NVIDIA GTX 260 + Matrox on P5Q parallel possible with Debian Squeeze ?

zwiebelchen · 06-10-2011, 08:21 PM

Hi,

I want to order at least 3 17" LCDs, more could be possible...

My current PC configuration is:
-Q9550
-Asus P5Q
-4 GB OCZ RAM
-GTX 260 at PCIx 16x
-Samsung 2494HS

What I want:
-GTX 260 + Matrox PCI
-at least three 17" 1280x1024 monitors, more should be possible

Why I'd prefer NVIDIA + Matrox vs. ATI/AMD:
I read that AMD/ATI is very slow at publishing driver for Linux, isn't ?

It should be possible to use more than 3 displays, realizable with ATI/AMD (only one card) ?

Thanks in advance,

zwiebelchen

cascade9 · 06-12-2011, 01:57 AM

I've never heard of anyone getting triple-head to work with 2 different video card manufacturers, so I doubt you will get the nvidia + matrox setup going. AFAIK, you would need 2 nvidia cards to get triple-head with linux.

ATI/AMD will do triple-head with linux, but one of the monitors has to be connected to a 'active' DisplayPort output. DisplayPort to HDMI/DVI adapters are avaible.

Quote:

Connectivity Requirements: AMD Eyefinity technology is supported by graphics cards in the ATI Radeon™ HD 5400 series and higher. These cards can support up to six monitors (depending on the model), subject to the following restrictions:
• A maximum of 2 legacy monitors (VGA, DVI or HDMI) can be enabled simultaneously, provided that each monitor is connected either directly or via a “passive” DisplayPort™ adapter/dongle. “Passive” adapters/dongles will NOT support more than 2 legacy monitors.
• To enable support for more than 2 monitors, “active” DisplayPort™ adapters/dongles are required (or monitors with direct DisplayPort™ connectivity must be used).
• Approved “active” adapters have no general connectivity restrictions with AMD Eyefinity technology.

http://support.amd.com/us/eyefinity/...y-dongles.aspx

ATI/AMD has issues with linux support over the years, but they are a lot better now.

*edit- 2 x 1920x1080 monitors have the same horizontal size as 3 x 1280x1024 monitors (3840). If you wanted to avoid the whole triple-head issue, that is the easiest way.