Windows 10 dual display on a 4k monitor and 1080 TV.

[SteveD]

Hi,

I have:

NVidia GeForce GT1030 (2GB) video card
27" 4k monitor
42" 1080 TV

Do I need a separate video card for dual display on the TV? If so can you recommend one please. It’s only for watching video and not for 3D applications.

Thanks, Steve.

[phillpower2]

You will not need a second GPU but that is a very basic GPU and the quality of the video may not be too clever.

[Bruce]

OP revisited without comment.
@SteveD - do you still need help?

[SteveD]

Thanks for your comments Phil. I was waiting to see if anyone else would like to comment but it seems that it’s not attracting any more responses. Maybe I was a bit too brief in my explanation. What I need to be able to do is run a 1080p TV set at the same time as a 4k monitor and I was wondering if I need to get a separate video card for each display. Now I would think that a GPU putting out a 4k signal, for the 4k monitor, would fail to display correctly on a TV set at 1080p: if I’m using the hdmi output for one display and the dvi output for the other. I haven’t tested it because neither display has a dvi input and I would need to get a dvi to hdmi converter. Also I’m a bit puzzled when you say that the basic GPU wouldn’t display 2D video very well. I was always under the impression that any GPU would provide a perfectly fine 2D picture and it’s the 3D performance that you are paying for with a more expensive GPU. The GPU does actually produce a very high quality picture on the TV and on the monitor. Thanks again and your comments would be appreciated. Steve D.

[Pyro]

Running varying display sizes can be problematic at times, keep this in mind if you see things such as screen flashing or improper scaling.

I would stay away from adapters if possible, if not possible it might be better to get a cord that has a DVI end as well as an HDMI end.

A 1030 can run a 4k and 1080p display, but you may see decreased performance if you were to attempt more intense tasks (such as streaming a video or game at 4k while using the other screen for other tasks).

2D can still exhaust resources, it depends on the particular application.

Once again, this could be an issue or it could not be, it all depends on what you plan on doing as well as other parts of your computer.

You should be able to plug the computer into both TVs simultaneously, you do not need another GPU.

[phillpower2]

In addition to what has been advised above - thanks Pyro (y)

Also I’m a bit puzzled when you say that the basic GPU wouldn’t display 2D video very well.

Not intending to be pedantic but nowhere was it specified the type of video that would be affected but fwiw all video will be affected and for one reason in particular in this instance, a single 32" screen needs 2GB of VRAM for the best of video feedback and any GPU should be at least 128 bit or above, you are not doing any gaming etc but you still may find the screen/s to be grainy.

For best results the 4K screen should be connected to a DP and the 1080 to HDMI, +1 for not using any type of adaptor with a GPU.

[SteveD]

Thanks for your help Pyro and for the further comments from Phil. I suppose the best thing would be if I just get a DVI to HDMI lead and try it. Before I bought he 4k monitor I was using a 1080p monitor which had a DVI socket. I connected the tv and monitor at the same time but I had to select in Windows which display was to be used - I didn’t have the option to run both. Also the scaling (and pyro mentioned this) was wrong for the TV so I put that right in the Nvidia Control Panel. So all was good and when I switched to the TV it would recognise and resize to it. But I couldn’t run both simultaneously which was a bit inconvenient. With the 4k monitor I now have to physically switch HDMI connections, to select between monitor and tv, and the Nvidia Control Panel resizes automatically when the TV is selected. I do though need to be able to have both going simultaneously and I’m still thinking that the GPU will be set to the scaling of the monitor and it will be putting out a 4k signal which, surly, the 1080p tv won’t recognise, so I can’t imagine it displaying correctly on both displays at the same time. Any further comments appreciated. Steve.

[Pyro]

Steve, I’m having trouble breaking up your text into more manageable chunks.

I’m not sure what exactly you’re struggling with, Settings > System > Display should give you an option to use the settings “Extend these displays”

[SteveD]

Sorry, I’ll put some paragraphs in:

Thanks for your help Pyro and for the further comments from Phil.

I suppose the best thing would be if I just get a DVI to HDMI lead and try it. Before I bought the 4k monitor I was using a 1080p monitor which had a DVI socket. I connected the tv and monitor at the same time but I had to select in Windows which display was to be used - I didn’t have the option to run both. Also the scaling (and pyro mentioned this) was wrong for the TV so I put that right in the Nvidia Control Panel.

So all was good and when I switched to the TV it would recognise and resize to it. But I couldn’t run both simultaneously which was a bit inconvenient. With the 4k monitor I now have to physically switch HDMI connections, to select between monitor and tv, and the Nvidia Control Panel resizes automatically when the TV is selected.

I do though need to be able to have both going simultaneously and I’m still thinking that the GPU will be set to the scaling of the monitor and it will be putting out a 4k signal which, surly, the 1080p tv won’t recognise, so I can’t imagine it displaying correctly on both displays at the same time. Any further comments appreciated. Steve.

[SteveD]

Pyro, I suppose the thing that I’m struggling with is accepting that one GPU can provide, simultaneously, correctly scaled images to two displays with aspect ratios that don’t exactly match and render a display on a 1080p tv when the output is set to 4k.

[SteveD]

Actually, it’s not that the aspect ratios don’t match is just that the image doesn’t scale the same for the monitor and tv.

[Pyro]

Windows Settings should allow you to change display resolution independently if you click on the screen you are attempting to change, this ‘should’ work, but I am not sure if it will be seamless.

Assuming you have the video output, there is no reason it shouldn’t work, just make sure your settings (Settings > System> Display) is set to “Extend these displays”.

I would run both at 1080p, the tv can handle being underscaled for resolution. If you wanted to run one at 4k and the other at 1080p you could, but I would expect this to just bring even more issues.

I think I see your question now, how can a gpu output 4k and 1080p, will it only do one instead of the other.

The answer is no, it can be changed to suit each screen accordingly (the same way you could set two monitors such as a 720p and a 1080p up together). They’re able to be different and coexist off the same gpu.

[SteveD]

Thanks Pyro. Yes, that confirms my suspicion. I bought a 4k monitor so that I can run it at 4k, so it looks like I’m going to need an additional video card. Can you suggest something? The new card will be for the tv, for which I don’t need any 3D as it will only be showing video. Steve.

[Pyro]

I am very confused by what you are saying.

[ATTACH type=“full” alt=“1649616774225.png”]9493[/ATTACH]

NVIDIA says that your card should be more than okay for multi display + 4k here.

[SteveD]

The problem is that I need to run the 4k monitor, in 4k, at the same time as running the 1080p tv in 1080p. So I need my PC to output 4k video and 1080p video at the same time. Thanks.