Mac mini+hp w2216 monitor (DVI)= problems!

The strangest thing happened when I moved my Mac mini (G4, 1.42 GHz) from an Apple Cinema Display (no problems) to a new HP w2216 (1680x1050 wide screen monitor). I connected with a DVI cable. At first, it worked. But after a while, artifacts started to develop, especially when moving windows around, until finally the monitor would not pick a signal. Brought monitor back to the store, where it worked flawlessly when connected to a PC using the same DVI cable. Monitor works fine with analog VGA cable!
Artifacts looked similar to those shown here: http://www.freewebs.com/themagius/minidvipics.htm, so it seems this is some incompatibility between the graphics card of the mini and the HP display. Any other idea how to fix this?

The old G4 mini has trouble with monitors that have something called a non-coherent TMDS (DVI) receiver. The solution is to use SwitchRes X and build a custom resolution using the CVT-RB setting under the "Use simplified settings" option in the custom timing set up window. This causes the pixel clock to lower to a value where the coherency/non-coherency matter is not an issue. Here are more specific instructions for using SwitchRes X once you have downloaded and installed it. By the way, download and install the lighter version of the program instead of the full version. The lighter version is called SwitchRes X Control Panel.
Open SwitchRes X and click on the Custom tab. Click the "+" to start a new timing. A window will open with a checkbox near the lower left that says, "Use simplified settings". Check the box and then, in the associated pop-up, select "CVT-RB". RB stands for reduced blanking and it will cause the pixel clock to lower. Enter "1680" for Horizontal Active, "1050" for Vertical Active and "60" for Vertcal Scan rate. Those are the only three boxes you can fill in. The built-in calculator fills in the remaining values. Then follow the directions for saving and restarting. Now in Displays Preferences should be two 1680 x 1050 timings. One is the standard one and one is the custom one you just built. You may not be able to tell which is which so you'll have to try both. One of them should be stable.

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Mirror:          Off
Online:          Yes
Rotation:          Supported
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Hi,
my Mac Mini fails to detect a monitor on the DVI port when it boots (monitor says no signal).
If I leave it a few minutes to boot, then put it to sleep and awake using the power button, then the display appears.
This problem does not occur with the DVI-to-VGA adapter, and I have tried with 2 separate DVI monitors (different brands) and cables (both monitors are fine with Windows PCs).
I have tried various resolutions and color depths, to no avail.
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Does Mac Mini's HDMI-to-DVI cable support analog DVI monitors?

The Apple website shows that the new (late 2012) Mac Mini comes with an HDMI-to-DVI adapter cable in the box :-)
The DVI video connector standard supports both analog and digital video signal modes, but not all models support both modes.
I have an old PC monitor with a DVI connector, which is probably analog only. Will this work with the new (late 2012) Mac Mini?
In other words: does Apple's HDMI-to-DVI adapter cable support all DVI monitors, or only those with a digital input?
Many thanks!
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Your right about the DVI standard support both analogue and digital. The three types are
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DVI-D (digital only)
DVI-I (supports both)
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Generally monitors with a DVI port support digital DVI, if you compare the socket and pins layout on the monitor to the one on the Mac adaptor if they are the same layout then that should indicate the monitor indeed supports digital DVI.
Note: The maximum resolution supported by the Macs HDMI port is 1920x1200, if your monitor supports a higher resolution then you should get a Mini Displayport to DVI adaptor or if needed a Mini Displayport to Dual Link DVI adaptor (for the highest resolutions).
The following may help http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Visual_Interface

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I recently purchased a Samsung LN-S4695D - a 46" LCD TV capable of 1080p with HDMI and VGA inputs. I've had been using my 23" Cinema Display + a Mac Mini G4 + Rotel Amp as the centerpieces of my Home Theater, and decided to change out the display to accommodate a gaming system and perhaps some other digital or component inputs (and, of course, nab a larger viewing surface). It seems like a fairly standard use of the Mini, but unfortunately many of us are running into disappointing results using our Minis as connected to an HDTV display. I'm writing here to see if we can clear up the issue with the mini and to attempt to identify reasonable workarounds or solutions until Apple gets the Mini right for HD home theater.
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http://www.freewebs.com/themagius/minidvipics.htm
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http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=5940932
So I've three sets of questions for Apple and the rest of you on this forum:
1) Why does the Mac Mini underpeform with the LCD display? The Powerbook works great, and the mini works great with my Cinema display (also 1920x1080) - where is the disconnect between the Mini and the Samsung? I understand very little about the actual details of DVI signals being carried across the wire, and don't understand what would cause the Powerbook to succeed, but the Mini to falter.
2) Assuming the Mini video hardware is at fault, has Apple improved this with the new Core 2 Duo line? Has anyone had success where previous Minis or other Apple hardware failed at 1080? If not, is there any announced intention to make the hardware that is positioned as being most ideal for the living room (ie, Mac Mini) actually DVI/HDMI-compatible with the finest HD living room devices?
3) An unfortunate sideffect of the DVI connection to the TV is that it requires the image from the Apple device to be oversanned (about a menu-bar's worth of pixels disappear on each edge) or underscanned (2" of black space around the image). Is there a common industry standard to correct this? Who is managing the overscan - the TV or the Mini? Also, can any utility, such as ScreenResX correct this until Apple manages to build in correction options into the OS for their living-room devices?
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David,
Great post. There's a lot to digest here. Let's get started!
The first question relating to noise, or static, over a TMDS (DVI) connection has to do with with the interoperability of various TMDS transmitters and receivers and how they are implemented. At this point in the market place there are thousands of combinations of transmitter/reciever pairings and obviously some are working better than others.
If you were to observe a TMDS signal with a scope there is something called the "eye" which is framed by the swing voltage and the bit time. When the eye collapses and is encroached upon, digital noise is the result. The noise margin is degraded by higher bit rates. That is why the mini and your TV are working at 720p but failing at 1080p...because the dot clock is that much higher for 1080p. The solution for cases such as this is to build a custom 1920x1080 timing that has reduced blanking, which allows for the lowering of the dot clock. Generally you can lower the dot clock sufficiently to get the noise to stop. LCD displays are relatively immune to reductions in blanking time so you can squeeze a lot out of a timing that was designed more with a CRT in mind.
To answer your second question, you can't fairly say the problem is with the mini. When you consider TMDS compatibility between two devices you have to take a whole system view. This includes not only the transmitter (mini) but the transmission line (PCB traces from the TMDS transmitter inside the mini to the mini's DVI connector -> the cable -> PCB traces from the DVI connector on the TV to the TMDS receiver in the TV), and the receiver. All three have to work together to make things come out right. You could probably just as easily find a display that works well with the mini that doesn't work with your PowerBook. It can be really had to pin the blame down to one device except in the most obvious cases where a certain device seems to be incompatible with just about everything. But I don't think the mini can be labeled that way. Compatibility is definitely an issue the industry still struggles with, especially at the higher clock rates approaching the 165MHz TMDS speed limit.
As for question 3, overscan is being forced by the TV, not by the mini. And, no, utilities like SwitchRes X and DisplayConfigX cannot be counted on to reliably deal with this except in the case of pure analog displays with magnetic deflection systems (e.g. old TVs and monitors). Once you have a digital processor involved and a matrix addressed display, tweaks to porch timings and blanking and such do not have predictable results. It seems to work in some cases but it is basically voodoo when it does. Purely luck.
If you want, I can help you to build a reduced blanking, 1080p timing that will most likely eliminate the DVI static. But you'll still be stuck with overscan. I should point out that a lot of manufacturers are starting to "get it" with respect to the public's desire to attach computers to their hi-def LCD televisions. I see a real shift in 2006 models. I believe the current crop of FHD (Full HD; native 1080) LCDs from the three "S" companies (Samsung, Sharp and Sony) all can display 1080p bit-for-bit now, meaning no overscan. So at least that is changing for the better. Write back if you want help with the timing.
Cheers. And thanks for starting this great thread.

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* http://www.apple.com/macmini/specs.html
Thunderbolt port with support for up to 2560-by-1600 resolution
HDMI port with support for up to 1920-by-1200 resolution
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Mac mini+hp w2216 monitor (DVI)= problems!

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