Most people have seen or tried adding two screens as most graphics cards now come with 2 or even 3 connectors. Not all graphics cards are equal and on some models, no matter how many connectors it has – it allows only one (they are hard wired inside). We we aim to educate here is a way to add way past the two you are used to seeing.
Hardware requirements
We shall start with the card you already have, it will probably be PCI-Express and on the back it has various connectors. Armed with the latest drivers, connect the monitors, this will be your main display and the one you need to be displaying games on.
Now check how many PCI Slots you have, we shall agree that there is at least two free for this example. You need to now find a store online that sells PCI Graphics card. For the USA people THIS Link show PCI Cards on NewEgg and THIS Link shows the UK people were to look for example. You can also check out E-Bay and the such as any graphics card with the PCI Interface will work in this instance.
Driver clash
On the odd occasion, I have come across issues with mixing Nvidia and ATI, so something to bear in mind. There is normally an option in the BIOS to select which interface to select first for graphics, this could be Built-in, AGP, PCI-E or PCI but not all have them.
Getting it all to work
Install the PCI Card(s), get the correct drivers and Windows should now allow you on display setting to select the screens to enable. Like I said, some cards may have VGA and DVI but only offer one screen (hard wired) – case of suck it and see. With the right cards for example, I can have two Screens on my main PCI-Express Card and two per PCI Card giving me in this instance a total of six screens.
But what about gaming?
Now Multi screens do not suit games in the first place, for example the Command and Conquer series let the mouse run off the screen to the other screens making controlling the game very hard indeed. We need to establish the goal of the system is to get many screens working at once.
Dedicated solution?
Matrox make a graphics card that drives 8 or 16 screens at once, this is designed not for gaming (though can be at a pinch) bit more control rooms and such.
Commercial Monitors
Bolting together various size and make monitors looks crap and there is issues moving about screens with different resolutions and this is where dedicated monitors come into play. The one above is in fact 3 19” Screen moulding as one and made by alienware. You can get thin bezel screens for example and stands to take 3 and above to create your own multi monitor stand.
