3D Vision Surround Review

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WelshBloke

Lifer
Jan 12, 2005
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But their surround view doesn't force just 120hz 3d stereo gaming and if an owner chooses may use 2d gaming, too, with 60hz monitors -- that was my point.


Yeah that sounds about right, I think everyone else was mainly talking about 3D though as that's the main difference between NV and ATI at the mo.
 

gorobei

Diamond Member
Jan 7, 2007
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i think the implication was that for a 3 monitor setup sans 3d (equivalent to eyefinity) you only need a 200series card. whether that means 260,275,280,285 only; or the gt250,240 has yet to be mentioned. also no mention of portrait mode or max res supported.
 

SirPauly

Diamond Member
Apr 28, 2009
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i think the implication was that for a 3 monitor setup sans 3d (equivalent to eyefinity) you only need a 200series card. whether that means 260,275,280,285 only; or the gt250,240 has yet to be mentioned. also no mention of portrait mode or max res supported.

That's a good point about resolutions and portrait mode and interested into finding more about this.
 

PingviN

Golden Member
Nov 3, 2009
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But they were.

Stereoscopy has been around since middle 1800, it's not something Nvidia made up. They might have taken it to PC Gaming, but "3D" is not something they were first on the field with.
 

MrK6

Diamond Member
Aug 9, 2004
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i think the implication was that for a 3 monitor setup sans 3d (equivalent to eyefinity) you only need a 200series card. whether that means 260,275,280,285 only; or the gt250,240 has yet to be mentioned. also no mention of portrait mode or max res supported.
Unless I'm not reading this correctly, don't you need SLI 200 series cards for a triple monitor set-up?
 

Lonyo

Lifer
Aug 10, 2002
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Unless I'm not reading this correctly, don't you need SLI 200 series cards for a triple monitor set-up?

That's a more interesting question, because it impacts what is necessary for the feature.
If only the true 200 series cards can do it, then it's a hardware issue, if the GT(S?)250 etc (I don't even know the names anymore) can do it, then it's purely a software thing, in which case you have to wonder why they haven't supported it before now.
I would assume that any card should have the capability to do it, since there have already been workarounds to allow triple 3D output on any two cards (from NV or ATI), so I would assume it's purely a driver issue and not related to hardware, but then that begs the question of why limit it to 200 series cards at all.

On the other hand, you have to wonder whether ATI might be able to make some sort of workaround/hack to allow Eyefinity on Crossfired cards, since that should be possible if NV can do it with SLI.
 

ronnn

Diamond Member
May 22, 2003
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I don't mind 3d in theatres for the occasional movie. One seems to come around every few years - but needing to wear those ugly glasses every time I use my computer/tv is not appealing. All companies are pushing it as it will get everyone completely retool. I expect it will be several years before 3d becomes anything more than a niche market - if ever. 2d flat screens are just so easy on the eyes.
 

Qbah

Diamond Member
Oct 18, 2005
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I read a thread about 3D Vision Surround over at XtremeSystems and saw that apparently a 3 monitor will need only one Fermi-class card to work (was said by the CEO and quoted there - always forget how to spell his whole name :p). The limitation for lower generation cards is pretty obvious (not enough ports on one card). So that's great news for people looking for a 3-monitor setup and wanting to go green :)
 

NoQuarter

Golden Member
Jan 1, 2001
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ATI can do Eyefinity on Crossfired cards, since 9.12, also the reason it takes 2 Nvidia cards in SLI is because it doesn't have Displayport. Displayport uses no clock generator and all these modern video cards only have 2 clock gens on them, so only 2 video outputs per card. So you either need to add in the 2nd card to get another clock gen, put a 3rd RAMDAC onboard, or use Displayport since it doesn't need the clock signal.


My only contention with Surround 3d is that most the 3d on the peripheral views is a waste because you need both eyes over there to get the 3d effect. But it still sounds cool, I can barely afford a 3 monitor Eyefinity setup though, no way I can afford 2 graphics cards, 3 120hz screens, and a pair of glasses :( Maybe in a year after the dust settles.. Bit Cauldron's glasses look a lot better than the current crop anyway.
 

cbn

Lifer
Mar 27, 2009
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Will Nvidia's multi-monitor allow the user to mix resolutions?

Or will it be like Eyefinity (all monitors need to be the same)?