Motherboard and PCI-e slots

Quote from achilles28:

Is any special software or motherboard required to run two (or more) graphics cards simultaneously, for a multi-display?

I thought one computer could only handle one graphics card...
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No. "Extended Desktop" is an OS function. The limit on XP is 10 displays, if memory serves. I've seen a picture of W7 supporting 64 displays... though how they did it wasn't shown. (I suppose you could run 12 monitors from each "Eyefinity 12" on a mobo with 6, x16 slots = 72 monitors?) Seems I read about a mobo with 8, x16 slots.

If you buy new hardware to run 3 or more monitors for trading, the only significant consideration is the number of PCIEx16 slots on the mobo.
 
Quote from achilles28:

Thanks, Gnome. I'll grab another card today and give it a shot. The old NVS400 PCI (4 display output) is giving me problems.
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Likely the current Nvidia driver doesn't support such a legacy card... and an old driver likely won't run a new card. At some point, we have to let go of our legacy hardware.. :>(

Does your mobo have 2 or 3, x16 slots? Or are you running a PCI-only card from an AGP mobo? eBay still has several NVS400s available.
 
Quote from Bolimomo:

2mTrader: you have 2 PCIX16 cards. The motherboard you mentioned only has 1 PCIX16 slot. I am not sure if it will work because the other one is PCIX16 slot running at X4.

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This is OK. Most mobos share bandwidth to some degree with their various PCIE slots. Usually there is only 1 or 2 x16 slots wired for 16 lanes. Higher end gamer boards will have 3 or 4 x16 slots wired for 16 lanes.

Apparently mobo makers can save money by restricting the total number of PCIE lanes. Most of the decent ones run about 36-40 total lanes. Seems mobos with a premium number of lanes come only for a premium price.
 
Quote from Scataphagos:

This is OK. Most mobos share bandwidth to some degree with their various PCIE slots. Usually there is only 1 or 2 x16 slots wired for 16 lanes. Higher end gamer boards will have 3 or 4 x16 slots wired for 16 lanes.
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Do the video card makers specify how many lanes out of the x16 they actually use if the card is for PCIx X16 slot? I don't recall seeing this kind of specifications but I might have missed. I always assumed all 16 lanes are used.
 
Quote from Bolimomo:

Do the video card makers specify how many lanes out of the x16 they actually use if the card is for PCIx X16 slot? I don't recall seeing this kind of specifications but I might have missed. I always assumed all 16 lanes are used.
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I've never seen a video card with a label that it uses less than 16 lanes, if available. If they were going to make an x16 which used only 4 lanes, it would be better as an x4 card... as it would work in both x4/x8/x16 slots.
 
Quote from mokwit:

Re X1 card not working in X1 slot. From the research I did I got the impression it was because most X1 slots run at max 10 watts whereas cards start at around 12 or 15.
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That doesn't sound right. I saw a video where a guy installed an x16 card into an x1 slot, and it worked... he used a heated blade to cut the end out of the x1 connector.
 
I'm going to build an i5-2500k trading PC but have no clue on the MOBO choice. All this PCIe stuff really confuses me.

I like this one based on reviews:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...31682&cm_re=ASUS_P8P67-_-13-131-682-_-Product

I also plan to use two NVS 295 or 300 cards so I want to be absolutely sure that whatever MOBO I choose will support this.

In the product description it says:

2 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (single at x16 or dual at x8/x8 mode)
1 x PCIe 2.0 x16* [Black] (max. at x4 mode, compatible with PCIe x1 and x4 devices)
*The PCIe x16_3 slot shares bandwidth with PCIe x1_1 slot, PCIe x1_2 slot, USB3_34 and ESATA12. The PCIe x16_3 runs at x1 mode by default for system resource optimization.(PCIe x1_2 will be disabled.)


My understanding of this is that there are 3 actual 16 slots but only one of them actually runs at 16?

This sounds like an issue trying to run the two x16 cards. Can you guys set me straight?

Thanks for the feedback! :)
 
Quote from Devlin:

I'm going to build an i5-2500k trading PC but have no clue on the MOBO choice. All this PCIe stuff really confuses me.

I like this one based on reviews:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...31682&cm_re=ASUS_P8P67-_-13-131-682-_-Product

I also plan to use two NVS 295 or 300 cards so I want to be absolutely sure that whatever MOBO I choose will support this.

In the product description it says:

2 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (single at x16 or dual at x8/x8 mode)
1 x PCIe 2.0 x16* [Black] (max. at x4 mode, compatible with PCIe x1 and x4 devices)
*The PCIe x16_3 slot shares bandwidth with PCIe x1_1 slot, PCIe x1_2 slot, USB3_34 and ESATA12. The PCIe x16_3 runs at x1 mode by default for system resource optimization.(PCIe x1_2 will be disabled.)


My understanding of this is that there are 3 actual 16 slots but only one of them actually runs at 16?

This sounds like an issue trying to run the two x16 cards. Can you guys set me straight?

Thanks for the feedback! :)
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It's not an issue to have them run... it's just that they won't both/all run at x16 bandwidth. If this rig is primarily/only for trading, this mobo has 1000x the necessary bandwidth.

If you want to run all of your video cards at x16, you need to pick a mobo which does that... and such mobs are more expensive than average ones.

Here's one with 4, x16 slots... running at x16, x16, x8, x8

GIGABYTE GA-P67A-UD7
 
OK I think I understand. The cards will physically fit but just won't be transferring the data to the optimal level, but for a trading PC this isn't a concern at all.

Here's something else I don't understand. The same NVS295 card comes in a x1 version. Wouldn't this limit the card in some way?

Is one better than the other?
 
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