• We’re currently investigating an issue related to the forum theme and styling that is impacting page layout and visual formatting. The problem has been identified, and we are actively working on a resolution. There is no impact to user data or functionality, this is strictly a front-end display issue. We’ll post an update once the fix has been deployed. Thanks for your patience while we get this sorted.

List of Dual DVI video cards

Page 6 - Seeking answers? Join the AnandTech community: where nearly half-a-million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.
I've got two Dell 2001FPs and am moving to DVI, but have a couple of questions:

If it's DVI, can one card be better than another? I've got one of the monitors hooked up to a nVidia GeForce ti 4200. Can I expect much of a bump if I replace it?

Would one of these dual DVI cards work better than two graphics cards? - one AGP and one PCI?

Has anyone tried the XFX 5700? It looks like a good price performance deal at $200...

Are there any cheap Radeon 9800 dual dvi's?

Thanks for answering these newbie questions.

 
In reverse order, ...

There are no mainstream dual-DVI cards based on Radeon 9x00 nor 8x00 chips. Well, there was one from Tyan based on the 9600, but it appearently never made it to the US.

Any FX5700-based card would appear to offer the best mainstreem performance out of all the cards listed.

PCI+AGP vs. dual-DVI from one card? Depends on what you expect. I don't think multi-display gaming/multimedia has really taken off ... yet. At least with Windows, you have to designate one display to be the primary, where most of the functionality will be available. Many times, the remaining screen(s) will be extra 2D real estate.

The actual graphic chipsets (Ti4200, Radeon 8500, Parhelia) still have to render the images that will ultimately be displayed. The more power a chipset has to offer, it is likely that it will produce a better picture. DVI is a means of getting that image to the display without conversion from its original digital format.l

Oh yeah, I've still got my two 1800FPs and a Ti4600 dual-DVI card.

-SUO
 
OK, I'm convinced. I think I'll go with the XFX for only 180 at NewEgg... Or maybe I'll check Fry's tomorrow in Bellevue.

I've got a nVidia 4200 ti right now running one DVI and one VGA... The VGA does pale by comparsion...

Thanks for the advice.
 
lifeguard1999-

I spotted that article over the weekend, but I haven't found any real mentions of SilentFX anywhere else, especially not on Gainward's site.

-SUO
 
Originally posted by: hahher
can't you use a pci card + agp card, instead of single card? what's benefit of single card solution?
Click to expand...
3D acceleration on both heads. Ability to clone outputs if necessary. More?
 
Originally posted by: jliechty
Originally posted by: hahher
can't you use a pci card + agp card, instead of single card? what's benefit of single card solution?
Click to expand...
3D acceleration on both heads. Ability to clone outputs if necessary. More?
Click to expand...

I'm glad to have found this discsussion, I'm a newbie with video cards etc...

I just got a second dell 1901FP so I could have a dual monitor solution. My current video card, has one DVI and a VGA port. The monitor with the DVI input is crisp and I love it, the monitor plugged into the VGA is poor quality in comparison, text is blurry looking etc... I'm really disappointed with the VGA screen output.

I don't really do much 3d, except for a few games, which I would only use one monitor anyways, I mostly want dual monitors for web develepment/surfing, multiple windows etc... , I don't need to clone outputs, so I was also thinking about getting a cheaper PCI DVI video card to have both monitors DVI. But then if I can find an affordable (<$200) dual DVI card, that has a reliable record with good reviews, maybe I should do that?

Any suggestions? What dual dvi card should I get? I'm leaning towards the dual dvi, just for ease of configuration and potential compatability issues. I'd love to get some feedback from all you pros 🙂
 
I bought the XFX 5700 Ultra dual dvi

right now, one of the outputs on the card seems to provide a lower quality image than the other. When viewing the log-in screen, there's an arc of light pixels that shows up. Images seem to have a few dancing light blue pixcels where there are edges in the image. Is there a name of this problem?

Is this a problem with the card? It' not the monitor or the cables, because if I switch my setup in software, the problems transfer to the other screen.

Is this correctable?

Help!
 
Originally posted by: louden
I bought the XFX 5700 Ultra dual dvi
Click to expand...

I'm also running at 1600x1200. Is there an issue with these cards displaying at that rate? If this is an issue, I return it and just go get another cheap pci card to match my old agp card....


 
Yep, I did that... There's nothing wrong with the monitor or the cable. - It's the connector on the video card.

That means 1600x1200 is truly not supported, or I have a defective card.
On top of all that, the drivers are messed up so that whenever the screen turns off for power save use, it doesn't come back! I hate to keep rebooting my machine.

So I'm not too hapy with the card or the drivers.

If you're a XFX fan, please feel free to defend yourself.
 
i bought the asus video suite (geforce fx 5200)
i am running 2 17 inch albatron monitors

1280x1024 for each monitor...


when windows or linux uses the auto power off monitor features, the monitors also mess up and i have to unplug them or restart the comptuer to get them back on (just turning off and on doesnt fix it...) its very strange...

someone told me that if i change a bios setting in my motherboard it should fix it...
 
does anyone know how much it actually costs these companies to switch the vga to dvi?

I mean, i dont even care if they come with the dvi to vga adapter - I'm sure bob smith would be willing to spend 10 bucks at the local Worst buy to buy the adapter...

It doesnt make any sense to me at all.

They add a dvi and a vga port on video cards. They include a dvi to vga adapter. This makes it clear that they want us to use dual head systems. If they just added the dvi for the laptop people, the little adapter that turns dvi to vga rules out the use of the real vga port except that they left it for dual head systems. But how many people use 1 dvi and the other vga.

Also - why do they sell PCI video cards anymore? I do not know a single soul that uses a pci video card other than to get dual head systems. This doesnt make any sense to me at all if their only market of pci video cards is to provide dual head systems. It would be cheaper for the video card companies to just add 2 output, or 2 dvi outputs to be exact and they could still make just as much money as selling the agp + pci card...

sorry about the venting but the prices on 19-21 inch LCDs and Dual DVI cards needs to decrease and become more common and it makes me mad
 
Originally posted by: supiammike
does anyone know how much it actually costs these companies to switch the vga to dvi?

I mean, i dont even care if they come with the dvi to vga adapter - I'm sure bob smith would be willing to spend 10 bucks at the local Worst buy to buy the adapter...

It doesnt make any sense to me at all.

They add a dvi and a vga port on video cards. They include a dvi to vga adapter. This makes it clear that they want us to use dual head systems. If they just added the dvi for the laptop people, the little adapter that turns dvi to vga rules out the use of the real vga port except that they left it for dual head systems. But how many people use 1 dvi and the other vga.

Also - why do they sell PCI video cards anymore? I do not know a single soul that uses a pci video card other than to get dual head systems. This doesnt make any sense to me at all if their only market of pci video cards is to provide dual head systems. It would be cheaper for the video card companies to just add 2 output, or 2 dvi outputs to be exact and they could still make just as much money as selling the agp + pci card...

sorry about the venting but the prices on 19-21 inch LCDs and Dual DVI cards needs to decrease and become more common and it makes me mad
Click to expand...

They offer one of each since most people use one monitor(either one of the other). Those that have two usually have two CRTs. People who use one of each is less common, and people who use dual flat panels for home use are really rare in comparison. I believe implementing the silicon image DVI chip requires somewhere around 8 dollars. Including two dvi outputs over one would cost $8 plus the cost of an extra dvi to vga converter.

Many companies still have systems that do not have an agp port, and just use integrated graphics, like dell, gateway, sony. most of their low end machines are like this. Plus there are those people who want to upgrade older systems.


Hope that answers your questions,

Steve

 
Is this a common problem with dual DVI setups with nVIDIA? One monitor having a different output than another? I am eyeing the XFX 128MB FX5700 at NewEgg, but if one DVI output is going to differ than the other, there is no point getting that card.

I do play a couple games, but not many and not a whole lot. I am into pictures/video/photoshop, so doubling my 19" Samsung 191T+ workspace would be great. 🙂 The games I do play are Counter-Strike, Quake 3, and I have tried UT2004, but I don't know how much I'll actually get into that one. Oh, and WarCraft 3 and a little Desert Combat/BF1942! How is the Parehlia in those games???

I am not worried about having to drop a lot of money for a quality videocard, but saving where I can is obviously something I'm interested in. Perhaps I should spring for the 128MB or 256MB Parhelia?

I am looking to purchase this Thursday, so any advice ASAP is greatly appreciated! 😀
 
> One monitor having a different output than another?

What do you mean by 'different?' I'm assuming that you don't mean something like cloning, where the two displays are exactly alike. I'm wondering if you mean one signal is not as good/strong/clear as the other. With my Gainward dual-DVI Ti4600 card (56.64 English) feeding my two Dell 1800FPs, I don't see much of a difference in quality between the displays.

-SUO
 
Originally posted by: SUOrangeman
I'm assuming that you don't mean something like cloning, where the two displays are exactly alike. I'm wondering if you mean one signal is not as good/strong/clear as the other. With my Gainward dual-DVI Ti4600 card (56.64 English) feeding my two Dell 1800FPs, I don't see much of a difference in quality between the displays.
Click to expand...

Yep, exactly. Thank you for clarifying. 🙂

Anyways, so you do see a difference between the quality of the two outputs?

Can anyone with a Matrox give any input? I have a friend with a Gainward Ti4600 dual DVI and he also has a wierd colour issue on his secondary display. He says the colours aren't quite the same, but he's saying it's the LCD...

Crud, now the XFX dual DVI are OOS at NewEgg! lol, what luck. 😛

On another note, have any of you experimented with a VGA>DVI adapter, if one exists? Would there be quality loss?

Thanks!
 
Originally posted by: louden
right now, one of the outputs on the card seems to provide a lower quality image than the other. When viewing the log-in screen, there's an arc of light pixels that shows up. Images seem to have a few dancing light blue pixcels where there are edges in the image. Is there a name of this problem?
Click to expand...

I'm using dual Hyundai Q17a LCDs on an XFX 5700U at 1280x1024x2 and I don't have these symptoms. I have seen the other problem you mentioned whereby sometimes after coming out of powersaving mode the left monitor doesn't come back on, however I fix this by turning the monitor off/on (buttons right on the bottom bezel edge, easy to get to). The image quality on both outputs is identical (at least to my naked eye).

Originally posted by: jamesbond007On another note, have any of you experimented with a VGA>DVI adapter, if one exists? Would there be quality loss?
Click to expand...

Yes, if such a device existed afaik it would be exactly the same as plugging your second LCD into an analogue secondary connector on a video card.


 
More stuff from Toms:

Dual DVI Sapphire Radeon 9800XT http://www.tomshardware.com/business/20040323/cebit2004_1-16.html
Dual DVI PCI Express Albatron GeForce FX 5950 http://www.tomshardware.com/business/20040323/cebit2004_1-18.html

Not the best result however. I prefer nvidia for dual monitors over ati, as ati don't give the option of spanning in their drivers - since I don't plan to upgrade to a PCI express capable motherboard in the near future I'll be using this XFX 5700U for a while yet.
 
New MSI card @ NewEgg

While I was waiting for the XFX card to come back in stock, this popped up on my searches for dual DVI solutions at NewEgg.com.

Needless to say, it has a remote, 256MB of RAM, and of course DUAL DVI to power my 191T+ LCDs. I'll be leaving a review when I get the card. 😀

Time to tally another one up on your list!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Back
Top