Can you help me with a DVI dual-monitor setup?

The highest rez option - and i'm away from the studio til tomorrow but to my best recollection -

1920 x 1080 - and that scales both monitors properly (they're widescreen 24" LEDs). All

other lower rez options are dimensionally 'off' and don't work properly .. but in comparisons

btwn the VGA vs DVI display on this monitor, VGA appears less sharp - bordering on a

blurriness. DVI is crisp, much sharper at this highest resolution setting. Can't really

describe it any other way off hand...

Gives no other option than 60 Hz. i.e., the Refresh Rate scroll menu is checked - no other resolutions are selectable - all grayed out - that is when i go to check under the Scaled resolution menu. I normally leave the prefers on "Best For Display" FWIW.... but same deal on that setting...it's "default" on 60 Hz.

This is still an unresolved issue having tried yet ANOTHER brand of amplified dvi splitter sold by Sewell. One monitor on a short cable, one on long 20 foot cable (dvi-dvi) going to the splitter…which is connected to mac using DVI>HDMI adapter. New issue this time around…After initial set-up and powering on - the splitter feed is clean to the main or 'close to the mac' monitor… yet there is video 'noise' - like…not 'blank' but just video … snow… to use an old tv term. .. this is a new one.

Swapped out the long cable with another one. same problem. One note. For a brief moment - like…1-second, there was a clean video signal (i.e. shared view of what was appearing on the other monitor) and THEN it goes to this video static .. Further confusion is that this HAS worked in the past -- on the cheaper Tripp Lite dvi splitter… then just stopped recognizing signal on either monitor .

So… any other ideas? I am down to having to give up on the dvi splitters - even tho they 'have worked before!' which make it all the more confounding -- and settle for a mirroring set up i.e. VGA feed from the TBold to the 'distant' monitor… and HDMI>DVI separately to the 'near' monitor….

What else could be the issue though?

Thanks!

Thanks for this - yeah i've gotta figure the longer cable length is the issue - nothing else seems to add up about this - especially like you say, having had it work for over a year at that distance before! Right now i'm mirroring - maxing out every port on my Mini to do so but anyway, the VGA (not DVI) indeed goes the long distance to the remote monitor in mirror mode, on a 30 ft. cable out of the MiniDisplayPort… while the main/short DVI cable delivers DVI fine simultaneously to the main monitor using a basic HDMI>DVI adapter.

So i guess bottom line, sounds like i either spend more bucks on a booster for the DVI (assuming it would be work ok running out of a powered DVI splitter…)

or just leave this as-is now. DVI on these monitors definitely is crisper than VGA but maybe not enough to matter so much on the 2nd monitor… Anyway thanks for the links and suggestion. Pretty sure this is the 'missing link' in the equation; )

Best Regards,

MIke

Now you have me wondering if, in this particular case…with one monitor only needing a 3 foot cable…and the remote monitor requiring a booster…if i could just get away with using a non-powered DVI cable splitter like this below …into the DVI>HDMI port of the Mini...

and I'd use the DVI booster on the longer-run cable, and just connect the shorter cable monitor passively to the 2nd passive splitter port..

http://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=101&cp_id=10113&cs_id=1011304&p_id=2518&se q=1&format=2

Any reason why that shouldn't work?

I'll give this a try. Thanks!