Is there any advantage to having more than one cable plugged in to moniter?

gumbob3

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Would there be a point in having more than one cable (VGA, DVI, HDMI, DisplayPort) plugged in from the PC to the monitor? Say a VGA and a DVI cable plugged into a monitor with built-in speakers? I know DVI carries audio, and VGA doesn't. So would there be any point in having both plugged in? THANKS!! :)
 
Solution
Not at all, monitors with multiple inputs will treat each of them separately, therefore, your video card will too. From the OS perspective, you'll have two desktops running as if you had 2 monitors. But since the monitor not always sends the active signal when the input isn't selected, then it might work as only one, but then again, the other becomes inactive and there's no point in having it. Just use the best technology available on each side, being DVI the best choice for your case.

rgd1101

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no advantage, might even make it not work. and dvi don't carries audio, hdmi do.
 

CircuitDaemon

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Feb 23, 2016
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Not at all, monitors with multiple inputs will treat each of them separately, therefore, your video card will too. From the OS perspective, you'll have two desktops running as if you had 2 monitors. But since the monitor not always sends the active signal when the input isn't selected, then it might work as only one, but then again, the other becomes inactive and there's no point in having it. Just use the best technology available on each side, being DVI the best choice for your case.
 
Solution

gumbob3

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Thanks, I was asking because our family's current desktop PC has both plugged in and I was just curious as to why it would be set up that way? It has probably been than way for about 10 years lol. I just dusted it and installed 2 more ram sticks and noticed both plugged in. I will remove the VGA cable. Do I need to shut it off before removing it, or does it matter? Thanks!! :)
 

CircuitDaemon

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It doesn't matter as video signals are not high voltage and can be hot plugged.
 

gumbob3

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When I unplug the VGA cable, the monitor no longer displays anything besides some "Self Test Analog Input" little box thing. But, when I unplug the DVI cable, nothing happens and everything stays on the monitor. And yes, both cables are plugged into the monitor as well as the PC. Can I change the display to use the DVI instead of VGA?