Radeon R9 280X and Radeon HD 6450 for triple monitor set-up - Lower FPS in Games?

[Jeffusan]

Hello,

I am sorry if there is an answer here somewhere. I've been searching for a long time on this subject and i'm not quite sure what the problem is.

I am experiencing a reduction of around 20-30fps on average when I play games with both of these graphics cards installed.

This did not occur when I had the 280X plugged into two monitors and a USB display adapter for my third monitor.

The set up that I have right now:

HDMI cable to Radeon R9 280X to primary monitor
1x DVI and 1x D-SUB to other two monitors

I have updated to the latest catalyst drivers for the Radeon R9 280X and the Radeon HD 6450 is recognized by the software with no issue.

Is the second card somehow limiting the performance of the main card? Is there a possible way to fix this issue that I'm having with the noticeable FPS drop?

Thanks in advance.

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System specs and other information:

Operating System: Windows 10 Home 64-bit (10.0, Build 10240) (10240.th1.150729-1800)
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-2500K CPU @ 3.30GHz (4 CPUs), ~3.3GHz
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory

ASRock P67 EXTREME4 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Model
Brand
ASRock
Model
P67 EXTREME4 (B3)

Supported CPU
CPU Socket Type
LGA 1155
CPU Type
Core i7 / i5 / i3 (LGA1155)

Chipsets
Chipset
Intel P67

Memory
Number of Memory Slots
4×240pin
Memory Standard
DDR3 2133(OC)/1866(OC)/1600/1333/1066
Maximum Memory Supported
32GB
Channel Supported
Dual Channel

Expansion Slots
PCI Express 2.0 x16
3 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 slots (PCIE2/PCIE4: single at x16 or dual at x8/x8 mode; PCIE5: x4 mode)
PCI Express x1
2 x PCI Express x1
PCI Slots
2 x PCI Slots

Video Cards:

XFX Radeon R9 280X R9-280X-TDFD 3GB 384-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 CrossFireX Support Double Dissipation Edition Video Card
Brand: XFX
Model: R9-280X-TDFD
Chipset
Chipset Manufacturer
AMD
GPU
Radeon R9 280X
Core Clock
850MHz
Boost Clock
1000MHz
Stream Processors
2048 Stream Processors

Memory
Memory Size
3GB
Memory Interface
384-Bit
Memory Type
GDDR5

3D API
DirectX
DirectX 11.2
OpenGL
OpenGL 4.2

Ports
HDMI
1 x HDMI
DisplayPort
2 x Mini DisplayPort
DVI
1 x DL-DVI-I
1 x SL-DVI-D

Details
Max Resolution
ANALOG: 2048 x 1536
DIGITAL: 2560 x 1600 (DVI); 4096 x 2160 (HDMI;DP)

MSI ATI Radeon HD6450 1 GB DDR3 VGA/DVI/HDMI Low Profile PCI-Express Video Card R6450-MD1GD3/LP

Model
Brand
MSI
Model
R6450-MD1GD3/LP

Interface
Interface
PCI Express 2.1 x16

Chipset
Chipset Manufacturer
AMD
GPU
Radeon HD 6450
Core Clock
625MHz
Stream Processors
160 Stream Processors

Memory
Effective Memory Clock
1333MHz
Memory Size
1GB
Memory Interface
64-Bit
Memory Type
DDR3

3D API
DirectX
DirectX 11
OpenGL
OpenGL 4.1

Ports
HDMI
1 x HDMI
D-SUB
1 x D-SUB
DVI
1 x DVI

Details
RAMDAC
400 MHz
Max Resolution
2560 x 1600
CrossFireX Support
No
Cooler
With Fan
System Requirements
Minimum of a 400 Watt power supply.
Dual-Link DVI Supported
Yes
HDCP Ready
Yes

 

[hang-the-9]

What video card is the monitor connected to that you play games on?

 

[Jeffusan]

What video card is the monitor connected to that you play games on?

Hi, the monitor that I play games on is the: Radeon R9 280X

 

[hang-the-9]

What video card is the monitor connected to that you play games on?

Hi, the monitor that I play games on is the: Radeon R9 280X

Try disconnecting the other monitors, reboot and test the games again. Want to see if it's just the fact that the card is installed that causes your issue or the fact that the second card is running displays when you play.

 

[Jeffusan]

What video card is the monitor connected to that you play games on?

Hi, the monitor that I play games on is the: Radeon R9 280X

Try disconnecting the other monitors, reboot and test the games again. Want to see if it's just the fact that the card is installed that causes your issue or the fact that the second card is running displays when you play.

Hi, thanks for the response.

I disconnected the other monitors from the secondary video card so that only one monitor was connected to the Radeon R9 280x.

The FPS in my game went from an average of 60-70 (with triple monitor setup) to 100+ (only one monitor connected).

 

[hang-the-9]

What video card is the monitor connected to that you play games on?

Hi, the monitor that I play games on is the: Radeon R9 280X

Try disconnecting the other monitors, reboot and test the games again. Want to see if it's just the fact that the card is installed that causes your issue or the fact that the second card is running displays when you play.

Hi, thanks for the response.

I disconnected the other monitors from the secondary video card so that only one monitor was connected to the Radeon R9 280x.

The FPS in my game went from an average of 60-70 (with triple monitor setup) to 100+ (only one monitor connected).

I don't know what exactly would cause this then, but clearly the second card sending a signal to the monitors causes some issues for you. See if AMD support can explain things.