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    Please do not post a support request without first reading and following the advice in https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/3/read-this-first

    Pi4 unable to display >640x480 on Sony Bravia KDL-26ex550

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    resolutionrasberry pi4640x480pixel desktop
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    • M
      mmajd80 @dankcushions
      last edited by

      @dankcushions

      That is correct, I followed the instructions I found at https://retropie.org.uk/docs/FAQ/#where-did-the-desktop-go

      I am getting the information you asked for prepared right now, thank you!

      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • M
        mmajd80 @dankcushions
        last edited by dankcushions

        @dankcushions

        config.txt

        
        
        # uncomment if you get no picture on HDMI for a default "safe" mode
        hdmi_safe=1
        
        # uncomment this if your display has a black border of unused pixels visible
        # and your display can output without overscan
        disable_overscan=1
        
        # uncomment the following to adjust overscan. Use positive numbers if console
        # goes off screen, and negative if there is too much border
        #overscan_left=-160
        #overscan_right=-160
        #overscan_top=-160
        #overscan_bottom=-160
        
         uncomment to force a console size. By default it will be display's size mi$
        # overscan.
        # framebuffer_width=1920
        # framebuffer_height=1080
        
        # uncomment if hdmi display is not detected and composite is being output
        hdmi_force_hotplug=1
        
        # uncomment to force a specific HDMI mode (this will force VGA)
        hdmi_group=2
        hdmi_mode=85
        
        # uncomment to force a HDMI mode rather than DVI. This can make audio work in
        # DMT (computer monitor) modes
        hdmi_drive=2
        
        # uncomment to increase signal to HDMI, if you have interference, blanking, $
        # no display
        config_hdmi_boost=4
        
        # uncomment for composite PAL
        #sdtv_mode=2
        
        #uncomment to overclock the arm. 700 MHz is the default.
        #arm_freq=800
        
        # Uncomment some or all of these to enable the optional hardware interfaces
        #dtparam=i2c_arm=on
        #dtparam=i2s=on
        #dtparam=spi=on
        
        # Uncomment this to enable infrared communication.
        #dtoverlay=gpio-ir,gpio_pin=17
        #dtoverlay=gpio-ir-tx,gpio_pin=18
        
        # Additional overlays and parameters are documented /boot/overlays/README
        
        # Enable audio (loads snd_bcm2835)
        dtparam=audio=on
        
        [pi4]
        # Enable DRM VC4 V3D driver on top of the dispmanx display stack
        dtoverlay=vc4-fkms-v3d
        max_framebuffers=2
        
        [all]
        #dtoverlay=vc4-fkms-v3d
        #overscan_scale=1
        gpu_mem=256
        
        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • M
          mmajd80 @dankcushions
          last edited by

          @dankcushions

          tvservices:

          Group CEA has 4 modes:
          mode 4: 1280x720 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:74MHz progressive
          mode 16: 1920x1080 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:148MHz progressive
          mode 95: 3840x2160 @ 30Hz 16:9, clock:297MHz progressive
          mode 97: 3840x2160 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:594MHz progressive

          Group DMT has 1 modes:
          (prefer) mode 4: 640x480 @ 60Hz 4:3, clock:25MHz progressive

          state 0xa [HDMI CUSTOM RGB full 4:3], 640x480 @ 60.00Hz, progressive

          dankcushionsD YFZdudeY 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • dankcushionsD
            dankcushions Global Moderator @mmajd80
            last edited by

            @mmajd80 please format logs/configs correctly as per https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/3/read-this-first - i've fixed for now :)

            M 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
            • M
              mmajd80 @dankcushions
              last edited by

              @dankcushions

              understood, thanks!

              I should also mention that I am a total noob, had no clue what Markdown was, and have no ability to ssh into anything.

              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • dankcushionsD
                dankcushions Global Moderator
                last edited by dankcushions

                so, number of issues here.

                hdmi_safe=1
                

                this will force to 640x480. so... you don't want that. comment it out:

                # hdmi_safe=1
                
                # uncomment this if your display has a black border of unused pixels visible
                # and your display can output without overscan
                disable_overscan=1
                
                # uncomment the following to adjust overscan. Use positive numbers if console
                # goes off screen, and negative if there is too much border
                #overscan_left=-160
                #overscan_right=-160
                #overscan_top=-160
                #overscan_bottom=-160
                

                all your overscan settings are commented out, and your overscan is disabled anyway, so it wouldn't matter. however, don't change this for now - overscan is not the solution your problems described so far.

                 uncomment to force a console size. By default it will be display's size mi$
                # overscan.
                # framebuffer_width=1920
                # framebuffer_height=1080
                

                you've removed the comment (#) from the first line of this. this may cause problems with your config file - add it back. however it's difficult to confirm as you've sent the console output of this file, not the file itself, so it may be a copy/paste error. you should upload the actual file to pastebin or whatever.

                # uncomment to force a specific HDMI mode (this will force VGA)
                hdmi_group=2
                hdmi_mode=85
                

                this is currently overridden by hdmi_safe, but when you comment that it will take effect and force 1280x720 60Hz - do you really want that, if your TV is 1080p?

                # uncomment to increase signal to HDMI, if you have interference, blanking, $
                # no display
                config_hdmi_boost=4
                

                no effect on rpi4.

                i think make the above corrections, reboot, and then upload config.txt again and also the output of the tvservice commands.

                M 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                • M
                  mmajd80 @dankcushions
                  last edited by

                  @dankcushions

                  Ok, so this went both great and terribly.

                  I made the change to comment out the hdmi_safe line, but decided to leave the inputted resolution at 1280x768, as going back and changing that if this worked would be very easy. Then I rebooted (the missing # was a copy/paste error; the config file works fine).

                  So it started up well. The rainbow box that was in the middle of the screen now looks like this: First.jpg

                  You'll notice that it fills top to bottom (the text that is cut off in the top left now says "720p", rather than "640x480, 60 Hz". That's the great part.

                  The problem now is that the loading cycle is unable to complete before going to an error message (which is coming from the TV, not the Pi):
                  Loading2.jpg

                  After that line in the load screen, it goes to the following:
                  Error.jpg which reads "Signal not accepted. Check device output" and freezes. Now the only way to shut down the Pi safely is with Alt-PrintScreen, which are like a million miles apart on my keyboard lol.

                  And that brings us to present day.

                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • YFZdudeY
                    YFZdude @mmajd80
                    last edited by

                    @mmajd80 said in Pi4 unable to display >640x480 on Sony Bravia KDL-26ex550:

                    tvservices:

                    Group CEA has 4 modes:
                    mode 4: 1280x720 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:74MHz progressive
                    mode 16: 1920x1080 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:148MHz progressive
                    mode 95: 3840x2160 @ 30Hz 16:9, clock:297MHz progressive
                    mode 97: 3840x2160 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:594MHz progressive

                    Group DMT has 1 modes:
                    (prefer) mode 4: 640x480 @ 60Hz 4:3, clock:25MHz progressive

                    state 0xa [HDMI CUSTOM RGB full 4:3], 640x480 @ 60.00Hz, progressive

                    Call me crazy, but doesn't the above indicate that your TV won't fully support the "mode 85" (1280x768) settings you are trying to force it to use?

                    Also, it is worth mentioning that since you have a Pi4 and the settings in the config file don't specify a port number, it will probably apply by default to the primary HDMI port. (Closest to the USB-C power connector.)

                    M dankcushionsD 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 1
                    • M
                      mmajd80 @YFZdude
                      last edited by

                      @YFZdude

                      Well, fudge.

                      Is there a way to load the config at startup, prior to it failing? As mentioned above, I have no ability to SSH into the Pi and REALLY do not want to go through yet another full formatting and installation cycle.

                      YFZdudeY 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • YFZdudeY
                        YFZdude @mmajd80
                        last edited by

                        @mmajd80 If you have a SD card reader you should be able to edit the config.txt from another computer. If I'm not mistaken the config.txt should be in the /boot partition that is formatted as FAT32 so even Windows can read it.

                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                        • M
                          mmajd80
                          last edited by

                          @YFZdude

                          Dude, I think I love you?

                          That was genius, the fix did work, though not quite as I expected. These are the new results from tvservice:

                          Group CEA has 4 modes:
                          mode 4: 1280x720 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:74MHz progressive
                          mode 16: 1920x1080 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:148MHz progressive
                          mode 95: 3840x2160 @ 30Hz 16:9, clock:297MHz progressive
                          mode 97: 3840x2160 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:594MHz progressive

                          Group DMT has 2 modes:
                          mode 4: 640x480 @ 60Hz 4:3, clock:25MHz progressive
                          (prefer) mode 16: 1024x768 @ 60Hz 4:3, clock:65MHz progressive

                          state 0xa [HDMI CUSTOM RGB full 4:3], 1024x768 @ 60.00Hz, progressive

                          Notice that the DMT group has a new mode (and is also the one that is used). I changed the config.txt file to read "hdmi_mode = 16", thinking that it would use the mode 16 from Group CEA, but it created that new one instead.

                          I feel like this is the very last thing to be done. How do I either switch to Group CEA or add another (functional) mode to DMT?

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • M
                            mmajd80
                            last edited by

                            I don't know if this helps, but for reference, under raspi-config, it shows me the following modes:

                            4, 9, 16, 85, 35, 51, 82

                            but I don't trust it, since 82 damn near gave me a heart attack.

                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • mituM
                              mitu Global Moderator
                              last edited by

                              See this page for a list of supported video modes, there's no 1024x768 mode for CEA.

                              Why are you forcing a 4:3 video mode when your display is 16:9 ? You can 'create' a new mode - see here, but if you already have it working, that would be redundant.

                              M 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                              • dankcushionsD
                                dankcushions Global Moderator @YFZdude
                                last edited by

                                @YFZdude said in Pi4 unable to display >640x480 on Sony Bravia KDL-26ex550:

                                @mmajd80 said in Pi4 unable to display >640x480 on Sony Bravia KDL-26ex550:

                                tvservices:

                                Group CEA has 4 modes:
                                mode 4: 1280x720 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:74MHz progressive
                                mode 16: 1920x1080 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:148MHz progressive
                                mode 95: 3840x2160 @ 30Hz 16:9, clock:297MHz progressive
                                mode 97: 3840x2160 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:594MHz progressive

                                Group DMT has 1 modes:
                                (prefer) mode 4: 640x480 @ 60Hz 4:3, clock:25MHz progressive

                                state 0xa [HDMI CUSTOM RGB full 4:3], 640x480 @ 60.00Hz, progressive

                                Call me crazy, but doesn't the above indicate that your TV won't fully support the "mode 85" (1280x768) settings you are trying to force it to use?

                                i am not sure. if you set hdmi_safe it may list differently, hence i asked @mmajd80 to repost both the config.txt and output of that command again, after making suggested changes...

                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • M
                                  mmajd80 @mitu
                                  last edited by

                                  @mitu

                                  As you can see from above, the "prefer" is pointing to a DVT setting, so while the CEA setting exists for 1920x1080, I cannt use it. In the DVT list, there are only two options (640x480 and my current 1028x768). I am not trying to force anything, but rather figure out how to get hdmi_mode = [SOME VALUE THAT RUNS AND IS BIG].

                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • mituM
                                    mitu Global Moderator
                                    last edited by

                                    @mmajd80 said in Pi4 unable to display >640x480 on Sony Bravia KDL-26ex550:

                                    As you can see from above, the "prefer" is pointing to a DVT setting

                                    This may be because you've manually added the mode to the config.txt.

                                    so while the CEA setting exists for 1920x1080, I cannt use it

                                    Why ?

                                    M 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • M
                                      mmajd80 @mitu
                                      last edited by

                                      @mitu

                                      Group CEA has 4 modes:
                                      mode 4: 1280x720 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:74MHz progressive
                                      mode 16: 1920x1080 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:148MHz progressive
                                      mode 95: 3840x2160 @ 30Hz 16:9, clock:297MHz progressive
                                      mode 97: 3840x2160 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:594MHz progressive

                                      Group DMT has 2 modes:
                                      mode 4: 640x480 @ 60Hz 4:3, clock:25MHz progressive
                                      (prefer) mode 16: 1024x768 @ 60Hz 4:3, clock:65MHz progressive

                                      state 0xa [HDMI CUSTOM RGB full 4:3], 1024x768 @ 60.00Hz, progressive

                                      <script src="https://pastebin.com/embed_js/iVcCj4g3"></script>

                                      I don't know why, but you'll notice above that there are 2 modes with value = 16. If you look at the config.txt embed in the link, you'll see that I have set hdmi_mode = 16, hoping it was 1920x1080, but it is outputting 1024x768. I don't know why.

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                      • mituM
                                        mitu Global Moderator
                                        last edited by

                                        @dankcushions said in Pi4 unable to display >640x480 on Sony Bravia KDL-26ex550:

                                        hdmi_group=2

                                        If you take a look at the video configuration page I posted earlier, you'd see that 1080p (CEA) is:

                                        hdmi_group=1
                                        hdmi_mode=16
                                        

                                        you have

                                        hdmi_group=2
                                        hdmi_mode=16
                                        

                                        which forces the DMT-16 mode - 1024x768

                                        M 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                        • M
                                          mmajd80 @mitu
                                          last edited by

                                          @mitu

                                          Making that change resulted in the Check Device Output error I encountered above. I changed nothing else in the config, only that value from 2 --> 1.

                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • mituM
                                            mitu Global Moderator
                                            last edited by

                                            That's strange, since the TV reports it supports the mode:

                                             mode 16: 1920x1080 @ 60Hz 16:9, clock:148MHz progressive
                                            

                                            Try maybe with 720p (hdmi_mode=4) ?

                                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
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