Widescreen Gaming Forum

The leaked 10.3 press drivers contain some great functionality to make Eyefinity actually usable - bezel compensation. I was really looking forward to this functionality, and installed the drivers immediately after they leaked. Unfortunately, the menu option to configure bezel compensation was unavailable after installing the drivers. The cause of the functionality is that the EDID of one my monitors reports a wrong size (source: http://www.rage3d.com/board/showthread.php?t=33959849&page=3, post 72. For some reason, the bezel compensation functionality is only unlocked when the drivers THINK the monitors are the same size. If you run into the same problem, this topic is about fixing the EDID's of your monitor so bezel compensation becomes available.

My setup:

Operating system: Windows 7 x64
Graphics: 5870, 1 GB
Monitor 1 (connected to DisplayPort): HP LP2475w (24", 1920x1200)
Monitor 2&3: Samsung 2443 (24", 1920x1200)

Using the utility MonInfo, you are able to read out the EDID of the connected monitors. The size of my HP monitor is reported as 540 x 350 mm (25,3 in), while the size of my Samsungs is reported as 520 x 320 mm (24,0 in). The HP monitor simply reports its size wrong as the viewable area of the monitor really is 24 inch.

I started my EDID update quest by using the Phoenix & MonInfo tools to generate an updated INF file (as described in this thread: http://www.widescreengamingforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=64&t=17635). Unfortunately, this did not work for me. It seems that the ATI drivers - at least the code that determines if bezel compensation can be enabled - completely ignore the EDID override in the registry. Strange thing is though that I have read reports on the internet of people that did get this to work to activate bezel compensation. Unfortunately, it didn't work for me.

The only remaining solution for me was to actually flash an updated EDID into the monitor.

To do this, you'll need the following tools:

* MonInfo (http://www.entechtaiwan.com/util/moninfo.shtm)
* Phoenix EDID Designer (http://www.tucows.com/preview/329441)
* A registered version of PowerStrip to update the EDID of your monitor (http://entechtaiwan.com/util/ps.shtm). Preferably you need an older version that does not have the EDID Update functionality locked. I used version 3.83. You can also try a free DOS utility called EDID Writer (ddcw.exe). You will need to boot your computer into DOS for this. You can download the EDID writer from http://www.curtpalme.com/forum/download.php?id=3260&sid=99e0eafb6836ad33049142acd0da3bef.

[DISCLAIMERMODE]Do this at your own risk! Flashing a wrong EDID may break your monitor! Save the original EDID somewhere save so you can flash it back if your monitor breaks down and you still have warranty. Still, you may loose your monitor's warranty flashing the EDID![/DISCLAIMERMODE]

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Perform the following steps to update your EDID (thank you xonacs from Rage3D forum, http://www.rage3d.com/board/showthread.php?t=33959849&page=3, post 88):

1. Check the sizes of your monitor using MonInfo. Write them down, and decide which monitor(s) you want to update.



2. Phoenix EDID Designer -> Tools -> Extract Registry EDID -> Load correct model



3. Remove read only (File --> Read Only)

4. Basic Display Parameters -> Image Size... Set the correct display size here.



5. File -> Save EDID as

6. Open Powerstrip -> Monitor Information. Under Option select Update EDID and upload the EDID saved from Phoenix. Switch off pc + unplug monitor and then reboot



7. Enjoy bezel management

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So, it SHOULD be that simple. Unfortunately there are many things that can go wrong, as I have experienced.

1. Every input on your monitor has its own EDID. The DisplayPort port of my HP monitor has a different EDID compared to the DVI port. I was unable to flash the EDID of my HP DisplayPort, but was able to flash the DVI port. I ended up flashing both my Samsung 2443 monitors to report the same monitor size as the HP (as you do need the DisplayPort for Eyefinity or buy an adapter that is way too expensive).

2. The EDID of your monitor may be readonly. This either means that it cannot be flashed at all, or it is 'locked'. You may need to figure out how to unlock it... When you run into this, PowerStrip will give you the following error: "An error has occurred writing the EDID. The EEPROM may be write-protected or the cable may simply be too long".

Here is how to unlock the EDID write for the HP LP2475w: (source http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/hp_lp2475w.htm, and thank you!)
* Turn on the monitor, while holding the menu button for 5 seconds (Resets all settings!)
* Access the OSD menu. You now have a "Service..." menu option
* In the service menu, there is an option to Unlock EDID Write. Unlock it, save the settings, then flash.

Here is how to unlock the EDID write for at least the Samsung 2443 and Samsung 930B (source http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1115300 and thank you DA1745!):

* Go to menu
* Set contrast and brightness to 0
* In the menu, hold the "Input/Enter" button until a red/white menu appears
* The EDID is now writable!

3. Phoenix EDID designer does not really seem to like Windows 7. On my installation, it crashes when trying to extract the EDID... Fortunately, I have a dual boot to Windows XP and it works without problems on that operating system. If you run into this, you can also run the Phoenix EDID Designer in Windows XP compatibility mode to fix the crashes. On my system this stops the crashes but I still get an error that the "EDID is invalid" when trying to open.

4. PowerStrip may not support your graphics card to flash the EDID of the monitors. You will get an error that no EEPROM is found to flash to. I had to connect the monitors to a different computer having an older graphic card (8800 Ultra) that was able to find the EDID EEPROM and flash to it.

I hope this helps anyone to update their monitor's EDID's.

Would be a lot easier if ATI didn't impose these restrictions. Just give the option and if it doesn't work properly then it doesn't work.

Don't really see why they have to have so many lock-downs and restrictions with the software. Allow a user to set the options they want, bezel comp, screen res' etc. Click OK, click another OK box within 15 seconds or settings revert back etc.

With regards the checkbox not appearing unless it sees all three monitors the same - could you connect to one (or two) monitors via the three outputs, i.e. have two connections to one monitor using additional inputs so that all is equal and then gives you the checkbox or does it check these details each time and will then disable it if things change back to the three unique outputs?

First, good job with the guide.

And I agree with Magic Man, it's not a smart restriction if it can lead people to try potentially risky procedures.

I had already tried this a few times this weekend without success. Tried it on a couple of computers (tried it on 1 with a 5870 and another with a 4870), only to get some error message "valid edid (or eeprom - I forgot which) not found..."

I thought it might be the video cards being the problem so I also tried booting into the computer's own onboard graphics. But Powerstrip would not start for some reason and I kinda quit at that point.

I'm running 1 2407WFP (EDID says 52 x 33cm) and 2 2408WFP's (EDID says 52 x 32cm). They are both the same size, rez, and dpi. I ran into a problem with PowerStrip when trying to update the 2407's EDID where it tells me it can't find any EDIDs to write. "An EDID EEPROM was not detected on the selected monitor. Do you want to scan the bus for other EDID EEPROMs?" Clicking Yes here still finds nothing.

I tried connecting my 2407 via VGA but still got the same error. Do you think this is a limitation of the monitor or the video card? I tried disabling my other 2 screens, but that didn't work either :(

I also do not understand this restriction. For some reason, the ATI driver developers decided to determine the width of the bezels in a measurable format such as centimeters by using the EDID information in combination with what the user defines in the triangle setup screen. Why does the driver need to know how wide the bezels are in centimeters?
The number of pixels the bezel is wide should be all that the driver needs to calculate the amount of bezel pixels for lower resolutions.

I cannot think of a functional reason why you want to disable bezel compensation for different sized monitors. Even if monitors really are of a different size, bezel compensation still has value.

I have some experience with SoftTH & how that product implements bezel compensation: it simply consists of a property that you set in a config file, like BorderSize=120. This border size is added twice to the triple head resolution. This seems to be exactly what Ati is doing. The only difference is that SoftTH doesn't care about the size of your monitor. The downside of SoftTH's way is that you have to calculate the number of pixels yourself for each resolution.

I'm running 1 2407WFP (EDID says 52 x 33cm) and 2 2408WFP's (EDID says 52 x 32cm). They are both the same size, rez, and dpi. I ran into a problem with PowerStrip when trying to update the 2407's EDID where it tells me it can't find any EDIDs to write. "An EDID EEPROM was not detected on the selected monitor. Do you want to scan the bus for other EDID EEPROMs?" Clicking Yes here still finds nothing.

I tried connecting my 2407 via VGA but still got the same error. Do you think this is a limitation of the monitor or the video card? I tried disabling my other 2 screens, but that didn't work either :(

I think PowerStrip does not support the video card. I was having the same message trying to flash the EDID via my 5870. Do you have any other video card you can try? I had success on another computer containing a good old Nvidia 8800 Ultra.
It looks like that PowerStrip does not support flashing the EDID using newer (4xxx, 5xxx) Ati cards.

Yep, seems as if they are overcomplicating things which then results in issues such as these found where the edid data returns non equal values.

Just record the bezel management as set by the user. If I have to set it for each resolution I use then fine, I'd rather that than have it base the calculation off another setting requiring data from the edid in order to do it.

Forget the edid stuff, it can be wrong or non reliable as shown here. Allow us to set things according to what we tell it rather than what it thinks should be the case. Same goes for the resolutions being based of native etc. I don't really see why the card and drivers need to worry what the capabilities are of the monitors that are plugged into them. As long as the settings revert back to previous values if not confirmed within a set timeframe if you select something that then blanks your monitors and you are unable to revert manually like other driver settings do etc. then where's the problem?

Thanks for the guide! One question tho: My side monitor is 21.7", would forcing the EDID to make it 22" be a greater risk?

I think PowerStrip does not support the video card. I was having the same message trying to flash the EDID via my 5870. Do you have any other video card you can try? I had success on another computer containing a good old Nvidia 8800 Ultra.
It looks like that PowerStrip does not support flashing the EDID using newer (4xxx, 5xxx) Ati cards.

Hmmm, only other video cards in the house are a HD4650 and a HD2400.I may give one of them a shot when I feel like moving my monitor around. PITA....

Word of warning, "do at your own risk" really applies here.

I got Powerstrip to finally work on one of my Asus vw266h using onboard video. But during the eeprom writing, I got a warning that the eeprom was "write protected or the cord was too long." And now the DVI will no longer display anything. I tried flashing it back to the backup, which it said was successful but the result is still the same.

It's now just a black screen, it's on and not on standby, just no picture. The VGA still works. I'll try to flash it back again, or use it as a VGA (or HDMI - haven't tried that yet) monitor.

Again, do at your own risk.

Edit: update, I reflashed it back using the original from the registry and got DVI back working. I'll probably hold off trying again, maybe just wait for ATI to change this restriction.