So you’ve realized that you need multiple monitors for your trading computer but aren’t really sure what you need in order to actually make that happen. No problem. There is obviously some additional gear that you will need in order to have a multi-monitor setup, but as long as you have the right configuration it’s possible to have four, six, or even eight monitors to glue your eyeballs to.
Read also: The 5 Best Laptops for Multiple Monitors
The first thing you need to do is settle on just how many monitors you want. This is huge since it’s a lot easier to buy everything all at once than it is to say, create a setup for three monitors and realize that you’d rather have six. Going back and upgrading an existing setup is, as you probably figured, more difficult. Consider how many open windows you usually have at one time and determine just how much screen real estate it would take up if you each window was visible. Once you have figured that out, it’s time to get into the nitty gritty.
Here is a rundown of what you will need (aside from the monitors themselves).
Multi-Monitor Supported Graphics Cards
Popular among hard core gamers and animators alike, graphics cards are what do the heavy lifting when it comes to your computers video. The two biggest names in this arena are Nvidia and AMD and they both make it a habit of coming up with new, more powerful cards on a regular basis. In fact, if you get a top of the line card from either company, chances are good that within six months there will be another, more powerful card to replace it. When it comes to your trading computers’ multiple monitor setup, you don’t really need the most powerful card out there. A good middle-of-the-road card can easily handle the workload.
It’s important to know that no matter which card you choose, you need to be sure that it is designed for multiple monitors. While many, if not most, cards have this capability, they don’t all scale well, so be careful when selecting your card. Many cards are designed to handle an extra two to three monitors, meaning that if you want more monitors you’ll need more graphics cards. Because of this your trading computer is going to need a few things: a motherboard that has room for multiple graphics cards as well as a power supply that can handle the additional cards.
Another important thing is your configuration. Make sure that if you are using multiple graphics cards, they are the exact same model and that you are using the same video outputs for each. Trying to mix and match graphics cards or using different outputs can create issues.
Read also: How to Use Laptop as Monitor for Maximum Productivity
Monitor Stands
So now that you are actually able to put video up on to all of those screens, it’s time to turn your attention to the other major component you will need to have multiple monitors. Your trading computer system will need a monitor stand to hold all of those screens up.
The stand you pick will be dependent upon how many screens you will have and how big the screens will be. All of your monitors should be the same model so that they can easily fit into the stand and balance the weight evenly. Speaking of weight and stability, if you are thinking of going with an eight screen setup you should use two quad stands instead of just a single eight monitor rig. The two quads are will be much more stable. Once you know how many monitors you basically need, just pick the corresponding stand that fits that amount.
[Image credit: Eric Gravengaard, Flickr]
