Dull image after reformat

[joekingston]

Hey all, long time anandtech reader here. I came to the forums because I'm completely stumped. I need help diagnosing the cause of my display "problem". Before I start, I need to emphasize something. I am using the same monitor, nvidia control panel settings and display drivers since before I reformatted. To be more specific, I am using 100% default settings for everything. Settings would include Brightness, Contrast, Gamma, Hue, "Digital Vibrance", and so on. With that said, I have tried adjusting settings anyways, both with eyeballing and monitor calibration software. Nothing has fixed my problem. I do not believe this is a problem that can be fixed by simply "turning on digital vibrance" or "turning up my brightness". Okay, here's my problem:

Ever since I reformatted my computer, my screen image has changed. The screen is slightly dimmer. Colors are a tad bit washed out. I have lost some overall screen sharpness as well. This is most evident when I play computer games like World of Warcraft or Modern Warfare 2 but it is visible with general desktop computing as well. WoW is a very colorful, cartoonish style game. I have, without a doubt, lost some color fidelity. Before, colors were very deep and vibrant. Almost like they pop out of your screen. Now, everything just looks a tad bit dull and washed out. Same goes for Modern Warfare 2. The screen looks darker. Colors are not as bright. Textures aren't as sharp.

Can anyone give me a logical reason why this happened? As I stated before, I'm using the same color and brightness settings since before I reformatted. I'm also using the same video card driver version. So I doubt it's a software or display settings issue. My monitor is less than four months old. My computer is less than seven. So I doubt it's a hardware issue too. I'm using a high quality Monster DVI-D cable. So I doubt it's the cable.

If I had to make a choice on what I think it is, I would say pre-mature hardware failure. But what would most likely be the cause, the video card or the monitor?

I'll be glad to answer any questions, as thoroughly as posisble. First off, my system specs:

Intel Core 2 Duo E7300 2.66GHz processor
2GB PC-6400 DDR2 memory
MSI mATX LGA775 motherboard
EVGA nVidia GeForce 9800GT 512MB PCI-Express video card
Hitachi 250GB SATA-II 7200RPM hard drive
Creative Soundblaster Audigy 2 ZS sound card
Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP3 32-bit operating system

Some miscellaneous notes that might be relevant:

I had this EXACT SAME issue on my old computer/monitor. It happened after I upgraded my EVGA GeForce FX5500 to a PNY GeForce 7600GS.

My current computer experienced a similar problem before, except it only happened with WoW. A while back, I did a "factory image restore". After I installed WoW, I noticed that my colors were alot different. The screen didn't look as grey and washed out. Colors were very deep, bright, vibrant. I could see more detail with everything. MW2 looked exactly the same though (which was fine until I reformatted).

I'm hoping someone here has had a similiar problem or has heard of this before. I think it's some NVIDIA related issue. I have tracked down some threads on the internet with people having similar problems, all unresolved.

 

[Raduque]

Try reseating the video card and re-install the driver version you had before your formatted.

 

[joekingston]

As I stated twice, I am using the same display driver from before I reformatted. And I doubt that my video card became loose while reformatting/reinstalling but I took your advice anyways. Took it out, dusted it, dusted out the pci connector, reseated it firmly without too much pressure. Did not fix my problem. Thanks though, I didn't think of that.

 

[Raduque]

I'm sorry, I didn't notice that the first time through. Have you checked the color depth setting? Made sure it's on 32-bit? Have you tried other display driver versions, or tried other monitors on your system (to rule out the monitor itself)?

I honestly don't know what's going on here - I've never seen this issue at all with any of my older nvidia cards (various 6800s and 7900s).

 

[joekingston]

Yes, of course it's on 32-bit. I've tried rolling back to the 195's and the 186's.

As far as using another monitor, it's not that simple. No two monitors are the same, even the same brand and model. For example, DELL states they color calibrate each of their Ultrasharps individually before they leave the factory.

Another thing to note, by no means is my problem a "night and day difference". After I reformatted, it took me about a full day to realize something wasn't right. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me at first. None the less, after working with computers for 10+ years, I can say my screen is not the same. It's dimmed slightly and that contributes to colors looking slightly washed out and overall sharpness being reduced.

 

[Swampster]

Joe,
Even quality parts come with a warranty . . . guess why! Try a different cable even if you have to change from HDMI to Digital or even VGA

 

[Raduque]

Well, I really don't know what to say, Joe. This isn't an issue I've ever heard of.

Swampster, digital cables don't go bad in degrees, they either work or they don't. OP has mentioned he was using a DVI cable. I do know VGA cables can go bad, I have one that makes text blurry.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Run dxdiag and check drivers.

 

[joekingston]

I tried the VGA cable that came with the monitor. Also tried a no-name brand DVI-D cable I bought from computer renaissance for $17. I can't see any difference. Ran dxdiag also, drivers checked out. Everything appears to be in order.

Anyways, I called LG and asked to have my monitor replaced. It's still under warranty so their shipping a new one (might be refurbished, who knows) in 7-10 business days. We'll see if that fixes it. If anyone has any more things I could try, I'd appreciate the input. I've tried everything I could think of though. Most recently I tried the other DVI port on my graphics card.

The only scenario that makes sense to me is that some how my monitor decided to go bad at the same time I reformatted. Not sure how a reformat alone would cause these problems. But yah, thanks all.

 

[Raduque]

Sorry we couldnt help more, Joe. Hopefully a new monitor solves it!