LCD monitor and KVM switch question/poll

[DigitalDD]

I'm in a bind. I just saw these really cool Dell 20" 1600x1200 flat panel monitors for around $1000. and I'm really tempted. especially since they can take multiple inputs DVI, VGA, Video In.

But I use a switchbox to switch displays on the various PCs I have and since a friend of mine has a nice BenQ LCD whcih he sees ghosted images on through his switchbox I'm wondering if its a good idea.

So the question I'm asking is if anyone here uses KVM switches with a LCD monitor tell me what KVM Switch you have , what LCD you have and whether the image quality is worse than if your flat panel were hooked up to your video card directly.

I realize that i caould hook my main system to the LCD via DVI and have a great picture but the others would be connected to the VGA via my switchbox. and I am not spending $1000 for poor picture quality..:p

[Mr. C]

I'm not running the setup your asking about;

That in mind, I'm gonn'a throw my 2 cents on the table for you to see.

I think (as in a personal opinion/experience) that it has a lot to do with the quality of the KVM and cabling.
I'm using an "old school" CRT with a KVM. I definitely lost some image quality initially.
I purchased some pipe insulation at a hardware store (household type hardware store - not computer hardware store).
It's the tubular foam kind about 3/8" thick walls with a 1/2" hole running down the center. Comes in 5' lengths and has a slit down the length of it so you can fit it around your pipes to protect them from sweating/freezing.

Anyhow, I placed the insulation around the cabling from the video card to the KVM and from the KVM to the monitor.

I'll tell you, for about $5 US I cleared that display right up - cut out the interference the cable was recieving like a charm.

But hey, that's just my experience and perhaps a LCD display is more sensititive to such things than a CRT.
But you might get your friend to give it a try and see if it helps:thumb:

Possibly if he were to reroute his cabling it might help too. Of course there is always the matter of KVM quality - truth is, my KVM is, to put it bluntly, a "cheapie" with no class. But my real problem was in the low quality less-than-aptly-sheilded cabling.

Something to think about anyway, though it doesn't answer your question.
Tell your friend about it, perhaps he'll perform the experiment for you and let you know his results.

[Wiggo]

I use one of these http://www.aten.com.tw/KVM/ports/CS_12.html (cheapest of their's) and it works great with no effect on picture quality plus comes with all cables. :thumb:
<center>:cheers:</center>

[DigitalDD]

I don't think cabling is the issue as my switchbox is crystal clear @ 1600x1200 and 85hz refresh. My friend bought the same cables as I did and has a better switchbox [his does a max resolution of 1920x1440@85hz] but he gets ghosting at 800x600 on his LCD, but not when he uses a standard CRT, its really weird.:?:

[Wiggo]

Is 800x600 the native resolution of the LCD? :?:

Most I know of are at least 1024x768 and LCD's that are run off their native resolution do hand out strange effects I've been told and maybe this is his prob. ;)
<center>:cheers:</center>

[DigitalDD]

Is 800x600 the native resolution of the LCD? :?:

Most I know of are at least 1024x768 and LCD's that are run off their native resolution do hand out strange effects I've been told and maybe this is his prob. ;)
<center>:cheers:</center>

My friend has a BenQ LCD with a Native resolution of 1280x1024 so that is the resolution he would like to run his LCD at ideally but he gets ghosting at any resolution over 640x480.

Damn Dell raised the price on these LCD now there over $1400 $US$ too rich for my blood..