I currently have a HTPC that only displays through my Ht front projector. I want to have a dual monitor setup, with one small monitor housed in the equipment rack that constantly displays the for the pc. Reason for this is so i can play MP3s and such without having to turn the projector on. Will most computers output to two different displays at once? If so how do i do it? I don't want a switcher, i want both displays to work at the same time. I want the projector to display whatever input is selected on the receiver and the other to constantly display the computer.
dual monitor setup
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Any Windows OS from 98SE up will display on multiple monitors. You will either need a dual-head video card (e.g. Matrox) or just pop in a cheapo PCI card.
-Chris
-Chris
The new Radeons have dual head, but only one DVI.
Quote:
I read somewhere that XP Pro has multiple mon support but not XP Home.
| Originally posted by 4HiMarks Any Windows OS from 98SE up will display on multiple monitors. You will either need a dual-head video card (e.g. Matrox) or just pop in a cheapo PCI card. -Chris |
Ok wanted to do the same thing.
1. I tried with Gforce card with two outputs. I could not find for the life of me how to set this up. As far as I could get was extended desktop. Kinda old card anyway. G3. Updated drivers tho. Can someone post where this is in the video settings?
2. ATI 9000 (I think. Not at home right now) with VGA and S-video. Extended desktop works very easy but this is not what we want. If you unchecked "Extend my desktop" the second output goes out. I had to install a older version of Catlist and it created a shortcut on my desktop where I could enable TV and check #1 desktop on both monitor out. I did not see this option within the video options. Not sure if it was the older version of Catlist or just the shortcut from the desktop that took me to that option.
I may just roll this pc next to the TV and use the VGA to componet converter and then I will have a HDPC. Just kinda hard giving up another desktop on my desk for when I'm playing Everquest on my Gaming PC. But I have a Linux box there as well. OK. I'll shutup,....
1. I tried with Gforce card with two outputs. I could not find for the life of me how to set this up. As far as I could get was extended desktop. Kinda old card anyway. G3. Updated drivers tho. Can someone post where this is in the video settings?
2. ATI 9000 (I think. Not at home right now) with VGA and S-video. Extended desktop works very easy but this is not what we want. If you unchecked "Extend my desktop" the second output goes out. I had to install a older version of Catlist and it created a shortcut on my desktop where I could enable TV and check #1 desktop on both monitor out. I did not see this option within the video options. Not sure if it was the older version of Catlist or just the shortcut from the desktop that took me to that option.
I may just roll this pc next to the TV and use the VGA to componet converter and then I will have a HDPC. Just kinda hard giving up another desktop on my desk for when I'm playing Everquest on my Gaming PC. But I have a Linux box there as well. OK. I'll shutup,....
Quote:
Not true...
_____
Axel
| Originally posted by wjchan I read somewhere that XP Pro has multiple mon support but not XP Home. |
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Axel
As already mentioned above, either dual head video card (there are lot’s not just Matrox to chose from, but only very few with Dual DVI if this is needed) or just add a separate PCI video card.
To manage the displays I recommend Ultramon . (I am not affiliated with them, just a happy user...)
_____
Axel
To manage the displays I recommend Ultramon . (I am not affiliated with them, just a happy user...)
_____
Axel
Quote:
Thanks, Axel
You just gave me the information I was looking for. I have ATI AIW7500
video card, Samsung 172T LC monitor which I run on the DVI port and
a BenQ 6100 projector. I found that AIW video card gave very limited support for dual monitors, most functionality was limited to either the monitor or the projector, but other than the desk top, very little would work on both at the same time, which made navigation very difficult.
So I decided to buy a PCI ATI video card from Sapphire, which duplicates all the output ports of the AIW 7500. The thing that was missing was a
way to mange the two cards. Ultramon seems to have all the right stuff
for what I want to do. Thanks again for the tip,
wbrack
| Originally posted by Axel As already mentioned above, either dual head video card (there are lot’s not just Matrox to chose from, but only very few with Dual DVI if this is needed) or just add a separate PCI video card. To manage the displays I recommend Ultramon . (I am not affiliated with them, just a happy user...) _____ Axel |
You just gave me the information I was looking for. I have ATI AIW7500
video card, Samsung 172T LC monitor which I run on the DVI port and
a BenQ 6100 projector. I found that AIW video card gave very limited support for dual monitors, most functionality was limited to either the monitor or the projector, but other than the desk top, very little would work on both at the same time, which made navigation very difficult.
So I decided to buy a PCI ATI video card from Sapphire, which duplicates all the output ports of the AIW 7500. The thing that was missing was a
way to mange the two cards. Ultramon seems to have all the right stuff
for what I want to do. Thanks again for the tip,
wbrack
Quote:
Glad I could help. One word of caution, though: I think there is a chance that the Sapphire and the AIW7500 will use the same drivers and registry settings so you might run into issues, e.g. if you decide to have different res. or timings. However, it might also just work fine... I do not know for sure, I am just speculating here… When I had 2 video cards in my system I made sure they were from different manufactures (Matrox G450 PCI and an ATI AIW7500, later a 9700Pro) - no problems there....
_____
Axel
| Originally posted by wbrack Thanks, Axel You just gave me the information I was looking for. I have ATI AIW7500 video card, Samsung 172T LC monitor which I run on the DVI port and a BenQ 6100 projector. I found that AIW video card gave very limited support for dual monitors, most functionality was limited to either the monitor or the projector, but other than the desk top, very little would work on both at the same time, which made navigation very difficult. So I decided to buy a PCI ATI video card from Sapphire, which duplicates all the output ports of the AIW 7500. The thing that was missing was a way to mange the two cards. Ultramon seems to have all the right stuff for what I want to do. Thanks again for the tip, wbrack |
_____
Axel
could i just split the signal? found a logaer video splitter online at tigerdirect. can't post the website though as i'm new to the forum.
FYI... I believe the main video card has to support slaving to a separate pci video card for dual monitor. If your main card does not support dual monitor set up (the ability to let the second video card start up... not talking about dual head) then you'll need to buy a new main video card with either dual monitor support or dual head.
I'm thinking of doing something similar. I'm a windows programmer and I will be setting up dual monitors on my barco. I am thinking of having the Barco be the second monitor with a small (~7"-10") touch screen LCD monitor for the main. I'll program a touch screen interface and mount the LCD on the end table at the end of my first row seating. Via touch screen menus, I'll start up media applications maximized in the second monitor. I'm hiped about the idea. Anyone want to buy version 1.0... ha! Anyone try to do this?
I'm thinking of doing something similar. I'm a windows programmer and I will be setting up dual monitors on my barco. I am thinking of having the Barco be the second monitor with a small (~7"-10") touch screen LCD monitor for the main. I'll program a touch screen interface and mount the LCD on the end table at the end of my first row seating. Via touch screen menus, I'll start up media applications maximized in the second monitor. I'm hiped about the idea. Anyone want to buy version 1.0... ha! Anyone try to do this?
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I did something similar - with less than perfect success.
My Barco 808 is driven from the VGA output from an ATI 9600. Then I added a 7" Xenarc touch-screen driven from the DVI ouput of the 9600 using a DVI/VGA adaptor. I also ran a USB 2.0 cable to the touch-screen to carry the pointer-clicks.
While I'd like to have the Barco be the secondary, extended display and run only the video overlay there, the ATI driver seems to insist on putting the overlay on the primary display.
So, I don't run an extended desktop, I just let the 2 displays mirror each other. This way I can mess with my music collection, photos, random web stuff, etc. without turning on the projector. Then when I run video applications that use the overlay (dscaler and theatertek), the touch-screen blanks out and I turn on the projector.
Not bad. Also not perfect. The 1024X768 that I use for the Barco (4X3, 92" wide screen) is not great for the xenarc, which is a little small for that resolution and also is 1.78 aspect ratio. Also sometimes it would be nice to be able to use the touch-screen while the video overlay is in use.
One nice thing is that since I added a USB hub to plug the touch-screen into, it was easy to also add a DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive connected to the same hub. Now that drive is the base that the touch-screen sits on and I play CDs and DVDs from there.
Rick
My Barco 808 is driven from the VGA output from an ATI 9600. Then I added a 7" Xenarc touch-screen driven from the DVI ouput of the 9600 using a DVI/VGA adaptor. I also ran a USB 2.0 cable to the touch-screen to carry the pointer-clicks.
While I'd like to have the Barco be the secondary, extended display and run only the video overlay there, the ATI driver seems to insist on putting the overlay on the primary display.
So, I don't run an extended desktop, I just let the 2 displays mirror each other. This way I can mess with my music collection, photos, random web stuff, etc. without turning on the projector. Then when I run video applications that use the overlay (dscaler and theatertek), the touch-screen blanks out and I turn on the projector.
Not bad. Also not perfect. The 1024X768 that I use for the Barco (4X3, 92" wide screen) is not great for the xenarc, which is a little small for that resolution and also is 1.78 aspect ratio. Also sometimes it would be nice to be able to use the touch-screen while the video overlay is in use.
One nice thing is that since I added a USB hub to plug the touch-screen into, it was easy to also add a DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive connected to the same hub. Now that drive is the base that the touch-screen sits on and I play CDs and DVDs from there.
Rick
I have always run dual monitors from my Radeon 9600.
My CRT Projector is on one VGA port at 1280x720x72Hz, and a VGA monitor on the other port at either 1024x768x75Hz or 1280x960x75Hz.
I just hotkey switch between which is the primary VGA output for the video overlay etc. The really cool thing is I can have DScaler or a DVD up and running on the projector, while I browse the web on my VGA monitor at the same time etc.
This is all possible using the standard ATI Catalyst drivers. Just install the latest drivers, and then install ATI's "Hydravison" (you only need to download the latest basic version). Hydravision is what allows you to run independant resolutions and refresh rates on each output.
ie: No special third party software is needed. However I also use Powerstrip for setting up non standard resolutions and hotkeying between them on the independant VGA outputs.
Greg
My CRT Projector is on one VGA port at 1280x720x72Hz, and a VGA monitor on the other port at either 1024x768x75Hz or 1280x960x75Hz.
I just hotkey switch between which is the primary VGA output for the video overlay etc. The really cool thing is I can have DScaler or a DVD up and running on the projector, while I browse the web on my VGA monitor at the same time etc.
This is all possible using the standard ATI Catalyst drivers. Just install the latest drivers, and then install ATI's "Hydravison" (you only need to download the latest basic version). Hydravision is what allows you to run independant resolutions and refresh rates on each output.
ie: No special third party software is needed. However I also use Powerstrip for setting up non standard resolutions and hotkeying between them on the independant VGA outputs.
Greg
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126 Posts
Thanks! Sounds like Hydravision is just what I need.
Rick
Rick
I use an mx440 dual output. One vga goes to the projector and I use either the second vga for a monitor, or the tv out to an old tv. The projector is used in full screen overlay and the other display (tv or monitor) is used to display the osd or whatever else is required. I expect that I will end up hardwireing a lcd touck screen into the sofa. At first I was going to use a smart display, but that would require xp pro on my htpc, which I really don't want to do.
The nVidia software works great
The nVidia software works great
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126 Posts
Greg or anyone who has done this:
OK, I got Hydravision installed. I got the touch-screen set up as the primary display using a resolution of 600X800 and it looks alright.
I got the projector set up as a secondary display using 1024X768.
Now, how do I cause dscaler and theatertek to open the overlay using the entire secondary display?
Rick
OK, I got Hydravision installed. I got the touch-screen set up as the primary display using a resolution of 600X800 and it looks alright.
I got the projector set up as a secondary display using 1024X768.
Now, how do I cause dscaler and theatertek to open the overlay using the entire secondary display?
Rick
1. I have noticed that Hydravision is recommended for multiple resolutions and refresh rates. Is this necessary? The OS will do multiple resolutions. Is it just the refresh that the OS sets the same?
2. I have a HiPix and dual displays. I run the bigger display from the HiPix and/or the secondary display. It has to be the secondary because newly opened applications will open on the Primary display. (So the HiPix VIDEO displays where the secondary was, and the HiPix APPLICATION always appears on the primary display. Otherwise the HiPix appears offscreen) Unfortunately the bigger display is also what I want to play games and DVDs on. Both of which require hardware overlay and hence must be the primary display. Could something like UltraMon would switch primary and secondary like a script before and after running HiPix? Games? WinDVD? How about some other script?
3. Is the above problem because Windows OSs only support overlay on the primary monitor? If so when is this expected to be fixed?
4. Also if you only get overlay on one screen how do people play dual screen 3D games?
5. When I reboot, my Radeon always sets one display to 640x480 in Server 2003. Is this the dongle bug? If not, what is the Radeon dongle bug?
6. You can get a dual DVI Radeon for about $200. Does anyone have one, a Tyan Tachyon G9600PRO-MD for example?
2. I have a HiPix and dual displays. I run the bigger display from the HiPix and/or the secondary display. It has to be the secondary because newly opened applications will open on the Primary display. (So the HiPix VIDEO displays where the secondary was, and the HiPix APPLICATION always appears on the primary display. Otherwise the HiPix appears offscreen) Unfortunately the bigger display is also what I want to play games and DVDs on. Both of which require hardware overlay and hence must be the primary display. Could something like UltraMon would switch primary and secondary like a script before and after running HiPix? Games? WinDVD? How about some other script?
3. Is the above problem because Windows OSs only support overlay on the primary monitor? If so when is this expected to be fixed?
4. Also if you only get overlay on one screen how do people play dual screen 3D games?
5. When I reboot, my Radeon always sets one display to 640x480 in Server 2003. Is this the dongle bug? If not, what is the Radeon dongle bug?
6. You can get a dual DVI Radeon for about $200. Does anyone have one, a Tyan Tachyon G9600PRO-MD for example?
Rick or others -
I have a similar setup with a Sony projector on the VGA output, and a small 9 inch CRT on the secondary DVI output of my Radeon 9500. I currently have the two displays mirrored, because I can't get different resolutions on each display. I simply want to run 800x600 on the small CRT, and 1280x720 on my Sony projector. I've installed Hydravision, but can't find where Hydravision allows me to set these independent resolutions. I've found through the ATI Display Panel where you can select a display scheme and assign a Hotkey to switch primary outputs. This allows me to place the overlay on either display, but not both at once. I believe the default hotkey for switching displays is ALT+F5.
I don't want to use extended desktop - just have a different resolution on each display. Any help explaining how to get this with Hydravision or within Windows would be great.
I have a similar setup with a Sony projector on the VGA output, and a small 9 inch CRT on the secondary DVI output of my Radeon 9500. I currently have the two displays mirrored, because I can't get different resolutions on each display. I simply want to run 800x600 on the small CRT, and 1280x720 on my Sony projector. I've installed Hydravision, but can't find where Hydravision allows me to set these independent resolutions. I've found through the ATI Display Panel where you can select a display scheme and assign a Hotkey to switch primary outputs. This allows me to place the overlay on either display, but not both at once. I believe the default hotkey for switching displays is ALT+F5.
I don't want to use extended desktop - just have a different resolution on each display. Any help explaining how to get this with Hydravision or within Windows would be great.
Please disregard my prior post. I just read where Hydravision does not support independent resolutions with Windows 2000, which I'm running.
I use a VGA distribution amp. It has four outputs. I have my 47 inch rear projecter, my Z2 projector and a Trinitron computer monitor for just doing computer things or playing music all connected at once. It works great and I see no quality hit from the amp.
Andy
Andy
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