question about setting up 3 displays with 5850 (2 monitor + 1 tv)

[zyzeast]

I am trying to set up my system with 3 displays, 2 monitors each at 1920x1200 and one 1080P HDTV at 1920x1080. I am using a HD5850 Video card, first monitor is plugged into a DVI port (Does it matter which one I plug in btw), second monitor is plugged into a DisplayPort, TV is plugged into the HDMI port.

However no matter what i try i can't seem to get all 3 displays to work at the same time. Here is a picture of my current setup

I want 1 to be my primary display, 2 to be my extend to the right of 1 and 3 to be another extended to the right of 2.

Is it possible to set up something like that? I can't seem to extend to both displays and eyefinity isn't showing the TV in the set up options.

Thanks for any help

 

[blanketyblank]

Does hdmi to TV work without the second monitor?
It might be some problem getting those to work together maybe defective card, or setting you need for the TV.

 

[Dark4ng3l]

I think you need 3 monitors with the same resolution for eyefinity anyways. As far as windows I don't think it should matter. Try plugging the tv instead of one of the monitors to make sure that it's not the problem.

 

[zyzeast]

i can do one monitor + tv or two monitors, just can't do all 3

 

[blanketyblank]

Quick question how are you connecting your DP monitor?
Is it with an adapter or does the monitor natively work with DP?
The reason being is eyefinity does not work unless you have active DP for one of the monitors so if you are using a passive adapter that's the culprit.

 

[zyzeast]

Quick question how are you connecting your DP monitor?
Is it with an adapter or does the monitor natively work with DP?
The reason being is eyefinity does not work unless you have active DP for one of the monitors so if you are using a passive adapter that's the culprit.

oh that must be it -_-, it's an adapter. no way to get all 3 working then?

 

[blanketyblank]

cheapest way is buy a DP to VGA adapter for one of the monitors. Otherwise you need to buy an active adapter.

 

[zyzeast]

why would dp to vga work if dp to dvi doesn't?

 

[Dark4ng3l]

It won't you need an active adapter or a monitor that will natively accept DP.

 

[blanketyblank]

I may be wrong, but I believe Eyefinity is only capable of supporting the TMDS for 2 monitors. Therefore if you use a third it will not have coding from the video card which needs to be supplied by the adapter or the monitor.
However the VGA adapter is also an active adapter in the sense it uses RAMDAC instead of TMDS to convert the digital signal to an analog signal. Analog does not require TMDS encoding. I believe this conversion is done by hardware on the videocard to support VGA output since I'm sort of doubtful they could fit the chips and power it with just the standard cheap conversion dongle.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I thought that it was common knowledge that the HDMI port on a 5xxx card is shared with one of the DVI ports. So you cannot do DVI+DVI+HDMI for a triple-monitor setup, it just won't work. You MUST use the DP (displayport) as the third display output.

 

[blanketyblank]

I thought that it was common knowledge that the HDMI port on a 5xxx card is shared with one of the DVI ports. So you cannot do DVI+DVI+HDMI for a triple-monitor setup, it just won't work. You MUST use the DP (displayport) as the third display output.

He is using the displayport, but with a passive adaptor.
He needs to use an active one though since the cards only support 2 TMDS no matter the ports.

 

[gorobei]

He is using the displayport, but with a passive adaptor.
He needs to use an active one though since the cards only support 2 TMDS no matter the ports.

Blankety's point is that if you run the tv off of the hdmi, 1 monitor off of dvi, and you get a Dport to VGA adapter the third monitor can be used. Bypassing the tmds limit.

some people have managed to get eyefinity gaming working with non-powered/active(i.e. no extra usb power) Dp -> VGA adapters with VGA capable monitor/crt.

 

[NoQuarter]

The DP->VGA $30 adapter has a chip in it to convert the DP signal to analog VGA so it is actually an active adapter. This will allow you to do 2x DVI/HDMI and 1x VGA

The DP->DVI $25 adapter does nothing but rearrange the wires and is a passive adapter, meaning the video card has to handle sending a DVI signal across the DP->DVI cable, which it can't because the video card can only do 2 DVI/HDMI signals at a time and they're already taken up.

The DP->DVI $100 active adapter has a chip like the VGA one but also requires USB power to do the signal processing.

 

[blanketyblank]

The DP->VGA $30 adapter has a chip in it to convert the DP signal to analog VGA so it is actually an active adapter. This will allow you to do 2x DVI/HDMI and 1x VGA

The DP->DVI $25 adapter does nothing but rearrange the wires and is a passive adapter, meaning the video card has to handle sending a DVI signal across the DP->DVI cable, which it can't because the video card can only do 2 DVI/HDMI signals at a time and they're already taken up.

The DP->DVI $100 active adapter has a chip like the VGA one but also requires USB power to do the signal processing.

Basically yes, but I think it's actually the video card that converts the signal to VGA in response to a chip on the VGA dongle or a chip in the monitor telling it to send analog. I'm not completely sure about this since technology changes so fast, but I do know RAMDACs have been part of video cards for a long time now and it would explain why no power is needed. I've also recall hearing of people unable to use an DVI-VGA adapter with certain motheboard's DVI outputs (see below) which I believe is due to them not having analog conversion.

http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=584025

 

[NoQuarter]

Basically yes, but I think it's actually the video card that converts the signal to VGA in response to a chip on the VGA dongle or a chip in the monitor telling it to send analog. I'm not completely sure about this since technology changes so fast, but I do know RAMDACs have been part of video cards for a long time now and it would explain why no power is needed. I've also recall hearing of people unable to use an DVI-VGA adapter with certain motheboard's DVI outputs (see below) which I believe is due to them not having analog conversion.

http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=584025

The DVI->VGA adapter in that thread is a passive one that requires the video card to send an analog VGA signal just like the passive DP->DVI adapter does w/DVI. That dongle does nothing but rearrange wires and tell the video card to send the appropriate VGA signal and can't be compared to the DP->VGA adapter, it's more like the DP->DVI passive adapters.

I believe many newer DVI outputs especially in laptops don't bother providing the analog output over the pins provided in the DVI spec for analog VGA (it's the small block of pins separate from the rest) to save money which is the reason that adapter didn't work for the poster.

The DP spec doesn't even have pins specified for analog output so a VGA adapter would necessitate active conversion to get VGA, which is where that chip in the adapter comes in.

Wikipedia seems to confirm this by acknowledging single link DVI interopability but noting the need for active conversion for VGA, analog, and dual link DVI:

"In the interest of interoperability, the DisplayPort connection is capable of supporting HDMI/DVI signals. DisplayPort has issued guidelines on the construction of active DisplayPort-to-VGA, DisplayPort-to-SVIDEO/Composite/Other, DisplayPort-to-Dual-Link-DVI/HDMI, and Dual-Link-DVI/HDMI-to-DisplayPort Converters."

And from everything I've read the TDMS and RAMDAC share much of their operation on chip, using the same clock generators of which there's only 2 on chip. So I'm pretty convinced the DP->VGA is an active adapter as it shouldn't be possible to passively send VGA over the DP port, and doubly impossible to send VGA over DP when both clock gens are being used by TDMS signals.

But this is all what I've put together from the bits and pieces I've read when I was researching DP for my Eyefinity setup, I haven't seen a definitive explanation of all this.

 

[zyzeast]

You guys are starting to confuse me

So my only option is to get an active DP->DVI converter?

 

[blanketyblank]

You guys are starting to confuse me

So my only option is to get an active DP->DVI converter?

yes

 

[gorobei]

You guys are starting to confuse me

So my only option is to get an active DP->DVI converter?

yes

and no.
like i said, some people have gotten 3 displays to work with the Dport-to-VGA adapters.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/279385-33-success-eyefinity-passive-adapter
http://www.widescreengamingforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=64&t=17468

it is your choice, depending on your tolerance for risk and your budget.

• buy a $20 vga adapter and maybe get it to work with some driver/cable voodoo.
• buy a $100 active dvi adapter (though there are some less than reliable versions like the apple one) and theoretically have plug and play.
  
• or even get new monitor with native Dport.

BTW, which soyo monitor is the one to the left of your Topaz S? (i'm a proud owner of one as well) It doesn't have the mva panel does it?

 

[zyzeast]

Would this work then?
http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10428&cs_id=1042801&p_id=5135&seq=1&format=2

With this adapter I'd be using
1. DVI to Monitor 1
2. DVI->VGA Active Adapter to Monitor 2
3. HDMI to TV

both my monitors are 24" soyo Topaz, the one on the left is just a newer model than the right one. Not sure what a mva panel is, but the left one is brighter/better looking than the right one.

 

[NoQuarter]

Would this work then?
http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10428&cs_id=1042801&p_id=5135&seq=1&format=2

With this adapter I'd be using
1. DVI to Monitor 1
2. DVI->VGA Active Adapter to Monitor 2
3. HDMI to TV

both my monitors are 24" soyo Topaz, the one on the left is just a newer model than the right one. Not sure what a mva panel is, but the left one is brighter/better looking than the right one.

Yes that config would work with that adapter. gorobei summed it up very well, the $20 VGA adapter doesn't work for everyone but it does work for a lot.

Also if your TV accepts VGA input you may want to try the VGA on your TV, as the 1920x1080 resolution is easier on bandwidth for the VGA to handle over 1920x1200, so you might avoid flickering problems or fuzziness.

 

[gorobei]

you might want to go with this type of adapter(Dport plug ->short extension wire-> vga female socket)
http://www.provantage.com/accell-b10...b~7ACEL06U.htm
[doesnt have to be this brand.]

because you are using the hdmi and the Dport on the card. the adapter you linked may block or put pressure on the hdmi cable plug because of how close the sockets are and how wide that adapter is. the extension version will avoid any of those problems.


[mva is a type of lcd technology that performs better than cheaper TN panels. the soyo topazS had one, but newer soyo 24" models that came out after it had cheaper TN panels. Brighter isnt necessarily better, and i'm guessing you mean the newer one has a more esthetically pleasing bezel and frame(as opposed to better image quality) when you say looks better.]

 

[zyzeast]

Yes that config would work with that adapter. gorobei summed it up very well, the $20 VGA adapter doesn't work for everyone but it does work for a lot.

Also if your TV accepts VGA input you may want to try the VGA on your TV, as the 1920x1080 resolution is easier on bandwidth for the VGA to handle over 1920x1200, so you might avoid flickering problems or fuzziness.

Are you suggesting that I do DVI to both monitors and the Adapter to the TV then since I can't connect the HDMI to my monitors and only the TV?

 

[NoQuarter]

Are you suggesting that I do DVI to both monitors and the Adapter to the TV then since I can't connect the HDMI to my monitors and only the TV?

Yea, DVI to both monitors and VGA to TV. If you need the HDMI audio to your TV then it doesn't really matter though. Just wanted you to keep the option in mind in case your monitor flickers on VGA, since the TV probably wouldn't. Those VGA converters aren't perfect so the lower resolution you go the easier it is on them.

 

[zyzeast]

Alright thanks, will see how it goes when the thing gets here this week.