best cost effective way to run 4 monitors for just browsing+viewing. No gaming or anything

Dan

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3 monitors is NP, I do eyefinity/nvsurround all the time. But can you just buy a monitor with 4 ports? I know some monitor share "lanes" or what ever they are called. Like a Dvi-D and HDMI may not be allowed to be connected at the same time.
 
Not sure what you are asking exactly as you ramble in your message talking about a monitor with 4 ports that has nothing to do with being able to drive it if you have no ports left on your PC. Based on your message title, I'd say plug all your available PC video output ports into regular monitors.... then supplement however many additional monitors you want/need by adding USB 3.0 driven monitors. Either that or invest in a second video card.
 
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Use onboard and your current card

Or buy a Nvidia 970 or above
Or a AMD 285 or above

For 4 displays on one card.

(Keeping a purchase suggestion limited to reasonably newer cards)
 
If getting 970, be weary of MSI's offerings. MSI's 970's are the only 970's that do not offer 3 DP/1HDMI/1 DVI layout, but rather 1DP/1HDMI/2DVI layout.

AFAIK MSI is the only company that has weird display output like that on their 970, I am not sure if ALL of their 970's are like that.

1050ti seems to be the lowest grade GPU that supports 4 displays via 3 DP/1HDMI at least, if you want to keep it at newest gen.
 
Company called Matrox specializes in 2d multi-monitor cards and equipment.

I havnt looked at the website in some time, dont know current pricing. If you need a good quality high end solution they are worth checking out.

I remember the brief time Matrox was out performing both Nivida and ATI.
 
Company called Matrox specializes in 2d multi-monitor cards and equipment.

I havnt looked at the website in some time, dont know current pricing. If you need a good quality high end solution they are worth checking out.

I remember the brief time Matrox was out performing both Nivida and ATI.
20 years ago!!!
 
Company called Matrox specializes in 2d multi-monitor cards and equipment.

I havnt looked at the website in some time, dont know current pricing. If you need a good quality high end solution they are worth checking out.

I remember the brief time Matrox was out performing both Nivida and ATI.

I also remember that time, it was in the 90's. I owned the vaunted Matrox Millennium. It ran on the PCI bus and in my Pentium 90MHz nothing was faster.
 
I had a Millennium and a Canopus Pure 3d. Super smooth on the build engine games.
 
All depends on your computer setup.

Are you using a laptop or desktop? What make/model is it?

What GPU are you using?

What resolutions are your monitors?

What inputs do your monitors support?

Do you have DisplayPort 1.2 output on your computer? If so you can buy a MST 1.2 hub that can split a single DP connection into 3 outputs (DisplayPort or HDMI). I have seen 4 outputs on some models but I don't think it can do 4 at 1080p.

Or you can buy monitors that support DP chaining, so 1 monitor plugs into another.

Or you can buy a DisplayLink USB adapter - if you use a laptop many of the USB 3.0 docks have 2x video outputs using DisplayLink.

If you are using a desktop and have a free slot you can plug in another low-end video card.


MOAR DETAILS PLEASE???
 
Sorry for the delay. Im building a desktop from scratch. Will be a intel i5-7500. I believe he has 3 monitors but doesnt mind buying new ones.
 
I looked at Matrox's site yesterday. They had a couple affordable options.

Even a couple of PCIE X1 GPU's with multi monitor support. Not gonna be gaming but will do very good 2d / lite 3d.

WIth the PCIE x1 support you can use a whole lot of them.
 
I'm still confused by your posts:

Do you want a monitor that does split-screen of four simultaneous inputs?

Or do you want the ability to drive four separate monitors?
 
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User requirements... they are never stated clearly. The bane of software developers and systems designers the world over!

dilbert.gif
 
3 monitors is NP, I do eyefinity/nvsurround all the time. But can you just buy a monitor with 4 ports? I know some monitor share "lanes" or what ever they are called. Like a Dvi-D and HDMI may not be allowed to be connected at the same time.

Really we need more information to go on. What is this being used for specifically? Providing some use cases goes a long way to helping find the best solution.

Just from a "cheapest solution" method, if its a new build, you could just get 2 low end gpu cards, that would provide you with 6 monitors worth of ports for just everyday workspace usage.

If you want it to be able to play games and output, then get one high end card and one low end card, use the high end for your primary display, use the low end for your other 3 regular workspace screens.

Of you could do as others mentioned, get the USB display devices. They actually work reasonably well for adding monitors for general workspace.

There are any number of other possibilities based on what the person is trying to do and the budget of the build.
 
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