I have an HDTV I want to use as a monitor

[nintendo_nerd]

Okay, I sometimes think my older brother's a little too generous. And what I mean is for a long time, we had an old school 50" big screen from 1992 (one of the first to come on the market) and well, let's just say it got bad. And I mean bad, so, my brother decided to buy a 46" Sony Bravia LCD TV (LCD may have its disadvantages, but Blu ray sure looks nice) and I noticed it had a few HDMI ports and a VGA port for a computer. I know HDMI is infinitely better quality than VGA would ever hope to be, but the question is, what kind of cable would I need? I have two computers, one is about seven feet from the back ports and the other computer is about fifteen feet away from the HDTV ports. The dilemma is I'm certain I need to have one end of the cable to be DVI-I and not DVI-D, which most of the cables I've seen seem to have. I don't care about brand names or the whole gold-plated crap, I just want a cable that goes from DVI-I to HDMI. I figure if my TV is HD, I might as well take advantage of the fact that it's digital. I might need anywhere from 15 to 20 feet (if I decide to use the the more power computer). What do you guys recommend?

[odditude]

I'm certain I need to have one end of the cable to be DVI-I and not DVI-D

i'm certain you're wrong. you need to start doing more research before you say you're "certain" about something.

the difference between dvi-i and dvi-d is that dvi-i can also carry the analog (i.e. vga) signal, which hdmi is not capable of carrying. hdmi is (essentially) single-link DVI-D + coax S/PDIF on a single cable.

assuming your tv is 1080p, get yourself a dvi-hdmi cable from monoprice or whatnot. if your tv is 720p, you're actually likely going to be better off going vga. that's the only way to get the panel's native resolution of 1360x768; via hdmi, you'll usually be limited to a scaled 1280x720.

[sweener2001]

that was a big paragraph for a "problem" you already knew the answer to.

i'm surprised you don't post here before taking a dump. you know, so you can confirm if you're doing it right.

EDIT: grammar

[Gil_Hamilton]

I know HDMI is infinitely better quality than VGA would ever hope to be

Marginally better. And VGA holds up better over distance, as crazy as it sounds. DVI/HDMI is difficult to run very far trouble-free, and when it goes bad, it goes bad in a big way. VGA holds up better, and fails both gradually and gracefully.


(For the fans: I know I wrote otherwise on Byuu's board a while back. It's not a continuity error, just me learning more since then.)

[odditude]

I know HDMI is infinitely better quality than VGA would ever hope to be

Marginally better. And VGA holds up better over distance, as crazy as it sounds. DVI/HDMI is difficult to run very far trouble-free, and when it goes bad, it goes bad in a big way. VGA holds up better, and fails both gradually and gracefully.

plus, some low-end lcd hdtvs don't handle computer input nicely at all on hdmi. trying to connect any pc to my tv (a cheapo olevia) via hdmi results in an over-sharped, "crunchy" looking display. vga looks beautiful, on the other hand (and at the native 1360x768, no less).

[nintendo_nerd]

I've seen my brother-in-law use HDMI for my HDTV via a laptop and was able to set it to 1920x1080 and looked very clear and nice. You're right, I don't know if it's DVI-D or DVI-I (I'll have to look at the back of the video card, and then google it). I'm sure I'll need a long cable, though (maybe 15' or so).

[grinvader]

before taking a dump. you know, so you can confirm if you're doing it right.

don't give him ideas ¬_¬

[nintendo_nerd]

before taking a dump. you know, so you can confirm if you're doing it right.

don't give him ideas ¬_¬

Sounds good to me.

[Gil_Hamilton]

I've seen my brother-in-law use HDMI for my HDTV via a laptop and was able to set it to 1920x1080 and looked very clear and nice. You're right, I don't know if it's DVI-D or DVI-I (I'll have to look at the back of the video card, and then google it). I'm sure I'll need a long cable, though (maybe 15' or so).

It's almost certainly DVI-I.
The DVI-D connector has been deprecated... except by Apple.

[paulguy]

if such a long run doesn't work (it probably won't) you'll need a booster. You can also get those from monoprice.

[darkbenny]

Monoprice love

[Awakened]

if your tv is 720p, you're actually likely going to be better off going vga. that's the only way to get the panel's native resolution of 1360x768; via hdmi, you'll usually be limited to a scaled 1280x720.

Glad I clicked on this topic for this bit of information. I have my 720p (native res is what you said) 32in Samsung HDTV hooked up as my secondary display through a DVI-HDMI cable. The picture looks as clear as native res should look with my PC outputting at 720p, but just a bit of the image is cut off with the TV set to Just Scan mode. I've tried setting the res to 1360x768, but it makes the TV go into 1080i mode and makes the picture kinda blurry. I'll definitely try it with a VGA cable sometime.

[nintendo_nerd]

I looked my DVI connection up and it's DVI-I dual link and not DVI single link. Monoprice seems to be one of the best places to look for these cables, though. The other dilemma is I don't want to spend a million dollars for some gold-plated top line cable (*cough*monstercable*cough*).

[odditude]

I looked my DVI connection up and it's DVI-I dual link and not DVI single link.

good for you. i'd be pissed if my new video card only supported single-link connections, since cards with dual-link connections first started showing up in 2004 (GeForce 6800 Ultra DDL was the first).

however, that's totally irrelevant to the discussion at hand. 1920x1080x32 is carried comfortably by a single-link connection (which is why current versions of hdmi don't support dual links). any single-link dvi cable will plug quite nicely into any dual-link dvi-i or dvi-d port, before you ask.

Monoprice seems to be one of the best places to look for these cables, though. The other dilemma is I don't want to spend a million dollars for some gold-plated top line cable (*cough*monstercable*cough*).

it's not a dilemma if you state the solution.

you keep using that word. i do not think it means what you think it means.

[nintendo_nerd]

Any single-link dvi cable will plug quite nicely into any dual-link dvi-i or dvi-d port, before you ask.

Okay, I obviously didn't know that, it's just that it didn't look like the cable grooves would match up with the pins on the DVI-I port, but they do.

[ReRuss]

FYI if you want decent cables cheap, check dealextreme, but beware you'll need patience...

[Neo Kaiser]

There are many DVI - HDMI adapters, even video cards come with them. And if the Bravia is a KDL it probably have a VGA port (Won't play in HD via VGA because of it being analog).

[odditude]

(Won't play in HD via VGA because of it being analog).

won't play hdcp-encrypted content, you mean.

[nintendo_nerd]

Yes, DVDs are HDCP encrypted right? Crap. I might "have" to find a way to remove HDCP, and no, I don't care what RIAA/MPAA says, either.

[odditude]

Yes, DVDs are HDCP encrypted right?

no.

[nintendo_nerd]

Blu ray and HD-DVD are, though, I just realized. Despite the fact that I'll be using an analog cable, that shouldn't make a difference, since it doesn't call for it, right?

[kode54]

Depends on whether the media flags for it. You can probably dodge that bullet if you use AnyDVD HD. Plus annoying content restrictions that prevent you from accessing the menu early or skipping those annoying copyright warnings and other logos.

[odditude]

Blu ray and HD-DVD are, though

do you have a blu-ray or hd-dvd drive on that pc?

[nintendo_nerd]

No, just a normal DVD/CD combo.

[funkyass]

VGA it up.