Widescreen Gaming Forum

Hello everybody :)

First of all I would like to thank all contributors of this site and Forum !
It's a real gold mine for people who need more information about Multi-screen gaming :bowdown

I found much more information there than on the official Nvidia forum but I always have some questions and points to debate :roll:

Please forgive me for my poor english level and if I haven't found some answers to my questions during my research through the forum :oops:

Here is my current configuration:

Motherboard: Asus Striker II extreme (chipstet nforce 790i ultra SLI => Nvidia GPU only)
CPU: Core 2 quad Q9400 2.6Ghz
RAM: 4Go of DDR3 PC 12800 1600mhz
System disk: OCZ Vertex 2 120Go (since mid 2010)
Other disks: 3To from various manufacturers
GPU: MSI GTX460 Hawk 1Go DDR5 (since mid 2010)
Monitor/Screen: Acer GD245HQbid (3D ready - 23.6") with nvidia 3D vision
Power supply: Corsair 850w
Case: Cooler Master Cosmos 1000
OS: Windows seven pro 32 bits

An upgrade of the mobo, CPU, ram and OS is already planned for later in the year (=> Z68, Sandy bridge, 8+ GB of ram and Seven 64).
But, as you can see I already have one good 3D monitor and I'm currently thinking to buy two more very soon to be able to play in 2DVS and 3DVS.
As a consequence I will need to upgrade the graphic part of my configuration at the same time (now) ! (The new cards won't be changed during at least 2 years after that)

Here are my questions about that:

1) Best SLI ?

If i have well understood what I Have read on this forum, the amount of Vram is very important in 3D vision Surround (particularly when AA filter are activated) and a bit less in 2D vision surround (particularly when AA filter are activated), am I correct ?

If yes, I think that a SLI of two "MSI GTX460 Hawk 1Go" won't be a good choice for 3DVS but what about 2DVS ?

Imho, the best SLI for 3DVS at the moment is a couple of "Gainward GTX580 Phantom3 3072 MB" but it cost way to much for my budget (Around 1100€ in France for the 2 cards :shock: ), can somebody suggest me a cheaper solution ? :P

I saw a few days ago that Gainward also have a GTX560 Ti with extra vram (Phantom2 2048MB), does somebody have found some benchmark of this card (SLI + Surround) ?

I didn't see any other GTX 5X0 with extra Vram and I Never bought Gainward cards, does somebody who currently have Gainward cards can give me his opinion on this brand ?

Does somebody have heard about an announce of cards with extra vram by another manufacturer (like gigabyte for example) ?

I have also seen that Phantom cards are not overclocked and I didn't found detailed informations about the alimentation level of those cards, as a conséquence i think that it's might be dangerous (ie too much heat) to overclock them. What are your opinions about that ?

2) CPU limitation

As I explined at the beginning of this post I won't change my CPU before before the second part of the year and therefore I wonder if I will have to face a strong CPU limitation in 2D/3D vision surround with my little Q9400 (which can be overcloked a little bit in air cooling) ? Does somebody have information about CPU limitation in surround condition ?

3) About the Monitor

I read that the 3 monitors have to be the same in 3DVS but do the model revision also have to be exactly the same ? What about firmware ?

4)Monitor stand

When i googled a bit to find a good monitor stand i was astonished by the prices. In france a triple monitor stand (desk model) cost the same than a 24" 3D capable monitor :evil:

Is there a real difference between a noname model and a stand from ergotron for example ?

How can I know if a particular stand will work with my Acer GD245HQbid monitor ?

Secondly, my desk is not very large and deep so I also search for a floor monitor stand. I have seen some pictures of that type of stand but i didn't found a place to buy in western europe. Does somebody know a good model ?

And Final question (Sorry for the very long list ^^): does somebody have a triple monitor stand to sell (at a decent price of course !) ?


I thank you in advance for your answers !!

Have a good day.

°°° Darkbibou °°°

I did benchmarks of 1GB vs 2GB GTX460s when they were first released. The 560 is basically a slightly more powerful version of that card, so it should be the same sort of idea. Check Hardware & Benchmarks above for a link. :)

Basically, at the minute I don't think there is a good way to get 3DVS without massive outlay on graphics cards. 2DVS is a bit more doable, provided you don't demand max details or 60+fps constantly. ;)

Palit and Gainward are the same company. I've used both, not had problems.

I've got on my (long) list of things to do a review of how much CPU limits Surround, but I've not got a lot of time ATM.

Not sure about revision/firmware.

Monitor stands for triplewide setups aren't cheap. :(

Thanks for your answers Paradigm :D

I have read your test about GTX460 before posting my first message, it was very instructive !

I think I will go for an SLI of GTX560 2GB (Phantom²) with 3 Acer GD245HQ monitors.
I just wait for the official announce of the GTX590 to see if it makes the price of the GTX580 decrease a little bit ^^

Concerning the triple monitor stand I'm afraid there are no Ergotech reseller in France.

However I found this stand from Aavara (TS743): http://www.aavara.com/en/products/product.php?id=58

Did somebody have already tried this monitor stand ?

I have the Aavara mount on my desk right now 8)

Pros:
Cheaper than the competition, light but sturdy, easy to mount and operate. I can switch from Surround gaming to central tallscreen and back in seconds, and I do that a lot.

Cons:
Precise alignment of the panels in all dimensions is a bit hard to achieve, like with all triple mounts I suppose.
The GD245HQ is 23.6" and has thick bezels, so three of them are really all the TS743 can take, lengthwise. All three monitors are pretty much on the same plane in front of me, the mount would need longer branches to let me pull the far bezels towards me a little. Again, I don't suppose other mounts are different - the monitors are to blame here.

All in all, good stuff but maybe not the ideal combination for Surround, only because of the very thick bezels these monitors have...

Thanks for your explanations Scavvenjahh :)

I have difficulty to figure out what 3 GD245HQ looks like on this aavara mount.

Could you post here or send me some pictures of your installation please ?

Additonal question: with this aavara mount is it possible to superimpose the bezel of the screens ?

Woops, late reply.

Superimpose the bezels: yes, you can position the side panels at an angle so that their bezel is behind the front panel's, if that's what you mean. The result in games is much weirder than just thick double bezels, but it does let you fold the arms and adjust the side panels' orientation, which is hardly possible otherwise.

I don't have a camera of my own but I'll try to post pics, maybe next week.

Re: reseller of Ergotech in France, I've just received mine to Norway sent from Amazon.com in the US. So I guess they would ship to France too. Shipping however was expensive as the only option was airmail, but that also means its fast. Package spent more time on the road in Norway then the trip from the US...

Hello snuble :)

I wonder how many your ergotech stand has cost you in total.

I give an eye on amazon.com and the stand cost 299$ (about 210€). However this price does not includes shipping to europe, custom duty and french taxes (VAT - 19,6%).

All taxes included (+ shipping) it will cost me more than 300€ i think :(

This triple monitor stand is indeed a great stand but Aavara TS743 stand cost less than 200€ all taxes includes and is directly available in french e-tailer.

Is the ergotech stand far better than the Aavara one to justify that price difference ? :?

My guess would be no, its not worth the price difference. Unless its money that you would never use for anything else - ever :)