VGA Out vs DVI out

[george.e.sullivan]

Hi all,
I just got a PowerColor X700 and it has the standard VGA, the S-Video,
and a DVI out. It came with a DVI to 15 Pin VGA adapter. Is there an
display or performance improvement if I use the adapter and connect my
monitor to the DVI as opposed to the VGA? I haven't installed the card
yet, but was hoping get some input for use when I get home this
evening.
Are there any negatives to using the DVI adapter?


Thanks to all.

 

[Peter]

Hi all,
I just got a PowerColor X700 and it has the standard VGA, the S-Video,
and a DVI out. It came with a DVI to 15 Pin VGA adapter. Is there an
display or performance improvement if I use the adapter and connect my
monitor to the DVI as opposed to the VGA? I haven't installed the card
yet, but was hoping get some input for use when I get home this
evening.
Are there any negatives to using the DVI adapter?

If your monitor has a digital input you definitely should use the
DVI output on the card. Otherwise it doesn't matter which one
you use; as a matter of fact the VGA will probably give you a
better image with an analog monitor as the signal won't have to
go through a converter.

 

[DaveW]

Using a DVI to DVI connection removes two signal translations from the video
and allows a sharper crisper image. VGA is analog; your monitor is digital.
Use the digital DVI output of the video card.

 

[Peter]

George mentions an adapter from the monitor to the DVI output of
his card. That means his monitor is analog not digital.

 

[JD]

The reason they include the DVI to 15 pin adapter is so you can run dual
non-DVI displays. If you just have one monitor then plug it into the
regular vga. Or do whatever, it makes very little difference.

 

[george.e.sullivan]

Thanks all, this is very useful. I did hook it up to the DVI port via
the adapter last night to test it. I have a standard Dell monitor that
is not a flat panel or flat screen, just the a regular ole display. My
son did not know I put a new card in the system and today he said "Dad,
for some reason everything is shiny and clear like the other computer."
He plays City of Heros Online. So already I guess we can say
there is a definite improvement.

Again thanks to all for you insight and knowledge.

George

 

[Sjoerd Bakker]

Hi all,
I just got a PowerColor X700 and it has the standard VGA, the S-Video,
and a DVI out. It came with a DVI to 15 Pin VGA adapter. Is there an
display or performance improvement if I use the adapter and connect my
monitor to the DVI as opposed to the VGA? I haven't installed the card
yet, but was hoping get some input for use when I get home this
evening.
Are there any negatives to using the DVI adapter?

I have a FX5200 card that does not always display in DOS mode after a
reset when connected through DVI. My 9200SE card does DVI correctly in
DOS mode but not under X on Linux. The cause of this could also be my
monitor, but I don't think that is likely. Standard VGA connection
gives no problems at all with either card.

My estimation is that DVI could theoretically be a faster connection
than VGA, but the bottleneck will probably the speed of GPU on the
videocard anyway, so I don't think that it makes much practical
difference. VGA connection also gives more options for screen control
in Windows (and on my monitor).