Anyone got a two port DVI KVM switch that works well?

NeilF · 30 Jun 2013 at 10:07

Ideally with hotkey port selection. eg: Where you press SCROLL LOCK twice followed by another key or two to swap the computer being viewed on the monitor?

Only interested in keyboard, mouse and video being switched. Don't need USB or audio etc.

Needs to handle at least 1920x1200 resolution.

zola25 · 30 Jun 2013 at 10:23

I use a Startech 2 Port KVM Switch, this supports single link DVI (up to 1900x1200) and USB keyboard and mouse. This is an all in one solution where the cables are all molded into a single unit. You can switch using the Scroll Lock method, or the remote button. It does include audio, I appreciate you don't require it but thought it worth mentioning.

I have had mine for about 2 years and it's worked very well for a cheap-ish solution. The only minor complaint I'd have is that the cable lengths are not particularly generous.

Freakbro · 30 Jun 2013 at 10:47

I'm using two ATEN CS682's, which are single link DVI with USB keyboard and mouse ports, like the Startech above, and they have worked well. Not sure if they have a hot key for swapping (they may have) as I just use the remote switch they come with.

The only thing I've had an issue with is they don't pass the special functions of the keyboard through, it's just treated as a generic USB keyboard.

Rroff · 30 Jun 2013 at 13:02

I'm using the ATEN CS1784A which works well enough with a ton of features (tho you need to dig into the manual to work out how to use them - it does scroll lock swapping and so on and a ton of similiar low level features)

2 pretty big problems with it tho:

-the sound quality through it is dreadful - not a problem for me (or you) tho as I use a different set of headphones with each different computer connect to it i.e. for music listening on one and gaming on another.

-Default settings for mouse and keyboard emulation while highly compatible don't pass through special features and things like mouse wheel behavior is a bit odd - this can be disabled with certain commands and then it all works fine input wise (tho I've not tested extended multimedia keyboards).

NeilF · 30 Jun 2013 at 15:19

Rroff said:
I'm using the ATEN CS1784A which works well enough with a ton of features (tho you need to dig into the manual to work out how to use them - it does scroll lock swapping and so on and a ton of similiar low level features)

2 pretty big problems with it tho:

-the sound quality through it is dreadful - not a problem for me (or you) tho as I use a different set of headphones with each different computer connect to it i.e. for music listening on one and gaming on another.

-Default settings for mouse and keyboard emulation while highly compatible don't pass through special features and things like mouse wheel behavior is a bit odd - this can be disabled with certain commands and then it all works fine input wise (tho I've not tested extended multimedia keyboards).

That's like £200!!! :eek:

Tomsk · 30 Jun 2013 at 15:46

Rroff said:
I'm using the ATEN CS1784A which works well enough with a ton of features (tho you need to dig into the manual to work out how to use them - it does scroll lock swapping and so on and a ton of similiar low level features)

2 pretty big problems with it tho:

-the sound quality through it is dreadful - not a problem for me (or you) tho as I use a different set of headphones with each different computer connect to it i.e. for music listening on one and gaming on another.

-Default settings for mouse and keyboard emulation while highly compatible don't pass through special features and things like mouse wheel behavior is a bit odd - this can be disabled with certain commands and then it all works fine input wise (tho I've not tested extended multimedia keyboards).

I have the same one.

I think it's a firmware issue. It's an old device (by PC standards) and the latest keyboard's won't pass through special (multimedia etc.) functions. In general I've found that cheap no-name and Microsoft keyboards work best for special functions.
Another minor problem is that on power up some keyboards don't even pass on basic function keys so it's impossible to get into the BIOS.

As for the sound quality, I've never really noticed as I don't use my PC for music or movies, and my hearings partially knackered anyway because of motorcycling without hearing protection.

Rroff · 30 Jun 2013 at 15:58

NeilFawcett said:
That's like £200!!!

There are cheaper variants, at the time it was the only option for dual link (was running 120Hz monitors) and 4 devices. I'd have a look through the ATEN range tho they are generally fairly decent devices.

Yaka · 30 Jun 2013 at 22:03

http://www.aten.co.uk/products/productItem.php?model_no=CS682
been using this recently and notbad for what it does, can be switch via mouse or via the little switch which you can place any where, mine is the underside of my desk

NeilF · 30 Jun 2013 at 23:31

Yaka said:
http://www.aten.co.uk/products/productItem.php?model_no=CS682
been using this recently and notbad for what it does, can be switch via mouse or via the little switch which you can place any where, mine is the underside of my desk

How do you switch via mouse?

Can you use a keyboard keystroke?

Rroff · 30 Jun 2013 at 23:48

Most of the ATEN ones you can do <scroll lock><scroll lock><1><enter> or <scroll lock><scroll lock><2><enter> and so on to switch consoles some of the very basic ones might lack that functionality tho. You can also enable (usually disabled by default) the ability to cycle through connected consoles by double tapping the mouse wheel button. On some of the more advanced models you can custom map hotkeys for swapping consoles.

Yaka · 1 Jul 2013 at 09:27

think the manual states you switch via kb shortcut or via mouse, but i just use the dinky switch that comes with it