samsung 226bw recommended settings

nphield

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Aug 29, 2006
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i just recently upgraded to this from a ViewSonic VX922 19". Games and the desktop look fine, however when i go into my 10 megapixel to edit the black apear to be really grainy. is there a way to fix this or was my ViewSonic VX922 19" superior in this aspect? Thanks......
 
im pretty sure its the monitor. The pictures in the dark areas get blocky. Same with when i run C&C 3 in the begining.

Im takin pictures with my canon XTI rebel. Just wonderin what other people have their monitor configured to....
 
The pictures in the dark areas get blocky.
"Grainy", "blocky"... are you refering to pixelation?

Otherwise, if you are refering to banding in the dark & grey shades, it may be that you have your gamma / contrast settings too high.

If you are referring more to a cloudy look in the blacks, then this is a trait of the panel (vs. CRT, anyways) and again, may be less noticable if your adjust your contrast / gamma.

Rough rule of thumb:

1. Go into your Display settings -> graphics card drivers and set the colors / gamma settings to their defaults.

2. Then find a greyscale map (Each review at www.dpreview.com has one)

3. Adjust your room lighting like it will be 85% of the time.

4. Turn the monitor's contrast all the way up.

5. Adjust the monitor's brightness settings until black is really black, without loosing sight of the first dark-grey bar.

6. Now adjust the contrast so that the first grey bar next to the white is not pure white (so that you are not loosing highlight detail).

The above should at least roughly adjust your monitor to display the greyscale as best as possible. If you are still not happy with your blacks, then look for a "movie" or "games" setting in the OSD. This will hike up the contrst levels - something you don''t want for text work, but will love for gaming, movies, etc.


Let us know how it goes :)

P.S. (aka edit...)

From Trusted Reviews:

"In our DisplayMate test, the 226BW put in a very good performance; so long as the extreme Dynamic Contrast mode wasn’t used. Colours were vivid without being overdone and colour fading was excellent. There was a hint of banding in the 256 Intensity Level Colour Ramp test but it was only really evident with the Dynamic Contrast mode."
 
thats a screen shot....there shouldnt' be any difference between a screen shot and real life....that is what it looks like
 
link to the grayscale map
Sorry for the delay...

Here's a sample of their new dynamic range test and it's nothing short of a killer of a test. The scale has 40 shades of grey from pure white to pure black and on my HW-calibrated P-MVA panel, I', able to discern only the shades from 10 to 29... .If that sounds short of the mark, my old 17" Samsung 700p CRT only manages 10 to 28... 8O

Aside from this grueling test, a more reasonable greyscale can be had by using Nokia's NTEST. Most of the tests (such as geometry, convergence, etc.) are for CRTs but there is a contrast test as well as primary colors (good for dead/stuck pixel hunting).
 
I have the SAME exact problem with the SAME exact monitor. Those pictures don't do the problem any justice, as the actual motion of that opening graphic of CnC3 magnifies the problem and it looks absolutely HORRIBLE! I came here looking for help for the same problem with the 226bw.

I have to ask, though, nphield, does your monitor have an issue with the power cord insert on the back of the monitor? I have to adjust mine quite often to get rid of a line of dead pixels across the center, or even worse a completely frozen, green and white screen. After wiggling the power cord it rights itself.

I actually had the power problem with one monitor, returned it to the store and got a new one with the same exact problem.
 
I haven't had that issue with the power cord. I just wish there was someone out there that could reccomend optimal settings.. Let me know if you find a solution
 
I just read up a bit on the difference between the 226bw A or S panels. From my understanding, samsung sent out the first batch as S or Samsung-made panels, then switched to a cheaper "A" panel which is of a lower quality. Check the model number on the back of your monitor, mine says 226bw A, so it seems I got a cheaper one.

Can someone clear this up for me or confirm/deny that the A panel would be the reason behind the bad picture?
 
then switched to a cheaper "A" panel which is of a lower quality.
Cheaper ...Probably. Lower quality ...says who?

Can you please post a link to a reputable Reviewer (site) that proclaims this, backed by proof (through tests)?
 
The only way to tell is if you look at the sticker on the back of the monitor. It will say, "226BW A" or "226BW S." My other monitor, a samsung 940bf, is an S model and I've never had a problem with it.

As for linking a reputable site with "proof," I'm operating under opinions of myself and many others from several other forums. From my experience and comparing the reviews/reports coming from people with the S and A panels, I've come to my own conclusion that there is an issue of quality.

Anyways, I took mine back to the store yesterday for a full refund, I'm going to try out the comparable LG model soon, I'll let you know how that does for me.
 
My 22 inch was the samsung A panel, I took it back because it was a piece of junk with a terrible picture and a faulty power insert. I picked up the LG 22 inch model and the quality is outstanding! I don't get that pixelated effect from the CnC3 opening graphic anymore, and my dark images look perfect.

The S panel monitor I mentioned is my 19" 940bf, and I'm keepin that one, it's a sweet monitor.