Is it possible to add multiple types of graphics cards to run multiple monitors

[mikksnake]

Hello all,

I am looking to get a new computer. The main purpose of the computer is typical business type work (Outlook, multiple instances of Chrome, Excel, other applications). I would, however, also like to have it built to play games every once in a while (Counter-Strike: Global Operations, Insurgency, America's Army, possibly Call of Duty: Ghosts).

I want to set it up to run 6 monitors, which is what my current setup is. I have two Quadro NVS 450 graphics cards in my current machine, each will support 4 monitors.

What I am hoping to do with my new computer is get something like an i5 processor and a GeForce GTX 960 or 970 maybe. I would like to run the main monitor off the GeForce graphics card and the other 5 monitors off the Quadro graphic cards.

Would this type of setup work? Could I get something like this (https://www.amazon.com/M32AD-Windows-Nvidia-GeForce-keyboard/dp/B016TZUNPQ/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1470775499&sr=1-3&keywords=i5+geforce) and just add in my two existing Quadro cards?

Thanks for any help and advice you can provide. I greatly appreciate the assistance.

 

[Viking2121]

It should work just fine. It should work as well on AMD cards, but you tend to run into trouble with green team mixed in with the red team, its more of a hassle then what its worth.

But keep in mind, the NVS 450 is a bit older, Im not sure what version of drivers they use which might not work with a graphics card too new. I had a similar issue with a GTX580 mixed in with a GTX780ti, although it worked, but only on older drivers.

And how many lanes your CPU have? Or if your motherboard support such config, thats just other issues that you could run into. I'd have to know your build to know for sure.

 

[Karadjgne]

Windows 10 has no driver support for legacy products like the NVS 450, Windows 8 did, but Microsoft moved on. The latest driver I could find for the NVS 450 is 341.95. And yes you can mix them. Same deal as DirectX 9 drivers on Windows 10, it'll just add any libraries it needs to.

 

[mikksnake]

I may just build the PC so if you have recommendations on specs/parts that would work well without breaking the bank, I'd appreciate it. I'm probably looking at something like an i5 with 16GB ram.

So, what happens if Windows 10 has no driver support? Does that mean the card will be unusable or will it run slow or something else? Do all the graphics cards run off of one driver (if there are multiple cards) or do they each have their own separate drivers?

I'm currently running driver version 9.18.13.4195 dated 1/29/16 from Nvidia.

Sorry for all of the questions. This is fairly new to me. I never realized their would be a problem trying to have two graphics cards until I started looking into it.

And as far as the age of the Quadro NVS 450 cards, I just want them to be able to do typical operations: run Office products (excel and Outlook mostly), internet browsing (Chrome mostly), and a few other programs like some stock charting software, etc. I don't know much more about the cards. DXdiag says the following:

Chip Type: Quadro NVS 450
DAC Type: Integrated RAMDAC
Device Type: Full Display Device
Approx. Total Memory: 4065 MB

Thanks again for helping me while I'm learning.

 

[Karadjgne]

Microsoft is looking forward, therefore most of us are still in the past. What this means, is WinXP had support for cards used in the Vista era, Win7 had support for both, As did Win8.1 All these windows versions had native DX9 support. With Windows 10, DX9 has been left behind, as has any support for cards that topped out at DX9. So the 600 series, uses DX10, as does the 700 series etc, so Win 10 has native driver support. This means that when you put the card in the PC, you'll see something on the screen, and can use the basic abilities of the card, using DX10, DX11, DX12.

But, that has nothing to do with you ADDING those DX9 drivers. The drivers themselves are not labled driver.1, driver.2 etc, they are dx9diag.sys or dx10diag.sys etc. so theres no overwrite. Meaning you can have both in the dx folder and a dx9 card will use the dx9diag.sys and a dx12 card will use the dx12diag.sys.

Same with the NVidia drivers, the cards will just use the relevant drivers , so you can have both in the system.

When you build the system, use the 960 at first, its natively supported. add all the new, updated drivers etc. find the relevant version for the NVS online and DL. install the card. somewhere in device manager youll get that dumb little yellow triangle because theres hardware but no drivers for the NVS. manually update the driver using the drivers you previously DL. simple. then go to Microsoft and DL the DirectX9 package and install. Now all cards have their own driver set to use.