Multi-monitor tips for Thinkpad T6x (w/link to video)

[RonS]

Here is a video I shot demonstrating various ways of expanding multi-monitor capabilities with the T60 series Thinkpad. Video is here.

The demo shows a combination of:

- Advanced Dock with ATI V5200 video card
- Matrix TripleHead2Go video splitter
- Displaylink monitors
- MaxiVista (util to extend desktop via LAN)
- PCMCIA video (VillageTronic VTBook)

I'll be expanding content of this original post if discussion develops.

[goofyGAguy]

I haven't seen that many screens in Best Buy.

[Harryc]

Awesome setup Ron. Thanks for sharing the multi-monitor setup/technology with us.

[dr_st]

Wow!!!

This is amazing. Are you operating a military control center?

[pianowizard]

Ron, thanks for taking the time to shoot that video. What do you use all these monitors for? How do you stack them on top of each other so nicely? I assume there's some sort of mounting mechanism.

I once had a USB-VGA adapter that I got for $78 from buy.com. Its images lagged so badly that I sold it after just a few days, losing $38 in the process. Are the PCMCIA cards any better?

[tzmueller]

I need to drive 4 - 24" monitors off my W510 (when I get it).. whats the best setup I could do?

thanks!

[AMATX]

I knew I'd found the right forum for Thinkpads a few weeks ago when I was cruising for sites,
and this kind of tech stuff is a prime reason why...

Pretty slick, Ron...

A few years ago, I picked up a couple of the Viewsonic VP2290(similar to IBM T221) super duper high res monitors(3840x2400). Tried to get 'em going via Z61p+dock+video card, similar to this demo. However, for some reason it didn't fly. May have to retry that, in view of Ron's setup.

I need more screen real estate on one setup for stock market info. I've been using two 24" 1920x1200 external monitors(VGA port + USB adapter), but have maxed that out. So, have a W700 headed my way so that I can drive two 30" monitors; one via DVI, the other via DisplayPort. Maybe add in a 1920x1200 via the VGA port. Wanted native support, as I've been using a USB adapter, which, per Ron, ain't quite up to it.

MaxiVista is interesting, looked at that in the past, but didn't consider having the secondary setup running w/external monitors(nifty!); just tried it using the secondary laptop screen.

All in all, it would appear that Ron has wayyyy toooo much time on his hands Much to our benefit...

[AMATX]

Ron, quick question on the ATI V5200 card running in the dock:

Will the WinXP driver for the laptop's internal V5200 card/chip handle the V5200 in the dock, or do you have to have a separate driver installed to handle the card in the dock? I have a similar setup to yours that I dug out of the closet today, hoping to get something going and it wouldn't fly. Downloaded the latest driver for the V5200 in the dock and when I ran the installation, I got a message about 'not finding a driver for current hardware config'. So, dunno if I've got a mismatch or if the V5200 card in the dock has crapped out. I haven't fooled with this setup for a couple of yrs, so the card could be shot.

Just wondering, as my W700 order is now delayed about 3+ weeks(further delays after that??) and I'd like to get a little better monitor setup going in the meantime.

Thx for your help...

[RonS]

Ron, thanks for taking the time to shoot that video. What do you use all these monitors for?

I spec and build multi-monitor systems to run software that I develop. The software maps the seafloor. It involves sonar imagery, maps, video, vehicle control programs and many other situational-awareness displays that take a lot of screen real-estate. Sometimes, even eight 30" displays aren't enough.

How do you stack them on top of each other so nicely? I assume there's some sort of mounting mechanism.

The 30" wall-mounted monitors use this mount. I paid $97.50 for each mount.

The desktop stands use two four-monitor setups from Ergotron. See this PDF document for their current setups.

I once had a USB-VGA adapter that I got for $78 from buy.com. Its images lagged so badly that I sold it after just a few days, losing $38 in the process. Are the PCMCIA cards any better?

Displaylink is hugely different than the old USB video that you probably had. See this. I would put PCMCIA cards in the same performance class as DisplayLink. PCMCIA cards put less of a load on the CPU, but they have heat and compatibility problems, and don't seem to perform much, if any, better. Also, I haven't seen 1920x1200 resolution from a PCMCIA card yet. DisplayLink adapters are starting to come up in higher resolutions beyond 1920x1200, and with DisplayLink/USB 3.0 the performance problems may become less severe. Time will tell.

[RonS]

I need to drive 4 - 24" monitors off my W510 (when I get it).. whats the best setup I could do?

Keep on eye on the W500 forum. Hopefully, in a couple of weeks I'll have something up and working and I'll post details there.

[RonS]

Ron, quick question on the ATI V5200 card running in the dock:

Will the WinXP driver for the laptop's internal V5200 card/chip handle the V5200 in the dock, or do you have to have a separate driver installed to handle the card in the dock? I have a similar setup to yours that I dug out of the closet today, hoping to get something going and it wouldn't fly. Downloaded the latest driver for the V5200 in the dock and when I ran the installation, I got a message about 'not finding a driver for current hardware config'. So, dunno if I've got a mismatch or if the V5200 card in the dock has crapped out. I haven't fooled with this setup for a couple of yrs, so the card could be shot.

I would download the latest v5200 driver from ATI and start installation. After it expands its files into a temporary directory, cancel the install at the next opportunity. Go to Device Manager, delete the display adapter driver that has the (!) exclamation point next to it, and then Action->re-scan for hardware changes. When plug-n-play reports new hardware, point it to the temp directory to directly load the driver. That's how I do it.

[AMATX]

Wow, you're full of tricks will try the V5200 driver install at my next opportunity, probably tomorrow.

Btw, was just rewatching your multi-mon video; you have a $lot$ invested in that setup.

Neat tricks, tho...

Thx for the help.

[AMATX]

Ron, per your PCI express extender cable for running a video card outside of the box:

* I poked around on ebay, found a few similar to what you have.

* All seem to be 4-6" in length. As you mentioned in your video, kinda short.

So, have you thought about or experimented with patching two or more together into a longer ribbon cable to buy some more distance? Any length limitations of which you're aware?

In addition to the ATI V5200 card I quizzed you about, I also have a full length nVidia card that I may try to use in case the ATI craps out. The extender oughta do the trick for this baby.

I'll probably order up a 2 or 3 of these extenders(cheap) to try this, but was wondering if anyone else has done it.

Still trying to get one of my 3830x2400 monitors running out of a laptop/dock, in addition to expanding the number of monitors I can run.

[RonS]

Ron, per your PCI express extender cable for running a video card outside of the box:

* I poked around on ebay, found a few similar to what you have.

* All seem to be 4-6" in length. As you mentioned in your video, kinda short.

So, have you thought about or experimented with patching two or more together into a longer ribbon cable to buy some more distance? Any length limitations of which you're aware?

AMATX, see this post from a long time ago: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.ph ... 46#p145746

I wouldn't try more than 4" length. Even 4" may be too long... at some point, you'll get noise/reflection in the cable that will stop you cold. 4" should be long enough to get the card outside the dock, with some kind of lift around the edge of the dock to keep it off the card.

[AMATX]

Yup, read that thread/series of posts yesterday. That's what got me to wondering about slapping several together. I suppose if one could find high enough quality ribbon cables, that -might- work, but there's probably no market for those.

Thanks for the quick reply...am gonna order up some of these extenders el pronto, but wanted to check first. I may go ahead and try two of them just to see how it goes.

Based upon everything I've seen, and your excellent Youtube video, it would appear that what I need to drive either my 3840x2400 super res monitor or to drive multiple monitors(for my other needs) is:


* laptop - Z61p, which conveniently has an ATI V5200 chip/card in it.

* advanced docking station, which I have.

* video card that'll work in the dock, which I have and hope to get installed shortly(ATI V5200).

* extender cable for the dock, if I end up using a bigger video card(nVidia) than will fit in the dock.

* couple of the Matrox DualHead2go boxes(don't need triples) to split the 3840x2400 signal into four separate 1920x1200 feeds in/out of the super res monitor.

Spare time project, may be next week before I get through all of this...gave up on the super res monitor a couple of years ago as too complicated/$$$ to setup. Knew zero about video setup THEN...But, NOW that I know enough to be dangerous, we'll see happens.

[crashnburn]

Sometimes, even eight 30" displays aren't enough.

RonS - Seriously... Daymmm!

I have a 30" XHD 3000 running at 2560 x 1600 and I love it. I did have my 1400 x 1050 SXGA on also a while back but positioning made it less "neck" friendly to use. But I find the 30" very very sufficient.. maybe more than I can "manage" with my hands for now.

I'd love to pick your brains on some questions I had if / when you're on here next.

PS: Where's the video link?

[AMATX]

Video link is imbedded at the end of the first sentence of his post #1, in BLUE...definitely worth a look.

Or, I'll make it easy for you...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYHzeSr_eFM


I have some stuff, along the lines of what RonS did, for multi-monitor support on a W700, which I'll eventually post on this board, but I got stuck on $$$ about halfway through what I want to do. SO, I'm waiting it out per some more play money...

[crashnburn]

Video link is imbedded at the end of the first sentence of his post #1, in BLUE...definitely worth a look.

Or, I'll make it easy for you...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYHzeSr_eFM


I have some stuff, along the lines of what RonS did, for multi-monitor support on a W700, which I'll eventually post on this board, but I got stuck on $$$ about halfway through what I want to do. SO, I'm waiting it out per some more play money...

Gulp! Seriously owns everyone till the end of time. We have some illustrious members here.. each a pinnacle in their own right.

[usitawi]

RonS I have a ThinkPad T60P with ATI Mobility FireGL v5250. I intend to purchase an Advanced Dock and plug a ATI v5200 so as to have a triple display setup. Can you please answer the following questions:

- Is hot/warm undock viable in this scenario as the drivers will be identical for the internal and the card in the docking station? If the answer is "No", would you know if the limitation is with the hardware or the drivers, OS?
- Have you attempted to run your favorite flavor of Linux for your setup and what are your experiences?

Thanks for your contributions.

[garnet]

RonS,
Is this going to work with my t60 below and a advanced dock? Say for 3-4 sreens.
What is the advanced dock model nuimber?
Thanks.