Z68A-GD80 DVI Port Woes

Question

I've been having problems (like many others) getting the on board DVI port to work. I've done some testing and here is what I've found.
My monitor is an ASUS VE247H.
A direct connection between the DVI port of the mainboard and my monitor results in no output. Monitor gives a "no signal" message. A single link or dual link DVI cable yields the same result. There is no difference between the two.
A DVI to HDMI adapter connected to the HDMI input of the monitor works.
A DVI to VGA adapter connected to the VGA input of the monitor works.
An HDMI to HDMI connection from mainboard to monitor also works.
Monitor worked with my previous PC connected via DVI. Monitor also works with Z68A-GD80 and a discrete card connected via DVI. That should rule out the monitor being the issue.
At this point I figured the DVI port was just faulty. I have already received a call from MSI, after discussing my DVI problems in a Newegg review, and was instructed to RMA the board back to Newegg for a replacement. Before taking everything apart, I decided to try the only other "monitor" available to me with a DVI input, my Samsung DLP TV (model#HLP4663WX/XAA). So I directly connected the mainboard to the TV (DVI to DVI), with a single link DVI cable and amazingly, that worked.
This leads me to believe there is definitely some issue with the way the BIOS handles communication to/from the monitor, and not just a faulty DVI socket.
Another observation I've made, the same monitor is detected differently depending on what interface is being used. For instance, when I connect via HDMI, the Intel Graphics and Media Control Panel shows my display as "Digital Television VE247".
If I connect with VGA, the display shows up as "Monitor VE247".
Hopefully this is of some use to MSI. We really need these port issues fixed.

Answer 1

Quote from: owcraftsman on 11-June-11, 00:40:06
Have you tried a HDMI connection with the Asus VE247H? The reason I ask is the DVI-D connection "D" meaning Dual with that monitor may not be compatible with the Single link out put of the motherboard. You would think it's backward compatible but maybe not. I hope this helps you avoid an RMA GL
Yes, I tried every connection I could to the monitor. Straight HDMI from board to display worked. Using the DVI port on the board and some adapters, DVI -> HDMI (worked), DVI -> VGA (worked), DVI -> DVI (doesn't work).
And FYI, in DVI-D, the "D" is for DIGITAL not dual. The mainboard has a DVI-I port, the "I" meaning integrated. It supports both digital (DVI) and analog (VGA) connections from the same port.
Quote from: HU16E on 11-June-11, 02:34:35
Not really sure if this may be a possible factor or not, our board HDMI port is compliant v1.4, maybe an issue with the backwards compatibility with v1.3 devices & cables? After everyone contacts & opens a ticket with MSI Tech Support, please be sure to post their response.
AFAIK, the monitor is HDMI v1.3 compliant, the cable I'm using definitely is. I have no problems with an HDMI connection though. Either straight HDMI from board to monitor, or DVI port on board -> DVI to HDMI adapter -> HDMI cable to monitor. I've contacted support with my results thus far and linked them to this thread as well. Their reply "Ok, thank you for the update. I will look further into this and update you as further information becomes available."
I've RMA'd the board back to newegg for a replacement and will repeat this process when I get it back (probably another week). I even went as far as to try one of the beta BIOSes before RMAing, no improvement there.