non-SLI multi GPU question(s)

[tech-wreck]

i am wanting to add a second, older dGPU to display hardware monitoring info on a separate screen.
i haven't decided on the primary GPU yet as i'm still at the drawing board but i have got a 550ti doing nothing, or a GT630 if the ti is too much as a secondary.
a quick search found this: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-2129966/separate-nvidia-gpu-monitors.html so if that's correct i can make it work. if i decide on an AMD GPU, i guess i would need the secondary to be AMD as well? if so, that's okay as i have a HD6670 spare as well. yes, i need to have a clear out.
do both GPUs have to be the same brand? or what about a quadro 1800?
not sure if the drivers would play nicely in the same sandbox...?

also, could i use a touchscreen LCD as secondary and be able to use it as a separate input or would that be like a USB mouse plugged into a laptop and that and the touchpad both control the same pointer?
i want to be able to adjust stuff via the touchscreen without affecting the primary display or other programs including the OS, is that even possible or feasible?
thanks in advance

 

[tech-wreck]

so, found this old thread, http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/answers/id-2340845/pci-16x-adapter-graphics-card.html

What for, most cards will bottleneck badly on X1 speed.

for gaming, wont the adapter change it to a 16X though?

It will change the physical size to 16x but will still run at a 1x bandwidth. 1x will drastically slow down a card and will not support SLI or Crossfire. So the 2nd card would only be good for adding more monitors and thats about it, it will not help gaming performance at all.

the bold bit is exactly what i am looking for. a simple extra display that doesn't affect the main display. would a 1X to 16X powered riser work and the two different GPUs work happily alongside each other?
and i think i'm going off the touchscreen idea, this build is already way too complicated.

 

[giantbucket]

sorry for the delay in seeing this - i run multiple separate and different cards all the time. nearly every stocks trader does! you can shove in as many graphics cards as you want, any brand, any model, any whatever. i have had cards in a PCIe-16 slot running from the CPU as well as in a PCIe-4 slot running from the chipset, all without problems. i've run two cards, and three cards. i've run with onboard graphics as well because i always need more outputs. 7 screens need 7 outputs! i had 8 before, though. and yes, one is a touch-screen, and that's the one running from onboard graphics.

but the touchscreen action (your finger!) is replacing or overriding the mouse. you can use both, but if your mouse pointer is on screen 4, and your touchscreen is screen 1, then as soon as you touch your finger somewhere on screen 1, that's where the mouse pointer immediately moves to. if you want it back on screen 4, you gotta use the mouse to drag it all the way over there.

 

[tech-wreck]

well that's confirmed what i thought.
and if the GPU will work with a 1x riser cable, even better, i can place it out of sight somewhere inside the case.
and i don't know what i was thinking with touchscreen... stupid idea considering how often i am tempted to punch my 'smart'phone to bits.

 

[giantbucket]

most GPUs have the full PCIe-16 length for the connectors, so while they will happily work in a 4x slot (since those are usually a 16-long with only 4 electrical contacts), a 1x slot is physically short AND usually closed on the end so you can't stick in something longer.

electrically, it should work just fine.
physically, it might not fit in.

but if you just need one or two extra displays, onboard graphics should really be your first option. might need a BIOS tweak to re-enable it, but that's simple.

 

[tech-wreck]

the reason behind the riser cable is the screen will be mounted in the case. to fit a GPU into a motherboard slot or use integrated GPU would mean the cable has to loop back inside. i want clean lines and stuff on show that i want to show off, and all the other gubbins and rough bits out of sight.