hooking up a TV

snikr · 17 Nov 2016

I want to hook up video from my video card (NVIDIA GeForce 9500 GT) to my TV (making it my second monitor). My card has 2 DVI ports and one is for my monitor. I have no more HDMI ports on the TV so I need to use RCA or S-Video to connect the computer and the TV. I've tried a DVI to S-Video adapter and it doesn't work. Anybody have an ideas that might help me. Or am I just wasting my time?

alphanumeric · 17 Nov 2016

The video card may have a DVI-I and a DVI-D or combination there of. DVI-I is integrated Digital and Analog. DVI-D is digital only. Any type of DVI to VGA or S-Video won't work on a DVI-D port, it has no analog signal. Try switching the S-Video adapter to the other DVI port. A lot of cards have one DVI-D and one DVI-I ports. They are usually marked somehow so you know which one to connect the DVI to VGA adapter too.

Neemobeer · 17 Nov 2016

You can tell by just looking at the port. If the big flat pin has two small pins above and below it, it is DVI-I if it doesn't it's DVI-D

alphanumeric · 17 Nov 2016

Neemobeer said:

You can tell by just looking at the port. If the big flat pin has two small pins above and below it, it is DVI-I if it doesn't it's DVI-D

Yes, on the male end of the cable its easy to tell. It's not so easy on the video cards female jack to tell though. The holes are sometimes all there, but the connectors are missing on the inside.

Sometimes even the pins are there, just not hooked up to anything. They just buy the 1 DVI-I connector in bulk and use it across the board.

bobkn · 17 Nov 2016

Is a DVI-I to S Video adapter an active device? (Seems like it would have to be.)

DVI-I to VGA is passive (simple, and cheap). The VGA resolution of the 9500 GT is spec'd at 2048x1536 (not sure about the frequency, but I assume that it's at least 60 Hz), so that would cover an HD TV (1920 X 1080).

snikr · 18 Nov 2016

alphanumeric said:

The video card may have a DVI-I and a DVI-D or combination there of. DVI-I is integrated Digital and Analog. DVI-D is digital only. Any type of DVI to VGA or S-Video won't work on a DVI-D port, it has no analog signal. Try switching the S-Video adapter to the other DVI port. A lot of cards have one DVI-D and one DVI-I ports. They are usually marked somehow so you know which one to connect the DVI to VGA adapter too.

I tried it in both output ports with no luck. I did read someplace that you need a converter to go from DVI to S-Video. I think that was about getting analog output but not sure. I did get my audio to work. That was easy.

alphanumeric · 19 Nov 2016

Link, make model etc of the adapter your using now? If both ports are DVI-D you need an active adapter that actually changes digital to analog.

snikr · 19 Nov 2016

alphanumeric said:

Link, make model etc of the adapter your using now? If both ports are DVI-D you need an active adapter that actually changes digital to analog.

That is what I'm thinking I have to do.

snikr · 20 Nov 2016

I don't know how I missed it but my video card has a s-video output port on it. It is a 7 pin out and I have a 4 pin cable but I'm working on fixing that.

pbcopter · 21 Nov 2016

You could also use a HDMI switch to add your computer to the TV. The one I have automatically senses the signal and switches to what is just powered on.

HDMI Switch