Using a TV instead of a monitor?

Surveyor · 2 Jul 2011 at 15:57

Buchanan0204 said:
A TV wont go above 1366x768 when using the VGA.

Not entirely correct.

I don't use it but my HDTV has a VGA connection.

I've just checked the manual and it will display 1920x1080 over VGA so at least some TV's can go above 1366x768.

hellarda · 2 Jul 2011 at 15:59

Buchanan0204 said:
I haven't seen a lot of TV's with a DVI port... if any. Almost all flat panels in the last 6 years have VGA inputs.

No idea why you would think VGA is better. DVI and HDMI are digital signals and capable of producing higher resolutions when used with a TV. A TV wont go above 1366x768 when using the VGA. HDMI will do the full 1920x1080.

mine goes to 1920x1080 using VGA

prt · 2 Jul 2011 at 16:23

I use mine via vga and have it running @ 1920x1080 nice and clean

hbk123 · 2 Jul 2011 at 16:47

ive used VGA to run 1920 x 1080

pgi947 · 2 Jul 2011 at 20:08

The one thing to look out for with gaming on an HDTV is the refresh rate (hz). Unless stated some HDTV's will only output at 60hz, when gaming with v-sync enabled (recommended) that will cap the FPS to 60, which is still good and optimum for most gamers. Newer TV's these days can go above and beyond 600hz, so there are no such limits.

My 2 cents on the GPU debate, I would opt for a 6950 (twin frozr III pe/oc if its in stock). £60+ cheaper than a gtx570 with similar performance, I recently picked up 2 xfx 6950's for my sandy bridge setup and the performance is simply outstanding.

Surveyor · 2 Jul 2011 at 20:18

pgi947 said:
The one thing to look out for with gaming on an HDTV is the refresh rate (hz). Unless stated some HDTV's will only output at 60hz, when gaming with v-sync enabled (recommended) that will cap the FPS to 60, which is still good and optimum for most gamers. Newer TV's these days can go above and beyond 600hz, so there are no such limits.

My 2 cents on the GPU debate, I would opt for a 6950 (twin frozr III pe/oc if its in stock). £60+ cheaper than a gtx570 with similar performance, I recently picked up 2 xfx 6950's for my sandy bridge setup and the performance is simply outstanding.

That's not entirely correct either.

It's not true 600Hz.

600Hz is achieved by using sub field drive on plasma TV's.

A standard video signal is actually a series of still images, flashed on screen so quickly that we believe we are watching a moving image. The typical frame rate used in North America is 60 frames per second (60Hz) meaning that a TV would display 60 individual still images every second. Sub-field drive is the method used to flash the individual image elements (dots) on a plasma panel. For each frame displayed on the TV the Sub-field drive flashes the dots 10 times or more, meaning that the dots are flashing 600 times per second (600Hz) or more. (Example: 60 frames per second x 10 sub-fields = 600 flashes per second).

pgi947 · 3 Jul 2011 at 11:55

Learn something new everyday, I was only going by advertised refresh rates. So would this sub field drive have an effect on high fps gaming? or would it act as if the display is genuinely 600hz? Just curious, the highest any of my displays go is 120hz, and all LCD.

This is why I joined the OCuk forums :-)

I spent months researching for my build and about 90% of my searches wound up here with the answers I was looking for.

DJ_Martin · 3 Jul 2011 at 12:36

I use a TV where its max refresh rate is 60Hz but I can still see the difference between 60 and 120 when playing games. 120 seems smoother.
Technically you probably shouldn't see a difference but you somehow do :confused:

wilko49 · 3 Jul 2011 at 12:39

Google gives me this:
http://www.best-3dtvs.com/guides/what-does-600hz-sub-field-drive-mean/

pgi947 · 3 Jul 2011 at 13:58

Good find wilko, that sums things up nicely, despite being 600hz (60x10 sub drive) it would still only render 60fps, but would do so with minimal blur and with better picture quality over LCD. Looks like my next display might be a plasma.

KromaZone · 3 Jul 2011 at 17:10

Reaper 392 said:
building a PC is surprisingly easy. if you have all the right parts is is very difficult to put them in the wrong place. as long as your careful with them then your unlikely to break anything either (ie, dont build on top of a nylon carpet wearing tracksuit trousers whie rubbing a ballon on your head).

i would say the only moderatly difficult bit of building a computer yourself is fitting a custom cooler, but even that is simple

LMFAO that made me ****!!!

Buchanan0204 · 4 Jul 2011 at 01:30

Surveyor said:
Not entirely correct.

I don't use it but my HDTV has a VGA connection.

I've just checked the manual and it will display 1920x1080 over VGA so at least some TV's can go above 1366x768.

You went to all that trouble just to prove me wrong

I was going by my experience. Any TV i have hooked up via VGA has never went above 1366x768. It's been a few tv's and a few different graphics cards. Just presumed they would all be the same.

Bottom line. It's still an analogue connection and it doesn't support HDCP which is a bit of a pain when using it for non gaming purposes.

KelDG · 4 Jul 2011 at 14:20

My first generation 1080p Samsung LCD 37" has been my monitor for 3 years now, no problems for gaming, web browsing etc, as for text size its no problem to read, the odd site that loves tiny text just use key presses "Shift,+ and Shift,-" to adjust the text size instantly. Runs at 60hz.

1366x768 is the max VGA for my TV, so I just run it over HDMI for 1080p, you can get a DVI to HDMI adapter just like DVI to VGA if your video card does not have a HDMI out.

I feel sorry for you guys that are super sensitive over frame rates, you must hate consoles! But it shows you how few and far between you are that they sell so well and have been for decades.