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Mac Mini + External Display help!

chosenwolf

chosenwolf

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Feb 4, 2006
507
0
Los Angeles
Hey Guys,

Here's the situation. I have no problem connecting my Mac Mini to my Dell 2407WFP via DVI at 1920 x 1080 resolution. However, when I plug my mini to my 52" Sharp LCD (also 1920 x 1080 res) via DVI I get no picture. Do I have to configure or change any display settings for the mini or can it simply not handle the LCD? I am able to hook up my PowerMac G4 1.25ghz via DVI to my monitor without issues.

Thanks!
 
I should add that I didn't change any settings on my TV. Simply put, when I unplug the DVI adapter (I'm using an HDMI to DVI cable to hook my computer up to the TV) from my PowerMac G4 and plug it into my Intel Mac Mini, the TV turns black as if there is no signal.
 
Im having the same problem. Im trying to connect my Mac mini to my Toshiba tv via DVI to HDMI and all it says is that there is no signal. Ive tried to adjust the settings in Display but I have got it to the point where I have screwed it up to where the Resolution is completlety out of range on all of my monitors and tv's.
ANY KIND OF HELP WOULD BE APPRECIATED.:cool:
 
E-Mail Chris Pirillo at [email deleted], he does it somehow. He'll know how to do it.

Good Luck.
 
You need to ensure that the TV accepts a given resolution. Just because a set has 1920x1080 doesn't mean it'll actually accept 1920x1080 externally. Its progressive resolution from an external device might be substantially lower. Try to find the manual (either printed or online) and see what it says for each port. Some TVs accept some resolutions on some ports, but different ones on other ports, even though they're both the same type (i.e., both DVI, HDMI, etc.).

FWIW, the mini will handle the resolution if the TV does. My Core Duo 1.8GHz one does 1920x1080 on my Westinghouse.
 
Well, it can't be the TV since I have not changed anything. I am using the same HDMI port on my TV and the same HDMI-DVI cable. When I connect the DVI end of the cable to my PowerMac G4 and the desktop appears on the TV. When I plug it into my Mac Mini, nothing shows up. Could it just be that the GMA950 cannot handle 52"+ displays? I have even changed the display resolution on my mini to 1024 x 768 but no picture seems to want to show up. =(
 
wickedG35 said:
When I plug it into my Mac Mini, nothing shows up. Could it just be that the GMA950 cannot handle 52"+ displays?
Click to expand...
No. The size of the display is irrelevant, just the resolution, and the mini easily handles 1920x1080.

Are you sure the PB and mini DVI connectors are both the same? Apple occasionally changes things around (like the DVI analog to DVI digital switch).

I suppose that there might possibly be something wrong with your mini.... FWIW, I'm using a DVI-DVI cable, although a DVI-HDMI one shouldn't create problems by itself.
 
jsw said:
No. The size of the display is irrelevant, just the resolution, and the mini easily handles 1920x1080.

Are you sure the PB and mini DVI connectors are both the same? Apple occasionally changes things around (like the DVI analog to DVI digital switch).

I suppose that there might possibly be something wrong with your mini.... FWIW, I'm using a DVI-DVI cable, although a DVI-HDMI one shouldn't create problems by itself.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. Yes, they are the exact same connection. Is there anything I can try on my mini or run a test to find out what the issue is? I don't think there is anything wrong with the mini as I have no trouble connecting it to my 2407WFP via DVI or VGA (w/ adapter)
 
Somewhat of an update...

It seems the problem is a bad HDMI to DVI cable, but I'm not 100% sure. I started the mini and the boot screen w/ apple came up on the TV fine. The image looked clear but right when it was about to boot into OS X, a light blue screen comes on and just hangs on it. 1 time I was able to get into OS X without problems, but now I just see a blue screen on the TV. When I plug in the mini to the 24" dell monitor, it works perfect.

I'm going to try a new HDMI-DVI cable as a first measure. Any thoughts???
 
Have you tried this: with the Mac mini connected to the TV, use another Mac to Screen Share the Mac mini and go into Display Settings. Play with a few settings that are applicable to the TV, even if you have the correct setting currently just make a change away and back again.
 
Are you sure you are outputting to the Dell at 1920x1080 and not 1920x1200? I did not know the dells would run at that resolution. There may be a refresh rate issue. Look up the exact specs on your TV, and make sure the mini is outputting them. You can use a program like switchresx to get things exactly right if needed.
 
gotzero said:
Are you sure you are outputting to the Dell at 1920x1080 and not 1920x1200? I did not know the dells would run at that resolution. There may be a refresh rate issue. Look up the exact specs on your TV, and make sure the mini is outputting them. You can use a program like switchresx to get things exactly right if needed.
Click to expand...

Outputting at 1920 x 1200, typo sorry =)

The refresh rate for my TV is 60hz and that's what my mini is set too. It's weird that I can see certain things displayed like the mac boot up process but then it just hangs on that light blue screen.
 
Are you outputting to the TV in 1920x1200 also? You said each had the same resolution?

The apple you see when booting up will display on almost anything, but the signal after much be matched between source and display. Do you have an option to switch the mini to 1920x1080 in your display preferences? It is not an option on my mini out of the box.
 
gotzero said:
Are you outputting to the TV in 1920x1200 also? You said each had the same resolution?

The apple you see when booting up will display on almost anything, but the signal after much be matched between source and display. Do you have an option to switch the mini to 1920x1080 in your display preferences? It is not an option on my mini out of the box.
Click to expand...

No, I don't have an option for 1920 x 1080 on my mini. Either 1680 x 1050 (which doesn't display anything) or 1920 x 1200.

I've set up screen sharing and ran through all the resolutions and none would display. My TV's max resolution is 1920 x 1080 (1080p HD) . However, shouldn't it display something if I set the resolution to 1680 x 1050?
 
Another Observation: When I plug the DVI cable into my Macbook Pro, I get a display settings box with 1920 x 1080 selected @ 60hz and I get a beautiful picture on my TV. This leads me to believe that I must manually set the resolution on the mini to 1920 x 1080 at 60hz to get a picture.
 
I finally figured out the problem. It had something to do with DVI signals continously being sent from the TV to the mini and the mini not recognizing them, hence no picture. This is a common mac mini bug! Long story short, I switched my mini's connection to a different HDMI port and then did a PMU reset and low and behold, I was in OS X at full 1920 x 1080 (1080p) resolution. It was a PITA and something I was avoiding because my TV is wall mounted and I had to bring the sucker down. If anyone else has any similar issues, feel free to PM me as I've learned a lot and can probably help you out.

Thanks everyone for all your feedback!
 
An update to my problem with this ordeal. Something in my mac mini fried after leaving it on for about a month and a half straight. I found a local guy that had a mini w/ no HDD for 50 bucks. It had Airport and a Super drive.(Upgrade!!!) So I just put my hdd in it and it booted. Then I connected my HDMI to Dvi connector to the mac and the TV and like magic it displayed beautifully on my Toshiba. This leads me to believe that it was a hardware issue with certain mini's. Well just thought I would post that.
 
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