Can my 1 Nvidia GTX 980 support 3 displays?

[QuestionableUsername]

Specs (including current minitor): http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ZWWrdC

I want to give my current monitor away to a friend and get 3 new 1440p, 144hz displays. I was thinking getting Asus monitors. What ports will I need to add on 3 monitors? I would prefer to use 3 display ports but I don't think my graphics card has 3 (it might, i'm not sure how to check), what should i do?

 

[Rogue Leader]

It can run 3 displays, however it doesn't exactly have the horsepower to run a game in 1440p x3 with a Ultra high level of detail, so keep that in mind. I don't think you will get the performance you want.

The card you have actually does have 3 Display Port Connectors, as well as 1 HDMI and 1 DVI, so yes you can use Display port for all 3 monitors.

 

[loki1944]

Specs (including current minitor): http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ZWWrdC

I want to give my current monitor away to a friend and get 3 new 1440p, 144hz displays. I was thinking getting Asus monitors. What ports will I need to add on 3 monitors? I would prefer to use 3 display ports but I don't think my graphics card has 3 (it might, i'm not sure how to check), what should i do?

Um, no I wouldn't attempt 7680x1440p with a single GTX 980 even if it has the connections. Even my 980Tis in SLI can barely handle that resolution at playable frames with High/Very High settings (depending on the game).

 

[Nuwan Fernando]

That GPU has 3 Display ports. you can attach upto 4 Displays according to Nvidia. So no problem connecting the 3 displays. But if you are going to run graphic intensive applications such as games, that 980 will not sufficient

 

[loki1944]

3 1080p monitors instead of 3 1440p will give you a bit more breathing room for that GTX 980, might want to consider that as an option.

 

[loki1944]

Just to give you an idea of the performance hit @7680x1440p on my main rig (5930K @4.5Ghz, 32GB RAM, 980Ti SLI 1260Mhz Core Clock/ 7492Mhz Memory Clock/ 1492Mhz Boost Clock , :

The Witcher 3 every setting Gameworks maxed/ settings ultra, AA on: FPS Avg: 39.719 - Min: 32 - Max: 51 (Very choppy)

The Witcher 3 Gameworks off/settings ultra, AA off: FPS Avg: 55.267 - Min: 43 - Max: 65

Dragon Age Inquisition completely Maxed to include AA: FPS Avg: 27.533 - Min: 14 - Max: 79

Dragon Age Inquisition Maxed AA off: FPS Avg: 43.786 - Min: 22 - Max: 82

The Division (mix of High/Very High/Ultra, gameworks off, maximum detail: FPS : Avg: 59.725 - Min: 28 - Max: 80

Borderlands 2 maxed: FPS Avg: 98.469

Crysis 2 maxed: FPS Avg: 76.603

Bioshock Infinite Guru3d settings: FPS Avg: 77.19 ((2560x1440p same settings 141 FPS)

Crysis 3 Very High 4xTXAA: FPS Avg: 39.428

Farcry 4 (FXAA): FPS Avg: 44.407

Watchdogs (FXAA): FPS Avg: 52.812

Metro 2033 maxed/ultra: FPS Avg: 34.54

Shogun 2 maxed/MLAA: FPS Avg: 81.3 (2560x1440p completely maxed to include AA 75FPS avg)

Hitman Absolution Guru3d Settings: FPS Avg: 69.43 ((2560x1440p same settings 121FPS)

Thief Guru3d Settings: FPS Avg: 69.7 (2560x1440p same settings 98FPS)

Tomb Raider 2013 Guru3d Settings FPS Avg:: 104.3 FPS (2560x1440p same settings 244FPS)

Attila Total War Max Quality Preset: FPS Avg:: 43.3((2560x1440p same settings 59.5FPS)

Payday 2 Maxed: FPS Avg: 134.742 - Min: 121 - Max: 136

SWTOR Maxed :FPS: Avg: 73.822 - Min: 46 - Max: 105

 

[QuestionableUsername]

Just to give you an idea of the performance hit @7680x1440p on my main rig (5930K @4.5Ghz, 32GB RAM, 980Ti SLI 1260Mhz Core Clock/ 7492Mhz Memory Clock/ 1492Mhz Boost Clock , :

The Witcher 3 every setting Gameworks maxed/ settings ultra, AA on: FPS Avg: 39.719 - Min: 32 - Max: 51 (Very choppy)

The Witcher 3 Gameworks off/settings ultra, AA off: FPS Avg: 55.267 - Min: 43 - Max: 65

Dragon Age Inquisition completely Maxed to include AA: FPS Avg: 27.533 - Min: 14 - Max: 79

Dragon Age Inquisition Maxed AA off: FPS Avg: 43.786 - Min: 22 - Max: 82

The Division (mix of High/Very High/Ultra, gameworks off, maximum detail: FPS : Avg: 59.725 - Min: 28 - Max: 80

Borderlands 2 maxed: FPS Avg: 98.469

Crysis 2 maxed: FPS Avg: 76.603

Bioshock Infinite Guru3d settings: FPS Avg: 77.19 ((2560x1440p same settings 141 FPS)

Crysis 3 Very High 4xTXAA: FPS Avg: 39.428

Farcry 4 (FXAA): FPS Avg: 44.407

Watchdogs (FXAA): FPS Avg: 52.812

Metro 2033 maxed/ultra: FPS Avg: 34.54

Shogun 2 maxed/MLAA: FPS Avg: 81.3 (2560x1440p completely maxed to include AA 75FPS avg)

Hitman Absolution Guru3d Settings: FPS Avg: 69.43 ((2560x1440p same settings 121FPS)

Thief Guru3d Settings: FPS Avg: 69.7 (2560x1440p same settings 98FPS)

Tomb Raider 2013 Guru3d Settings FPS Avg:: 104.3 FPS (2560x1440p same settings 244FPS)

Attila Total War Max Quality Preset: FPS Avg:: 43.3((2560x1440p same settings 59.5FPS)

Payday 2 Maxed: FPS Avg: 134.742 - Min: 121 - Max: 136

SWTOR Maxed :FPS: Avg: 73.822 - Min: 46 - Max: 105

Alright, thank you for your input. Now how can I upgrade my rig to be able to handle 7680x1440p? (It's only a year old, I doubt I want to make a new one) I'm not sure where to start, do I flat out replace my graphics card with 980Ti's (where can I sell my current GPU for a good price)? (If so, how many 980Ti's?) That's going to be very expensive, how do I go about it, etc. etc.

 

[loki1944]

Just to give you an idea of the performance hit @7680x1440p on my main rig (5930K @4.5Ghz, 32GB RAM, 980Ti SLI 1260Mhz Core Clock/ 7492Mhz Memory Clock/ 1492Mhz Boost Clock , :

The Witcher 3 every setting Gameworks maxed/ settings ultra, AA on: FPS Avg: 39.719 - Min: 32 - Max: 51 (Very choppy)

The Witcher 3 Gameworks off/settings ultra, AA off: FPS Avg: 55.267 - Min: 43 - Max: 65

Dragon Age Inquisition completely Maxed to include AA: FPS Avg: 27.533 - Min: 14 - Max: 79

Dragon Age Inquisition Maxed AA off: FPS Avg: 43.786 - Min: 22 - Max: 82

The Division (mix of High/Very High/Ultra, gameworks off, maximum detail: FPS : Avg: 59.725 - Min: 28 - Max: 80

Borderlands 2 maxed: FPS Avg: 98.469

Crysis 2 maxed: FPS Avg: 76.603

Bioshock Infinite Guru3d settings: FPS Avg: 77.19 ((2560x1440p same settings 141 FPS)

Crysis 3 Very High 4xTXAA: FPS Avg: 39.428

Farcry 4 (FXAA): FPS Avg: 44.407

Watchdogs (FXAA): FPS Avg: 52.812

Metro 2033 maxed/ultra: FPS Avg: 34.54

Shogun 2 maxed/MLAA: FPS Avg: 81.3 (2560x1440p completely maxed to include AA 75FPS avg)

Hitman Absolution Guru3d Settings: FPS Avg: 69.43 ((2560x1440p same settings 121FPS)

Thief Guru3d Settings: FPS Avg: 69.7 (2560x1440p same settings 98FPS)

Tomb Raider 2013 Guru3d Settings FPS Avg:: 104.3 FPS (2560x1440p same settings 244FPS)

Attila Total War Max Quality Preset: FPS Avg:: 43.3((2560x1440p same settings 59.5FPS)

Payday 2 Maxed: FPS Avg: 134.742 - Min: 121 - Max: 136

SWTOR Maxed :FPS: Avg: 73.822 - Min: 46 - Max: 105

Alright, thank you for your input. Now how can I upgrade my rig to be able to handle 7680x1440p? (It's only a year old, I doubt I want to make a new one) I'm not sure where to start, do I flat out replace my graphics card with 980Ti's (where can I sell my current GPU for a good price)? (If so, how many 980Ti's?) That's going to be very expensive, how do I go about it, etc. etc.

Two 980Tis will get you pretty much the resulting performance I posted; 3-4 way SLI isn't worth the coin imo. 3 is definitely the max I would even consider. Keep in mind that not all games support SLI (Just Cause 3/Mad Max last time I played them for example). If you were just going 2560x1440p I'd recommend just adding another GTX 980 to max stuff out more frequently, but at 7680x1440p, you're really looking at 2 way SLI for extremely demanding games at playable frames. That's not to say that two way SLI 980s couldn't run Bioshock Infinite/Tomb Raider/Payday2 just fine at that resolution on high settings, but when you start talking games like Crysis 3/The Division/Farcry 4 etc., well two 980Tis struggle there as well on maxed out settings. Also what games do you like to play? Are you more interested in smooth average FPS of ~30-40FPS with low/medium settings or 60+FPS with high/very high or 100+FPS with low settings? Also keep in mind that Pascal will undoubtedly bring something better than the 980Ti, so you can play less demanding games surround on that 980 and then set more demanding ones to the center monitor (i.e. play them @2560x1440p) OR at a lower surround resolution (900p) until the Pascal cards drop.

 

[QuestionableUsername]

Just to give you an idea of the performance hit @7680x1440p on my main rig (5930K @4.5Ghz, 32GB RAM, 980Ti SLI 1260Mhz Core Clock/ 7492Mhz Memory Clock/ 1492Mhz Boost Clock , :

The Witcher 3 every setting Gameworks maxed/ settings ultra, AA on: FPS Avg: 39.719 - Min: 32 - Max: 51 (Very choppy)

The Witcher 3 Gameworks off/settings ultra, AA off: FPS Avg: 55.267 - Min: 43 - Max: 65

Dragon Age Inquisition completely Maxed to include AA: FPS Avg: 27.533 - Min: 14 - Max: 79

Dragon Age Inquisition Maxed AA off: FPS Avg: 43.786 - Min: 22 - Max: 82

The Division (mix of High/Very High/Ultra, gameworks off, maximum detail: FPS : Avg: 59.725 - Min: 28 - Max: 80

Borderlands 2 maxed: FPS Avg: 98.469

Crysis 2 maxed: FPS Avg: 76.603

Bioshock Infinite Guru3d settings: FPS Avg: 77.19 ((2560x1440p same settings 141 FPS)

Crysis 3 Very High 4xTXAA: FPS Avg: 39.428

Farcry 4 (FXAA): FPS Avg: 44.407

Watchdogs (FXAA): FPS Avg: 52.812

Metro 2033 maxed/ultra: FPS Avg: 34.54

Shogun 2 maxed/MLAA: FPS Avg: 81.3 (2560x1440p completely maxed to include AA 75FPS avg)

Hitman Absolution Guru3d Settings: FPS Avg: 69.43 ((2560x1440p same settings 121FPS)

Thief Guru3d Settings: FPS Avg: 69.7 (2560x1440p same settings 98FPS)

Tomb Raider 2013 Guru3d Settings FPS Avg:: 104.3 FPS (2560x1440p same settings 244FPS)

Attila Total War Max Quality Preset: FPS Avg:: 43.3((2560x1440p same settings 59.5FPS)

Payday 2 Maxed: FPS Avg: 134.742 - Min: 121 - Max: 136

SWTOR Maxed :FPS: Avg: 73.822 - Min: 46 - Max: 105

Alright, thank you for your input. Now how can I upgrade my rig to be able to handle 7680x1440p? (It's only a year old, I doubt I want to make a new one) I'm not sure where to start, do I flat out replace my graphics card with 980Ti's (where can I sell my current GPU for a good price)? (If so, how many 980Ti's?) That's going to be very expensive, how do I go about it, etc. etc.

Two 980Tis will get you pretty much the resulting performance I posted; 3-4 way SLI isn't worth the coin imo. 3 is definitely the max I would even consider. Keep in mind that not all games support SLI (Just Cause 3/Mad Max last time I played them for example). If you were just going 2560x1440p I'd recommend just adding another GTX 980 to max stuff out more frequently, but at 7680x1440p, you're really looking at 2 way SLI for extremely demanding games at playable frames. That's not to say that two way SLI 980s couldn't run Bioshock Infinite/Tomb Raider/Payday2 just fine at that resolution on high settings, but when you start talking games like Crysis 3/The Division/Farcry 4 etc., well two 980Tis struggle there as well on maxed out settings. Also what games do you like to play? Are you more interested in smooth average FPS of ~30-40FPS with low/medium settings or 60+FPS with high/very high or 100+FPS with low settings? Also keep in mind that Pascal will undoubtedly bring something better than the 980Ti, so you can play less demanding games surround on that 980 and then set more demanding ones to the center monitor (i.e. play them @2560x1440p) OR at a lower surround resolution (900p) until the Pascal cards drop.

I would prefer higher FPS, I mean this is getting so expensive. Is there any way to lower the cost? I was just expecting to get some new monitors, not revamp my rig.

 

[Rogue Leader]

I would prefer higher FPS, I mean this is getting so expensive. Is there any way to lower the cost? I was just expecting to get some new monitors, not revamp my rig.

Low cost and 3 1440p monitors, plus higher fps, do not all go in the same sentence. If you want to run them with any sort of decent performance, you need at least a 980ti, in reality probably two.

It is what it is, there is no shortcut to computing horsepower, except cubic dollars.