iMac Dual Monitor Issues???

[Randman2001]

I have a 20" iMac, and just purchased a Samsung SyncMaster 2043BWX 20" monitor. It is one of the very few 20" monitors available with the same resolution as the mac monitor, and I'd prefer for them to be the same size.

The new monitor is hooked up through my mini dvi with an adapter to standard dvi on the monitor. My iMac has found the monitor, I can set the resolution settings on it, and I can run my mouse cursor right off of my screen onto the new one, however the new screen just remains black.

I know that it can't be broken because if I switch the source a message pops up on the screen saying to check my signal cable, which obviously also allows me to see that the screen does have color on it. I'm assuming my connections are also fine since my computer detects the monitor being connected.

Any ideas as to what might be wrong? I need some troubleshooting advice and don't want to pay Apple $50 for their assistance...

Thanks!

 

[Randman2001]

Well I tackled this problem by getting a mini dvi to analog connector, and for whatever reason, it now works. But the max resolution I am getting out of the new monitor is 1280x1024, however it's max resolution is 1680x1050 just like the iMac. Any ideas on how I can up the resolution, this seems to be the max setting that I can find.

 

[OldMike]

I have a similar setup. I have a 22" connected via mini-dvi to dvi adapter to my 24" iMac. When I hooked the external up, everything worked right out of the box - there wasn't really anything that I needed to do.

I am running two different resolutions, 1920x1200 and 1680x1050 on my 22".

One thing that I noticed was that OS X recognized my monitor correctly, which surprised me because I am using an off brand monitor - a Hanns-G.

Since you are having issues, I am curious to know if the System Profiler is correctly identifying your model of monitor. My profiler information reports this:

Displays:
iMac:
Resolution: 1920 x 1200
Depth: 32-bit Color
Core Image: Hardware Accelerated
Main Display: Yes
Mirror: Off
Online: Yes
Quartz Extreme: Supported
Built-In: Yes

Hanns.G Hi221:
Resolution: 1680 x 1050 @ 61 Hz
Depth: 32-bit Color
Core Image: Hardware Accelerated
Mirror: Off
Online: Yes
Quartz Extreme: Supported
Rotation: Supported

In your system profiler is it reporting the information correctly for your second monitor?

 

[Randman2001]

This is what comes up:

Displays:
Color LCD:
Display Type: LCD
Resolution: 1680 x 1050
Depth: 32-bit Color
Built-In: Yes
Core Image: Hardware Accelerated
Main Display: Yes
Mirror: Off
Online: Yes
Quartz Extreme: Supported
SyncMaster:
Resolution: 1280 x 1024 @ 75 Hz
Depth: 32-bit Color
Core Image: Hardware Accelerated
Mirror: Off
Online: Yes
Quartz Extreme: Supported
Rotation: Supported

So it doesn't even recognize it as a 1680x1050 monitor, could this be because of the VGA connection?

 

[OldMike]

Have you tried going into System Preferences -> Displays, and then selecting detect displays?

The reason I ask is because it doesn't look as though OS X is identifying your monitor model correctly. It knows it is a SyncMaster, but it looks as though it doesn't know which one it is. I would imagine that it should have the model, 2043BWX, along with it.

What brand of adapters are you using? I am using Apple's mini-dvi to dvi adapter. I know that there are other manufacturers of these adapters and I have heard that some have issues, though I do not know from personal experience.

I am baffled as to why your mini-dvi to dvi adapter does not work at all (giving you a black screen). Does it recognize it the same way in System Profiler when it is hooked up via DVI? Do you know if the refresh rate is correct, and do you have options for trying different settings?

 

[Yoyomanjoy]

I'm having a similar problem with my iMac's DVI to VGA connection (using a genuine apple part).

My secondary monitor is a SyncMaster 940N. It was working fine for the first few months, now the screen is black. Occasionally I can get it working by charging resolutions around in display preferences, but it's very unreliable.

 

[noodl3boi]

Osx?

Hi guys,

Just wondering, what version of OSX are you using?