PC Graphics Cards compatible with the 27" Apple Cinema Display

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trader007

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Hi everyone,

I am trying to compile a list of Graphics Cards that work with the 27" ACD with only a Mini-DP Female - DP Male Cable. ( NO ALTONA CONVERTERS).

It seems that a Displayport is required and ATI 5XXX series have a Flaw, with the exception of the Mini Displayport enabled Eyefinity Series.

So far I have scanned several Forums and found these cards to work:

ATI Fire GL V5700
Nvidia Quadro FX 580
Nvidia Quadro NVS 295

ATI Firepro MV 2260
Palit Nvidia GTX 470
ATI 5870 & 5970 Eyefinity

Kindly Add to this list and confirm for other users as to what other cards are compatible.Zotac just released a $77 card , NVIDIA GeForce GT 430 with Displayport, so that should be an inexpensive option if that works.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500176

Thank you for your participation.
 
Last edited:
Radeon 5970 works flawlessly with cinema display. No need for an converters or anything - just plug and play with included minidisplay port cable.
 
Howdy
I'm happy to report that the XFX HD-577X-ZMF3 Radeon HD 5770 works flawlessly with the Apple Cinema Display 27. It even shows Post and Bios screens.
 
^^^My guess is both XFX single slots 5770 will work, since both have the miniDP port that seems crucial in the ATi card compatibility with the Apple Cinema display, illogically.
 
I purchased a Apple 27" Cinema Display last week for my PC, a Gateway FX6831-01.

My computer already had an ATI Radeon 5850, a robust video card with two dual link DVIs, one HDMI, and one DisplayPort output.

I purchased a "6in DisplayPort to Mini-DisplayPort Video adapter" that had a female Mini-DisplayPort on one end, and a male DisplayPort on the other.

This setup of Radeon 5850 via DisplayPort out TO Startech DisplayPort/Mini-DisplayPort Adapter TO Apple 27 Display WOULD NOT EVEN TURN ON THE MONITOR.

---

I then purchased an Atlona AT-DP400; The setup is now Radeon 5850 via Dual Link DVI out TO Atlona AT-DP400 TO Apple 27 Display.

This turns on the monitor and drives it at resolution 1280x720. Atlona believes the ATI Radeon 5850 is not capable of Apple Display's native resolution of 2560x1440.

However, I used this same card to drive my previous monitor, an Apple 30" Display at 2560x1600, so that cannot be true.

---

Via this HardForum's thread, I purchase a Zotac GeForce GT 440 (1GB of DDR5 / Model No. ZT-40702-10L) for approximately $60 (post rebate).

This setup of Zotac GeForce GT 440 via DisplayPort TO StarTech DisplayPort/Mini-DisplayPort Adapter TO Apple 27 Display drives 2560x1440 perfectly, and also delivers sound.



CONCLUSIONS

The ATI Radeon 5850 card, as well as certain other ATI cards, will not drive the Apple 27", via the card's DisplayPort.

The ATI Radeon 5850 card's Dual Link DVI through Atlona's AT-DP400 Converter will drive the Apple 27" at lower resolutions, but not the native resolution of 2560x144.

Atlona does say in the fine print that the AT-DP400 Converter has issues with ATI cards, but they should present this in BIGGER type/font, as ATI is responsible for so many cards out there.

The Atlona DP-400 costs $100-$175. Since you can buy a Zotac GeForce GT 440 for $60-$80, I think that's an inexpensive way to go.

I probably dropped performance-wise from Radeon 5850 to GeForce 440, but I don't do any gaming. Photoshop being my most hardware intense environments.
 
I have an Asus Matrix GTX 580 and its works with my 27" ACD. All I used was a female Mini-DP to male DP adapter.
 
I have a:

XFX HD-699A-ENF9 Radeon HD 6990 4GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card with Eyefinity

Newegg Item #: N82E16814150529

..Runs great driving the ACD using minidp out to minidp in.
The card has 4 minidp out and one dvi out. I also have an asus 19" LED backlit 1440x900 TN in portrait mode (to make them 1400 high) on each side of the ACD, angled toward me and set back about 10" each vs the main monitor so that their bezels line up and their pixels sizes are the same to my perspective.
..One 19" is connected by an unpowered mini-dp to DVI adapter (since the 19" rez isn't above 1920x1200), and the other is currently connected from the 6990's dvi out to the 19" dvi input.
 
It seems many of the NVIDIA based cards with a DisplayPort work well with the Apple 27.

And yes, the ATI Eyefinity Cards also seem to consistently work.

Obviously, an Apple 27 hooked up directly to a video card's Mini-DisplayPort output is the cleanest connect here. For those who need to convert a male DisplayPort to female Mini-DisplayPort, I only found 2 or 3 manufactured.

Atlona and StarTech are two manufacturers. For those who need such an adapter, they can be had on the cheap provided you can order a day or two ahead of time.

Otherwise, very few resellers keep in stock in their own warehouses; most have at offsite warehouse that needs an extra day or two to deliver.
 
I have an Asus GTX 580 DirectCU II.
The screen ONLY works with the correct cable - this should be noted. You cannot use others. it just wont work ( trust me )

After getting the right cable today. This screen is an absolute dream.
 
#Carposino...

Hi I have the same problem PC to Apple Cinema Display ;(

One question the Zotac lets you connect to the Display via a Display to Mini Display port converter -
What about the USB plug from the display ? is that tuning on/off the diplay via USB ports from the PC ???

Thanx in advance :):D:D
 
Attaching the USB cable is only required if you want to use the USB ports on the back of the monitor. If you want functionality for that, then simply plug the monitor's USB cable to the back of your PC. The USB cable that comes with the Atlona DP400 powers the converter, it does not add functionality to the USB ports on the back of the monitor.

Again, I do not recommend the Atlona DP400 converter ($99);

Instead I recommend either the:

StarTech Male DisplayPort to Female Mini DisplayPort adapter cable ($15), OR

the Atlona 6 inch Male DisplayPort to Female Mini DisplayPort (AT13022-AD for $19)

I think this is better because the Zotac card costs less that the DP400.

As for the sound, the monitor's speakers do work with the connection I described.
 
The Zotac GeForce GT440 turns the Apple 27 on and off, and provided sound to monitor's built-in speaker via the Mini-DisplayPort connectioin, not via the USB.

The exact StarTech adapter I am recommending is :
DP2MDPMF6IN 6-Inch DisplayPort to Mini DisplayPort Video Cable Adapter - M/F

And yes, after all of the headaches, I love this monitor. I prefer it over the Apple 30" I used to have, even with the glossy screen.
 
Great! I just ordered both :)
I A's well bought the 27" naive thinking it would work..
Looking for the ups guy now...
I Will give an Update when I am up an running
 
Hi All...
i just finished replacing my ATI Radeon HD 5750 with the Zotac Geforce GT 440 -connect
it from display port to Apple Cinemas mini displayport... No hassle..
However the CD ROM that cam along with card would install drivers for windows 7 64 bit..
Found the drivers on Zotac.com..
Now everything runs flawless... Sound .. Resolution .. Everything Perfekt...
Thanx from Denmark :)
 
The drivers on zotac.com were probably more current anyway, so that's not a bad thing.

I'm glad you got up and running. I purchased the Apple 27 for my PC thinking it would be an easy upgrade, and felt quite the fool when that was not the case. Worth it for me though.

Thanks to this website for help getting me running.
 
The video with this combination works fine but I am not getting any audio on my Apple 27" Cinema Display, any advice?
 
From a hardware standpoint it should work.

I would then assume the sound in your system just has to be adjusted somehow.

Assuming you are running Windows 7...

Go to your Control Panel, then choose 'Sound'.

In my 'Playback' tab, 'LED Cinema-1' is selected with a green check mark.

Do you have 'LED Cinema-1' as a choice?

Is is checked green?
 
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