Possible? 1920x1080 multiple monitor setup

[HardHitter2k14]

Hello All,

I'm trying to take advantage of my multiple monitor setup at work.

My laptop is a HP Elitebook 8460P which is obviously a dated laptop. There is currently a hardware refresh happening where we can choose from 3 different HP laptops. They all have a Intel HD 4400 GPU.

Regardless, I purchased a Matrox TripleHead2Go Digital Edition display port (http://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/products/gxm/th2go/digital/) which turns the 4 monitors into display 1 (laptop display) and a large display 2 (the combination of the 3 additional monitors acting as one single monitor.

I can display across all 4 displays but the resolution on the 2 HPs and the Samsung is poor resolution.

Is there anything I can do to make display 2 run at 5760x1080? (1920x1080 * 3)

Display 1: Laptop screen
Display 2: HP 24" Monitor
Display 3: HP 24" Monitor
Display 4: Samsung 23" Monitor

 

[Lerner227]

You can look into Display Fusion. My wife uses 3 monitors & she used it tweak them for desktop & gaming use.

 

[KingFatty]

Are you using the native displayport from the laptop, or a displayport on a docking station?

Also, can you clarify what you mean? You list 4 displays. Display 2 is a 24" monitor. But this information conflicts with your question about changing resolution of display 2, which would clearly be unable to support such a high resolution on a single display.

Do you mean that you want to run the TripleHead2Go at that combined resolution? It may be a matter of researching the manual/support for that Matrox product. Or is the issue whether your laptop has some limitation on the display resolution that it can output?

 

[HardHitter2k14]

Are you using the native displayport from the laptop, or a displayport on a docking station?

Also, can you clarify what you mean? You list 4 displays. Display 2 is a 24" monitor. But this information conflicts with your question about changing resolution of display 2, which would clearly be unable to support such a high resolution on a single display.

Do you mean that you want to run the TripleHead2Go at that combined resolution? It may be a matter of researching the manual/support for that Matrox product. Or is the issue whether your laptop has some limitation on the display resolution that it can output?

I am using a VGA connector from my laptop dock into the TH2G and then 3 DVI cables from the back of the TH2G into the monitors.

According to this site (http://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/products/gxm/th2go/guide.html) it shows that it is compatible to hit 5760x1080 resolution but you must use a dual-link DVI cable. In addition, the limitation is the GPU on my laptop.

The Intel HD 4000 chipset shows that it can run at 3840x1024 (3x 1280x1024) which is what I'm running at now. Then I have my laptop display which is running at 1366x768 resolution.

I'm trying to understand if there is a laptop GPU that is able to support the resolution. If not, is there any other possibility to get around that limitation? I am on a Windows 7 machine as well so I don't know if that has limitations, but I'm assuming not.

 

[KingFatty]

I have the HP EliteBook 840 G1 and it's able to run triple-screen all by itself.

The problem is trying to squeeze so much visual data through the single chokepoint of a VGA connection. Only so much data can fit through that bottleneck, so it starves the Matrox device and is unable to feed it enough data to work with the higher resolutions you want.

Does the laptop have any other video outputs, like DVI or HDMI or displayport? Or are you stuck with one single VGA port and no other video outputs?

Can you obtain a docking station? The laptop will have a high-bandwidth connection to the docking station that can easily handle the increased data needed to feed triple screens, so each of the video outputs on the docking station can support it's own display.

However this works out, I'd suggest:
1) use three native outputs of the laptop to have native triple screen output, and don't use the Matrox. This works on more recent laptops like my EliteBook 840 G1, but your older laptop may not be able to support triple-screen output. Also, this will require at least one displayport connection to a display.

2) use two native outputs, and put the Matrox on the highest-bandwidth connection to support 2 displays, and then put the smallest resolution screens on the matrox. Connect the 3rd screen to the other laptop native output

3) use a docking station to connect 3 displays. Your laptop is unlikely to support 3 simultaneous displays, even if you have them connected properly, but this will depend on the particular laptop. My previous laptop was simply incapable of triple-screen support, even if I used a displayport. But my current laptop will support triple screen.

 

[HardHitter2k14]

I have the HP EliteBook 840 G1 and it's able to run triple-screen all by itself.

The problem is trying to squeeze so much visual data through the single chokepoint of a VGA connection. Only so much data can fit through that bottleneck, so it starves the Matrox device and is unable to feed it enough data to work with the higher resolutions you want.

Does the laptop have any other video outputs, like DVI or HDMI or displayport? Or are you stuck with one single VGA port and no other video outputs?

Can you obtain a docking station? The laptop will have a high-bandwidth connection to the docking station that can easily handle the increased data needed to feed triple screens, so each of the video outputs on the docking station can support it's own display.

However this works out, I'd suggest:
1) use three native outputs of the laptop to have native triple screen output, and don't use the Matrox. This works on more recent laptops like my EliteBook 840 G1, but your older laptop may not be able to support triple-screen output. Also, this will require at least one displayport connection to a display.

2) use two native outputs, and put the Matrox on the highest-bandwidth connection to support 2 displays, and then put the smallest resolution screens on the matrox. Connect the 3rd screen to the other laptop native output

3) use a docking station to connect 3 displays. Your laptop is unlikely to support 3 simultaneous displays, even if you have them connected properly, but this will depend on the particular laptop. My previous laptop was simply incapable of triple-screen support, even if I used a displayport. But my current laptop will support triple screen.

The laptop itself has just a display port and 1 VGA. When I'm at work, which is when I use the most monitors, I have a docking station. This docking station has VGA, DisplayPort and DVI.

The end goal is to have 4 displays which is what I have now currently on my old laptop. I have the laptop display and then 3 external monitors which are being seen as 1 monitor through the Matrox TH2G device. That is how I'm able to have those 4 displays.

If/when I upgrade to the new HP device (options are: 840 G1 or 820 G1) you're saying that the laptop is able to extend across 3 monitors without any adapters? If so, how can I do that (display across my 3 external monitors) and have my laptop screen be display 4.

 

[sm625]

I would not trust intel HD4400 to drive that many pixels.

 

[KingFatty]

If/when I upgrade to the new HP device (options are: 840 G1 or 820 G1) you're saying that the laptop is able to extend across 3 monitors without any adapters? If so, how can I do that (display across my 3 external monitors) and have my laptop screen be display 4.

Ah OK I see you want four active displays. I haven't tested that yet, so I will need to get back to you after I find another monitor to borrow. My coworker will be swapping out her laptop due to a refresh, so I can test at that time with trying to get 3 active displays with the laptop active for 4 total displays active.

I'm not sure about the 820 G1, I've only tested the 840 G1 with and without the slim docking station that fits the 840 G1. The slim docking station has 2 displayport outputs and a VGA output, but no DVI output.

Still, maybe try testing the matrox with just 2 displays. Can you run them at full/native resolution when only 2 are being used, or are you still stuck with a lower resolution?

 

[HardHitter2k14]

Ah OK I see you want four active displays. I haven't tested that yet, so I will need to get back to you after I find another monitor to borrow. My coworker will be swapping out her laptop due to a refresh, so I can test at that time with trying to get 3 active displays with the laptop active for 4 total displays active.

I'm not sure about the 820 G1, I've only tested the 840 G1 with and without the slim docking station that fits the 840 G1. The slim docking station has 2 displayport outputs and a VGA output, but no DVI output.

Still, maybe try testing the matrox with just 2 displays. Can you run them at full/native resolution when only 2 are being used, or are you still stuck with a lower resolution?

Let me know what you experience.

So at my home office, I have two 24" monitors which I am able to display across 1920x1080 on each of the monitors and then my laptop display. The way I do this is WITHOUT the Matrox TH2G but I use a j5 create USB to VGA display adapter.

For monitor 1, I have a VGA from monitor 1 that goes into the j5 create adapter and then the USB plugs into a USB port.
For monitor 2, I have a VGA from monitor 2 directly into the VGA port of the laptop

Once I wanted to add a third external monitor, that is when I had to purchase the Matrox TH2G and what I'm trying to work on now to have all 4 screens active with the External monitors at 5760x1080 total resolution (each at 1920x1080)

Laptop Screen
External Monitor 1
External Monitor 2
External Monitor 3

 

[HardHitter2k14]

Bump up