Multiple monitors and Blu-Ray on an HP DC5700 MT Core 2 Duo, 4 GB RAM, 160 GB HD

[SaintAnselm]

Hello,
I would like to add a Blu-Ray drive and a second monitor to my HP DC5700. I am a graduate student who often needs two monitors to read from one text one one monitor and type a Word document in a different monitor (something I can do at school but would like to do also at home).
There are also occasions when my wife likes to spend time with me while I work in the computer room, but wants to watch a Blu-Ray at the same time.
Is it possible to get a new video card that will support two monitors such that my wife can watch Blu-Ray in one while I type in the other?
A friend of mine who knows more about computers than I do suggested the HIS H645H2GD1 video card upgrade because I am limited to pcie x 1, but the reviews for that card on Amazon and New Egg were poor.
I also read here that pcie x 1 was a real liability for video performance, though it may be that this is only a problem for gaming rather than Blu-Ray.
Finally, I have a couple of old non-flatscreen MacIntosh monitors from an old Mac I used to use that I would like to possibly use as the screen for typing, so I wondered if anyone knows a video card upgrade that would work well to use a Mac and a PC monitor in tandem.
Thanks in advance for any help any of you are willing to provide.
Best wishes.
Sincerely,
J.

 

[tivatar]

What type of machine and/or motherboard are you using for these upgrades? A motherboard that relies solely on a PCIe x1 slot for graphics upgrades is interesting.

Edit: The previous gen HIS H545H1GD1 Radeon HD 5450 doesn't seem to have the overheating/performance problems of the 6450. Some people claim to use it for light gaming with few problems.

Internal Blu-ray players these days require a SATA connection, so you'll need to make sure one is available. I recommend buying a retail package for the added support and near-guarantee of software that works correctly. Blu-ray on the PC has always been a little shaky with the extra DRM they throw at it.

I'm not too familiar with older Mac hardware, but so long as they have a standard VGA or DVI connection, you should be able to hook it up using adapters. Most video cards worth their packaging come with at least 1.

 

[SaintAnselm]

Best answer selected by SaintAnselm.

 

[SaintAnselm]

Dear Tivatar,
Greetings and thanks for the reply!
I spent so much time reading online about how one needs to have a pcie x 16 slot in order to get a decent video card that I traded in my 5700 and paid some extra cash for a HP DC 7800 cmt, which does have a pcie x 16 slot, as well as the SATA connection you mentioned.
Now I am wondering which video/graphics card would be best for that machine (so many to choose from, though $125 is my budget limit) and whether or not it is cost-effective even to use those old Mac monitors given that I just discovered how inexpensive some 24 inch flat screen monitors are. If the adapters end up costing $25 a piece, maybe I should just put down another $100 for a better monitor.
I'm just the kind of person who hates to waste anything that still works.
Any recommendations on monitors?
I am also wondering of I should purchase an internal cooling fan due to what I read online about graphics cards generating extra heat.
Finally, I was hoping to use this new machine to embark on a long journey of ripping old records in my vast LP collection to digital files so they can be burned to cd for play in my car and on a portable player and I was wondering if you or anyone else had any suggestions for that. Do I need a new sound card for such an endeavor, or will the computer handle that with some stock audio line in?
Any and all thoughts or recommendations are appreciated.
Thanks and best wishes,
Sincerely,
J.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey