Best graphics card for triple monitor office setup?

[Automaticman]

I'd go with this HD6770 for $84AR: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150661

It's the minimum to get all the connections you need built in, and given your issues so far trying out various adapters, I'd say better to be safe than sorry.

BTW, I would not recommend this for gaming due to its use of DDR3 memory.

That card will still need an active DP adaptor to run the third monitor (assuming the monitors are all DVI or HDMI). AMD cards can only drive 2 TMDS type outputs at one time.

If you don't need any GPU horsepower for the work you are doing (and it doesn't really sound like you do), then this will get the job done:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102960

If you need more GPU, just be sure to grab an ACTIVE adaptor along with the card.

 

[Termie]

He's getting a U3011. It has DisplayPort. I'd definitely suggest the 6770 I linked to over the 6450 you linked, which would obviously need an adapter, since his older monitors don't have HDMI, and he'd need the Dual-Link DVI for the U3011.

I'm trying to make it easy for him...

 

[Automaticman]

He's getting a U3011. It has DisplayPort. I'd definitely suggest the 6770 I linked to over the 6450 you linked, which would obviously need an adapter, since his older monitors don't have HDMI, and he'd need the Dual-Link DVI for the U3011.

I'm trying to make it easy for him...

Oh, if he's getting a monitor with displayport then by all means get the nicer card.

The 6450 i linked does come with an HDMI to DVI adapter, and the dual link DVI port would drive the 30" monitor fine, but the only real reason to get that card is if you don't have at least 1 displayport monitor.

 

[mfenn]

I tried this, but it wouldn't work.

It detected all three monitors in NVIDIA control panel, but it only allowed me to select two of them. Attempting to select a third displayed a balloon tip which said "This GPU supports up to two displays."

I added a Quadro FX 1400, but it didn't help. The NVIDIA control panel detected both cards, and all three monitors. I selected them all, and hit apply, at which point nothing happens, and the third monitor becomes deselected again.

A bit frustrated/disappointed at this point. It looks like I'll be needing a card that can support three monitors. Thoughts?

That is pretty weird. The fact that it doesn't work even with 2 physical cards seems like a software problem to me. Any chance that you can load up a Linux LiveCD and see if the displays work there?

 

[XLNC]

That it pretty weird. The fact that it doesn't work even with 2 physical cards seems like a software problem to me. Any chance that you can load up a Linux LiveCD and see if the displays work there?

Good suggestion, I'm on vacation for a couple of days so I can give this a try on Monday. Also, I tried using the Windows display options to extend the displays as well. It detects the third display, and if I extend the display to it, it does nothing.

I really appreciate everyone chiming in with card suggestions and workarounds. It's been a dream of mine to get triple monitor setup going for a while, and I'm getting closer.

 

[XLNC]

Well, I decided to just forego the Linux experiment, and spent the cash on the Radeon 6450 that Automaticman recommended. Thanks for the suggestion.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102960

I will post here whether it works or not, and possibly a pic as well.

 

[XavierMace]

If you are just using it for word processing, just get a USB video card and call it good. We run two monitors off our laptop docking ports here and a 3rd off a EVGA USB card.

 

[XLNC]

Finally installed the Radeon HD 6450 and got the three monitors working. Couldn't be happier. So much room, I feel like I can breathe.

Here's a pic of the current setup. Hopefully I didn't leave any identifiable information in there.

 

[mfenn]

Looks nice!

Spoiler

Now just blur out your SSN!

 

[Gronnie]

You will soon want to add more...... it is never enough (ask me how I know, haha).

 

[kriskros]

Hi,
I got the same issue, HP Z400 with quadro 4000 graphic card and I would like to do a 2d surrounding for games with 3 monitors.
Can I buy and use ASUS GT640 graphic card for this?
http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/comput...40-pci-e-graphics-card-2-gb-15119672-pdt.html

How will this work if I want to use quadro 4000 for CAD applications and GT640 for gaming with 2d surrounding on 3 monitors?

thanks

 

[mfenn]

A GT640 will help you extend your display, just plug the secondary monitors into the GT 640 and you are good to go. A GT 640 is not going to do much gaming though, your Quadro 4000 is more powerful.

 

[Automaticman]

A GT640 will help you extend your display, just plug the secondary monitors into the GT 640 and you are good to go. A GT 640 is not going to do much gaming though, your Quadro 4000 is more powerful.

Yeah, that will let him add two monitors on the side, but he will only be able to game on the single center monitor connected to the Quadro.

If you want to game across 3 monitors you need a single powerful card to drive all 3 monitors. I guess you could leave the quadro connected as well and hook it to a second input on one of the displays maybe?

 

[kriskros]

Yeah, that will let him add two monitors on the side, but he will only be able to game on the single center monitor connected to the Quadro.

If you want to game across 3 monitors you need a single powerful card to drive all 3 monitors. I guess you could leave the quadro connected as well and hook it to a second input on one of the displays maybe?

Thanks for your tip. Would you be able to recommend some cheap but powerful graphic card I could use for decent gaming, price wise about 100 pounds?

Edit:
Could you clarify for me how should I connect and use this setup? Should I turn off PC, switch cables from GT640 to quadro and start PC each time when I want a change from gaming on 3 monitors to use CAD on 2 monitors?

 

[Automaticman]

Gonna be honest, when it comes to Quatro stuff I don't have much experience. Questions like:
Does the Quatro just need to be installed in the system to take advantage of it's CAD benefits? (I'm not even entirely sure what they are other than better support from NVidia and maybe some extra VRAM)

Is it enough for CAD applications to be shown on displays connected to the Quadro if the card is not the primary card where full screen applications sow up by defaut?

However, if all you want to do is have 3 monitors connected in a surround arrangement, and then be able to use two of those monitors to show the output from the Quadro, I would hook it up like this:

First off, you need to get monitors wth multiple inputs, ie 2 DVI inputs, a DVI and HDMI, or DisplayPort and DVI (just depends on what outputs you have on the cards you pick). Then set up your gaming card (I'm guessing you will need a 780 to drive games across 3 1080p screens) so that it hooked to input 1 on all three monitors, and connect the Quadro to input 2 of 2 of the monitors.

I think windows will see this as 5 monitors connected to the system, and you just hit the input selection button when you need to use the Quadro monitors. Make sure you primary monitor with the start menu is the 3rd monitor connected to only the gaming card so you don't lose it when you switch over.

I've never actually tried a setup like this so I would definitely do some testing first.

 

[mfenn]

Installing Quadro and non-Quadro drivers at the same time is an exercise in frustration. It's not really deterministic which applications will pick up the Geforce drivers and which ones will not. For production use, I highly recommend only installing the Quadro drivers and living with the basic functionality they provide Geforce cards.

 

[Automaticman]

Installing Quadro and non-Quadro drivers at the same time is an exercise in frustration. It's not really deterministic which applications will pick up the Geforce drivers and which ones will not. For production use, I highly recommend only installing the Quadro drivers and living with the basic functionality they provide Geforce cards.

This is a pretty good point. But do the Quatro drivers allow you to create 3x1 surround setups? If not this might defeat the whole purpose.

 

[mfenn]

This is a pretty good point. But do the Quatro drivers allow you to create 3x1 surround setups? If not this might defeat the whole purpose.

3x1 "surround" is different than just a normal 3x1 setup. 3x1 surround means that the driver fools the OS into thinking that you have one enormous monitor rather than treating the monitors individually. Surround is only needed for gaming, and no 100 quid setup can drive that.

The Quadro drivers certainly allow normal 3x1 monitor setups given a (set of) cards with the appropriate outputs. I'm not sure if they allow for Nvidia surround, but that seems largely irrelevant to the OP's use case.

 

[Automaticman]

3x1 "surround" is different than just a normal 3x1 setup. 3x1 surround means that the driver fools the OS into thinking that you have one enormous monitor rather than treating the monitors individually. Surround is only needed for gaming, and no 100 quid setup can drive that.

The Quadro drivers certainly allow normal 3x1 monitor setups given a (set of) cards with the appropriate outputs. I'm not sure if they allow for Nvidia surround, but that seems largely irrelevant to the OP's use case.

Right, I think the OP got his issue all squared away. I was responding to the post below, who wants to set up a SLS Surround for gaming and still use Quadro for CAD. Probably should have been a new thread for less confusion.

Hi,
I got the same issue, HP Z400 with quadro 4000 graphic card and I would like to do a 2d surrounding for games with 3 monitors.
Can I buy and use ASUS GT640 graphic card for this?
http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/comput...40-pci-e-graphics-card-2-gb-15119672-pdt.html

How will this work if I want to use quadro 4000 for CAD applications and GT640 for gaming with 2d surrounding on 3 monitors?

thanks

 

[mfenn]

Right, I think the OP got his issue all squared away. I was responding to the post below, who wants to set up a SLS Surround for gaming and still use Quadro for CAD. Probably should have been a new thread for less confusion.

Sorry, I said OP when I really meant the new poster. My bad. He did say surround in his post, but it wasn't super clear to me that he was actually referring to SLS surround, I thought he meant surround in a more general sense. At any rate the GT640 would be woefully inadequate for such a task, so it's kind of moot.

 

[Automaticman]

I wish Nvidia had come up with a more distinctive name like Eyefinity to make it clear when someone was talking about a single large surface setup.

 

[aigomorla]

do u need 3d acceleration on all3 monitors?

if not... a USB monitor connector might be an option for the third monitor.

 

[Automaticman]

do u need 3d acceleration on all3 monitors?

if not... a USB monitor connector might be an option for the third monitor.

Aigo, the OP was able to get hid problem all worked out.

Kriskros is looking for a way to game across 3 monitors while still being able to use his Quatro for professional applications. The issue we were considering was how would the system work if both the GeForce and Quadro drivers were installed, and would 2D surround even be available if he only installed the Quadro drivers.

I did just have an idea though. You build your machine to dual boot into 2 separate OS's. One of them is your gaming OS and has windows with GeForce drivers, and the Quadro card simply disabled.

Then you just use a second HDD or partition and make a Professional OS, also using windows, but with the Quadro Drivers installed, along with your professional apps.

My previous idea of using the secondary input on two of the monitors to connect the Quadro would work great here. You would even still be able to use the GeForce card to drive the third monitor as a simple extended display using the Quadro driver.

I'd say just use one OS with two user profiles, but I'm pretty sure drivers get loaded pre-login. Anyone know for sure?

The big problem for Kriskros is that there is no card in the 100 pound range that will come anywhere near driving games across all three monitors, so it may all be a moot point.

 

[kriskros]

Thanks for your replies.
I am not such a big gamer so I decided to modify the original plan and remove the 3 monitor surrounding in games as the graphic card would be too expensive.
I bought GT 640 anyway because it have low power consumption and supports 4 monitors so now I am able to connect 6 monitors in total. I got 3 monitors connected now and when I will get a larger desk I will connect additional 2 monitors.

Thanks,

 

[Automaticman]

You can still play games on your center monitor, you'll probably want to make sure that one is run by the quadro