I have 2 monitors, both with VGA ports only (LG Flatron W2242S).
I want to use both of these monitors with my AMD Radeon 7700 graphics card. However, the second port refuses to work.
The cables being used are VGA > DVI male-to-male.
I think it is worth noting that these monitors come from a previous set up that enjoyed many years of happy dual-monitoring. I'm 100% sure the fault lies with the computer, not the hardware outside of the machine.
Things I have tried:
- Both monitors work. I have tried on another machine and both work together.
- Both monitors work independently on port 1 (top port) of the graphics card.
- Neither monitor works in port 2, even with nothing else plugged in.
- I have tried new cables for both monitors, both power and VGA > DVI.
- I have swapped and changed the cables round in every possible configuration.
- Latest drivers installed and Windows fully updated.
It's probably worth noting that AMD Catalyst Control Center (AMD's driver control panel) lists the monitor as "CRT, Analog, Single". I'm guessing VGA doesn't pass meta information to the machine, so that's just a fallback from the software, but mentioning just in case.
The card is near new, I have had it for about 3 months but only just got around to sorting out dual monitors. It was manufacturer fitted. The machine hasn't been stressed in any way, has more than ample power from the PSU and to be honest the thing has barely been used.
Last thing possibly worth mentioning. I have found a few forum posts dotted about of people having the same issue, but none seem to have been resolved. This makes me think it probably isn't a faulty card.
I'm on Windows 7. Had the issue on a clean install of Windows, so it's not the drivers playing up.
Massive thanks in advance – I'm going a bit mad with this!
EDIT: Found a forum talking about this, apparently it needs to be an "active adapter". No outcome found on the forum – any ideas?
EDIT 2: Full Graphics Card info as found in Catalyst Control Center: http://imgur.com/pgxTEXW
Best Answer
It appears the second port needed an "active adapter" in order for it to work correctly.
Weirdly, upon using the active adapter, the correct meta information is picked up by my computer about the monitor (make, model, capabilities, etc).
Here is the adapter I purchased, in case anyone stumbles upon the same issue: http://www.amazon.co.uk/StarTech-com-Active-Adapter-Converter-1920x1200/dp/B00C93JQXS