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The DVI socket on my monitor is broken, so I decided to use the VGA socket.

I used a DVI-VGA adapter on my graphic card end, since it only has 2 DVI sockets.

It works but the resolution I can see from display property only goes up to 1600x1200, where I had 1920x1080 when using DVI.

My question is:

What is the maximum resolution supported, when going through a DVI-VGA adapter?

Is 1600x1200 the top, or something is wrong with my adapter/socket/cable/driver?

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1600x1200 is the maximum supported resolution for UXVGA. The maximum support resolution for VGA is 640x480. The adapter is not relevant for resolution. It will be the output of the device. You can see an example of a UXGA cable below.

enter image description here

As you can see by the following picture of a VGA cable, they are almost identical (and WOW that is a huge picture...). These both use the HD15 connector.

enter image description here

The monitor you are using is UXGA compatible which can take resolutions from an HD15 all the way up to UXGA (highest rated interface for HD15 cables). This is why you can get a high resolution out of a VGA cable, they are compatible.

Please note that you can get a higher resolution using some tools, but it will look horrible. The following are supporting sources.

The following is a great chart that shows maximum support resolutions for many interfaces. enter image description here

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+1 for the nice chart. – Mehper C. Palavuzlar Mar 30 '11 at 18:13
Nice chart. I think there is a confusion over VGA as a standard and VGA as a cable. As the first post you linked to pointed out, VGA cable can go up to about 2048x1536. So is it the quality of the cable limiting the resolution? Or the adapter? – rokeyge Mar 31 '11 at 12:03
The adapter poses no further limitations. Look at the output as being what you are using. When you use a DVI cable with a VGA/DVI adapter on the output, you are just making the DVI cable into a VGA. It might plug into a DVI port, but it only has the capabilities of a VGA. It is the interface that is limiting the resolution. In the link I first posted, I was trying to show that people look at VGA and UXGA as being the same (compatible). Most people look at a UXGA as being a VGA and don't really know of UXGA or a difference. Therefore, they state that VGA's max res is 1600X1200. – David Mar 31 '11 at 13:09
Ok so I take it that VGA cable has HD15 connector, which allows the output to go up to the limit of UXGA (1600*1200)? People who post around the internet saying they have higher resolution are... wrong? lying? – rokeyge Mar 31 '11 at 22:59
They could may not be lying. They may be using software that does something like overclocking you CPU. There is software that will make VGA go up to 1920X1080 (I have only heard of it, never used it). But as I said in my original answer, it is not supported for a reason, it looks horrible... And yes, to restate the answer again as it seemed like you asked the question in your last comment, UXGA's max resolution is 1600X1200. I'm not trying to mislead you, I am trying to help you understand the backbone of it. I am trying to help you understand why you are getting 1600X1200 out of a VGA. – David Apr 1 '11 at 1:06
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