Build Advice What CPU/GPU for Quad-Monitor Setups ?

[julienruc]

Hi all,

My friend is looking to make a quad-monitor setup. He is not a gamer nor a or graphic designer.
This is for a simple home/office setup to run light programs such as MS Office, occasional photoshop, report reading, media consumption and other forms of non-intensive workloads.

He is however on a budget and since buying 4 monitors is not cheap, I was wondering whether I am forced to purchase a GPU in order to be able to run 4 monitors, or is there a more cost-effective option that involves not purchasing a GPU.

If I am forced to purchase a GPU, what are my most cost effective options? Something like a GT1030?

Thanks!

 

[Lutfij]

GeForce GT 1030 | Specifications | GeForce

Check out the latest NVIDIA GeForce technology specifications, system requirements, and more.

www.nvidia.com

Would indicate3 displays at most, due to the connectivity options but you need to understand that the GT1030 is the bottom of the barrel style card, meaning that you might not find anything above 2 display output ports on it.

You might want to list the specs to your friends PC, like so:
CPU:
CPU cooler:
Motherboard:
Ram:
SSD/HDD:
GPU:
PSU:
Chassis:
OS:
Monitors:
include the age of the PSU apart from it's make and model. BIOS version for your motherboard at this moment of time.

 

[Roland Of Gilead]

Hi all,

My friend is looking to make a quad-monitor setup. He is not a gamer nor a or graphic designer.
This is for a simple home/office setup to run light programs such as MS Office, occasional photoshop, report reading, media consumption and other forms of non-intensive workloads.

He is however on a budget and since buying 4 monitors is not cheap, I was wondering whether I am forced to purchase a GPU in order to be able to run 4 monitors, or is there a more cost-effective option that involves not purchasing a GPU.

If I am forced to purchase a GPU, what are my most cost effective options? Something like a GT1030?

Thanks!

Hey there,

Something like this would be a good bet:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600G 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor ($142.00 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B550 Phantom Gaming 4/ac ATX AM4 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($40.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 970 Evo Plus 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 3.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Raidmax X616 ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.98 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair RM650 (2023) 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ Corsair)
Total: $527.94
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-01-08 09:47 EST-0500

You can drop the price if you have certain parts already (PSU/Storage). Great bang for the buck. Then just drop in a dGPU down the line, and it will be a solid gamer. As is, it's plenty capable of all the tasks required.

 

[Eximo]

Depends on what hardware the CPU/Motherboard offers to start, and that motherboard only has a single HDMI port.

Intel CPUs can handle a few displays, same with AMD G class APUs and more recent AMD 7000 series chips, but the motherboard must offer the outputs.

Intel Sparkle A310 can be had relatively cheaply at $110 and has a full 4 display outputs (though for $10 more you can have the A380). DDR4 version of the GT1030 is actually cheap for once at $70 though it has much less performance than the GDDR5 GT1030. And the low-profile cards generally have only two display outputs.

 

[Roland Of Gilead]

Depends on what hardware the CPU/Motherboard offers to start, and that motherboard only has a single HDMI port.

Intel CPUs can handle a few displays, same with AMD G class APUs and more recent AMD 7000 series chips, but the motherboard must offer the outputs.

Intel Sparkle A310 can be had relatively cheaply at $110 and has a full 4 display outputs (though for $10 more you can have the A380). DDR4 version of the GT1030 is actually cheap for once at $70 though it has much less performance than the GDDR5 GT1030. And the low-profile cards generally have only two display outputs.

You are right. Good spot. Yes, another mobo may be better with more outputs. This was just a guide mostly. Can be changed or edited.

 

[Lucky_SLS]

Have a look at this GPU, has 3 display ports and 1 HDMI

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/6z...ger-itx-arc-a380-6-gb-video-card-a380-cli-6go

 

[julienruc]

Hi guys,

Thank you so much for your input. I forgot to mention that he currently doesn't have a PC at all and I'd be building this from scratch and have to purchase everything.

It seems to me from what I can understand I would have to either find 2 GPUs with 2 ports each or a GPU with 4 ports like both @Eximo and @Lucky_SLS recommended. But I will defo take note of those Intel Arc GPUs (this is the first time I will be working with these).

I just have a couple questions as live in Indonesia and often stock is limited here:

1. If I were to only run 2 monitors with an APU; do I strictly need to use a motherboard that comes with 2 display outputs or am I able to use a PCIe expansion slot for additional ports?

2. If I were to run 4 monitors and I cannot find a GPU with 4 display outputs; am I able to run 2 monitors via APU/Mobo + 2 monitors via GPU simultaneously? Or will I have to use 2 GPUs with 2 ports each?

 

[Lucky_SLS]

If availability is a big concern, get a display dock. Powering 4 1080p monitors would not be an issue.

You would have to use mobo port for apu.

You cannot use both mobo port and gpu at the same time.

Monitors today accept type c usb as input. Try to get one of these second hand:

Dell Thunderbolt™ Dock – WD22TB4

 

[julienruc]

First of all, Display dock. Consider my mind blown.

Although at 300$ I guess it would be cheaper to run 2x Arc A310 although having a dock with a lot of other ports for the same price could be nice (since you can have SD cards, charging ports and other features as well).

So let me guess this straight, if I can find a mobo that has an HDMI + DP + USB-C; I could run 3 monitors through the motherboard?

Can APU's handle 3 or 4 monitors?

 

[Lucky_SLS]

getting them second hand is definitely a steal. you can get them used for as low as 50 bucks as opposed to 300 bucks as new.

low end mobo typically does not come with a DP port. But a type C and HDMI for sure. And yes, the inbuilt GPU can handle 4 1080p monitors.

 

[julienruc]

Thanks for your help!