S Video Issues 1

[cherrystarr]

I usually watch anime off of my laptop on my tv using an svideo cable... but recently the video no longer displays when i connect my laptop to the tv, even when i am playing a store baught dvd on the laptop, and the videos i could once watch and that worked before no longer even work. I am unsure of why this is happening becuase everything else works with the cable except video. I tried uninstalling all of my codecs that i had installed because i thought that it might be because of that... but still no luck!
I just dont understand how all of a sudden no videos will play, where as it worked in the past... and its really frustrating me! Any help right now would be GREATLY appreciated!

 

[Nelviticus]

You say that "everything else works with the cable except video" but I'm not sure what you mean, as the only thing that an S-Video cable carries is video. Are you saying that you can see your Windows desktop on your TV but you just get a black screen when you play back video? What happens if you play video in a window instead of full-screen?

Have you updated your graphics drivers recently? If you have it's possible that some settings have been changed. Alternatively you might have accidentally hit a shortcut key that changed some settings.

What graphics hardware do you have?

Nelviticus

 

[cherrystarr]

Yes, that is correct, i can see my desktop but not the video that is playing in the media player. I have tried full screen, non-full screen, WinDVD, Media PLayer Classic, and Windows Media Player. I believe the graphics drivers are installed correctly, i have an ATI Radeon Express 200M in my laptop, havent touched the settings since i first got it so im thinking that couldnt be the problem.

 

[Nelviticus]

It could well be the shortcut key problem. I've seen an issue before where someone accidentally hit a key combo that disabled their TV output - there were no messages on screen to say that anything had happened but suddenly they were no longer able to see their laptop on their TV.

Previously, back when it all worked, when you played a video file were you able to see it on both the laptop and the TV at the same time? I suspect not, as video is normally displayed in something called an 'overlay' window and these can only usually be shown on one display of a dual-display setup. Depends on the hardware and drivers though so I could be wrong.

I have a laptop with ATI graphics and configuring the TV output is a confusing nightmare. Try going into the ATI options and fiddling with some of the settings, such as ones that define which displays are in use - you have several to choose from including the laptop's screen, the TV output and the secondary monitor output. I don't have my laptop with me at the moment and I can't remember what options there are but hopefully you might notice an obvious wrong setting.

I'll have a look at my laptop this weekend and see if I can come up with any more ideas.

Regards

Nelviticus

 

[cherrystarr]

Yeah, if i go into the advanced display settings i can turn on or off the TV display, and i checked that i had it turned on. And when i played the video files, before they would display on both the computer and the tv, as the tv would show everything on my desktop. Now i can see the video on the laptop, and only the desktop with a black box where the playing video should be displayed. I guess later i will try to play with the settings a little more and see if i can find something that might have been changed to stop the video from showing on the tv.
But still, if you have any suggestions/possible solutions, im open to options!

 

[Sleepsalot]

Try uninstalling the DVD software and reinstall it. It may have been corupted. Also I have seen some dvd's that install their own program and this has caused problems.

Wayne

Life is a big Roleplaying adventure.

Wayne

 

[cherrystarr]

That didnt change a thing. It happens with any kind of video, whether its dvd, or any other normal file type like .avi
but thanks for the suggestion

 

[Nelviticus]

Hmm, does the info on this page help:

Video image is black on a secondary display or TV in Clone Mode

?

Nelviticus

 

[cherrystarr]

oh my gosh! You are my savior!! That totally worked! Thank you so much for finding that tutorial/faq. Thank you again!!!

 

[BigD9422]

Hi

I was reading your thread. CAn you please tell me your solution as the link now goes to a dead end saying my session has timed out.

This issue is driving me crazy!

Thank you very much.

Mark

 

[Nelviticus]

Crikey what a stupid support site ATI have - the link is actually correct but you can't visit it directly because you have to be logged into a secure session first. Duh!

Just go to their support site here:

http://www.ati.com/support/

and enter 'video is black' in the search box. The article will be one of the first entries in the list.

Regards

Nelviticus

 

[Nelviticus]

Actually it's easier if I just quote the text so here it is:

Video image is black on a secondary display or TV in Clone Mode

When clone mode is enabled, the Video window appears black on the secondary display.

One of the new features of the CATALYST™ driver is the THEATER MODE feature.

THEATER MODE allows overlay to be available in a full screen mode on a dual head capable product.

Using ATI CATALYST Control Center:
The THEATER MODE option can be enabled using the following steps:

ensure Clone mode is enabled
select the Advanced Settings under the CATALYST Control Center "View" menu
Under Video, select Theater Mode
In the Overlay Display in Clone Mode section, select the Theater Mode radio button

Using ATI Control Panel:
The THEATER MODE option can be enabled using the following steps:
ensure Clone mode is enabled
open Windows Display Properties
select the Advanced button under the Settings Tab
select the Overlay tab
For CATALYST™ 3.2 and higher
select the CLONE MODE OPTIONS button and then Select the THEATER MODE button
apply the changes
For CATALYST™ builds previous to CATALYST™ 3.2
select the THEATER MODE button
apply the changes

Regards

Nelviticus

 

[BigD9422]

Thank you very much for the quick ...very quick response!

However I am not sure if this exactly addresses my problem with the card on my Gateway Laptop (MX6448).

I will try and post my results.

My specific issue is I am able to view static images like the desktop and programs just fine (no crashes) however anything with moving video starts ok then crashes the entire laptop. Sometimes I see vertical noise lines then the big crash and sometimes the picture is just fine and in seconds everything goes black and the laptop has to be turned off then on.

I will try the suggested remedy from ATI, then update the drivers (laptop is just a week old) and then I'll repost.

Do you have any other suggestions?

Thanks very much

Mark

 

[BigD9422]

PS

Video plays fine on the laptop alone without plugging in the s-video to the TV.

 

[Nelviticus]

Very weird. Could be a hardware fault - if updating the drivers doesn't help I'd send it back for repair/replacement, especially if it's only a week old.

It sounds as though the TV encoder chip is overheating when it's asked to deal with video as opposed to static images. Maybe. No too sure!

Regards

Nelviticus

 

[BigD9422]

Well you were right! The chip or something connected to the video card (perhaps the memory) was bad. I brought it back to Best Buy and said I wanted the laptop replaced. After 40 minutes (long story) they told me to "just take another one...".

When I purchased the unit, the sales guy said that even if I didn't like it I could bring it back for a full refund no questions asked. Well I didn't want a refund just a laptop that functioned as promised. It was not an easy exchange to say the least and the last time I buy from Best Buy. Actually I had frequent flyer miles turned into Best Buy certificates and had to use there.

Thank you for suggesting I return it. Without your insight, I would have been trying to install and re-install drivers, calling customer service and waiting on hold until the cows came home.

Again, thank you very much!

Mark

 

[BigD9422]

PS I got so caught up in my Best Buy bashing I forgot to tell you the s-video works great on the replaced laptop! Now I use my computer in the basement as a DVR and record TV shows which are streamed flawlessly and over a wireless network to the laptop in my den and played on my TV. Wow, very geeky but I do love when these things work! Don't you?

 

[Nelviticus]

Wow, very geeky but I do love when these things work! Don't you?

Yes, much to the annoyance of my wife and my bank manager. I'm glad yougot it sorted out!

Regards

Nelviticus

 

[CyberPsycho]

HELP!!!!

I thought you could now help me, I thought my problem was the same, but I guess not, you see I cannot even extend or view the same picture on the TV, I used to see things fine, but I dont know why I cant now.

I have an ATI Radeon 9600, IGP 320M, for an eMachines 2352M

If you could help me I would really appritiated it.

By the way, I already check the Theatre Mode, but I am not sure how you enable Clone Mode, maybe that could be missing because I cannot see anything yet.