Eyefinity Update

[siliconnerd]

I honestly don't know the technology... BUT...

Is there a way to make an LCD or (O)LED monitor that has no bezels? Zero edge screen? Is it possible?

Obviously it wouldn't be for the everyday user, since most people need them so they won't break the screen, but for professionals, it might be nice to have the option of bezel-less monitors.

I don't they could completely eliminate bezels. The bezels are what hold the panel together. If you take apart an LCD monitor, there is a bezel still under the plastic. OLED might be different. With the flexable OLED screens, they might be able to make a continuous curved monitor instead of three separate.

 

[JacobC1983]

Kyle-
I know you have been in contact with AMD for those with 20-30-20 setups, have you had any news back when this might be supported? Your pictures make it hard to hold off on this tech but I don't really want to buy another two 30 inchers or one more 20 incher.

 

[bryant12489]

Hey everyone. I was reading through this thread and just realized that i never got around to sharing my Eyefinity threads with everyone here! There over at OCN on the following links. I figured it would be some pretty good information to through together for people considering eyefinity! I'm completely loving my Eyefinity setup!


My Eyefinity benchmarks

ATI Eyefinity info thread

I hope this helps some you out that are still on the fence about eyefinity

 

[panfist]

I still don't see what all the fuss is about concerning eyefinity. Yes, you get insanely high resolutions, but you have bezels in the way, viewing angle issues with many of the affordable monitors, and a case in which the video card may not be able to push that resolution with the highest settings. If the 5870 could max out Crysis at 1920x1080, with 4x AA or higher and maintain a consistent 50-60fps, I would say "OK NOW it's time to push our resolution to the next level."

I wonder...what kind of fps do you get in STALKER @ 3600x1920?

edit: until the day when my eyesight becomes superhuman to the point where I can tell the detail of resolutions higher than 1920x1080 from a reasonable distance, AND I'll stick with my 50" TV for a gaming display.

 

[bryant12489]

I still don't see what all the fuss is about concerning eyefinity. Yes, you get insanely high resolutions, but you have bezels in the way, viewing angle issues with many of the affordable monitors, and a case in which the video card may not be able to push that resolution with the highest settings. If the 5870 could max out Crysis at 1920x1080, with 4x AA or higher and maintain a consistent 50-60fps, I would say "OK NOW it's time to push our resolution to the next level."

I wonder...what kind of fps do you get in STALKER @ 3600x1920?

to be honest though, Crysis is more then playable at my res of 5040x1050. Its only set to gamer however with no AA, but i have the Triple C pack installed as well to make the game look and play better. At this res, i dont see a need for AA really. EyeFinity is something that you need to experience for your self to really understand it

 

[ontariotl]

Thanks for the video review of Eyefinity the other week Kyle (BTW, I think the last time I sent or directed a message your way was when I ordered your 3M thermal tape for my Celery 300A). I watched it and knew it was time to retire my 4870X2 and my 32" monitor. My wallet is a little lighter, but it was either spend money on dates to get lucky, or spend it on my self and have a hell of a nice game setup. For now, I will forgo the lucky.

I'm a little peeved that the "Dell" piece is not available in Canada and of course Dell USA doesn't ship outside of the US. Fortunately I have a friend in the US who ordered it and is shipping it my way.

Since I don't have a lot to spend on getting a 5870 and 3 monitors with DP, I just went the Dell way (DP active adaptor) and 3 LG 23" monitors. I want a lower 1920x1080 res. instead of the 1920x1200 or 2560x1600 res. so maybe I could push a few more FPS in games. Its just too bad AMD/ATI hasn't fixed the CF for eyefinity yet. Although I plan on using my 8800GTX for PhysX for now.

 

[Smash2K]

So...lemme get this straight. You have a massive overall resolution...but you have several black plastic gaps between the monitors...

No! Bad ATI! Bad bad ATI!

*rubs ATIs face into black plastic bezels*

This is trash that will (hopefully) be replaced with proper technology before long. Who would honestly waste their money on this?

We are all going to be laughing at this junk when they start making decent monitors that pull the same resolution without the giant caps for a fraction of the price of buying three 24" ones.

Whatever happened to this thing?

 

[siliconnerd]

So...lemme get this straight. You have a massive overall resolution...but you have several black plastic gaps between the monitors...

No! Bad ATI! Bad bad ATI!

*rubs ATIs face into black plastic bezels*

This is trash that will (hopefully) be replaced with proper technology before long. Who would honestly waste their money on this?

We are all going to be laughing at this junk when they start making decent monitors that pull the same resolution without the giant caps for a fraction of the price of buying three 24" ones.

Whatever happened to this thing?

You can find it right here: http://www.necdisplay.com/newtechnologies/curveddisplay/
Costs $8000 and has the same resolution of 2x19" monitors. Yeah, really impressive...

 

[ontariotl]

So...lemme get this straight. You have a massive overall resolution...but you have several black plastic gaps between the monitors...

No! Bad ATI! Bad bad ATI!

*rubs ATIs face into black plastic bezels*

This is trash that will (hopefully) be replaced with proper technology before long. Who would honestly waste their money on this?

We are all going to be laughing at this junk when they start making decent monitors that pull the same resolution without the giant caps for a fraction of the price of buying three 24" ones.

Whatever happened to this thing?

Umm apparently I'm one of them who so called wasted his money on it. Seriously that monitor you mention, do you really think its going to cost the same as 3 24" monitors or less if it came out? Try at least the price of 6 24" monitors. Oh sure you mock the bezels, but I bet you would bitch and trash about the price for that surround monitor.

The point being....don't knock it till you try it. I've watched videos and after awhile, you don't even notice the bezels. I'm sure it will be the same experience in person, but at least I'm open to try it, not bitch about it.

 

[Banks]

I got my eyefinity setup working today and it looks like there may be compatiblity issues with certain games. It works fine in Flight Simulator X, but in Planetside, all three monitors seem to be cloned and it displays the same graphics on each monitor individually.


Also, I'm using the Dell/Bizlink DP to DVI converter, and on that monitor, I have to cycle inputs (switch from dvi input to vga and back to digital) to get the monitor to display whenever I go in/out of a game.


Just some notes on some issues I've had.

 

[ontariotl]

I got my eyefinity setup working today and it looks like there may be compatiblity issues with certain games. It works fine in Flight Simulator X, but in Planetside, all three monitors seem to be cloned and it displays the same graphics on each monitor individually.


Also, I'm using the Dell/Bizlink DP to DVI converter, and on that monitor, I have to cycle inputs (switch from dvi input to vga and back to digital) to get the monitor to display whenever I go in/out of a game.


Just some notes on some issues I've had.

Interesting issues, I will remember that when I get my setup completed with the DP converter. Although I do remember watching Kyle's video with L4D and it did the same thing as you mentioned. They were cloned on each monitor until he selected his resolution under the 16:10 (or was it 16:9?) category which showed the correct resolution to be used. Once it was selected, there was no more clone issue.

As for the cycle inputs, what monitors where you using? (Edit: NVM, I just saw it under your post with your signature duh!!!). I hope my LG's wont do that, but I have a feeling this adaptor will be a YMWV.

 

[matrix563]

would be cool if the matrox fix was employed somehow. however i wish there was something bigger than 24 inch monitors to use eyefinity with. now that would be awesome

and i hope they get it working with dvi and hdmi

cause then i could rock a 4320x1920 res

 

[PS3]

That is a sick set up. Any slow downs or fps hits when you run 3 monitors? I got a 32" monitor and I'm starting to think that having another one would be pretty dang pimp, but since I like racing games I would need three, since having the car divided by the bezel would look kind of weird. I really think they need to start making monitors with snap off bezels, or perhaps custom three piece monitors? Just a thought.

 

[eneq]

I don't they could completely eliminate bezels. The bezels are what hold the panel together. If you take apart an LCD monitor, there is a bezel still under the plastic. OLED might be different. With the flexable OLED screens, they might be able to make a continuous curved monitor instead of three separate.

Yeah not possible, what one could do if one doesnt mind trashing the monitors is to trim of the bezeld on adjoining edges so you basically got the monitor hardware in direct contact.

You would probably get it pretty decent this way but you would still have a detectable edge ofcourse but it would be a lot smaller. It might be possible to put a thin lense over the area so you could get a fuzzy reflection effect.

Anyway sweet setup.

/Q

 

[Bamboo]

That's a sick setup Birthday boy. To think Im all excited about getting one 28 inch monitor tomarrow. Gonna wall mount it =)

South Park kicks ass.

 

[butterfliesrpretty]

I like this technology for a number of reasons. For one I would love this for 3d modeling, huge resolutions and extra real estate is always a huge help, hell I can't imagine ever going back to just one monitor for that reason alone.

Also it seems cool for flight sims and racing games so you can view the sides.

However not to be a debbie downer but when you turn them vertical like that for games I just don't see the point in doing that over say something like a 32" or possibly even a 40" display. Maybe there's something I'm missing.

also check this guys setup out, can't wait to see some screenshots as soon as he's done http://www.widescreengamingforum.co...start=30&sid=1588a1e7c034cc5a8603bf42ff2a43e9

 

[Sparrow_69]

Just recently upgraded to a 5870 and using a dell 2405. U2410 just went on sale here in canada, so I just ordered one to replace the 2405. My buddy also has a 2405, so i'll be borrowing for a while to try out with the eyefinity setup:
2405-2410-2405.

Not too sure how well this is going to work since the 2405 uses an older pva panel and the u2410 has a newer ips panel... I'm thinking there could be quite the discrepancy between image quality, especially with the 2405s on an angle.

Anyhow, it isn't costing me anything to try out the eyefinity setup, so figure i'll give it a go. U2410 should be here within a week, so we'll see how it goes.

 

[AtkinS]

DAMNIT.

I got 12000 on my bank account now, and i dont wanna spend it on this setup..... yet... my fingers.... trying to order it everyday >_<.

First im getting a 200SX then im buying this. Depends if i can hold my fingers away that is

 

[CarrellK]

Kyle,

Any word from AMD/ATI in regards to Eyefinity and Crossfire configurations?

I believe Kyle has some posts elsewhere on this topic, but prolly won't mind if I comment in this thread.

Yeah - we are working on it. Hard. Really we are. We know you want it and so do we. It was supposed to be available at launch, but getting all the basic EF stuff working was more work than we originally thought. I'd give you a date, but that is a no-no in today's litigious society. When it is ready, you'll get it. Soon is as definite as I will be until it is done.

CarrellK

 

[Raxiel]

Well, no one could accuse Kyle of doing things by [H]alves!

For those that say they couldn't deal with the bezels though, remember this. Your eyes have blind spots, but when was the last time you noticed them? Or even the roof pillars either side of a car windscreen?

The human brain is amazing at filtering out irrelevant information, I've not used Eyefinity myself, but I'd not be surprised if the brain soon just 'stopped' seeing them unless you actually, consciously, looked.

Its different to 2 monitor setups because the bezels are more into the peripheral vision. As someone else mentioned, if you could get monitors with translucent bezels that refracted some of the light from the edge pixels they'd blend in even more.

Personally, my preferred gaming setup would be 1 big HD monitor in the middle and 2 cheaper, crappier, lower def monitors either side just for 'out the corner of the eye' stuff, but I'm not sure how well that would scale between screens.

 

[_G_]

I wonder how this would work with triple lcd projector's and a custom curved viewing surface?

 

[Romale23]

it doesnt need bezel management, screen makers need to find a way to remove the bezels

 

[nakedhand]

I have build my last 8 machines, and hmmm 20+ for friends, based to a great extend on the reviews from Hardcop, and couldnt have been happier about these rock solid builds, and my friends tell me the same.

Anyway to get on topic. This technology is blowing my mind from a distance right now. I have yet to lay eyes on a setup like this in person, but from what Kyle has shown so far, I am all in on this. Which means, that once again (and I guess this is a lengthy way of saying: "Damn it Kyle!") Hardocp inspires totally crucial system upgrades!

To me the bezels do not seem that much of a detractor compared to what is gained. How much do we really see the side posts or what ever they are called, on the sides of the wind shield, when we drive? I certainly soon forget about them.

Of course you need to have the option of aligning the image like Matrox did at some point. Especially for the concave landscape setup. Lower fps is a minor drawback, depends on how big the impact is of course, but the only true drawback for me is the power consumption, which would prompt me only to use the two other monitors when gaming.

Thanks for the screens and benchmarks Bryant12489 !

 

[adonn78]

That is a pretty sweet system you got there. What kind of performance are you noticing in terms of frame-rate? I would have probably waiting for the 5870x2 to come out before upgrading but who knows how long that card will be or what kind of case is needed? Seriosuly these are some long cards! I struggled with putting a 4870 from sapphire into my Alienware. 10.5 inch card. I can;t wait till cards with custom cooling solutions using more heat pipes comes out.

 

[inotocracy]

I filled up my shopping cart yesterday with a 5870 and two additional 24" monitors. I just couldn't pull the trigger, but oh man it was fun to stare at that list of hardware. Yummy.

 

[Intel_Hydralisk]

I filled up my shopping cart yesterday with a 5870 and two additional 24" monitors. I just couldn't pull the trigger, but oh man it was fun to stare at that list of hardware. Yummy.

Brings a new whole meaning to windows shopping.

 

[dajet24]

nm it was asked already

 

[FrgMstr]

Unfortunately this comes down to the games not supporting a high enough FOV for the crazy wide resolutions you can get on eyefinity. Kyle's setup looks pretty alright, but he's not running 5600 wide.

I do hope there's a fix for it soon, as to me the fisheye problems really detract from how nice gaming like this really is.

Previously I had played a lot of L4D in the 3x1 landscape setup with the heavy fisheye. Played for about an hour last night on the 3x1 portrait which does not exhibit that. I don't think the fisheye bothers me that much, but i DO think that I liked having more vertical pixels as well. With the portrait setup there were a few times I simply felt overwhelmed by the action in a way I did not with the 3x1 LS

Kyle,

Any word from AMD/ATI in regards to Eyefinity and Crossfire configurations?

Soon! Trust me I am counting on it too.

DAMN YOU KYLE! I have to go knock over a bank now...

By the way, do you have any idea when crossfire will work with it? Not to mention those Samsung monitors with the ultra thin bezels?

Samsung said by Christmas at the launch event and that is the last I have heard. The three pack with the stand should be around a grand IIRC.

first off I would like to say that i love that Kyle is still rocking the G15 g1. secondly wow bezels are some serious fail. i really have a feeling that crossfire of these cards is in my future but this is one of the things i would like fixed before i sink the dough into it. but after seeing what matrox did to fix it i have a little bit of hope that ATI's driver guys can get it delt with. now on to other questions i want answered about "eyefinity" possible to use a CRT or a 120HZ panel as the center of 3?

woot!!1 for the G15...it is about time to go though. Yes bezel management is coming.

Kyle-
I know you have been in contact with AMD for those with 20-30-20 setups, have you had any news back when this might be supported? Your pictures make it hard to hold off on this tech but I don't really want to buy another two 30 inchers or one more 20 incher.

Yes we got definitive answers on this. NO. You will NOT be able to use different size monitors. There is a big long engineering answer in another thread. But "No," is the short answer. Panels have to be the same size in resolution.

I still don't see what all the fuss is about concerning eyefinity.

Then Eyefinity is not for you. Your thoughts are noted.

Thanks for the video review of Eyefinity the other week Kyle (BTW, I think the last time I sent or directed a message your way was when I ordered your 3M thermal tape for my Celery 300A). I watched it and knew it was time to retire my 4870X2 and my 32" monitor. My wallet is a little lighter, but it was either spend money on dates to get lucky, or spend it on my self and have a hell of a nice game setup. For now, I will forgo the lucky.

I'm a little peeved that the "Dell" piece is not available in Canada and of course Dell USA doesn't ship outside of the US. Fortunately I have a friend in the US who ordered it and is shipping it my way.

Since I don't have a lot to spend on getting a 5870 and 3 monitors with DP, I just went the Dell way (DP active adaptor) and 3 LG 23" monitors. I want a lower 1920x1080 res. instead of the 1920x1200 or 2560x1600 res. so maybe I could push a few more FPS in games. Its just too bad AMD/ATI hasn't fixed the CF for eyefinity yet. Although I plan on using my 8800GTX for PhysX for now.

Thanks for the kind words, a lot of work went into that video. Wow FragTape! FragTape is the one of the reasons HardOCP is still around. It paid for the hosting bills for a long time. Thanks for the support.

FYI, currently NVIDIA has looked you out from using its cards for PhysX when there is an ATI video card in your machine. Sad Panda.

So...lemme get this straight. You have a massive overall resolution...but you have several black plastic gaps between the monitors...

No! Bad ATI! Bad bad ATI!

*rubs ATIs face into black plastic bezels*

This is trash that will (hopefully) be replaced with proper technology before long. Who would honestly waste their money on this?

We are all going to be laughing at this junk when they start making decent monitors that pull the same resolution without the giant caps for a fraction of the price of buying three 24" ones.

Whatever happened to this thing?

Again, the bezels seem like a huge PITA, but once you are playing they pretty much go away for me.

I got my eyefinity setup working today and it looks like there may be compatiblity issues with certain games. It works fine in Flight Simulator X, but in Planetside, all three monitors seem to be cloned and it displays the same graphics on each monitor individually.


Also, I'm using the Dell/Bizlink DP to DVI converter, and on that monitor, I have to cycle inputs (switch from dvi input to vga and back to digital) to get the monitor to display whenever I go in/out of a game.


Just some notes on some issues I've had.

All the games I have initially started are cloned on the screens. You usually have to select 16:10 to find the proper resolution to pick.

would be cool if the matrox fix was employed somehow. however i wish there was something bigger than 24 inch monitors to use eyefinity with. now that would be awesome

and i hope they get it working with dvi and hdmi

cause then i could rock a 4320x1920 res

AMD is working on the bezel management.

That is a sick set up. Any slow downs or fps hits when you run 3 monitors? I got a 32" monitor and I'm starting to think that having another one would be pretty dang pimp, but since I like racing games I would need three, since having the car divided by the bezel would look kind of weird. I really think they need to start making monitors with snap off bezels, or perhaps custom three piece monitors? Just a thought.

Certainly I am pushing a lot more pixels now than before. STALKER seemed like it could be mushy with settings all at "high" but walking about the camp it was fine.

That's a sick setup Birthday boy. To think Im all excited about getting one 28 inch monitor tomarrow. Gonna wall mount it =)

South Park kicks ass.

Those same guys made an appearance back in 1998 (date is wrong on the article I think).

I believe Kyle has some posts elsewhere on this topic, but prolly won't mind if I comment in this thread.

Yeah - we are working on it. Hard. Really we are. We know you want it and so do we. It was supposed to be available at launch, but getting all the basic EF stuff working was more work than we originally thought. I'd give you a date, but that is a no-no in today's litigious society. When it is ready, you'll get it. Soon is as definite as I will be until it is done.

CarrellK

Carrell here is the Father of Eyefinity, as you will now see his title reflect. He has been an engineer with ATI for a long time and is a gamer at heart and is responsible for you having Eyefinity today. So most of us need to bow to him and the haters can give him the bird.

it doesnt need bezel management, screen makers need to find a way to remove the bezels

I fully agree with you. However the fact is we are going to get bezel management a lot sooner than bezel-less displays on the cheap.

 

[Evil_SPanKY]

I have been using multi-monitor setups for a long time now. The bezels between screens are a non-issue entirely IMO once you get used to it. Maybe for the first day or two you notice them, but after that I dont even notice them anymore. Just make sure you get LCD with thin bezels versus the older fat 1"+ wide ones on older LCD units.

Very nice setup Kyle!

 

[FrgMstr]

I wonder how this would work with triple lcd projector's and a custom curved viewing surface?

I played on two triple projector setups at the launch. One L4D on a flat screen about 17' x 6' and the other one was DIRT2 on a curved screen that was 75' x 18'! Both experiences were incredible.

That is a pretty sweet system you got there. What kind of performance are you noticing in terms of frame-rate? I would have probably waiting for the 5870x2 to come out before upgrading but who knows how long that card will be or what kind of case is needed? Seriosuly these are some long cards! I struggled with putting a 4870 from sapphire into my Alienware. 10.5 inch card. I can;t wait till cards with custom cooling solutions using more heat pipes comes out.

In L4D at 3600x1920 with 2XMSAA I have the Shaders set at Very High and the rest of the settings at High and I am getting solid 60 to 90 frames a second.

 

[FrgMstr]

Kyle, will you send your spare 3007 to Brent so he can do a 3x30" portrait setup?

Brent now has 3 Dell U2410 to test with.

 

[Torgo434]

What case have you selected?

 

[FrgMstr]

What case have you selected?

The system is in a Coolermaster Cosmos chassis.

 

[Torgo434]

I wonder how this would work with triple lcd projector's and a custom curved viewing surface?

Dude.. That would just be BEYOND SICK!

On that note, Are you able to do a blueray accross all three displays? Or maybe some Ripped HD content?

 

[FrgMstr]

Dude.. That would just be BEYOND SICK!

On that note, Are you able to do a blueray accross all three displays? Or maybe some Ripped HD content?

Yes.

Do you have 3 x 30" screens between you if you wanted to test this kind of outrageous setup? I mean you know you want to try out 4800x2560.

I will most likely get a third 30" screen to do it myself once the 5870x2 is out and crossfire is supported in Eyefinity, after all 12MPixel is a massive surface to render.

Yes, I have three Dell 3007 displays in this office. Later this week I am likely going to try to get the three working with the Dell Adapter.

 

[Youn]

What I don't understand is why people think this is some new technological achievement. There have multi-displays for TVs, corporate rooms, etc... for a LONG time, with "bezel" compensation, and no it was not Matrox who invented it and it's not big a deal, it's just shifting pixels around.

That said, I'm sure it's pretty damn impressive seeing all that screenspace at that resolution. I work with alot of signage companies, the same tech they use for big displays at sports stadiums, they are basically interlocking chunks of screen that end up seemless. Obviously these are HUGE pixels, but the basic concept does not seem impossible for LCD, or OLED. It would definitely mean the thickness would increase, but working with the big LEd boards makes me imagine how it could work on a smaller scale.


Then again, I'm not a big nerd who gets a hard on for tech. Wish I was (yeah, I'm a bit jealous actually)

anyways, I do appreciate the improvements in graphics, so of course overall this is a good thing

 

[FrgMstr]

What I don't understand is why people think this is some new technological achievement.

I see people state this over and over. Show me where anywhere in this thread anyone has stated this is "some new technological achievement."

The fact is what is new is that it is natively supported for gaming without an additional cost of $300 and we now have the GPU power to push a huge amount of pixels.

 

[Intel_Hydralisk]

What I don't understand is why people think this is some new technological achievement.

No it's not, but this is the first time it's been made readily available to the masses on a practical level. It's the same for just about everything out there technologically speaking.

 

[Jabroni31169]

Pretty sweet setup ya got kyle....now hopefully ATI can follow though with some solid linux drivers and I can bang 3 monitors at work.

 

[Insula Gilliganis]

HAPPY Belated 42nd birthday Kyle!! Guess I know what present you got along with your birthday cake!! Perhaps you wouldn't mind me coming by and helping test out your new setup.. oh.. I forgot.. you like guns.. and you majored in Law Enforcement and Police Science.. probably a BAD idea on my part!! Will leave you alone on this one!!

Thanks for making all those sacrifices you do on a daily basis.. like having the latest & greatest bleeding edge equipment to play with and own. I know it is a tough job and someone has to do it.. glad you have been doing it for the past 12.4 years, making [H]ard Overclockers Comparison Page the best nonporn site on the Web!! Glad I have been visiting your site since finding out about you in an early issue of CPU. All you need now is a podcast.. PCPer's is very informative but ZZZzzzzzz.. BORING!! Am sure you could do an awesome one!!

While I am feeling nostalgic, found a 10 year old interview of you.. am sure others will be interested in reading about the early days of [H]ardOCP and how things have changed so much in just 10 years - http://www.slcentral.com/articles/99/10/hardocpinterview/ - Plus it isn't every day you get to see the [H]ardOCP logo floating in front of your face!!

Hope you stay [H]ard for at least another 42 years when, in 2051 through a USB 10.0 cable stuck in my brain, I will be "viewing" the latest ATI portable holodeck emitter setup you just installed in your mansion!!