Viewsonic HDTV problem??

I bought this HDTV to use with my xbox off newegg http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16889107054

I had to sell my xbox and had not need for the monitor so I put it up on ebay and sold it for a decent price.

The seller received it friday and then Saturday I get this email,
"I received the ViewSonic "22 monitor in a prompt shipment and in good order, however I will have to return it. The picture quality is poor; no matter what input (tv & pc) I used. I went to the viewsonic website and printed the owners guide to be certain of my installation. The picture was "blurry" or "out of focus" and the colors appeared to run together without clear definition. Simply unacceptable. Please advise how to return/ship and secure refund. I have it pack up with the remotes, pwr. cord, and printed owners guide. Please reply ASAP. I will send a feedback accordingly. Thank you for your cooperation."

I replied,
"I'm sorry to hear you're having difficulties with the item.
Before you decide to return it, I need to troubleshoot this to make sure if HDTV itself is defective.
What are you hooking up to it?(e.g. Computer, HDTV, or Xbox)

What input are you using?(e.g. VGA/DSub, HDMI, Component, Coaxial, or Composite)

And what Resolution are you running it on?(e.g. 800x600, 1280x800, or 1680x1050)"

So the buyer replied,
"I wanted to upgrade the bedroom tv and plugged the feed from the cable company directly into the "tv in" port, a 19" crt tv w/DVD DIVX player is in there now with excellent results. The ViewSonic seems to have detected all of the channels OK, and I've tried all of the picture adjustments available but the sharpest image I can get is the setup menu. I get the same blurry result weather I use a cable amplifer (54-1000MHz) or not. I set it up on the Dell laptop VGA output at all resolutions, 1280x768 and 1152x864 seem the best, but no definitive hard lines. I tried it on my Dell Vostro desk top with a DVI/vga adapter to no avail. There are also "bright pixels" in the top right of center and 1" inch from the top about 2/3 to the right. Whats next? I've spent hours with the ViewSonic today, with no positive results...Thanks for your cooperation with this matter... "


I'm not sure what is going on with it. The HDTV was in perfect working condition when I packaged it up. So either UPS damaged it somehow(did insure it BTW), or the buyer is doing something wrong.

Any ideas? I don't want to get the buy angry.

Thanks

 

Is it full HD? cause if they're using the laptop on that resolution it's obviously gonna be blurry i use my laptop on my tv not at naive resolution because the vga port doesn't allow me to so it is kinda blurry xD and for the TV is it normal tv channels because normal tv is also kinda crap for me too

EDIT: no it's 720p which is usually one of these resolutions 1,366x768, 1,280x720, or 1,024x768 none of which they appear to have tried. 1,280x720 is the most likely though hence x720.

Second edit: the naive resolution is infact 1680x1050 tell the buyer to try their pc at that resolution (unless the vga port doesn't support it)
edit: yea it does PC 1680x1050 (preferred), 1024x768, 1280x768

 

Thanks for the reply Wacky

I just sent this reply to the buyer,

"Is it full HD? Because if you're using the laptop on that resolution it's obviously gonna be blurry, I use my laptop on my tv not at native resolution because the vga port doesn't allow me to so it is kinda blurry. And for the TV it is normal.
If possible take some pictures of this.

Thanks for cooperating."

I copied what you said, edited it, and sent it to the buyer.


When I owned it I used it with my xbox 360 and it ran great at 720p, I also was able to hax it to run at 1080p and it looked perfect at that rez.

I also used it on my laptop with vga/dsub and it worked fine at the native 1680x1050.

OH! an idea just popped into my head. I thing it maybe something with the Herts. I just remembered I once had a problem running it at some resolution because of the herts... Hmm

any ideas?

 

if the refresh rate is off it would cause some issues but not blurry and colours running i don't think xD

but like i said in my pm i can't run at the naive resolution of my hd tv because of the vga port limiting it and because of that i have some colours run and it's blurry, same with SDTV xP

your tv that you sold should from what i read allow the buyer to use it at 1680x1050 and it should look fine because from what you put the buyer hasn't actually tried that resolution.

 

Okay, 2 things are apparent:

1. The Monitor itself is okay and in good working order (at least the display is)
2. The problem is either with the input settings, voltage, or the cable itself.

He mentioned that the monitor Setup screen was perfectly normal - if the LED display or any pixels were bad, the Setup would also be affected. That leaves Input Settings, voltage or signal. I'd bet on either Settings or Signal.

Generally there are several standard things that cause this kind of problem, and it assumes the unit itself is in good condition and working:

1. Input Channel must be set correctly (Channel 3 or 4 on most sets).
2. Cable must be in good condition.
3. Any devices that can cause RFI or EMI should be moved from the immediate area.
4. Monitor settings/resolution should be set correctly.
5. Input power should be clean and have a relatively low fluctuation rate (less than 2 volts).
6. Input Format setting (NTSC or PAL)

Input Channel and voltage are actually 2 things listed in the troubleshooting portion of that monitor's User Manual.

Since you had it connected to your Xbox, it's likely it was set to HDMI or Component Video, and needs to be switched to TV or AV.

One thing I noticed is that you didn't say where the person you sent it to lives, or at least what Region. The N2230W is a PAL Input only monitor - if he's trying to use it with an NTSC input signal, it won't work. For cable he'd need to change the input format with a cable box; however he can do it with a PC's GPU to verify if it's the problem or not.

He may have also damaged the RG6 cable connector when he removed it from his old set. Even the ones that are completely clad in insulation material can be separated from the coax shield and center conductor. Some TV's have a switch that allows you to determine the input video channel, while newer sets allow you to set it via remote or on the set itself and not by an external switch. From what I can tell, the N2230W has a button on the front that allows for Input Selection.

Checking the cable is easy enough since all he needs to do is to change it. It is easier than people think to loosen the connector from the coax shield or to move the center conductor far enough to where it's making minimal penetration into the input connection on the TV. In addition to swapping the cable itself, moving the unit to another cable input will help ID or rule out the cable as a problem.

I doesn't have to be at the connection either. I've had cases in the past where a cable was accidentally pierced by a sharp pin or other metal object, and true to Murphy's law, shorted the center conductor to the shield.

However, since he reported the same problem when connecting a PC to it as an external monitor, the cable is likely not the issue, unless it was still connected when he hooked his PC and it has a short in it as I described.

Something else to note is that if he's bypassed a cable box and gone directly to the HDTV itself, the cable encoding is different and likely is affecting picture as well. Of course it depends on if it's an NTSC broadcast or a PAL broadcast.

Voltage - most monitors are designed to work with 50 or 60hz systems, on either 120 or 240 volts. The input voltage adapter senses the incoming voltage and changes it accordingly. However, if the person you sold it to is using a voltage adapter of some type, it will cause problems - this is very common with people who have notebooks and travel. They don't realize that their system AC Adapter is designed to correct for any input voltage, and use it with a separate travel adapter. Usually the first indication of a problem is that their system dies when it's on the battery, as the battery won't charge properly.

 

Thankyou Cyber, that's some great information there

Well, I just got home from my Grandmothers(visiting for mama's day ) and received a new email from the buyer.
"The wife has decided to give it to the kids for video games, I will leave a positive feedback, and come up with another solution for bedroom tv...thanks..."

You were right Cyber when you said "1. The Monitor itself is okay and in good working order (at least the display is)"

Thanks for all your help, and believe me, I really appreciate it

+rep to Cyber and Wacky

 

Cool my first rep, glad to see the buyer realised their stupidity

 

Thanks - that's why we're here.

Wacky - the Buyer didn't realize his stupidity. His wife did....

 

seem the OP isnt the only one w/ this issue

im noticing the same blurriness running at native resolution via VGA connection

completely unacceptable....

my pc/cables/setup has been confirmed working on many other lcd screens

there is noticeable blurriness on this lcd at native res

the blurriness starts to decrease w/ lower resolutions, but defeats the purpose of purchasing a 1680x1050 capable display