Dual monitor and gpu question

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
G

Gardnersworld1

Honorable
Jan 22, 2013
118
0
10,680
Hi guys, I am going to cut straight to the question because the title is a bit obtuse.

So basically, I run with two monitors, and only game on 1, that being my 120hz benQ. Sometimes when I am playing a game fullscreen and I want to give that game my full devoured attention I like to turn off the other monitor by the button.

My question is, when I turn my monitor off by the power button, does that... take the stress off my gpu and cpu for that monitor? So essentially does it work less. I figured the cpu guys might know more about this lol :D

Answers are appreciated guys! Thanks, chris.
 
Solution
W
The answer is yes, but only slightly. Your computer has to work a miniscule amount to keep sending a signal to that display. I really doubt you will even get a 1fps improvement turning the second monitor off though. Look at your gpu usage at idle on your desktop. Chances are it is 0-1%. That tells you right there it takes almost no processing power for the displays to be on.

You have me curious though. When I get home I am going to run a quick benchmark with my second monitor on/off to see the difference. I'll report back with my findings.
Sort by date Sort by votes
W

wanderer11

Honorable
Jun 11, 2012
2,908
0
13,460
The answer is yes, but only slightly. Your computer has to work a miniscule amount to keep sending a signal to that display. I really doubt you will even get a 1fps improvement turning the second monitor off though. Look at your gpu usage at idle on your desktop. Chances are it is 0-1%. That tells you right there it takes almost no processing power for the displays to be on.

You have me curious though. When I get home I am going to run a quick benchmark with my second monitor on/off to see the difference. I'll report back with my findings.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Solution
G

Gardnersworld1

Honorable
Jan 22, 2013
118
0
10,680


You da man, thanks, it is just i do prefer having the other monitor off when gaming, so i was just wondering whether having it on would hinder my performance so i like to think turning it off kills two birds with one stone, that being because it would be less stress on my cpu and gpu, and well, the game gets my attention. Yeah if you go ahead with that please post them back, that would be aweomse cheers.

 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Lefturn

Lefturn

Distinguished
Sep 8, 2011
54
0
18,640
For my card (HD 6950), having the second monitor plugged in forces the graphics card into 3D mode. I actually just realized this recently while playing with MSI Afterburner.

The GPU clock is higher, and the card idles a few degrees higher with the second monitor plugged in. This happens even when the monitor is powered off.

I would suggest doing some testing on your own system to see if it behaves the same way.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom