120hz?

I would do a quick switch to verify if it is the monitor or the card

 

[sparkuss]

Nope I wish I did, this is my main rig. I'm stuck with troubleshooting as is.

 

[Don Karnage]

Have the same monitor and i've never had an issue like that

 

[Atomic Playboy]

You need to isolate where the issue is; card, monitor, cable or software. Some easy things to try to isolate where the issue is:

Try a different DVI cable. It's the cheapest to replace and the easiest to swap out.

Completely uninstall you graphics drivers and install the latest. Use drivercleaner or the like to be sure you completely remove the old ones.

Borrow a monitor or hook the computer up to an HDTV. Alternately, hook another rig up to your monitor and see if the corruption still occurs.

Once you can isolate where the corruption stems from, you can figure out how to tackle it.

 

[Khato]

Try a different DVI cable. It's the cheapest to replace and the easiest to swap out.

I'd definitely agree with testing the cable first. I experienced a similar issue on my media computer that goes from the onboard HDMI port to receiver to projector and swapping to a better cable fixed the issue. It wasn't a bad cable though - it had no problems when driven by a discrete card. Rather it appeared to be the combination of more signal loss in the cable and a weaker HDMI port driving it that resulted in the artifacts. It's related to bandwidth too of course - for me it'd go away if I lowered the resolution to 720p, and it sounds like in your case it's a result of the double bandwidth required for 120Hz.

 

[palladium]

You need to isolate where the issue is; card, monitor, cable or software. Some easy things to try to isolate where the issue is:

Try a different DVI cable. It's the cheapest to replace and the easiest to swap out.

Completely uninstall you graphics drivers and install the latest. Use drivercleaner or the like to be sure you completely remove the old ones.

Borrow a monitor or hook the computer up to an HDTV. Alternately, hook another rig up to your monitor and see if the corruption still occurs.

Once you can isolate where the corruption stems from, you can figure out how to tackle it.

This. I had a similar issue with my Dell U2711 over DL-DVI. It resolved after I replaced my cable. If your monitor supports DP you should try using DP to see if the issue persist.

 

[sparkuss]

Thanks all,

Sorry no DP. The cable is a generic that I bought from a local shop in order to span a longer distance between PC-Monitor. That distance is now less so I'll search for a diff cable tomorrow. Unfortunately I gave the Acer cable to another build for someone.

Wish I was closer to a major city with more sources. Hope I don't have to wait for an online order.

Thanks again

 

[Ben90]

Just double checking that the cable is in fact dual link?

 

[p_monks33]

Just double checking that the cable is in fact dual link?

This is what I was wondering as well. 120hz will only work via dual link dvi or DP

 

[Ben90]

Something you could try if you were bored is to download powerstrip and see how much you can pull off the timings. My XL240T is able to get away with a stupid short vertical blanking time. The less blanking, the slower data needs to get pushed through the cable.

*edit*
If you don't have a second monitor, I really reccomend learning how to reset PS to defaults with hotkeys before messing around. It is a royal pain in the butt if you mess up and go out of range on a single monitor.

 

[Ferzerp]

Wow, came to post that it looked like signal transmission issues and to replace the cable.

Was beaten by about 800 people.

Though, you have a perfect example of why we say go with the cheapest cable that works. It either works, or it doesn't. Yours is a great example of it not working. No one can miss that at all. It's glaringly obvious.


Now, that said, on occasion I have seem displays develop issues that look similar to that when they are broken.