r9 380 and four monitors

[jplusk12]

I'm looking to buy a new graphics card. specifically this one http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...&cm_re=gigabyte_r9_380-_-14-125-821-_-Product
I want to make sure that this card can run four monitors off the 4 outputs without any extra adapters. The documentation says it is possible but I have read a lot of contradictory information on different forums. Does anyone know if it is possible to run four monitors off the 2 DVI ports, 1 HDMI, and 1 DisplayPort?

 

[Elixer]

Yes, it can support four monitors.
That said, what monitors are you going to use? Are you going to buy 2 with DVI connections, 1 with HDMI, and 1 DP?
Or are you planning to use adapters?

Also note, it is: Dual-link DVI-I / Dual-link DVI-D / HDMI / DisplayPort.

 

[jplusk12]

I already have the four monitors. 1 acer 22 inch monitor, 2 dell 19 inch monitors, and 1 lg 32 inch tv. My current graphics card is an MSI 7770 that has 1 DVI, 1 HDMI and 2 Mini DisplayPort adapters that run my setup just fine. If i was to get this card I would have to get an active DisplayPort to DVI adapter but I just wanted to make sure that this card would handle that. I've seen some information that says a graphics card can't run more than two DVI/HDMI connections at a time.

 

[Pariah]

I've seen some information that says a graphics card can't run more than two DVI/HDMI connections at a time.

Pretty much all AMD cards function this way as that's how AMD designed eyefinity to work. Only 2 legacy ports can be active at a time, and the 3rd and above monitor has to either user a display port or an active display port adapter. That last part is why I don't believe the card you linked will work. I'm quite certain, the active adapter must connect to a display port on the card and actively convert to something else. So, if you want to run 4 monitors and want to stick with AMD, you need to find a card with at least 2 display ports.

Edit:
This one should work.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202151

 

[jplusk12]

Thats what I thought about the amd cards but apparantly they changed how you can only have two legacy ports active at a time on the r9 series.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7400/the-radeon-r9-280x-review-feat-asus-xfx/3

and according to the amd website http://support.amd.com/en-us/search/faq/170 the r9 can have 3 legacy ports used at once as long as two monitors are identical.

It just seems like everything I read some say it's possible and others say it's not.

 

[happy medium]

My gtx960 card can do it...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125777

http://www.gigabyte.com/support-downloads/faq-page.aspx?fid=3176&pid=5571

 

[RussianSensation]

Thats what I thought about the amd cards but apparantly they changed how you can only have two legacy ports active at a time on the r9 series.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7400/the-radeon-r9-280x-review-feat-asus-xfx/3

and according to the amd website http://support.amd.com/en-us/search/faq/170 the r9 can have 3 legacy ports used at once as long as two monitors are identical.

It just seems like everything I read some say it's possible and others say it's not.

I already have the four monitors. 1 acer 22 inch monitor, 2 dell 19 inch monitors, and 1 lg 32 inch tv. My current graphics card is an MSI 7770 that has 1 DVI, 1 HDMI and 2 Mini DisplayPort adapters that run my setup just fine. If i was to get this card I would have to get an active DisplayPort to DVI adapter but I just wanted to make sure that this card would handle that. I've seen some information that says a graphics card can't run more than two DVI/HDMI connections at a time.

Can you explain exactly in detail how each of your monitors is connected?

Your I/O panel on the 7770 looks like this correct?

That article you linked above is not clear enough. It makes it sound that the R9 200/300 series have reduced ability to drive multiple displays when it should be higher ability.

Old series could only drive a maximum of 2 legacy displays.

With new cards, you can still drive 2 legacy displays but if you want to drive 3, the 3 must be identical. The 2 legacy ones can still be different, exactly how your HD7770 handles it right now.

"Of course this restriction only applies to using 3 TMDS interface monitors off of a single card natively. Using the DisplayPort, either with a native monitor or through an active DP-to-DVI/HDMI adapter, still allows the same fully independent functionality as before."

That means HD7000 series only allowed a maximum of 2 legacy monitors while the new ones are 2 (no restriction) or 3 (the 3 have a restriction). At least that's how I am reading that article.

This R9 380 should do it without adapters as the functionality should be at least as good as the HD7770.

My gtx960 card can do it...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125777

But in practice, running 3-4 different monitors on an NV card tends to create a lot more problems vs. Eyefinity based on countless user feedback I read online over the years and even as documented by JaysTwoCents.

 

[happy medium]

But in practice, running 3-4 different monitors on an NV card tends to create a lot more problems vs. Eyefinity based on countless user feedback I read online over the years and even as documented by JaysTwoCents.

Can you show me the links where a gtx960 has problems with 4 monitors?

My gigabyte G1 (turd 🙂) is special......
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Gigabyte/GTX_960_G1_Gaming/3.html

Quote:
"Display connectivity options include two DVI ports, one HDMI port, and three DisplayPorts, a unique output configuration Gigabyte calls "FlexDisplay". Gigabyte put an automatic TMDS switch chip on the board, so you may run 2x DVI, 1x DP and 1x HDMI or 3x DP, 1x DVI and 1x HDMI at the same time. This setup provides additional flexibility while allowing for a triple-monitor-surround gaming setup with a single card."

 

[Pariah]

Thats what I thought about the amd cards but apparantly they changed how you can only have two legacy ports active at a time on the r9 series.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7400/the-radeon-r9-280x-review-feat-asus-xfx/3

and according to the amd website http://support.amd.com/en-us/search/faq/170 the r9 can have 3 legacy ports used at once as long as two monitors are identical.

It just seems like everything I read some say it's possible and others say it's not.

I don't know why AMD has to make something like this so complicated. There was no mention of the 2 legacy port limit in any of their literature. The first time I tried to set up 3 monitors on an AMD card, I had no idea why I couldn't get the 3rd monitor. Couldn't find anything on the manufacturer's website. I eventually found this youtube video posted by AMD :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf0X0lNFmgw

Why does it take a 7 1/2 minute video to explain how to connect more than 2 monitors to your video card? I finally got it working after tracking down the correct adapter. A later driver update introduced some bug that completely broke my multimonitor setup and that was the last straw for me with regards to AMD. You know how you connect 3 monitors to an Nvidia card? You pick any combination of 3 ports and plug in your monitors, no adapters, and it just works.

There were no significant architectural changes (didn't even bother to add HDMI 2.0) when moving to the 2xx/3xx, so I figured there were no multimonitor changes. Your links indicate that AMD has apparently added even more complexity to the issue. Just to make things more fun, there are apparently some OEM's (or used to be) that built in the active adapters so you could use any ports you wanted, but good luck trying to figure out which cards those are.

Back to your original question. The rarity of 4 monitor setups means you are going to get conflicting answers from people who neither own the card you are looking at or have no real experience with more than 2 monitors and the product documentation will likely be useless. Your best bet to end up with a card that supports 4 monitors is to find one with as many display ports as possible (2 minimum) and get active adapters for your non-display port monitors.

Assuming this isn't for gaming purposes, and you have onboard video, you can use that for the 4th display, and then only need one display port on your video card.

 

[happy medium]

Your best bet to end up with a card that supports 4 monitors is to find one with as many display ports as possible (2 minimum) and get active adapters for your non-display port monitors.

I have 3 DP.

 

[jplusk12]

Can you explain exactly in detail how each of your monitors is connected?

Your I/O panel on the 7770 looks like this correct?

Yes that's the card I have. I have the hdmi connection going to my 32 inch TV. One display port going to my 22 inch monitor. And I have two active mini display ports to vga going to two 19 inch monitors.

Like everyone else has mentioned the documentation on it is almost non existent and not helpful. I see the Sapphire card that has the 2 display ports to do it but that's like the only card like that. It just seems weird that most manufactures are going to the 2 DVI 1 HDMI AND 1 Displayport and still claiming it can handle 4 monitors. Unless they're counting on the fact you have to use a displayport hub.

 

[RussianSensation]

Yes that's the card I have. I have the hdmi connection going to my 32 inch TV. One display port going to my 22 inch monitor. And I have two active mini display ports to vga going to two 19 inch monitors.

How are you using a DisplayPort to the 22 inch, using a DVI-D Male to DisplayPort adapter?

That means on the Sapphire R9 380 I linked, you'd also be using just 2 legacy connections (HDMI to 32" TV + DisplayPort to DVI cable), not 3 (which means your limitations doesn't seem to apply).

Can you show me the links where a gtx960 has problems with 4 monitors?

It would take me all day to search 5 years of user forums. It's been well known for years that if you want a more seamless experience with 3-4 different monitors, when using 2D+3D, tabbing out of programs/apps/games, you go Eyefinity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnWnmugUwAY

Your card is not special at all since it still relies on NV's multi-monitor drivers which is what causes issues. NV hardware is not the issue, it's multi-monitor software when mixing and matching 3-4 different monitors and resolutions. Not to mention, you cannot even run any games on 3-4 different monitors with NV. You need all monitors be the same make and model for NV 3D surround. AMD doesn't have this requirement. The OP has 3 different monitor SKUs.

Your best bet to end up with a card that supports 4 monitors is to find one with as many display ports as possible (2 minimum) and get active adapters for your non-display port monitors.

Why would he need active adapters? He is using 2 mini DP, leaving HDMI + DVI for his 'legacy' monitors. This is the exact same thing as his HD7770. The new feature is running 3 legacy connections on R9 300. Since he is only using 2 legacy connections, not 3, why would it not work?

 

[jplusk12]

How are you using a DisplayPort to the 22 inch, using a DVI-D Male to DisplayPort adapter?

That means on the Sapphire R9 380 I linked, you'd also be using just 2 legacy connections (HDMI to 32" TV + DisplayPort to DVI cable), not 3 (which means your limitations doesn't seem to apply).

My bad. I meant to say my 22 inch monitor is using the DVI port

 

[Pariah]

I have 3 DP.

You also have an Nvidia card, so the display port limit isn't an issue.

 

[RussianSensation]

My bad. I meant to say my 22 inch monitor is using the DVI port

Ya, so the Sapphire R9 380 mini ITX would be connected the same way as your HD7770. What is the reason you are upgrading from the 7770? Did that card die?

 

[happy medium]

Your card is not special at all since it still relies on NV's multi-monitor drivers which is what causes issues. NV hardware is not the issue, it's multi-monitor software when mixing and matching 3-4 different monitors and resolutions. Not to mention, you cannot even run any games on 3-4 different monitors with NV. You need all monitors be the same make and model for NV 3D surround. AMD doesn't have this requirement. The OP has 3 different monitor SKUs.

He is not even running games on all the monitors, what are you talking about.?

There is no issues with 4 monitors and the latest of Nvidia cards and drivers.
Stop spreading fud. You are straight up lying to this guy.

 

[jplusk12]

Ya, so the Sapphire R9 380 mini ITX would be connected the same way as your HD7770. What is the reason you are upgrading from the 7770? Did that card die?

Ya i might have to settle for that instead. I just don't see why out of the r9 series that's the only one to have those ports along with an xfx 280x that has the same configuration. I'm just looking to upgrade because this card is starting to struggle on games these days.

 

[RussianSensation]

You also have an Nvidia card, so the display port limit isn't an issue.

This statement is confusing/misleading. You only need 2 DP/mDP to run 6 displays on AMD cards, going back to HD5870.

On the DP side, Eyefinity is way more advanced than anything NV has.

Where AMD has an issue is on non-Displayport side (maximum 2 such DVI/HDMI displays on pre R9 200 cards and maximum of 3 such DVI/HDMI displays on R9 200 and later - but if using 3, they must be identical). On the Displayport/mini-DP side, AMD can support 6 monitors.

On pre-R9 200 series, 2 of these can be DVI/HDMI + 4 DP/mDP (OP's case)

On R9 200 and higher series, 2 of these can be DVI/HDMI + 4 DP/mDP; but also you can run 3x DVI/HDMI (then must be identical) + 3xDP/mDP.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMD_Eyefinity

 

[happy medium]

Your card is not special

Quote from another review since you didn't read my last review post..........

It is special, has a special chip and special software.

http://www.eteknix.com/gigabyte-g1-gaming-geforce-gtx-960-2gb-graphics-card-review/

"Here you can see the vast array of outputs. 1x DVI-I, 1x DVI-D, 3x DisplayPort 1.2 and 1x HDMI 2.0. The HDMI port is able to support 4k resolutions at 60Hz. Used in certain configurations, you can utilise Gigabytes own ‘Flex Display Technology’. The technology allows the use of up to 4 monitors for multi-monitor displays. The easiest way of achieving this would be to use both DVI outputs, 1 x Display port and the HDMI port, but other configurations are available.


and another review that I already posted.

"Display connectivity options include two DVI ports, one HDMI port, and three DisplayPorts, a unique output configuration Gigabyte calls "FlexDisplay". Gigabyte put an automatic TMDS switch chip on the board, so you may run 2x DVI, 1x DP and 1x HDMI or 3x DP, 1x DVI and 1x HDMI at the same time. This setup provides additional flexibility while allowing for a triple-monitor-surround gaming setup with a single card.

 

[happy medium]

You also have an Nvidia card, so the display port limit isn't an issue.

Thank you, you are correct.:thumbsup:

Op,
Just buy a Nvidia card.

 

[RussianSensation]

and another review that I already posted.

This setup provides additional flexibility while allowing for a triple-monitor-surround gaming setup with a single card.

You didn't even read your own review. How many monitors does the OP have, 3 or 4? Do you just love arguing and berate every single AMD recommendation or do you actually bother reading things?

The technology allows the use of up to 4 monitors for multi-monitor displays.

For 2D. NV drivers dictate 3D vision surround requirements for 3D, not Gigabyte. Flex display is just a flexible way to connect monitors using different outputs. You think NV manufactured a special driver for Gigabyte and no one else?

Therefore for running 3 different monitors + a 4th, Eyefinity is much better since it was natively designed for that. If you read on Eyefinity vs. NV surround, you would have already known that if you are running a bunch of different monitors, NV's implementation is far more buggy and has many issues not present on Eyefinity. This isn't a problem for NV 3D vision surround when using 3 identical monitors or when using dual monitors.

On top of that, you didn't read this:

I want to make sure that this card can run four monitors off the 4 outputs without any extra adapters.

Your proposed 960 cannot do this since the OP would need additional adapters as he wouldn't be able to re-use his miniDPs.

 

[Pariah]

RS, please stop posting in this thread. As usual, you have no experience or 1st hand knowledge of the topic. You're adding nothing but confusion and misinformation. Don't bother responding to this post, as I will ignore it as I do basically all your posts to prevent further thread pollution.

 

[happy medium]

For 2D. NV drivers dictate 3D vision surround requirements for 3D

Again you don't read......

He is not even running games on all the monitors, what are you talking about.?

 

[Piroko]

Op,
Just buy a Nvidia card.

Misleading.
Only the G1 series cards have this feature (3 monitors over legacy connections) and it seems to have its own special issues: http://forum.giga-byte.co.uk/index.php?topic=15154.0

@Op, RussianSensation is correct. You either want an MST Hub or run in that specific configuration he named.
Alternatively, there's a 380 mini from sapphire with two DP ports, there are GTX960s with several DP ports or plenty of 390 cards with more DP ports.

 

[Pariah]

Misleading.
Only the G1 series cards have this feature (3 monitors over legacy connections) and it seems to have its own special issues: http://forum.giga-byte.co.uk/index.php?topic=15154.0

As I already stated earlier in this thread, I am using 3 legacy ports on my Nvidia card. It's an MSI that does not advertise any special multi-monitor capabilities. Nvidia cards do NOT require display port to use more than 2 displays. You're the one misleading, please stop posting false information.