Dual monitors with a 2nd PCI graphics card
 

If anyone has added a 2nd monitor in this way I was curious wheather the quality of the 2nd graphics card mattered. Will it affect performance or my ability to use the highest resolution if I go with a cheap 2nd graphics card?

Re: Dual monitors with a 2nd PCI graphics card
 

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If anyone has added a 2nd monitor in this way I was curious wheather the quality of the 2nd graphics card mattered. Will it affect performance or my ability to use the highest resolution if I go with a cheap 2nd graphics card?

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Yes. My HP media center already has an NVIDA card in it, but does not support dual monitors. I pulled the Radeon 9200 SE out of my old box, plugged it in (PCI) and it's up and running. Currently 1 monitor on each card, but I can easily add another to the 9200, plus the TV to the NVIDA. Good thing I was born with ADHD, otherwise my head would explode.

Re: Dual monitors with a 2nd PCI graphics card
 

Hmm interesting, but the Radeon 9200 SE isn't that bad is it? What if you had something really crappy like onboard video or something. Could you still 8 table with max resolution with good monitors?

Re: Dual monitors with a 2nd PCI graphics card
 

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Hmm interesting, but the Radeon 9200 SE isn't that bad is it? What if you had something really crappy like onboard video or something. Could you still 8 table with max resolution with good monitors?

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No, its actually a quite decent card that I ran both monitors on with my old box (after disabling onboard video). The new box (Media Center) has s-video on the pre-installed card, so I can run my TV off it (it's got a DVR and tuner built in), so I made it easy on myself and didn't have to disable/enable weird functions, I just threw in the 9200 and plugged one monitor into that, leaving the other on the pre-installed NVIDA. No conflicts, and smooth operation.

And yes, I could 8 table (or more with the TV) if I wanted to. Currently I play 4, read the boards, and DVR shows.

Re: Dual monitors with a 2nd PCI graphics card
 

Hey Nate,

I wonder if you could answer a question for me. I just got a new PCI card as well. When you installed the card, did you use your old video card / monitor to start up the computer and install the drivers for the new card, or did you use the new monitor hooked up to the new video card?