3 Monitors, Non-SLi and MB question

[ZBTRiddler]

I have a few small questions I need help with. I have a need for 3 large independent monitor ouput from a machine I need to build. My question is - What Motherboard should I use so I can have 2 video cards connected for displaying on 3 monitors? I was thinking the 8600GT and Intel E8400 would prove a good mix of power needs/performance. I also will use 3GB of Memory and Win XP Pro. I also need removable SATA hard drive bays. Need a board that won't crash when a drive is pulled. What motherboard will allow me to do this?

This needs to be a robust system. Able to display high resolution on each monitor. 6 of these machine will be in a climate controlled limited access room - so heat and power should not be a problem.

Let me know if you have any questions - we need to replace the older machines soon!

 

[Hatman]

You could use a 2600x2 if you wanted, its 2gpus on one card with 4monitor ports. But needs one pci-e slot.

 

[runswindows95]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814129104

I agree with Hatman. This would be your best bet for a GPU.

 

[ZBTRiddler]

For some reason the "Contractor" will only let us buy an nVidia based card. This system will run weapon system simulations and display the HUD from F-15 and F-16 jets along with infomation on 50+ targets. The old system ran 6800GT cards for only 2 displays, and we need an upgrade.

 

[ZBTRiddler]

So I guess what I really want to know is....

Will I get x16 by 2 with these cards, without SLi? Will I even use all 16 lines per card? Will an Intel P35 MB with a x16 and x4 be that bad on the 3rd monitor, or should I find a board with 2 x16 slots?

I have picked the Video cards, Processor, and Memory - just would like to figure in what headache this board selection will give me.

Thanks!

 

[Hatman]

Well if you want x16 on both slots a 680i/780i or even a x48 will do the trick.

 

[bombasschicken]

beautiful thing about SATA is that its hot swapable.. i have 5 sata hard disks, and one 1 sata dvdrw.. well my board only supports 5 sata connections so i am constantly swapping them.. just plug/unpulg the sata cable and hit the refresh button in the system manager.. just make sure your comp isnt writing to the disk at that time.. but im sure you know that..

 

[bombasschicken]

So I guess what I really want to know is....

Will I get x16 by 2 with these cards, without SLi? Will I even use all 16 lines per card? Will an Intel P35 MB with a x16 and x4 be that bad on the 3rd monitor, or should I find a board with 2 x16 slots?

I have picked the Video cards, Processor, and Memory - just would like to figure in what headache this board selection will give me.

Thanks!

it wont matter what speed the second pcie is cause it will be disabled when you go into 3d games.. go with the cheaper board.. save the cash for a better vid card or cpu or something..

 

[pip_seeker]

Matrox TrippleHeadtogo

There is another solution that you may not know about. I have gone through Matrox's compatibility setup and chose
winxp, geforce 8600GT on a digital connection. If you're using analog then you should go through the steps yourself to see what is supported or not.

So the link below will show you maximum resolutions with their tripple head to go product, in which it uses a dual head card to support 3 monitors. The box is exterior to the pc, so it may be a better alternative than to use 2 video cards. [less noise]

http://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/corpo/support/compatibility/compatibility.php

 

[ZBTRiddler]

I didn't even know Matrox was still in the market. Will this setup work with an 8800GT and give 3 independent displays?