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Thread: 7850 GFX card connect to 2 monitors

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    7850 GFX card connect to 2 monitors

    Hey guys, sorry if this subject has been posted before.

    I have a sapphire HD7850 which has the following outputs:

    1x DVI
    1x HDMI
    2x Mini Displayport

    My problem is that I want to hook up a secondary monitor, however it is old-ish (it is a TV) and only has a VGA or composite input. My current monitor doesn't have an HDMI input, what I would like is a solution to have both of my monitors running off my GFX card. Currently I am thinking that I can use the DVI out from the card and connect that to the TV w/ a DVI-VGA adaptor, and use an HDMI-DVI adaptor to connect my current monitor.

    My only concern is if this will all work, I can't remember but I feel like I have heard that HDMI-DVI connectors aren't all that good. Just want a heads up before I spend money on unnecessary adaptors.

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    Not a good person scaryjim's Avatar
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    Re: 7850 GFX card connect to 2 monitors

    Your reasoning is fine - VGA adapter from the DVI and DVI adapter from the HDMI is the best way to go with that setup. Presumably you got all those adapters in the box? If not they're cheap enough to pick up.

    The other option would be to go for a mini-DP to VGA adapter - they're easy enough to find as they're very common for use on Macs, but they do cost £15 - £20. That would allow you to use the DVI for your monitor and a mini-DP for the older TV.

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    Re: 7850 GFX card connect to 2 monitors

    I have the DVI-VGA adaptor but I was pondering over whether to get a mini-DP to VGA adaptor or to get a DVI-VGA adaptor. The DVI-VGA seems to be cheaper though, so I think I will go for that one. Just to check, is this adaptor ok for what I want...

    http://www.scan.co.uk/products/scan-...old-connectors

    Thanks for the reply scaryjim.

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    Re: 7850 GFX card connect to 2 monitors

    Bit of a n00b question but is DVI good? I've only used HDMI and VGA before?

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    Re: 7850 GFX card connect to 2 monitors

    Quote Originally Posted by MoneyShot239 View Post
    Bit of a n00b question but is DVI good? I've only used HDMI and VGA before?
    DVI is equal to if not greater than HDMI (HDMI can also carry audio), both are better than VGA.

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    Not a good person scaryjim's Avatar
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    Re: 7850 GFX card connect to 2 monitors

    DVI and HDMI are actually identical, for all graphical intents. They are both digital standards, and use exactly the same electrical signals, it's just the connector that differs. The major benefit of HDMI is that it can carry audio signals as well.

    VGA is an analogue standard, and was therefore preferred back in the CRT days. Now most monitors are TFT, digital signals tend to produce slightly better results.

    The current intent of the various standards groups that manage these interfaces is that HDMI should become the standard for consumer electronics, and DisplayPort should become the standard for computing. However, all of DVI, HDMI and DP tend to be available on modern graphics cards.

    tl;dr? There' s no difference between DVI and HDMI

    One last thing to say - DVI-I includes the analogue signals that VGA connections use, DP doesn't. A DP to VGA converter includes a DAC to convert the digital DP signals into analogue VGA. I'd personally always go for the simplest solution, so DVI->VGA + HDMI->DVI should provide the most reliable results.

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