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Forums -> Multiple monitors -> 6+ monitors with pci and pci express
Zed   2006-02-19 07:46
I operate a photo service where customers see pics on multi mon slide show then order prints or cd's. All of this is done on one system. 6 mons, two printers and cd burner.

Customers are returning from whitewater rafting. I do not have time for any photo manipulation. Recently upgraded to newer version of slideshow but it take more cpu. Each monitor is a different slideshow, pics rotate about every five seconds. Part of the problem is I'm using the full 8 megapixel file. The system runs faster if I make thumbnail, but I don't have time for that on the busiest days.

The system gets a little slow at peak times, big suprise. Looking to upgrade to dual core cpu but not sure how to use pci and pci express.

Currently run ati cards, all the same card in pci.

Can I do this with cards in pci and pci x slots? Should I use all the same card or different in pci and pci x slot?

I am not worried about gamer quality graphics, good graphics are fine, more concerned with system maintaining speed.

Thanks for the help

Zed
David DeRolph   2006-02-20 11:47
So, you currently use only PCI video cards, no AGP or PCI-x, right?

By "use all the same card or different in pci and pci x slot", do you simply mean all ATI or all nVidia, or do mean also using cards with the same GPU (nVidia FX5500, ATI Radeon 9250, etc)?

Here's my 2 cent worth. I'd say you do not necessarily need to have PCI and PCI-x cards with the same GPU, but using all ATI or all nVidia may be better than mixing ATI and nVidia simply because you'll need to install fewer drivers, and that may impact performance. I have two cards (APG and PCI) and two monitors. The AGP card is nVidia GeForce4 Ti4200 and the PCI card is nVidia GeForce2 MX400. They use the same driver, which makes installation easier.
Forums -> Multiple monitors -> 6+ monitors with pci and pci express

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