DVI to VGA, QUALITY vs Cost.Can I suffer the quality for a larger TFT size.

[gravyonmychin]

Hi, I currently have a Samsung Syncmaster 151d which has the DVI Interface. This came as part of the Evesham package bought 3 yrs back.
I am putting my own pc together (kids getting the Evesham) and wanted a larger tft-possibly 17 or 19 tft. To get these with a DVI Interface gets very expensive.
As I have never had a VGA tft and thus have nothing to compare too what sort of differences can I expect in say picture quality,res etc etc to a DVI one, were I to get a VGA tft?
It will have general use as well as a spot of gaming from time to time.
Thank you.

[davidstone28]

I don't think there's a straightward answer to this question.

In theory, DVI is clearly superior because you avoid having to convert a digital signal (from the graphics card) to analogue (via D-Sub) and then back to digital again (the monitor). It's superior because it shouldn't result in degradation of the signal quality from the graphics card.

Things are complicated by the fact that there are many other factors which affect picture quality. For example, quality of the TFT panel, colour pallettes, brightness and contrast ratios, response times, quality of the cable, quality of the DVI output on the graphics card, quality of analogue to digital convertor within the monitor, quality of electronics etc etc.

So say, for example, you bought a £100 generic TFT monitor, which is likely to have poor quality electronics, a poor quality panel, etc but which has DVI output. That monitor in all likelihood is going to perform far worse than a top of the range £500 TFT monitor with VGA/D-Sub output. For example, many people with the LG 1720B (analogue output) comment on its very good picture quality. A DVI output will not compensate for a poor quality monitor.

Quality also varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. Let's say that you have a monitor with both DVI (digital) and VGA (analogue) outputs. You might not notice any discernable difference in terms of picture quality between those outputs. However, if you have a TFT from another manufacturer, the difference between DVI and VGA output might well be very noticeable. The only website that I have seen that has attempted any comparison between VGA and DVI output using the same monitors is Anandtech, so you want to have a search of their reviews database.

Quality of DVI output can also be affected by the quality of the DVI cable. For example, I have a Hydis panelled Acer 1731M TFT which has analogue and digital outputs. If I use a cheap £5 DVD-D cable I notice minor electrical interference on the borders of the screen. This doesn't happen if I use a higher quality DVI-D (or DVI-I) cable.

There is also anecdotal evidence that the DVI signal ouptut on the Nvidia Ti4200, Ti4400 and Ti4600 is below par in terms of signal quality. When combined with certain monitors that can result in below par picture quality eg. fringing around text etc. For example, I used to have a Ti4200/Iiyama E431S combination which had this affliction. Other monitors might not be affected.

I think that the bottom line is is that if you can get a monitor with DVI you should try and do so, but this should not be to exclusion of other factors which can affect picture qualilty.

[davidstone28]

Some Anandtech comparisons below:

http://www.anandtech.com/displays/sh...spx?i=2024&p=8
http://www.anandtech.com/displays/sh...spx?i=2072&p=8
http://www.anandtech.com/displays/sh...spx?i=2055&p=8

I'm sure there are more, but I don't have the time or inclination to trawl through their site

[daniel_owen_uk]

Pretty much what david said, if you have two identical panels, one has dvi other doesn't the dvi model will look better.

Aside from two identical models its hard to say.

[andrewuk]

Hi, I currently have a Samsung Syncmaster 151d which has the DVI Interface. This came as part of the Evesham package bought 3 yrs back.
I am putting my own pc together (kids getting the Evesham) and wanted a larger tft-possibly 17 or 19 tft. To get these with a DVI Interface gets very expensive.
As I have never had a VGA tft and thus have nothing to compare too what sort of differences can I expect in say picture quality,res etc etc to a DVI one, were I to get a VGA tft?
It will have general use as well as a spot of gaming from time to time.
Thank you.

I have a Samsung 171p TFT which has both DVI and D-SUB connectors and the quality is noticeably better using DVI on my current 5900XT card and also my previous Ti4200. I guess it would depend on both the video card and monitor but in my experience DVI is better even if only by a small margin.

[gravyonmychin]

Once again your guys never fail to deliver good advice.Thanks Guys, you have been most hopeful.

[Apex]

Also don't wana confuse some people but some TFT's that are d-sub (vga only) are some times on par with the tfts with both.