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Ryan 2009-01-07 16:11
Hello to all.
First off, I would like to thank the members on this site for the valuable information I've been able to learn in the past few days after finding a link here from a trading site. I don't know alot about computers in general but am trying to learn to at least be able to ask intelligent questions as to what I'm after. I've read alot of the threads here and alot of the FAQ series as they pertained to me.
What I'm trying to do is get one machine running 16 monitors. Very similar to what "Ian" in "Config 8487" in the gallery here has. I use his as an example bc he has the closest fit to what I already have, namely 16 monitors and 4 Nvidia 400 NVS cards. Mine are 440 NVS's though, (3 x16 and 1 x1) I do not think that will make a difference. I know I will have to buy a few more parts and very possibly UltraMon but I am at a crossroads right now on how to proceed. The monitors I have are 8 20 inch Dell 2001Fps and 8 Samsung 19 inch Syncmaster 940bx if that matters. I also have a spare 3 to 4 GB of RAM I can get for this system. I believe that'd be enough.
My questions are:
1. If I can obtain a motherboard to hold the 440s, is this possible to make all 16 monitors work?
2. What would be the best motherboard to use for what I'm after? I read a few weeks ago that the "EVGA nForce 790i Ultra SLI ATX Motherboard LGA 775" may be something I'd be interested in bc it has the slots I need. Any opinions on this? What about a P5K64WS Skt 775?
3. I noticed Ian used as his operating system Vista 64 bit. I do actually have the installation disks for this from a previous project, but I really did not like it. If I use Vista 64, do I still need Ultramon?
4. What size powersupply will I need?
5. Any opinions on what kind of tower or case I should use?
This is all I can think of right now, but any answers to these questions will at least point me in the right direction.
Thanks!
Ryan
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ECarlson 2009-01-09 13:52
I can't answer all your questions, but the power supply shouldn't need to be anything special. The cards don't use much power, so a system with a decent 380 watt PS should be more than adequate if you aren't running an unusually power-hungry CPU. I like the Antec EarthWatts 380 (that's what I have).
You can use any normal sized case you want.
As for the motherboard, you should just need 4 slots of whatever type your cards have.
You don't necessarily need a particularly powerful CPU unless your application calls for it.
Whether it will actually work or not I don't know, but if they are PCI cards, you should easily be able to find a slightly older computer with 4 PCI slots to test it. If they are PCI-e 1X, it shouldn't be hard to find a newer system with enough PCI-e slots. If they are PCI-e 16X, then your choices are more limited, unless you want to modify the motherboard's shorter PCI-e slots to accept 16X cards.
- Eric, www.InvisibleRobot.com
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Ryan 2009-01-10 19:13
Thanks for your input, I will definitly take it under advice. At least I kind of have a direction to aim for now regarding the tower, power supply & RAM.
My 4 cards are PCIe, 3 of them are X16 and 1 is a X1. I've found a few mobos that have slots that will fit them. They include the P35, EVGA nForce 790i Ultra SLI ATX Motherboard LGA 775, and the P5K64WS Skt 775. If anyone has any opinions or experience with these, I'd like to hear about it.
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Wayne 2009-01-12 17:56
Did you get this up and running?
I have 9 screens runnings, but certain applications only cover 8 screens. Very Annoying.
I used 2x Matrox M1940 & 1x Matrox P690.
I will admit it is a mix of Pci & Pci-e 16
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Ryan 2009-01-12 20:25
No, I'm nowhere close to getting it running yet. I'm still trying to decide what mobo to go with. I'm now leaning towards the 780i or 790i (can't remember which one I liked better). Looks like I had to rule out the P35 as it doesn't look like it has the right configurations of x16 and x1 PCIe hook ups I need.
Still trying to research things but it is so hard to find info on the subject. This was by far the best site I found & its even limited here due to the many different configs one can have.
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Jared 2009-01-18 15:54
Ryan,
First of all, you need to get a PSU calculator (google it) and determine the max amount of watts you will need in a PSU for all your components (everything has to be taken into consideration when building a computer so you don't damage components).
There are plenty of motherboards available that will give you 4 PCIe slots to plug in the NVS 440s. You can use the power search over at Newegg.com to narrow your results.
Also, you will be able to use all 16 monitors, but you will most definitely need Ultramon because Windows has a 10 monitor limitation. We build 16 monitor systems all the time at our site and we load Ultramon exclusively to achieve this result.
What speed is your RAM and what processor are you using? With that many monitors, I would recommend 800MHz DDR2 RAM (at least) and a quad core (Q6600 or Q6700).
It's tricky business getting a multiple monitor computer with 16 monitors to run. We specialize in them, so if you need anymore help, please feel free to contact us at our website.
http://www.multiplexpc.com/
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ECarlson 2009-01-19 12:36
I have only seen 1 online power calculator that didn't produce a result that is at least double anything close to realistic. So don't just google online power calculators, otherwise there is high probability that you'll be fooled into thinking you need (for example) a 650 watt power supply when you could never possibly even use close to 300 watts (again, just an example).
Someone on DPReview Forums suggested I try this online calculator:
http://www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculator.jsp
And I tried a couple popular configurations and I was very surprised that the results were actually reasonably realistic.
- Eric, www.InvisibleRobot.com
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ECarlson 2009-01-19 12:37
Link: www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculator.jsp
- Eric, www.InvisibleRobot.com
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ECarlson 2009-01-19 12:46
Sorry for all the posts, but since that power calculator doesn't include the Nvidia 400 NVS, that card apparently uses about 31.W max, so that would be 124.W Max for 4 of that video cards, hence, if you have an ordinary system, like a Q6600 with 4.Gigs RAM, a few hard drives, perhaps a TV card, and a DVD writer or two, and a few case fans, you'll still be way under the 380.W I mentioned earlier.
- Eric, www.InvisibleRobot.com
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Jared 2009-01-19 18:13
I would recommend at least a 550WATT PSU with the appropriate amount of rails. You want a PSU that is highly efficient too. Don't try and skimp on the PSU. It's always better to get a slightly more powerful one than to get a lower wattage one and under power your system. A leading cause of component failure is due to not having enough power causing power fluctuations.
http://www.multiplexpc.com
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Ryan 2009-01-19 19:00
--Eric, don't apologize for all the posts, I so appreciate all the input from everyone here.
I have a few updates. I found a deal on a EVGA 790i Ultra Motherboard and an Intel Q9300 Quadcore Processor. I figure that oughta do it! For me, the mobo was the hardest decision & I read and read tons of stuff & just felt the 790i was the one for me.
I will go with DDR3 RAM but I haven't purchased it yet. I figure 2 GB of RAM should be enough, or should I get 4 GB?
As far as the Power Supply choice, I have not purchased one yet, that will be a little bit down the line. I have a 400watt PS and a 1000watt PS (off my gaming system) I can experiment with to see what works & doesn't work. As far as what this computer will have on it, its literally just the 4 440NVS's, Cd Rom drive, 1 hard drive and whatever I need to connect to the internet. I don't need sound or a TV tuner if that helps anyone figure what may be best for me. I will definitly try those power calculator links though and I'm sure I will be in touch with you Jared in a few weeks when i'm ready to proceed to the next step. Thanks!
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Ryan 2009-01-29 20:41
Hi all, running into a bit of a snag with the PSU. I decided to just go with a 1000W PSU just to save myself the agony of later on realizing a lower number may not be enough.
Will any PSU fit on a 790i Mboard or does it have to be a certain kind? I have found several good deals on ebay and am wondering what the best way to ask if it will fit should be? I guess in computer vocabulary terms, what parts or connectors should it have to match up with what I have?.
Also, does anyone have any suggestions on the brand? I've seen Alienware, Dell and Cooler Master on ebay. Dell scares me bc I know alot of their parts aren't compatable (at least in my experience) and my gaming system has a Cooler Master PSU now, but that comp is riddled with problems so I'm not sure if that's a good brand or not. That leaves Alienware, anyone familiar with that PSU?
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Jared 2009-01-31 08:09
Check out newegg.com for the best PSUs and read the reviews on them. Make sure you're purchasing a PSU with correct amps on each rail. Incorrect power supply is the main cause of component failure. Cooler Master makes a great product. Alienware uses 3rd party, rebranded components for their computers, so if you go with them you will be paying for a name.
Jared
http://www.multiplexpc.com
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Ryan 2009-01-31 09:28
Ok, well that's enough to rule out Alienware then. I will go with the Cooler Master then. What amps are you talking about? Does the Cooler Master have that?
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ECarlson 2009-01-31 14:07
If you're going to go overkill on the PS, there's no reason to go over 500.W (which is still way overkill). Don't worry about current, especially since you are using low power video cards: It only really matters to people running multiple high-end gaming cards with separate power connectors.
The Antec EarthWatts series are good, and so are Seasonic power supplies (I've read that the Antec Earthwatts are actually made by Seasonic).
- Eric, www.InvisibleRobot.com
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Ryan 2009-02-11 20:35
Ok, I'm trying to keep my questions to a minimum here, but I am stuck on the RAM now. The one good thing is that this is the last of the hardware parts I need to get this thing running (or try to).
It took me forever to find DDR3 RAM that I was sure was compatible with the 790i and its a fortune. I was going to get 2 sticks of 2GB each, that way if I had to upgrade to Vista 64, I'd be on my way to having however much I needed. In XP, I know I can only use 3GB.
Anyways, my question is, can I get by with just 2GB of OCZ RAM 2000Mzh or do i have to have 3? I've checked out alot of the models in the database and I see alot of folks running with just 1 or 2 gigs, but most I saw were just powering 12 monitors.
As always, any opinions are appreciated.
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Ian 2009-02-19 23:32
Hi Ryan,
I haven't been on this site for a while, too busy trying to make a living in this recession.
I recently built myself a new 16 monitor setup using Nvidia 440's 16x PCIe. 2GB of ram will not cut it, my system uses 2GB to boot to the desktop!! I'm running a P5W64 WS Professional board and she run's like a dream.
If you need any help let me know... :-)
Regards
Ian
Config 8487
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Ryan 2009-03-13 23:29
Ok, Its been a while but I have definitly made some progress. I have 10 of the monitors now working in unison and have installed Ultramon. I think I can try for 12 later but when I put all 4 440 video cards in to try to get to 16, the comp will not boot! I'm assuming I need more RAM like Ian said above, is there anything else that could be causing it?
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