27" monitor with mac pro (mini DP to DVI?)

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27" monitor with mac pro (mini DP to DVI?)

i have a 2006 mac pro and just bought a 2012 mac pro that i am hoping to hook up to the monitor above with a KVM switch.

one thing i have never understood and would like to understand:

this monitor was a replacement for a monitor that was broken in transit while under repair. when i brought it home i found i could not use it and they gave me a belkin "mini DP to DVI" cord which basically needs to be powered and is sort of an unwieldy bunch of business that sometimes needs unplugging and replugging in due to screen issues.

/anyway/ is there a reason this 27" does not have any apparent compatibility with the mac pro? or, put another way, are there other monitors that are more compatible with the mac pro and don't require this very large and unwieldy conversion?

is there a KVM switch that can simplify things even though i am adding another mac pro to the mix?

from what i see on IO Gear it appears that the connection to the IO Gear device will be a DVI port which means instead of using this belkin device to get from my cinema display to my 2006 mac pro - i will be using it to go from my cinema display to my KVM switch - and then both my mac pros will connect to the KVM using DVI cables.

have i got that right?

Mac Pro, OS X Yosemite (10.10.1)

Posted on Dec 14, 2014 2:55 PM

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Answer 1

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Lanny

Level 6

13,183 points

Dec 14, 2014 9:24 PM in response to hotwheels22

What 27" monitor are you using, make and model number would help?

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Answer 2

hotwheels22 Author

Level 1

74 points

Dec 15, 2014 1:54 PM in response to Lanny

hi lanny.

i think i figured this out. the cinema display i have comes with a (rather short) cord that has a mini DP, USB and a magsafe power charger. my mac pro did not come at that time with a mini DP port and just had a DVI port. so basically the powered belkin adapter that i have (which still can't get me much distance between monitor and mac pro) is a mini DP to DVI converter.

can i just ask you a follow up on how i figure out what make and model my monitor is? i am looking in settings but if i want to buy a new display it would be nice to know where this information is and if i can see it without booting up.

THANKS

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Answer 3

Lanny

Level 6

13,183 points

Dec 15, 2014 2:45 PM in response to hotwheels22

If you have a Apple LED 27" Cinema Display, the model number is printed on the bottom of the stand. And you don't need a converter chord, you just plug the monitor's DisplayPort end of the plug into the MacMini's Thunderbolt port.

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Answer 4

hotwheels22 Author

Level 1

74 points

Dec 15, 2014 2:57 PM in response to Lanny

OK. model # A1267 EMC?

also i have a mac pro with no mini DP port only a DVI so this is the need apparently for the cable.

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Answer 5

Lanny

Level 6

13,183 points

Dec 15, 2014 3:10 PM in response to hotwheels22

2012 Mac Pro's have 2 Mini-DisplayPort connections. Why aren't you using those?

The monitor's cord should just plug into the MacPro without the need of converters.

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Answer 6

Lanny

Level 6

13,183 points

Dec 15, 2014 3:08 PM in response to hotwheels22

OK. model # A1267 EMC?

That's a 24" model, not a 27".

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Answer 7

hotwheels22 Author

Level 1

74 points

Dec 18, 2014 6:15 PM in response to Lanny

hi lanny. thanks.

so do you know if the measurement is from the actual screen on the monitor and not the actual size of the monitor? i mean, should i check this by seeing the actual screen size when the computer is on?

THANKS

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