Drive 6-9 displays with one computer

[dawks]

Hi,

I am looking to connect 6 (possibly up to 9) 1080p displays with one computer. We will only be running basic 2D content (a few web pages, an application that displays basic line graphs updating a few times per minute, etc). So it doenst need to be high performance, just good quality (low energy consumption would be great). Any suggestions for cards that can help us out?

Windows 7, and I'd prefer the ports be all the same type. We'll be using standard 1080p TV's as our displays so something like DVI/HDMI/Displayport should be ok. ie, 6 HDMI ports or two cards with 3 HDMI ports each..

Thanks

 

[Dankk]

Six (6) Mini-Displayports is the max number of video outputs as you can get on a single graphics card, as far as I know.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814129274

 

[monstercameron]

Crossfire supports upto 24 monitors now.

 

[dawks]

Six (6) Mini-Displayports is the max number of video outputs as you can get on a single graphics card, as far as I know.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814129274

I like the price on that. Thanks.

Thats from 2012. I havent been able to find anything newer.. Does a newer model exist?

 

[Dankk]

I like the price on that. Thanks.

Thats from 2012. I havent been able to find anything newer.. Does a newer model exist?

In terms of GPUs that support 6 video outputs, I can't seem to find anything newer than the Radeon HD 7000 series.

However - unless the age of the card is very important to you for some reason - that 7750 I linked above should be able to serve your purposes well for for the next few years at the very least. After all, it's still only a generation old, and AMD will continue to support it with new Catalyst drivers for quite a while (they are still updating drivers for the considerably older 5000 series). And even after they stop updating the drivers, you can still continue using the legacy drivers.

If you want something a bit more powerful, there's also a 7870 variant. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814129262

Edit: Be sure to read the reviews. It appears that you need active displayport adapters to take advantage of all 6 outputs (the adapters need to be purchased separately).

 

[WhoBeDaPlaya]

OP, is running dual cards an option? I don't mean Crossfire / SLI, just running them independently.
I use two 6950s (admittedly overkill, but they were leftover parts) to drive 6 displays on my work computer.

DVI + HDMI + miniDP (w/active miniDP -> DVI adapters) on both cards

 

[Dankk]

OP, is running dual cards an option? I don't mean Crossfire / SLI, just running them independently.
I use two 6950s (admittedly overkill, but they were leftover parts) to drive 6 displays on my work computer.

DVI + HDMI + miniDP (w/active miniDP -> DVI adapters) on both cards

Ah, I guess for some reason I thought that running multiple AMD cards automatically means "Crossfire", and in Crossfire, you can only use the outputs on a single card (the "master" card). But if it's indeed possible to run two cards and have monitors plugged into both, then that's something to consider as well.

 

[artvscommerce]

If you don't need 3D acceleration, I would take a look at the Quadro NVS cards. They are power efficient, reliable, and have great synchronization capabilities. Although they are a little more expensive than consumer cards like the AMD Radeon.

 

[dawks]

Yes, dual cards with 3 or more outputs is a feasible option. Age of the card isnt a huge concern, even though I know newer isnt always better, I do know that there are often reasonable improvements made each generation.

Still the main concerns are energy efficiency (I dont need a 300+watt card) and cost..

Thanks fellas.

 

[jackstar7]

Ah, I guess for some reason I thought that running multiple AMD cards automatically means "Crossfire", and in Crossfire, you can only use the outputs on a single card (the "master" card). But if it's indeed possible to run two cards and have monitors plugged into both, then that's something to consider as well.

I did this just with my two monitors for a while because it kept temps much cooler while I was not gaming basically at all.

Just don't use the CF bridge, or disable in CCC, and use several ports per card.

 

[KingFatty]

Hi,

I am looking to connect 6 (possibly up to 9) 1080p displays with one computer. We will only be running basic 2D content (a few web pages, an application that displays basic line graphs updating a few times per minute, etc).

Can you clarify if you want to have all the displays behave like one big display, like for playing a game across all 6?

Or do you want to just have the ability to just have a large extended desktop, where you can put different stuff on each display, maybe stretch a window across multiple displays if wanted?

 

[DownTheSky]

No 300W card requires much for running in 2D.

 

[biostud]

Get 8 mini display ports on one card for only $1799 (matrox M9188)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-055-_-Product

or 6 displays for $669 (matrox C680)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-057-_-Product

 

[dawks]

Can you clarify if you want to have all the displays behave like one big display, like for playing a game across all 6?

Or do you want to just have the ability to just have a large extended desktop, where you can put different stuff on each display, maybe stretch a window across multiple displays if wanted?

I kinda covered that in the OP. It would be several different apps on each screen. Not all 6 combined to display one thing.