HDTV to PC connection help

[methodius]

Okay - I have been around computers and have been working on them for, well, longer than I care to admit. Bought my first PC in 1982. I have lost a step or two the past couple of years tech wise but I ain't stupid. This one has got me going in circles. I have to be missing something easy. I am trying to connect my PC to my 42" Philips LCD HDTV via an DVI to HDMI cable. We don't have cable/sattelite anymore and there are a couple of shows we watch as a family and would like to do it in the living room rather than crammed around the computer. I simply want the TV to display the exact same picture as what is on the monitor. I do not want an extended display or virual display - just simultaneous display. I tried unplugging the monitor and making the TV the only device/monitor connected and the same thing - a black balnk screen; not a blue screen.

Specs are as follows: NVidia 9800GT Dual DVI video card running on a Windows 7 Home premium 64-bit system connected to a Philips LCD flat panel TV w/ 4 HDMI connections. The DVI to HDMI cable is connected to display 2 in the back of the computer and to HDMI2 in the back of the TV. I know a signal is getting through as the computer recognizes the TV as a Philips display and shows a black screen rather than a no-signal blue screen.

The cable is a high quality shielded model - so interference or signal bleed is not the issue. Am I just missing a setting of some sort? i have been all through the muti-display settings in Windos 7's version of control pannel and the NVidia control pannel. I have even tried setting the TV as the primary display and it is still black/blank. What happened to plug-n-play? AARRRGHGHGH!

[methodius]

Never mind. I figured it out. It was suppose to be plug-n-play. The NVidia driver was automatic but it was trying to set the resolution too high for the TV. Once I set the screen resolution down it worked like a charm. Off to join the kiddos for a little family time.

[jpa]

glad you figured it out. I had the same problem with my PS3 when I switched from my living room tv (1080p) to my bedroom (720p). Had to figure out how to "restore defaults" of all things.

[Pierre!]

It is finally getting easier to connect a TV to a PC.

I remember when you had to sacrifice chickens and give up a first born to have it happen...:wow:

Course, that was a little bit of time after we had to stand naked in a bathtub to upgrade ram...:cool:

Merry Christmass!

[GIockGuy24]

I had my Commodore 64 hooked up to a TV but it was hard read, so I've switched it to a monochrome monitor and it looks great now.

[methodius]

A C64? Now that is Old School Kool!!!! I have not seen one since high school - freshman year I think. My best friend had an Amiga 128 later in HS - "Go 64" was still one of our favorite command.

[Adjuster]

Look at the specs for your tv and find out what the 'native resolution' is. Set your video card to this resolution for best picture quality. Also make sure you have the most updated driver for your card.

I have a problem where if I am watching my computer on the tv but switch over to a different source such as cable or dvd then switch back over to computer the tv somehow looses its computer signal and wont recognize it. I have to shut down the computer and restart for the tv to pick the signal back up. Anyone have a solution?