HDTV Plasma for PC monitor

[2Charlie]

I just bough a Panasonic TC-P50UT50 and hooked up to my computer via HDMI. Two problems I've seen. First, even in landscape mode, the whole window still goes beyond the screen that I had to manually go into Nvidia control/Display/Adjust desktop size and position/Size tab and re-size the screen from 1920x1080 to 1824x1036.

My second problem is a bigger one. The screen (especially against white background) looks like the screen is not still/stable. It looks like things are moving against white background. This looks to me when the refresh rate is set incorrect; however, I did set to 1920x1080 at 60hz. What else can I do or troubleshoot this issue. I previously had a Sony Bravia KDL-40SL140 LCD HDTV and it was working just fine. So, I understand why it was not working better under a plasma HDTV. I already noticed that playing MKV file is way better under this plasma than the Sony LCD HDTV I previously had. If I can only resolve this refresh symptom like problem, I'm golden.

Any help is much appreciated.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Plasma suffer from burn-in like CRTs do. The start menu bar, icons on the desktop that never move, and the wallpaper (if never changed) will get burned in to the screen.

According to the specs, it appears that the screen is only 48 Hz, hence the non-smooth image:
http://shop.panasonic.com/shop/model/TC-P50UT50?t=specs

Your Bravia was a CCFL LCD.

 

[Jstn7477]

The first problem deals with display scaling, which is either a setting on the TV or in the NVIDIA control panel. This is why I disliked having a 22" HDMI TV as my monitor before going with a real computer monitor.

Secondly, Plasma TVs are not exactly ideal for computer use (other than gaming or movies) because they have to constantly shift the pixels around to prevent burn in from static images. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pixel_shifting

 

[AsRock]

Scaling might make it look a lot better and you might want to try gaming mode on the TV too. You could all so check to make sure it's on the latest firmware.

EDIT: Ooh make sure you have the aspect ratio set right on the TV.

 

[techguy31]

Plasma suffer from burn-in like CRTs do. The start menu bar, icons on the desktop that never move, and the wallpaper (if never changed) will get burned in to the screen.

According to the specs, it appears that the screen is only 48 Hz, hence the non-smooth image:
http://shop.panasonic.com/shop/model/TC-P50UT50?t=specs

Your Bravia was a CCFL LCD.

Actually, new gen plasmas don't suffer from burn-in anymore.

 

[2Charlie]

Okay, so the main story is, LCD/LED is better being PC monitor than plasma?

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Yup.

Actually, new gen plasmas don't suffer from burn-in anymore.

Yeah, they do. There's technologies in them that make it take longer (like pixel shifting) but they will still burn.

 

[qubit]

You should be able to set a 1:1 pixel ratio to avoid the overscanned picture.

Also, plasmas do still suffer from burn in. It sounds like the pixel orbiter is active on your TV (which is there to prevent burn in...) so you want to disable it while trying to adjust the picture.

 

[techguy31]

Okay, so the main story is, LCD/LED is better being PC monitor than plasma?

Yes, but if you want spectacular picture, I would go for plasmas. Reason is because plasmas produce the most accurate and stunning picture and color. All that LED/LCD gimmick will never be able to produce the same or accurate color and picture as a plasma.

 

[2Charlie]

Okay, so back to my question #2. How do minimize (if any) about the refresh rate like issues? This problem is especially apparent against white background? What does this issue even called?

You should be able to set a 1:1 pixel ratio to avoid the overscanned picture.

Where and how do I do that? Are you saying setting the pixel on the TV remote control or on my Nvidia control panel? I did try to set the video "format" on the TV's remote control but it didn't really do anything.

 

[qubit]

Where and how do I do that? Are you saying setting the pixel on the TV remote control or on my Nvidia control panel? I did try to set the video "format" on the TV's remote control but it didn't really do anything.

It'll be a combination of the nvidia control panel and your TV's options. I can't speak for the specifics of your TV, but in the nvidia control panel, go to Display > Adjust desktop size and position. Then set scaling to no scaling and a resolution of 1920x1080 at 60Hz. You'll then have to figure out the appropriate option on your TV. It is a 1080p TV isn't it? If not, then that TV doesn't haven't a hope in hell of displaying a 1080p picture properly.

And yes, if course your TV supports a 60Hz input, unlike the 48Hz limit you were advised back there.

 

[Aquinus]

I have a plasma and it will burn in. If you do decide to use plasma, I recommend hiding your start menu, setting a low duration for your screen saver, and having your background shift every 5 minutes or so.

 

[2Charlie]

I tried this:

The format that are available on my particular Panasonic HDTV plasma is Full, Just, 4:3, and Zoom. It's still not right. The windows quick launch bar (Window's orb/start up) is way/hidden on the bottom as well as all other three sides. Any other suggestion is appreciated.

 

[2Charlie]

I have a plasma and it will burn in. If you do decide to use plasma, I recommend hiding your start menu, setting a low duration for your screen saver, and having your background shift every 5 minutes or so.

For screen saver, is it better to pick the "Blank" option instead of other option such as bubbles or rotating photos?

 

[qubit]

I tried this:

http://i336.photobucket.com/albums/n334/justLor/Nvidia-scalling.jpg
The format that are available on my particular Panasonic HDTV plasma is Full, Just, 4:3, and Zoom. It's still not right. The windows quick launch bar (Window's orb/start up) is way/hidden on the bottom as well as all other three sides. Any other suggestion is appreciated.

Yes, you have the right control panel settings there and it sounds like Full or Just should have worked. Are there any other adjustments available on that TV? What about using a different input?

It's niggles like this that make it better to use a computer monitor than a TV, generally. Also, is it a 1080p TV? This is critical.

 

[Aquinus]

For screen saver, is it better to pick the "Blank" option instead of other option such as bubbles or rotating photos?

Blank will use less power, but anything that is moving or displays nothing. The key is not having the same thing (static image in the same place,) up for a long period of time.

 

[2Charlie]

Yes, you have the right control panel settings there and it sounds like Full or Just should have worked. Are there any other adjustments available on that TV? What about using a different input?

It's niggles like this that make it better to use a computer monitor than a TV, generally. Also, is it a 1080p TV? This is critical.

Yes, it's a full 1080P HDTV plasma. There's nothing I've found so far on the TV to set it.

What about my second problem stated in my initial post?

 

[qubit]

It's possible that the TV just won't play well with the PC then, unfortunately. Without being able to faff around with it myself I'm out of options. You could try updating the driver if its not the latest version, but I don't think that will help.

Ok, can you describe that second problem in a bit more detail, please? What kind of instability are we talking about? Is it a kind of rotating movement? Perhaps that's the pixel orbiter doing its job?

I'd say that both problems are equally important.

 

[Aquinus]

You know, I have the 42" version of that TV so maybe I can help out a little bit. Mine does the same thing with all of my displays. I think it is how the TV scales the image. I don't have a nVidia card handy, but I tend to have to adjust the overscan at 1080p. Where my laptop might handle one set of settings, my PC will be completely different (even though they're both AMD GPUs, Mobility Radeon 3650 on the laptop and the 6870 on my tower). I haven't experienced the jitter you describe though. I run it at 1920x1080 with overscan/underscan adjustments that usually work pretty well. I'm assuming you're refresh is set to 60hz? Do you have any options for adjusting that?

Also does the jitter exist on other devices? qubit could be right and it might just be the pixel orbiter.

 

[MainframeTM]

A couple months or so back I picked up a 60inch plasma 3dhd tv and love hooking my pc up to it sometimes. The colors seem better then my 45inch lcd hdtv I use as my primary monitor. All in all a good experience and as mentioned no real issues with burn in anymore. Thou not my primary due to the sheer size and having to sit so far away. But I'd still tell anyone to give it a go. If you can set it up just right it adds so much more to your favorite games.

 

[Frag_Maniac]

The first problem deals with display scaling, which is either a setting on the TV or in the NVIDIA control panel.

I have found that the first problem is more to do with Nvidia's resizing feature being a bit tricky to use, esp in W7. Worse yet it has NO indication how to use it properly.

Most assume when the image doesn't fit the screen they have to accept a smaller pixel size after it's resized, well, no, you don't. A neighbor of mine had this issue with his Dynex HDTV after switching to W7. In XP when it resized it kept the full 1:1 pixel mapping, meaning the res stayed the same, as it should. If a display scaling feature is working properly, it should only change pixel size, not res.

I recently bought my first LCD HDTV, a Panasonic, and I had the same problem in W7. Before you resize, make sure your TV is in it's 1:1 pixel mapping AR mode. For my TV it's called "Full". The wording varies from brand to brand. When you resize a given resolution, say 1920x1080p, if you go back into the resolution settings and change from the newly made res size back to 1920x1080p, the 1080p res will now also fit the screen properly.

What's even more weird is sometimes you have to resize each res you use, and sometimes certain resolutions will just automatically fit the screen. I'm not sure Nvidia are even aware of this, and it may even vary from driver to driver as far as what you experience.

My friend was certain it was specifically a MS screw up in W7, but after finding out how to fix it, I'm almost certain Nvidia are just at much if not more responsible for it. Just the fact that they don't seem to acknowledge it or tell you how to work around it in the Nvidia Control Panel makes them look rather irresponsible.

As for the other problem, I don't know what could be causing that, and I've never owned a plasma before, although it could very well be a refresh setting issue as suggested.

 

[qubit]

It sounds like a bug in the nividia driver, frag maniac. I think you might have hit on the solution.

 

[2Charlie]

I run it at 1920x1080 with overscan/underscan adjustments that usually work pretty well. I'm assuming you're refresh is set to 60hz? Do you have any options for adjusting that?

Also does the jitter exist on other devices? qubit could be right and it might just be the pixel orbiter.

I already tried those options: overscan/underscan and it is already in 60hz but I still see the jittering. It was not too bad against black or dark background though.

 

[qubit]

I already tried those options: overscan/underscan and it is already in 60hz but I still see the jittering. It was not too bad against black or dark background though.

Have you tried what frag maniac suggested? I think that might be the solution.

 

[2Charlie]

Have you tried what frag maniac suggested? I think that might be the solution.

Yes, I did try. I also did a driver re-installation and it's the same problem. Here's what I did:

For now as far as the screen size go, I may have to stick with that; however, the white background jittering is going on. I'm not sure where else to set, Nvidia, Windows 7, or the TV itself.

Many thanks for those have responded to my questions.