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Nik 2005-12-26 08:39
Hello
I am attempting my first ever computer build; I want a dual monitor setup and this has been very tough for me to get consistent information on. Let me say that by dual monitor I mean that I want my desktop to span across two monitors so that I can drag and drop between the two.
I learned about D-COM, D_SUB, DVI-A, DVI-I, DVI-D, RGB, VGA, CRT, AGP...quite a lot for a newb. I am not a gamer, so I don't need 3D - I decided to save a little on the graphics end and spend it on an better chip - Athlon 3600+ 939. I chose an MSI K8NGM2-FID mobo, with the 6150 chipset.
Now... I currently have two big CRT monitors. Ideally I wanted a setup which would allow me to drive these for the next 6 months; then I want to upgrade to two LCDs and I was hoping that the same setup would work for those too.
After much consultation, it was determined that the following setup would be optimal for me
MSI K8NGm2-FID mobo
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813130529
MSI NX6200TC-TD128ELF or equivalent (something in this range)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?Submit=Go&DEPA=0&type=&description=6200+TC&Category=38&minPrice=&maxPrice=&Go.x=10&Go.y=36
I would then do the following. Using nvidia's nViewDesktop manager s/w, I would run one of my CRTs from the D-COM output on the motherboard, the other from the DVI-I output on the video card. Then when I upgrade to two LCDs, I just use the DVI-I output on the motherboard.
Fine. I go to the computer store today to buy the parts. I tell the salesman about my plan. He says
That won't work.
I say.... what??
He says no, in order to run dual monitors using that software or any other s/w, you have to be driving the two monitors from the same video card. You can't drive two monitors by plugging one into the integrated video card on the mobo and one into an add-on PCI-e video card.
......ok. So here I am. I spent a few weeks discussing these things and now I get this information. Can anyone give me a definitive answer to this question? Can I or can I not run two monitors in the way I described, or is it true that I MUST get a dual DVI-I output ( a true dual head video card with dual RAMDACS) in order to get my desktop spanned across two monitors?
Long winded I know... any help is appreciated.
Thanks, Nik
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JR 2005-12-26 17:27
From newegg's specs, the mb has:
VGA: 1 x D-sub & 1x DVI
So, it should be able to handle both monitors. To run crt off the dvi, you will need a dvi to vga(d-sub) adapter.
This means you don't need that other video card to meet your current requirements
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Nik 2005-12-26 19:10
Hi JR
Thanks a lot for the reply. Unfotunately, I have had conflicting information on this. The people at Anandtech say that I cannot drive both monitors from the video card
Check the posts on the first page of this thread. As I menitoned, it has been amazingly difficult to get a straight answer about this, even from the manufacturers. At Hardforums, they todl me that the reason this is true is that there are not two onboard RAMDACS on the integrated video cards, therefore you can't run two monitors. They told me that the two outputs on this MSi mobo are for conveniece, so that varied customers with varied monitors (CRT and digital) can use it. No one has been able to tell me exactly how dual monitors work and what configuration of integrated and/or add-on video cards will allow me to do what I want - that is, run two CRTs for the time being then switch to two LCDs in the future.
Any help you can give is appreciated. I have seen the specs for all the gear I am mentioning here.
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Nik 2005-12-26 19:11
tried to p[ost a url but it didn't work. Here it is for cut and paste
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=29&threadid=1759652&enterthread=y
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Tantalus 2005-12-28 07:45
i would think that if you look at the motherboard manual it might be able to answer your question.
i'm inclined to think that the mobo *doesn't* support dual output. in which case the only way you're going to be able to run a spanned desktop running across both displays is to purchase a add-in card that supports dual displays.
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ECarlson 2005-12-31 01:33
I recommend getting a PCIe motherboard without on-board video, then getting a PCIe graphics card with dual DVI connectors. That way the video card will be able to handle any 2 monitors, you won't have on-board video to eat up your system memory, and you won't have to worry about any video card/driver conflicts.
- Eric, www.InvisibleRobot.com
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Nik 2005-12-31 05:40
Thank you very much for the replies and sorry for the delay in responding.
It seems you're both telling me the same thing in the end. I had been told that for my video processing needs, any dual DVI-I card that I could buy is going to be way too much for my needs and so I was trying to find a solution where I could save money on that and spend it on better RAM or a better CPU or whatever. Maybe for convenience and ease of setup I should just go with the dual DVI-I card, i.e. this one
I'm now off to figure if there is some other card that provides dual DVI-I outs but doesn't have all the high end processing speed of this card, which I don't need.
Anyway, thanks a lot for the responses.
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Nik 2005-12-31 05:41
link didn't post to that BFG card
http://www.bfgtech.com/6600GT_PCIX.html
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ECarlson 2005-12-31 18:32
Looks like the cheapest dual-DVI PCIe card among the many dozens they sell at NewEgg is $117 + $5 shipping, and it should work fine for your needs. If that's not too expensive, it might save a lot of headaches versus a dual card solution.
I'm not sure if the onboard solution would work along with a PCIe card, though it might. In the recent past, with AGP motherboards, you almost always had to choose between using the onboard or using AGP, but I don't know if the same rule applied to PCIe.
An add-on PCI card should work, but the performance of PCI is lower (though I am running dual monitors on a PCI card right now), but if you have to buy a PCI card, you should put the money into a PCIe card instead.
I still recommend a dual-DVI PCIe card as the solution with the least headaches.
PS: It's a D-Sub connector, not D-Com. DCOM (Distributed Component Object Model) is something entirely different and not related to video cards.
- Eric, www.InvisibleRobot.com
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Nik 2006-01-01 16:47
Ok Eric, thanks very much for taking the time to compose that reply - it helps a lot. I am coming to exactly the same conclusion. An extra $100 doesn't matter to me and since this is my first build, I need it to be as smooth as possible - I am not trying to reinvent the wheel.
Lately I have learned the difference between a simple 'independent monitor setup' and true 'spanning' where i.e. games play across the two monitors. I have learned that if you don't have true spanning, and you maximize a wondow, it will only maximize in the monitor it is displayed in. Ironically, this is what I want - I would not want it to maximize across two monitors. So I do not need 'true spanning'; I just need the independent monitors, which will allow me to drag and drop beyween monitors.
Having said all that, I will still go with the dual head card, for the reason I stated.
Thanks again to everyone for your comments.
Nik
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ECarlson 2006-01-01 18:09
I never use the hardware span mode. I use the independent monitor (Windows Extended Desktop) mode, though I also prefer to use a single dual-output card.
It is true that windows maximize to a single monitor, and that is also exactly what I want 99.9% of the time. For the other 0.1%, I can just stretch the window to fill both monitors, without actually maximizing it.
- Eric, www.InvisibleRobot.com
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Nik 2006-01-01 20:40
Ok - got it. Sounds like you are saying that the dual monitor utility in XP will deal with any brand of card or even possibly different brands if you are running an add-on card. In any case, it won't affect me because the dual-head card is best for a few different reasons. I am thinking of my upgrade to dual LCDs; it makes sense to plug them into the same card.
Anything else you have will be appreciated. Thanks as always.
Nik
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