Widescreen Gaming Forum

Hi, it's time for me to readapt my monitor setup.

I have 3 Viewsonic VA912b's (19" LCD), and right two are connected directly to my "main computer", and the other one is on a 4-port KVM.

I've seen plenty of KVMs (Keyboard/Mouse/Video switch) that claim to handle the resolution of the DualHead2Go... is there one out there that would handle the TH2G? Or does anyone know of another solution?

I really want this thing... someone, please tell me some good news :-)

Thanks,
Strydyr

Those monitors have dual inputs (VGA and DVI). Do you have them connected right now via DVI? If so, you could connect the TripleHead2Go using the VGA inputs and switch the monitor inputs back and forth. Or, you could do this for the side monitors and only have the KVM the center monitor. This would mean that you could run the center monitor at a single-screen resolution when you're not gaming in triplehead, so you wouldn't have to worry about resolution restrictions.

you could connect the TripleHead2Go using the VGA inputs and switch the monitor inputs back and forth. Or, you could do this for the side monitors and only have the KVM the center monitor. This would mean that you could run the center monitor at a single-screen resolution when you're not gaming in triplehead, so you wouldn't have to worry about resolution restrictions.

Thanks, that's a very interesting idea. I wasn't considering the possibilities of using the monitor itself in that manner. I'll keep it in mind as I try to figure this out...

Unfortunately, hooking it up as you suggest would fail one of my goals: I was hoping to get dual or triple head "for free" on the other 3 computers with no additional cabling. Doing that means that all 4 would need to go through the KVM before hitting the TH2Go.

The best I've come up with so far:
CPUs -> TH2Go -> Dual Head KVM -> Monitors
(my "main/gaming" computer would route the 3rd lead directly to monitor, bypassing the KVM)

That setup gives me triple-head on the main computer, and I'd have dual on the other 3. Not too bad, since I could leave my mail client, etc in the unswitched monitor.

The downside is money... I'd have to get a new dual-head KVM and the TH2Go. If I'm spending $600+, I'd really like to be able to switch all three monitors. I can't help but think that someone has made a KVM that'll handle 3840x1024 @ 60hz.

The best I've come up with so far:
CPUs -> TH2Go -> Dual Head KVM -> Monitors
(my "main/gaming" computer would route the 3rd lead directly to monitor, bypassing the KVM)

Re-reading this confused me. With this setup, only my "main" computer would be routed through the TH2Go... the other 3 computers would have to provide dual-head support on their own. I think I'd only have to put a $50 video card into one of them to make it happen.

The price ends up around $700 with the switch (looking at the Belkin, since I know that a bad KVM can make your life miserable), cables, the TH2Go, and a low-end video card.

Below is (most of) an email sent by Matrox. They replied quickly to my query... unfortunately, the "answer", while informative, is almost a "tease".

The information about DDC support has me wondering if the IOGear GCS1744 might be a better choice for KVM.




Thank you for contacting Matrox.

The use of KVM switches, adapters, docking stations etc. is not OFFICIALLY supported with the TripleHead2Go. The reason for this is that not all devices preserve communication over the DDC*, yet the TripleHead2Go requires DDC communication to operate properly.

*(DDC: Short for Display Data Channel, a VESA standard for communication between a monitor and a video adapter. Using DDC, a monitor can inform the video card about its properties, such as maximum resolution and color depth. The video card can then use this information to ensure that the user is presented with valid options for configuring the display.)

Although I cannot give a specific recommendation for a KVM (since the use of KVMs is not “officiallyâ€Â

I don't think that's a tease. That's Matrox telling you that you have a decent shot, and offering you a return if your setup doesn't work out. Go for it (after getting a DDC-compliant KVM).

I can't help but think that someone has made a KVM that'll handle 3840x1024 @ 60hz.

The DDC is one thing but the other is the picture quality loss with a kvm switch at this resolution, no one is optimized to this resolution...

I don't think that's a tease. That's Matrox telling you that you have a decent shot, and offering you a return if your setup doesn't work out. Go for it (after getting a DDC-compliant KVM).

To some extent, I agree (I did say "almost")... the thing is, I KNOW I want the TH2Go, so that's not the part I'd be wanting to return :-)

The DDC is one thing but the other is the picture quality loss with a kvm switch at this resolution, no one is optimized to this resolution...

So it seems... I'm amazed at that, though. With all the high-end graphics work going on out there, and the crazy-size widescreen monitors coming out, it's still hard for me to believe that this resolution is so far out of the ballpark.

Going the other direction, I'll be happy now if I can just get a dual-head KVM that works between the TH2Go and the monitors. (My original hope was to put the TH2Go between the KVM and monitors.)

I'm not sure this whole effort survives a "sanity check".

Shopping around, the only (self proclaimed) DCC supporting KVMs I could find for under $500 were by IOGear and another company which actually used the same part number. Cables longer than 6 feet were not even available.

With one of those, I still don't know that the TH2Go would work. Surely, with LCD monitors so affordable, and so many games already working to support it, there'll be a mainstream solution for triple-head gaming soon.

SLI has already made the hardware available, and its hard to believe that video card makers aren't yet jumping to tap the multi-head gaming market. I've seen one card (Quadro 400 NVS) that supports four monitors... I'm unclear about whether it can span 3 monitors for gaming.

I think I'm going to order the Belkin dual-head KVM and give up on the TH2Go. At least then I can get 10 foot cables, and wait patiently for a capable graphics solution. Once that happens, I should have a setup that goes way beyond the TH2Go's 1280x1024 per monitor cap.

I'll just put my $300 aside until then :-(

I'm going to keep watching this thread though... if anyone knows of an equally capable alternative to TH2Go, I'd appreciate hearing about it.

Thanks,
Strydyr