3 X Monitor (2560x1440) and ATI 5700 conection help (Problems)

Meridiusuk · 15 Jun 2019 at 18:13

Hi all

I am upgrading my 3 monitor setup which is now a 2 monitor setup since my old one broke down. I am going to get 3 x @ (2560x1440) and using a ATI 5700 GFX card which has one display port and two DVI.

I have read that you need a dual-link dvi cable to display port cable or adaptor but these seem hard to find or expensive.

I was also looking into a dvi to HDMI adaptor which could do (2560x1440) @ 60hz but not to sure if that is possible.

this seems to be a right pain to sort out and would like some help on this as I have not got the monitors yet which are the Dell U2719D 27" Ultrasharp

any help would be great

also would like to know would the text size be the same size as my 24" 1920x1200 res monitors to a 27" 2560x1440 as I don't want to scale anything as I want more desktop

thanks

Quartz · 15 Jun 2019 at 19:01

Perhaps a better option would be to upgrade your GPU.

To answer your last question, the PPI is about the same, so you're okay there.

Meridiusuk · 15 Jun 2019 at 23:23

Hi thanks for helping out, What GPU should I look at ? I would like to be able to play 4k movie formats with hardware acceleration for x265 connect even though the monitors are not 4k, also I noticed you can get a lot of different monitors for about £190 to £450 with the same sort of specs

eg
27" AOpen 27ML1U 2K Monitor, IPS, 2560x1440, 75Hz, FreeSync, 1ms TVR, 100M:1, 350cd/m², HDMI/DP, Gaming Monitor £190
or
Dell U2719D 27" Ultrasharp QHD IPS Widescreen InfinityEdge LED Black & Silver Monitor (2560x1440) £400 which is what I have been looking at

that's a big jump in price £210 more and it has less features I just don't get it, why is the dell more costly than the other that has more features and uses the same type of panel.
this is going to cast me a lot so don't want to make a mistake as these will last me a long time, I hope

4k is out the window as I have read you need about a 32" to get the same text size as what I have now.

oh the monitors I have at the min are the Samsung 2443 I had three but one of them went, would I see a big improvement in pic quality in a ips from these or even another TFT

Quartz · 16 Jun 2019 at 00:16

Meridiusuk said:
Dell U2719D 27" Ultrasharp QHD IPS Widescreen InfinityEdge LED Black & Silver Monitor (2560x1440) £400 which is what I have been looking at

Dell Ultrasharp monitors are quality products. Your eyes are worth it. Which GPU you should get depends upon your requirements. I'm guessing you're not gaming. Just get the cheapest you can find with three Displayport outputs.

Meridiusuk said:
4k is out the window as I have read you need about a 32" to get the same text size as what I have now.

This is a misrepresentation. A 32" 4k monitor will give you the same pixels per inch but Windows supports scaling which means the text is the same size but looks nicer. For instance, I'm writing this on a 4k 24" Dell Ultrasharp set at 175% scaling.

Meridiusuk · 16 Jun 2019 at 00:33

thanks, If your upscaling to 175% text does that not mean you get a reduced workable desktop as all the windows have to resize to accommodate the larger text size ?.

I read the dell monitor can daisy chain so a single displayport GFX card would do as the monitors have a DP in and out. I would like a GFX card that can coupe with all 4k video formats and streaming 4k formats

Quartz · 16 Jun 2019 at 09:36

Meridiusuk said:
thanks, If your upscaling to 175% text does that not mean you get a reduced workable desktop as all the windows have to resize to accommodate the larger text size ?

The point of this 4K monitor is to make the text look better and be easier on my eyes. Yes, if I ran at 100% scaling I could fit a lot more in but everything would be tiny and I would suffer severe eye-strain. And the text wouldn't look so good. If you have a printer, print some text at 150 dip, 300 dpi, and 600 dpi. They all end up the same size but the 600 dpi text looks the best. It's the same with scaling on screen.

I read the dell monitor can daisy chain so a single displayport GFX card would do as the monitors have a DP in and out. I would like a GFX card that can coupe with all 4k video formats and streaming 4k formats

Displayport 1.2 doesn't have the bandwidth for more than one 4k monitor at 60 Hz.

Meridiusuk · 16 Jun 2019 at 15:54

was looking at the dpi of my monitor 24" 1920x1200 is 94.34 dpi now on a 27" its 108.79 meaning the text will be still smaller even though its a bigger screen meaning the text is going to be hard to read unless I use scaling which I find pointless as then I will end up with the same usable space as my smaller monitors and not really benefiting from it. also I read scaling can cause problems.

To get the same dpi as my 24 inch I have to go for a 31" to equal the dpi in 2056x1440 which is 94.75. but since you can not get that size it would have to be a 32" or 30" to be about the same dpi as the 24" which would mean the same text size as I am reading now on my 24" but would have more screen area to play with.

or am I wrong

My current monitor
24" 1920x1200 - DPI 94.34

2K
27" 2056x1440 - DPI 108.79
28" 2056x1440 - DPI 104.9
29" 2056x1440 - DPI 101.28
30" 2056x1440 - DPI 97.91
31" 2056x1440 - DPI 94.75
32" 2056x1440 - DPI 91.79

4K
40" 3840x2160 - DPI 110.15
41" 3840x2160 - DPI 107.46
46" 3840x2160 - DPI 95.78

so to get the same DPI and text size with more workable area I would need 31" at 2056x1440 and 4k would have to be a insane 46" at 3840x2610 or a 4k at 41" to equal a 27" 2056x1440 in text size.

that is a pain as I don't really want a size bigger than 27" and would mean small text as I am after 3 monitors

would a 27" 1440 monitor scale text to the same size as a 24" 1200 but still have some more workable space or more desktop area ? would it be 50/50 bigger text but not losing to much desktop space.

Quartz · 16 Jun 2019 at 19:38

Meridiusuk said:
eaning the text is going to be hard to read unless I use scaling which I find pointless as then I will end up with the same usable space as my smaller monitors and not really benefiting from it. also I read scaling can cause problems.

I have not had any problems with scaling. The point of scaling is to make text look nicer. Again, I will give you the example of printout. Text printed at 600 dpi looks far better than text at 300 dpi, but each letter is the same physical size.

Meridiusuk · 16 Jun 2019 at 20:10

em that's not how monitors work. if you print the letter T say at 600dpi and do the same at 300 dpi yes the letter will look much sharper with the 600dpi but will be the same size no mater what dpi your printing at just better sharper text at a higher dpi.

with a monitor if you have say two 24" screens one with 1200 res and the other with 1440 res yes the text will look shaper because your squeezing in more pixels in the same size 24" monitor but it will also make the text smaller at the same time because how windows displays it, so to keep the same sharpness and workable area you would need to by a bigger monitor say 27" this would make the text bigger as the pixels would enlarge as your increasing the size of your monitor that's why you would need to buy a 31" 1440 to get the same size text as a 1200 res 24".

the only other option is I would need to scale the text to maybe 125% or 150% on a 27" 1440 by using windows scaling to get a more readable text as it will prob be to small on a 27" 1440p monitor.

a video here see how when he moves from a 1080p screen which is the same dpi as mine to a 27" 1440 the window and text get a lot smaller and prob harder to read this is where the windows scaling comes in but what I have read its not to good sometimes in doing it.

Why is Windows Display Scaling So Bad?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NF210WeR9C8&t=336s

1080p vs 1440p Monitor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZYLHPleZQQ

I now the below video is for 4k buts its still the same principal, timestamp 3.00 he even says its hard to read the text. he does not use scaling at 1440p but that might not be the case for me.

1440p vs 4K (2160p) Monitor -- What To Look Out For!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0C2DnfPTcmE

I prob would say a 29" is the sweet spot for 1440p as its slightly smaller text than a 1200 res monitor at 24" but also would be sharper.

what a pain in the bum whish I could see or have a play around with a 27" 1440p monitor before I buy.

Quartz · 16 Jun 2019 at 20:18

Meridiusuk said:
with a monitor if you have say two 24" screens one with 1200 res and the other with 1440 res yes the text will look shaper because your squeezing in more pixels in the same size 24" monitor but it will also make the text smaller at the same time because how windows displays it, so to keep the same sharpness and workable area you would need to by a bigger monitor say 27" this would make the text bigger as the pixels would enlarge as your increasing the size of your monitor that's why you would need to buy a 31" 1440 to get the same size text as a 1200 res 24".

And that's exactly what scaling does.