Running 2 screens off desktop? Advice required

Hi all

I am an end of day/ weekly trader and a buying a new PC solely for trading and analysis.

I have 2 screens bought and need to get a desktop capable of powering them and hoping some of you more technically gifted may be able to help advise me.

Is this graphics card on this computer enough to run 2 screens or do I need an additional graphics card also??

4GB 2x3.0GHz New DVDRW 160GB AV HDD DVD Rewriter Desktop PC P4 Tower XP Computer | eBay

Thanks in advance

T

I'm not sure if it can tbh but if not you can pick up a graphics card that will run 2 screens for £10-15. The PCI-E slot is low profile so the card would have to be the same.

Most if not all mordern PC'S have a DVI output. Therefore you should be able to run 2 x monitors. At worst you may need to purchase a cable adapter. Check the spec of the PC you indend to purchase.

that pc looks to have only 1 output for gfx. so if you purchase that particular model, then yes, you'll need to purchase the upgrade gfx card they sell. the issue with that is the ati option will likely still only give you 1 gfx output. the other 2 options of the quadro cards are good for the 2 monitor setup. but are pci, this is bad and they will be slow, very slow. anyway, that pc looks an overpriced old used piece of garbage. go spend your money on new, fast and reliable.

Thanks for all the prompt responses!

For my needs, basically running an EOD charting package, some java when using sites such advfn etc I think this desktop with an appropriate graphics cards would be sufficient no?

I do not need 8 screens and high cost high end hardware as that doesnt make me money, simple as that.

I also dont rely on intensive intraday charting packages so again think this would be more than enough no? Please correct me if I am wrong as obv dont wanna buy this and get no use out of it.

I currently use 2 laptops and a plasma tv but feel its now getting to a stage where I want to seperate my trading from leisure etc

Thanks again

T

My older HP PC has a graphics card with one DMS-59 connector and a "Y" connector plugged into that with two DVI connections. Then a DVI cable from one of those to one monitor. And another DVI cable to the other monitor.

Then I had to install the drivers from the graphics card manufacturer to get dual screens to work. Just the Microsoft installed drivers would not allow the dual monitors to work.

FYI - I have been in the computer field most of my life and this was a ROYAL pain for me to set up on my older computer...

With that said, you would probably do yourself a favor by buying a new computer which already has the proper graphics card and Y adapter installed. Note that "business" computers like this are not sold in retail stores typically. Call a company like HP or search on the internet.

They used to have HP business machine dealers where you could order these from locally. I don't know if they have that anymore? Or if everything is internet/phone now?

You can get a newish card for about 30 that will run 2 screens just make sure it just accepts a pci express slot card on the machine and the card does not require additional power in respect of a high end psu 600w. I agree with the earlier comment though that the pc on bay was a piece of junk and would not run a decent card. You could get the whole job done Inc pc/card for £200 or less but would spec the card yourself to make sure!

tonster01 said:

Thanks for all the prompt responses!

For my needs, basically running an EOD charting package, some java when using sites such advfn etc I think this desktop with an appropriate graphics cards would be sufficient no?

I do not need 8 screens and high cost high end hardware as that doesnt make me money, simple as that.

I also dont rely on intensive intraday charting packages so again think this would be more than enough no? Please correct me if I am wrong as obv dont wanna buy this and get no use out of it.

I currently use 2 laptops and a plasma tv but feel its now getting to a stage where I want to seperate my trading from leisure etc

Thanks again

T

Click to expand...

Yes, I totally agree, there is no point spending a penny more than required imo. That setup will be absolutely fine.

I can say that confidently because I was going to spend in the region of £1500 for a fancy quad monitor set-up, until I found a few things on Ebay like you.

I picked up a 4x screen and stand set used for £150. A cheap PC for £50 that wasn't quite as good a spec as the one you found. Quad monitor card for £75 (could have done it much cheaper with 2x dual cards I realize now but nevermind) , then a new £22 power supply when the graphics card fried the one that came with the pc.

On this I run Java Currenex, Ninjatrader, Metatrader, news feeds, and loads of IE tabs etc. All for intraday trading.

I still get a kick out of how cheaply I put that lot together every time I sit down at my desk which, btw, I also got super cheap on Ebay

was going to suggest this card GEFORCE 8400GS 1GB PCI-E GRAPHICS CARD HDMI LOW PROFILE (4719331317348) | eBay as it's low profile and i know it'll do the job, cos i have the asus silent version, doing it's thing ok and dandy. but then i thought, hang on, it's going in a xp machine out the ark, will it work ok?

anyway i also have one of these in a pci slot, for even more screens. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nvidia-Gefo...25SI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1329602900&sr=8-1 damn its slow!! pci bus see, technology of yesteryear and it's use not recommended.

found this, and not far from the price you looking at DELL PRECISION 490 DUAL XEON DUAL CORE 2GHZ TOWER PC | eBay now that looks ok and solid and has 2 screen output, dvi by the look. dell precision are expensive normally, so i guess this ones maybe getting on a bit.

i forget who it was, but someone here used to swear by dell precision for their trading pc's, reported they were rock solid.

Thanks a million for the rapid response and help everyone and Lightning for the link, much appreciated!

Best regards

T

If you are in the UK then I can recommend this company:

Braebo Computers: Budget PC | Media Centre PC | Best Gaming PC | Desktop PC Specialists

I bought a 4 screen setup for about £300 including VAT. A 2 screen setup would be even cheaper.

The guy I spoke to was friendly enough and I chatted about what I wanted and they put some bits together. I'm not affiliated with them in anyway, so do some further research too if you like.

YouAreNotFree said:

Yes, I totally agree, there is no point spending a penny more than required imo. That setup will be absolutely fine.

I can say that confidently because I was going to spend in the region of £1500 for a fancy quad monitor set-up, until I found a few things on Ebay like you.

I picked up a 4x screen and stand set used for £150. A cheap PC for £50 that wasn't quite as good a spec as the one you found. Quad monitor card for £75 (could have done it much cheaper with 2x dual cards I realize now but nevermind) , then a new £22 power supply when the graphics card fried the one that came with the pc.

On this I run Java Currenex, Ninjatrader, Metatrader, news feeds, and loads of IE tabs etc. All for intraday trading.

I still get a kick out of how cheaply I put that lot together every time I sit down at my desk which, btw, I also got super cheap on Ebay

Click to expand...

lol