PC to TV connection problem, no signal.

Player Hunter

Distinguished
Nov 3, 2009
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18,510
So here's the problem. I wanted to connect my PC to my TV. Should be the simplest thing in the world, right? Wrong. And before you say anything, I've done everything I can think of, from the most basic approach like checking the cables are connected properly, to advanced settings and software, nothing works. Every guide I've found just tells you how to make the system a dual screen system and what settings might need som configuring. But my problem is much more basic than that, because my tv and pc can't even see there's a connection. If I go to the controlpanel, there's just my pc monitor, no second screen. It shouldn't be an issue, it should just be plug and play. I used a DVI cabel, attached one end to my graphics card DVI port (and yes I've checked both ports to make sure they work with the pc monitor), the other end to a DVI to VGA adapter and plugged it into the back of my HDTV's PC IN VGA port. The sound is just a straight 3.5 mm mini jack to mini jack connection, located right besides the tv's VGA port. But, no dice. The computer doesn't see a second screen, and the TV doesn't see any connection at all, the PC channel is just grayed out. So what's up, help me please. My PC is an AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200 , socket 939, with an ASUS A8N-SLI SE, BIOS version 0401, latest nForce 4 chipset drivers, with a Nvidia GeForce 8800 GT. I can't figure any other stats that might have an impact on this issue I'm having.
 

Paperdoc

Polypheme
Ambassador
My suspicion is on the adapter. Converting digital video info from a DVI port to analog VGA signals requires active circuitry, not simple connection of wires, so maybe the converter is faulty. In fact, is this case, I'm not sure what the video card would detect if the converter is working. Technically it would only see a converter device on the DVI port, but I suppose that converter might "inform" the video card that its real function is to "be a TV". However, clue: apparently the video card is not "seeing" anything out there on the DVI port. So either the converter is no good, or you have not installed required drivers for that unit as a "video display device".