Dual monitors, different refresh rates, lag.

[Jingee]

Hi, today I received my new monitor (a Hanns-G HS233H3B) and excitedly set it up next to my current (BenQ G2222HDL) and mashed through some games at the new 120hz refresh rate on my new monitor.
I then decided to stick some TV on my second monitor (the BenQ, as it has a lower refresh rate), and I noticed a problem; video refused to play while I was gaming.
I tried a few different games, and the problem persisted. I checked to see if VLC was using GPU acceleration to find it wasnt, so that was out of the window.
I then Google'd the problem to discover that W7 really doesn't like running dual monitors with different refresh rates, and playing around with my 60hz BenQ, I can see that it does indeed lag, and does not perform at the 60hz it should.
Has anyone got any solutions for this problem? I have yet to find one. I can switch out of 120hz, and go to 60hz on both, but I would much prefer to have gaming at 120hz, and have a full functioning 60hz monitor.

[Samwood]

Try running the BenQ from your mobo's outputs, so any output to that monitor will use your 3570k's built in graphics. That will also take load of your discrete GPU, improving gaming frame rates.

Also just to point out that 60 vs 120hz is barely noticeable. Movies, for example, run at 24 FPS (equivalent to 24hz), and you don't tend to notice lag in a cinema... 60hz should be more than enough (unless your running 3D games)

[Agent]

Also just to point out that 60 vs 120hz is barely noticeable. Movies, for example, run at 24 FPS (equivalent to 24hz), and you don't tend to notice lag in a cinema... 60hz should be more than enough (unless your running 3D games)

You don't notice 'lag' because of motion blur and a lot of other trickery, although we've had a few discussions about this on HEXUS over the years and many of us massively notice the frame rate at the cinemas

I think the main issue here isn't anything to do with 120 vs 60hz though, it's the fact that the screen isn't performing at 60hz as it should.

I've seen mentioned issues dotted around the web of W7 not liking different refresh rates on screens, but I've not encountered it myself. I was lucky enough to test 2*120hz screens. You never want to go back to 60hz after being on a 120hz one!

Are they both being run from the same GPU? if so, is this the nVidia in your profile?

edit - you're not alone: http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1636481

Give this a try:

The fix for me was to go into the Nvidia Control Panel -> Adjust Desktop Size and Position -> and setting "Perform scaling on" to GPU instead of display.

Now I've got the computer running in a 120/60Hz setup. I can play a game in one screen and watching a show in the other with no problems.

Just to toss out some extra info: My BenQ is of course using a dual-link DVI cable, where as my LG is running on a single. Also, for some time at first, the Nvidia control panel kept saying my BenQ's max refresh was 60, even though in windows and on the monitor's information readout it was going at 120. This was fixed when I set the GPU to do scaling.

Hope this helps people with similar problems.

[Chipps]

First of all, to Samwood....there is a HUGE noticeable difference between a 60Hz display and a 120Hz display. Especially when it comes to gaming.

Now to Jingee, sorry to hear about your problems. I have 2 displays hooked up to my PC (a 120Hz and a 60Hz) and have never noticed a problem with lag (I'm a gamer as well, and as you know gamers HATE and will notice the slightest bit of lag). This is just a stab in the dark: Check the drivers for both monitors. Is either one using a "generic monitor" driver? If so, search the web for a driver which is specific for your monitor.

My 23" 120Hz display is hooked up to my video card via a Dual link DVI cable. My 55" display is hooked up to my video card via a VGA SUB cable.

Cheers!