Choosing a Dual Monitor Video Card

[aroth89]

I'm looking for a video card that is PCI Express that supports 2 monitors (such as 2 19inch widescreen monitors). I'm big on multitasking and multimedia, such as music and video mainly. I do play some video games, and they require somewhat of a strong video card. I am also gonna upgrade to Windows Vista Ultimate (not like the "Ultimate" part matters...) with a duo core processor. The card will last me 5 years, and I don't wanna spend a fortune. Basically $400 is the max I'll pay, cause I don't need something that is for mega gamers.

I went to the ATI and NVIDIA sites to pull a list of Vista compatiable cards, (listed below), and I would like to know which ones are recomended and which ones might be best for me.

Thanks a lot!

ATI
ATI Radeon® X1900 Series
ATI Radeon® X1800 Series
ATI Radeon® X1600 Series
ATI Radeon® X1300 Series
ATI Radeon® X850 Series
ATI Radeon® X800 Series
ATI Radeon® X700 Series
ATI Radeon® X600 Series
ATI Radeon® X550 Series
ATI Radeon® X300 Series
ATI Radeon® 9800 Series
ATI Radeon® 9700 Series
ATI Radeon® 9600 Series
ATI Radeon® 9550 Series
ATI Radeon® 9500 Series

NVIDIA
GeForce 7900 GPUs
GeForce 7800 GPUs
GeForce 7600 GPUs
GeForce 7300 GPUs
GeForce 6800 GPUs
GeForce 6600 GPUs
GeForce 6500 GPUs
GeForce 6200 GPUs
GeForce 6100/6150 GPUs
GeForce FX 5900 GPUs
GeForce FX 5700 GPUs
GeForce FX 5600 GPUs
GeForce FX 5500 GPUs
GeForce FX 5200 GPUs
GeForce PCX GPUs

[cr8250]

Have you considered the Matrox P650? It is a true dualhead and has beautiful graphics. We use it with our Pro Tools setup at work, and it works great.

[equinoxe3d]

Yeah, the P650 will be awesome in 2D but sadly won't be of much help in games, even for casual gamers

Pretty much all modern cards support dual-monitors, just be sure to get one with dual DVI ports if you want to have 2 LCDs.

5 years is a lot to shoot for, especially when DX10 cards are slated to go out in that timeframe. Still, you can get something pretty beefy for less than $400, like a Radeon X1900XT at $350. This is pretty much a high-end card and made for "mega gamers" but on the other hand it'll probably last a while and have enough brute force to drive an 19" LCD at native resolution in current games, and upcoming games with very good settings.

Otherwise you can get a $200 mid-range card but upgrade it in a bit shorter span (maybe 2-3 years) like a 7600GT. It's a better investment if you really don't game that much and don't need to play at earth-shattering resolutions.

[aroth89]

Is the 7600GT able to run 2 monitors, preferably 2 19in widescreen LCDs? Or do you think I would need something with a little more "umph" (power)?

[aroth89]

Looking at the top 3 GeForce 7 Series brands, there seem to be alot of variations.
The 7900 has the "GTX", "GT", & "GS" models.
The 7800 has the "GTX512", "GTX", "GT", & "GS" models.
The 7600 has the "GT" & "GS" models.

How do they all compare to each other?

(This also applies to the ATI cards... they have many variations too).