VIDEO CONNECTORS


All computer monitors have at least one thing in common: they all connect to a female DB 15-pin port on the back of a computer system. (Figure 21.1 shows a standard female DB 15-pin video port on the back of a system unit.) The DB 15-pin port may be attached directly to the motherboard, or it may be located on a video expansion card.

The female DB 15-pin port has three rows of five pinholes that accept a male DB 15-pin connector, which is attached to the end of the monitor’s cable. Each of the 15 pins on the monitor’s DB-15 connector has a different pin assignment that carries out a specified video function related to power, color, or refresh rate. Many monitor-related problems can occur if one of these pins gets bent or broken. It is very important to take great care when connecting a DB 15-pin connector to a DB 15-pin port on the back of your system. Table 21.1 displays the functionality of each of the 15 pins on a DB 15-pin video connector.

Table 21.1: Individual Pin Assignments for a DB 15-Pin Video Connector

Pin Number

Video Function

1

Red video

2

Green video

3

Blue video

4

Monitor identification 2

5

Ground pin/unused

6

Red video return

7

Green video return

8

Blue video return

9

Unused

10

Ground

11

Monitor identification 0

12

Monitor identification 1

13

Horizontal synchronization

14

Vertical synchronization

15

Unused

The A+ Core exam is likely to present you with a question or diagram that tests your knowledge of the difference between a DB 15-pin video connector and a game/MIDI port, otherwise known as a joystick/MIDI port on a sound card. (See Figure 21.1 for the location of a game/MIDI port on a system unit.)

Note

Remember for the exam that a female DB 15-pin video port has three rows of five pinholes. A joystick/MIDI port on a sound card has two rows of pinholes: one row of eight pinholes and one row of seven pinholes.




The A+ Certification & PC Repair Handbook
The A+ Certification & PC Repair Handbook (Charles River Media Networking/Security)
ISBN: 1584503726
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 390

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