Hi Guys and Girls,

Can anyone tell me the where abouts of a good step by step tutorial for SwitchRes X? I have a Intel Mac Mini and a Philips 32PF9731 LCD TV.

I have connected it up via DVI-HDMI and have a problem with the image being cropped when i set the resolution to 1280 x 720. The picture displays beautifully but unfortunately i cannot see the menu bar and the dock is ever so slightly cropped.

I have been looking at SwitchRes X and i think the utility will make the necessary changes but i haven't got a clue where to start from within the App. Its probably not helpful that i have only just bought the Mac and have never used one before.

So any help would be gratefully received.

BigLee

0. All of this is easier to do if you have a portable Mac, since you can configure the external display while viewing everything on the built-in display. You can do it with only the external display (your big TV, that is), but it's tedious.

1. Get the proper cable to connect your Mac to the display (VGI, DVI, or DVI->HDMI, depending on your display's inputs; if you're using a portable Mac with only mini-DVI you'll need the adapter *and* a cable).

2. Connect the display and turn on the Mac. Launch the SwitchResX Control application (if all you're doing is setting up a custom configuration, you don't need the preference pane and thus don't need APE either).

3. In the SwitchResX Control application, select the display you want to configure in the "Settings of:" menu (if it isn't selected already) and click the "Display" tab. Then click the "Export DDC" button and select a location to save the file.

4. Using the text editor of your choice (TextEdit works, or you may have a preference for something else) open that file you just exported. You should see at least one Monitor Description Block (mine has two, labeled Descriptor #0 and Descriptor #1). This should give you a starting point. Mine looks like this:


Descriptor #0 is Timing definition:
Mode = 1920 x 540 @ 60Hz
H. Active...............1920 pixels
H. Blanking.............280 pixels
V. Active...............540 lines
V. Blanking.............22 lines
HSync Offset............88 pixels
HSync Pulse Width.......44 pixels
VSync Offset............2 lines
VSync Pulse Width.......5 lines
Pixel Clock.............74.25MHz
Horizontal freq.........33.75kHz
Vertical freq...........60.05Hz
H Image Size............16mm
V Image Size............9mm
H Border................0 pixels
V Border................0 lines
Interlaced
Sync: Digital separate with
* Positive vertical polarity
* Positive horizontal polarity


Note that the Mode is described as 1920 x 540 @ 60Hz, interlaced. It's actually 1920 x 1080, interlaced. I'm not sure why the vertical resolution is half what it should be there, but that's an important detail to note. If yours looks like it's half what it should be, you'll have to double it below. Use your common sense here.

The next step depends on what problem you need to solve. If you have a picture and you just need to adjust its position and/or size, you have the easier task and these instructions can help you. If you don't have a picture at all, the values provided by your display are invalid, and you'll have to do some research to find valid values (I can't help you find them). Search and/or ask on this forum, and also try Google.

5. Click on the "Custom" tab in the SwitchResX Control app. Click the "+" button to create a new resolution. Select "Custom" in the menu at the top (as opposed to "Scaled"). Start by entering the values in the Monitor Description Block you exported and opened in a text editor. The thing to realize as you get started is that all the numbers interact with each other, and as you change one value the application will recalculate the others if they're affected by the change. At a given resolution, the number of horizontal pixels and the number of vertical lines in each box always have to add to the same totals, and you can get those values by adding the "Active" and "Blanking" values in the Monitor Timing Block. To stick with my display, the horizontal pixel values must add up to 2200 (1920 (H. Active) + 280 (H. Blanking)), and the vertical line values must add up to 1124 (2 * (540 (V. Active) + 22 (V. Blanking))). The horizontal and vertical scan rates are calculated using those total values and the pixel clock value.

This is a very important concept to understand. With a constant pixel clock value and constant totals of Active + Blanking in both axes, the scan rates should also remain constant. If you have changed your active, porch, or sync width values and the scan rates don't add up, you won't get any picture. To use my display as an example again:


Pixel Clock 74.25 Mhz, Interlaced

Horizontal Vertical
Active: 1920 pixels 1080 lines
Frt. porch: 88 pixels 4 lines
Sync width: 44 pixels 10 lines
Back porch: 148 pixels 30 lines
Scan rate: 33.75 kHz 60.05 Hz


Note that 1920 + 88 + 44 + 148 = 2200, and 1080 + 4 + 10 + 30 = 1124.

6a. Adjust the values to fit your display (heh). This is the trial-and-error portion of the task, and is also slightly counterintuitive. You can get an idea of the adjustments you need to make if you use DisplayConfigX to display an "Image Size Test" (in the "Test Screen" tab). It'd make life easier if that were built into SwitchResX, but anyway:

If you need to shrink the visible area, decrease the Active value and increase the front or back porch values by the same amount. If you need to increase it, do the opposite. It helps to work incrementally (say, by multiples of 8) and save and test your work as you go along. Note that you may not actually need to restart the computer: I found that I could just unplug the HDMI cable from the back of my display and plug it back in, and the new settings would take effect. Remember to click "OK" (and not "Cancel") in the Timing Parameters window, then "Apply" in the main window, before you do this, or before you reboot. Otherwise your changes will be lost.

The porch values are counterintuitive. The horizontal "front porch" is the right edge of the screen (not the left as you might expect); the vertical "front porch" is the bottom edge of the screen. To move the image to the right, decrease the horizontal front porch and increase the horizontal back porch; to move it to the left increase the front porch and decrease the back porch. To move the image up, increase the vertical front porch and decrease the back porch, to move it down, decrease the front porch and increase the back porch. Again, it helps to save and restart or disconnect/reconnect the display to test these adjustments. The "Quick change" buttons in the bottom right-hand corner of the Timing Parameters window will adjust the porches for you, but note that in older versions the buttons were reversed (down means up and left means right, if you catch my drift). That's been fixed in version 3.7.6, apparently.

Also, remember as you adjust porch values that you shouldn't ever need to change the sync width.

6b. You know how I said you might not need to restart the computer? That's not actually 100% true for some displays. When I boot my computer with the display connected, the image is shifted to one side. If I subsequently change resolutions in software or disconnect and reconnect the display, the image will shift back. I got around this problem by first coming up with a configuration that was properly aligned after such a switch. After I had that I rebooted and estimated how far the image was shifted to one side. I then adjusted the porch values, saved, rebooted, and tested again. I now have two configurations, one for "fresh boot" that's adjusted for that sideways shift, and one I can use if I've changed the resolution for some reason. After all that, my default settings are now:


Pixel Clock 74.25 Mhz, Interlaced

Horizontal Vertical
Active: 1834 pixels 1024 lines
Frt. porch: 120 pixels 40 lines
Sync width: 44 pixels 10 lines
Back porch: 202 pixels 50 lines
Scan rate: 33.75 kHz 60.05 Hz


Again, 1834 + 120 + 44 + 202 = 2200, and 1024 + 40 + 10 + 50 = 1124. The Pixel Clock and both scan rates are the same as I found in the DDC.

Note also that if you have the same sideways shift problem, your two resolutions can't be identical (the system won't know which one to select). I made mine different by two pixels of horizontal resolution, which turns out to be rounded off in practice anyway (so one's 1832 x 1024, and the other's 1834 x 1024, with porch values adjusted accordingly, but they both look the same).

At this point you should be able to align your desktop to your display by iterating through these steps, applying your changes, and either disconnecting and reconnecting the display or rebooting.

7. If ever you go horribly wrong and go from having a misaligned picture to having no picture at all, you'll have to delete the override installed by SwitchResX. Boot the computer into Safe Mode, launch the SwitchResX Control app again, and click the "Factory settings" button, then the "Apply" button, and reboot.

And as a preemptive strike: no, I probably don't own your display and don't know the numbers for it offhand, and my consulting rate is $45/hr (really!). :cool:

Awesome post Fedward. Way to go.

Nice tutorial, fedward. I'm looking forward to trying it out. And only $45/hr? That's cheap! You in the Milwaukee, WI area? ;)

Thanks for the tutorial.
I'm curious if this can work for non-interlaced resolutions?
(1280 x 720 as a starting point)
When I experiment with this, the custom resolutions aren't available after a restart.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,
--Sheldon.

I'm curious if this can work for non-interlaced resolutions?
(1280 x 720)
When I experiment with this, the custom resolutions aren't available after a restart.


It will work for any interlaced or non-interlaced resolution supported by your display. It just so happens that the primary resolution for mine is 1080i (the second descriptor on mine is for 720p).

I'm guessing that your custom resolutions are out of range for your display. It really helps to start with a known-working configuration, such as the values you'd get if you export the DDC. If you're just guessing on values you're likely to guess wrong.

Thanks fedward.
I figured out that I need to have 'overscan' on, then shrink the active area.
(I had 'overscan off' and was trying to enlarge the active area and it would only go so far)

My next problem is that the front and back porch numbers for the left and right side seem to have no effect!
That is to say, it doesn't matter what numbers are there, the picture always is too far left or when I was doing the interlaced version, too far right.

Any thoughts about that?

Thanks,
--sdm.

It would sure be nice to get an equivalent "intro/tutorial" to DisplayConfigX.

Doug

Thanks Fedward!!! The tutorial was solid.

I was having trouble with both SwitchResX and DisplayConfigX,
and then I followed your instructions, and now I am displaying
my Mac Mini desktop perfectly framed in my Sony 50A2000 SXRD.

I would like to add some pointers for anybody who is trying to
get SwitchResX to work with an overscanning SXRD.

I had read elsewhere that the best pixel dimensions for an
50A2000 to place the desktop perfectly within the frame is
1840 x 1020, and I can report that is accurate!

Make sure you print out the DDC Block report from SwitchResX
so you can refer to the values as you change them. (BTW -
my vertical resolution was reported correctly - not halved.)
I took the difference between my full 1920 horizontal display
area and my target 1840 display area, which was 80 pixels,
subtracted this from my active display area, and split the
difference between both my front and back vertical porch,
adding 40 to each. Then I did the same for my horizontal -
splitting the difference of 60 lines between my vertical front
and back porches - adding 30 lines to each, and subtracting
60 lines from the vertical display area.

I tried to do this manually at first, and then gave the automatic
adjustment arrows in the lower right corner a whack - and they
worked perfectly. The porches can be increased or decreased,
while the display area is kept in perfect proportion to them.
Also, in the version of SwitchResX I am using, the arrows were
not backwards, they worked properly if you remember that
the front porches are at bottom and at right (TVs scan from
the bottom to the top).

I tried also just unplugging the HDMI cable from my Mini, as
suggested, but it had no effect, so I restarted. Now here is
where I got confused the first few times - the Sony came back
up 1920x1080 - as if SwitchResX didn't commit the changes.
By chance, I opened the Display Control Panel in OSX
System Preferences, and lo and behold the new 1840x1020
option was listed there among the rest. I clicked it and that
was when the change was finally committed, and I was seeing
my menubar and full dock for the first time!

I noticed that my display area was still a smidge low, and so
I opened SRX, and this time used the translation arrows in the
upper right to raise the display area several lines (remember -
there are more than a thousand of them - so any changes less
than a few lines may not be that noticable.

During this time, I would sometimes use the OSX System Display
Control Panel to jump back to 1920 x 1080, and then snap it
back to the new 1840x1020 setting before it would "snap" to
the new settings.

Anyway - that's how it worked for me. I only was able to figure
this out with the help of the posts on this forum. Maybe somebody
will find my experience helpful.

Now - could somebody recommend the eyeTV Hybrid, Mini, or 500?
I gotta start capturing OTA HDTV!! WoooHoooo!!!!

McB :cool:

I love my EyeTV500s.

Thanks so much for taking the time to write the tutorial. I have solved my issues, but i think lots of people will find it really useful.

Can anyone help? ...
I've got SwichresX and DisplayConfigX (registered) and have been working on my underscan/overscan troubles.
I figured out how everything works (that I need to anyways) in both programs.
I can change my active size and move the image up or down with the vertical front/back porches.

Now here is the problem:

Horizontal front/back porch values do nothing/zero/zilch/nada for me using either program.
I cannot move my image left or right!

My Mini is a intel core dou
My TV is a Hitachi 55" LCD rear projection.

Anyone have any thoughts on this?

Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks,
--sdm.

Two thoughts, neither of which may help...

What connection are you using? I've seen some posts that claim that DVI/VGA works better than DVI/HDMI with respect to these custom setups.

Does the TV itself have any adjustments for size/centering? My plasma does, but only for the VGA input, and that's the one I'm using (because the HDMI is used by my DVD player).

Doug

sweet

Hi Doug,

I'm using a DVI to HDMI cable. The TV has two HDMI, S-Video and a Coax inputs, but theres no VGA input.
I was looking for a sizing/postioning function on the tv, and it seems to only have a vertical adjustment (strange).

Thanks for the suggestions.
Any more?

--sdm.

That IS a little strange. Sorry, I'm about out of ideas to try... With my DVI/VGA (or DVI/RGB, to use the TV's terminology) cable it appeared that 1366x768 was a few pixels off both horizontally and vertically, but much better than either the non-overscanned black bars or overscanned cropped menu bar and dock, and the TV let me adjust it a few pixels. I haven't gone back to see if SwitchResX could've done that, nor have I reconnected my DVI/HDMI to try that, since it's difficult to get to the HDMI jack on the TV given my TV setup.

Doug

Can anyone assist me with mine? Samsung HP-S4253.....

Monitor Description blocks:
---------------------------
Descriptor #0 is Timing definition:
Mode = 1280 x 720 @ 60Hz
H. Active...............1280 pixels
H. Blanking.............370 pixels
V. Active...............720 lines
V. Blanking.............30 lines
HSync Offset............110 pixels
HSync Pulse Width.......40 pixels
VSync Offset............5 lines
VSync Pulse Width.......5 lines
Pixel Clock.............74.25MHz
Horizontal freq.........45.00kHz
Vertical freq...........60.00Hz
H Image Size............1102mm
V Image Size............620mm
H Border................0 pixels
V Border................0 lines
Non-Interlaced
Sync: Digital separate with
* Positive vertical polarity
* Positive horizontal polarity

Descriptor #1 is Timing definition:
Mode = 1920 x 540 @ 60Hz
H. Active...............1920 pixels
H. Blanking.............280 pixels
V. Active...............540 lines
V. Blanking.............22 lines
HSync Offset............88 pixels
HSync Pulse Width.......44 pixels
VSync Offset............2 lines
VSync Pulse Width.......5 lines
Pixel Clock.............74.25MHz
Horizontal freq.........33.75kHz
Vertical freq...........60.05Hz
H Image Size............1102mm
V Image Size............620mm
H Border................0 pixels
V Border................0 lines
Interlaced
Sync: Digital separate with
* Positive vertical polarity
* Positive horizontal polarity

Descriptor #2 is Monitor limits:
Horizontal frequency range.......30-48 kHz
Vertical frequency range.........55-65 Hz
Maximum bandwidth unspecified

I have a Panny PT-44LCX65 and I am able to use DisplayConfigX to move the picture up/down and left/right so now that it is centered on the screen. However, overscan is still a huge problem.

Everytime I try to change the resolution however, from the native 1280x720, I get a black screen on the TV. Good thing I have a Macbook so it makes this process easier for me and I can experiment.

Does anyone have any idea why I can move the picture but not change its resolution? Here are the info from SwitchResX:


Monitor Description blocks:
---------------------------
Descriptor #0 is Timing definition:
Mode = 1280 x 720 @ 60Hz
H. Active...............1280 pixels
H. Blanking.............370 pixels
V. Active...............720 lines
V. Blanking.............30 lines
HSync Offset............110 pixels
HSync Pulse Width.......40 pixels
VSync Offset............5 lines
VSync Pulse Width.......5 lines
Pixel Clock.............74.25MHz
Horizontal freq.........45.00kHz
Vertical freq...........60.00Hz
H Image Size............1102mm
V Image Size............620mm
H Border................0 pixels
V Border................0 lines
Non-Interlaced
Sync: Digital separate with
* Positive vertical polarity
* Positive horizontal polarity

Descriptor #1 is Timing definition:
Mode = 1920 x 540 @ 60Hz
H. Active...............1920 pixels
H. Blanking.............280 pixels
V. Active...............540 lines
V. Blanking.............22 lines
HSync Offset............88 pixels
HSync Pulse Width.......44 pixels
VSync Offset............2 lines
VSync Pulse Width.......5 lines
Pixel Clock.............74.25MHz
Horizontal freq.........33.75kHz
Vertical freq...........60.05Hz
H Image Size............1102mm
V Image Size............620mm
H Border................0 pixels
V Border................0 lines
Interlaced
Sync: Digital separate with
* Positive vertical polarity
* Positive horizontal polarity

Descriptor #2 is Monitor name:
PANASONIC-MMD
Descriptor #3 is Monitor limits:
Horizontal frequency range.......15-46 kHz
Vertical frequency range.........59-61 Hz
Maximum bandwidth unspecified


Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated! Cheers

This is all great and informative, but my cheezy plasma doesn't respond with this info. Any advice on where to start? I can't find any detailed specs anywhere. Don't say a new plasma, I'm in debt as it is.

Ha..I answered my own question by downloading SRX instead of DCX, the quick change buttons make it so easy!!

I was having trouble with both SwitchResX and DisplayConfigX,
and then I followed your instructions, and now I am displaying
my Mac Mini desktop perfectly framed in my Sony 50A2000 SXRD.

mcbrems, do you have an Intel Mac mini or the original PPC version? I have a PPC Mac mini and haven't yet been successful with 1080i on my SXRD 60XBR1 (which doesn't do 1080p). I'm going to try out your tips though - thanks!

Now - could somebody recommend the eyeTV Hybrid, Mini, or 500?
I gotta start capturing OTA HDTV!! WoooHoooo!!!!

I picked up the eyeTV hybrid (European version) and it works well, although I've had the software "restart" a couple of times when flicking through channels fast, luckily not while I've been recording.

Fedward - thanks so much. This totally fixed my problems. This was really a great tutorial.

Thanks!

Thanks so much for this guide. I finally got my Philips 37PF7320A working using your info. It took a couple hours of guess/check/record/repeat. The settings for my Mac Mini (Intel) are attached.

Hey guys. I have been using my TV as a monitor with Windows XP for quite a while. I used a program called Powerstrip and entered the settings in this thread: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=670840 so that the picture would fill the entire screen.

I have entered the exact same settings into Switchres X, but it is not filling the screen. I think that this is because it is rounding the pixel clock, but I am not sure. The pixel clock should be 79.393, but it is set to 79.39 after I save the custom resolution. Does anyone know how I can override the program to set the pixel clock at 79.393 instead of 79.39? Is there a different program that might work better for what I am doing?

Thanks! :)

I just spent the last hour and a half configuring SwitchRes X on a PPC Mac Mini with my 26" Samsung TXP2670WHX so I figured I would share my numbers. I'm new to this sort of stuff so it might not be the best possible configuration, but it's centered and fills the screen on my particular TV. At the very least it should get you into the ballpark.

Pixel Clock: 74.11 MHz
Non-Interlaced

Horizontal:
Active - 1136 pixels
Front Porch - 145 pixels
Sync Width - 40 pixels
Back Porch - 333 pixels
Scan Rate - 44.807 kHz
Positive Sync - checked

Vertical:
Active - 656 lines
Front Porch - 39 lines
Sync Width - 10 lines
Back Porch - 42 lines
Scan Rate - 59.982 Hz
Positive Sync - checked

I have entered the exact same settings into Switchres X, but it is not filling the screen. I think that this is because it is rounding the pixel clock, but I am not sure. The pixel clock should be 79.393, but it is set to 79.39 after I save the custom resolution. Does anyone know how I can override the program to set the pixel clock at 79.393 instead of 79.39? Is there a different program that might work better for what I am doing?

Thanks! :)

Did you install OS X on the same computer/video card, or are you now trying this on a Mac? If they are different computers it might just be an issue that the video cards are different?

If I were you I'd just go start from scratch using the guide that was posted here. It's pretty good and should send you in the right direction.

Resolution 1366x768 NATIVE RESOLUTION i.e.

I am running the 1920x1080 mode now, but the menus on the bottom (dock) care halved though the screen seemed to be filled up.

However, if i turn off the overscan or uncheck it, it's better, i can see the dock but it leaves black thick bars on both sides.

Please help me to display the mini on full widescreen.

Thank you

Has anyone managed to output 1080p/24 from their mac?

Resolution 1366x768 NATIVE RESOLUTION i.e.

I am running the 1920x1080 mode now, but the menus on the bottom (dock) care halved though the screen seemed to be filled up.

However, if i turn off the overscan or uncheck it, it's better, i can see the dock but it leaves black thick bars on both sides.

Please help me to display the mini on full widescreen.

Thank you


Hi, you seem to be having the same problems I had, but I'm using a pioneer 5070HD. The only way I could get rid of the overscan crap and the huge borders was to give up on DVI -> HDMI, and hook up via VGA with a DVI -> VGA adapter.

The apple then detected the display differently and gave me different modes to play with, i.e. treated it like a monitor rather than a TV. I now get a full screen with no lost edges.

listy and kriskent,

SwitchResX, which is the topic of this thread, should be able to help you solve your problems. I had the same problem. Bars on left and right, or bars on top and bottom, or black all the way around. Then I downloaded SwitchResX, followed the tutorial posted at the beginning by fedward, and bam! Now my display fills up my screen, edge to edge to edge to edge. It wasn't real easy to comprehend for a commoner like myself, but it ended up being pretty easy to do, following the tutorial.

Thanks fedward!

Will SwitchresX work through a receiver? I have a G4 Mac Mini running 10.3.9 connected via DVI->HDMI into my Onkyo 604, then HDMI into my Panasonic TH42PX60U plasma. I just downloaded the program this morning and played around for about an hour before I had to go to work. The computer says my display is the Onkyo, with a resolution of 1280x720. When I follow the tutorial, switchresX crashes out whenever I try to "Export DDC" then save. It creates a file, but it is blank.

Am I limited since the connection is through the AVR? Can I directly attach the computer to the plasma and configure, and then swap over to the Onkyo using the new settings? It would probably be easier for me to just live with the overscan issues than to reconfigure my whole setup to connect Mac directly to the TV in the long term. I only use it to play iTunes over my stereo.

Any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated, as they could save me hours of troubleshooting. Thanks.

What a fantastic tutorial - I now have edge to edge display on my Mac Mini / Toshiba HDTV combination for the first time in a year of ownership. Many thanks

I'm running in the obscure res of 1224x684 however, and I would like to try and get a higher res using the same method. My problem is that when I installed SwitchresX and DisplayconfigX the overscan option in my display properties disappeared. In my starting config it was enabled and now I can't find a way to turn it off (which would hopefully allow me to get a higher res).

Anyone have any ideas about how i could do this?

I downloaded SwitchresX and eventually found a custom resolution that I thought was perfect for my tv, but I noticed that it occasionally will drift on me. When I try to correct it changes in the front and back porch values have no effect on the picture position. It seems to correct itself and then drift on its own accord. Does anyone have any idea what is happening or how to fix it. I am using a standard 1.83 core duo mac mini with a dvi cable to a sony kp-65ws510 tv.

I have a mac mini 1.83 and a 32'' samsung.. My question would be how would i get better quality.. either spend more time configuring the screen with HDMI or just plug in VGA to the dvi-vga adapter and have it work automatically (apparantly)?

Many Macbook and Mini owners report that 1366x768 of a typical 32" LCD HDTV "just works" over VGA. (I'm one of them.)

It isn't so much a "quality" issue, as it is a "plug it in and have it work right out of the box without any third party software hassle" issue.

There are those who spend the time to connect digitally, you just have to be willing to do so. Depending on how far away you sit from the display, you may not notice a difference anyway.

ok so ive tried this method with the hdmi, following instructions to the letter. I can get the screen to the right size but it wont let me move the screen into position. Ive had the horizontal front porch at 0 (I use the arrows to change the figures) and it still doesnt reach the left hand side of my screen. Any ideas?

ok so ive tried this method with the hdmi, following instructions to the letter. I can get the screen to the right size but it wont let me move the screen into position. Ive had the horizontal front porch at 0 (I use the arrows to change the figures) and it still doesnt reach the left hand side of my screen. Any ideas?

You need to increase the front porch, not decrease it. Horizontal porch refers to the right edge of the screen, and vertical porch is the bottom, not the top.

I downloaded SwitchresX and eventually found a custom resolution that I thought was perfect for my tv, but I noticed that it occasionally will drift on me. When I try to correct it changes in the front and back porch values have no effect on the picture position. It seems to correct itself and then drift on its own accord. Does anyone have any idea what is happening or how to fix it. I am using a standard 1.83 core duo mac mini with a dvi cable to a sony kp-65ws510 tv.

My TV (also a Sony) does something similar (if not the same thing, exactly). On initial boot the picture is shifted over to the right, but if I change the resolution at all it'll shift to the left. So if you set it up so that it's aligned properly on boot, it'll then go wrong if you ever change the resolution (or unplug the cable). The other way to handle that is to set it up so it's aligned properly after a resolution change, but if you do that you'll have to change the resolution first thing after every reboot in order to align it.

I looked for an explanation as to why this happened and was unable to find one.

I am not just seeing the image move during reboots or when i manually change the resolution. When I watch a movie might notice there is some underscan one moment and then it will be gone when I look later. It drifts randomly... at least I assume it is random. I haven't actually tried to see if there is a pattern in the length of time it takes to move. Has anyone seen this happen? Is it possible that i might have better luck with DisplayConfig? I have been away from home for I while so I haven't tried that yet.

Has anyone managed to output 1080p/24 from their mac?

I would be interested in knowing this as well.

Anyone?

And... Would it be best to output 1080p 24Hz, 48Hz or 72Hz to my iScan VP50 for HD DVD playback?

I have a new mac mini 2.0ghz hooked up to my Panasonic 50" DLP (PT-50DL54) which supports 720p & 1080i, using a DVI cable with a DVI-HDMI adapter.

I have followed the Switchres x tutorial but I have one issue I still can't resolve, I still have a small portion of the left hand side being cut off. Esentially it prevents me from seeing the Apple system menu (blue Apple logo).

I have spent about a total of 8 hours playing with the settings to no avail.

If anyone has any suggestions I would greatly appreciate it.

Has anyone managed to figure out the proper values for a Sony KDS-##A3000 SXRD running at 1080p. I followed some of the provided #'s from the older SXRD models (one set in this thread and one in another) and it doesn't quite work out right on my TV.

Hello. I'm having some serious issues with my Mac Mini and my new Acer AL2016W monitor and I found this topic through Google and it looks promising.

The main problem is... I've pretty much screwed things up beyond anything discussed here thus far. :confused:

The problem started when I installed SwitchResX to see if I could get the monitor to run with DVI rather than the (slightly fuzzy) VGA and tried to apply a custom setting. I'm guessing I input the full resolution values at the top without knowing I should have subtracted the horizontal and vertical values as well as screwed up the refresh rates somehow.

Regardless of what I did, my monitor doesn't work anymore and I can't see a thing. Every time I plug it in, it tells me that there is either no signal, or that the image is not supported. And this applies not only to DVI, but also VGA as well... which is what really bothers me.

I've tried resetting the P-Ram (By holding down the Command-Option-P-R keys until second startup chime), the PMU (By shutting down, unplugging, holding down the power button, plugging in, releasing the power button, and starting up as usual), trying to boot in safe mode (by holding down shift right after the chime until startup completes), and a combination of resetting the P-Ram and PMU, but all have the same non-effect.

I even hooked up a different monitor (VGA) that worked and tried to uninstall SwitchResX to see if I could at least get VGA back on the Acer AL2016W, but every time I plugged in the Acer AL2016W after the SwitchResX uninstall with either the VGA or DVI cable, the Mac Mini would still reset to the old custom setting I had tried so hard to erase by uninstalling the program with the unintaller and following the FAQs (Question 6) for SwitchResX. :confused:

So anyway... in my ignorant attempts at resolving this issue, I tried reinstalling SwitchResX and made it so that now my other monitor doesn't work either. And I'm hesitant to plug in my third (and final) monitor and mess with anything. :confused:

Help? :(

Okay! The VGA hookup is working again by resarting in safemode and switinching monitors while it was booting then hitting the "Factory Settings" button in SwitchResX.

I'm still going to work on trying to get the DVI to work. Has anyone ever set up a AL2016W with SwitchResX before?

Hi all,

Going through the SwitchResX tutorial explained in this forum was really useful for me, since I was able to maximize the horiz size from my mini G4 through a DVI-HDMI cable. BUT, things are not so sweet with the vertical dimension...

I'm kind of stuck in a 1408x747 resolution, which is fine for filling up the horizontal but I can't get rid of a black space in the lower area of my display.

After exporting my display information I saw that it uses 750 vertical lines in total (for the display configuration 2, which defaults to 1280x720 non-interlaced, i.e. 720 + 25 for porches + 5 for synch = 750, if I recall well).

The problem I'm facing is that I must set porches and synch to 0 if I want to set the size to 750 while keeping the vert. refresh (60hz) and pixel clock (74.25) constant... and the mini refuses any vertical size with porch and synch set to 0. :(

I also tried to increase vertical size to 768 (as I can use it with VGA input), but that also implies a change in frequencies (refresh rate and/or clock) which seems to mean a blank screen for the Hitachi LV3701 LCD I'm using (although it means a valid res for the mini, as I can see it from my iMac through screen sharing).

A bit of help in the form of any suggestion or advice would be really apreciated.

cheers!

......Note that the Mode is described as 1920 x 540 @ 60Hz, interlaced. It's actually 1920 x 1080, interlaced. I'm not sure why the vertical resolution is half what it should be there, but that's an important detail to note.

It's half because 1080i is really 540p. ;)

Interlaced can only fill every other line at a time so it always displays 540 lines at any given second. Odd lines for one second, even lines the next second and so on. That's why you see the flicker sometimes.

720p and 1080p is greater in the fact that there is more info on the screen at any given moment in time. Obviously 1080p is the best because of that fact.

I believe you meant to say..."odd lines for one-sixtieth of a second, even lines the next sixtieth second and so on." Definitely fields are not left up on the screen for one second each. I wouldn't call that flicker. I'd call that a slide show.

To answer a question asked a while back in this thread, yes, I have gotten my Mac mini to output 1920 x 1080 at 24Hz, a.k.a. 1080p 24fps.

I desperately need help as I've just hooked up my mini to my 42" Sony KDF-42WE55 (no internal tuner) via DVI cable. When I initially hooked it up it defaulted to a resolution of 1200x720 with overscan on. I tuned overscan off and the picture was clear but cropped on the sides. It wasnt ideal as the doc and icons seemed oversized. So I went to the preferences and changed it to 1900x1080i, when I did this the doc and icons were smaller and was at a size more suitable. The problem was that the text in windows were practically unreadable. Also the there was a "stutter" or shaking effect on the windows and graphics. And it was still cropped on the sides.

Using SwitchResX I tweaked a custom resolution and tried to use that but now I get an completely unreadable screen. It looks like scrambled cable. Per instructions on the avsforums I exported the tv's DDC and it shows as follows:

Monitor Description blocks:
---------------------------
Descriptor #0 is Timing definition:
Mode = 1920 x 540 @ 60Hz
Pixel Clock.............74.25 MHz Interlaced

Horizontal Vertical
Active..................1920 pixels 540 lines
Front Porch............. 88 pixels 2 lines
Sync Width.............. 44 pixels 5 lines
Back Porch.............. 148 pixels 15 lines
Blanking................ 280 pixels 22 lines
Total...................2200 pixels 562 lines
Scan Rate............... 33.75 kHz 60.05 Hz

This is my first time using SwitchResX and would really like any guidance you guys can provide. Is there anyone with the same TV that has found ideal settings that you can share?

Looking further into this I think 1080i will not be a useable setting for my TV. Due to the flicker that happens it makes it unwatchable on the desktop. The TV supports 1080i but 720p looks much better. The question is will movies and HD look good at 720p?

In fact when I hooked it up the first time I think it defaulted to 720 and looked similar to this but it was cropped on the sides:
http://tenant.com/images/mini/full/IMG_1656.jpg

I would really like the display to look similar to this:
http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/3877/rebel013il6.jpg

Both are Sonys but the bottom one is the same screen size as mine 42"

Well, now I know why I had such a hard time with my Toshiba 32HL95. Descriptors 0, 1, 2, and 3 are Empty Descriptors! Then again, some of the other bits of info(which are on the DA G4 Media system and not this one, or I'd just post it) are way off also!

SC

i like many other people have thick black bands around my screen when its set to 1280x720, if i enable overscan it goes edge to edge but crops off half the dock and the menubar at the top of the screen, is there a quick way to determine the right settings for SRX based on the tv model?

Thanks very much for the tutorial! Very helpful. One thing I am unclear about. Is the display to be adjusted in SwitchResX with the OverScan turned on or Off?? (System Preferences > Display > Options > Overscan)

Thanks.

Thanks very much for the tutorial! Very helpful. One thing I am unclear about. Is the display to be adjusted in SwitchResX with the OverScan turned on or Off?? (System Preferences > Display > Options > Overscan)

Thanks.

Use whichever setting makes the video biggest. I think that is with the checkbox unchecked but I can't confirm that from the computer I am running at the moment.

Overscan checked makes the screen much bigger. with Overscan turned off i have black borders around the edge.

So I am confused, even though I have a 1920 x 1080 screen after I configure this with SwitchResX my resolution is 1848X1024 ... am I losing resolution by doing this?

Overscan checked makes the screen much bigger. with Overscan turned off i have black borders around the edge.

So I am confused, even though I have a 1920 x 1080 screen after I configure this with SwitchResX my resolution is 1848X1024 ... am I losing resolution by doing this?

Yes, your TV is overscanning and throwing pixels away at the edges. That's typical behavior for a TV. Many modern TVs have a way to defeat that so check your TV's user manual for information about making "PC" connections.

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but I am having problems with mine working correctly.

I had the same starting values as the author and I needed to end up with a resolution of 1152x648.

The numbers I got:
Horizontal Vertical
active: 1152 pixels 648 lines
front: 472 pixels 220 lines
width: 44 pixels 10 lines
back: 532 pixels 246 lines
----------------------------------------
total: 2200 1124
So the problem with my numbers is that it won't let me put anything higher than 63 lines in the front porch vertical value. I will put 220 and then i'll revert to 63. All other values work fine.

Any ideas or workarounds to get the correct values?

Any ideas guys?

If you can't get the front porch value to take above 63, then just try using that value. Put the missing 157 lines (220-63) into the back porch so that it becomes 403 lines. See if you can get that to work.

can anyone help me setting up the text doc for switchresx for my sony bravia 32 lcd (KLV-V32A10E) running on my new mac mini? I am so lost and at my last attempt it made the screen black so i had to start up in safe mode and uninstall switchresx. I'm a fool at this and hope any of you rockstars can help me out here.

Thank you in advance...

1 vote for making this thread a stickie.

Not a bad idea.

can anyone help me setting up the text doc for switchresx for my sony bravia 32 lcd (KLV-V32A10E) running on my new mac mini? I am so lost and at my last attempt it made the screen black so i had to start up in safe mode and uninstall switchresx. I'm a fool at this and hope any of you rockstars can help me out here.

Thank you in advance...

anyone???

anyone???

can anyone help me setting up the text doc for switchresx for my sony bravia 32 lcd (KLV-V32A10E) running on my new mac mini? I am so lost and at my last attempt it made the screen black so i had to start up in safe mode and uninstall switchresx. I'm a fool at this and hope any of you rockstars can help me out here.

Thank you in advance...


Please anyone???

andersschroder, can you explain what you mean by setting up a text doc? I am not familar with that feature in SRX. Otherwise I would like to help.

andersschroder, can you explain what you mean by setting up a text doc? I am not familar with that feature in SRX. Otherwise I would like to help.

Thank you! If you read the first post, fedward sets up switchresx by exporting DDC. It outputs the settings that switchresx detects as a text file as far as i understand. Then he changes the text file and loads the info back in. And bam, he has some new modes to select. If there is an easier way to do it, it would be great =)

My lcd screen runs 1366*768 but switchresx detects 1280x720. It leaves the picture with big fat borders around the edge of the screen and if i select overscan it crops too much of the picture.

btw i'm going dvi->hdmi

Hope you can help.

Thank you! If you read the first post, fedward sets up switchresx by exporting DDC. It outputs the settings that switchresx detects as a text file as far as i understand. Then he changes the text file and loads the info back in. And bam, he has some new modes to select. If there is an easier way to do it, it would be great =)

My lcd screen runs 1366*768 but switchresx detects 1280x720. It leaves the picture with big fat borders around the edge of the screen and if i select overscan it crops too much of the picture.

btw i'm going dvi->hdmi

Hope you can help.

Yes, there is an easier way to input a video timing into SwitchRes X by using its built-in calculator that is based on something called the Generalized Timing Formula (GTF). By using the GTF calculator, all you need enter is the format, namely 1366 by 768 in this case, and the desired vertical refresh, usually 50Hz or 60Hz, and SRX will calculate and fill in all the other boxes based on the GTF. The way to do this is as follows:

Open SRX and click on the Custom tab. Click on the "+" symbol to add a new timing. A new window will open with the current video timing values inserted. At the bottom of that window, put a check mark in the box for "Use simplified settings:" and then in the associated pop-up select "GTF". Now go into the timing cells on the window and you should see that you can only enter values for Horizontal Active (set this to 1366) and Vertical Active (set to 768) and then set the correct Vertical Scan rate, which I guess will be 50Hz for that particular Sony, though 60 might also do, so you may need to try both. Then click the OK button and follow the directions for saving and restarting. The newly created timing should then show up within the normal OS X Displays preferences pane.

I have to warn you, I read the English language version of the user manual for your Sony TV and did not find a single mention of how to connect the TV to a PC. That's usually a bad sign. This TV seems to only be compatible with conventional video timings like 1080i, 720p, 480i, etc. but it may not necessarily work from a timing equal to the panel's native resolution. So I can't promise a good outcome from using SRX as I have outlined above. I wish you luck.

Yes, there is an easier way to input a video timing into SwitchRes X by using its built-in calculator that is based on something called the Generalized Timing Formula (GTF). By using the GTF calculator, all you need enter is the format, namely 1366 by 768 in this case, and the desired vertical refresh, usually 50Hz or 60Hz, and SRX will calculate and fill in all the other boxes based on the GTF. The way to do this is as follows:

Open SRX and click on the Custom tab. Click on the "+" symbol to add a new timing. A new window will open with the current video timing values inserted. At the bottom of that window, put a check mark in the box for "Use simplified settings:" and then in the associated pop-up select "GTF". Now go into the timing cells on the window and you should see that you can only enter values for Horizontal Active (set this to 1366) and Vertical Active (set to 768) and then set the correct Vertical Scan rate, which I guess will be 50Hz for that particular Sony, though 60 might also do, so you may need to try both. Then click the OK button and follow the directions for saving and restarting. The newly created timing should then show up within the normal OS X Displays preferences pane.

I have to warn you, I read the English language version of the user manual for your Sony TV and did not find a single mention of how to connect the TV to a PC. That's usually a bad sign. This TV seems to only be compatible with conventional video timings like 1080i, 720p, 480i, etc. but it may not necessarily work from a timing equal to the panel's native resolution. So I can't promise a good outcome from using SRX as I have outlined above. I wish you luck.


Thank you so much. I tried your trick but everytime my lcd goes black and states that it doesnt work with that resolution. Bummer I guess i wont get this screen to work. But thanx anyway for helping me out =)

Hello all, I'm a new member here but have lurked for a while now. Thanks for the good SwitchResX tutorial posted above.

For what it's worth I have my Mac mini 1.66 Core Duo connected via DVI --> HDMI to a Panasonic Viera TH-50PX80U and am using these settings:

Horizontal (H) active – 1224
H front porch – 136
H Sync – 80
H Back porch – 208
Vertical (V) active – 688
V front porch – 22
V sync – 5
V back porch – 36

I originally found these settings for a TH-42PX60B, and adjusted the vertical front and back porch in order to move the image down a bit. At this point I am missing just the top of the Apple leaf in the menu bar, and I have the full Dock. (I'll update this post with a link once I'm allowed :) )

I still need to experiment in order to eliminate the periodic horizontal shift. This thread was a nice help in adjusting the porch settings.

Thanks all!

I used your settings for my 50px80u and I got the same results. Thanks!

Have you updated your settings for better results?

Have you tried to create a custom setting for a 1080 signal from the mac?

Thanks again!

Hello all, I'm a new member here but have lurked for a while now. Thanks for the good SwitchResX tutorial posted above.

For what it's worth I have my Mac mini 1.66 Core Duo connected via DVI --> HDMI to a Panasonic Viera TH-50PX80U and am using these settings:

Horizontal (H) active – 1224
H front porch – 136
H Sync – 80
H Back porch – 208
Vertical (V) active – 688
V front porch – 22
V sync – 5
V back porch – 36

I originally found these settings for a TH-42PX60B, and adjusted the vertical front and back porch in order to move the image down a bit. At this point I am missing just the top of the Apple leaf in the menu bar, and I have the full Dock. (I'll update this post with a link once I'm allowed :) )

I still need to experiment in order to eliminate the periodic horizontal shift. This thread was a nice help in adjusting the porch settings.

Thanks all!

What is the 'Export DDC' Descriptor info based on exactly? Is it factory default info retrieved from the monitor/HDTV or can it be changed by dabbling with the resolutions. The reason I ask is that my 1080p HDTV shows descriptor info exactly as my current resolution of choice (1360x768) but I don't think this non-native resolution would be retrieved from SRX as a factory default, though I'm fairly certain that when I began using this app (before I found this thread) that it wasn't 1920x1080p either because this Sharp doesn't support 1080p over VGA/RGB (though it can be achieved with PowerStrip in XP)... I think originally it came out as 1440 or some oddball resolution, eventually I had the best luck in OSX by going with 1360x768 (same res I use in Windows with ease) but this left black bars on the left and right (horizontal front and back porch) in OS X, unlike XP which displays perfectly (or as perfectly as can be for scaling to non native res.. I've been trying to eliminate these black bars for awhile now and then I came across this thread.

Anyway, I attempted to reset the DDC info back to factory default, and rebooted... with the mindset that it wouldn't make sense to work off DDC info which doesn't fill my screen and which I created. Now, I have blank screen on reboot on both HDTV and Macbook Color LCD. I'm operating in the dark and have no alternative but time machine restore or fresh install. Any ideas?

ok, fresh format, and my suspicion was correct. If the Exported EDID information (i.e. the resolution therein) doesn't look so good (which presumably is the reason one is using SRX in the 1st place), how can proper settings be derived using these numbers as a basis?

I give up trying to get 1:1 Pixel mapping (or as near as I can) over analog miniDP to VGA to my Sharp HDTV with the aluminum Macbook. I have literally spent hours upon hours on this. 'Counter intuitive' is an understatement. Unfortunately Sharp (in their infinite wisdom) does not have proper EDID info on the D64U series. I guess it made more sense to their R&D to have a non native default resolution for VGA input. SWX reports 1360x768, but max according o Sharp over VGA has always been 1600x1200, which is idiotic considering a. it's a WS panel and b. native res is 1080p. However, in Windows environment, I can go with default Powerstrip EIA TIA timings for 1080p and get perfect 1:1 pixel mapping in VGA with my desktop. Not so with Mac and/or SRX in Leopard (I haven't tried in bootcamp wtih Powerstrip). What happens with identical timings (i.e. porches, sync width) is the picture is shifted off far right into the horizontal front porch abyss, and while the vertical timings can be tweaked to get a perfect up and down (which gave me so much hope, and consequently wasted hours of my day testing), no amount of tweaking with horizontal porches and sync width yields a perfect picture with bot no bars on the sides AND no vertical (what can only be described as) pin stripes. I can only get one or the other and both require different active horizontal pixels and different totals. Which brings me to my dilemma... In my scenario you actually must change the horizontal totals (the lower you go from from 2200, the wider it gets) for if you don't, porch adjustments via the quick tool or manually will not do a single thing.

Much easier dealing with my 37" Sceptre in the bedroom which reports accurate EDID 1080p info, but this Sharp is quite another story. :eek:

If only the new MB had a HDMI output, I think it would be quite another story for me, and a lot less headaches.

You need to get a MiniDP to DVI adaptor and then a DVI to HDMI cable. You will then have HDMI out, as you wish.

I have been playing wiht switchresx for a while to try to fix my picture size when piped through the Harman Kardon avr 355 to my toshiba regza 42".
I can't get anything to change at all! doesnt seem to matter what i do. is this the AVR?
two quick questions:
1. do i need to have overscan active in os x?
2. does "reboot" mean quite switchresx and restart, or reboot the computer?

I have been playing wiht switchresx for a while to try to fix my picture size when piped through the Harman Kardon avr 355 to my toshiba regza 42".
I can't get anything to change at all! doesnt seem to matter what i do. is this the AVR?


Yes, it probably is the AVR. Try connecting directly to your TV.

You need to get a MiniDP to DVI adaptor and then a DVI to HDMI cable. You will then have HDMI out, as you wish.negative... i don't have the audio input to support the HDMI TV input I'd be using. Unfortunately, Apple patronizes their loyal users by utilizing esoteric, obscure formats with inferior specifications as the miniDP supposedly doesn't have a pin out for audio. Of course, there's no miniDP to HDMI... don't even get me started on that but sufficed to say, I'm not a proponent of the double adapter solution.

I really wish I could have got this going... I literally spent hours tinkering with SWX; even employed my wife's assistance... and tried it the 'correct' way. No go so I ended up spending way too much time attempting to delineate differences in pixel clock, scan rate, sync width, porches, res, pixel/scan totals, etc. I either get full screen with a lower res and which requires a lower total, but is hampered with translucent pin stripes, or I can get higher resolution, abiding by the 'total' rule, but with bars on both sides... porches adjustments don't do squat.

I'm surprised you are having so much trouble with a D64U series Sharp. That series has a pretty good track record and reputation with the Mac plug-and-play crowd. For most people, it just works. The only thing many people have missed is the Sharp's dot by dot setting, but once they figure that out, they're done. No SRX required.

I can't seem to get my Mac Mini to display properly on my Samsung HLT5087S. I have it hooked up with a DVI->HDMI connector.

With overscan on and 1920x1080 resolution I am losing the menu bar and some other real estate on the screen. If I turn overscan off, the picture won't even fill up the screen at 1920x1080.

I've been mucking around with SwitchResX to no avail. I've gotten the settings from the EDID and plugged them into a custom resolution for the Samsung. Same results as before, so I started adjusting the resolution and porch values as described earlier in this thread.

The resolution seems to make a difference, but if I only change the porch values it doesn't seem to shift the picture at all. Has anyone had any luck with getting a mac mini setup on a Samsung DLP like this?

I will mostly be using Plex, which I can calibrate to compensate for the overscan. However, I would really like to get the desktop fitting the screen adequately if possible.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

I figured it out by accident. In the TV setup if you go to Sources->Edit Names and select "PC" as the name of the source for the Mac Mini the TV then figures out how to size the screen properly.

It was only the slightest bit off and I was able to get it perfect with just a little tweaking afterward.

When you label the input PC it enables a mode in the Picture->Size menu on the TV called Wide PC. This allows the TV to size the picture correctly.

I would also recommend that you configure Setup->Home Theater PC on, as it makes the colors look a lot better.

Hope this helps anyone else with a similar Samsung DLP.

I figured it out by accident. In the TV setup if you go to Sources->Edit Names and select "PC" as the name of the source for the Mac Mini the TV then figures out how to size the screen properly.

It was only the slightest bit off and I was able to get it perfect with just a little tweaking afterward.

When you label the input PC it enables a mode in the Picture->Size menu on the TV called Wide PC. This allows the TV to size the picture correctly.

I would also recommend that you configure Setup->Home Theater PC on, as it makes the colors look a lot better.

Hope this helps anyone else with a similar Samsung DLP.
Hey jpkad - I just found this thread yesterday, been wrestling with getting my HLT5087S to display the output from my Mac Mini correctly. Can you tell me what firmware you're running on that set? Even after assigning the correct name ("PC") to the input (which is HDMI-DVI) i get no such display option (WIDE PC) and cannot find the Setup-> Home Theater PC toggle you speak of. I'm either missing it here or perhaps these features have been enabled in a more recent firmware release? Is this working for you with Overscan on or off? (i.e. - does the WIDE PC setting upscale or downscale?)

I'm generally having the same issue with non-overscan giving me too much border, and overscan mode cropping off my menu bar, etc etc. I've also had a hard time getting SwitchResX to play nice, some of the porch settings seem to yield results, others don't do squat, so its been tough using process of elimination, i never get a black screen, but most of the time the changes dont seem to do anything at all. The documentation for that app is just terribly vague and non-intuitive. If anyone has the true resolution / porch settings for these sets, it would be a huge help for me, using DisplayConfigX's test screens i managed to ballpark the true 1920x1080p rez to somewhere around 1890x1032 with overscan ON (reducing the size of the display to fit inside the frame), but any changes i make seem to occasionally move the display around slightly, but never seems to shrink the overall size.

Hi,
After spending few hours and corresponding with Stephane Madrau, I decided to last try to check with you guys if you can solve my resolution problem.

I was sitting for more than 5 hours trying to configure my Toshiba Regza 42" (1366X768 is the native resolution, to be precise) and could not find a solution - I am keep getting black screen when switching to the custom resolution.
I read both the help, manual, tutorial and forum.

I was hoping to get you advise before giving up.

I am attaching the Exported File (Toshiba-TV).

The custom setting I used was for (I am attaching a screenshot in the word file):
Horizontal - Active : 1360
Vertical - Active : 768
Interlaced - was checked
Positive Sync (both for Horizontal and Vertical) - were checked I used Simplified Settings - GTF (also tried CVT)

Thanks in advanced!

Gadi.

I figured it out by accident. In the TV setup if you go to Sources->Edit Names and select "PC" as the name of the source for the Mac Mini the TV then figures out how to size the screen properly.
...
Hope this helps anyone else with a similar Samsung DLP.

I've registered just to say thank you for this hint :)

It worked perfectly with Mac Mini (2009) connected to Samsung LN-T4661F via Monoprice Mini Display Port to HDMI Adapter.

Thanks again!

Hello,

I recently used the SwitchResX app to fill out a 1920x1080 space with a Boxlight digital projector.

At least, I think I did.

I followed the steps from the tutorial explicitly as I was having the same problem with the truncated 1920x540 resolution.

When I completed all the steps, there was no change, I was still seeing a 1920x540 image on the projector. However, when I went into the Apply Display options in System Preferences, I noticed that a bunch of new options had opened up.

Does that mean my custom resolution preset actually allowed for more options in the Apple Display menu? For some reason, I thought the changes I made in SwitchResX would be applied automatically.

I guess I'm just wondering if my tinkering with SwitchResX did anything or if some other unknown variable changed the options in Display options.

I'm surprised you are having so much trouble with a D64U series Sharp. That series has a pretty good track record and reputation with the Mac plug-and-play crowd. For most people, it just works. The only thing many people have missed is the Sharp's dot by dot setting, but once they figure that out, they're done. No SRX required.

Hey BSteely, big fan of your Sharp related support on Apple Forums... think I've even replied in a couple of your threads.

Aquos doesn't like VGA off the Mac, what can I say... output is matted on WS resolution... even after tweaking endlessly with SRX, it's either the bars, other weird anomalies. I just gave up with marginal settings, and will be content with it until Apple releases a MDP to HDMI adapter with audio. Hopefully they do...

In fairness, Aquos never had their act together with the D64Us as EDID info doesn't report true max res over VGA... what kept me going is that I know with my U series, 1920x1080p 1:1 can be achieved over VGA on PC; not so on the S series (later revision D64U); not so with either [S/U] revision on late '08 model Macs.

I solved through SwitchResX i have a Panasonic TH50PZ80E, but i think (hope!!!) my settings should be correct for all Panasonic 50″.
Here my parameters for 1080p:
Horizontal Vertical
Active 1832 1026
Fr Porch 568 29
Sync W 44 5
Bk Porch 196 65

I hope they will be useful.
P.S. In my Mac Mini a reboot was not sufficient to apply settings. I had to power cycle the mini, or if i only reboot it was necessary enter a "power saving" cycle when OS X loaded, i mean enter and exit pressing power button shortly.

Have a nice tuning!

GM

I've registered just to say thank you for this hint :)

It worked perfectly with Mac Mini (2009) connected to Samsung LN-T4661F via Monoprice Mini Display Port to HDMI Adapter.

Thanks again!

damn i have a 46" sammy as well and I couldnt get this to work for me and my 2009 mini:(

I wish I understood why this is so terribly difficult to get working. After trying with no luck to get a proper resolution with my '09 Mini on a Toshiba 62MX196, I got the settings from someone who got it to work with a very similar Toshiba 62MX195. This resulted in a black screen for me. I've tried many other settings based on information found in this thread or other places on the web, and they are either not applied, or result in a black screen. The native resolution of this TV is 1920x1080@60Hz. That is what the Mini is outputting and it results in black borders on four sides with overscan off and missing edges with overscan on. I've probably spent a good 20 hours on this over the last few days. Any ideas to get this working before I go back to vga?

Thanks!!!

Well, I got it working great on a TH-C50CD18 (the costco model of the p80U) with the exception of a bright blue line running down the right side of the screen. I'm thinking I need to make the image about 6 pixels wider and move it over to the right, should this work? I'm going to try when I get home, but it's frustrating that everything else is perfect except for that

I have a Panasonic TC-P50X1 hooked up to an Intel Mac Mini. After several hours and countless attempts, I'm stumped. Similar to many here, the image is either too small with overscan off or cropped with overscan on. Custom SRX settings that make me optimistic only give me a black screen.

I'm open to any and all suggestions.

Thanks

I'm guessing no by the lack of responses, but I'll ask anyway. Does anyone have any helpful information that they may be able to provide to assist in my many futile attempts to get my '09 Mini to display a proper resolution on my Toshiba 62MX196. I've spent so many hours over the last couple of weeks to try to get this working, I'm willing to try almost anything at this point. I've even tried going to VGA but that didn't help at all.

Thanks!!!

I figured it out by accident. In the TV setup if you go to Sources->Edit Names and select "PC" as the name of the source for the Mac Mini the TV then figures out how to size the screen properly.


I can also confirm jpkad's post about the Samsung LCD set:

He was exactly right, although I was a little confused at first. I had not bothered to setup my INPUT names on the TV yet and I thought from his post that you could spell out your own INPUT names (you can so this on Sony sets I believe) ANYWAYS, it turns out there is a predefined list of names you can assign a given input and this choice affects how the set interprets the incoming signal.

I checked the manual and sure enough there is one line that references this:

"When a PC with a resolution of 1920x1080 (or 720p as I found out) is connected to the HDMI IN 1 port, you should set the HDMI/DVI mode to DVI PC in the Edit Name of the Input Mode"

Wham-o. No need to futz with displayconfigx or switchresx, it worked perfectly. no overscan. no black border.

thanks jpkad, you saved a few of my Saturday hours!

btw, the model number of my LCD is LN46B530 (it's a canadian model, eh)

Hello everybody, I have problems using my external monitor with my Macbook Pro. I have stumbled upon this post using Google.

I have a Iiyama Prolite E2403WS monitor that runs at a resolution of 1920x1200 @60 Hz. Now this reolution is not listed in the standard resolutions that Apple offers us... My Macbook runs OSX leopard 10.5.7.

So I did some research on the web and found the SwitchResX application. But I am a bit of fuzzed by how I am supposed to use it. Even when I read the tutorial at the start of this post I get lost... Can Anybody pls kindly tell me what I need to enter and where...? And than what to do.., save it somewhere and reboot?

I hope any of you can help me out..?
cheers,
Taz

Greetings, I have a Hitachi 50 1080P Plasma. I followed your directions in the text file however it shows my display as 720p? Any ideas?

hi everyone,

this seems the best place to ask questions about switchresx! :)

i have an old-fashioned crt tv, it's a goodmans something-or-other and it's widescreen. i'm conncecting to my intel macbook (gma 950) via the apple mini-dvi to video adapter and a coaxial cable to the composite input on the tv. someday i'll buy a nice expensive hdtv but for now i'm stuck with this!

i have managed to use switchresx to get a widescreen image rather than a stretched 4:3 image, which was my main aim, but i'd really like to get rid of the border around the image. with overscan on i lose 16 pixels from the top and bottom and 40 pixels from the left and right. without overscan, there's an irritating border around the picture.

my problem is that adjusting the porch values doesn't make any difference to the size of the picture! the resolution changes, but the physical size of the image is constant, no matter how much i adjust things. i've noticed a couple of other people on this thread had the same issue but i couldn't find a solution.

does anyone have any ideas of what to try next?

cheers,
matt

Everything was going great right up through 10.5.6 using 1024 * 768 (with overscan option checked) on my Mac mini connected to a Sharp Aquos 32" LCD via DVI -> HDMI. All that was ruined by OS 10.5.7 and I have been cursed by 1024 * 720 with huge black bars all around my monitor and fuzzy text.

I was hoping that 10.5.8 would restore everything back to normal, but have had no luck at all in that respect.

The resolution option is there, but clicking on it blacks out my TV and I am forced to screen-share into the mini to get a picture again.

Why would 1024 * 768 in 10.5.6 be different from 1024 * 768 in 10.5.8?

I have been tinkering with ScreenResX for a few hours and have come up with nothing usable yet.

Thank you for any suggestions anyone might have.

KH

In response to my own post, just in case someone else has the same issue:

Tinkering with SwitchResX for several hours never came up with anything. I decided to give DisplayConfigX a try and literally four clicks later, it came up with a perfectly matched profile for me that filled the screen and had no blurry text. I didn't have to mess with porches or sync rates -- they were all filled in automatically.

So problem solved, but I'm still unsure why the problem ever arose -- why in the world would Apple take resolutions away, and then when they put them back in the next update, they don't work?

I figured it out by accident. In the TV setup if you go to Sources->Edit Names and select "PC" as the name of the source for the Mac Mini the TV then figures out how to size the screen properly.

It was only the slightest bit off and I was able to get it perfect with just a little tweaking afterward.

When you label the input PC it enables a mode in the Picture->Size menu on the TV called Wide PC. This allows the TV to size the picture correctly.

I would also recommend that you configure Setup->Home Theater PC on, as it makes the colors look a lot better.

Hope this helps anyone else with a similar Samsung DLP.

Hi! I'm new here and had a question on your setup. I'm using similar: Mac Mini 2009 with a Samsung UN46B8000XF TV i got couple of weeks ago. Ever since i hooked up the Mini to it (and i tried both mini-dvi to HDMI and miniDP to HDMI) I've been having cropping issues where i couldn't see the menu bar at all and bottom part of the dock was also hidden from view. I saw the great SwitchResX tutorial on this forum but that didn't help (tried both older and newer versions, always got "Mode not supported" from the TV). I've updated the TV to the latest firmware too. Nothing worked. I gave up and turned "Overscan" off which was the only way i could see all of the Mac screen while using native 1920x1080@60Hz. But that doesn't fill the screen up completely.
Tonight i went into the TV menu and started playing with naming the inputs and while doing that i noticed that screen was flickering (like as if changing resolutions) when i was going through various names i can use for the inputs.
And sure enough, as soon as i scrolled to DVI PC or PC for my DVI/HDMI1 input - the screen filled up with the mac screen. How weird is this?
Whoever put this functionality into the "Name the inputs" menu - should be executed without trial...
In any event, there's still one issue I'm facing: color.
When using DVI as the name of the DVI/HDMI1 input - i get amazing rich colors but the screen is cropped. When screen is fully visible and fully filled - i get not so rich colors, they seem sort of washed out and dull. Anyone has any ideas how to fix this?
I can post pics if that helps...
I'd really like to get this to work once and for all. Never imagined i'd be having this many issues with such a simple setup.
Oh yeah, i'm on Snow Leopard...just upgraded few days ago...

Thanks in advance!

Sal.

Hope this helps anyone else with a similar Samsung DLP.

Thanks for your post. I am new to Mac so I was wondering how I would solve this. I have a Samsung HL61a750 and my HTPC died a while back so I replaced it with a new Mac Mini (2.26Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo with the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M/256MB). I had the same problem I've read all over the place; Too much overscan (top menu bar getting cut off) or too much black space around the desktop if I used the overscan option in the Mac's display settings.

I switched the label for my HDMI3/DVI input to PC and turned the overscan option off on the Mac and just like that it was almost taking up the entire display area. You mentioned you had to do some slight modifications after that. What would those have been? I have about 1/2" of black on both sides and 1/3" on top and bottom that I'd like to get rid of if possible. It's just a relief to have it this size without the overscan problem.

Maybe I should give SwitchResX a try. I did try DisplayConfigX briefly. It seemed on my display, because it was recognized by the OS (10.6.1), that I was not able to change any of the settings.

kompuntu, do you have Color Gaumet settings on your TV? Have you tried playing with those? I am using sRGB and have my Gamma set at -3. The TV's color, tint, and sharpness are grayed out of me in this "PC" mode.

I have the new edition of the Mini (Nvidia 9400M graphics) and have my Samsung connected via min-dvi port to a minidvi-dvi apple adaptor then a dvi to HDMI cable. The TV's picture size is set to "16:9" (other options are 4:3 and wide-fit. The latter causes even more overscan).

I have the Mini set with the overscan option checked. without it, the image is way to small for the display, and SwitchResX can't increase the size enough.

The porch settings do not effect the image position at all (on reboot or on display un and re-plugging). I can get close to filling the screen, but I'm still off 55 px or so in the horizontal and 20 px or so in the vertical. compressing or extending the image size causes artifacts and blinking on the edges.

In bootcamp, I loaded up the latest NVIDIA driver set, and was able to get the overscan corrected in 2 clicks. (Boy, Apple needs to so get this working in OS X this easy). The Bootcamp 3.0 driver set didn't have a functional overscan correction, but updating to the latest and greatest from NVIDIA worked perfectly. Here's a clip of the info the NVIDIA panel shows for it's working resolution:
http://web.me.com/dci2112/XP.png

Entering this in SwitchResX doesn't work, the TV says "no signal" when I select the resolution in SwitchResX. Here's the SwitchResX version of the config:
http://web.me.com/dci2112/SwitchResX.png

I tried unchecking the positive horizontal sync in SwitchResX, and that didn't work either.

I saw the posts about later model Sammy LCD's and the Input naming, that didn't do anything for my older model.

Any ideas or suggestions?

i have the latest model macmini and was having issues with overscan like everyone else here seemed to be. I am hooked up using dvi to my TV (LG Model 47LC7DF)

I read through (Thanks everyone) for all the info in this thread. I got switchresx and tried to tweak things and kept on getting "Invalid Format" for my tv. Finally I read about changing the labelings of inputs.

If you go menu - option - Input Label and set the label of the hdmi input for the mini to PC, it immediately works. I have overscan turned on and the picture is exactly correct. No need for switchresx anymore. Hope this helps someone with a LG tv in the future.

I putzed around for several hours with no positive results.
I was able to blank out the screen.
Mac Mini 10.4.11 > Samsung Ln52B750
Any help would be appreciated.

Monitor Description blocks:
---------------------------
Descriptor #0 is Timing definition:
Mode = 1920 x 1080 @ 60.000Hz
Pixel Clock............. 148.50 MHz Non-Interlaced
Active.................. 1920 pixels 1080 lines
Front Porch............ 88 pixels 4 lines
Sync Width............ 44 pixels 5 lines
Back Porch............ 148 pixels 36 lines
Blanking............... 280 pixels 45 lines
Total................... 2200 pixels 1125 lines
Scan Rate............... 67.500 kHz 60.000 Hz
Image Size.............. 160 mm 90 mm
Border.................. 0 pixels 0 lines

Sync: Digital separate with
* Positive vertical polarity
* Positive horizontal polarity

Hello, first of all, thank you for this tutorial, it really helps a lot! I hope someone here can help me with my output on the tv.

Here is what I'm using :
Old MacBook Pro (silver keys)
DVI to component cable
Sony Bravia 40"

I've been tryting to set up my computer to output the screen on my tv, but it doesnt seem to work even though I seem kinda close I think. Here is a screenshot of my tv.

http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/4403/photo21fp.jpg

As you can see, the colors are all wrong, its all green-ish and it keeps shaking. There is a part of the tv that isnt rendering anything and my screen seems cropped.

I tried to export my DDC but Descriptor 0,1,2,3 are all empty. It seems like the computer isnt recognizing the tv.

Does anyone know which resolution I should use with my Sony Bravia 40". To get the results I have now I'm using a standard 1920X1080 60hz.

Thank you!

Here is what I'm using:
DVI to component cable

You can't use a cable like that, you need a transcoder ($120+) if you have any hope of going component. Plenty of threads about this in the forum. Try a search on "vga to component transcoder." Better still, try going VGA, DVI or HDMI in to your TV.