PC Graphics Card Question

[Jadzia]

I'm in the process of buying a new PC system, and I'm a little unsure about what graphics card to choose. What I'm intending to do is have a dual monitor setup, which is something I've never done before, and I'm not sure how it works. Nor do I know much about computer hardware anyway.

One suggestion I had was a ATI Radeon HD4890 based card, which has dual DVI sockets, although I do feel that is more powerful than I really need since I don't play graphics demanding games. I feel that it would be wasteful. So I was wondering, is it is possible to install two (lesser) single output graphics cards considering that the dual output ones all seem to be top of the range? Are there any other alternatives?

Also, this DVI thing is completely new to me. I'm assuming it means better signal quality. My past and present monitors have all have the D-connectors and no DVI option. Would these DVI cards require me to get new monitors? Is there backward compatibility through a converter plug of some kind?

 

[Alpha_Geek]

Most cards with DVI only output include a DVI-VGA adapter, so don't worry too much about that, just see if it's an accessory included with the card you choose and you're good with your old monitor. That being said, DVI is crisper because the signal is never analog and travelling with two siblings in the tight confines of a cable.

XP and Vista support multiple display cards as well as multiple output cards and support spanning the windows desktop across the monitors. Some care needs to be taken with Vista if you're mixing and matching video cards. See:

http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/device/display/multimonVista.mspx

for information.


I've not done anything with Win 7 in a multi display environment, perhaps someone else can share data?

 

[Mr. B]

A lot of people are running dual monitors in Win 7 fine although I am not. I have an nVidia GTX 260 and after trying a lot of things I can't get the 2nd screen to work.

As for choosing a card, you definitely want to go with a single dual-out card. Choosing among those is pretty daunting but manageable. After choosing between ATI or nVidia, you basically find the fastest card your budget will buy.

 

[Arrqh]

So I was wondering, is it is possible to install two (lesser) single output graphics cards considering that the dual output ones all seem to be top of the range? Are there any other alternatives?

It's not accurate to say that only the "top" range cards have dual output. Of course those do, but most of the mainstream cards do as well and so do a significant number of the budget cards.

 

[farmkid]

So I was wondering, is it is possible to install two (lesser) single output graphics cards considering that the dual output ones all seem to be top of the range? Are there any other alternatives?

It's not accurate to say that only the "top" range cards have dual output. Of course those do, but most of the mainstream cards do as well and so do a significant number of the budget cards.

Yes, a quick search on NewEgg shows that cards as inexpensive as $25 have dual outputs. The cheapest ones have one VGA and one DVI output, but dual DVI can be had for as little as $42.

As for compatibility between DVI and VGA (D-SUB) most DVI ports are DVI-D, which includes the analog VGA signal on some of the pins, allowing the use of a DVI-VGA adapter. Just make sure the ports aren't DVI-D (digital only) and you should be fine.

As for the specific card, if you don't play modern games, don't go for an expensive card. You will gain no benefit buying a high-end card vs. a mid-range card. You might see some difference between a mid-range card and a budget card, but the only time there might be a difference would be when watching HD video content because some budget cards might not have some of the more advanced HD video enhancement features. Also, if you get a cheaper card, it is more likely to have a passive heatsink on it and will therefore be silent.