Trying to get a triple monitor display setup in Windows 7

[biggles1000]

In the past, I have used my old HP ZV5000 laptop with a second display as an extended desktop with Windows 7. I recently fixed my tower and would like to create a triple monitor extended desktop setup.

My motherboard has:
-one PCI-E slot, Nvidia 8400GS will be in it once I get a more powerful PSU (currently occupied with an old 64MB Nvidia 7300something)
-three PCI slots, one will be taken up by surround sound card soon, others will be empty.

-(also 2GB RAM (the maximum) and a 200GB IDE HDD with Windows 7 Professional)

The PCI-E video card has one VGA output, one DVI output and one HDMI output (it seems that the HDMI output needs a cable shoved somewhere on the motherboard which I can't see pins for). This leaves me then with one VGA and one DVI port.

I would like to be able to extend my desktop over three monitors, but from what I have found in some brief research, you clearly need one port per monitor. I'm guessing this means I need a second graphics card. I have a few kicking about, but the only PCI ones I have are:
- <2002 64MB Nvidia card, doesn't support aero (understandably)
- some random card merely labeled 'elephant', most it can cope with is 8 bit colour

It would be handy if the old 64MB Nvidia card would work, but would it's aero-incompatability mean I wouldn't have aero on one monitor? Or even worse, it disables it on all displays? I rather like aero, and do not want to go back to a non-aero desktop.

So, with you know hopefully understanding my situation, how do I get a triple-monitor extended desktop display with aero?

Thank you very much for your time reading this

 

[evilgenius134]

Easiest option would be to pick up a Radeon card like a 5670 or 5770 since unlike Nvidia cards they can support up to 6 monitors from a single card. You'll most probably have to buy a active DisplayPort to VGA/DVI connector to achieve this though.

 

[scaryclownshoe]

I have a HP Pavillion dv6 7010us with two dell 19" LCD monitors and a new Samsung 32" flat screen. I have a SIIG USB 2.0 to VGA converter from when I just ran dual screens on my dell monitors, but it ended up working for my triple monitor display. I have been researching how to do this for the past couple of days and nearly gave up. I did not want to go buy a graphics card because I heard that you can do it without one. I ended up just screwing around with my settings and accidentally set the monitors to the triple display setting. I have a USB 2.0 SIIG adapter that runs a VGA to my main monitor, a VGA going to my secondary monitor, and a HDMI going to my TV. Every time I tried to change the settings it would revert back to the old settings until I set the TV to my main display and it automatically made my other two monitors my second and third display. Its been working great.
I would suggest that before you buy a new video card (unless you needed one anyway) that you check your settings and ensure that it wont work as is.