Dual Monitor / Dual PCI VGA cards... Please help me configure this setup..?

Question

I am running Windows XP.
I have an onboard Nvidia GeForce 6150 LE (256mb) graphics card.
I attempted to install a second card so that I can use a dual monitor (this card is a cheap card: ATI Rage 128pro 32mb SDRAM 64bit PCI video card)

It seems that when the two cards are in they don't communicate properly. Windows only detects the new (second) card and it doesn't even show up in the display properties as two cards.

My question is: Is there any way to make this work with the two cards present? (both are VGA, by the way)

And if not, what is an inexpensive second card (any version of PCI will work, as long as it's VGA) that will allow me to have dual monitor setup?

Answer 1

Many motherboards with integrated video like your 6150le will automatically disable themselves when a real video card is detected in a slot. In fact, I think most motherboards work this way now... So what you want is a PCI card that has dual VGA outputs.

There are models of the GeForce FX 5200 which have this ( I know because I bought one a few years back ) I think the FX 5500 has dual-display versions as well. ATI has some older Radeons, too...

These cards aren't very expensive, mostly betwen $30-$50, here are a few links below:

Answer 2

No need for two cards. In fact, unless you are using a SLI (NVIDIA) or Crossfire (ATI) capable motherboard and graphics cards together you will not be able to use two graphics cards together in the same machine at the same time.

First you may need to disable your onboard 6150LE in your BIOS (most modern systems will do this automatically when you plug in an AGP or PCI-E video card) and install a separate video card (AGP or PCI Express depending on what your PC supports) that has two video outputs on one card. Most cards these days have one VGA and one DVI connector and are rather cheap ($50 range). All you'll need is a DVI-to-VGA adapter on the second connector and then in your video drivers you can set it to display on two monitors.

Answer 3

Trying to set up dual displays on systems with integrated video can result with mixed results. Expansion slots are generally available for graphics cards on systems with the video adaptor built into the motherboard, but using these slots on many systems like this instantly disables the onboard video. Those desiring dual displays on such systems need to investigate whether onboard graphics adaptor can be part of the setup, or if two new connections need to be installed via either method described previously. But, some integrated video solutions will support dual displays, and may do so without additional hardware. For example, if the manufacturer includes the necessary connections, systems that utilize the Intel Extreme2 integrated graphics processor can run dual displays as is.

Dual VGA AGP Card = $54.99: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2148784&CatId=935

Dual VGA PCI Card = $64.99: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2148789&CatId=1603

Answer 4

Chances are, your mobo is shutting the onboard VGA controller down when it picks up on the fact you have an external card. For most computers, you can force it to stay on in the BIOS.

I was running both onboard and PCI video for a couple of years - not a problem.

Answer 5

I'm not sure you can run 2 PCI viedo cards on the same BUS I think there would be an IRQ conflict there. If you have an AGP slot I have a Geforce 5200 thats nice $50 online. If you have to do PCI i'd go with ebay.