monitor problem

drewskie351 · Aug 25, 2006, 04:06 AM

Hi i have a problem with my monitor. My horizontal size has shrunk and have about 1to 2 inches of black on each side and about the same of grey black. The desktop is not cut off just shrunk. I have tried everything I can think of , monitor adjustments, vc adjustments. connected another monitor and works ok. This happened once before and I fixed it somehow, don't remember what I did. can a program like webshots or weather channel screen saver cause this to happen? The webshots screen saver pics started to shink from full screen to what my monitor size is now. can anyone help me? thanks

swimtech · Aug 26, 2006, 12:17 AM

Is there a bowing of the sides of the picture and have you tried accessing the menus on the monitor to reset to the defaults? Could you post the make and model of your monitor? A picture of the screen would help too if you can...

Normally, programs don't reset screen dimensions - resolutions yes, but not the monitor's own internal horizontal and vertical settings.

You could check and see that your preferred resolution and refresh rate are still set properly - if so, try resizing the screen with the monitor controls. If they won't adjust to give you a full screen (or don't change at all...) at resolutions and refresh rates that are supported by the monitor, then I would think the monitor is defective (problem in system control or deflection circuitry).

drewskie351 · Aug 26, 2006, 12:52 AM

It's a ctl (computer technology link) 7DLN. Yes I've tried all monitor and program adjustments with no luck. I think the monitors toast.

Have no way to show pic of monitor.

BlueMak · Aug 26, 2006, 01:51 AM

Are you certain no one fiddled with the monitor settings?

swimtech · Aug 26, 2006, 08:23 PM

Thanks for the make and model information...

Beside the fact that you can't get the monitor to look "right", do the monitor controls have any effect at all? Also, what resolution and refresh rate do you have the monitor set for? I know these questions might sound redundant and simplistic - but will help me determine if your problem is fixable - ok?

drewskie351 · Aug 27, 2006, 02:34 AM

H.size will max out but still not full screen, V.size works fine but makes the desktop look stretched so I down size v. to look right. My monitor is a 17" but the way I have to have it set makes it more like a 15". Ill try to explain how it looks, if you set your v. or h. settings on monitor controls down from the normal screen size you will get black space on ether side of the desktop view, this is what mine looks like on H. size with it maxed out to 100. The resolution is 1024 x 768 and refresh rate at 60 hertz. It doesn't matter what setting I use H. size stays the same, plus i have grey black, the area the desktop does not fill but shows the monitor getting signal, like if you did not have a desktop on screen. Don't know if my lack off tech knowledge helps or not, thanks.

swimtech · Aug 27, 2006, 04:07 AM

Your knowledge level is just fine, certainly. You've tried all the adjustment stuff, and I was hoping that if I had the make and model number I might be able to find a manual to enable a reset of the monitor to factory defaults - but the company's website doesn't seem to have any real technical information on the unit at all.

...sounds like the monitor has its settings stuck in some sort sort of way that is not common - almost as though the internal lookup table that the computer chip inside your monitor uses to format the size of the display has been reset - wrongly. The fact that the controls work is good - but not good enough.

Did this problem happen immediately (in an instant), or gradually? Are you using the monitor with a laptop computer or a desktop computer?

drewskie351 · Aug 27, 2006, 09:50 AM

It happened instantly. I had it happen once before but not sure how, if at all, I fixed the problem. Is thier a usual way to reset monitors that I can try? It's a desktop computer. thanks again.

swimtech · Aug 27, 2006, 09:11 PM

I can remember a member here got an LCD from CTL Corp. a while back... American offices in Portland Oregon, sourcing panels from South Korea - I'd have bought one at the time if I could. He liked its performance too.

Can't seem to get their website to come up www.ctlmonitors.com or www.ctlcorp.com ph. 800-642-3087, the phone number works though... BTW, just saw that your monitor has a three year warranty - call them! That way we don't have to figure out how to fix it (not that I could without a schematic...), just get a replacement or have them do the repair.

Back to the problem though, the grey with black area on the sides, then the pure black area on the sides does sound like a horizontal deflection defect (foldover or pincushion correction circuit) in the monitor. Their tech support might be able to give a suggestion as to a 'reset' procedure - if any...

You could, while the monitor is running, gently strain the power cord and/or VGA cord near the back of the monitor in order to put mechanical stress on the circuit board inside the unit. There's the possibility that it just has a bad solder connection in the affected circuit and might bring the picture back to normal during movement of the cords...

Anything in your user manual for the unit?

Oh, and the fact you are using the monitor with a desktop computer rules out most anomolies that can occur with settings when using the monitor as a secondary display with a laptop - the reason I now suspect more strongly that the monitor has an actual defect...

This link does work for CTL support information:
http://www.ctl.info/support.html Take a look there too if you care to...

drewskie351 · Aug 28, 2006, 09:37 AM

Thank you, not sure how old it is, bought it used. Ill try support. Found a website that sells Refurbished crt monitors for $29.99 http://www.directron.com/index.html can get a 19" for that price . Do not know if its a good company or not and would not know what brand they would send me. Haven't checked out shipping cost yet, probably high.
thank you for your time.

Aug 25, 2006, 04:06 AM	#1
drewskie351 DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 6 Rep Power: 0	monitor problem Hi i have a problem with my monitor. My horizontal size has shrunk and have about 1to 2 inches of black on each side and about the same of grey black. The desktop is not cut off just shrunk. I have tried everything I can think of , monitor adjustments, vc adjustments. connected another monitor and works ok. This happened once before and I fixed it somehow, don't remember what I did. can a program like webshots or weather channel screen saver cause this to happen? The webshots screen saver pics started to shink from full screen to what my monitor size is now. can anyone help me? thanks

Aug 26, 2006, 12:17 AM	#2
swimtech HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: North Carolina Posts: 4,040 Rep Power: 122 System Specs	Is there a bowing of the sides of the picture and have you tried accessing the menus on the monitor to reset to the defaults? Could you post the make and model of your monitor? A picture of the screen would help too if you can... Normally, programs don't reset screen dimensions - resolutions yes, but not the monitor's own internal horizontal and vertical settings. You could check and see that your preferred resolution and refresh rate are still set properly - if so, try resizing the screen with the monitor controls. If they won't adjust to give you a full screen (or don't change at all...) at resolutions and refresh rates that are supported by the monitor, then I would think the monitor is defective (problem in system control or deflection circuitry). __________________ It's not so much getting your way that matters or not - what matters is how you go about getting it.

Aug 26, 2006, 01:51 AM	#4
BlueMak HH's Asteroids' Dominator Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Hellas->Macedonia->Thessaloniki Posts: 13,247 Rep Power: 326 System Specs	Are you certain no one fiddled with the monitor settings? __________________ The people who are regarded as moral luminaries are those who forego ordinary pleasures themselves and find compensation in interfering with the pleasures of others(Bertrand Russell)"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil,You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them." - Lt. Gen. James N. Mattis This is slavery, not to speak one's thought. [Euripides-The Phoenician Women (c.411-409 B.C.)] http://www.macedonia.info/FALLACIESANDFACTS.htm *Sic semper tyrannis.*

Aug 26, 2006, 08:23 PM	#5
swimtech HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: North Carolina Posts: 4,040 Rep Power: 122 System Specs	Thanks for the make and model information... Beside the fact that you can't get the monitor to look "right", do the monitor controls have any effect at all? Also, what resolution and refresh rate do you have the monitor set for? I know these questions might sound redundant and simplistic - but will help me determine if your problem is fixable - ok? __________________ It's not so much getting your way that matters or not - what matters is how you go about getting it.

Aug 27, 2006, 02:34 AM	Thread Starter #6
drewskie351 DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 6 Rep Power: 0	H.size will max out but still not full screen, V.size works fine but makes the desktop look stretched so I down size v. to look right. My monitor is a 17" but the way I have to have it set makes it more like a 15". Ill try to explain how it looks, if you set your v. or h. settings on monitor controls down from the normal screen size you will get black space on ether side of the desktop view, this is what mine looks like on H. size with it maxed out to 100. The resolution is 1024 x 768 and refresh rate at 60 hertz. It doesn't matter what setting I use H. size stays the same, plus i have grey black, the area the desktop does not fill but shows the monitor getting signal, like if you did not have a desktop on screen. Don't know if my lack off tech knowledge helps or not, thanks. Last edited by drewskie351; Aug 27, 2006 at 02:41 AM.

Aug 26, 2006, 12:52 AM	Thread Starter #3
drewskie351 DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 6 Rep Power: 0	It's a ctl (computer technology link) 7DLN. Yes I've tried all monitor and program adjustments with no luck. I think the monitors toast. Have no way to show pic of monitor.

Aug 27, 2006, 04:07 AM	#7
swimtech HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: North Carolina Posts: 4,040 Rep Power: 122 System Specs	Your knowledge level is just fine, certainly. You've tried all the adjustment stuff, and I was hoping that if I had the make and model number I might be able to find a manual to enable a reset of the monitor to factory defaults - but the company's website doesn't seem to have any real technical information on the unit at all. ...sounds like the monitor has its settings stuck in some sort sort of way that is not common - almost as though the internal lookup table that the computer chip inside your monitor uses to format the size of the display has been reset - wrongly. The fact that the controls work is good - but not good enough. Did this problem happen immediately (in an instant), or gradually? Are you using the monitor with a laptop computer or a desktop computer? __________________ It's not so much getting your way that matters or not - what matters is how you go about getting it.

Aug 27, 2006, 09:50 AM	Thread Starter #8
drewskie351 DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 6 Rep Power: 0	It happened instantly. I had it happen once before but not sure how, if at all, I fixed the problem. Is thier a usual way to reset monitors that I can try? It's a desktop computer. thanks again.

Aug 27, 2006, 09:11 PM	#9
swimtech HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: North Carolina Posts: 4,040 Rep Power: 122 System Specs	I can remember a member here got an LCD from CTL Corp. a while back... American offices in Portland Oregon, sourcing panels from South Korea - I'd have bought one at the time if I could. He liked its performance too. Can't seem to get their website to come up www.ctlmonitors.com or www.ctlcorp.com ph. 800-642-3087, the phone number works though... BTW, just saw that your monitor has a three year warranty - call them! That way we don't have to figure out how to fix it (not that I could without a schematic...), just get a replacement or have them do the repair. Back to the problem though, the grey with black area on the sides, then the pure black area on the sides does sound like a horizontal deflection defect (foldover or pincushion correction circuit) in the monitor. Their tech support might be able to give a suggestion as to a 'reset' procedure - if any... You could, while the monitor is running, gently strain the power cord and/or VGA cord near the back of the monitor in order to put mechanical stress on the circuit board inside the unit. There's the possibility that it just has a bad solder connection in the affected circuit and might bring the picture back to normal during movement of the cords... Anything in your user manual for the unit? Oh, and the fact you are using the monitor with a desktop computer rules out most anomolies that can occur with settings when using the monitor as a secondary display with a laptop - the reason I now suspect more strongly that the monitor has an actual defect... This link does work for CTL support information: http://www.ctl.info/support.html Take a look there too if you care to... __________________ It's not so much getting your way that matters or not - what matters is how you go about getting it. Last edited by swimtech; Aug 27, 2006 at 09:24 PM.

Aug 28, 2006, 09:37 AM	Thread Starter #10
drewskie351 DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 6 Rep Power: 0	Thank you, not sure how old it is, bought it used. Ill try support. Found a website that sells Refurbished crt monitors for $29.99 http://www.directron.com/index.html can get a 19" for that price . Do not know if its a good company or not and would not know what brand they would send me. Haven't checked out shipping cost yet, probably high. thank you for your time.