Mac Studio M1 Connections and Functions?

In addition to what den.thed has already told you, the SPEED of the HDMI port out of the xBox is so fast, and HDMI 2.1 is so brittle, that it can not be adapted at all to anything else.

You need to connect the xBox display output cable DIRECTLY to a display on a fairly short HDMI ULTRA "48G" cable, and nothing else will do anything for you. No switching. no sharing. no merging. Direct cable connect or no picture.

Grant Bennet-Alder wrote:

The cable-end you pictured appears to my eye to be a HDMI connector, suitable for direct connection to a TV set or monitor. If it is NOT, please post a close up of its pins, or use this diagram:

The photo in his document appears to be of an HDMI connector, but he's talking about a "composite cable" and RCA jacks – something else entirely.

The linked X-Box Support article refers to

• Xbox 360 HDMI Cable
• Xbox 360 Component HD AV Cable
• Xbox 360 VGA HD AV Cable
• Xbox 360 Composite AV cable

The Composite AV cable is the LOWEST-spec connection method of any that the Xbox 360 supports. RCA plugs are the old round plugs used for stereo connections (e.g., connecting CD players to receivers) and carrying video from a NON-HDTV source to an old NTSC TV. They're just one step above a connection to a rabbit ears antenna, or to a coax cable.

According to the linked article, the cable has three color-coded RCA plugs:

• Yellow = composite video
• Red = right-channel analog audio
• White = left-channel analog audio

This is standard color-coding for RCA audio and video cables.

What the OP needs to understand is that NONE of the ports on the Mac Studio are video input ports – whether for HDMI, VGA, component video (three RCA plugs), or composite video (one analog RCA plug).

There might, or might not be capture cards that the OP could buy that would plug into one of the Studio's USB-C or USB-C / Thunderbolt ports, depending on the particular type of conversion that should be done. But if the OP needs a monitor for the Xbox, the OP would be much better off looking for a dedicated monitor or TV, or at least connecting the Xbox directly to a compatible second input on a standalone hardware monitor (NOT a 5K Studio Display, but something that had compatible hardware video input).

Recent gaming consoles go straight to Highest-end HDMI, supporting 4K at high refresh rates. This is only possible if whatever cable you use is rated to the highest HDMI standard. The high voltage and high speed combination means anything you might want to use to switch or convert that signal will bet 'burn your skin' hot, and is impractical.

The cable-end you pictured appears to my eye to be a HDMI connector, suitable for direct connection to a TV set or monitor. If it is NOT, please post a close up of its pins, or use this diagram:

...

The Mac Studio can not be used as a converter or pass-thru device for the Xbox.

The Display or TV monitor that you have, may or may not be able to support separate inputs from the Mac Studio and Xbox.

That might or might not work.

Even if it does work with your $6,000 to $8,000 Mac Studio and Studio Display setup, the end result will probable not be any better than just plugging the Xbox directly into an old TV set.

You are not going to get 1080o ou 720p detail out of a composite video capture.

You might get that with a HDMI cable from the Xbox and an external HDMI capture “card” for the Mac. But I don’t know if that is going to give you full-resolution real-time display on the Mac or only the ability to capture non-DRMed video to a file. Some HDMI capture arrangements seem to assume that you will split the HDMI signal and view it during recording using a real monitor.

OutsideShooter wrote:

Thanks Servant of Cats,

So I'm not sure if you missed this that I posted above but the Video Capture device (graphic in my former post) would effectively convert the composite RCA to an HDMI.

That's not what the product page says.

https://www.elgato.com/us/en/p/video-capture

The diagram clearly shows that the device plugs into a computer's USB-A port, and provides three RCA jacks into which you plug right-channel audio, left-channel audio, and composite video cables. No HDMI in there anywhere.

But you also mentioned that the HDMI port on the Mac M1 will not function as a video input. And that's what I was wondering from the very beginning of this post. If that is correct then there is no point in going any further.

Yes. That HDMI port is for video output only.

You would plug the El Gato Video Capture device into one of the Mac Studio's rear-panel USB-A ports. Or into one of its front- or rear-panel USB-C ports with the aid of an appropriate USB-C to USB-A adapter.

If you were trying to capture HDMI output from the Xbox (or from a HDMI splitter), you would need something specifically designed for HDMI capture. Something like one of these:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?q=hdmi%20capture%20card&sts=ma

and software to go with it, if there's one here that is Mac-compatible.

I did find this, (below) on the HDMI port of the Mac M1: https://www.cnet.com/tech/mac-studio-ports-everything-you-can-plug-into-this-new-apple-device/

HDMI port 

What it does: HDMI ports connect with HDMI cables to send and receive video and audio between external devices, like displays and TVs.

See if you find this article accurate

CNET did not say that the Mac's HDMI port was for input. Their description implied that it was for output. They could have described the HDMI port on a DVD/Blu-Ray player in much the same terms …

OutsideShooter wrote:

Well if you are really solid on the HDMI port of the Mac M1 not inputting video

If you don't believe me that the HDMI port on the Mac Studio is only for video output, contact Apple Support.

then perhaps I'll have to try your suggested capture card method into the Studio display via one of the USB-C ports?

Where did I bring a Studio Display into this?

A little confusing that they mentioned receiving and sending though. Okay so the capture card you mentioned I also mentioned above and you have confirmed that using the USB-c cable.

I'm not confirming or guaranteeing anything about compatibility of particular capture cards or capture software. You need to research that for yourself. I've just been trying to point you in the right direction of what to look for, when doing your own research.

There is another really big caveat you are ignoring.

The output of an older game console looks great on an older TV set. But if you ever put it side-by-side with crisp modern devices like HD TV quality and better (and a studio Display is definitely better) the game console output will look primitive and sad.