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Running 2 x Monitors from MacBook Pro DVI Out?

kdum8 said:
B.rudge,

be sure to post here if you receive a reply from the company regarding mac compatibility or future plans thereof. Would be great to finally get two 23" independent monitors side by side running off a MBP....
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Of course.

Add 'affordably' to your criteria. as what you said is already possible but is really expensive...

I wonder if would be possible (and cheaper) to get an iMac, a regular large display, and configure the imac to boot from the MBP, using firewire, and booting the MBP in disk mode (holding th 't' key at boot). I think you could effectively run your MBP on two large monitors that way too, through the iMac and alternate large display, plugged into the iMac.

Obvious disadvantages are that you have to reboot each computer every time you want to go mobile or dock, and that you can't use MBP ports screen or in fact any MBP peripherals while using it through the iMac. There are probably other disadvantages of running macosX through a firewire cable...

Just an idea. Probably a really bad one....
 
Screw Belkin

Forget about anything useful from Belkin, ever: http://www.belkin.com/contact/milan/history.aspx?id=0E575A0E5C0C0E0B0A59095B5B5E570E305F5D

In case that link doesn't work, here's the summary:

When will the High-Speed Docking station (http://www.belkin.com/support/article/?lid=en&pid=F5U265&aid=5991&scid=853) be available for Mac OS X with Mac drivers. There is a big market in amongst designers and media professionals with MacBooks for dual-screens: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/214102/
Belkin Response Jul 19 2007 21:13
Thank you for contacting Belkin Customer Support

Our Technicians will be more than happy to provide device support you may need or to answer any of your technical questions. Please contact them at 1-800-223-5546 x2263 and follow the provided prompts.

Thank You!


Ms. Arianna N. Frank
Belkin, Inc.
Customer Support Representative
ariannaf@belkin.com
www.belkin.com
Customer Call Details Jul 19 2007 21:20
I was hoping for something like `never`, `next month/year`, `we`re considering`. I would have rated that answer as `not in the slightest useful` but `poor` was the closest thing...
Belkin Response Jul 19 2007 21:25
Thanks !
Customer Call Details Jul 19 2007 22:04
:| okay...? I wouldn`t buy it with this sort of support anyway, even if Mac was supported. I won`t be buying or recommending Belkin products again...
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Additionally my Belkin wifi router broke this week -- I think a firmware update broke it so bad that even the hardware reset wouldn't fix it. After 30 minutes on the phone trying useless tasks that I'd already tried, the lady in india admitted that she had no idea what was wrong (I could have told her that when we started) and that another technician would call me. I never got a call. I bought a apple extreme airport base station yesterday -- it's a dream! :)
 


Thanks for getting back with the answer rudge. Indeed her answer was useless but I guess she wanted you to phone their technicians in India and ask them! :p

Well, I guess our best option then is to hope that these guys make an Express 34 version of their product:

http://www.villagetronic.com/e_pr_vtbook.html

Other than that there doesn't seem to be a sensibly affordable option.

Unless you can convert Express 34 to PCMCIA with an adaptor...?
 
How does the Macbook Pro drive the 30" apple display? Or a Dell 30"? Do you have to buy a special adapter 1DVI to 2DVI?
 
Rendition said:
How does the Macbook Pro drive the 30" apple display? Or a Dell 30"? Do you have to buy a special adapter 1DVI to 2DVI?
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You are confusing Dual Link DVI with Dual DVI. Dual link runs two offset datastreams over a single cable doubling the bandwidth to a single screen. It does this by using two TDMS transponders at both ends of the link. This cannot be split into Dual DVI which is two separate signals each to a different display.
 
robbieduncan said:
You are confusing Dual Link DVI with Dual DVI. Dual link runs two offset datastreams over a single cable doubling the bandwidth to a single screen. It does this by using two TDMS transponders at both ends of the link. This cannot be split into Dual DVI which is two separate signals each to a different display.
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So does this mean I can buy the 30" Dell Ultrasharp and use it with my Macbook Pro? Do I need a special dual link DVI cable?
 
AFAIK, to run any monitor with a standard connection and normal frequencies colors etc on a MacBook or MacBook Pro, you just plug it in to the DVI port, and use the DVI to VGA adapter if necessary. OS X handles the rest, and gives you some options.

However this thread is about running two such monitors from a MacBook/Pro. which is considerably more difficult given the limitations of the hardware in a laptop, the lack of support for mac os x from hardware vendors, and the price of such hardware.
 
kdum8 said:
Does anyone out there make an adaptor from ExpressCard 34 to PCMCIA? Maybe it would work then....
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kdum8 said:
Unless you can convert Express 34 to PCMCIA with an adaptor...?
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Unlikely, considering a PCMCIA card wouldn't fit in the ExpressCard slot, it'd be bulky and external and likely to run over USB, because PCMCIA has such a slow bus speed.

robbieduncan said:
Dell 30" Yes,

Special cable: I think so: I've certainly seen them advertised. The screen might will ship with one...
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Special cable: a dual link DVI cable (different pin-out than single link DVI), and the 30" dell does ship with one.

FYI, all MacBook Pros support 30" screens via Dual link DVI, it may just be a better option to plump for that, considering how cheap the Dell is now... :rolleyes:
 
bigandy said:
FYI, all MacBook Pros support 30" screens via Dual link DVI, it may just be a better option to plump for that, considering how cheap the Dell is now... :rolleyes:
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A thirty inch screen is great but you can't beat having two or even three monitors side by side for work or play. Have you ever used Microsoft Flight Simulator X with three 30" monitors? It's almost like really being up there....:p

Not much in a Pro notebook if you can't do 'Pro' things with it really...
 
screen said:
I now have multiple monitors working from my MacbookPro pro using the Magma ExpressBox1 Pro along with a NVidia GeForce 7300GT. It's not a cheap solution but it is the first I've seen working with each monitor treated as such by osx.
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Ok. So I'm buying a Mac Book Pro tomorrow and I currently have 2 HP 19" monitors I want to use with it when in the office.

I'm interested in getting the Magma ExpressBox1 Pro and NVidia GeForce 7300GT. However, can you explain please, exactly how they work. (?) Do you just plus the ExpressBox1 into the MBP and the 7300GT into the ExpressBox1? Where do both monitors get plugged in? And do they 100% run as independent screens?

All help very much appreciated. TIA.
 
Navaro said:
Ok. So I'm buying a Mac Book Pro tomorrow and I currently have 2 HP 19" monitors I want to use with it when in the office.

I'm interested in getting the Magma ExpressBox1 Pro and NVidia GeForce 7300GT. However, can you explain please, exactly how they work. (?) Do you just plus the ExpressBox1 into the MBP and the 7300GT into the ExpressBox1? Where do both monitors get plugged in? And do they 100% run as independent screens?

All help very much appreciated. TIA.
Click to expand...

Actually, figured the Magma and 7300GT combo - Just want to know now, would 2 HP (DVI) 19" monitors, I was using on a PC, work with the 7300GT??

Thanks
 
Navaro said:
Actually, figured the Magma and 7300GT combo - Just want to know now, would 2 HP (DVI) 19" monitors, I was using on a PC, work with the 7300GT??

Thanks
Click to expand...

if you have two monitors that are the same size (and assuming that they are the same resolution) why wouldnt you just buy the dual head to go?

it would saze you a ton of money

my problem is that i have two different size monitors (22" 1680x1050 & 19" 1440x900)
 
Shannighan said:
if you have two monitors that are the same size (and assuming that they are the same resolution) why wouldnt you just buy the dual head to go?

it would saze you a ton of money

my problem is that i have two different size monitors (22" 1680x1050 & 19" 1440x900)
Click to expand...

Actually that's a good question. Originally I was reluctant to buy the Dual/Triple Head to go because the product just enlarges your screen and spreads it out over two/three monitors meaning that you just get one big stretched desktop instead of three independent monitors. However I see that it can actually snap windows to each monitor effectively making three independent screens so I may go for it.
 
Matrox Dualhead2Go Digital Edition works with Macs. Cheapest I can find is $226 shipped on eBay. VGA input to dual DVI outputs. About $175 more than what I had expected to pay :p. Really want dual 24" setup though haha.
 
phungy said:
Matrox Dualhead2Go Digital Edition works with Macs. Cheapest I can find is $226 shipped on eBay. VGA input to dual DVI outputs. About $175 more than what I had expected to pay :p. Really want dual 24" setup though haha.
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Have you actually got this setup on your mac now? If so I like to fire a couple of questions at you! :eek:
 
kdum8 said:
Have you actually got this setup on your mac now? If so I like to fire a couple of questions at you! :eek:
Click to expand...

I only wish...I hope to have this setup later this Fall. My desk doesn't have room for 2-24" and though I do have the money now, I need to save it for dental school applications so we'll see :p.
 
dwesman said:
I just purchased this one.
https://forums.macrumors.com/archive/index.php/t-214102.html. A co-worker just got one for his pc and it worked flawlessly. This is supported by mac and my reseller got this for $103 bucks shipped. Not to shabby. I have dual 19" wides to go with my new Macbook pro. I will let you know if I like it.
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*Update* Villagetronic have finally released an Expresscard 34 version of their DVI adapter box so it is now possible to run upto 3 external monitors independently from a MBP.

http://www.villagetronic.com/vidock/index.html
 
damn, about time already, this thing has been delayed for more than a year now, however I dont know if its worth forking over $500...
If any1 gets it, please post your review.
 
Well, if you need a multiple monitor support and this thing is going to enable that, then $500 is a very small price to pay as compared to having to purchase a Mac Pro in order to drive multiple displays. If only you could get a 1GB video card for MBPs. I'm finding out that trying to do some day trading using my 24" LCD + the screen on my 15" (2.5 GHz Penryn) MBP just slows down the graphics to a basically unusable level. The ViDock claims to support 2 30" screens. It would be great if someone tried it and could comment on the video performance of this solution.
 
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