[I changed the Topic title - it was: “Which Tripple Head Grafic-Card? NVIDIA QUADRO NVS 450?”]
Hi,
unfortunatelly it seems that the Parhelia AVPe is not supported anymore in a modern Win7/64bit system.
I stepped over the NVIDIA QUADRO NVS 450 and I want to ask if anyone has some experience with it? Quite expensive, though. Are there alternatives out there?
I need tripple Head Stretched Mode with 3 x 17’’ TFT - all of them comes with DVI (but that should be not a problem when using adapters I heard). I can’t find info about the Quadro 450 regarding that tripple head stretched mode…
In addition I would like to use the 4th out with a seperate Screen - if possible NOT part of the stretched Screen. Background is, that I currently use an extra computer for Gigastudio and analyzers etc - I would like to keep a dedicated screen for stuff like that but now on the same system.
My Parhelia APVe worked just fine in my W7/x64 rig. Just use the Vista x64 drivers.
That said, I can’t recommend highly enough the Matrox M9140 card, of which I have 2, giving me 8 screens at 1680x1050. DVI or VGA connection, pin sharp output and completely silent as they are passively cooled.
The RRP is a tad scary but both of mine were from Ebay where they can be regularly found for much less than half the normal retail price new.
thanks for your response! Well, sounds good - and, to be honest - it confuzzes me a little, just because I felt that I should left Matrox behind for the first time - using only Matrox Cards since 1998…
does the Parhelia AVPe Visa drivers work 100% solid in Win7? I do not want to have a compromise here…
the M9140 looks interesting, seems to be somewhat of a clone compared to the Nvidia Quadro NVS 450, even the price is quite similar… similar expensive
I am not sure what to do now - trying out the APVe first…?
Forgive me a question based just on interest: How do you use the 8 screens? Sounds incredible! I use 5 screens here, currently the tripple head stretched screen on the main DAW and 2 screens on another system for Gigastudio/VSTis (via Teleport) and one screen exclusively for analyzer and stuff… With a modern computer I feel that I want to have everything on the same system now.
Well, that M-Series Powerdesk Software seems very awesome to me - unfortunatelly not much info regarding the nView software (the Nvidia alternative) - exept a video. Well, I don’t know - from this point of view I would prefer the Matrox solution again. Mh, quite confuzing
Can’t offer any answers I’m afraid, but I’m also interested in the NVidia Quadro NVS 450. Be aware though that these cards have Display Port outputs so if your existing monitors are VGA or DVI then you’ll need an adapter for each one … which can add up if you don’t buy wisely.
I have the NVS 295 on another (non-music) W7x64 machine, and after some initial driver problems which were solved with an update about 9 months ago, works perfectly and as a result I’m thinking of the NVS 450 for my DAW, as I intend to go triple-monitor sometime soon as well.
Do you know if the Nvidia software enables us to have that stretched mode screen? I am talking about 2 or 3 screens acting like one big screen with a taskbar stretched over all of them? This would be a reason for me to stick with Matrox if this is not the same over at Nvidia. I can’t find much infos about that.
I’ll see if I can get this to work when I’m back at the W7x64 machine with the NVS 295 and dual monitors tomorrow morning. I have to admit, I haven’t come across this mode before … can I ask why you would want a taskbar stretched across all three monitors?
My page is not online in the moment and I don’t have pics on this computer, but here is my setup - and those 3 screens are acting like one big screen in every aspect…
I get the multiple-monitors bit, I’m just puzzled as to why it’s necessary to have the Windows taskbar across all three … so where’s the Start button, for example? If it’s at the left-most part of the taskbar then it would be on the monitor on your left, which I’d imagine would be very impractical … or am I mistaken?
In that case I can answer you now … Windows 7 does multiple monitors very well, much better than XP. It’s really more of an OS thing than a card/driver thing. The NVidia drivers for the NVS on Windows 7 x64 are now very stable too.
Early Windows 7 drivers for the NVS 295 were annoying with VGA monitors attached via Display Port adapters because it could mix up what it thought was the main display … in other words, you’d boot up and the right-hand monitor had the logon screen (and taskbar!) and then you’d reboot (without powering off) and the logon screen would appear on the left-hand monitor – this is now thankfully fixed.
I’ve been a Matrox fan since 1996 - no need to give up on them now! Most people are off on the whole 3D thang these days - Matrox still rule the 2D world and when it comes to DAWs/Cubase that’s what counts, all in my most humble opinion of course!
The APVe will work just fine with the Vista x64 drivers but I craved the linking of two cards to give me the 8 screens so I went on to 2 x QID LP PCIe cards which worked a treat, both just £75 a piece from The Bay. But I always had the intention of going to 8 x 1920 x 1200 eventually, a resolution which is beyond the QIDs. So when I saw that the M9140 could go to that resolution AND were passively cooled I was sold on them!
Picked up a couple on that auction site for less than the price of a new one and am absolutely delighted with my setup now. Matrox’s ‘Powerdesk’ software is incredibly powerful. You can arrange the multiple screens in any way you want. You may have read about the whole ‘stretched’ or ‘independent’ modes - I use the latter. With the Powerdesk utility you have total control over where dialogue boxes open/how maximisation happens/menu & tooltip spanning etc.
Despite Cubase’s workspace options I still find you can’t have too much screen real estate! See the “Show your studio” thread for those 8 LCDs in action!
Mh, maybe I can continue using the AVPe - that card does basically exactly what I need. Exept that the small fan on it is annoying but the computer lives in another room. And I do like the idea to set up the new system without messing with the current, because I have almost no offtime here. Mhh…
Well, as I said - I compared the actual M-Series Powerdesc software with what I was able to get about the Nvida software and it seems to me that the Matrox software gives me a lot of options and possibilities regarding the screen-setup and stuff. The nVidia nView comes with those grid-lines - but well, for that we have those workspace layout presets in Cubendo.
Is it possible with Matrox to have 3 screens in stretched mode (acting as one single screen) and set up the 4th screen completely independent? Different resolution and stuff? Does the Powerdesk solution has something like “workspaces” - I mean like I can set up on a mac - having more than one desktop and switching between them…
I was just about to buy the Nvidia Quadro - well, I think I can’t go wrong here. Drivers and stuff should be rocksolid. But now I have to rethink the Matrox thing again. Matrox over here since 1998 - had some issues on the XP machine in the last years with drivers and Powerdesk and stuff, everyone tells me “don’t use Matrox anymore today, go Nvidia”… But I hear the aspect of “2D world”. That’s why I always went the Matrox way, I have a Audio-only setup, NO 3d.
BTW your setup looks awesome! I went tripplehead 2003 - payed 700 EUR for each 17’’ tft - haha! After installed the screens I thought - “well, now I just need a second row of screens above” - hehe, you actually did
In my scenario I would have problems with the monitor-speakers, a good sound is more important for me than even more screens.
Well, resolution wise I could go dual head… Grabbing a cheap dualhead card and then I would have still cash left for 2 24’’ screens or something. But I hate that I have the sceen-edges just in front of me, so I prefer tripple head.
I think I would prefer two 450s. At least they can handle up to 2560x1600 for EACH display, and much cheaper, even with adapters. The QID only handles 1600x1200 max per display. At the moment, I have two Gigabyte 8600GTs and one Palit 9400, all fanless, and for a lot less than a 450. They have a 120mm fan trying to cool them down without generating too much noise, but they still get hot, which is why I am interested in the 450s. Has anyone used them on big screens? Unfortunately, the larger and more numerous the screens, the hotter the cards get.
As for monitors, my wife has two U2711s at 2560x1440 resolution. These have at times been the same price as the Dell 1600x1200 monitors, but are much better. They have to be the best $/Mpx monitors around. Certainly better value than my 30" Dells (though I got her 30" when we bought her the U2711s).
I have four 30" Dells on a home made chassis, arranged in a three side-by-side and one above in the middle. This way I can have Cubase extended horizontally or vertically, depending upon what I am doing. I have the two sides and the upper on a switch so that I can turn off 350W of LCD if I don’t need the face warming!
I was trying to find a touch screen kit for the 30", but to no avail. However, Dell has now released the ST2220T, a 21.5" 1920x1080 IPS touch screen, for not much more than their non-IPS ones. That means I can lay one in front of the middle monitor almost horizontal and position the Control Room and mixer there, as well as using it for the task bar (with touch!). I am not into multi-fader mixing, so one touch at a time is fine by me.
I have the NVS 450 and love it. I use it with 3 Dell 2407’s. I don’t use the Nvidia software though because I like what I have which is Ultramon (full 3 screen taskbar) and Windowspace. I have mine all set up as independent at full resolution 1920x1200 with my center one set up as screen 1 and 2 and 3 are left and right. With a card like this there’s no need to run stretched anymore like I did with the APVe since it will run all 3 at full resolution independently. The other reason I got it was for a fourth monitor (soon to come) similar to the above setup for just RME’s Digicheck.
Most definitely. You can select Stretched 2x1, 3x1, 2x2 etx and leave other displays to be independent.
Ah, as far as I am aware no. Whilst the configuration of multiple displays is exceedingly comprehensive, I can’t see a way to save different configurations.
I am sure the Nvidia is a more capable card but I did want to point out that you didn’t necessarily need to purchase a new card. Also of course, it is down to what monitors you have, the resolution they are capable of and your own personal preference. I have to say, even if I had 2560 x 1600 LCDs, I’d still want 8 of them!
8 x 2560x1600 monitors would be 8 x 130W (Dell 30") = 1kW, which tends to heat up a room rather a lot, together with the computer, sound card, etc! The surface temperature of the LCD itself is 37C at the bottom, 40C in the middle and 45C at the top.
In winter, I very rarely have to put a heater on, but in summer, the air conditioner is on a lot. Tracking is better done with most monitors switched off, to minimise the need to have a noisy aircon on.
Brandy,
There was (still might find it) a simple little utility called multiDesk, which allows up to nine desktops, with the ability to make programs only appear on one or all of them. There was a 2000 version, but it didn’t work very well. I have enough pixels that I don’t need to run it any more, but it (the older version) works very well on Win 7. (Though, I might just load it up on my Sony Vaio P!)
However, Cubase keeps all its own and VST(i) windows together and does not allow them to be put them on separate desktops. But, if you use standalone instruments with Cubase, via VEPro or whatever, multiDesk would allow you to put those pixel hungry windows on another desktop on the same monitors as Cubase.
Well, I was able to get a new NVS 450 incl Adapters for 250 EUR…
But I have problems… I don’t know if I am wrong but the Win7 design looks not perfect, I can’t see any “Aero” Features. In the same time the GUI is very very very slow - for example if I move a window on the screen it gives me a “tail” behind it, like on a slow Win 98 computer when you had “active desctop” enabled…
In Nuendo I opened a edited drumrecording in N4 and Zoom as well as scrolling and stuff is booring slow - if I close the mixer the events are recalculated one by one - feels like on a system with 95% CPU use - but I am only 2% CPU…
Can that be true? On a system like mine, i7 and 12GB Ram, everything High End - a GUI that slow?
Oh - I am using that “Mosaic Modus” which gives me one big screen made of those 3 TFTs running 1280x1024 each… Like before with the Matrox Parhelia…
EDIT:
I am not sure if there is something wrong - when I am using just 3 independend screens - then I have to stretch Nuendo manually (not maximized) to fit all three screens? It seems that GUI is a little bit faster here, but not much… GUI is fast when just having Nuendo stretched about 50% of these 3 screens… Damn on my old system it was faster!
Ok - Users of that NVS 450 - STAY AWAY from ever trying out “Mosaic Modus”… This f*cks with your system in a bad way!
I just posted over here:
I did a clean reinstall of Win7 and everything was nice and awesome, fast and tweakable - I installed the Nvidia Software again - everything still fine - enabled “Mosaic Mode” and set up the screens - everything broke down, 2 screens stopped working, the Design was changed to a crippled mixture out of the new Win7 design and the Classic Style - Windows were slow again when moving on the screen…
Switching back / disabling that Mosaic thing just left that mess - nothing changed, 2 Monitors were still disabled and could not activated again… No way to tweak the Windows Design anymore!!
Now I just installed Win again (fortunately just 10 Min with that SSD drive ) only installing the Nvidia Drivers but not the Software…
Rockinrog, I will check out those tools you mentioned - seems to me that they are exactly doing what I need.
