Dual Monitor set up

[WooD]

I'm currently using a 19" monitor, and I'm going to buy a 22 or 27" to add to it this week.

I know I have to get a dual output video card, but heard from a tech at one of the big name computer stores that I will probably have to upgrade my power supply too.

Anyone ever have to replace their power supply when upgrading a video card?

I could also use some suggestions on what a good card would be. I don't run any games or anything, but I still want a good card.

[SwissJon]

Nah.. Your "tech" was making it up.. Never heard of anyone wanting to upgrade their PSU to use a second monitor. Computer Power supplies are usually wayyyy over specced.. And anyway, the monitors have their own power supplies.

Any mid range graphics card will do you. If you're not a gamer, you'll be fine, just make sure that you get the right format for the slot.

[BigFuzzy]

Agreed, I'm running two monitors and my video card is on the low end of power consumption.. obviously, if you go for one of those monster cards, you may have to upgrade your power supply, but it's not automatic that you'll have to.

Look up the brand of your current one and see it's power usage and compare it to the one you're considering buying. If it's waaaay more for the new one, there may be an issue.. but that all depends on how much other stuff is pulling power from your current power generator.

[arlon]

We run 4 monitors on most of our computers at work and none of them have upgraded power supplies.

[dlambert]

There are all sorts of low-power video cards that are dual-capable. I think the tech was inferring "video card upgrade" == big-power gaming video card. These cards may very well necessitate a PS upgrade. There are gaming cards that'll suck down as much power as the rest of your system put together. Simply put, you don't need (or want) one of those.

You *will* want to pay attention to the power requirements of any card you buy, though. You'll find some cards (again, typically the higher-powered gaming cards) that need to have power fed into them directly from the PS (they can't suck enough juice through the PCI-x bus). These cards have a power jack like you'd find on your motherboard, typically along the top edge of the card. Most modern PS's will have one or two (for dual-card setups) plugs to supply this power. If you've got one of these available on your PS now, you've probably got enough juice to power one of these cards, but again, you're probably better off with a lower-power card, as it'll run more economically.

[Murtasma]

Very unlikely unless you buy a high end video card or go with a dual video card solution. With out knowing what kind of motherboard, power supply and video card you currently have it's hard to say if you will have to upgrade your power supply. The most important thing is to get a card your motherboard is compatible with. Is your machine hand built or is it a prefab machine from Dell, HP etc? You also need to be sure you have enough space for these new video card since they tend to have plastic shrouds and fans for cooling. Depending on what other cards you have near your video card slot you may have to move cards around or take something out. Generally home made computers have larger cases so this usually isn't a problem but in my Dell there are certain cards that I wouldn't be able to fit in there physically even tho I have an available slot. The guy telling you that you would have to buy a new power supply is steering you in the wrong direction. I would be leery of taking advice from him. Odds are you would run into a space or compatibility problem before you ran into a power supply issue. Even low end cards today support dual monitors.

[Jschlechte]

There are also cheaper options that don't require you to get a dual out-put video cards. Look around your local computer shop, not a big name store preferably, and ask if they have usb-to-vga or dvi adapters. You can use these to run extra monitors of your usb ports.
Best of luck!

[ceremus]

Originally Posted by SwissJon

Nah.. Your "tech" was making it up.. Never heard of anyone wanting to upgrade their PSU to use a second monitor. Computer Power supplies are usually wayyyy over specced.. And anyway, the monitors have their own power supplies.

Any mid range graphics card will do you. If you're not a gamer, you'll be fine, just make sure that you get the right format for the slot.

Power supplies from most desktops (even the big name brands) are under-spec'd, if anything. It's a favorite spot for manufacturers to cut corners, the wattage the power supply is rated for and the wattage it can actually output are rarely comparable.

That said you're quite correct in the latter, there's no reason to expect a need to upgrade your PSU simply for a budget graphics card that can support dual output. Just as long as it's not a major graphics powerhouse chipset.

This would probably be ideal, assuming the PC is not ancient and has a PCI Express slot.

[ishootRAW]

I run four, yes four monitors off a laptop. Unless your trying to run 6 monitors, all on there own 3D cards, your not going to have a problem.

[WooD]

Thanks for the info everyone.

My motherboard has an open PCI Express x16 slot, so I should be fine as far as that goes.

Talked to a local PC geek that runs a shop out of his home, and he said something along the lines of a GForce 8400 card would suit my needs as long as I didn't plan on doing any gaming.