New monitor flickering/shivering?

The edges of the windows in Win7 are flickering occasionally, especially visible on white or black backgrounds.

I've checked for nearby EM distortion, moved my cellphone, headphones and the PC itself as far as I can manage and the problem seems to come and go. Did I just get a crap monitor ?

 

Which monitor did you get? What do the reviews on Newegg say?

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001463

All positive reviews thus far, I'll go back through and see if I see anything. Again it seems to come and go....haven't tried much gaming on my new rig yet but its definitely bothering me at the desktop/browsing level.

 

You might be getting emi from the video cable itself. Does the cable your using have a ferrite choke near each end?

 

Neg on that. I've pulled everything off my desk (beer can and screwdrivers included) and still seeing it act up. I'll keep you posted if I figure anything else out.

 

Not having a choke on each end of your video cable might be your problem then. Consider spending a few bucks on a pair of these:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103222

 

Note that most monitors and TVs are adjusted at the factory for display in show rooms to produce a very bright display to attract a potential buyer's attention. In doing so, it not only produces unnatural images (not always apparent when looking at a webpage or spreadsheet) but can also overdrive the display circuits. I might see what happens if I play with the brightness and contrast a bit - that is, if your monitor allows such adjustments. Not all do when using a digital input.

And speaking of digital - are you using digital (DVI or HDMI) or analog (DSub)?

Note for big screen TV buyers - you should always have your TV "calibrated" after it has acclimated to your viewing room for a couple days to obtain the best display for your money. There are DVDs you can use yourself which are fairly good, or you can have a technician come and do it.

If adjusting the monitor controls does not provide satisfactory results, I would lug the monitor over to another computer and see if it happens there. If it is messed up on a second computer, take it back. If not, then start looking at the computer as the culprit.

The ferrite choke is a good idea but you should not need one on a brand new monitor.

Oh, and I always make sure all my hardware is powered from the same wall outlet - preferably through a "good" UPS with AVR. No two wall outlets have the exact same electrical characteristics simply because the length of the wires in the walls are different. Also, the wires are connected to the socket in the wall by a human by spring tension or screw-down.

This means that two outlets in the same room on the same circuit can have a slightly different "resistance to ground" - to "Earth" ground. When powering computers and monitors and speakers etc. through different wall outlets, there is the possibility of having a "difference in potential" between the two grounds, then when connecting those devices together, this difference can result in interference - by creating "noise" on the monitor, or often a buzz or static in the audio.

I also try to run my power cables up one side of my desk, and data cables up the other - to keep them separated. Never parallel to each.

 

Check in the display properties for your video card as well to make sure it's not trying to run at a higher refresh rate than the monitor can accept.

If you can try it on another computer (even a laptop) just to verify it's the monitor.

LCD monitors (like any other hardware) can have bad ones ship or get bounced around by FedEx/UPS/USPS.

Sam

 

LCD monitors don't use refresh rates - there's no need to. The diodes stay on until instructed to turn off. If the LCD monitor specifies a refresh rating, you can set it to that, but in most cases, the default of 60 fine. And in those cases, it is not really a "refresh" rate, but a "sampling" rate.

Refresh rates are for CRT monitors where the phosphorous coating on the inside of the tube begins to fade immediately, thus needing constant refreshing.

 

I never heard of EM interference with an LCD, only a CRT monitor which wonks it until one hits it with a degausser. Something else is wrong. Maybe time to RMA IT. Gawd the postage.:eek

 

That's why I asked if using digital or analog input. I would not expect a digital input to have such interference, but an analog signal might. And many older and entry level LCD monitors use analog only.

The interference a degausser would cure is caused by built-up residual magnetism in the tube. It would not affect interference from an outside source.

 

nevermind.