Windows 10: Second monitor not active after changinh refresh rate.

Hey i recently bought a new MSI MAG 345CQR monitor to go with my msi thin gf63 laptop. However when i was messing about with the refresh rate, my second monitor suddenly went black. When i go to the advanced display options it says that display 2 is not active and therefore i can not change the refresh rate or go into display adapter properties. I can however still use the monitor using duplicate or by using second screen only. But when i change the refresh rate back, then still nothing happens. the cable is new as well and works. I have already tried to reinstall the drivers but that does not

:)

 

Refresh rate Problem

Hi Robert,

Thank you for posting your query in Microsoft Community.

Screen refresh rate is the rate at which the data displayed on screen is refreshed; it may be an image or some text document. Most of the users would like to set it to a higher rate but this also depends on the capacity of graphic
card and monitors. If the refresh rate is slow, the images on the display looks as flickering to the user eye and makes it uncomfortable to work.

Nowadays the latest monitors available in market will have minimum 60 Hz of refresh rate and it is very good option to set it to 70 Hz if you your monitor is compatible. Normally a high performance or quality monitors can reach
120 Hz of refresh rate. So I would suggest you to set your monitor refresh rate as higher as possible, below given steps describes how to access this feature on your Windows 8.1/10 PC.

• The default refresh rate setting is 60 Hertz (HZ); however, your monitor may support a higher setting. Check your manufacturer's documentation for information about the settings that your monitor supports.
• If you use a higher refresh rate, you can reduce the rate that your screen flickers; however, if you specify a refresh rate that is too high for your monitor, your screen may become unusable and your hardware may be damaged.
• Changes to the refresh rate affect all users that log on to the computer.

I would, as of now, suggest you to visit the computer manufacturer's support website and install the latest display and chipset drivers available for the latest operating system (currently it would be 8.1 in the list).

Hope this information is helpful. Please feel free to reply in case you face any other issues with Windows in future.

 

Black screen on 2nd monitor after messing with refresh rate

Hi YaPer,

Thank you for reaching Microsoft Community. We're sorry for the inconvenience this has caused you.

I am aware of the issue you're experiencing with your Surface pro 7+ connecting to second monitor. I am here to help and let us work on this together. Allow me to ask a question.

• Would you mind sharing the make and model of the external monitor you're using?
  

To change the refresh rate of your second monitor without switching to "Project second screen only" mode, you can try the following steps:

1. Right-click on your desktop and select "Display settings."
   
2. Scroll down to the "Multiple displays" section and click on "Advanced display settings."
   
3. Select your second monitor from the drop-down menu under "Display information."
   
4. Click on "Display adapter properties for Display 2."
   
5. Click on the "Monitor" tab and select a new refresh rate from the drop-down menu under "Screen refresh rate."
   
6. Click "Apply" and then "OK" to save the changes.
   

If you're unable to see anything on your second monitor, you may need to connect it to a different device to change the refresh rate. Alternatively, you can try resetting your monitor to its default settings by pressing the "Menu" button on the monitor and navigating to the "Reset" option.

You may check below articles that you may find helpful.

• Change your display refresh rate in Windows - Microsoft Support
  
• Troubleshoot connecting Surface to an external display - Microsoft Support
  

Kind regards,

Lavenia

 

Setup 2 monitors with different refresh rate in duplicate mode

Hi, СуминНикита

Welcome to the Microsoft Community.



Unfortunately, running two monitors with different refresh rates in duplicate mode may cause some issues. Duplicate mode essentially mirrors the exact same image on both screens. Since the refresh rates differ between your monitors, Windows will default to the lowest common refresh rate to ensure compatibility, which in your case is 120Hz.

To run programs or games at 144Hz on your internal monitor while duplicating the display on your external monitor, you may need to utilize third-party software that can manage this kind of setup, but it may still lead to graphical issues or performance anomalies.

Here are some steps you can try:

1. Set Primary Display:
   
   • Right-click on the desktop and select “Display Settings.”
     
   • Scroll down to “Multiple displays” and select “Duplicate these displays” from the dropdown menu.
     
   • Choose the monitor you wish to set as your main display and check the box that says “Make this my main display.”
     
2. NVIDIA Control Panel (if you have an NVIDIA GPU):
   
   • Open the NVIDIA Control Panel by right-clicking on your desktop and selecting it from the dropdown menu.
     
   • Go to “3D Settings” > “Manage 3D settings.”
     
   • Under the “Global Settings” tab, find the “Preferred refresh rate” option and set it to “Highest available.”
     

Please note that these steps may not fully resolve the issue due to the inherent limitations of running duplicate displays with different refresh rates. It’s generally recommended to use monitors with the same refresh rate for the best performance.

Best Regards

Martin | Microsoft Community Support Specialist