How to setting monitor refresh rate

raghugs · June 12, 2008, 7:44am

Hello Everybody

I have recently installed Opensuse 11.0 RC1 .
Other than bootsplash issue and this issue, there is no major problems.

I have a Samsung Syncmaster 713x 17’ LCD Monitor.
My system always boots in 60hz refresh rate.
My monitor support’s 75hz refresh rate.
Even KDE 4 also allows me to set 75hz as a refresh rate.
But it is not configured permanently. i haven’t set refresh-rate every time i login to my Desktop.

My Xorg.conf file has the following content.

 
# /.../
# SaX generated X11 config file
# Created on: 2008-06-11T14:11:37+0530.
#
# Version: 8.1
# Contact: Marcus Schaefer <sax@suse.de>, 2005
# Contact: SaX-User list <https://lists.berlios.de/mailman/listinfo/sax-users>
#
# Automatically generated by [ISaX] (8.1)
# PLEASE DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE!
#

Section "Files"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/misc:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/local"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/75dpi:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/100dpi:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/Type1"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/URW"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/Speedo"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/PEX"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/cyrillic"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/latin2/misc:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/latin2/75dpi:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/latin2/100dpi:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/latin2/Type1"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/latin7/75dpi:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/baekmuk:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/japanese:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/kwintv"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/truetype"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/uni:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/CID"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/ucs/misc:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/ucs/75dpi:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/ucs/100dpi:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/hellas/misc:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/hellas/75dpi:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/hellas/100dpi:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/hellas/Type1"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/misc/sgi:unscaled"
  FontPath     "/usr/share/fonts/xtest"
  FontPath     "/opt/kde3/share/fonts"
  InputDevices "/dev/gpmdata"
  InputDevices "/dev/input/mice"
EndSection

Section "ServerFlags"
  Option       "AIGLX" "on"
  Option       "AllowMouseOpenFail" "on"
  Option       "ZapWarning" "on"
EndSection

Section "Module"
  Load         "freetype"
  Load         "type1"
  Load         "dbe"
  Load         "glx"
  Load         "extmod"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
  Driver       "kbd"
  Identifier   "Keyboard[0]"
  Option       "Protocol" "Standard"
  Option       "XkbLayout" "us"
  Option       "XkbModel" "microsoftpro"
  Option       "XkbRules" "xfree86"
EndSection


Section "InputDevice"
  Driver       "mouse"
  Identifier   "Mouse[1]"
  Option       "Buttons" "12"
  Option       "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
  Option       "Emulate3Buttons" "on"
  Option       "Name" "Logitech USB Receiver"
  Option       "Protocol" "explorerps/2"
  Option       "Vendor" "Sysp"
  Option       "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection


Section "Monitor"
  Option       "CalcAlgorithm" "XServerPool"
  DisplaySize  338 270
  HorizSync    30-81
  Identifier   "Monitor[0]"
  ModelName    "SAMSUNG SYNCMASTER"
  Option       "DPMS"
  Option       "PreferredMode" "1280x1024"
  VendorName   "SAM"
  VertRefresh  43-75
  UseModes     "Modes[0]"
EndSection


Section "Modes"
  Identifier   "Modes[0]"
  Modeline 	"1280x1024" 108 1280 1328 1440 1688 1024 1025 1028 1066 +hsync +vsync
EndSection


Section "Screen"
  DefaultDepth 24
  SubSection "Display"
    Depth      15
    Modes      "1280x1024" "1280x960" "1280x800" "1152x864" "1280x768" "1280x720" "1024x768" "1280x600" "1024x600" "800x600" "768x576" "640x480" 
  EndSubSection
  SubSection "Display"
    Depth      16
    Modes      "1280x1024" "1280x960" "1280x800" "1152x864" "1280x768" "1280x720" "1024x768" "1280x600" "1024x600" "800x600" "768x576" "640x480" 
  EndSubSection
  SubSection "Display"
    Depth      24
    Modes      "1280x1024" "1280x960" "1280x800" "1152x864" "1280x768" "1280x720" "1024x768" "1280x600" "1024x600" "800x600" "768x576" "640x480" 
  EndSubSection
  SubSection "Display"
    Depth      8
    Modes      "1280x1024" "1280x960" "1280x800" "1152x864" "1280x768" "1280x720" "1024x768" "1280x600" "1024x600" "800x600" "768x576" "640x480" 
  EndSubSection
  Device       "Device[0]"
  Identifier   "Screen[0]"
  Monitor      "Monitor[0]"
EndSection


Section "Device"
  BoardName    "945G"
  BusID        "0:2:0"
  Driver       "intel"
  Identifier   "Device[0]"
  Option       "monitor-VGA" "Monitor[0]"
  Screen       0
  VendorName   "Intel"
EndSection



Section "ServerLayout"
  Identifier   "Layout[all]"
  InputDevice  "Keyboard[0]" "CoreKeyboard"
  InputDevice  "Mouse[1]" "CorePointer"
  Option       "Clone" "off"
  Option       "Xinerama" "off"
  Screen       "Screen[0]"
EndSection


Section "DRI"
    Group      "video"
    Mode       0660
EndSection

Section "Extensions"
  Option       "Composite" "on"
EndSection

I had this problem in Ubuntu 8.04 too, but there was a utility to set Graphics and Monitor options and it allowed to set Refresh-Rate permanently.

So i wasn’t needed to look for my monitor’s specifications or needed to play with Xorg.conf file.

user · June 12, 2008, 9:53am

try using Yast - Hardware - Graphics Card and Monitor. You should be able to set the refresh rate in there.

raghugs · June 12, 2008, 11:42am

Refresh Rate of the monitor cannot be changed via Sax2.

raghugs · June 14, 2008, 2:07pm

Hello Everybody

I have solved the low refresh rate problem just by following method.

Edited Xorg.conf using KWrite.

Under Monitor section,
In VertRefresh, there was 46-75.
I replaced it with 75,
Problem solved

garyg_the_first · June 14, 2008, 2:53pm

One of the comments at the top of xorg.config says

PLEASE DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE!

Im wondering why?

hank_se · June 14, 2008, 4:57pm

Mainly because sax will overwrite your changes next time
you run it. Besides vertical refresh rate isn’t really
that important with an LCD monitor as they don’t flicker
like old CRT’s do.

garyg_the_first · June 15, 2008, 1:05am

Thank you for the info, Hank.

That brings to mind another question:
In the situation described by Raghugs - where the change could not be made with sax, how does one make the change so it is permanent?

Gary

hank_se · June 15, 2008, 10:54am

The easiest way is to simply don’t use sax, that’s possible
as long as you don’t have any hardware that needs to be set
up with sax. Xorg.conf can be much simpler than those gene-
rated by sax with todays xorgserver, xorg is pretty good
at finding out things by itself. The following very simple
xorg.conf works for my setup:


Section "Device"
        Identifier  "MyCard"
        Driver      "fglrx"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
        Identifier "MyScreen"
        Device     "MyCard"
        DefaultDepth     24
        SubSection "Display"
                Depth     24
		Virtual   1280 1024        
	EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "DRI"
    Group      "video"
    Mode       0660
EndSection

Much easier to read and follow, there’s only 2 issues with it.
As there’s no keyboard section you’ll have to set your keyboard
layout in the desktop if it’s not a us keyboard and for some
reason xorg thinks my monitor can do 1450x900, so I have to
use the line:


Virtual   1280 1024

It might be this error from xorg that sets the refresh to 60 hz,
with the above line it’s set to 75 hz.

There’s a lot of interesting stuff about this, especially about
setting up dual monitors on this link:
X.Org Wiki - radeonhd

garyg_the_first · June 16, 2008, 5:11pm

Thank you very much for the information.

Your last post goes in my file of “things I ought know”

Gary