MBP to TV, help me out with this one

[Sdao]

Alright, I'll try to make this short by first telling everyone how huge of a noob I am

I have a brand new 2.4 MBP. I also have a Viewsonic N2751W TV. Specs and input types here...

http://www.viewsonic.com/products/tventertainment/lcdtv/n2751w/

I want to be able to hook my TV up to my MBP so I can use my TV as a computer display (as many of you do).

What cables do I need to buy in order to make this work? Also, if anyone has any further advice regarding having an external display/resolution settings/whatever... please go ahead and shout em out

thanks for your help

 

[swiftaw]

Two ways

1) It has a VGA connector, so DVi to VGA adapter (included with MBP) then VGA cable to the TV

2) DVI to HDMI adapter, HDMI cable to TV

 

[~Shard~]

Two ways

1) It has a VGA connector, so DVi to VGA adapter (included with MBP) then VGA cable to the TV

2) DVI to HDMI adapter, HDMI cable to TV

Yep, both would definitely work. Option 2) is obviously the preferred one since it is higher quality.

 

[Sdao]

Yep, both would definitely work. Option 2) is obviously the preferred one since it is higher quality.

where can i buy option #2?

 

[swiftaw]

where can i buy option #2?

http://www.svideo.com/dvihdmi2.html

 

[~Shard~]

where can i buy option #2?

HDMI->DVI adaptors are pretty commonplace now. Places like Circuit City/Best Buy/FutureShop probably sell them, but they might be a bit of a rip-off there. Any other electronics store which sells HDTVs and the like should have them. Otherwise, just Google it and I'm sure you'll find some online retailers.

One important thing to remember with HDMI is to make sure the cables/adaptors are all HDCP compliant. This will come back to bite some people in a couple years once this is standardized, mandatory and enforced.

 

[Sdao]

HDMI->DVI adaptors are pretty commonplace now. Places like Circuit City/Best Buy/FutureShop probably sell them, but they might be a bit of a rip-off there. Any other electronics store which sells HDTVs and the like should have them. Otherwise, just Google it and I'm sure you'll find some online retailers.

One important thing to remember with HDMI is to make sure the cables/adaptors are all HDCP compliant. This will come back to bite some people in a couple years once this is standardized, mandatory and enforced.

This is interesting, I dont see an HDMI input on my TV, so maybe the website lied? I do see a DVI (white faced input, same as on my MBP). Is it possible to go DVI (MBP) to DVI (TV)?

 

[swiftaw]

It might be on the underside as opposed to the side

 

[Sdao]

It might be on the underside as opposed to the side

ill check again, one sec.

 

[Sdao]

It turns out my model at home is different than the websites... here is the link to the one I have at home.

http://www.viewsonic.com/support/tventertainment/lcdtv/n2750w/index.htm

so, will dvi to dvi work?

 

[swiftaw]

yes, you can connect with a standard DVI cable

 

[Sdao]

yes, you can connect with a standard DVI cable

alright, thank you...

now, whats the difference between male and female dvi connectors? does the macbook pro have a male dvi connector?

 

[~Shard~]

Yeah, your TV probably should have an HMDI connection. Otherwise though if you have a DVI connection as well then that wouldn't require any adaptors, just DVi-DVI from your MBP to your TV. You'd just need to confirm the type of DVI connections you require - DVI-I, DVI-D, male->female, female->female, whatever...

 

[~Shard~]

alright, thank you...

now, whats the difference between male and female dvi connectors? does the macbook pro have a male dvi connector?

I believe the MacBoook Pro has a female DVI connection, so depending what your TV has you'd require a male->whatever cable.

 

[Sdao]

Yeah, your TV probably should have an HMDI connection. Otherwise though if you have a DVI connection as well then that wouldn't require any adaptors, just DVi-DVI from your MBP to your TV. You'd just need to confirm the type of DVI connections you require - DVI-I, DVI-D, male->female, female->female, whatever...

The TV has DVI-D (Dual Link) connector

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...r_Types.svg/277px-DVI_Connector_Types.svg.png
(the second one up from the bottom)

my TV does not have an HDMI connection. So what are my options?

 

[~Shard~]

The TV has DVI-D (Dual Link) connector

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...r_Types.svg/277px-DVI_Connector_Types.svg.png
(the second one up from the bottom)

my TV does not have an HDMI connection. So what are my options?

DVI it is then! Going DVI from your MacBook Pro to your TV shouldn't require any adaptors, so a simple DVI cable should do the trick. And good news, your MacBook Pro's DVI connector is a dual link connector as well if I recall correctly, so everything should be compatible!

A DVI-D cable from your MacBook pro to your TV is all you should need.

 

[Sdao]

DVI it is then! Going DVI from your MacBook Pro to your TV shouldn't require any adaptors, so a simple DVI cable should do the trick. And good news, your MacBook Pro's DVI connector is a dual link connector as well if I recall correctly, so everything should be compatible!

A DVI-D cable from your MacBook pro to your TV is all you should need.

awesome, so something like this should work?

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pr...ngid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10071404&catid=10445#

 

[Sdao]

maybe?

 

[looking4anotebo]

Would this work for option #2?


http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...cs_id=1041906&p_id=2689&seq=1&format=2&style=

 

[looking4anotebo]

awesome, so something like this should work?

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pr...ngid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10071404&catid=10445#

I could be wrong, but if you look at the pins, compared to the dvi connection on the MBP, they do not match up.

Way overpriced as well.

 

[Sdao]

I could be wrong, but if you look at the pins, compared to the dvi connection on the MBP, they do not match up.

Way overpriced as well.

maybe vga is my best option then?

 

[Sdao]

something like this will do for a vga connection?

ill use my dvi to vga converter (courtesy of apple) then a vga extension cord to connect to my tv

http://www.thesourcecc.com/estore/P...ine&category=VGAMonitorCables&product=2618381

make sense?

this will provide both video and audio? how bad is the quality of a vga connection in comparison to a dvi connection? overly noticeable?

 

[~Shard~]

awesome, so something like this should work?

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pr...ngid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10071404&catid=10445#

I don't think that is the right ype of DVI connector for your MacBook Pro. Remember, there are different types of DVI connections. Check out this link to learn al you need to know about DVI connections, the different pin-outs, etc.

Would this work for option #2?


http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...cs_id=1041906&p_id=2689&seq=1&format=2&style=

That is an HDMI -> M1 cable and will not work, unless your computer or other device has an M1 interface. The only devices I know to have M1 interfaces are LCD projectors.

this will provide both video and audio? how bad is the quality of a vga connection in comparison to a dvi connection? overly noticeable?

DVI is "Digital Video Interface" and only handles the video signal. HMDI technically handles both, but you would require an HDMI output port on your MacBook Pro for it to accomplish this - using an HDMI->DVI adaptor from your MacBook Pro's DVI port will only transfer the video regardless. You will either have to rely on your MacBook Pro's audio or output that audio to your TV's receiver or something along those lines.

 

[Sdao]

since VGA wont give me any audio, im trying a new direction

someone please tell me if this will work

Im going to hook this up to my MBP
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?mco=16193109&nplm=M9267G/A

Then Im going to use something like this to connect from my MBP's DVI to Video adapter to my TV

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0926INGFS10041003&catid=23214#

OR

http://www.thesourcecc.com/estore/P...g=Online&category=SvideoCable&product=1508365

 

[~Shard~]

since VGA wont give me any audio, im trying a new direction

DVI and VGA will not give you any audio, it is for video only. It is no different than the connection between your computer and your display - no audio is transmitted over that link, only video from your graphics card. You will need to deal with audio seperately.

someone please tell me if this will work

Im going to hook this up to my MBP
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?mco=16193109&nplm=M9267G/A

This *will* work, however if your TV has a VGA input (DSub-15) I think that would give you better quality than going through s-video or composite, which is what the above adaptor would accomplish.

Instead, perhaps you might want to consider this adaptor? And if you do, no need to buy it, as it should have been included with your MacBook Pro when it shipped. (I assume this is the one you already tried?)

Then Im going to use something like this to connect from my MBP's DVI to Video adapter to my TV

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0926INGFS10041003&catid=23214#

OR

http://www.thesourcecc.com/estore/P...g=Online&category=SvideoCable&product=1508365

If you were planning on using the first adaptor, then yes, these would be the right cables to use for the s-video component, however all you really need is the s-video cable, not the audio cables that appear to come bundled with it. Again, audio is seperate from video. Even if you buy one of the above s-video solutions, you will still need to plug the other ends of the audio cables into something, and your MacBook Pro does not have the proper interfaces for this. I believe your MacBook Pro has a combined optical digital output/headphone out accomplished via a minijack. So even after you sort out your video you'd need to sort out your audio.