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The Mac mini family was first introduced in January of 2005.

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Need help with Mini TV hookup

I have a 2006 Mac Mini Core Duo, and I'm trying to hook it up to my older analog tube TV. For the most part, I understand how I'm going to do this, but I'm uncertain about the right cables to buy. For example, I've seen that the recommended VGA to RCA or S-video cable by Apple: http://store.apple.com/us/product/M9267G...

In an attempt to save money, I was considering buying a generic one like this: http://tinyurl.com/3mp45xc The product description mentions that the video card in the Mac must support TV-Out functionality, and I didn't know if the 06' model did or if I absolutely had to have the Apple adapter.

The TV only has S-Video and the RCA Composite (Red White and Yellow) hookups, so a direct DVI to Component cable wouldn't work. Incidentally, I've noticed that there doesn't seem to be any DVI to Composite video, or DVI to S-Video cables floating around, so I suppose I must use my DVI to VGA adapter on the Mini.

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It's not that easy. You need to convert the signals. The best place to go is Elgato to learn the different things you can do and the different equipment available to do it, start here: http://www.elgato.com/elgato/na/mainmenu...

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On the contrary mayer, it is that easy. You see, the Mini comes with a DVI-I connection, which means that it can send out analog signals. This is why Apple includes a DVI to VGA adapter with the Mini; because that DVI port will support the VGA signal. Similarly, the DVI port will also transmit S-Video and Composite signals, the only problem is finding the proper hookup. The DVI to Video adapter from Apple does just that, and it's essentially a dongle to allow for the Mini to hookup to the TV. No actual conversion of signals is taking place here: the adapter simply sends the analog signals that the DVI already produces to the TV.

You must be thinking of an outright digital to analog video converter, which would work, only they are ridiculously expensive, with most costing between $50 to $100. With the Mini, that shouldn't be necessary, as stated in Apple's support article on the subject: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2998

The problem that I have now is that, after I attached the adapter to the TV and the Mac, the picture actually worked for a little bit, but then I tried to change the resolution, and the TV signal became black and white with a stuttering picture, rendering the whole TV unusable. I've tried rebooting the Mac, changing the cables, and deleting the display profile from the Colorsync Utility, all with no avail. I'm wondering if the DVI adapter is defective. Any other suggestions would be appreciated!

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Great news! I figured out the problem! I started up in Safe Mode, and the TV worked! Then I deleted all of my old WindowServer files, and rebooted as usual. With the configuration files gone, the system was able to rebuild a new profile for the TV, and it looks just like when I first attached it! I'll stay away from the resolution, however, simply because that is what caused all this trouble in the first place!

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Diogones will be eternally grateful.
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