Can I run Plex media center on a "second monitor" off of my Mac Pro?

[fs454]

Alright so I'm trying to figure out a good media center setup that doesn't require me to spend another $300 on a used Intel Mac Mini or something else to run Plex on...and I have my Mac Pro within 15 feet of the TV.


So I was wondering if I were to do DVI --> HDMI and bring the audio over separately, would it be possible to get Plex to run at 1080p on that monitor regardless of what I'm doing on my main(1920x1200) display? Basically for those occasions when my roommate will watch something, I can still use this computer. I still have the '08 stock Radeon HD 2600 but I feel like it may not matter because I have 8 cores and a whole lot of RAM..correct me if wrong here.

Has anyone set up anything similar? Thanks for any input.

:edit: Also, if I split the 3.5mm jack's audio output on the back of the Mac Pro(one for 2.1 setup on computer, one for home theater), will it degrade the audio quality at all?

 

[Transporteur]

From a hardware point of view it is a piece of cake, absolutely possible. The software might be tricky though.

I just tried to run Plex on another screen than the main on my Mac Pro and I can't toggle the application to run on fullscreen (cmd+f). It works on the main screen only.

There might be a trick that I don't know, but I suggest you try it first before you buy expensive cables and adapters.

 

[Hellhammer]

I have Plex running full screen on my TV as we speak. Everything works normally on my iMac's screen.

 

[Brummibyxan]

From a hardware point of view it is a piece of cake, absolutely possible. The software might be tricky though.

I just tried to run Plex on another screen than the main on my Mac Pro and I can't toggle the application to run on fullscreen (cmd+f). It works on the main screen only.

There might be a trick that I don't know, but I suggest you try it first before you buy expensive cables and adapters.

You just have to change the screen settings in plex on what screen you want to use when in full screen. Then when you hit cmd+f plex will go to full screen lets say on your TV and you can work on your mac and someone else can watch a movie.
I use the optical output for plex and got computerspeakers/headphones connected to analog output so the movie can be watched in 5.1 on my home theather and at the same time I can listen to itunes in my headphones.