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Radeon mini-display on PC and Apple Thunderbolt

Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 9:18 am
by jbraslins
Does anyone know if you can connect two new Apple Thunderbolt Cinema displays to a PC using a Radeon card with 2 mini-display ports?

Thank you.

Re: Radeon mini-display on PC and Apple Thunderbolt

Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 9:37 am
by Forge
Do the Thunderbolt displays have Displayport inputs? If so, they'd work fine. All the TBolt displays I've seen look for Thunderbolt ports, which are not even sort-of like Displayport. Whole other thing.

Edit: Looked up the TBolt monitor/hub. Apple's TBolt monitor wants a Thunderbolt port. Displayport is something very different.

No go.

http://www.apple.com/displays/specs.html

Re: Radeon mini-display on PC and Apple Thunderbolt

Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 11:21 am
by jbraslins
If i am not mistaken, thunderbolt port and mini-display port are exactly the same shape.
I was not asking about cards with displayports. I was asking about cards with mini-displayports.

Thanks anyways. I'd like to hear a more definite response from someone who knows for certain, has tried it.

Re: Radeon mini-display on PC and Apple Thunderbolt

Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 11:28 am
by Forge
USB and Displayport are almost the same shape too. Are you going to ask me to hammer one of those into the other kind of port, to see if it *might* work.

Displayport is not even kinda compatible with Thunderbolt. They are VASTLY different. I think it's cute how you dismissed me, though, since I'm clearly an idiot.

Re: Radeon mini-display on PC and Apple Thunderbolt

Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 11:30 am
by jbraslins
They are not almost the same shape. They are the same shape. Thanks for trying to help.

After more searching, i find this article that prooves they are the same shape and confirms it even works in one direction. Unfortunately not in direction I need:

http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13727_7-20043524-263.html

Re: Radeon mini-display on PC and Apple Thunderbolt

Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 11:40 am
by Forge
jbraslins wrote:
They are not almost the same shape. They are the same shape. Thanks for trying to help.

I didn't say TBolt and DP were almost, I said USB and DP were almost. Sarcasm; I've been doing it longer. Need to be pedantic, too.

jbraslins wrote:
After more searching, i find this article that prooves they are the same shape and confirms it even works in one direction. Unfortunately not in direction I need:

http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13727_7-20043524-263.html


Yes, Thunderbolt is a combination of Displayport signals and PCIe signals, muxed onto a single physical connection. TBolt ports can talk to DP devices, the reverse is not true.

I'm fairly certain that you *could* get a mini-DP port to give a signal to a TBolt monitor, but Apple's TBolt monitors are actually more like combination monitors and I/O hubs. Because of the way Apple laid it out and locked it down, it requires a TBolt port to talk to, as you noted.

But to go back to your initial question; "Radeon card with mini-DP outputs + TBolt monitor"? No go.