Can I force my mini to boot in a lower res?

[doktordoris]

Hullo,
I got my mac mini today but my monitor doesn't have a DVI input, and the mini DVI to VGA adaptor I ordered hasn't arrived yet.

I plan to use the mini with my 42inch plasma, but its native res is more than my TV can handle. Is there anyway to make it boot into a lower resolution without seeing the screen? For instance a keyboard shortcut or similar?

ta

 

[spinnerlys]

Hullo,
I got my mac mini today but my monitor doesn't have a DVI input, and the mini DVI to VGA adaptor I ordered hasn't arrived yet.

I plan to use the mini with my 42inch plasma, but its native res is more than my TV can handle. Is there anyway to make it boot into a lower resolution without seeing the screen? For instance a keyboard shortcut or similar?

ta

That's confusing.
Isn't the plasma your TV? Also the maximum resolution of the TV will be 1920 x 1080, which the Mini will be more than capable of handling.

Or do you mean something else?

You can change the resolution in System Preferences > Displays and it will stay that way, even during a restart.

Btw, what resolution is the TV capable of?

And what am I understanding wrong here? Because the Mac Mini has no "NATIVE" resolution, it can be used with almost any display, even up to 2560 x 1600 resolution using ones.

 

[doktordoris]

Ah, re-reading I see it may have been a little unclear.

The resolution of the mini at present is greater than that which my TV can display. When I attach the mini to my TV the TV simply displays out of range.

I wondered if I could change the res on the mac without seeing a screen, like a PS3 will start in the lowest res if one holds the power button down whilst turning it on. Does the mac have a similar trick?

 

[Darth.Titan]

Your Mini should automatically detect the maximum resolution of your TV. It won't try to use a higher resolution than its display is capable of, so there's no need to "make it boot into a lower resolution without seeing the screen".

I'm not positive that's what you were asking, but I thought I'd take a stab regardless.

 

[spinnerlys]

Ah, re-reading I see it may have been a little unclear.

The resolution of the mini at present is greater than that which my TV can display. When I attach the mini to my TV the TV simply displays out of range.

How do you connect it then, if the mini DVI to VGA adapter is not there yet?
Do you have any other display you can use to set the Mini to a lower resolution?

Have you tried any of the startup modes found in the first chart on this page?

 

[doktordoris]

At present Iam connecting it to my TV via DVI, and no I have no monitor with a DVI conection, just VGA.
I know I can just wait 2 days 'til my mini DVI to VGA adaptor arrives but you know how it is with a new toy. I simply can't wait.

 

[qtx43]

I doubt any of the mini's boot options will change anything (although I'd try safe mode, i.e. hold shift key). Look on the TV end of things. A lot of tvs have more than one input, are you sure it's set up to use DVI? It might be as simple as picking up your remote and hitting 'source' or some similar button. Or going into the menu and changing available resolutions on the tv.

 

[ADent]

Try booting w/o anything connected to the video port - then plug the TV & adapter in.

Try it first putting the mini to sleep (push power button once quickly) then waking it up. Try it live.

If the mini doesn't read the data from the TV correctly, you may be hosed.

Once you get it working, activate Screen Sharing so you can VNC in and mess with it remotely.

 

[OrangeSVTguy]

Are you not able to access the Display Settings in your system preferences? You should be able to set the correct resolution in there to match your TVs resolution.

If you can't access the Apple Menu to be able to select the system preferences tab, try hitting the "Option F1" key combination to bring it up and there you can select the correct resolution.