15" Proview 1280 x 800 LCD for $299 at Staples

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#42
running proview without a computer???

Hi Jdevo

Thanks for the info.
Did a little search and this is what I found.

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VIEWSONIC N6 = no 1280 X 800
* RGB output capability
640x480, 800x600, 852x480, 1024x768, 1280x720, 1280x768, 1280x1024

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This one says "up to", but so did the N6 and it does no output 1280 X 800
AVERMEDIA TECH MTVBOXEX9
* Supports Resolution up to 1280 x 1024 (SXGA)

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DIY Projector Co. has this but again no 1280 X 800
Video to VGA (SXGA high res) Converter with TV Tuner
Specifications
- Support Video output resolution settings including:
640x480 @60Hz 640x480 @75Hz
800x600 @60Hz 800x600 @75Hz
1024x768 @60Hz 1024x768 @75Hz
1280x1024 @60Hz 1280x1024 @75Hz

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Yesterday I bought the proview, it looks great - good color no dead pixels.
So, I stripped it - 15mins. very easy - plopped it on an old OHP and watched toy story with the family.

As Inkog said earlier

" This LCD is definatly 1280x800 native, 1280x768 noticably blurs/stretches pixel fonts and true circles."

I ran the lcd from my G4 at 1280 X 768 and I can see the blurring for sure.

So, now I'm in deep and in need of 1280X800.

Any ideas - Thanks
Bachiano
 
#43
ben tech post 28

Hi ben tech
in your post 28 you said

"I have it perfectly dialed in with powerstrip at 1280x800p and the image is extremely sharp"

What is " Powerstrip"
I'm trying to figure out how to get 1280X800 output on this proview - preferably without a pc.

Thanks
Bachiano
 
#44
Bachiano, this is from post #23:

"Some more info on the monitor:

OSD selectable fullscreen / normal setting! This means it will natively keep the correct aspect ratio of your selected resolution and center it on the screen. I think this is great! Supports:

640x480
720x400
800x600
1024x768
1280x768
1280x800"

This person seems to know of an option on the monitor to keep the proper aspect ratio. That is to create black bars where needed to use the proper pixels and not strech an image. Notice that it supports 1280x768, the same as the Nextvision. You can use the Nextvision.
 
#46
proview resolution

hi jdevo
it looks like I might have to go with the N 6, but it is not going to look as sharp in 1280X768 as it would in its max native res. of 1280 X 800.
If you think of anything else let me know.
just for now I'm thinking of running a long cable from my computer.
I'll start taking pics when I start the box.

thanks again
Chao
Bachiano
 
#47
proview resolution

Hi ben tech
Thanks for the reply.
Well, I have a mac so powerstrip is not going to work for me.
Since I have not seem this monitor @ 1280x800.
Can you tell me if there is a big or a small difference between 1280x768 and 1280x800???
thanks
Bachiano
 
#48
Once again, Inkog says there is a function on the LCD that you can select to display at proper 1280 x 768 resolution, that is you monitor blanks out 16 upper and 16 lower lines. Your image will not be distorted using the Nextvision N6. You need to find this "OSD" function and change it. This is a good thing as wide screen movies will be even closer to thier native 16/9 aspect ratio than it was at 1280x800.
 
#49
To me, the panel was unacceptably soft with a lot of noise in anything but the dialed in native resolution. But, I seem to be pickier than most (see above ranting about artifacts). 😀

It is just a matter of what someone is willing to live with.

One example that is easy to visualize is that screen fonts are very blurred vs. very sharp and readable.
 
#51
Yes, it just goes into a black screen at 1280x768 normal, but I think I've seen it in the past and it was soft. In 1280x768 full screen, it cuts the right side of the screen off and is also soft. Things pretty much go down hill even further at any lower resolution, and even the native resolution of 1280x800 is not displayed properly at all without tweaking porches and sync widths in Powerstrip, to get it 'locked in' then it is perfect! (Well, except for those artifacts these panels have in any resolution before and after stripping it.... I’ve seen three of these so far and they all had the problem to some extent). 🙁

It is possible different sources behave differently, I have only tried it with an Nvidia 6600GT PCI-E and an ATI Radeon 9600SE.
 
#52
Proview sharpnes at 1820x768

I think Ben tech is right .
No matter what I try, I can still see blurred screen fonts @1280x768
I did go into the OSD and tried both settings - fullscreen and normal.
It made no difference.
I'm not sure if I can live with this panel, but then again at the same price point
what could I get instead?
Bachiano
 
#54
I'm positive I would not keep the Proview panel without a computer. With a computer, it is a nice panel, except for the issues noted. 🙁

HDTV alternatives: There are some nice 17" 4:3 panels with DVI for around $200 at newegg. Not sure if they can be stripped, but with Powerstrip you can display a 1280x720 part of the panel only (basically a resolution within a resolution) - if you want widescreen. If not, you can use the full panel. Of course, the box would need to be just a bit larger than this 15.4" widescreen panel.
 
#55
proview going back

Well Ben Tech
Thank you for the input.
I gave the monitor one last try today, but as hard as I tried,
I could not get it to sharpen up.
Boy, it was so much easier to take it apart than to put it back together.
It took me 15 mins. to stripped it and 4 hours to put it back together.
It's going back to Staples tomorrow.
I did learn alot so no loss there.
I'm going to be alot more selective next time.

Thanks again

Bachiano
 
#56
Re: proview going back

bachiano said:
It took me 15 mins. to stripped it and 4 hours to put it back together.
Click to expand...

It took me four hours to strip it, and fifteen minutes to put it back together. How about that. 😉

For the people wanting to feed this panel via an HTPC with optimal picture quality, here are the Powerstrip timings that finally make the picture very sharp for me (this is the only way I would consider this to be watchable - with my gear anyway!):

PowerStrip timing parameters:
1280x800=1280,72,32,16,800,7,6,23,70159,2050

Generic timing details for 1280x800:
HFP=72 HSW=32 HBP=16 kHz=50 VFP=7 VSW=6 VBP=23 Hz=60

Linux modeline parameters:
"1280x800" 70.159 1280 1352 1384 1400 800 807 813 836 -hsync +vsync

P.S. Don't forget to push the 'auto' button on the monitor after.
 
#58
Minoten,

I've been following your WUXGA project for some time, and I'm glad to see it is finally comming together for you. One of the reasons I went with this Proview is that I knew I would enventually be able to easily upgrade to WUXGA. I will be watching your project closely and may upgrade earlier than expected if you can get the price down a bit more.

Thank you for spending the time and effort on making it happen.
 
#59
Inkog,

Excellent point, these 15.4" W screens should be the exact same size as the WUXGA screens. So if you designed a box for a proview now, upgrading later would be as easy as dropping in the new panel/controller.

The price is a bit when compared to other LCD panels, but when you step back and see what your actually going to get, and how unavailable it is, its not too bad 🙂
 
#60
I agree with Minoten what you get will be unbeatable in price and quality. Just for the heck of it i just searched out what an HD projector goes for, couldn't find one under $20,000 that would have comparable specs. Maybe i'm not looking in the right places but that seems like a heck of a bargain to me.😉

Clinton
 
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