Triple screen setups...who uses them?

Just curious what you may have and if it matters having different tvs/monitors to complete the 3? I imagine some would have a nicely aligned setup with 3 good computer monitors. Others might have 2 smaller and cheaper tvs on the sides of their main big one. Any probs with the latter?

Mainly thinking about Project Cars coming up but I guess you could use them for all manner of games. I like the idea of the Oculus Rift headset but not having the ability to change eye focus now and again is a concern.

I don't have much advise but will share my experience...

I tried the 3 screen setup but recently have gone back to single screen.
It was for iracing but didn't end up playing it much.
I had 30" 1600p screen in the middle and two cheapy samsung 22" 1080p screens.

I've switched back to one big screen. 40" 4k monitor.

My thoughts..
If you only intend on using the PC purely for racing then 3 monitor setups are great if you have matching size monitors. They need a fair bit of grunt from vid cards.
I would consider the 3 screen setup again if I had a racing seat with mounts.

I found myself playing other games directly on the main screen and the others just taking up space or distracting me with facebook so back to one large monitor for me.

I'd say go for all the same model and size monitors if you want to run triples. It will work a lot nicer and be less of a headache. I haven't tried them personally but just what I've gathered from having a lurk around the iRacing forums.

With the rift there's a bit of division. Some people swear by triples and say that they're better then the rift and eaiser to use. But on the other hand there are guys who have gone from triples to the rift and never looked back. I guess you can't really compare until you've tried both

Would certainly go with 3x same monitors, if the budget allows. I've used triple monitors in a graphics wk environment and small things like colour balance and refresh rates need to be the same to get the best out of a 3x setup. Most only consider resolution and/or pixel size of a monitor. Have a look in a shop that has a lot of tvs (different model/brands) all working next to each other, colours are way out, even how sharp the image appear.

As the rift, nearly ordered the dev kit II awhile back but as PCars was getting delayed I didn't but will look at it again, would prefer the retail version when it comes out but it won't be this yr. purely based on $$$$, over setting up a triple monitor setup.

RU

Ps: also look for a brand/model that has the smallest frame/border, minimizing the dead space between the actual monitors.

I was actually thinking last night that given TVs are getting bigger and bigger, I'd love games to give me the option to utilise my screen real estate the way I want. 70% main picture centred and pop a couple smaller insets both sides. Then I wouldn't need extra screens. Surely that couldn't be too hard to program.

wouldn't be hard at all, no different than picture in picture stuff, but i don't think it would happen and not sure if it would actually work in the gaming real world. 15/70/15 % screen usage might not wk well, and if a "in theory" left n right screen on the same plain, in front would actually give u the desired effect of surround vision. I've seen some big curved screens, i think panasonic have marketed some but very $$$$

its what draws me to the Rift, from memory it has 110 degrees FOV, but like most things its a wait and see.

RU

I used to use two screens for pc racing, larger 32' mounted on the cockpit and the 27' monitor just to the right(this was also my pc monitor for other stuff n other gaming) , was awesome as you could watch real live lap times on the second monitor and see where cars were on track ect, or switch it to whatever you wanted,, great for qualy, then during races have all different types of gauges, again lap times ect ect just download the mods, I really only raced R Factor on pc, and sometimes F1. R Factor had the V8 Super cars and all the tracks so used to do the series with them, was epic.

Didn't even think of that. Great idea.

long time Sleuth, absolutely a great idea mate. Ive got a 22inch sitting in the cupboard collecting dust.

found this link to about a dozen app's that utilise a 2nd monitor for dashboard stuff, for PC cars. haven't tried any, but worth a look.

http://www.projectcarsgame.com/apps.html

RU

PS: got it wrong, I read 2nd screen as 2nd monitor, sorry, these apps are for iOS/Android devices. Will leave as it might be of some interest. saying that i have an old iPad i could use.

First off, do triple screens if you're super keen right now. If you're prepared to wait, WAIT for the right VR kit. I have a DK2. Its ok. Conceptually its freaking incredible, but its NOT something you want to use all the time. Wait for the HTC Vive and see how that turns out.

Your other issue with using TV's is that while there ARE panels with really low input delay to make gaming acceptable, the problem is that they're few and far between. My Sony is one of the few with <15ms input delay, but the average is much higher at around 30-50ms, which makes playing a game nigh upon unplayable. So you HAVE to be willing to pony up the cash for a good HDTV for that.

Lastly, hardware. Triple screens need horsepower. You're gonna need either a GTX980 (or equivalent) or dual GTX970's (or equivalent) to properly maintain 60fps at resolutions at and/or higher than 1080p. Single screen 1080p is easy. Multi-monitor is not.