Using my TV as a monitor?

Bubba

Hi,
I'm just wondering how can i use my tv as a monitor. i have aload of movies on my pc and it would be alot easier to be able to watch them on my tv which is in the same room just in a better place.
All i want it for is to watch the movies on, i don't actually want to use my tv as a monitor full time.
Thanks for any advice or help,
Bubba

Sherifu

Does your videocard have s-video or tv out or something?
You'll need scart to s-vid/composite cable.
Does your tv have scart/composite connections?

Winters

You will need a graphics card with a TV out to do this. Pretty much all you need to do is plug in an s-video cable into the back of the pc and run it into an AV port on the TV. Also, if you plan on using the TV for sound then you will need to get a 3.5" to Phono output cable and plug your Sound-Out to the Red and White phono sockets on the tv in.

MrPinK

S-Video connection looks like this.

duridian

You will need a graphics card which supports tv-out. There are two main types of tv out used on graphics cards so it will be one or the other normally.
The most common style used is S-video. This is usually a small circular connector (about the same size as a normal keyboard connector) with four small pins and a a square guide peg (or if you have a card that allows video input as well (VIVO) there will be seven small pins and a square peg guide, these 'Video In Video Out' cards usually come with extra adaptors)


The second type is called a composite video connector. It is similar to the phono connectors used on hifi equipment but it is always coloured yellow to indicate that is is for video not sound.


Your tv may have input connections for both types or it may just have scart type connectors, in any case adaptors can be obtained for changing between the various types so you should be able to do it.
Depending on the make of video card you use the driver software will also need to be set up to allow multiple displays. This is somewhat easier to do I find on ATI cards, but Nvidia cards are easy enough too once you are used to where to look in the driver settings. Outside of the 2 big name graphics manufacturers, I don't know how easy it is to get tv out running on others like for example S3 video cards, though I have seen them also with tv out fittings.

Bubba

Great, thanks guys for your help.
Can i get those s-video cables in most computer shops yea?

are they expensive?

Winters

If you buy a graphics card with a TV out a lot of manufacters will supply them in the box. If not then you can find them at most TV/Computer stores.

MrPinK

Bubba wrote:

Can i get those s-video cables in most computer shops yea?

are they expensive?

Somewhere more of a TV/Electrical shop like PowerCity or Maplins would be a better bet. Unless you're looking for a really long cable, it should only be 5-10 euro.

duridian

Yeah, lots of electrical retailers would have S-video cables coz they are used with camcorders and video type equipment as well. Occasionally Aldi or Lidl have them but it's luck of the draw as to when they have stuff like that on offer. I picked up a nice kit of S-video, composite and scart adaptors last month in Aldi for about €7 or €8, the cables in it were really good long ones, about 10 metres. A 5 metre should normally be about €5 or €6.

KdjaCL

power City have a Svideo to Scart thing for a tenner, excellent little device.

You get 10m Svideo cable
10m Sound cable (goes into your headphone socket on pc)
and a little adpater that turns the Svideo and Sound into a 21 pin scart should you need it (in case your tv has no s video)



kdjac

byte

Heh, just a few hours ago, I managed to hook up my PC to my TV via the S-Video connector at back of gfx card. Thankfully the card came with SVideo lead, and a S-Video to Video (phono) adaptor. Handy for the few divx I have.

beaker

You may, as I did, hit the old 'black and white' problem with your TV out if you connect it to a TV that is not s-video capable.

If so, more info here.

Optikus

Hey guys. i have an S-Video Out to S-Video Out cable which was suppiled with my GFX, if buy one of these kits to change it to SCART will i need to buy cables to send the sound aswell or will the S-Video take care of this?

byte

You'll need
Scart to Phono+S Video adaptor
S Video to SVideo cable (which you already have)
3.5mm Headhphone jackplug to 2 Phono (for audio)

Both the 2 Phonos and SVideo lead will go into back of Scart adaptor.

After further inspection of my TV, I notice it has a SVideo socket, so I had no need to convert SVideo to composite video

Optikus

byte wrote:

You'll need
Scart to Phono+S Video adaptor
S Video to SVideo cable (which you already have)
3.5mm Headhphone jackplug to 2 Phono (for audio)

Both the 2 Phonos and SVideo lead will go into back of Scart adaptor.

After further inspection of my TV, I notice it has a SVideo socket, so I had no need to convert SVideo to composite video

If the TV has the S-Video will you still need to connect the 2 Phono's to the Scart/Composite?