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Macbook -> DVI -> HDMI?

S

sfgiants320

macrumors member
Original poster
Hi,

I have a new 2.0 GHz Aluminum MacBook with the Mini DisplayPort. Can anyone here confirm that they can connect their MacBook to the HDMI port on their TV using a mini DisplayPort to DVI adapter and then a DVI to HDMI cable? And if this works, how does the sound get transferred to the TV speakers--since the DVI cable can't transfer sound?

Thanks for you help before I buy cables to connect my MacBook to my TV. Or can anyone suggest any other way to do so? My TV has 4 HDMI ports and a component (red, blue, green) input, but no DVI port.
 
for sound, I bought a 3.5mm to 3.5mm sound jack in wal-mart for 3.99...It makes the sound come out of your TV speakers and actually sounds quite nice!
 
Skydivincoastie said:
for sound, I bought a 3.5mm to 3.5mm sound jack in wal-mart for 3.99...It makes the sound come out of your TV speakers and actually sounds quite nice!
Click to expand...

But my TV doesn't have a 3.5mm input, only 3.5mm sound OUTPUT. But it does have a component input (red, blue, green cable inputs)--does this help at all?
 
sfgiants320 said:
But my TV doesn't have a 3.5mm input, only 3.5mm sound OUTPUT. But it does have a component input (red, blue, green cable inputs)--does this help at all?
Click to expand...

That's... another form of video. I do not believe that there are any televisions that accept video from HDMI and then audio from another set of plugs. You'll need external speakers connected to your audio out port on your computer.
 
i use the DVI and HDMI cable to connect my macbook to my TV. It works well and the picture is good. I like it. As for sound I just leave my speakers plugged into the computer for my sound.
 
Tallest Skil said:
I do not believe that there are any televisions that accept video from HDMI and then audio from another set of plugs.
Click to expand...

Not true. There are many TVs that have at least one HDMI input with auxiliary audio inputs. My Sharp LCD has two HDMI ports, with one of them having a L/R RCA audio input. Other TVs may have 3.5mm minijack.

Keep in mind that you'd probably have to go into the TV's menu to activate the proper audio inputs.

ft
 
OK, now I have a related question. According to this link, Monoprice will soon release a Mini DisplayPort -> HDMI cable. My TV has, obviously, HDMI ports that I can use. I know that a Mini DisplayPort -> HDMI cable will be a direct digital connection. But if I choose to use a Mini DisplayPort -> DVI -> HDMI conversion, will I see any quality loss due to two conversions (to DVI and then to HDMI) that won't show up if I use Mini DisplayPort -> HDMI? In other words, if price isn't an issue, should I choose Mini DisplayPort -> DVI -> HDMI or Mini DisplayPort -> HDMI, or is there no difference at all between them?
 
I'm not for sure but I wouldn't suspect very much loss, if any. If there was any difference you probably wouldn't be able to notice it an wouldn't be a big deal. If price didn't matter though I would go with just the MiniDVI->HDMI cable, why use two when you can use one, however, the one cord is over twice as much as the two cords combined so if money is an issue I'd go with miniDVI->DVI and DVI-> HDMI.
 
sfgiants320 said:
OK, now I have a related question. According to this link, Monoprice will soon release a Mini DisplayPort -> HDMI cable. My TV has, obviously, HDMI ports that I can use. I know that a Mini DisplayPort -> HDMI cable will be a direct digital connection. But if I choose to use a Mini DisplayPort -> DVI -> HDMI conversion, will I see any quality loss due to two conversions (to DVI and then to HDMI) that won't show up if I use Mini DisplayPort -> HDMI? In other words, if price isn't an issue, should I choose Mini DisplayPort -> DVI -> HDMI or Mini DisplayPort -> HDMI, or is there no difference at all between them?
Click to expand...

These are all digital connections. You should expect no loss unless you have a bad cable or connector.

As far as sound, if your TV has an optical IN connector (most newer TV's do), you can try this cable.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10229&cs_id=1022902&p_id=1571&seq=1&format=2

If you post your TV's model, we can be more specific.
 
sdsvtdriver said:
These are all digital connections. You should expect no loss unless you have a bad cable or connector.

As far as sound, if your TV has an optical IN connector (most newer TV's do), you can try this cable.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10229&cs_id=1022902&p_id=1571&seq=1&format=2

If you post your TV's model, we can be more specific.
Click to expand...

I have a Toshiba REGZA 42RV535U 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV. This link shows all the connections it has. Can you help me better?
 
sdsvtdriver said:
The cable below will transmit the audio in stereo from your Macbook to your TV. Your TV appears to support digital audio input via HDMI only.
Click to expand...

It looks like the Toshy will can support digital audio for the PC input as well as HDMI1. The OP has two options as far as connecting his MB to the TV.

I think the "page 19" reference was noting a specific page in the manual. The monoprice link is for a 3.5mm minijack digital audio cable. You would plug one end in the MB's audio output and the other into the audio input next the the PC input.

I'm guess that the digital audio input on the Toshiba is "off" by default and you'd need to get into the TV's menu to assign it to a particular video input (either PC or HDMI1). If you do use DVI-HDMI for the video, make sure you use HDMI1 as that's the only one that seems to have access to the audio input.

ft

EDIT - I ran through the manual, and it looks like you're set. Just keep in mind that if you use the HDMI input, you might run into overscan issues. Your TV supports zero-overscan (just press the PIC SIZE button on the remote until you get to "dot-by-dot"). Also, keep in mind that there is an overscan checkbox in OS X located in System Preferences/Displays ... it's in one of the tabs. Just check/uncheck to see if either works.

Good Luck!
 
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