Is this a windows, Sony or LG issue? Cant get proper resolution on TV


  1. Posts : 15
    win 10
       #1

    Is this a windows, Sony or LG issue? Cant get proper resolution on TV


    I've been using an old Acer laptop conntected to a Sony STR 1050 receiver to an HD Plasma TV. The resolution was always set to 1920x1080.
    Recently I upgraded to a 4k OLED TV and had some unusual difficulties getting the system to work properly. Initially, the Acer computer stated the optimal resolution for the 4k TV was 800x600. Still, I had it set to 1920x1080. However, when I tried to go higher, the TV screen blanked for several seconds before the computer reverted back to old res. Somewhere in the trial and error of settings, the computer defaulted to a 1920x1080 recommended setting.
    I then plugged in my newer HP OMEN laptop and it did allow to set it 4k successfully, even though it stated that the recommended resolution was 1920x1080. So I concluded that my old Acer just wasn't up to the task. But then I plugged it directly into an HDMI port on the 4k TV. Both laptops recommended 4k (38xx x 21xx or whatever it is), so that told me that both laptops are capable of the 4k output.
    I then fiddled with the receiver's settings. I noticed there was a 4k upscaling option that was turned off so I set it to 'Auto'. The only difference I discovered was that the Omen laptop now said the recomended resolution for the TV was something like 462x352! I did notice something else but cannot recall when I first observed it: The TV prompted me at one point to allow for "HDMI Depp Color" and the options were 'off' and '4k'. It seems that when the 4k is set to ON, thats when the laptops' recommended resolution is 600x800 and when it is off, it recommends 1920x1080. There is also a 4:4:4 passthrough option on the TV.
    I've checked the HDMI cables to make sure they were high speed.
    I cannot figure out why the resolution is not recommended to be 4k when running through the receiver and why I cannot set it to 4k with only the one laptop.
    Any thoughts?
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 1,310
    Windows 10
       #2

    In your post you failed to identify the key info needed for such posts which is what GPU model both laptops are, mind you at least the exact model of laptops so for the helper to look it up , also the models of the TVs in question (Brand alone does not cover it)

    But here is a catch that may help you trouble-shoot this correctly , there is an element over-looked when it comes to PC to TV connectivity and that is Refresh Rate , the majority of 4K TVs support 4K connectivity resolution at a minimal refresh rate of 60 mhz (equivalent to 60 frames per second) or sometimes higher if the TV screen advertise it is 120 mhz+ capable etc. Few screens maintain backward compatibility with 30 mhz refresh rate support and even fewer to 24 mhz support . Now the catch is in PC world while some old GPUs claims to be 4K capable they seem to do it over the expense of producing it in lower refresh rate (Gen 4 , 5 of Intel may produce 4K resolution at 24 mhz or 30 mhz for Gen 5) which may render it unusable on such TVs and thus revert it to FHD (1920x1080) which most cards are capable of producing at 60 mhz refresh rate .

    So bottom line it's either your card is uncapable of maintaining such resolution at the compatible refresh rate or either you have to set the card manually (If it had such option in its Control Panel) to use such resolution at 60 mhz refresh rate .
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 9,792
    Mac OS Catalina
       #3

    The TV will only display what the GPU outputs on the computer. TV's have no way of changing what resolution is sent to them since they are a display only.
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 15
    win 10
    Thread Starter
       #4

    nIGHTmAYOR said:
    In your post you failed to identify the key info needed for such posts which is what GPU model both laptops are, mind you at least the exact model of laptops so for the helper to look it up , also the models of the TVs in question (Brand alone does not cover it)

    But here is a catch that may help you trouble-shoot this correctly , there is an element over-looked when it comes to PC to TV connectivity and that is Refresh Rate , the majority of 4K TVs support 4K connectivity resolution at a minimal refresh rate of 60 mhz (equivalent to 60 frames per second) or sometimes higher if the TV screen advertise it is 120 mhz+ capable etc. Few screens maintain backward compatibility with 30 mhz refresh rate support and even fewer to 24 mhz support . Now the catch is in PC world while some old GPUs claims to be 4K capable they seem to do it over the expense of producing it in lower refresh rate (Gen 4 , 5 of Intel may produce 4K resolution at 24 mhz or 30 mhz for Gen 5) which may render it unusable on such TVs and thus revert it to FHD (1920x1080) which most cards are capable of producing at 60 mhz refresh rate .

    So bottom line it's either your card is uncapable of maintaining such resolution at the compatible refresh rate or either you have to set the card manually (If it had such option in its Control Panel) to use such resolution at 60 mhz refresh rate .
    Thank you both for your replies. Unfortunately, either I do not follow your explanation or it does not align with my observations.
    I've continued to troubleshoot this but to no avail. Here are a couple more observations that may help you to assist me in troubleshooting:

    The LG TV knows it is a PC that is hooked up to it because it ghosts many functions that aren't available for PCs and when Input screen is selected, it refers to the HDMI input as a PC. Interestingly though, when in the connected devices menu, it refers to it s a Sony Sound Bar.

    The ACER Laptop is an Aspire 37 or 57 (I'm not at home at the moment) with an i5 chip. Again, when I am hooked up through the Sony Receiver (STR 1050), the graphics driver in the taskbar on the laptop states the native resolution of the 4k LG OLED is 640 x 480. Yes, in Display Settings it shows a recommended resolution of 1080. I cannot make it display higher than this even though higher resolution options are displayed. When I bypass the receiver an hook it up directly to the TV, it shows a native resolution of 8k in the graphics driver app on the task via a popup window but in the display settings it recommends a 4k resolution AND is able to output both. When I select 4k on the PC, both the TV and laptop state the refresh is 30hz. This and the mfg specs on my laptop indicate that the laptop is capable of 4k output.

    Now to the OMEN gaming computer with a NVidea1060 graphics chipset. When I go through the receiver it displays 4k onto the TV - I cannot recall the Hz. the Laptop is capable of 144Hz at 4k . However, I believe after looking at the Sony specs, it can only output 4k at 60 Hz. The Sony receiver also has a menu option to upscale output to 4k and this is set to "Auto"

    I need to do some more testing with the OMEN and record my observations, but more now, I am putting it on hold as I am away on vacation. I have purchased some HDMI 2.1 cables just to ensure this is not the issue.
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 9,792
    Mac OS Catalina
       #5

    You do not need to buy new HDMI cables. Your laptop is only able to do the 144hz/4k resolution on the built-in display, which is how the manufacturer rates it. In order to have a high resolution on HDMI output, you have to have a laptop with "Discrete" GPU that outputs separately on the HDMI output from the "built-in" gpu. For the HP computer, you need to post the Speccy results link that it gives you.
    Fixing Resolution of HDMI Output on PC
      My Computer


 

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