Question DisplayPort for Ultrawide monitor

[Jerethi]

I recently upgraded to an ultrawide monitor and only now just realized that there are apparently limitations to HDMI 1.4 that prevent me from using the "optimal" resolution and refresh rate of this new monitor, which is 3440 x 1440 @ 60 Hz. Instead, I am limited to 3440 x 1440 @ 30 Hz. I have been reading that the best solution is to use DisplayPort, but unfortunately, I am using integrated graphics on my motherboard and I do not have a DisplayPort. I have used some workarounds to get my refresh rate up to 50 Hz, but it doesn't seem to stick for very long.

So, I'm thinking about getting a budget video card with a DisplayPort so that I can use this new monitor at the optimum resolution. I have no problem continuing to use integrated graphics--I'm not a gamer--and I'm wondering if there's a setup that is going to work here. Can I get a budget video card with DisplayPort that will allow me to use this monitor at its optimum resolution, but continue to use integrated graphics? If so, does anyone have any recommendations on a budget video card I can use?

Thanks in advance!

 

[continuum]

Yes, you can use both a PCI-e video card and the IGP at the same time.

However the monitor plugged into the PCI-e video card's DP would be driven only off the PCI-e video card's GPU.

(there are some exceptions to this rule, but absent further specifics about your setup, generalizations are as far as we can go)

Just about anything decent will drive DP @ 3440x1440 at 60Hz.

 

[Jerethi]

Yes, you can use both a PCI-e video card and the IGP at the same time.

However the monitor plugged into the PCI-e video card's DP would be driven only off the PCI-e video card's GPU.

(there are some exceptions to this rule, but absent further specifics about your setup, generalizations are as far as we can go)

Just about anything decent will drive DP @ 3440x1440 at 60Hz.

Thanks so much for your response. After doing some research, I've located what I think will be a suitable budget card.

Is it really as simple as popping the new GPU into my motherboard, plugging in the monitor, and booting up? I was under the impression that adding a dedicated GPU to my system would automatically disable integrated graphics. My motherboard is a Gigabye B360 and I'm looking at an MSI GT 1030 GPU.

 

[Insert_Nickname]

As to what card, either a GT1030, or perhaps a GTX1650 if you can afford it, should do nicely. An AMD alternative would be the RX5500, but I think that's too expensive for what you getting. I would not recommend previous AMD cards, since they lack full support for VP9 decoding.

MSI and Asus make 1030's with DisplayPorts, so there is even some choice to be had.

There is also the option of "going pro" with a Quadro P400, but that's on the expensive side if you don't need multiple DisplayPorts.

I was under the impression that adding a dedicated GPU to my system would automatically disable integrated graphics.

It might well in with the BIOS in default configuration. There should be a BIOS option so you can force enable the IGP though.

There shouldn't be any issues with running both at the same time. As a bonus you get access to Intel QuickSync for video encoding.

 

[Jerethi]

There shouldn't be any issues with running both at the same time. As a bonus you get access to Intel QuickSync for video encoding.

Thanks for the suggestions. I just placed an order for an MSI GT 1030, which has both HDMI and DisplayPort - exactly what I need.

I am curious about running the dedicated GPU and IGP at the same time. Which graphics driver is Windows going to use? What if I were to play a game? How does Windows know which graphics driver to default to?

Thank you!

 

[Insert_Nickname]

I am curious about running the dedicated GPU and IGP at the same time. Which graphics driver is Windows going to use? What if I were to play a game? How does Windows know which graphics driver to default to?

Windows uses the adaptor the monitor is connected to as the default renderer. You -could- switch, but I'll not recommend doing it. For obvious reasons. In this case that would be the discrete card. So make sure to connect directly to it, which shouldn't be an issue since there are no other DisplayPorts in the system.

Before installing the card, you may want to make sure the primary graphics adaptor is set to PCIe in the BIOS. Otherwise you won't get any output from the discrete card until Windows loads the Nvidia driver. It not an issue, but it's harder to troubleshoot boot issues without display output.

 

[Jerethi]

Thanks very much for your assistance. The card should be here by Thursday; I'll give it a shot and report back (hopefully to share a success story).

 

[Jerethi]

Reporting back. The new GPU arrived and I installed it. Couldn't have gone smoother. Monitor now running at optimum resolution and refresh rate.