Dual monitors with a 2nd PCI graphics card

[DMACM]

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?

[NateDog]

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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.

[DMACM]

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?

[NateDog]

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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.

[Shilly]

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?