Monitor Questions for the NP8150

Hi y'all, new guy here. I've been lurking around these forums for a very long time now though, always get hits when doing research on laptops here.

Got myself a Sager NP8150 with the FHD 95% color gamut glossy screen. Just wondering how I can verify if the monitor really is 95% color gamut? I've done a custom proof view with gamut warning in Photoshop CS4. Under CMYK I get a lot of grey areas. Under RGB, I get practically no grey. Is the monitor supposed to get that much unviewable colors in CMYK?

Also, I don't think this is a monitor issue, but I noticed that the screen seems to flicker a few barst when using MPC-HC. It doesn't last long, and it's barely, barely visible, but it's there. Should I be worried? Should I send it back to my reseller here in Singapore (CubeHub)?

Reason why I'm worried is cause this laptop was already delayed by a week due to the first delivery not having the HD 6990M installed... Dunno what happened with Sager on that. So I'm just worried that they got other stuff wrong as well. :s

Oh and lastly, anyone know how to verify if the IEEE 1394 port works? I connected a DV camera to it for lives treaming, but nothing happens..

Hope I'm not being a pest with all these questions.. :T

 

For the screen, the only way to check is to check the actual model number on the screen or look via device manager. Just remember though, that it's a 95% RGB color gamut screen- not CMYK. I can't say how it would perform in the latter.

To check the firewire port, look to make sure it's installed under device manager. If you have any yellow question mark devices, you may be missing drivers. Otherwise, you'll just have to check by plugging something else in.

 

Also, you can use HWiNFO64 to look up the model number of your laptop without having to tear down the laptop.

 

Thanks JP, MALIBAL #2!

The monitor ID is AU Optronics B156HW01. Is that the FHD 95% Color Gamut model?

 

Right after the monitor ID should be a V number, like mine says

Monitor Name (Manuf):AUO B156HW01 V5

What does yours show?

 

As J.P pointed out, you'll need to list the V number that was listed there. The B156HW01 is a series of screens, including v.0 (stock glossy), v.1 (stock matte), v.4 (95% matte), and v.7 (95% glossy). Check yours against that list to see if you have the v.4 or v.7.

 

Thanks to the two of you! I've got v7, the proper screen.


One more question: I'm getting random screen flickering at times. It isn't very strong, and it comes out very, very randomly, but it's there. I noticed that it has yet to affect any games, and seems to affect the desktop only after using Media Player Classic - Home Cinema at times. Is this a common hardware issue, or is it likely to be a software issue?

 

That sounds like Windows 7 has issues switching back and forth between Aero and the basic desktop scheme.

Mr. Mysterious

 

Hmm... The screen doesn't flicker completely black, just some brightness jumps in some halves of the screen. To check, do you happen to know how to stop Win 7 from switching schemes

 

Try to disable Aero and replicate the problem. (Using Windows Media Player Classic - Home Cinema)

You can disable Aero by right clicking the desktop and going to "Personalization".

Mr. Mysterious

 

I disabled Aero by switching to the Basic theme, and I can't replicate the results - although as mentioned, it does pop out quite randomly over time, and I simply do not have time at the moment to watch the screen for an hour for flickering.

I'd be pretty disappointed if this is a hardware issue. I use this thing for school work a lot. :\

 

Could this be a loose connection with the ribbon for the screen? What do you say, resellers? NBR members?

Mr. Mysterious

 

If you open/close the lid, does it make the screen flicker at all? I had an issue with my first laptop where if I open/close the screen at a certain angle I can duplicate the flickering, but I think my issue was more severe than yours. I would get color discolorations and the screen does some weird things depending on what angle the screen was positioned at. This made me think the cable is not connected properly, damaged cable, or possible GPU related. Though, in the end I never found out, as I returned it and got a replacement.

 

Nope, the effect only happens sporadically at the desktop, most of the time with MPC-HC open or right after using MPC-HC. I'm starting to think it's a codec issue or GPU issue related to DXVA.. But I really can't tell. :\

 

Strange, it does sounds very similar to what Mr. Mysterious mentioned as well. I know the MPC-HC is a great program, but have you tried doing the same thing with something like VLC player? I believe they have a lot of the same capabilities nowadays.

 

I've tried VLC, haven't noticed it, will try watching stuff longer.

Side question: does VLC have DXVA?


And another side question: I think my Firewire port is busted. I uninstall the driver, reboot, and it automatically installs again, but anything I hook up isn't detected... I can't tell if it's really busted or not >_<