Using a dual monitor setup for gaming can be beneficial for your activities and improve your gaming experience in several ways. There are a few caveats that come with this kind of setup, however. In this article, we’ll explore the ups and downs of this setup and see if It works for you. And if you already have two monitors in your setup, there are several ways to make the best out of it.
Why Do You Need Two Monitors?
Technically, you don’t really need to have more than one monitor, especially now that options like ultrawide screens are available. The main perk of having multiple monitors is productivity. This is especially useful for people who work or have to do several tasks in one place.Â
Studies have shown that having more than one monitor has increased productivity by up to 40%, not to mention it looks badass to have more than one screen in your battle-station.
Let’s take a look at some of the benefits and disadvantages of having dual monitors for gaming.
Pros Of Having Two Monitors
It’s great for multitasking. Gone are the days when you’ll have to manage different programs or to browse through a bunch of tabs to get a hold of yourself. If you work from your home computer, then you know the struggle and how easy it is to get your computer cluttered with programs. Instead of switching between Photoshop, Chrome, your favorite video game, and your stream, you’ll now have the extra space to take advantage of that.Â
It’s a breeze to use once it’s setup. Most tasks become easier just for the convenience factor. The whole experience of gaming is a whole lot smoother once you have the game displayed in full on one screen and everything else you need in a separate one.Â
Streaming becomes easier. Whether it is through Twitch, Youtube, Mixer, or Facebook, there’s no clearer way to communicate with your viewers while streaming.
Speaking of communication, services like Skype and Discord also are benefited from having a dual monitor setup.
It can be paired with a laptop. This feature is easily the best for people like graphic designers and programmers who use both desktop and personal laptops on a regular basis. Changing the interface between the two is as easy as plugging it in.
The coolness factor. This one is not as important as the rest, a lot could argue that it’s not important at all, but the reality is that a dual monitor setup looks great if you keep your setup clean and organized, it can be a treat to the eyes. I would argue that it’s equally important that the setup looks good to you. That way, you’re going to enjoy spending time there.
Cons Of Having A Dual Setup
Your graphics card might not support it. You see, not all graphics cards have more than one video port. There are some like nVidia that have Surround Technology, while it does support three monitors, it’s not able to display games with only two screens.
It can be a pain to set up. Not only you have to consider compatibility with graphics cards and the monitors themselves if they are not the same brand, but also manage the cables if you want it to be as clean as possible.
It’s horrible for FPS games. In every game where you need to shoot an enemy, the crosshair is right in the middle, which would end up being right in the gap between the monitors, effectively crippling your shooting skills to an extend.Â
It is pricey. If you don’t already have a second monitor lying around, the truth is that it may be costly to have two monitors on your desk. If you want to take an arguably cheaper route with all the benefits of a dual monitor, you might have to consider purchasing an ultrawide monitor instead. But of course, this will depend on your specific circumstances.
It takes a lot of space. This might be an issue depending on your desk. This problem is sometimes solved by also buying a dual monitor stand or a mount, but then again we go back to the pricey aspect of things, and if you’ve already spent all of your budget in your gaming setup, then you may have to sacrifice a bit of space until you can afford to buy a stand.
The list of games you can play is shorter. This is a tricky one. You see, most games will allow you to play with three monitors with no issue. Like we’ve said before, cards like nVidia have programs enabled to provide a more immersive experience while having three monitors. But only two? The list of games with that option is a lot shorter.
How To Set It Up
– First, make sure that all monitors have the same ports and support the same features.
– Connect everything and go straight to the GPU control panel. There you’ll be able to adjust the settings as necessary.Â
– Match your displays. If your monitors are the same model, then you probably had the luxury of skipping this step, but if your monitors are from different models or brands, head to the Display Settings using the right-click on the desktop. There, you can tweak the displays to your liking.
– Find some sweet-looking, wall spanning wallpaper to match. This will depend on taste, and it’s not required, but it’s hard to argue that dual monitors spanning the same wallpaper over each other are a nice sight to behold. These kinds of wallpapers can be easily found on sites specialized in them or even Reddit.
– Remember shortcuts. Some good shortcuts to remember are the following:
Win+Left/Righ: This snaps the window to the edge of the monitor, pressing it again pushes it back to the original position.
Shift+Win+Left/Right: Moves the window to the next monitor.
Win+Up and Down: Maximize and minimize windows, respectively.
Win+P: Switch between display modes.
Shift+Win+Up: Maximizes window vertically.
Conclusion: Is Having A Dual Monitor Setup Worth It?
It depends on how you’d go about using your monitors. If you like to have different programs displayed on one of the monitors without having to switch tabs, or if you need to multitask, then having a second monitor will greatly increase your gaming experience.Â
This kind of setup is especially useful for people who work using their home computers. Like we’ve said before, being able to have your tasks split between the two displays has shown to increase productivity. Or maybe you’re a streamer, and you’d like to be able to see the games you play completely but also be able to interact with the chat.
However, I’d personally refrain from using both monitors to play a certain game. Why? Because if you have two monitors and they’re both displaying a game, then the center of the screen is going to be the gap between the two monitors. This is not ideal.
If you’d like to have multiple monitors for this purpose, it’s better to have three monitors or just one ultrawide monitor, preferably with a 21:9 aspect ratio, this will allow you to have the same field of view you’d get with two monitors without splitting it in the middle.Â
Either of these options will give you a wider range of your point of view, not to mention it makes the whole experience a lot more engaging, and it works best on racing games especially.
So whether or not you really need a dual monitor setup for gaming is up to you. It’ll depend on your budget, what you already have, and what you intend to accomplish.Â
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