Anyone use eyefinity on their M17x yet?

Was it this one?

Amazon.com: Accell B087B-005B UltraAV DisplayPort to DVI-D Single-Link Active Adapter ATI Certified (Black): Electronics

If so, I'm probably going to buy one!

 

Hello all. Just a quick update to say I do indeed have my m17xR2 working with Eyefinity on three external monitors (the awesome Samsung MD230X3).

The internal laptop screen has to be disabled to use three external monitors. I also needed a cable adapter because the m17XR2 only does DP, HDMI and VGA out, but my Samsung monitors only do DP, DVI and VGA in. A simple HDMI-to-DVI adapter was all I needed to make it work.

So far I've noticed the Alienware OSD dies (internet searches says this is a known problem) and also the built-in touch buttons on the laptop no longer work (driven by the OSD perhaps?). This isn't a showstopper as I can eject CDs through Explorer and change volume in the tray area.

I definitely have Crossfire enabled with 3 x 1 Eyefinity, too.

Since I can't use the laptop screen I've just put it to the side of my desk and am using an external keyboard. (I was already using an external mouse, can't stand touchpads.)

I'll be loading up some games to test this out. My girlfriend already complains about the "wall of monitors" that I hide behind (I have my desk set up as an island so the monitors are between me and the door).

Photos soon! This was not cheap but OMG so worth it!

 

That is awesome ausjoe! Can you also confirm what driver version you are on and exactly how you disabled that second internal monitor? That second monitor is always causing me trouble and I would really like to get rid of it.

 

Has anyone got any advice to get eyefinity working for me,

ive got one monitor connected via vga to vga, one via hdmi to hdmi and one via displayport to displayport but their is no option for 3x1 even if i unplug the vga and try to use the internal monitor, am i missing something, if i try to duplicate across the third monitor it asks me to disable one of the others also.

I have CF 5870s if that helps.

 

ATI driver version: 8.763.0.0
Driver Packaging Version: 8.763-100810a-104118C-Dell

ie latest package available through Dell.

@rsgeiger: Note I didn't disable an internal *adapter*, just the internal/built-in laptop screen. I was not able to bring the third monitor up until I disabled the laptop panel through the Catalyst Control Centre.

@d3st: Eyefinity is instead of extending/duplicating desktops. Disable the laptop panel and then create a display group. There's a big difference - when you just use Windows "extend desktop" your task bar only sits in one monitor, and maximising a window locks it to one monitor. With a monitor group (ie Eyefinity) Windows sees it as just one monitor instead of three.

You cannot do this unless the external monitors are very similar in pixel count. Ideally they have to report themselves as being capable of the same resolution and refresh rate to be able to do things like bezel compensation. So it's unlikely to work if you use the internal laptop panel. But if you're doing any kind of duplicate or extend, that isn't Eyefinity.

Some initial gaming results: even in CF the cards struggle to drive 3240 x 1920 with all setting maximised. Even modest winding down of settings produces playable results though. I think I'll be getting a laptop cooler for it, it seems to struggle in games in the Australian summer.

 

Ive used those drivers and atm im using the latest drivers from amd, i know duplicating is not the same as eyefinity some forums suggested doing that and than the 3x1 or 1x3 group would appear, and my external monitors are 1200p and so is my laptops one so i dont know, the issue is that i have no option for 3 monitors in the create group option even with 3 external monitors

 

You're spot on with the OSD error.

Crossfire can be "enabled" but it may not help in performance. Try running any game and report back if you will. I haven't found anyone else to double check my findings but every single game I checked ran much worse in xfire than without.

 

Can you get three external monitors working without Eyefinity? ie can you make one of them your primary desktop, disable the internal panel, and extend or duplicate onto the other two externals? If you can get that far then the problem is Eyefinity-specific...

 

I only have a couple of stats so far, for EVE Online:

Crossfire enabled: Docked = ~44 FPS, undocked = 37-42 FPS
Crossfire disabled: Docked = ~42 FPS, undocked = 30-38 FPS

Looks like in EVE at least, Crossfire gives a performance boost. Not much of one, granted, but more FPS than from running on a single card.

 

I take it the docked ones are using eyefinity? That doesn't look right becasue your FPS should be lower in eyefinity, not higher. Unless of course you changed settings between the tests.

Here is from my eyefinity testing with crossfire on and off. I used the extact same in game settings for both crossfire on and off. Left column is with without crossfire and right is with it turned on.

HL 2 LC stress test..56...........42
HL2.......................43-60......43-55
Oblivion.................52-60......31-39
Burnout Paradise.....smooth....choppy
Sacred 2................30-40.....20-30
COD4 MW...............28..........20
BFBC2....................25-28.....19
Bioshock 2..............20..........20

Best case it's about the same FPS and worst case it's much lower with both cards which makes me believe there is an issue using crossfire and eyefinity at the same time.

This is from a couple months ago so if something has been changed in newer drivers I would need to test it again.

 

No, sorry, it's an in-game location. All results with Eyefinity on. Being docked in a station in EVE means lots of complicated texture (stressing AA and AF) but no moving objects to render. Undocked means out in space which is a lot less demanding in terms of AA and AF but has more complicated lighting and moving objects.

You can see with Eyefinity on I am getting better results with CF enabled.

(Edit) Note exact same in-game settings, locations & behaviour for each test.

 

Thanks ausjoe. Do you have any other games you could test eyefinity CF vs single GPU? Like maybe any of the ones that I have listed? I have a bunch more I could test with too but Eve is not one of them

I will be more than happy to donate to someone's paypal account if they help me find a solution. Honestly with as much testing and reseaching online as I have done I am very doubtful that any games (other than possible Eve) works better with CF than without while in Eyefinity mode.

***
Tried Dirt 2 since it supports eyefinity and crossfire so well by themselves. At the same in game settings and both with eyefinity here are my results. Without crossfire yielded 30 FPS and 20 FPS with crossfire. This matches all of my previous testing. Crossfire does not seem to play well with eyefinity. Note that when in single screen mode crossfire works great, bascially doubling the framerate.

 

dajohu, I have a new set of numbers re. Crossfire Enabled vs Disabled.

Oblivion, CF enabled: 69-70 FPS
Oblivion, CF disabled: 72-75 FPS

Identical scene, loading from a save game and not moving or looking around, i.e. this really is an identical benchmark.

I don't see the same scary slowdown you get with CF enabled but it's definitely a modest slowdown. 3240x1920, HDR enabled in game, 4xAA & 4xAF forced through CCC. Given I've modded the textures to be more graphics intensive I have to say I'm pretty pleased with those FPS numbers on those settings.

I obviously would prefer no FPS be lost with CF enabled but it's such a small loss I can live with it. I also noticed the fans blowing quite a bit harder with CF disabled - even though CF doesn't add FPS here, it does seem to be distributing the temperature which implies distributing the workload.

 

SO this works? what about bezel compensation? and is anyone using 11.3?

 

Hi, can anyone tell me if i connect 3xLED Samsung BX2350 monitors,
1 via HDMI
2 via VGA to HDMI cable
3 via a displayport active to DVI with a DVI to HDMI cable work, with this cable,
<http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/16708971/Sapphire-44000-02-40R-Active-Display-Port-DVI-Cable/Product.html?_%24ja=tsid:11518%7Ccat:16708971%7Cprd:16708971>
I have a displayport to DVI adapter from Dell but does not work

 

@Mkelliny:

It works. Am using it right now. Bezel comp works fine once enabled and configured. I'm using 11.2.

 

Do we have "eyefinity" on our R3s (6970)? If yes, what's it for, and should I be interested (I have an external monitor that I wanted to use as an "extended" desktop display). Please advise. TYIA!

 

Eyefinity allows you to hook up three monitors at once and no only use them to extend your desktop but to stretch it amongst the three monitors.

YouTube - Alienware M17xR2 Proof of ATI Eyefinity with Bezel Compensation

 

Plugged in my monitor this morning. By default it showed a duplicate display. So I went to CCC, and changed it to "Extended" settings. It's GRRRREAT! Only thing is, you were right--- I can only play in windowed mode. Which is absolutely fine, cuz I just maximized the window for dolphin, with the firefox in window on the desktop monitor fullscreened. Pretty cool, cuz I can set my lappy back to 1080p while the monitor is 900p default. Thanks!

 

@dookie11 - be aware that an extended desktop is not the same as Eyefinity.

When you have an extended desktop, Windows sees each display as separate. Your Windows task bar only appears on your "main" display. When you maximise a window it expands to fill whichever display it is in, but not across displays. You can extend your desktop between monitors that are different in size and resolution. Ultimately it is Windows that manages this, but CCC has an interface to it.

Eyefinity is not the same. Eyefinity builds a "display group". This can only be between very similar monitors - best that they be identical, but at a minimum you'll need a very close match on size and resolution. This display group is treated as a single monitor by Windows - you get one task bar spanning the group, and maximising a window fills the entire set of monitors. Because of the rule that sizes & resolutions must match closely you are unlikely to be able to set this up with your built-in display and an external monitor. (I am using three externals, with the built-in disabled.) This is managed entirely by CCC and the ATI drivers, and is the only way one can set up "bezel compensation" (where monitor edges are treated like struts in a cockpit or edges of window panes - i.e. the image disappears behind them, rather than jumping the gap).

Summary: yes you have Eyefinity on the R3, but it is currently useless to you as you have only one external monitor and the sizes and resolutions almost certainly aren't compatible.

 

This was a very good explanation. Extended desktop so far is really great/fun. It's a good thing that the R3 can handle a game on one side and a video on the other side Btw, can other gpu's (weaker than the ones on the R3) handle doing extended desktop while gaming and watching vids simulataneously?

 

That is complex question that depends on both the hardware and software. In most older system it will probably be the CPU, RAM, or hard drive that will be holding you back from doing that. Though some times players are able to use the video card to help with the decoding or post processing say a blu ray movie or upscaling content which can of course really hurt performance.

It also has to do with the game and the video program you are using. While playing some games with fullscreen the second monitor will turn black or the image will freeze while the audio still runs in the background. For these games you have to turn on windowed mode in order to watch videos on the second monitor. There is also a problem with controlling that video while you playing a game. Lets say you want to pause it because the action in the game is picking up then you would have to alt tab out pause the video and then go back to playing your. I found a good work around to this is to use xbmc and a remote control app on my android phone. This allows me to control the video and even change to a movie or another tv show episode with out me ever leaving the game.