External monitor on an iMac 20"
 

Hi,

I have one of the above flat beasts, and would like to use an external monitor/tv as a control monitor during editing.

I bought Apple's Mini-DVI to DVI converter and I also have the DVI to Composite/S-Video converter from Apple - but this doesn't fit into the Mini-DVI converter. There are 4 extra pins on the Composite plug and no room for these on the Mini-DVI to DVI converter.

How do you folks connect an external monitor or a TV to the Mini-DVI output on the back of the iMac? I looked all over the net to no avail, but surely someone must have come up with a (clever) solution....?

Peter in Denmark

The 4 extra pins on the composite plug are the necessary pins for your purpose to carry the ANALOG signals to the S-Video/composite end. The mini-DVI to DVI adapter from Apple is a DIGITAL only adapter (DVI-D) and lacks the 4 pins which carry the ANALOG signal. I don't know whether the 20" iMac's mini DVI output carries analog signals but if it does then what you need is a mini-DVI to DVI-A (analog) or DVI-I (analog and digital) adapter. See the link for more information:

http://www.datapro.net/techinfo/dvi_info.html

P.

Hi Pedanes,

Thanks a lot for your reply - that cleared a great deal of the mystery :-)

And the link was indeed helpfull too. Never realized there were that many "DVI-standards". So now I at least know what cable I'm looking for, and hopefully I can get my second monitor up and running here between Christmas and New Year.

Once again, thanks for your help!

Kind regards

Peter

Hej

I have a IMac and I have a external monitor for FCP and Imovie 6 for color correcting etc. and I tap a signal via Firewire to a DV-converter box and from that to my CRT monitor.

You can also use a DV camera that has analog out as a converter

I don´t want to occupy the DVI port since I also shortly will get a second flat screen and then I need that port