Question on gaming from PC to TV...

[tinpanalley]

I'll be as clear and concise as I can to see if someone can help...

I've got a PC desktop running a GeForce GTX 470 (has HDMI). Can I run a long HDMI cable to my TV (4m/12ft away), scale the PC display, and get full HD graphics on my television so I can play games on my TV instead of my PC monitor? And can it be done so it's permanently connected but only active when I activate dual display? Can anyone foresee any issues with this setup?

For controllers, I have a wireless 360 controller. For mouse I have a wireless mouse, and for audio I can easily hook the PC sound up to my receiver. The benefit here is everything being a few meters away from everything else.

 

[ShintaiDK]

I dont see any issues with that setup.

And yes, you can always select if the extra screen should be used, using as extended ro a clone of your monitor. In your case I assume a clone may be the easiest way to handle it.

 

[96Firebird]

Use the Win+P shortcut for easy switching between extended, clone, etc...

You shouldn't have a problem, it is pretty straightforward and easy to set up.

The only issue you might run into is the mouse spanning both screens when you are playing a game on one screen. Most games can handle this properly though...

 

[tinpanalley]

I dont see any issues with that setup.
And yes, you can always select if the extra screen should be used, using as extended ro a clone of your monitor. In your case I assume a clone may be the easiest way to handle it.

For some reason, in some quick testing I've done, a lot of games won't run in dual mode. They'll only play on the PC monitor. But that's ok because I can just use 2nd display while gaming. Not ideal if I need the computer during this time, but I guess I'll have to make do.

Use the Win+P shortcut for easy switching between extended, clone, etc...
You shouldn't have a problem, it is pretty straightforward and easy to set up.
The only issue you might run into is the mouse spanning both screens when you are playing a game on one screen. Most games can handle this properly though...

Cool! I didn't know that shortcut! So, I was concerned about some kind of degradation of graphics or something but that shouldn't be a problem because we're just talking display specs, right? The PC running the nvidia GPU is essentially a console, let's say, that is going HDMI to the TV that is, HD. Correct? And any adjustments to quality should be doable via the nvidia control panel.

 

[ShintaiDK]

For some reason, in some quick testing I've done, a lot of games won't run in dual mode. They'll only play on the PC monitor. But that's ok because I can just use 2nd display while gaming. Not ideal if I need the computer during this time, but I guess I'll have to make do.

Cool! I didn't know that shortcut! So, I was concerned about some kind of degradation of graphics or something but that shouldn't be a problem because we're just talking display specs, right? The PC running the nvidia GPU is essentially a console, let's say, that is going HDMI to the TV that is, HD. Correct? And any adjustments to quality should be doable via the nvidia control panel.

Thats why cloning is the easiest way. Clone the screens, start the game and turn your focus to the TV. And whenever you are done playing on the TV. Just remove the cloning again.

 

[kasakka]

Best way is to use Win+P to set the TV as the primary display. Many games will only show picture on the primary display.

I have the exact setup you are describing. PC in one room, with long HDMI cable going to receiver in living room. HDMI handles both audio and video to the receiver and TV. On Windows 7 at least the HDMI audio is pretty flaky though and often seems to require restarting the PC to get it working. This seems to be a Windows issue as I never get this on the same computer running Mac OSX.

My peripherals are via USB cables though, I have a long USB cable with an active hub as repeater. Works fine.

 

[Phynaz]

Thats why cloning is the easiest way. Clone the screens, start the game and turn your focus to the TV. And whenever you are done playing on the TV. Just remove the cloning again.

Steam big screen mode allows you to select which display to launch the game on.