Apple DVI-ADC Adapter Project

Like many of other I also fall into the problem: loving old computers and collecting them is nice but sometimes causing problems. Old technologies without any support and often incompatible connectors and solutions. Like the Apple Cinema Displays with ADC connectors.

Oh, yes, the problem is: there are no ADC-ready computers (video cards) available today. Apple used the ADC connectors between July 2000 and June 2004. I've thought I could buy a DVI-ADC adapter and use my vintage Mac Mini and the same aged Apple Cinema Display.
But this little thing is still over 100€! (Sometimes Amazon sells over 300$...)
To be clean: Apple DVI-ADC is not only connector conversion from one format to another. No. The ADC gives the power and USB to the monitors too.

I decided to build this adapter by myself. I found the project won't be complicate but to find ADC connector is not so easy.
The list what I need to buy before do anything:

• ADC connector (female)
• DVI connector (female)
• USB Type-B connector
• some kind of power connector
• Power Adapter from 230V to 24.5V 2.5A
• Testing PCB

After a hard research I find only one (!) company in the World who still sells ADC connector. This is Surplus Sales of Nebraska

The NCCP Hardware

As I decided to buy few old mini PC and tune them up to my needs, I jumped into the eBay listings to find that main board what fits to my requirements:

• Mini or micro ITX board
• Has to have USB 2
• Has to have serial port
• Intel compatible CPU
• Standard IDE-44 for my HDD replacement

I don't remember the search criteria but I find — from the same guy — two nearly the same VIA Epia boards. Of course they are not new. That's why they were cheap both together 56€!


These are the pictures from the eBay listings:

Don't worry, I won't use this ugly big rack-ready house in my car. The configurations are very similar, just have a short look:

Mini ITX VIA EPIA C3 533MHz 256MB 32MB IDE Flash Module, 200W ATX Power Supply

• VIA EPIA Mini ITX Mainboard
• VIA C3 CPU 533MHz
• LAN, VGA onbaord
• 256MB RAM
• Transcend 32MB IDE Flash Module
• 200W ATX Power Supply,  Wintech WIN-200PS+PFC

LACIE 1U Mini ITX 30cm width VIA EPIA C3 800MHz C3VCM6 256MB 32MB IDE Flash Module

• VIA EPIA C3VCM6, Mini ITX Mainboard
• VIA C3 CPU 800MHz
• LAN, VGA onbaord
• 256 MB PC2100 DDR RAM
• 32MB IDE Flash Module
• 3COM 3C905B-TX PCI 10/100

I had already in my drawer a 2GB CF and I had to buy an adapter to be able to use with IDE-44.

The USB WiFi module is from Sitecom, WLA-1001. I had lot of complication with this little bastard later. This was too new model for my Linux Kernel. But finally it is working fine.

...and this is the final hardware configuration with 512MB RAM: