Adding 2 monitors

[Soura2112]

I want to add a second monitor for FC. I have a few questions to those with this set up.
1) is the set up easy, does FC notice the 2nd monitor or do you have to activate new things within FC? I never added a 2nd monitor to anything before.

2) I have seen some screen shots of FC on more then one monitor. Does this slow things down at all ( only reason I ask is when I make a window in FC bigger it slows down for a bit) I am running a 2005 dual 2.5 G5.

3) Is there anything else I would need to buy except the monitor? I don't want to get a new monitor and find out I need to buy unexpected stuff.

I have been wanting two monitors for awhile now, to see everything better, plus I would like to upgrade from a 20" to 23" or the 24" LED ( I know it will cost more with new cables but would be nice for my laptop too)

Thanks

 

[bigbossbmb]

Are you looking for a 2nd computer monitor or a preview/broadcast monitor? The two are very different.

 

[MrLatte23]

Second "Computer" Monitor easy...

You'll get some new choices in (OS X) Preferences for a second computer monitor and could specify it in FCP > View > Video Playback to display your output full screen pretty easily.

Do check your connectors on your computer's video card, just to make sure you don't have anything other than DVI. Also, check that your current video card can support the resolution of the new monitors.

A second monitor will effectively split the VRAM of your video card, so if it's wonky already increasing monitor size and adding a second could produce some unexpected results. Do a little investigation into the video card in your computer, you may need to upgrade it too.

If the card (at least) supports the resolutions of the monitors, it's worth a try. A friend added a second monitor to his G5 and I haven't heard of any serious issues with FCP. (Right now FCP doesn't like 3 monitors)

 

[Soura2112]

Thanks for the posts.
I am looking for another cpu monitor. While on the subject of video cards I am looking into updating mine for two monitors,FCP, and other applications. Any suggestions? If so does anyone know a good site to buy from? It's been awhile since I updates my ram and forget the site that was cheap and "good". Thanks again. I barley have any power left on my iPhone, sorry for being vague.

 

[benlangdon]

only thing i can throw in is that you should try and get a second monitor that matches the pixels per inch of your first screen.

there are calculators on the internet where you put the resolution and screen size and it tells you.

ya especially if you plan on spanning a program across both screens, get one with similar pixels per inch, trust me its really annoying if they aren't. i mean really annoying.

i don't have a g5 but a mbp with a second screen.
all i can say about ugrading other stuff is get more ram.
i need more ram 🙁 to poor.

 

[MrLatte23]

OWC for RAM

Thanks for the posts.
I am looking for another cpu monitor. While on the subject of video cards I am looking into updating mine for two monitors,FCP, and other applications. Any suggestions? If so does anyone know a good site to buy from? It's been awhile since I updates my ram and forget the site that was cheap and "good"....

Other World Computing (OWC) is good for RAM, I'm not sure which video card would work best in your specific Mac. There's much debate over NVIDIA vs. Radeon video cards, so either one will probably do. Get the highest VRAM that you can afford. It will speed screen redraws and playback and if you have enough VRAM (maybe just 256mb) you can use Motion's Plug-ins (FX Plugs) in Final Cut Pro too. I got my NVIDIA direct from NVIDIA as I was unsure about the myriad of cards (PNY, BFG Tech, LeadTec) using the specific processor I was interested in.