Best motherboard for multiple monitors

[notech131]

Hello,
hi, Im wondering about a few things on my mobo as id like to improve my comps performance this is a link to what i believe is my mobo- http://uk.ts.fujitsu.com/rl/servicesupport/techsupport/Boards/Motherboards/Gigabyte
/GA-8I915PM/Man_GA-8I915PM_uk.pdf
I have nvidia ge force 6600gt in pcie 16 and am wondering could i put another video card in the bottom slot pc 12 (where i think the modem is) in order to run 4 montiors or would it be possible to run 4 monitors off this mobo and if so how?
im also using 1 gb of ram single stick, and am going to purchase 3 more to bring machine to its max of 4 but right now i have 2 spare 512 sticks and and wondering if there is a wayto use the 3 sticks without slowing performance down?

 

[notech131]

Read 31 times 0 replies except for this one which I am about to post!

Are my queries completely noobious? or is it the typing?

 

[RazberyBandit]

I think it's the link that doesn't work, to be blunt.

If the motherboard has on-board video, you should be able to use it in combination with the 6600GT under Windows XP. However, most older on-board chips only had one output, leaving you with a maximum of 3 display capability.

 

[notech131]

thanks,
Ill try re pasting the link

http://uk.ts.fujitsu.com/rl/servicesupport/techsupport/Boards/Motherboards/Gigabyte
/GA-8I915PM/Man_GA-8I915PM_uk.pdf

 

[notech131]

ok that didnt work, this should googling the following gets you to the pdf manual of the mobo

GA-8I915PM-FS

thanks again.

 

[RazberyBandit]

http://uk.ts.fujitsu.com/rl/servicesupport/techsupport/Boards/Motherboards/Gigabyte/GA-8I915PM/Man_GA-8I915PM_uk.pdf

That last slot is a PCIe x1 slot, and while there are PCIe x1 cards out there, they cost $100 and up. Example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161280

If it's an open-ended slot, you could technically use any PCIe card in it, and it would simply drop to x1 speed. However, there are PCI cards that could be used in one of those slots which are far less expensive. Something like this which is $40 at Newegg:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814187041

A final alternative would be a motherboard replacement to a model with on-board graphics, but this option would require a lot more work, both physically and within Windows due to the depth of the hardware change. And while there are some boards with on-board graphics in the $40-$50 range, the much simpler solution would be to add the PCI card.

 

[notech131]

again thanks for the reply.
I'm really a noob when it come to this stuff, what im trying to figure out is if I can run 4 monitors off this board without too much more expense , I was just hoping I could add in a second video card and run 4 screens without much hassle or cost... in an ideal world I'd buy a new mobo with the capabiltiy for multiple monitors....I'll ask again what my best options are when I get round to this.

 

[RazberyBandit]

Well running 4 displays showing the same picture is one thing. Running 4 with a fully extended desktop is another.

If you want them to display the same thing, just buy a splitter. You can get 2 of these 1M to 2F VGA Cable Splitter or a more expensive 4-Way VGA Splitter. They'll do the job, but each monitor will show the exact same display.

If it's a fully extended desktop where each display is different, then in addition to my previous post, you could opt for an HD 5450 card. It's capable of ATI's Eyefinity display - 3 monitors - but they should all be the same resolution and one would have to support Display Port input. (You could buy a display port-to-HDMI/DVI/VGA converter for a Non-Display Port monitor.) Still, that only gets you 3 outta 4 displays.

I'm sure there are cheaper PCI cards out there. Just gotta look for them and have an open PCI slot.

Could also opt for a 2 x PCIe x16 motherboard and add any PCIe card, but that just adds even more to the cost of this endeavor.

 

[notech131]

Im trying to run an extended desktop really, I currently have dual montior with nvidia card in the pcie slot.
thanks to your replies im understanding this a little better and am going to try and source a good value pci card which will be compatible with my current card, it seems there can be some bios and driver issues when trying to use multiple cards, or is this some thing thats easily overcome?
best possible compatible pci card for the best price in the pci 2 slot where my unused modem currently sits, will be the solution to this,

thanks again.

 

[notech131]

actaully if pci or pci e X1 card were both same price which will do job better?, I thought i was begining to understand but maybe not.
it seems in the reviews im seeing alot of hassle with pci when its not primary card, I just need to be able to view much stuff on multiple monitors at a reasonable pace but im not running a flight simulator or any game that requires liquid nitrogen overclocking, i guess now I need the card thats compatible ate best cost, i think ive looked at all cards on newegg now...heheh.

 

[RazberyBandit]

I've not seen a review or report of any sort stating that use of an additional PCI card is problematic other than those where users don't realize that there are settings in their BIOS that tell the system which card is the primary device and should be initialized first. They don't know about it so they don't bother to go into their BIOS and set the primary display device to the "PEG" (PCI Express Graphics) option and leave it set at the default "PCI" setting.

Of course, compatibility within the OS is another issue... Windows XP doesn't care if you use an ATI and nVidia card in such a setup. It will allow for two different driver packages to be installed. Vista does care and won't allow it. Windows 7 will allow it if ya hack it up a little. So, depending on your actual OS, choose the 2nd card accordingly.