Force DVI/HDMI resolutions and refresh rates

How to Force DVI or HDMI Resolutions and Refresh Rates in Windows 7​

   Information

There have been innumerable posts on SevenForums about things like 59Hz refresh rates and 1080p 16:9 HDTVs that display only 1024x768 when connected with DVI or HDMI. After a ton of research and development I think I've got a working solution for virtually all of these issues.

Starting with Vista, Microsoft has required graphics vendors to read and respect monitor capability information from the display itself if they wanted to pass Windows Hardware Quality Labs (WHQL) certification. This display capability data is encapsulated in an EDID. Few HDTV manufacturers sought WHQL and it's unclear whether Microsoft tests display EDIDs from monitor manufacturers as a WHQL requirement. Please let me know if you have a WHQL display that seems to have a bad EDID.

As a result, many DVI/HDMI connected HDTVs and some monitors are locked into displaying only those resolutions and refresh rates that are specified in the EDID. No graphics adapter or driver is supposed to allow configurations not listed in the EDID at least as a default. Newer ATI drivers allow for a small number of HD resolutions to be forced but it's been hit or miss for the users I've surveyed and nVidia's offerings don't seem to be a 100% solution either.

The natural solution would appear to be changing the EDID information in the display. Rarely, this is possible with Powestrip if the display stores the EDID in a flash memory but more commonly the EDID is stored in an EPROM that can only be updated with specialized hardware. I've talked with several display vendors during the development of this tutorial and none of them consider a bad EDID grounds for warranty service. So if next to no displays support updating the EDID through software and the manufacturer won't fix the hardware, what are we left to do? Break out the toolkit and warm up the soldering iron?

While that's well within my capabilities it seems to put some end-users off a bit, although I really can't understand why -- I love the smell of solder in the morning! But there has to be a better way right? Again, Microsoft has a solution if you really dig for it and do your homework: How to Use an INF to Override the Monitor EDID While it's not intended for end users, what really fun stuff is? The challenge was to develop a method accessible to a greater audience -- to improve on the solution that Microsoft provides that's intended for hardware manufacturers and make it work for us.

   Warning

Prerequisites

• Read and understand both linked documents above.
• Post questions if anything is unclear before you proceed.
• Don't blame me when you ruin your $3000 HDTV. Smoke can happen.
• Read up on what your displays true capabilities are stick close to them.
• This is more of a coffee tutorial than a beer tutorial...

Procedure

1. Download View attachment Phoenix.zip and extract it to a working folder.
2. Run it and click the registry toolbar button.
3. Click the pencil toolbar button for edit mode.
4. Change the EDID settings to reflect you display's true capabilities
5. Pay special attention to the Standard Timings tab.
6. Detailed Timing blocks 2-4 provide some very interested additional options.
7. Save the EDID to a .DAT file in the working folder.
8. Download moninfo.exe and install it.
9. Open the saved .DAT with MonInfo and make sure it doesn't complain about it
10. If it does post here for help
11. If MonInfo reads in an displays the settings the way you configured them in Phoenix then...
12. Select Create INF... from the file menu and save it to the working folder.
13. Feel free to edit the strings in the INF to your liking.
14. Open Start, type devmgmt.msc and press Enter.
15. Select the monitor you want to change, right click and select Update Driver Software
16. Use the tried and true "Have Disk" method to select the INF and install it.
17. Reboot and enjoy your new resolution!

Related Tutorials

---

• How to Change the Screen Refresh Rate in Windows 7
• How to Change the Screen Resolution in Windows 7
• How to Create a Custom Screen Refresh Rate with NVIDIA Control Panel in Windows

 

[zende]

I'm in serious need of help!

First of all - thanks for the amazing tutorial and the great amount of time you must have put into it.

Now, to my question; I have followed the whole tutorial perfectly, but something's not working. When I am to update my drivers with the .inf-file I created, it cant find it. It just isn't there. Doesn't matter where on the computer I place it, it just cant find any .inf files.

I saw another guy have this problem and he fixed it by changing the directories of the .inf file. Doesn't help me at all.

I'm in desperate need of help!

Thanks alot!!!

 

[baarod]

I'm in serious need of help!

First of all - thanks for the amazing tutorial and the great amount of time you must have put into it.

Now, to my question; I have followed the whole tutorial perfectly, but something's not working. When I am to update my drivers with the .inf-file I created, it cant find it. It just isn't there. Doesn't matter where on the computer I place it, it just cant find any .inf files.

I saw another guy have this problem and he fixed it by changing the directories of the .inf file. Doesn't help me at all.

I'm in desperate need of help!

Thanks alot!!!

12) Select Create INF... from the file menu and save it to the working folder.

Were there any error messages when you did this? Where did you save it? I almost always use the desktop. If you try it again and watch carefully this step, save to the desktop and then look there do you see the INF file?

 

[zende]

I'm in serious need of help!

First of all - thanks for the amazing tutorial and the great amount of time you must have put into it.

Now, to my question; I have followed the whole tutorial perfectly, but something's not working. When I am to update my drivers with the .inf-file I created, it cant find it. It just isn't there. Doesn't matter where on the computer I place it, it just cant find any .inf files.

I saw another guy have this problem and he fixed it by changing the directories of the .inf file. Doesn't help me at all.

I'm in desperate need of help!

Thanks alot!!!

12) Select Create INF... from the file menu and save it to the working folder.

Were there any error messages when you did this? Where did you save it? I almost always use the desktop. If you try it again and watch carefully this step, save to the desktop and then look there do you see the INF file?

Thanks for the answer!

The thing that fixed it though, was formatting my computer with another cd and it all worked - must've been something wrong with the cd or the likes of that.

Now to my NEW problem, I can finally get 100hz in 800x600 which I use for gaming. Problem is that I feel like my hz drops, all the time - when I start up it's at 100hz, then it drops down to what feels like 60-70 for a couple of seconds, then it goes up again. I can't hold a stable hz for over 10 seconds which is REALLY annoying.

Have you ever heard of a problem like this?

I am using a CRT with a VGA connector, connected to a DVI adapter (that's the name of it, right?) which is then plugged into my computer. I am willing to try chopping of different pins, thing is I don't know which. Does it make any change if I chop off the two pins in the VGA that people talk about, will that make a difference when I use an adapter? Or should I take a pin off of the DVI adapter? Whatever you tell me I'll try!

Thanks alot and thanks for the answer again!!

 

[Sephyr]

Alright so.. I had the problem of somehow the computer making my monitor realise it's a Generic non-PnP monitor when it actually isn't. I scoured the internet until I found this tutorial.
I've done everything as stated, and it's managed to get my resolution back to 1920x1080, but now the screen constantly flickers. For the life of me I just can't figure it out? I thought maybe it was a refresh rates problem, so I went into the .INF file and change the refresh rates manually next to the string of preferred/max settings for the monitor. It still doesn't work.
Any help would be greatly appreciated .

Regards,
Sephyr.

 

[Jonsmith]

Hello, all.

Excellent guide. Much googling led me to this site and it seems to be the only one with a clear picture of how to over-ride your EDID and custom-build your monitor timings with 7.

I joined to ask a question: other than guesswork and repeated reboot/blank screen/registry cleans, is there any efficient way to force my 3007WFP to see a lower-than-normal max resolution?

Every timing profile I've built so far has simply caused the monitor to go blank. I have yet to try breaking pin 7, but the monitor is definitely accepting the EDID overrides, as when the new inf is installed and system rebooted, the monitor goes blank.

I'm attempting to force my 3007WFP to see -only- 1920x1080@60hz resolution, in the hopes that AMD Eyefinity will not override it, stretching the 1920 res across my 30 inch monitor with an accompanying fuzziness of text and imagery.

 

[thong]

this is for radeon ati cards

thinking outside the box

I noticed that all monitor modes (including 100hz etc) are available with drivers 9.x

update to 10.x or 11.x and they disappear (back to max 85hz)

is it possible to isolate the "monitor" driver part of 9.x

then after installing 10.x or 11.x, paste this 9.x "monitor driver" to the system

Does this make sense ?

 

[livram79]

Hello.
My netbook is Samsung NP-148 Plus. Unfortunately the Intel driver doesn't provide any screen resolution with 75Hz refresh rate, all options are 60Hz only. But when I used Linux I could set it even to 96Hz and it worked perfectly. My problem is I don't know how to create an .INF file with these modelines:

#1024x600 @ 75.00 Hz (GTF) hsync: 47.02 kHz; pclk: 63.20 MHz
Modeline "1024x600_75.00" 63.20 1024 1080 1184 1344 600 601 604 627 -HSync +Vsync



# 1024x600 74.82 Hz (CVT) hsync: 47.06 kHz; pclk: 62.50 MHz
Modeline "1024x600_75.00" 62.50 1024 1072 1176 1328 600 603 613 629 -hsync +vsync


Can somebody create an .INF file for me with these modelines?
Thank you.

 

[john357]

Hi,

I am having trouble running the phoenix.exe file.
When I click on the registry icon on the toolbar I am getting the following error:

Microsoft Visual C++ Library
"Buffer overrun detected!"

Anyone with similar problem?

Thanks!

 

[tal12]

tnx

 

[jrenjoi]

First off much thanks to Baarod for this cool tutorial.
After much reading (all 29 pages) and messing with the Edid creator I have still not solved my issue, probably due to my lack of computer intelligence lol. Here is some background on my current setup:
Windows 7 64 bit
ATI Radeon 5770 Crossfire
Samsung LN-S1951W monitor (here lies my problem) Get Downloads, Firmware, Manuals and Software for Samsung LN-S1951W
Connected to video card via DVI to HDMI (dvi port is on monitor)

This monitor does not support PC DVI even though it has the port (samsung told me this), the pc support is suppose to come from VGA port but that defeats my whole HD ambition. When I initially plug in the monitor (DVI to HDMI) the computer recognizes it as generic plug n play, but I only get one very low resolution. I followed the tutorial trying to set up a EDID for 1440x900 and several other high resolutions to no avail. When I try to switch to them I get a black screen "DVI cannot support" and revert. I uploaded the current .inf I am using and for some reason I was able to load the 1600x900 resolution but only at 30hz interlaced, can we say flicker? lol. Anyways I am hoping someone knows how to edit or create an .inf that I could use (or maybe force a higher refresh rate for the 1600x900, already tried powerstrip etc...). Dont really have an ideal resolution in mind just something greater than 1280x? and with a decent refresh rate 50+?.
Thanks for your time.

 

[savi0r]

Windows 7 Home Premium x64
Monitor: Samsung 2233rz

I have been using this monitor on my desktop (Windows 7 Ultimate x64) and it has been working perfectly without any problems.
Recently just bought a new laptop but it doesn't have a DVI port, so I have purchased a DVI dual link to HDMI converter.
The display on the monitor is working correctly but every single resolution is locked at 60 hertz.
When I open up Phoenix and try to Extract a EDID from registry, the box is blank and does not show my monitor.

I am desperate for help and hope there is a fix for this issue.

Edit:
After much research, you can't get 120 hertz from a DVI dual link to HDMI converter.
There are some people saying it is possible with dvi dual link to display port though.

 

[alexmartin13]

Forcing 5.1 audio

Here's a new one. I need to find a way of forcing 5.1 surround sound.

I've read through the forums and can't seem to find a solution to this problem:

My HTPC is connected by HDMI to my Onkyo AV receiver over a long distance, and this works perfectly to give me 5.1 Audio and 1080p. No worries with resolution. However, I have an HDMI matrix which feeds a second TV in another room. It works great, except for one thing. When the second TV is turned on it is detected (correctly) as stereo and bumps the whole system down into stereo mode. I have an older Panasonic TV which played nice with 5.1 whilst outputting stereo from its own speakers, so I suspect that this one will cope with a forced 5.1, but it's EDID does not allow this automatically.

So, it is my understanding that, as well as video, audio is handled by EDID. However, tools like Phoenix seem only to have settings for monitor timings. Am I missing something buried in the software, or does anyone know of any other tools/methods of solving this?

Please note that my HTPC is on the other side of the house so I would like to avoid wiring up new cables!

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[perrynoid]

I attempted this process, hoping top add 3D capability with my PC when used with the new Sony 24" Playstation monitor. I had read on other forums that people have been able to get 3D to work with a 120 Hz refesh rate. After following the steps, my computer did allow me to change the refresh rate to 120 Hz. However, the screen goes black and a message appears, "Not Supported". Does anyone have any ideas how I might proceed to troubleshoot this issue? This monitor is advertized to support up to 240 Hz.

 

[pocketz]

Dear All,

I'm writing following my purchase of a HD, 3D Television which I'm using as a monitor: A Viera/Panasonic TX-P42UT30B. Having seen its alleged capabilities to have been up to 600hz refresh rate advertised in store, I grabbed it but am uncertain of the purchase now that Windows 7 only allows for 60hz.

Please could someone bring closure to this in suggesting how I could go about setting my TV safely to a higher refresh rate, resuming a resolution of 1080p in the meantime (SAFELY)? I am using a GTX 550 Ti (Nvidia, PNY) With HDMI>Mini HDMI.

I'd be extremely grateful for anyone's help here. I've tried revealing the unlisted modes on Windows, but it doesn't allow for anything over 60hz.

Thanks very much!

Chris

 

[FrostyAMD]

Is there any way to mod a dvi-D single link cable to prevent edid info ?

 

[pseudox]

I have a
LG 42LV5400

It should do 1920x 1080 120 hz


I only get 60 hz and lower in the nvidia control panel
I have a Nvidia GTX 580 connected to the display through mini hdmi to hdmi


I opened phoenix but I cant find where to edit the native refresh rate and resolution could someone help please

 

[execute5150]

so i was able to do 85hz with phoenix, it actually does 85hz without any problem , but it keeps showing a watermark on-screen saying "mode not supported"

but it actually does 85hz, i can see the difference between 75hz .-.

any1 knows how to fix this???

 

[Phunk2]

i need help display driver and monitor

What troubles me is that I do that and it works but still says I have only 85hz when I press the menu button on my monitor. The first picture is what happens when I check that box and and apply it to the resolution 1024x768.

i have installed graphic card and monitor driver but i cant go 75hz and cata control center not show details for monitor my monitor bugged or graphic card?
hd5670 and syncmaster 940bw

 

[Brett13]

Hey all,

Hoping I can get some better understanding of how to use the Phoenix EDID for my particular issue.

I basically need to force a resolution for my monitor that is 1920x1080 16:9 60hz, however, I do not want the possibility of any other resolution at all.

I am having a hard time understanding how I can do this with the EDID information from Phoenix. Is this possible? Can anyone give me a quick walkthrough of how to do it if it can be done?

I tried to disable everything in the standard timings but what I have above, but I am unsure if it worked as I was still able to reduce the resolution through windows, which is obviously an issue for what I need to accomplish.

Thanks for your help!

 

[XpressO]

I'm going to ask, before I try anything. My monitor is LG Flatron M1994D. It's native resolution is 1680x1050 @ 60Hz. My graphics card is ATI Radeon 6870.

The problem: the EDID from the display through HDMI gives wrong info as 1920x1080 @ 75Hz so MORE than is supported actually.

Do I have to be afraid of smoke and fire if I'm going to try and use this fix to change it to 1680x1050 @ 60Hz? My logic says no I don't have to be afraid, but how is it?

EDIT: Why is this a problem to me?
Because it seems that the game Star Wars The Old Republic seems to adjust it's 3D resolution by EDID but the 2D interface by the preferences menu of the game. Thus I'm seeing correct 1680x1050 2D interface resolution but a stretched 3D resolution as it is using 1920x1080 in 1680x1050 space.. does that even make sense?