How to connect Mac Mini M1 to 1080p monitor?

[Levina]

Hello,

I just purchased a new Mac Mini (16/512) that will arrive in two or three weeks (very excited about that!). I need to connect it to an older NEC 23" 1080p monitor. The monitor is still good enough for my needs for now.

The monitor has three ports: DisplayPort, DVI-D and VGA.

Right now it's connected to my old Mac Pro (2009) via DVI-D and it looks great (I calibrate it once a month).
What would be the best way to connect it to the Mac Mini M1? I've been looking at adapters/cables but am completely lost in the nomenclature.

Thanks for any help.

 

[duanepatrick]

What cable do you have?

If you have a VGA cable, buy a VGA to HDMI adapter.

 

[mmkerc]

You will be happy with the Mac Mini, I received mine on Dec 17th. I have it connected to 2 Dell 3220 gaming monitors as I want the hub connections the monitors give. I used HDMI to HDMI cables and the OWC Thuderbolt 3 hub (I have a lot of external devices). You can get an HDMI to dispalyport adapter for about $10 or less and connect from the Mini's HDMI port.

 

[eRondeau]

Find an adapter that will connect via HDMI because you'll want to leave the USB-C / Thunderbolt-4 ports available for fast external storage and possibly charging other devices. The HDMI plug really only does video output so allow it to fulfill its mission.

 

[Levina]

All right then, HDMI it is. I don't have a VGA cable so I will get a displayport-to-HDMI-adapter.

Now all I have to do is wait for the Mac Mini to arrive. Really looking forward to it. I love my Mac Pro and flashed the firmware but can't take it past Mojave, so it's finally time to upgrade.

Thank you all very much for the quick help. Much appreciated!

 

[davegoody]

What cable do you have?

If you have a VGA cable, buy a VGA to HDMI adapter.

No, Really DON'T do that !!!!! Why would you change a digital signal to analogue ?- with loss of quality as a result. The M1 Mac Mini has an HDMI socket (as per the Intel versions) - use an HDMI to DVI cable or a HDMI to Displayport adapter (both cheap on Amazon). Keep it digital end-to-end.

 

[Levina]

No, Really DON'T do that !!!!! Why would you change a digital signal to analogue ?- with loss of quality as a result. The M1 Mac Mini has an HDMI socket (as per the Intel versions) - use an HDMI to DVI cable or a HDMI to Displayport adapter (both cheap on Amazon). Keep it digital end-to-end.

No, I won't. I already decided on this one: https://www.amazon.nl/gp/product/B0091FC2JM/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=A17D2BRD4YMT0X&psc=1

Good choice?

 

[Superschulzen]

You will be happy with the Mac Mini, I received mine on Dec 17th. I have it connected to 2 Dell 3220 gaming monitors as I want the hub connections the monitors give. I used HDMI to HDMI cables and the OWC Thuderbolt 3 hub (I have a lot of external devices). You can get an HDMI to dispalyport adapter for about $10 or less and connect from the Mini's HDMI port.

Hi - jumping on this thread because I have a quick question regarding the OWC hub. I have the Mac mini M1 with 1TB SSD and 512GB Ram - I have issues connecting multiple monitors or even devices for that matter, as the Mac mini keeps not properly fully shutting down, and upon restart shows a kernel panic. All is fine when I do not use my Anker hub and just a single monitor - but now I am a USB connection short of attaching my webcam (I would have other devices I need to connect, but this would be the bare minimum setup I need). Has the Mac mini with the OWC hub had any issues in shutting down your Mac?

 

[Fishrrman]

I think the cable you posted in reply #7 above should do fine.

 

[Levina]

I think the cable you posted in reply #7 above should do fine.

Ah. Thanks for confirming that, Fishrrman!

 

[mmkerc]

Hi - jumping on this thread because I have a quick question regarding the OWC hub. I have the Mac mini M1 with 1TB SSD and 512GB Ram - I have issues connecting multiple monitors or even devices for that matter, as the Mac mini keeps not properly fully shutting down, and upon restart shows a kernel panic. All is fine when I do not use my Anker hub and just a single monitor - but now I am a USB connection short of attaching my webcam (I would have other devices I need to connect, but this would be the bare minimum setup I need). Has the Mac mini with the OWC hub had any issues in shutting down your Mac?

No issues at all though the monitor connected to the OWC hub has a 1-3 sec lag behind the one connected directly to the Mini of displaying

 

[duanepatrick]

Got confused sorry folks. Thanks a lot davegoody

New year's eve hit me hard. lol

 

[Superschulzen]

No issues at all though the monitor connected to the OWC hub has a 1-3 sec lag behind the one connected directly to the Mini of displaying

Thanks - no clue how I missed your response....much appreciated!

 

[twsmit]

Hello,

I just purchased a new Mac Mini (16/512) that will arrive in two or three weeks (very excited about that!). I need to connect it to an older NEC 23" 1080p monitor. The monitor is still good enough for my needs for now.

The monitor has three ports: DisplayPort, DVI-D and VGA.

Right now it's connected to my old Mac Pro (2009) via DVI-D and it looks great (I calibrate it once a month).
What would be the best way to connect it to the Mac Mini M1? I've been looking at adapters/cables but am completely lost in the nomenclature.

Thanks for any help.

You want a HDMI to DVI-D adapter. Apple makes one or you can try numerous third party adapters. Edit. See my link below.

Power & Cables - Mac Accessories

Find cables, charging docks and battery cases for Mac. Charge and sync up your Mac. Buy online with fast, free shipping

www.apple.com

 

[ilex27]

My dual 1920x1200 monitors are blurry. Text quality is appreciably worse that when viewing on Windows 10. I am running matching Dell U2142M screens. I am not delighted with this and Apple basically said, too bad - we don't support 3rd party products. (there is nothing wrong with the monitors, it's the M1)

 

[eRondeau]

Please post a screenshot of your System Preferences --> Displays --> Display tab. I'd also recommend doing a full factory reset of both monitors. Although I bought a 5K/4K monitor for my new M1 Mac Mini, I used it for a couple of weeks with a 1920 x 1200 LED Cinema Display (via a USB-C to MiniDisplayPort adapter) and it looked fantastic.

 

[Boyd01]

Find an adapter that will connect via HDMI because you'll want to leave the USB-C / Thunderbolt-4 ports available for fast external storage and possibly charging other devices.

I think the cable you posted in reply #7 above should do fine.

Before buying an HDMI to DVI adapter, you might want to read this thread. A lot of people are having problems with that...

Mac mini M1 HDMI to DVI Issue

Anyone else having an issue connecting the HDMI port on their M1 mini to a monitor with only a DVI port? The monitor in question is an Acer G235H (1080p) and I’m connecting with an HDMI to DVI adapter attached to the monitor. The monitor knows there is a connection (blue light), but all I...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[mmkerc]

My dual 1920x1200 monitors are blurry. Text quality is appreciably worse that when viewing on Windows 10. I am running matching Dell U2142M screens. I am not delighted with this and Apple basically said, too bad - we don't support 3rd party products. (there is nothing wrong with the monitors, it's the M1)

I have two Dell S3220DGF monitors running at 2560x1440 with no issues, very sharp. How are you connected. I suspect this is a cable issue and not a monitor or computer issue.

 

[pldelisle]

My dual 1920x1200 monitors are blurry. Text quality is appreciably worse that when viewing on Windows 10. I am running matching Dell U2142M screens. I am not delighted with this and Apple basically said, too bad - we don't support 3rd party products. (there is nothing wrong with the monitors, it's the M1)

Maybe try resetting them to default, factory settings.

Backup and reinstall macOS 11.1 from Internet recovery.

Buy good quality cables, certified HDMI2.0 cables and/or DisplayPort 1.4 and good quality/Apple official’s adapters/dock. Avoid docks if possible: use a good quality USB-C to DisplayPort cable and HDMI2.0 to DisplayPort 1.4 cable.

Then, you can call it M1’s fault.

 

[Superschulzen]

Agree with the last two posts - definitely sounds like a cable issue. I had the same issue with a single monitor, and switched HDMI cables and voila, clear picture.

 

[ilex27]

Please post a screenshot of your System Preferences --> Displays --> Display tab. I'd also recommend doing a full factory reset of both monitors. Although I bought a 5K/4K monitor for my new M1 Mac Mini, I used it for a couple of weeks with a 1920 x 1200 LED Cinema Display (via a USB-C to MiniDisplayPort adapter) and it looked fantastic.

The mini is the display dialogs, the other one is from the PC. Do you see the blur? I'm on the mini right now so they both look blurry.

The cabling is the same in each instance as I am using a KVM.

 

[ilex27]

I have two Dell S3220DGF monitors running at 2560x1440 with no issues, very sharp. How are you connected. I suspect this is a cable issue and not a monitor or computer issue.

I suspect that a "2K" monitor like yours will look better, but I guess I'd have to buy one to find out.

 

[ilex27]

Ha ha now I see all the typos in my post above. I meant Dell U2412M screens of course.

 

[Boyd01]

Do you see the blur? I'm on the mini right now so they both look blurry.

No, the screenshot shows the contents of the screen buffer - the image in the computer's memory. Your issue is with how it looks on a screen. You would need to take a photo of the screen to see that. Reminds me a bit of some iphone threads where people are posting screenshots to show the yellow tint on their screens.

 

[ilex27]

No, the screenshot shows the contents of the screen buffer - the image in the computer's memory. Your issue is with how it looks on a screen. You would need to take a photo of the screen to see that. Reminds me a bit of some iphone threads where people are posting screenshots to show the yellow tint on their screens.

asdfkhjafpsdifhiwetqpgjkasdpfgj;asdgjk dammit u right