change screen resolution on VGX-XL201

[Hotte_Hummel]

Hello Forum,

I've just bought a XL-201 (it was so cheap - I couldn't resist).
My LCD-TV is a FSC V40 and it has a native resolution of 1366x768 (like many others).

My current system (Geforce 6200) works very well with that resolution (in fact it is 1360x768). So I've tried to make it work with the 7600GTL Sony special card.
I've connected the display with the DVI to HDMI adaptor (it doesn't have a HDMI input).
Then I've tried to add the 1360x768 resolution in the Nvidia driver with no luck. It looks like you can not add custom resolutions with the built in driver. So I've tried the latest Nvidia driver. When I try to add custom resolution I'll always get a BSOD (blue screen of death) :smileyd_oh: .
So I've tried older driver versions with same results. Then I've tried PowerStrip. Now I could enter new resolutions and my TV shows the resolution on its OSD but the screen turns black !
So is the 7600GTL some kind of crippled? Is it a HDMI problem (or standard) ? Or is it the Sony I-install-everything-you'll-never-need standard software overload?

Has anybody managed so far to get it going? Should I install MCE from scratch or might Vista Home Premium work? The alternative would be to replace the 7600GTL - but due to the custom built heat pipe thing I would consider that as my last option...

Thanks for any helpful info, Rado

[Hotte_Hummel]

Hi there,

I've installed Vista for testing.
Installing was very easy and it even has a built in Geforce 7600GT driver (WDDM).
That driver has the 1360x768 resolution. But when I try to use that one, my screen displays 1080i res and a really small, flickering and distorted picture.
And one can only choose between 25 an 30 Hz.
Then I've unmarked the 'show only frequencies that your monitor supports' check box and selected 50 & 60 Hz. Same result.
I've downloaded the latest Nvidia Vista official (158.24)and Beta (160.04 @ guru3d) drivers.
For some (or none) stupid reason Nvidia hasn't build in the custom resolutions in their Vista drivers yet. When I try the 1360x768 res the screen shows (OSD) the 1366x768 res but goes black for a few secs and then turns to 1024x768 and shows some VPU recovery info.
Same results with powerstrip.
So for me it sadly looks like Sony has crippled some functions in the 7600GTL compared to the GT. Why the heck did they lock the pretty common 1360x768 res but support weird res like 1280x768 (yes that one works)?

I think I have to look for a replacement card.
So far I've found the MSI NX7300GS-MD256EH witch has a DVI connector in a low profile bracket and passive cooling.

Can anybody recommend a better one?

Thx for listening, Rado

[MattWilson]

The best graphics card on the market - Here

More realistic choice - Here

[Hotte_Hummel]

Hi Matt,

thanks for the advice.

But I was looking for a passively cooled graphic card fitting in my Sony VGX-XL201 (low profile bracket)...

Rado

[MattWilson]

Your choice is definately the best one I have seen with passive cooling so I would go with that.

Good Luck

[Hotte_Hummel]

Hi there, here comes an update for my little project:

I've bought a MSI NX7300GS-MD256EH card. But no luck. Still couldn't change resolution to 1368x768. The NVidia driver always crashed.
I've also tried my old GeForce 6200 card with same result.

Then I thought that it might be still a Vista problem and I reverted my system back to MCE2005.
What shall I say, I've either got a blue screen or my screen went black.

Then I've read somewhere that HDMI/HDCP enforces the graphic driver to stick to the monitor resolutions reported by the EDID (monitor built in EEPROM).
Like many other LCD big screens, mine also hadn't its native resolution in the EDID.

So I've figured out how to reprogram the EDID and did it. What shall I say. Eversince that moment my XL201 directly boots into the native resolution (even under Vista). With the built in GeForce 7600GTS!

If anybody wants to get a detailed howto for the EDID reprogramming, tell me, I'll do my very best to help.

Rado

[MattWilson]

Found this site for you that explains all about it and says it has a way to fix it but personally i know nothing about this problem.

Good luck

[PaulSchredder]

Hi there,
Could you please explain to me how to get the Sony XL201 Media Center to show a 1366x768 resolution on my 50 in Pansonic Plasma? I tried for weeks now and I cant get it to work. With the new nvidia drivers you can change the resolution like you want but is keeps saying "test failed". Can you please help?

Best regards,
Paul

[Hotte_Hummel]

Hi Paul,

first check if the EDID of your screen supports 1366x768 (use MonInfo for that).
I guess it doesn't otherwise you could select that resolution.
Depending on the graphic card you are using, you should then try to set that resoultion with Powerstrip (see this thread for possible timings).
If you can not set the proper res or your screen still doesn't want to show it, you should think of reprogramming the EDID of your Panasonic. To do that you would need a registered version of Powerstrip.
I couldn't do the reprogramming with the Sony because it only has a HDMI connector and my screen uses DVI. EDID programming is a little bit sensible to cable timings so I used another computer with DVI and a short cable.
You will find useful information about EDID here.
Some screens (like Sharp) can't be easily re-programmed because they have a write protected EDID EEPROMs. Maybe Panasonic also has issues.
I used the Phoenix EDID editor (see Wikipedia article) to create my personal EDID file. You could use the output of Powerstrip as a template (after a little manual file conversion).
But note that Powerstrip expects the EDID file to be in HEX format (not ASCII what you'll get from Phoenix). The filesize has to be exactly 128 bytes (if your screen - like mine - only supports EDID 1.3). So use a hex editor to create the raw EDID file.

Good luck, Rado