Thinkpads Forum

I'm trying to get a new desk configuration set up and am trying to put my 770Z back into regular service, but I am having problems getting it to display 1600x1200 on my new external display.

According to various specs, a 770Z should be able to display 1600x1200 in 16 bit colour on an external display at a 60MHz refresh rate. However, when I set the output to the external monitor and attempt to adjust the settings, I am only seeing 1250x1024 at 16bit colour.

I've attempted under both XP and Win98SE, and don't seem to be able to get it to work with either. In XP, I get a warning that my monitor requires a 60MHz refresh rate -- and when I investigate this further it looks like the XP driver for the Trident Cyber9397DVD video chip is only providing a refresh rate of 48MHz Interweaved. In 98SE, I simply don't get an option of moving the monitor to 1600x1200.

I've also attempted to install monitor profiles/drivers, but there is no Win98 "driver" for the LCD display I've got, and the XP "driver" didn't seem to make any difference in the resolutions/color depth on offer.

Possibly, the problem is somehow related to the CPU upgrade I did: I'm running a PIII 500MHz in place of the original PII 366MHz. And I've got 100MHz memory to go with it.

Or possibly the problem stems from some other configuration fiddling I did with this machine many years ago.

But I'm still looking for suggestions. Anyone else got their 770Z/770X working with a 1600x1200 monitor.

Phil.

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/video/modesBuffer-c.html

Resolution
4 Bits
8 Bits
16 Bits
24 Bits
32 Bits

320x200
0.03 (256 KB)
0.06 (256 KB)
0.12 (256 KB)
0.18 (256 KB)
--

640x480
0.15 (256 KB)
0.29 (512 KB)
0.59 (1 MB)
0.88 (1 MB)
1.17 (2 MB)

800x600
--
0.46 (512 KB)
0.92 (1 MB)
1.37 (2 MB)
1.83 (2 MB)

1024x768
--
0.75 (1 MB)
1.50 (2 MB)
2.25 (4 MB)
3.00 (4 MB)

1280x1024
--
1.25 (2 MB)
2.50 (4 MB)
3.75 (4 MB)
5.00 (6 MB)

1600x1200
--
1.83 (2 MB)
3.66 (4 MB)
5.49 (6 MB)
7.32 (8 MB)

The 770 series tops out at 4 or 8MB video RAM depending on the model

I'm not sure what you are getting at here. Doesn't that mean that my 770Z should be able to display 1600x1200 at 16bit? I've got an 8MB video model. The IBM/Lenovo documentation actually says explicitly that it should be able to display 1600x1200 at 16bit on an external display. My problem is that I can't get it to display at 1600x1200 at ANY colour depth.

Phil.

Took another look at the spec sheets and noticed that it says the 770X/770Z can display 1600x1200 at "96iHz", not 60MHz like I thought. This must be what is causing me trouble. My monitor's max refresh rate for 1600x1200 appears to be 60MHz, so perhaps it is misinterpreting the 96iHz as 48iHz (half of 96iHz), and choking on that.

Perhaps I should have held on to that behemoth 21" CRT I had, instead of "upgrading" to these two Dell 2007FP UltraSharp monitors that I've got now. Part of why I chose to go with the 1600x1200 was with the plan of being able to use them at their native resolution with my 770Zs as well as with my X60.

Phil.

Make sure your video drivers are 770Z specific; you can download them from Lenovo. Generic Windows drivers may only work with the basics.