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Guide to Display Cables / Adapters (v2)

Glenwing

Changelog:

Spoiler

Not all changes are logged, i.e. minor changes to information, wording, etc. or general maintenance.

 

v2.5.8 — 2023-02-20:

  • Edited DVI-to-HDMI section for clarity, since apparently it wasn't clear enough to cut through the bias of a pre-conceived notion combined with the bandwagon effect, which can be surprisingly powerful when combined.

 

v2.5.7 — 2022-07-24:

  • Bandwidth calculator: HDMI FRL data rates have been adjusted slightly to account for FEC overhead (from 42.67 to 41.92 Gbit/s etc.)
  • Bandwidth calculator: An error message is now displayed if CTA-861 timing is selected in maximum frequency mode (instead of a table of all zeros)

 

v2.5.4 — 2021-01-28:

  • Updated for the existence of DisplayPort to USB-C bi-directional adapter cables

 

v2.5.3 — 2021-01-18:

  • Added adapters for DP 1.4 to HDMI 2.1 as well as HDMI 2.0 to DP 1.2 conversion
  • Removed some outdated commentary regarding HDMI 2.1
  • Night-theme friendly switch button

 

v2.5.1 — 2020-06-11:

  • Updated various adapter recommendations for new products and removal of some discontinued products
  • Fixed images not showing up in DVI section
  • Updated DisplayPort cable recommendations for HBR3-certified cables
  • Other rewrites to DisplayPort section

 

v2.5.0 — 2020-01-16:

  • Updated tables and calculator for DisplayPort 2.0
  • Corrected error in Thunderbolt 3 section which previously stated that TB3 could be configured in HBR3 ×8 mode to utilize the full 40 Gbit/s for video
  • Updated to account for the recent existence of genuine USB-C to dual-link DVI adapters

 

v2.4.7 — 2019-03-28:

  • Rewrote DVI section
  • Changed Thunderbolt 3 Gen1/Gen2 notation to "Alpine Ridge" and "Titan Ridge"

 

v2.4.5 — 2019-01-02:

  • Fix for spoilers where the header would get messed up when opened on Chrome, due to some random Chrome update that changed the way rotation of table cells is handled
  • Added loading circle to help users know to wait for the page to load when given a link that will auto-open the correct section
  • New reorganized format for DP-to-HDMI, DP-to-DVI, and DP-to-VGA sections.

 

v2.4.3 — 2018-03-26:

  • Added option for CTA-861 timing parameters to the bandwidth calculator

 

v2.4.2 — 2018-03-23:

  • Updated for Titan Ridge Thunderbolt 3 controllers
  • Updated for DisplayPort DP8K cable certification
  • Updated for HDMI 2.1 and Ultra High Speed HDMI cables
  • Rewrote "Do HDMI Cables Have Versions" section

 

v2.3.8 — 2017-09-03:

  • Night theme for remaining tables

 

v2.3.7 — 2017-08-24:

  • Night theme for max refresh frequency tables

 

v2.3.4 — 2017-08-12:

  • Rewrote HDMI 60 Hz Limit section with corrections, and moved to dedicated spoiler
  • Removed main HDMI Cable Versions article from HDMI dropdown section, replaced with short summary and link to spoiler section
  • Added TL;DR to HDMI Cable Versions section regarding High Speed HDMI cables and HDMI 2.0
  • Fixed DVI table footnote font size
  • Added additional old versions of DisplayPort and HDMI standards documents

 

v2.3.2 — 2017-08-10:

  • Added downloads for the DisplayPort 1.1a, HDMI 1.3a, and DVI specification documents

 

v2.3.0 — 2017-07-22:

  • Added Thunderbolt 3 and USB Type-C DisplayPort Alt Mode
  • Fixed section linking (broke after minor revision 2.2.9 on 2017-07-14 which is not logged here)
  • Fixed inefficiencies with bandwidth calculator (excessive recalculations causing some lag, especially on mobile devices)
  • Fixed text color of links inside tables on Night Theme
  • Rewrote HDMI cable versions article
  • Added capability tables to the main article for each interface
  • Redone table of all passive adapter combinations in "Active vs Passive Adapters" section
  • Changed product links to use Linus affiliate code, moved similar products onto the same line, and changed all links to open in a new tab

 

v2.2.0 — 2017-03-20:

  • Better spoilers
  • Added permalinks for every section, to allow linking to a specific part of the guide
  • Improved index style, and added index for "Passive vs. Active Adapters" section
  • Added DSC compression options to the bandwidth calculator
  • Added paragraph indents everywhere for better readability

 

v2.1.2 — 2017-03-09:

  • Rewrote sections clarifying HDMI cable versions and added dedicated spoiler for this information

 

v2.1.1 — 2017-03-01:

  • Added clickable index for "Connecting to 120+ Hz Displays" section for easier navigation

 

v2.1.0 — 2017-02-22:

  • Added horizontal scrolling for tables and interfaces which overflow beyond the viewport, for better usability on mobile devices

 

v2.0.2 — 2017-02-12:

  • Added information regarding HDMI 2.1

 

v2.0.0 — 2017-01-26:

  • Initial post

 

(This image is here so that the forum will use it as the preview image for the thread when pasting links)

0045469_msi-nvidia-geforce-gtx-980ti-sea-hawk-6gb-gddr5-7096mhz-graphics-card.png

 

 

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very useful guide!

I have more dedocated WAM than you on my Minecraft server!

 

 

Specs:

 

RX 480 Sapphire Nitro+

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XFX TS 650W PSU

Cheap OEM Acer motherboard w/ Cheap dollar tree Micro-ATX case

12GB DDR3 Decocated WAM

1TB Seagate Barracuda HHD

 

BTW I live in the UK so if I don't know where you live I will quote all prices in £

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
1 minute ago, Glenwing said:

JavaScript :P

I did not realize you could do JavaScript here in this forum. But it's extremely useful because I just needed to see DisplayPort to VGA and it worked perfectly. Much better than the old guide.

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3 hours ago, MTMaster said:

I did not realize you could do JavaScript here in this forum. But it's extremely useful because I just needed to see DisplayPort to VGA and it worked perfectly. Much better than the old guide.

Only staff can :P Glad to hear it's an improvement though :)

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THANK YOU!!! I have been so f*cking confused.  I must have spent an hour researching this, and all I got was more questions because of the conflicting answers.

Make sure to quote or tag me (@JoostinOnline) or I won't see your response!

PSU Tier List  |  The Real Reason Delidding Improves Temperatures"2K" does not mean 2560×1440 

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  • 2 weeks later...

correct me if i'm wrong, but shouldn't hdmi 1.3,1.4 capable of 4k at 36hz?

since 1920*1080*144 = 3840*2160*36?

 

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27 minutes ago, Glenwing said:

Footnotes :)

ah my bad. i need to learn to read the whole thing first :D

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This guide is very useful.

 

It just does not clarifies something about active adapters. I have a HDMI to VGA adapter to use a 1600x900 monitor that has only VGA. Sometimes the adapter itself was recognized by Windows as being a monitor of 1024x768 resolution, making all screens flash (losing and recovering signal). When the monitor model was detected (B2030N) it worked for a day or so. Have you seen this? It is a problem of the converter or HDMI to VGA is not intended to work?

 

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8 hours ago, Razzee said:

This guide is very useful.

 

It just does not clarifies something about active adapters. I have a HDMI to VGA adapter to use a 1600x900 monitor that has only VGA. Sometimes the adapter itself was recognized by Windows as being a monitor of 1024x768 resolution, making all screens flash (losing and recovering signal). When the monitor model was detected (B2030N) it worked for a day or so. Have you seen this? It is a problem of the converter or HDMI to VGA is not intended to work?

 

It's not unusual for active adapters in general to have problems like this.

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There is no mention of hdmi 2.1 in the 120+ section under what standards can run 4K at 120+. Is this intentional since there aren't actually any hdmi 2.1 devices yet?

 

Also, playing with the calculator at the bottom is fun.

Spoiler

IMG_6729.PNG.4181cfed16f742a04854f47141a9598d.PNG

 

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14 minutes ago, sazrocks said:

There is no mention of hdmi 2.1 in the 120+ section under what standards can run 4K at 120+. Is this intentional since there aren't actually any hdmi 2.1 devices yet?

 

Also, playing with the calculator at the bottom is fun.

That wasn't something I've thought about, thanks for pointing it out. Since that section is more intended for people looking for answers to a practical situation I think I'll leave it off for now, I don't really want it to be bogged with information that doesn't apply to the real world. I may add it when things are further along, right now the HDMI 2.1 specification hasn't even been released to the industry yet.

 

And glad you're having fun with it :P 

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Quote

Active Adapters (Dual-Link DVI)

A more complex active adapter is required to convert DisplayPort to a full Dual-Link DVI connection. [...]
 

 

I noticed that GTX 1080 Ti does not have DVI-D, but a DisplayPort to DVI-D Dual Link (supporting 1440p 144Hz) instead, and it has no USB cable!

 

I found one for less than the others you posted. https://www.amazon.com/VisionTek-DisplayPort-DVI-D-Active-Adapter/dp/B00DYRQXMK

 

The seller says it is Dual Link, but in the question the seller responds that supports only up to 60Hz. The DisplayPort end of the cable has a version like 1.1 or the seller is lying (and the cable actually is Single Link)? What version the DisplayPort end of the cable needs to be?

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1 hour ago, Razzee said:

 

I noticed that GTX 1080 Ti does not have DVI-D, but a DisplayPort to DVI-D Dual Link (supporting 1440p 144Hz) instead, and it has no USB cable!

 

I found one for less than the others you posted. https://www.amazon.com/VisionTek-DisplayPort-DVI-D-Active-Adapter/dp/B00DYRQXMK

 

The seller says it is Dual Link, but in the question the seller responds that supports only up to 60Hz. The DisplayPort end of the cable has a version like 1.1 or the seller is lying (and the cable actually is Single Link)? What version the DisplayPort end of the cable needs to be?

Even a true Dual-Link DVI connection only provides about half the bandwidth needed for 1440p 144 Hz. I doubt that the adapter that comes with the 1080 Ti is an active adapter or supports a true Dual-Link DVI connection, but we'll see.

 

I have seen the VisionTek adapter, but given the price (similar to DP to SL-DVI active adapters) and numerous reviews saying it doesn't work on various monitors which are known to only work when used with DL-DVI, I chose not to recommend it. It's possible the sales rep that responded to the questions was mistaken.

 

Any version of DisplayPort can be converted to Dual-Link DVI, as DisplayPort 1.1 (the earliest available version) has more bandwidth than DL-DVI.

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1 hour ago, Glenwing said:

Even a true Dual-Link DVI connection only provides about half the bandwidth needed for 1440p 144 Hz. I doubt that the adapter that comes with the 1080 Ti is an active adapter or supports a true Dual-Link DVI connection, but we'll see.

 

I have seen the VisionTek adapter, but given the price (similar to DP to SL-DVI active adapters) and numerous reviews saying it doesn't work on various monitors which are known to only work when used with DL-DVI, I chose not to recommend it. It's possible the sales rep that responded to the questions was mistaken.

 

Any version of DisplayPort can be converted to Dual-Link DVI, as DisplayPort 1.1 (the earliest available version) has more bandwidth than DL-DVI.

 

*I sent video link to you by message*

 

He shows the adapter at 5:35.

 

The guy on the left is an employee of NVIDIA and said it supports QuadHD 144Hz. 

 

I found it interesting because different from the other (expensive) cables, this one does not have USB to provide power.

 

I am not buying a GTX 1080 Ti, but not having support to 144Hz would really be a problem for me since my monitor (Philips 242G5DJEB) has only DVI-D.

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Wow, thank you very much for this exhaustive guide. To be honest, I didnt know the actual difference between DP and HDMI (theres none but the data rate), I also didnt know the source ports can output different kinds of signal regarless the kind of the port (DP can output HDMI data) which is great and makes passive adapters so simple...

 

Thank you very much again! Great contribution.

 

Edit: which leads me to think... DP for gaming at 4k 60hz or 2.5/2k at 144hz is just overkill, isnt It? Or is the DP cable cheaper than the HDMI 2.0/2.1 cables?

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18 minutes ago, Maxinfamily said:

Wow, thank you very much for this exhaustive guide. To be honest, I didnt know the actual difference between DP and HDMI (theres none but the data rate), I also didnt know the source ports can output different kinds of signal regarless the kind of the port (DP can output HDMI data) which is great and makes passive adapters so simple...

 

Thank you very much again! Great contribution.

 

Edit: which leads me to think... DP for gaming at 4k 60hz or 2.5/2k at 144hz is just overkill, isnt It? Or is the DP cable cheaper than the HDMI 2.0/2.1 cables?

Most of those monitors don't have HDMI 2.0, only HDMI 1.4 sadly

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1 minute ago, Glenwing said:

Most of those monitors don't have HDMI 2.0, only HDMI 1.4 sadly

Oh I see, which sucks for 4k gaming or +100hz 2.5k. Thanks!

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  • 4 weeks later...
On 1/27/2017 at 6:38 AM, Glenwing said:
-snip-

Hey @Glenwing, any information/notes regarding mHDMI ..?

I see miniDP is listed but was wondering if mHDMI was that relevant anymore :P

Having a slight issue (..or two :|) currently with my mHDMI port on my GPU and am struggling to find a temporary solution and was wondering if there was anything I didn't know about, lol

 

-Xiauj

Hey I'm Xiauj ^_^ Wassup :3

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