I can't get my native resolution

[Balian]

This problem has been going on the quite so time now. This is my 2nd monitor within the year (or so) that this has been going on and it's happened to both monitors. About a year ago (maybe a little less, I can't remember exactly), I saw a Windows Update for my Nvidia GeForce 9600GT drivers. Now up until this point, on my old monitor (oh, and I was using XP at the time), my monitors ideal resolution was 1440x900. After the update, the highest I could achieve without the screen becoming fuzzy was 1280x768. So, about 6 months ago, I had to reformat my computer and when it was finished, the computer was back to 1600x900 but I foolishly installed that same update and was back to 1280x768 again. I just recently got a new monitor and today, I was finally getting tired of the low resolution and so I reformatted again but this time I have Windows 7. The driver disks that came with my motherboard don't work for 7, so I had to search out the drivers. I found the audio drivers fine but I've tried several different versions of the video drivers but none will give me the 1600x900 resolution. Can someone tell me what the heck is wrong? If you need any more information, just ask, but I've given a lot. Sorry this was so long. Oh, and on a side note, this same thing happened to my dad when he installed that same update.

 

[Petey7]

Well, I have to ask which do you actually have. 1440x900 or 1600x900? You mention one, then the other, while still talking about the same monitor if I'm not mistaken. One is a 16:9 aspect ratio, the other a 16:10. If you use the wrong aspect ratio, it is going to look weird.

 

[Balian]

Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot to say that the 1600x900 resolution is my current monitor. I just lead up to it for comparison.

EDIT: When I said it was back to 1600x900 after the reformat, I meant 1440x900. I was confusing myself because 1600x900 is my new monitor's ideal resolution.

 

[Petey7]

To play it safe, uninstall the current graphics driver, then install the newest one from NVIDIA, which can be found here: NVIDIA DRIVERS 258.96 WHQL

 

[Balian]

The newest driver is what caused my display to stop working. There was an update about a year ago, like I mentioned, and after that, I've never been able to get my native resolution. Oh, and I've already tried installing the version you mentioned because Nvidia recommended it and I got the same result.

 

[Petey7]

Are you sure? The date on that driver is a little over a month old. It definitely is not the one that came out a year ago. Thats for darn sure.

 

[Balian]

I didn't say it was the same one from a year ago. But I've already tried the one you gave me and it produces the same result as several of the older ones, including the first driver for 7. I can't figure out what the heck is going on. I'm just finally doing something about it because I'm tired settling for crappy resolutions.

 

[CarlTR6]

You may have to experiment with various NVidia drivers. I tried five before I got my display working properly and no screen freezes. I ended up using the third or fourth one down the list.

 

[Balian]

You may have to experiment with various NVidia drivers. I tried five before I got my display working properly and no screen freezes. I ended up using the third or fourth one down the list.

That's kinda what I figured but I was hoping that I wouldn't have to. I've already tried the newest and oldest. This might be a stupid question, but do I have to uninstall the old driver before installing another or will it overwrite it (whether it's newer or old)?

 

[Petey7]

It is recommended to uninstall the old one first. Sometimes problems occur if you don't. If the driver installs itself automatically, boot into safe mode after uninstalling the "old" one, and install the "new" one from there.

 

[Balian]

OK, I'll try a few and let you guys know if I have any luck.

 

[Balian]

OK, I finally found a driver that seems to work. All the way back to July 21, 2009 but all of the text on screen appears to be a little fuzzy. I think it may be because of how small of text is though, because it looks fine when I increase the size in the Control Panel. I have a 20" screen, so did that sound possible?

 

[Petey7]

For that resolution vs. screen size, it makes sense to me. You could try using a lower res if you wanted, although obviously not the one were using.

 

[CarlTR6]

It is recommended to uninstall the old one first. Sometimes problems occur if you don't. If the driver installs itself automatically, boot into safe mode after uninstalling the "old" one, and install the "new" one from there.

+1 Petey is spot on.

 

[Balian]

For that resolution vs. screen size, it makes sense to me. You could try using a lower res if you wanted, although obviously not the one were using.

Ok, well I can deal with a little blurriness. It's not that noticable. Thanks for the help.