which ports do I have? (conflicting info on 6870 hawk)

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jamsomito

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I have an MSi Radeon 6870 Hawk (Twin Frozr III). According to MSi's website, I have

http://www.msi.com/product/vga/R6870_Hawk.html#hero-overview

Mini DisplayPort x 2
Dual-link DVI x 1
Single-link DVI x 1
HDMI x 1

OR, I have
Mini DisplayPort x 2
Dual-Link DVI-I x 2
HDMI x 1

I'm looking to hook up 2x 2560x1440 monitors, and 2x Dual-Link DVI would be great, but I don't know if this card will support it.
 
I dunno, on all cards both ports LOOK like they support dual-link. One example:

http://www.amazon.com/SAPPHIRE-Radeon-6870-GDDR5-Graphics/dp/B005C8RTTU

And this review of the reference design says one single-link, one dual-link:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2371271,00.asp

And this review agrees:

http://ixbtlabs.com/articles3/video/barts-2-p1.html

But most reviews gloss over this and just list DVI ports, or some say both are dual-link just because the connectors are both the same (dual-link capable).

This reference design specification (Sapphire has always built the AMD ref design) says only one dual-link port:

www.amazon.com/SAPPHIRE-Radeon-6870-GDDR5-Graphics/dp/B005C8RTTU

I remember people being confused by this back in the day, with some reviews saying 2 dual-link, and others saying not, while the ports all looked exactly the same. Really confusing cost-saving move on AMD's part there, especially because they decided not to use two separate physical connectors :rolleyes:

I'd wager not capable. You're going to have to try it yourself, or find some DisplayPort 1440p love. I would definitely try DisplayPort first if I were you.
 
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thanks defaltuser

I'm looking at the ASUS PB278Q. Apparently it's great with dual-link DVI, but colors are bad over Display Port. Probably some internal processing, but I don't really know why.
 
Why not look at buying a better monitor, then? You'll likely upgrade your video card long before the monitors, and the PB278Q is... passable, but not great.
 
277px-DVI_Connector_Types.svg.png



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Visual_Interface
 
Thanks, I did look that up but its not helpful. Both ports have all the pin holes. They could very well use that connector but not wire up each pin, or wire them all but the chip ignores some, etc.
 
deruberhanyok said:
Why not look at buying a better monitor, then? You'll likely upgrade your video card long before the monitors, and the PB278Q is... passable, but not great.
Click to expand...

Believe me, I have put a lot of time into researching minitors. This one seems to be the best all-around that falls into my budget.
 
Anyway, thanks everyone. I just ordered the monitors, so I'll let you know how it shakes out.
 
Yeah Jedi, if you looked at any of the pictures I linked, all the cards have two dual link physical connectors, but only one is actually fully wired up.

All part of some stupid cost saving move. Apparently just ordering all the same connectors and saying fuck the standard! saved them a penny :D

Ssinqvv.jpg
 
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suiken_2mieu said:
It's one dual link, and one single link. Almost all 6000 series cards had this spec. In fact we didn't get 2 dual-link DVI ports until the 200 series and then it was only on the newer gcn models (290, 290x, 260, 265).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127560
Click to expand...

Yeah, but it's not obvious because AMD was fucking cheap-as-hell and reused the dual-link PHYSICAL CONNECTOR for both ports, so you can't even fucking tell which one is the single-link (clue: it's the one on top).

Just bitching because once-again this this utter fuckup by AMD has bitten yet-another 1440p dual monitor upgrade in the ass.
 
Word. It doesn't help that even MSI's documentation is conflicting.

I just need the second for extra real estate though - I'll be doing all my photo editing and gaming on one monitor anyway so I'm not too worried about one of them having bad colors with a display port connector. Minor inconvenience that will go away when I do finally ditch this aging card.
 
jamsomito said:
Word. It doesn't help that even MSI's documentation is conflicting.

I just need the second for extra real estate though - I'll be doing all my photo editing and gaming on one monitor anyway so I'm not too worried about one of them having bad colors with a display port connector. Minor inconvenience that will go away when I do finally ditch this aging card.
Click to expand...

Just a warning: if you mix DisplyPort and DVI connections, you will get noticeable tearing. It is due to the two outputs using different clocks, and not resolvable unless you use DisplayPort or DVI for both monitors:

http://support.amd.com/en-us/kb-articles/Pages/Screentearingwithmultipledisplays.aspx

Yay, another unforeseen massive blunder brought-on by the rush to Eyefinity! If they hadn't rushed-out DisplayPort 1.2 support, you can be damn sure that the 6000 series would have included two dual-link DVI ports, rending tissues like this mostly moot.

You get the same issue on Nvidia, but they were kind enough to provide two dual-link DVI ports on every card.
 
defaultluser said:
Just a warning: if you mix DisplyPort and DVI connections, you will get noticeable tearing. It is due to the two outputs using different clocks, and not resolvable unless you use DisplayPort or DVI for both monitors:

http://support.amd.com/en-us/kb-articles/Pages/Screentearingwithmultipledisplays.aspx
Click to expand...

You mean while gaming? I'm only going to be using one monitor for gaming for the most part. Actually, I never really thought about how this will all work... can I pick which monitor to use when gaming? Does it automatically use both? Will I still get the tearing you're talking about if I only use one?

Coming from a single 1080p monitor currently.
 
jamsomito said:
You mean while gaming? I'm only going to be using one monitor for gaming for the most part. Actually, I never really thought about how this will all work... can I pick which monitor to use when gaming? Does it automatically use both? Will I still get the tearing you're talking about if I only use one?

Coming from a single 1080p monitor currently.
Click to expand...

Kindly ignore this guy, the tearing issue do come from mixed input, BUT, this is only an issue if you are using eyefinity to stitch multiple monitors together as one.

You will be fine. Also since you have a 1080p, just put that one on a single link connection. I.e. hdmi or sl-dvi. If the second monitor you're getting requires more bandwidth, then you have minidp and dl-dvi available.
 
suiken_2mieu said:
Kindly ignore this guy, the tearing issue do come from mixed input, BUT, this is only an issue if you are using eyefinity to stitch multiple monitors together as one.

You will be fine. Also since you have a 1080p, just put that one on a single link connection. I.e. hdmi or sl-dvi. If the second monitor you're getting requires more bandwidth, then you have minidp and dl-dvi available.
Click to expand...

No, you're right I forgot it only happens with eyefinity stitch of 3+ displays :D

Good catch!
 
suiken_2mieu said:
Kindly ignore this guy, the tearing issue do come from mixed input, BUT, this is only an issue if you are using eyefinity to stitch multiple monitors together as one.

You will be fine. Also since you have a 1080p, just put that one on a single link connection. I.e. hdmi or sl-dvi. If the second monitor you're getting requires more bandwidth, then you have minidp and dl-dvi available.
Click to expand...

Ok, thanks.

For clarity, I'm replacing my one 1080p with 2x 2560x1440 panels. I'll keep the other 1080 display as a backup or in my LAN go-bag.
 
jamsomito said:
Ok, thanks.

For clarity, I'm replacing my one 1080p with 2x 2560x1440 panels. I'll keep the other 1080 display as a backup or in my LAN go-bag.
Click to expand...

Ahh, btw, your colors wont be worse on dp, especially if you calibrate your screens. It's a digital signal so there wont be any degradation. Although your monitors might have a seperate profile for the dp than it does for dvi (for some reason).
 
That's what I was thinking too, until I read this: http://wecravegamestoo.com/forums/m...-pwm-flicker-free-8-bit-ahva.html#post1311892

Fortunately, the PB278Q's Standard preset and Warm Colour Temperature colour accuracy is pretty good, as long as the PB278Q is not connected via Displayport. The PB278Q's Displayport colour accuracy is mediocre since the average gamma is very low and the RGB Greyscale accuracy is also worse than the HDMI and Dual-Link DVI colour accuracy. When connected via Displayport, the PB278Q's colours look washed out and dull, especially when the User Colour Temperature setting is selected since the contrast drops to 550:1.

The Standard Mode and Warm Colour temperature setting are pretty good when the monitor is connected via Dual-Link DVI, and quite comparable to similarly priced monitors like the AOC Q2770PQU and BenQ BL2710PT....

Changing settings and not connecting the monitor via Dual-Link DVI is unwise since the colour accuracy and contrast suffer. The Displayport input is essentially useless since the PB278Qs colours look dull and lifeless....

...The Asus is free from obvious colour issues out of the box when connected via Dul-Link DVI, and the colours look nearly as vibrant and accurate as they can without being over-saturated. The Dual-Link DVI ports colour accuracy is worthy of 90% like the AOC Q2770PQU and BenQ BL2710PT, but I think the monitor deserves a lower score since the colour quality is awful when using the Displayport, and because the User Colour Temperature settings colours are also awful.
Click to expand...

weird.
 
Wow, what a strange caveat for an otherwise excellent monitor. I'll have to keep that in mind when I make recommendations in the 27" range.
 
Yeah. For my budget (<$450 each), they were the best. Hence the question about dual-link DVI on my GPU ;)

Thanks everyone. I'll let you know how they work out when I get them in. It's looking like mid-late next week.
 
jamsomito said:
Yeah. For my budget (<$450 each), they were the best. Hence the question about dual-link DVI on my GPU ;)

Thanks everyone. I'll let you know how they work out when I get them in. It's looking like mid-late next week.
Click to expand...

I have a potential fix for you!!!

From this review:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6460/asus-pb278q-review-an-ips-competitor-emerges

The HDMI input is also HDMI 1.4 compatible and with a recent NVIDIA or ATI card you can do the full 2560x1440 resolution with an HDMI cable
Click to expand...

Use the HDMI cable for one, and the dual-link cable for the other! No DisplayPort required. The 6970 has HDMI 1.4a. It might do the same color shift is does on DisplayPort, but if it doesn't, you have a fix.

Let us know how things go, I'm curious!
 
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Hmm, thanks for that. My only concern is if it will drive the full 60Hz at that resolution. Also, the monitor came out with a new version in 2013 called the PB278QR which used an AHVA panel instead of the PLS panel, along with a few other changes like a new OSD and possibly new electronics internally. The PB278QR became the PB278Q again in 2014, and the old PLS version was no longer produced. I think the review you linked is discussing the old, pre-2014 version with a PLS panel, so I'm not sure if it will translate directly to my model, but it's certainly worth trying!

Now this is becoming a monitor thread... I'll let you know about the card when I have a chance to hook them up, and I might find a thread for this model monitor to reply to about how the monitor works to keep the info in the right place. Looks like they shipped today, so hopefully they show up soon. Thanks again.
 
HOLY CRAP they're here!

Tsx2DUYl.jpg


Estimated delivery was 3/20. I won't have time to try them until Thurs though :(. Will keep you posted as soon as I can.
 
Ok, couldn't resist. I hooked one up tonight and tried out the ports. One DVI port worked on full 2560x1440 while the other only worked up to 1920x1080, so that settles it. One Dual-Link DVI and one Single-Link DVI. Bummer.

Oh well, I do still have Display Port for the other monitor, and I can always try the HDMI trick. I'll let you know how that works when I have time to try it out.
 
Just had a thought... I could use my integrated intel graphics from my 2500k for the 2nd monitor. My motherboard has a DVI out. Though I don't know if that's single or dual-link DVI, it should support 1x 2560x1600 display and 1x 1920x1080 display. My mobo has VGA, DVI, and HDMI out, so I'm assuming the DVI is dual-link to support the 1600p screen.
 
jamsomito said:
Just had a thought... I could use my integrated intel graphics from my 2500k for the 2nd monitor. My motherboard has a DVI out. Though I don't know if that's single or dual-link DVI, it should support 1x 2560x1600 display and 1x 1920x1080 display. My mobo has VGA, DVI, and HDMI out, so I'm assuming the DVI is dual-link to support the 1600p screen.
Click to expand...

Doubt it. Dual-link DVI is expensive, and they assume that if you're using those kind of resolutions, you either buy a discrete card, or look for a motherboard with DisplayPort. So as a rule few motherboards support it.

EDIT: your board is MSi Z68A-GD65, which according to this list has dual-link DVI!

http://daiktus.com/item/show/?prop=21567

I stand corrected, give it a go!
 
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jamsomito said:
Just had a thought... I could use my integrated intel graphics from my 2500k for the 2nd monitor. My motherboard has a DVI out. Though I don't know if that's single or dual-link DVI, it should support 1x 2560x1600 display and 1x 1920x1080 display. My mobo has VGA, DVI, and HDMI out, so I'm assuming the DVI is dual-link to support the 1600p screen.
Click to expand...
From the limited data I could glean from the Intel website on the HD 3000 graphics in the 2500K, only DisplayPort can output 2560x1600, everything else is 1920x1080 or less.
 
Update: I hooked up the second display today. I used my USB3.0 to Display Port adapter and it worked great. Colors really weren't that bad to my eyes... But they were noticeably different if you hunted for the inconsistencies. My GPU does have DP out, but both of those are mini-DP and I don't have an adapter for mini-DP to DP. So, that leaves me with the USB -> DP adapter, or HDMI. I'd like to keep the USB adapter free for my work laptop.

Everything I've read says that the monitor and the HDMI out on my 6870 are HDMI 1.4. HDMI 1.4 should be compatible with resolutions up to 4k... but I've also read that it can only do 2560x1440 @ 55Hz. The latter reason being why most software will only show available resolutions up to 1080p. It seems the way to get it to work is to add a custom resolution of 2560x1440 @ 55Hz, but I think I'm finding that this is only possible on Intel and nVidia GPU's. Is this true? Is there a way to add a custom resolution with AMD drivers? I can't find a way to do it just poking around the configuration options on my PC...

Any tips?
 
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