Why can't I have three monitors?

[alexcomp]

I used to run three monitors on two cards, one pci and the other AGP.

Somewhere along the line, (maybe when I went to XP64), this stopped working. I now have a PCI express card which cheerfully runs two monitors but if I put in an old, dual monitor PCI card it doesn't seem to be recognized.

Is this a known issue and is there a way around it?

 

[fuzor_silverbolt]

Buy a pci express card with 4 outputs like the Matrox G450. Link on nexttag: 4 Monitor Graphic Card - Graphic Cards - Compare Prices, Reviews and Buy at NexTag - Price - Review

 

[alexcomp]

I suppose that would work, (4 output card), but I'm really more interested in getting PCI express and Pci graphic cards to coexist with a workaround or a bios setting or some such. Don't want to spend the money for a new express card in other words.

AGP plus PCI used to work...

 

[johngalt]

I think it is supposed to work - After all, that is what some folks do when running two cards in SLI - they get a third cheap card to run dual monitors without having to turn SLI on and off....

Have you verified that the PCI card shows in Device Manager?

 

[stormy13]

I think it is supposed to work - After all, that is what some folks do when running two cards in SLI - they get a third cheap card to run dual monitors without having to turn SLI on and off....

Correct,

NVIDIA Forums -> Dual monitors and SLI (3 Videocard Solution)

Only difference is that on XP you could use any card you wanted as long as you had an open slot, and the cards didn't need to be from the same manufacturer (Nvidia, ATI). With Vista the cards have to be both from the same manufacturer and use the same driver.

 

[alexcomp]

The pci card does not show up in device manager...