PC monitor port confusion

danrv

Hi
I’ve bought a refurbished Lenovo M93 Small Form Factor PC and looking for a suitable 24” monitor.
The ports are VGA and DisplayPort. I realize that VGA is an older connection but is the PC limited to monitors only with DisplayPort?
Some, including Lenovo have HDMI ports which aren’t the same.
Any help appreciated.

danrv

It’s ok.
Looks I need one with a DisplayPort.

k_man

A DisplayPort to HDMI cable is under £10

Carrot007

k_man said:

A DisplayPort to HDMI cable is under £10

Indeed displayport is basically (I said basically) hdmi without the sound carried. But monitors sound bad so you would not want to use the speakers there anyway.

You can also go to DP to DVI which is again must just mointors hdmi old standard (with the option of including vga old output but not relivent here as thats the computer side).

danrv

Carrot007 said:

k_man said:

A DisplayPort to HDMI cable is under £10

Indeed displayport is basically (I said basically) hdmi without the sound carried. 

Thanks.
Yes, onboard speakers won't be used
as it's for Cubase/DAW use.
Just wasn't sure if DisplayPort and HDMI were compatible.

[Deleted User]

Carrot007 said:

k_man said:

A DisplayPort to HDMI cable is under £10

Indeed displayport is basically (I said basically) hdmi without the sound carried. But monitors sound bad so you would not want to use the speakers there anyway.

You can also go to DP to DVI which is again must just mointors hdmi old standard (with the option of including vga old output but not relivent here as thats the computer side).

Display port can carry audio. I think you are mixing it up with DVI which cannot carry audio.

Display port and HDMI are definitely not "basically" the same - they are totally different transmission protocols and even different voltages, I can't see any similarities other than both being digital. DP uses LVDS whereas HDMI uses TMDS - neither are compatible with each other.

If you have a dual-mode display port source (DP++) and plug in a passive DP to HDMI cable it will detect the HDMI receiver and send the AV data in HDMI mode instead of DP. The cable contains a level shifter to convert the voltage from the native 3.3v to 5v for HDMI.

You must have a DP++ compatible source to use a passive DP to HDMI cable because the source needs to switch to HDMI mode, the cable cannot do any of the protocol conversion. If you don't have DP++ then you need an active DP to HDMI convertor. Most devices are DP++ nowadays so usually not an issue, but docking stations for example won't always support DP++..

spud17

I've set up a few people with Dell SFF computers and used a *Display port to HDMI female adapter* from ebay for around £5, possibly less. 1m HDMI from the pound shop and you're sorted for basic use.

danrv

Deleted_User said:

Carrot007 said:

k_man said:

A DisplayPort to HDMI cable is under £10

Indeed displayport is basically (I said basically) hdmi without the sound carried. But monitors sound bad so you would not want to use the speakers there anyway.

You can also go to DP to DVI which is again must just mointors hdmi old standard (with the option of including vga old output but not relivent here as thats the computer side).

Display port can carry audio. I think you are mixing it up with DVI which cannot carry audio.

Display port and HDMI are definitely not "basically" the same - they are totally different transmission protocols and even different voltages, I can't see any similarities other than both being digital. DP uses LVDS whereas HDMI uses TMDS - neither are compatible with each other.

If you have a dual-mode display port source (DP++) and plug in a passive DP to HDMI cable it will detect the HDMI receiver and send the AV data in HDMI mode instead of DP. The cable contains a level shifter to convert the voltage from the native 3.3v to 5v for HDMI.

You must have a DP++ compatible source to use a passive DP to HDMI cable because the source needs to switch to HDMI mode, the cable cannot do any of the protocol conversion. If you don't have DP++ then you need an active DP to HDMI convertor. Most devices are DP++ nowadays so usually not an issue, but docking stations for example won't always support DP++..

Thanks for the explanation.
Best then for both PC and monitor to have the same port. Not sure if the Lenovo M93 has dual-mode DP.
Most displays £120 - £150 have HDMI and VGA but there are Philips, Dell and Iiyama monitors that have DisplayPort for around £160.