Dual-DVI monitor + 360 + PC

LaCabra

So I'm thinking of getting of these

and also one of these

neither of which I have had before.

I want the monitor mainly for my computron, which is currently afflicted with a 15". I would also like, however, to be able to hook it up to my 360. Is there a way to do that? And would a KVM switch work for switching the monitor between PC and 360? What cables do I need?

Thanks

LaCabra

Oh, also audio. Since I'm not hooking it up to a telly.

The Dude With Herpes

The link to that monitor is goofy. It sends you to a "choose your country" page then redirects to the main dell page.

LaCabra

oh

well what would you know you've got herpes


it is a

DellTM E248WFP 24" Widescreen Flat Panel Monitor

with

Diagonal Size / Viewable Size
30" / 30"
Specifications - Diagonal Size / Viewable Size

Max Resolution
1920 x 1200
Specifications - Max Resolution

Contrast Ratio
3000:1 (dynamic) typical
Specifications - Contrast Ratio

Brightness
400 cd/m2 (typical)
Specifications - Brightness


Response Time
8 ms (gray to gray) typical
Specifications - Response Time


Max Viewing Angle
178° / 178° (typical)
Specifications - Max Viewing Angle


Interface
High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI)
2 Digital Visual Interface - Digital (DVI-D) with High Definition Content Protection (HDCP)
Display Port
Video Graphics Array (VGA)
Separate Video (S-Video)
Composite Video
Component Video
HDMI 2.1 Audio Out
1 USB 2.0 upstream port
4 USB 2.0 downstream ports
9-in-2 media card reader
DC power connector for Dell Soundbar
AC power cord connector
Specifications - Interface

Features
TrueColor with 92% color gamut, Kensington® security port (cable lock sold separately), VESA-compliant mount (100 mm), cable management

Spoit

If you're going to put that much money into a monitor, you should really considering looking into their ultrasharp line, which are much better and worth the extra money.

And to answer your actual question, if they're plugged into different ports, it'd be changeable through the buttons on the monitor, though you'll probably have to rig a seperate switcher for the audio

LaCabra

they're like double the cash

LaCabra

If I end up bypassing the monitor and just getting the 360, is this doable with my current monitor

Echo

LaCabra wrote: »

If I end up bypassing the monitor and just getting the 360, is this doable with my current monitor

Information about your current monitor would be considered helpful by the non-psychic forumers.

LaCabra

It's a shitty 15" LCD, VGA not DVI.

SporkAndrew

You can buy the X360 VGA adapter (always get the MS ones as others have quality issues) which comes with phono (RCA) red / white audio out too. That'll go fine into your 15" crapbox. Of course with your current monitor you'd have to swap out the leads every time you wanted to play (or buy a switcher).

Then you can either plug those jacks through an amp and into some nice monitor speakers (which is what I do), or use the RCA -> stereo adapter that comes with the VGA cable and plug it through your computer to your computer speakers. OR you could buy a 3.5mm stereo gender-bender so it'd go RCA -> stereo adapter -> gender bender -> headphones / computer speakers.

I'd steer clear of the 2408 as people are reporting some horrible things happening (different brightness left / right panels, ghosting, input lag, etc) and try and get a 2407 (revision A03 and later) from somewhere if you wanted to drop money on a nice big monitor.

LaCabra

Ah, okay. So uh, where do I buy all those things and for how much?

The Dude With Herpes

just get a vga cable if that's the case.

EDIT: what he said.

Buy the cables anywhere online.

SporkAndrew

LaCabra wrote: »

Ah, okay. So uh, where do I buy all those things and for how much?

A 360 VGA cable you buy when you buy the 360 -- you can get them from most game stores / online outlets. It comes with an RCA -> stereo jack so if you wanted to listen to sound through your PC you're good to go straight out of the box.

Otherwise a 3.5mm gender bender is usually £1.50 / $3USD from an electronics store and KVM switches (tool to swap between one or more computers with just one monitor) can be had for about £10 / $20.

LaCabra

Sounds pretty groovy, thanks for your halp.

Daedalus

Whoever said "only get the Microsoft ones" is retarded: you can grab a generic 360->VGA cable from Monoprice for like eight dollars, and the official Microsoft ones cost forty. It's just a cable; it'll be fine.

Now, that other monitor you're thinking of getting has an HDMI port, so an HDMI cable from the 360 to the monitor should do the trick although you'll need to figure out sound.

SporkAndrew

Daedalus wrote: »

Whoever said "only get the Microsoft ones" is retarded: you can grab a generic 360->VGA cable from Monoprice for like eight dollars, and the official Microsoft ones cost forty. It's just a cable; it'll be fine.

I only mentioned getting the official MS cables because people around here have said that they have signal quality issues with third party VGA cables. I'd try and dredge up some old posts to prove it but you can't really search for MS VGA..

It's up to LaCabra if he wants to risk it though and if picture quality is worth the extra money.

LaCabra

Is it possible to get just a V switch? I'm not really after the K or the M for this excercise.

Spoit

You don't have to plug everything in, just plug the video ports in and leave the others alone

LaCabra

Yeah, but those things cost dollaz.

Spoit

You're thinking about a $400 monitor, and you won't even consider a cheap KVM for a tenth of the cost?

LaCabra

Well yeah, but I need a ridiculously expensive monitor. I only need one out of three letters on the KVM.

Daedalus

LaCabra wrote: »

Well yeah, but I need a ridiculously expensive monitor. I only need one out of three letters on the KVM.

the thing is, the keyboard and mouse parts are the cheapest and least complicated parts of a KVM, so if you did find a video-only switch, it would probably cost the same amount.

LaCabra

oh, okay

Daedalus

That said, you should probably look for a switch with audio support.

LaCabra

you should probably go merge with icarus

Daedalus

LaCabra wrote: »

you should probably go merge with icarus

Eh, Icarus is a bit of a dick.

LaCabra

if you ask me, his show is funky