Triple Screen. Info?

[Tron5]

Hey Everyone,

New here and relatively new to building a rig. So I am kinda making lists and reading and searching a lot to make a nice system. For some reason I have a crazy addiction to the three screen monitor setup. I have searched on the internet and on here But I cannot for the life of me find a good way to go about setting this up. Do I purchase one big mother GPU that can handle 3 screens? or do I purchase 2 and use SLI or CFX? Personally I would rather have 3 screens that would provide an immersive game feeling than have one screen where the graphics are maxed. Your help will be greatly appreciated!

Cheers.

 

[Boulard83]

First welcome !

Second, i run a surround setup for more than 3 years now and with current GPU you dont absolutely need a SLI or CFX but if you want to max every new title, then yes you need more horse power. I currently run a single GTX670 @ ~1100mhz and it can handle BF3 at 5760x1080 with ULTRA settings and only MSAA turned off. IQ is really good and i get 50-55fps with some dip at 40-45 but nothing to really ruin the gameplay. If i use 2x MSAA, its not that as smooth. Adding a second GTX670 will make 2x MSAA usable. ( Single/dual 680's will be similar )

If you go AMD, they have a little better memory amount/bus with the 7970/7950 VS the 680/670. But again, on 3 screen you often need more than 1 GPU to be able ta max things out with newer title. Going past 2 GPU, 3way or 4way, is sometimes not paying that much cause you fall into scalling issue with some title. From the last reviews ive read, SLI seems to scale a bit better as for now. Source down here.

Looking at other contenders for a moment, you'll find that you simply don't need a GTX 680 2-way SLI when you can just buy a GTX 690 that runs quieter and saves an expansion slot because the price-performance ratio of a 3-way GTX 680 configuration is bad. AMD's HD 7970 GHz Edition CrossFire setup has its moments, but flunks far too many tests due to poor multi-GPU driver optimizations by AMD.

If you go 3 1080p monitor, the best bang for your buck is still a CFX 7950. At under 300$ each, you can really go wrong even if few title wont scale that good. SLI also have its not well optimized SLI title. if you go Nvidia, a SLI 670 is a good choice for the money spent.

 

[Tron5]

That is awesome. Thanks for the help. Is this the card your running?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...E16814121637&gclid=CObvqtyuyLUCFe0WMgodjRsA3Q

I would rather run one card than 2 because me being a n00b it might be a setup night mare with three screens and 2 GPUs.


If thats the card your running it, would be perfect and its a good price. The GTX 690 is pretty pricey.

 

[Boulard83]

Yes this is similar to my card but from asus. I have a reference design EVGA GTX 670 with an aftermarket cooler from Arctic cooling. Running 2 in SLI isnt a nightmare.

 

[Tron5]

Thanks Boulard I appreciate your help. I was looking at getting this one.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4501135&CatId=7387

what config would you suggest for connect monitors to this?

 

[Boulard83]

2 DVI + 1 HDMI or 1 DI + 2 HDMI or you could use the DP too. GTX600 series are not picky with surround and connectivity.

I run 2 DVI and 1 HDMI to my 3 Asus VE278Q, the HDMI from the GPU is on a HDMI/DVI adapter on the monitor so all monitor receive DVI input.