[SOLVED] Can having 2 monitors connected to a gpu cause performance degradation?

[Ridiche Salatoi]

Hi. First of all, I will list my PC parts: I5 10500 + 32gb ram + 1660 ti strix (has 2 hdmi ports) + corsair rm650x. I have one monitor connected to the PC, but I prefer playing games on the couch, namely in front of my TV. I have used until recently a Steam link as a streaming device, but it used to cause all sort of problems. Because of this, I thought that connecting the tv to the gpu (via hdmi) would be a good idea. Both displays are FullHD at 60hz. However, I could not find a definitice answer about performance decrease in games when connecting 2 displays to a gpu. If I duplicate the image, will it cause performance degradation? Also, if I choose to only select the second display to work (within Windows 10), will the gpu still have to render the image for both outputs and cause a performance reduction? The last question is about the Vram use, having connected 2 displays will increase the overall usage of Vram?Thanks in advance!

 

[getochkn]

No to all of them. Extending your screen, therefore doubling your resolution and trying to game across both screens would impact performance, vram, etc. Cloning the screen shouldn't take much overhead as the image is already generated and simply split to two outputs. Running a 2nd screen while the first is going won't impact much...depending on whats going on the 2nd screen. Streaming video is going to eat up some resources, etc.

but for gaming and switching displays, no impact.

 

[Glenwing]

"Will adding another monitor affect my performance" has been asked and answered thousands of times, I'm really surprised you were unable to find an answer.

 

[Ridiche Salatoi]

"Will adding another monitor affect my performance" has been asked and answered thousands of times, I'm really surprised you were unable to find an answer.

I understand that connecting multiple displays and using them as extended decreases performance, but I wasn t sure if duplicating the image or using just one of the monitors, while having both of the connected affects performance.

 

[SkyNetRising]

Actually duplicating screens can affect perceived refresh rate.
Example:
main monitor 1440p 144Hz
second monitor 4k 60Hz.

If I set up cloning, 4k screen switches to 4k@30Hz mode, 1440p upscaled to 4k.
1440p screen reports 144Hz mode, but visual impression is like 30Hz.

 

[Ridiche Salatoi]

Actually duplicating screens can affect perceived refresh rate.
Example:
main monitor 1440p 144Hz
second monitor 4k 60Hz.

If I set up cloning, 4k screen switches to 4k@30Hz mode, 1440p upscaled to 4k.
1440p screen reports 144Hz mode, but visual impression is like 30Hz.

But if both of my monitors are 1080p at 60hz, there shouldn t be a problem, am I right?

 

[SkyNetRising]

But if both of my monitors are 1080p at 60hz, there shouldn t be a problem, am I right?

That probably depends on specific hardware and drivers used.
If I change resolution to 1080p and have duplicated screens, it still feels like 30Hz.