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DVI, VGA, HDMI Output From Macbook Pro to HDTV

G

giftsandcurses

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 4, 2009
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Your Mind
I am trying to output my audio and video from my late 2008 aluminum Macbook Pro to my 46" Samsung LCD TV. It doesn't have a DVI connection, but does have the VGA and of course the HDMIs. I've read about the problems with outputing to a monitor using both the DVI and VGA adapters about grainy resolution and cropping, but should I forsee the same with my HDTV and these adapters? I would like to get the best resolution I can since this is primarily just for watching my movies and shows on the big screen, not everyday computing.

Also, I have seen some 3rd party mini displayport to HDMI adapters out there. If I used this connection, does anyone know if it would output audio as well (my thoughts are no)? Or if I used the HDMI, could I still run audio through the coaxial/earphone jack configuration, or would it be suppressed by the HDMI?

If anyone could help with this, it would be really appreciated. Thanks in advance.
 
The older style has a full a DVI Port.
and I think that the OP has a unibody.
I would get all the cables at monoprice.com
 
giftsandcurses said:
I am trying to output my audio and video from my late 2008 aluminum Macbook Pro to my 46" Samsung LCD TV. It doesn't have a DVI connection, but does have the VGA and of course the HDMIs. I've read about the problems with outputing to a monitor using both the DVI and VGA adapters about grainy resolution and cropping, but should I forsee the same with my HDTV and these adapters? I would like to get the best resolution I can since this is primarily just for watching my movies and shows on the big screen, not everyday computing.

Also, I have seen some 3rd party mini displayport to HDMI adapters out there. If I used this connection, does anyone know if it would output audio as well (my thoughts are no)? Or if I used the HDMI, could I still run audio through the coaxial/earphone jack configuration, or would it be suppressed by the HDMI?

If anyone could help with this, it would be really appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

I have a UMP and a Mac Mini. In the past on my previous Samsung LCD 40 inch i hooked up by VGA and used an audio cable in conjunction with VGA. Great picture and sound. However due to a problem with the TV i had to get a replacement. Still a Samsung LCD 40 inch, but i can no longer hook up by VGA. I called Samsung Support and was informed that there is an issue with Mac's and newer versions of there LCD's. Apparently it is a known issue and a firmware patch is forthcoming. Not much help but i thought i would chime in.
 
dogg said:
I have a UMP and a Mac Mini. In the past on my previous Samsung LCD 40 inch i hooked up by VGA and used an audio cable in conjunction with VGA. Great picture and sound. However due to a problem with the TV i had to get a replacement. Still a Samsung LCD 40 inch, but i can no longer hook up by VGA. I called Samsung Support and was informed that there is an issue with Mac's and newer versions of there LCD's. Apparently it is a known issue and a firmware patch is forthcoming. Not much help but i thought i would chime in.
Click to expand...

Sorry i failed to mention that i tried using this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Belkin-Pure...?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1243437190&sr=8-23

and used this for sound:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fisual-3-5mm-Stereo-Jack-Cable/dp/B000WQTQ1Q

On the back to the Samsung there is a stereo jack connector.

Unfortunately i couldn't get the correct resolution using the above methods.

The best resolution i could achieve was very clear and sharp, but i lost the menu bar!
 
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bugout said:
by "late 2008" you mean the unibody, then you can use this:

http://sewelldirect.com/Mini-Displa...rce=froogle&utm_source=Froogle&utm_medium=cse

If it's the old style macbook pro then you need a mini-dvi to hdmi here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...ers+and+gender+changers-_-STARTECH-_-12200375


Neither one outputs sound. You'll need a mini-toslink to toslink cable to get digital sound out like this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882339090
Click to expand...

Thanks everybody for the input. I think I'm going to give the mini displayport-HDMI adapter a chance with the separate audio cable. Once I get everything, I'll post back to let you know the results. Thanks again.
 
Resolved

Thanks for all the help guys. I got all my parts in, tested them, and all is working great. For the mini displayport-to-HDMI adapter, I went with

http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10428&cs_id=1042802&p_id=5311&seq=1&format=2

and found this HDMI cable pretty cheap

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882339024

All worked great and only cost $20 all together! For the audio, I went with just a simply 3.5mm cable I had around directly into my receiver. No problems. I had read about a lot of people complaining about the bottom dock being cropped off on their televisions, which I also had initially. But, if you just change the aspect ratio on the TV, then boom, Bob's your uncle. On my Samsung TV, the setting was "Just Scan." There was just a little bit of letterboxing on the right and left sides of the screen since the Macbook Pro isn't 16:9, but dock and menu bar both showed perfectly and overall image had great resolution with no syncing issues. Hope this helps anyone else looking to output your Mac to a HDTV. Thanks again.
 
I also have a unibody macbook pro and a samsung lcd tv with the option of VGA or HDMI input....and wondering which one to use to connect my macbook pro. I want to use it as a monitor for my macbook pro 13 while I'm at home (with a bluetooth keyboard etc).

May I ask why nobody has suggested to use the VGA port on the lcd tv? Isn't this specifically designed for PC input (mine actually says "PC" above the VGA port)?

Basically, I'm asking which option is better - VGA or HDMI?
I'm only interested in visual quality. Audio doesn't matter as I will also be connecting the macbook to my rotel amp for sound.

Your help and advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
 
AAHK said:
I also have a unibody macbook pro and a samsung lcd tv with the option of VGA or HDMI input....and wondering which one to use to connect my macbook pro. I want to use it as a monitor for my macbook pro 13 while I'm at home (with a bluetooth keyboard etc).

May I ask why nobody has suggested to use the VGA port on the lcd tv? Isn't this specifically designed for PC input (mine actually says "PC" above the VGA port)?

Basically, I'm asking which option is better - VGA or HDMI?
I'm only interested in visual quality. Audio doesn't matter as I will also be connecting the macbook to my rotel amp for sound.

Your help and advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Click to expand...

From what I could gather from other postings and previous experience with VGA connections, I found the HDMI configuration to be not only more convenient (having plenty of spare HDMI cables laying around) but also having a better picture quality. With the VGA connections I have used in the past, I found they typically had some slight resolution issues where the display would look slightly pixelated. It could have just been my cables or my settings, but with the HDMI I got an extremely bright, crisp, and brilliant picture on the HDTV. I too just connected my audio directly to the amp since it wasn't transmitted through the HDMI. I hope this helps you with your decision process.
 
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