Matrox TripleHead2Go
Carolyn Koh takes a look at Matrox's TripleHead2Go device that allows users to spread their computer screens over three different monitors.
Hardware Reviews By Carolyn Koh on February 19, 2007
What do you do after you’ve built yourself a screaming fast gaming rig that you dropped about $2,000 on? If you are like many gamers, you’ve already got a 17" or 19" LCD monitor with a wicked fast response time. So you lust after a 24” monitor, but that’s… ouch… three times the price of the 19” monitor.
Then again, there’s the really dreamy 30" screen, but you are entering the realm of diminishing returns and it’s really hard to justify spending $1,500 on a monitor when the rest of your system cost you $2,000. What if I told you that you could get 51" – 57" of vivid eye-candy goodness for about $700? Would you do it?
When I was first asked about reviewing the Matrox TripleHead2Go, I was afraid that I would not have the hardware to properly review this neat little device. Where would I find three identical monitors? Would the screen size and refresh speeds have to be the same? The answer was that I didn’t need three identical monitors.
I carted two 2004 vintage generic Dell 15" screens home from the office after work on Friday to supplement my 17" screen. Plugged them in, installed the software, followed instructions and… it worked. There was my windows desktop spread over three monitors.
;)
The Technical Details
The Matrox TripleHead2Go is a device which allows you to connect two or three monitors to your gaming rig for a resolution of up to 3840 x 1024. From the system's perspective, the TripleHead2Go acts like an ultra wide-screen monitor; the unit communicates to the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit on your video card) which resolutions it supports, the same way any flat panel would and the GPU decides whether or not to offer those resolutions to the user.
;)
In laymen’s terms; through the TripleHead2Go, your system now thinks it has a wide-screen monitor to play with and your view of the game now stretches out in a panorama over the screens.
The box contained the TripleHead2Go device, an AC to 5VDC transformer, 2 cables – one HD15 / HD15 and one HD15 / DVI-I, the software and instructions.
The device itself is a handsome little box. Black metal and well ventilated. Smaller than a CD case in length and width, and about half an inch high. It was so light, I left it dangling off my desk. The unit got warm, but never hot. That it was dangling in mid-air may have helped, but I doubt it would keep a cup of coffee warm. Slow the cooling? Maybe. Place a cup of coffee on top of it? Inadvisable.
;)
Installation was simple. The unit is labeled clearly and basic instructions in five languages fit on a single fold piece of paper as large as the CD that came with it.
- Change your display resolution to 800 x 600@60Hz.
- Turn your computer off and hook up the unit and monitors
- Turn your computer back on and install the Matrox software
- Change your display resolutions to one of the support resolutions
The first I tried was 2400 x 600 (or triple 800). My Windows desktop stretched out nicely. I tried a higher resolution and had a moment of panic when I was greeted with a center screen without any icons or tool bar and two blank side screens, but a simple right click to get to the video properties and change that back to the recommended starting 2400 x 600 solved that problem.
;)
Included in the software is a program – Matrox Surround Gaming Utility (SGU) that assists you in setting up your games for the TripleHead2Go. What it does is create a game configuration file to have proper settings enabled for TripleHead2Go resolutions and places an icon on your desktop with the word "Surround" appended to the name of the game. It does not replace your current file, which made me a happy camper as a reviewer. I would not have to manually change my game files after I uninstalled the software and returned the review unit!
Matrox also offers a software tool downloadable from their site that provides additional resolutions so that it can be run in Dual Head mode, wide screen and will also support the faster refresh rate of CRT users.
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If one were to do a quick google search on this, they would be quick to note that these get bad reveiws.
Just buy an extra wide-screen monitor and dual-screen. It costs the same as this. (Assuming you bought a new GPU in the last 3 years.)
Review from Techgage: "All in all, gaming with TH2Go is pure bliss"
Trustedreviews.com: "If you’re a multi-monitor fan and you have the space you have to consider this."
Guru3d.com: "It's an absolutely marvellous experience and comes highly recommended."
That was a quick google for me... Want me to continue? You see, that you bash things on auto does not mean you seem like you know things and is really smart.. you look like a clueless fool when you dont know what you are bashing... Biased review... This has gotten praise pretty much everywhere, needing only a few simple patches to be perfect.
The only biased person here is you, that want to bash a good review with first hand experience, just because you dont know better, you have osme grudge against a site you visit (advice, get out then?) and your mommy did not hug you enough as a kid... two years ago.
Stop the monkeypoo tossing please and grow up
Glad to see a full review here of this product, and one that includes photos that I was unable to include in my own review.
As some of you may remember I won the TripleHead2Go and a Viewsonic monitor from an MMORPG contest awhile back. Here's a shameless plug to that review (notice: It's LONG!): http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/98590.
I sometimes look back on that and think, "Ya know, they were probably just wanting a Hey, this is cool! kind of response.." Heh. Oops.
I thoroughly enjoy it and highly recommend it, and it's good to know that they have a DVI version coming out. If I were to have a wishlist item for the next version of the TripleHead2Go then it would be to support higher resolutions on each individual monitor. That only makes sense with monitors growing in size as they are.
Anyway, it's late and I'm awfully darn tired. Just wanted to plug my old review and say that, no, I doubt Carolyn's review is a "paid advertisement". This thing really is an immersive, impressive piece of hardware.
a quick edit to add that the "dual monitor" config that one obtains directly from their 3D card is considerably different from what the TripleHead2Go gives. See my original long review for more info on that. IIRC I touched on that subject.
Good night!
~Mysk
i guess its ok for the average newb.
i find this thing as p retty stupid, theres never a time where i would want 3 monitors to be displaying it likt e it would be. This displaying it over so many monitors has never inpressed me. Meh get a 32" LCDTV and be happy
With a 32 LCDTV youw ill NOT get the resolution you would from 3 monitors. You will only get the same as a 17 inch flat panel. I laugh at anyone who buys a LCDTV to hook up to there computer just to play games on. Its about the realestate space and the LCD TV's do NOT have it.
I know some people who run multiple displays, and it's really useful for racing sims where you need the peripheral vision. But other than making you look like a sad monitor collector or someone with too much money, it's far from a 'must have' thing.
The blind spots between monitors don't really make that much difference - your blind spot fills them in and remember there's not actually a space there in the game (so you couldn't miss an enemy or anything). And if you can afford to use LCDs or plasmas, the side bars aren't that big anyway.
HD Ready TV (720p/1080i) do not support more than 17" monitor resolution. That's correct.
But a PROPER HD TV (1080p) at 37" will cost you less than $1000 and have resolution 1920x1080.
Tbh if I had £800/$1600 I would buy the 30" Dell monitor and be happy (2560x1600), insteed of paying £350 for 2 additional 19" plus £500 for the device.
Great Review Carolynn,...Spot On.....I've been using the TripleHead2Go since last October and couldn't be happier.
Given that MMO's, are my Hobby of choice. It only made sense to jump in with both feet. At 3840x1024 resolution I've got a definite advantage over my group mates and enemies. I can see a MUCH wider field of view than they can. Combined with a THX surround sound system....nothing sneaks up on me.
I've played EVE-Online, LoTR (Beta) and I'm currently playing Vanguard so I have to warn you...once you've played this way...you can't go back to a single 19" 20" or 21"screen ever again. It's just no fun.
Vanguard zoomed in on one of my Characters
Vanguard zoomed out on the same character
Gnabicus, those are some great photos. :D That's the way to show it off right there, hehe.
~Mysk
Notice....all of the people who have actually used this device have nothing but praise for it....
vs the trolls who scoff at the silly "low-tech" solution for "noobs"
I just hate useless trolls.....
There was a whole long thread in Matrox official suport forums about this matter, but Matrox decided to eliminate the forums.
I am glad to see someone finally made something small and affordable for the common man to use in their homes.
I will wait for the DVI version (this has to be around the corner) and I'll pick this up. My 8800gtx has two DVI slots, but I won't get that 3 monitor support :P Who knows, Hook up 6 monitors? mwahahaha~!
WoW!
Those pics are awesome. Do you have any videos of you in action playing any MMO's?
Not yet...I used Fraps playing EVE online...but the file sizes were HUGE. I'll play around with it and see what I can get out of VanGuard.
Via Engadget.com . . . Matrox just announced that a digital Triplehead2go is coming soon.
www.engadget.com/2007/03/07/matroxs-triplehead2go-digital-edition/
Any recommendation on what monitors I should buy to go with it? I'm using 2 old monitors at the moment that I'd just as soon replace.
Also, how do I get Everquest 2 to run in 2400x600? Which file do I have to edit?
Normally the game will allow you to adjust the resolution somewhere in the Video settings menu.
As for which monitor...your simply looking for the lowest MS response time with the highest contrast ratio and the smallest bevel/bezel. I'm currently using the Acer AL1950 monitors which have a 2ms response but I find the bevel/bezel a bit wide and the contrast a bit lower than I'd prefer. If I had it to do over again I'd concentrate on the contrast a bit more.
Hmm I knew I was looking for small response time in a monitor. Sigh, when I got to NewEgg they have so many it's hard to choose.
Well, I can't say I like playing Everquest in 2400x600 mode. It doesn't let you zoom out enough and you have almost no vertical perception.
If you buy this thing, make sure you have a nvidia card. You can achieve much better than 2400x600 with a nvidia card.
I'm returning my ATI X1600Pro tonight and getting an NVIDIA so I can try EQ2 in 3360x1050. That should be much better.
Well, a few graphics cards later and I'm almost set up. I initially had a Radeon 9600SE which doesn't like the TH2G. I got a X1600Pro which lets you get 2400x600 which turns out to be CRUMMY... so in reality I'd say for a gamer that the TH2G does NOT support ATI cards.
I returned the card and got a GeForce6200OC, which is simply not enough horsepower to run EQ2 in 3840x1024, though I did get a peek at it. I returned that card and got the AGP version of the GeForce7800GS.
NOW I'm cooking with gas. EQ2 and Neverwinter Nights 2 both give me great wide displays with fluid movement even on high settings. It's so immersive!
I'm using three 22" widescreen monitors by CHIMEI. So we are talking REALLY wide. I can't wait to go home and play with this setup some more!