For example, some people might have an old monitor lying around, and now they’re wondering if they can match that monitor with their new and shiny one. Can dual monitors have different resolutions?

Yes, you can run a dual monitor setup using two screens with different resolutions. Simply go into the Display settings and set your preferred resolutions for both screens 1 and 2, and you’re good to go. It’s not optimal to use two screens of different resolutions, however, because your mouse pointer will appear at a different point when crossing over screens with it.

If you have any questions or are curious about further details on this matter, keep reading. I will go over everything you need to know when it comes to using two monitors with different resolutions.

Also read: Should Dual Monitors Be of the Same Brand? & Should Dual Monitors Be the Same Size?

Can Dual Monitors Have Different Resolutions?

As I mentioned earlier, you can certainly use two monitors of different resolutions with each other. However, there are some things that you should consider before doing this.

The biggest annoyance when using two monitors with different resolutions occurs when moving your mouse pointer from the screen with a higher resolution to the screen with a lower resolution.

For example, if you have one monitor with 4K resolution and one with 1080p, you will have to move your mouse pointer to the top corner of the screen to move the pointer to the lower resolution monitor.

This is because Windows thinks that the screens are different sizes. Check out the picture below and you’ll see what I mean:

Here, you’re going to have to move up and to the left to move your mouse pointer from 1 to 2. When moving to 2 to 1, however, the mouse pointer is always going to appear in the top left corner of your 4K screen.

Unfortunately, there is no way to fix this unless you use an external program. More specifically, you need to use something called LittleBigMouse which is a free open-source project.

The application lets you transition more effortlessly from screen to screen and it’s the only program that I know of which lets you do this.

Oftentimes, monitors with different resolutions also have different refresh rates. This can be an issue depending on the monitors. For example, if you have one 144hz screen, that screen might cap its refresh rate to 60Hz while doing some things on your computer.

A lot of people have dual monitor setups because they want to play something on one screen while watching something on the other. In cases like these with two monitors with different refresh rates, your higher refresh rate monitor might play your games at 60Hz if you’re watching media on the other monitor at the same time.

There is a simple solution to this, however: simply disable hardware acceleration in your web browser. Since the majority of people have Chrome, I’ll take you through how to do it there.

• Click the three dots in the top-right corner of Chrome and select Settings

• From here, click System on the left-hand side

• Finally, uncheck the hardware acceleration option in the System menu

You’re done! Now you should be able to maintain the proper refresh rate on your primary monitor without any issues.

How Do I Set Two Different Resolutions on Dual Monitors?

Some people wonder how to access the resolution settings on their computers when using a dual monitor setup. Quite frankly, it’s very easy. Just follow the simple steps below.

• Right-click your desktop and select Display settings

• After this, you should see a preview of both your monitors (marked 1 and 2)

• To change the resolution for one of them, click on either the screen marked 1 or the screen marked two

• Scroll down until you find the Scale and then click the drop-down menu under Display resolution

• Set your preferred resolution

You can also choose to do this from either the Nvidia control panel or AMD’s Catalyst Control Center. I’ll go through how to do this in the Nvidia control panel since that’s what most people use.

• Right-click your desktop and click on NVIDIA Control Panel

• In the menu on the left-hand side, click on Adjust desktop size and position

• Click on the display you want to change at the top of the new window, then scroll down and select your preferred resolution in the drop-down menu

Should You Use the Same Resolution for Both Screens?

While it’s completely possible to use resolutions with different resolutions, is it recommended to use two monitors of the same resolutions? Well, it depends.

If you want to avoid issues pertaining to scaling, colors, and such things, then using screens with the same resolution is advisable.

It can be annoying moving windows from one screen to the other, especially if you’re on Windows 10 (or some Linux environments). This isn’t an issue for all screens with different resolutions, since many people have reported that they’ve had no issues.

Some people find that having monitors with the same image (color sharpness, etc), refresh rate, and resolutions is a lot easier on the eyes than using monitors with different colors, scaling, sharpness, and so forth.

In short: worst-case scenario, you’ll have some minor problems with the scaling and UI using two screens with different resolutions, but you’ll most likely be fine. Most people use an old monitor as their secondary monitor, and it usually works just fine.

The most common type of 4K screen is probably 3840 x 2160p, which is used with many Ultra HD TV screens. 3840 x 2160p is 4 times the pixel density of your typical 1920x1080p screens, so it’s quite an upgrade if you can afford it and run it successfully.

If you want to have a 4K monitor connected to your computer, however, you need to make sure that your computer can display it properly. So, how do you know if your computer can display 4K?

To see if your computer can display a 4K resolution, simply head into the display settings of your computer. When there, click the drop-down list and scroll down until you find the solution that you want to display. Your computer needs to be able to handle 4K and you need a monitor that is able to display 4K as well.

As you can see, checking whether or not your computer is able to run 4K is fairly straightforward. However, the prerequisites to be able to run 4K is slightly more in-depth. Let’s go through it in detail below.

Can My Computer Display 4K?

There are some prerequisites that you need to fill in before being able to run a 4K setup. One of the most important ones is your graphics card. It needs to support 4K in order for the resolution to work.

Even if you have a 4K monitor: without a GPU that can support it, it won’t work. Check before you buy anything that your GPU supports the resolution, and if not, what GPU you need to buy that does.

It’s easy to find out whether or not you have a GPU that supports 4K. If you have an Nvidia card, go here and look for your graphics card.

If you have an AMD card, it needs to have Polaris architecture or more modern technology. Remember that 4K support is not the same as gaming support for 4K. Polaris architecture is suboptimal for gaming in 4K.

Also, your processor needs to be fairly recent, especially if you have a laptop with an integrated processor. For example, Intel’s integrated processors need to be Haswell or newer. Go here to see the product specifications for any given Intel processor.

Furthermore, you’re going to need at least HDMI 2.0 or DisplayPort to use 4K, so check if your PC has those ports. Check the GPU manual or the GPU manufacturer’s website to determine this!

Of course, you’re going to need cables with those ports. That means that you want the proper HDMI/DP cables. Now, most of the time, a 4K monitor is going to come with a proper cable, but if not, you’re going to have to buy one.

There are a bunch of different places where you can buy cables like these. Tech sites or local stores should work just fine.

How to Check if Your Monitor is 4K

To check if your monitor is 4K, there are multiple options available. For one, you can simply check the box that the monitor came in and look for signs that it supports 4K. Since 4K is, well, the main selling point of such a monitor, it shouldn’t be hard to find.

Secondly, you can download MonitorInfoView. This is a tiny utility program that you can install to view information about your monitor. Supported resolutions, model of the monitor, product ID, and so forth. Moreover, you can also use the program to adjust brightness, sharpness, and other settings that your monitor may have come with.

Thirdly, you can visit the manufacturer’s website. Find the monitor you have on their website and check the specifications there. In general, monitor manufacturers/retailers have user manuals readily available there.

Finally, you can contact the manufacturer and ask, although that seems a tad bit unnecessary since there are multiple more easy ways to check.

Why Can’t My PC Display in 4K?

If you think that you should be able to display 4K and can’t, don’t fret: there are a couple of steps you can take to solve this. For example, you need to make sure that the scaling is properly set.

To check the scaling in Windows, simply follow the steps below.

• Right-click the desktop and select Display settings

• Under Scale and layout, experiment with different scaling settings to see what works best for your screen

Make sure that you have updated drivers for your GPU as well. If the drivers you have are really old, a lot of problems can arise. Simply download new drivers from your GPU manufacturer’s website.

Moreover, it’s advisable to install the latest Windows updates. Windows updates contribute to the functionality of your computer, and leaving Windows outdated for too long can cause issues.

Finally, using a different cable/port (try both) could be a solution to this issue. It’s fairly common that ports and cables break in some way so switch it up a bit to see if that resolves your issue.

What Size Monitor is Best For 4K?

The best size for your monitor depends on what you are going to use it for. For example, watching movies and shows has a different ideal size than a monitor that you’re going to use for gaming. With that in mind, what size monitor is the best for 4K resolution?

40” 4K TVs are pretty popular these days. It’s like having four 20” 1080p monitors stuck to each other on one big 4K TV.

But, as far as monitors go, I’d argue that there’s more variance. A computer monitor can be used for so many different tasks. As I said earlier, bigger monitors might be nicer when watching stuff, while something like a 27” monitor is very popular when it comes to gaming. Here’s a poll from Reddit, however, where most people seemed to like the 32” monitor the best.

Moreover, what size is best for you also depends on your budget. Naturally, two differently sized monitors with identical quality are going to differ quite a bit in price just because of the size difference.

I wouldn’t really buy a 4K monitor that is 24” or smaller. With sizes that “small”, the difference between 1080p and 4K is there, but it isn’t particularly noticeable.

Many users wonder if their PC’s performance gets affected by the quality of their motherboard, and that’s a completely fair question to ask. Can a bad motherboard cause performance issues?

Yes, the quality of your motherboard can indirectly affect the performance of your PC. The motherboard determines what type of GPU, CPU, and RAM you can use. If you have an old or very cheap motherboard, that can mean that you do not have access to good parts to go with that motherboard. Furthermore, a bad motherboard can have various issues that can cause bottlenecks, delays, and more.

As you can see, the topic isn’t completely cut and dried. Keep reading to find out everything you need to know about motherboards as related to PC performance.

Can a Bad Motherboard Cause Performance Issues?

Motherboards can indirectly affect performance, as I mentioned. With a cheap or old motherboard, new technology might be unavailable. For example, M.2 SSD hard drives are new, very fast hard drives that require little physical space on your computer, and that’s awesome!

However, M.2s also require that your motherboard support them, and old motherboards don’t. In other words, you could have had a better hard drive, and therefore better performance, with another motherboard.

It’s also worth mentioning that a lot of people like overclocking components and to do that in an optimal manner, you’re going to need a motherboard designed for this purpose.

Of course, you can still overclock components with an old motherboard if the capabilities are there, but it might be riskier (and not worth your time).

All of the things I’ve discussed so far have been motherboards indirectly affecting the performance of your PC. However, bad motherboards can also affect your PC’s performance in a more direct manner.

For example, if your motherboard’s power delivery system is bad, then it might not be able to supply a sufficient amount of power to various components, and as a result, processes or the entire system may slow down or crash.

Can a Better Motherboard Increase Performance?

So, let’s discuss how a good motherboard may increase the performance of your PC. If you’re switching out a faulty motherboard, just about any new motherboard will upgrade your PC performance, of course.

However, a new motherboard can allow you to upgrade everything from GPU to CPU. Motherboards have different CPU sockets, and if you upgrade your motherboard to a new one, you have the possibility to upgrade your CPU.

This goes for your GPU as well: the GPU is connected to something called a PCIe slot, and if you have an old motherboard, a lot of new GPUs aren’t going to be compatible. By investing in a new motherboard, you can upgrade your GPU.

Furthermore, the motherboard also determines what sort of RAM is available for your computer. A new motherboard can allow you to upgrade your RAM. RAM is really cheap these days as well, so this can be an easy recipe for a performance boost.

What Are the Symptoms of a Bad Motherboard?

Bad motherboards can cause your entire system to be unstable and unusable. Let’s go through some of the ways that you can identify a bad motherboard.

The first thing you should look for, which shouldn’t be very difficult to spot, is when the computer fails to boot or doesn’t power on at all. Mind you, this could be a sign of other faulty parts as well, but the prime suspect here is the motherboard.

When this happens and the motherboard is bad, your might hear beeping sounds. Usually, when the motherboard is at fault, you should hear one beep, a pause, then a series of beeps. The amount of beeps in the series depends on what motherboard you have, so you might have to Google that.

If your computer randomly gets the infamous blue screen of death, freezes, or powers down, then your motherboard might be faulty as well.

Another common symptom of a faulty motherboard is when connected peripherals and other devices don’t respond when they’re supposed to, and if your computer has started to overheat recently.

Remember that these symptoms aren’t exclusive to motherboard failure, and it’s important to remember this. Other components and software bugs can also cause many of the issues presented above.

If you’re not tech-savvy, you shouldn’t try to repair your motherboard by yourself. Instead, take it to a repair shop to properly troubleshoot it.

How Long Do Motherboards Last?

Motherboards last for a fairly long time as computer components go, provided that they are cared for properly. For example, make sure that you clean your computer from dust and dirt, and have proper cooling installed in the computer.

How long a motherboard lasts also depends on what types of activities you usually do on your computer. A computer used in an office can easily last 20 years with the same motherboard, but an overclocked gaming computer’s motherboard won’t last as long.

That being said, gaming computer motherboards can still last for a really long time. I’ve had my budget gaming motherboard for 8 years now, and it’s still going strong, but I’ve taken good care of it.

A common reason for motherboard failure is humidity, so if you live in a place where it’s humid most of the time, you have to take more precautions than if you live in a place that’s drier.

Is it Better to Upgrade the Motherboard or GPU?

What PC part you need to upgrade on your computer depends greatly on what you’re looking to improve. For example, I discussed earlier how old motherboards don’t support a lot of new components.

Therefore, If you want to upgrade your PC and you have an old motherboard, you’re most likely going to need to upgrade your motherboard before anything else.

However, most new GPUs are compatible with a very large range of motherboards, so if your motherboard isn’t ancient and working fine, upgrading your GPU is a fine option, especially if you’re looking to play games on your PC.

It’s somewhat different if you want to upgrade the CPU to your computer because CPUs are a bit pickier when it comes to motherboards.

Is it Better to Upgrade the Motherboard or CPU?

If you have an old motherboard and want to buy a new CPU, be careful. As I mentioned earlier, new CPUs aren’t necessarily compatible with old motherboards in the same way that GPUs are.

That’s why you might have to upgrade your motherboard before upgrading your CPU. So, when considering whether you should upgrade your CPU or motherboard, remember that you might have to upgrade both.

Motherboards have different types of sockets for CPUs. If your old and new CPU uses the same socket, then you’re fine, but if the new CPU you’re looking to buy is much newer than your old one, then chances are that you need to upgrade your motherboard before buying that CPU.

Many users wonder if it is possible to build a PC mixing any parts they want, and that’s a valid question. Can you mix and match PC parts?

PC parts are not universally compatible. Whether or not PC parts are compatible depends on multiple factors, such as the size and type of PC case and motherboard. However, most PC parts are interchangeable if they use the same connectors and standards. It’s very important that your PC parts are compatible with your build, because if they aren’t your PC simply won’t work.

There’s a lot more to this, and it’s hard to sum up in just a few words. Some PC parts are interchangeable, and others, like CPUs, have to fit the motherboard socket to function at all.

Read more to find out all you need to know about mixing and matching PC components. After you’ve read this article, you’ve hopefully gained some insight into what PC parts you can swap out and what PC parts you have to be more careful with.

Can You Mix and Match PC Parts?

Mostly, PC parts can be swapped interchangeably. For example, if you have an mATX motherboard, you’ll be able to fit a mATX motherboard in there, connect a GPU to its PCIe x16 slot and be good to go.

Modern GPUs are almost always connected through this slot on a motherboard, and if there are no physical restrictions, you can upgrade and swap GPUs without issue.

Just make sure that the case is large enough for the GPU to fit. GPUs need room to breathe as well, so there needs to be ample space for it in there.

However, there are some parts that can’t be swapped out without some consideration. If you mix parts without checking if you should first, you risk wasting money on parts you can’t use in your computer.

For example, some slots change more than others over time. RAM slots have changed quite a lot over the years, and they’re not generationally compatible. This means that you can not use a DDR3 RAM stick in a motherboard with DDR4 slots.

The slot and RAM sticks would be physically unable to fit. The same goes with CPUs, as we will get into later. CPUs have socket pins that need to be fitted to a motherboard’s CPU socket.

If you try to connect a CPU to a motherboard that isn’t compatible, it won’t work, but the worst-case scenario is that you break some of the pins which will stop the CPU from working at all.

Are All PC Parts Compatible With Each Other?

So, we can safely conclude that all PC parts are not compatible with one another and that you should do your research, even if you’re fairly sure about what you’re looking for.

Here are some of the most important things to take note of when building a PC or swapping out parts.

• Make sure that your CPU fits your motherboard CPU socket

• Control the size dimensions of case before buying a motherboard, GPU, or any other component that has physical demands

• Before buying RAM, see what DDR version your motherboard has and what sort of RAM speed and type your CPU works best with

• Make sure the power supply is capable of providing sufficient voltage

Do You Have to Match Brands When Building a PC?

When building a PC, you do not have to match the brands of the components. PCs are built with standards that every PC manufacturing company uses when manufacturing their components.

When you think about it, it wouldn’t really be possible. Far from every component manufacturer makes every part of a PC. For example, Nvidia does not make CPUs, and Intel doesn’t make motherboards.

If you’re very aesthetically minded and want things to look cool in your PC, it can be a good idea to match as many brands as possible I suppose.

Keep in mind, however, that picking a component just because it matches brands with another one of your components can lock you out of better options. To be clear, matching brands doesn’t provide you with any advantages when it comes to performance.

While it’s not necessary to match brands, there are certain things you should avoid. For example, Intel and AMD have different chipsets for their CPUs. Intel has pins on its chipsets, while AMD processors need the pins on the motherboard CPU socket to connect.

Can Any CPU Fit in Any Computer?

We have discussed this previously, but the answer is no. It’s vital that you check before you buy a CPU or build a new computer what socket your motherboard has.

This should be fairly easy to do. If you already have a motherboard at home, check the motherboard manufacturer’s website for information about what type of CPUs it supports.

You can also check the motherboard user manual and check there if you can’t find information online. Look for a list of compatible CPUs. After you’ve done this, check what kind of socket the CPU has.

The standards are usually just combined letters and numbers, such as the LGA 1151 standard for Intel processors (more specifically, Skylake, Kaby Lake, and Coffee Lake processors).

Can Any GPU Fit in Any Computer?

Pretty much every modern GPU is compatible with most motherboards since almost all semi-modern motherboards and newer ones have PCIe Express 3.0. Old standards like AGP and ISA are long forgotten, and pretty much every motherboard and GPU from 2004 and onward use PCIe.

While compatibility is seldom an issue when installing a new GPU, space can certainly be. If the GPU is too big for the case you have, then there’s not much you can do except for buying a new and bigger case.

Not only does the GPU have to fit in the case, but optimally, it should have room around it to prevent heat issues.

Another thing you’ll be facing when buying a new GPU is power demands. GPUs require a lot of power compared to other components, and it’s important that you have proper PEG connectors going from your PSU to your GPU.

You will be needing either an 8-pin connector or a 6-pin connector, depending on the needs of your GPU. Below, you can find some basic information on wattage estimates for different GPUs / PEG connectors.

Can Any RAM Stick Fit in Any Computer?

No. RAM compatibility is largely dictated by their DDR generation, and the DDR generation of the RAM stick needs to match the DDR version of the motherboard.

Different DDR versions are not compatible, and you shouldn’t try to fit a RAM that doesn’t fit. It should be fairly obvious if a RAM stick fits in your motherboard or not because the sticks are physically different.

If you try to force insert a RAM stick in a motherboard that doesn’t support it, things can start to break, and that’s not what you want.

If you’re unsure of what type of RAM fits in your motherboard, I recommend using Crucial’s system scanner. It’s a small tool that you can use for scanning system specifications.

The possibility to use ultra-high resolutions for monitors and TVs has also increased in recent times. However, it’s not completely obvious what cables you can use with specific resolutions. For example, do HDMI cables support 2560x1440p?

That depends on what type of HDMI cable you have. Old, standard HDMI cables support up to 720p or 1080i. However, high-speed HDMI cables should be able to support 2560x1440p if your graphics card and monitor can handle that resolution. If your graphics card can not, it doesn’t matter what type of cable you have. If you have a laptop, the HDMI specs should be on the laptop manufacturer’s website.

This matter isn’t completely cut-and-dry, as you can see, so let’s go through it all in detail. Read more to find out what HDMI cables support 2560x1440p, and how to tell what type of cable you have.

Do HDMI Cables Support 2560x1440p?

2560x1440p is a sort of 1440p resolution, where the vertical resolution size is 1440 pixels, and the horizontal has 2560 pixels. Usually, this is used with a 16:9 aspect ratio but there are other types of 1440p resolutions as well.

As I said earlier, really old HDMI cables (“standard” HDMI) won’t support 2560x1440p. They support up to 1080i or 720p. However, if you have bought any HDMI-powered technology within the last couple of years, you probably have newer cables.

No semi-modern HDMI-powered technology comes with a standard HDMI cable anymore, so you’re most likely fine. You probably have a high-speed HDMI cable or something even newer.

There is another thing to keep in mind, which is the HDMI standards. There are different standards when it comes to HDMI ports. Depending on what type of port you have, your hardware can support different resolutions and refresh rates.

Of course, your monitor also needs to support 2560×1440. All 4K monitors will be able to use 2560×1440, but if you’re using a standard 1080p monitor, you’re out of luck if you don’t downscale it, but I wouldn’t recommend that.

Furthermore, you need to make sure that your GPU can handle the resolution. With some GPUs, you can set the resolution to for example 1440p, but if you’re looking to play games on your PC with that resolution, it won’t run well at all.

Movies are quite different as they aren’t rendered in real-time, but for games, you will need a GPU that can keep pace with the graphics rendering at higher resolutions. The results will vary from game to game. Some games will let you use 4K and use it well, other games will run terribly at 4K or won’t allow the resolution at all.

2560×1440 @ 240 Hz requires approximately 32gbits/s in transmission speed. If your monitor and/or GPU don’t have capabilities for such a high transmission speed, you have to settle for a lower refresh rate.

What HDMI Cables Support 2560×1440?

As I mentioned earlier, most HDMI cables support 2560×1440 nowadays. I’ll list the different types of HDMI cables below and what resolutions and refresh rates they support.

As you can see, everything from high-speed HDMI and beyond support 2560x1440p. Most people have high-speed HDMI cables or newer cables, as I said earlier, and you should have one lying around if you aren’t using one with your computer or TV.

HDMI standards are important as well because you can use a category 3 HDMI cable, but if your hardware doesn’t have a modern HDMI standard, it won’t make a difference.

The same thing goes if you want to watch a 4K TV: every component connected to the HDMI cable needs to support an HDMI standard that supports 4K.

Of course, high-resolution screens have modern HDMI standards. I’ll list the different standards below so you can see what I’m talking about.

For example, you will need hardware that supports HDMI 1.1/1.2 to use 1440p at 30Hz. 30Hz is a pretty low refresh rate these days, though, so you’ll probably want to have HDMI 1.4 or something along those lines.

How To Tell What Kind of HDMI Cable You Have

So, we can conclude that you want to check what sort of HDMI cable you have since HDMI cables have different specifications. Luckily, this should be quite easy to do. If you have the packaging from the cable left somewhere, check there for the information about the cable type.

If you tossed the packaging out, which I’ve done, check the HDMI cable. Some HDMI cables have the type labeled on the cable, and other cables use color schemes to differentiate between types.

The final way of checking that I’m aware of, is connecting the cable to a monitor and checking what resolutions and refresh rates are available. For example, if 4K @ 60Hz is the highest specification available, then you’re using a category 3 cable with the HDMI 1.3 or 1.4 standard.

What Other Cables Support 2560×1440?

HDMI isn’t the only option when it comes to 1440p resolutions, although the exact versions of the other cables depend on what refresh rate you want your monitor or TV to run at.

The two other cables that I recommend using with 2560×1440 are either DisplayPort or Dual Link DVI. Both of them are good, but DisplayPort (DP) is the more popular option nowadays, simply because it’s better for the most part.

In fact, new graphics cards have more display ports than HDMI ports these days. Check the different ports on your graphics card and see what works best for you.

One thing to note is that VGA doesn’t support any resolution above 1920 x 1080 @ 75Hz. VGA is simply outdated these days, so use either HDMI, DisplayPort, or Dual Link DVI.

Single Link DVI has worse bandwidth than Dual Link DVI, and it doesn’t run resolutions higher than 1920 x 1080 either.

What Should You Look For When Buying HDMI Cables?

Any HDMI cable has the capability of using every HDMI standard. So, why does it matter what type of cable you have? Well, HDMI cables aren’t defined by the standard, but by the bandwidth. Higher resolutions demand higher bandwidth to work properly.

That’s primarily what you should be looking for when buying a new HDMI cable: bandwidth. For example, if you want your monitor to use a high resolution, such as 4K, you will need a bandwidth of at least 25Mbps/s.

Do some research on the required bandwidth for the resolution (and refresh rate) you want to use, then refer to the table above for the different cable specifications.

Since the two companies are competitors in the GPU market, many users wonder whether or not it’s possible to use AMD CPUs with Nvidia GPUs. This is a valid and important question to ask, so let’s answer it.

Yes, you can absolutely use AMD CPUs together with an Nvidia GPU. The brands of CPU and GPU does not matter in the slightest. What matters is that the CPU can keep up with the output from the GPU and that both the CPU and GPU are compatible with your motherboard, but that has nothing to do with what manufacturer the parts come from, but rather the capabilities of your components.

While it’s perfectly fine to use GPUs and CPUs across brands, are there any benefits to using for example an AMD CPU with an AMD GPU? Read more to find out.

Can You Use an AMD CPU With an Nvidia GPU?

As I mentioned earlier, it’s fine to use an AMD CPU with an Nvidia GPU. As long as your components aren’t very old, you’re good. What you need to be concerned with is that your components fit in your motherboard and that your power supply is good for the power they will draw.

For example, you need to make sure that the processor that you want is compatible with your motherboard and that your motherboard has the slots that your GPU wants to use.

Furthermore, make sure that you avoid bottlenecking. Bottlenecking occurs when one or more components are slowing down the rest of your components, causing them to be used at a less-than-full potential.

For example, it’s fairly common that GPUs aren’t being used at an optimal level because of pesky CPUs bottlenecking them.

If you do your research on what components you need for your setup to come together, the brands don’t matter. There are, however, potential benefits in using certain GPUs and CPUs with each other that I will discuss below.

What Are the Benefits of Using AMD CPUs with AMD GPUs?

If you do decide to buy both an AMD CPU and an AMD GPU, you will have access to a couple of functions that you may find to your benefit. Of course, what components you ultimately choose for yourself depends on your needs, wants, and preferences.

When using both an AMD GPU and CPU, you will get access to something called Smart Access Memory (SAM), which is a way to enable the processor to access more VRAM from your GPU and avoid bottlenecks, basically. Using SAM can boost your performance quite a bit.

Something to note is that SAM can only be used with AMD’s more modern components, so if you want to take advantage of this, make sure to do your research beforehand.

SAM can only be accessed if you have paired an AMD CPU with an AMD GPU. However, Nvidia has a similar technology called Resizable BAR that can be used with a bunch of processors from both Intel and AMD.

It’s somewhat unclear which of the options is best at the minute because the results vary quite a bit depending on your system, games, and more. However, if you want to take a look at some of the performance tests done for Resizable BAR, this video is very good.

AMD GPUs are generally cheaper than Nvidia GPUs, too, which is something to consider, although prices in the last year or so for both AMD’s and Nvidia’s GPUs have spiked to absurd prices. But that’s a topic for another article.

Is It Better to Use AMD CPUs with AMD Graphics Cards?

Not really. Not if you’re not completely intent on using SAM on games that you know are very good for it. SAM is certainly not perfect, and for some games, SAM will even reduce performance.

As I stated before, performance-wise it doesn’t matter. The best options for users will vary depending on what they are going to do on their PC, but it doesn’t matter what brand of components you are using together.

For example, if you’re buying components to play games on your computer, there’s a fair chance that AMD products are the best. Of course, this depends on the specific series and product. If you are going to do video editing and 3D rendering, Nvidia is your go-to.

Are there any benefits to pairing an Intel CPU with an Nvidia GPU?

Pairing AMD processors and GPUs will give you access to SAM, for the most part. However, are there any particular benefits in pairing Intel CPUs with Nvidia GPUs?

There are no automatic benefits you get from pairing Intel CPUs with Nvidia GPUs. Nvidia GPUs can give you access to Resizable BAR, as I mentioned before, but you need a processor that is compatible with the setting.

Granted, there are a bunch of Intel processors that are compatible with Resizable BAR, but that goes for AMD processors as well.

Do Nvidia GPUs Work Better With An Intel Processor?

In terms of performance, Intel CPUs and Nvidia GPUs don’t work better together than any other combination of components. What matters is the specific series and products.

Furthermore, some games put more strain on the CPU than others, so how your GPU and CPU work together also depends on the games you want to play.

Higher-resolution gaming will require more powerful components, so if you plan on playing in 4K, then you’re going to need parts that are good for it. If you’re going to stream or video edit you’re going to need another combination, and so forth.

If you want more information on how to properly pair GPUs and CPUs, I would suggest watching this guide as it is very comprehensive.

Should I Go With An AMD Or Intel Processor?

AMD and Intel are the premier CPUs manufacturers in the PC industry today. They offer good choices whether you want to use them for gaming or working. As we have talked about earlier, it doesn’t matter which brand of GPU you pair these two CPU brands with, but which one should you choose?

The two manufacturers have different things going for them. In general, Intel processors are currently the best when it comes to gaming and overclocking, while AMD edges Intel in power consumption and security.

That isn’t to say that you can’t play games on an AMD processor. There are a lot of CPUs from AMD that were specifically made for gaming. Performance isn’t the only thing that you should look at when buying a processor, of course.

For example, you need to make sure that your prospective CPU has the proper power consumption and pricing for you. For a very comprehensive look into AMD and Intel processors, I would strongly recommend reading this guide.

Laptop manufacturers make their laptops slimmer and slimmer nowadays, and chances are that you’re going to need an extra device to provide all the ports you need if you want to use it like a desktop PC.

That being said, are docking stations good for gaming with a laptop computer?

Yes. A docking station allows you to connect external monitors and peripherals while still keeping slots free for other use. Overall, docking stations are a must-have depending on your laptop configuration. Modern docking stations also come with newer versions of Display Port which allows for high-resolution and refresh rate monitors to be connected to the laptop.

As you can tell, whether you need a docking station or not depends on your setup. In this article, we’re going to discuss whether docking stations are worth it for gaming and what the pros and cons are. Keep reading!

Are Docking Stations Good For Gaming?

For the most part, docking stations provide a lot of benefits to users who want to use laptops for gaming. Let’s go over some of those benefits.

The primary benefit you get from a docking station is the great increase in ports and slots to your laptop. As I mentioned earlier, you can connect everything from monitors to peripherals to a docking station.

Furthermore, a lot of laptop screens aren’t optimal for gaming, and as a result of this, a lot of gamers use external monitors to play games on. This goes perfectly with a docking station, as you can connect the monitor directly to the docking station.

Most modern docking stations also come with modern versions of the Display Port, which allows you to connect high-resolution and refresh rate monitors to your laptop.

That’s a definitive plus for someone who plays games. People who play single-player games usually like monitors that can run at high resolutions, and high refresh rate monitors are really good for playing shooters such as Counter-Strike.

Another massive plus with docking stations is that you gather all of your cables onto one device, without having to clean up after every time you have used the laptop for gaming.

All of your peripherals and other cables can be connected to your docking station at all times, and you can simply remove your laptop from the station if you want to take it with you somewhere.

One of the problems that people face with docking stations, however, is that gaming laptops require a lot of power. This means that they need a lot of charging power to maintain the battery.

A lot of docking stations will hamper this because they won’t provide the needed power to the gaming laptop and therefore, the battery will slowly drain while playing games. You can solve this, however, by having a dedicated 300W charger connected to your laptop while playing (typically, a USB-C PD provides 100W), but this depends on your laptop.

Overall, docking stations solve a lot of problems for gamers. For me, one of the biggest benefits was not having to tinker with cables whenever I wanted to leave with the laptop. The docking station is always there, ready to be used.

Do Docking Stations Lower FPS?

Yes, it’s possible. In simple terms, the laptop you’re using needs to do more work by copying the image through your docking station and putting it on your screen.

Moreover, when connecting your monitor through a docking station, your games might use the docking station’s graphics chip to render games instead of your discrete GPU, which isn’t optimal, to say the least.

Some users have solved this by deactivating their docking station’s display adapter in the device manager. This will most likely increase your battery usage greatly, however.

It’s been shown, however, that playing with an external monitor will improve your performance over playing on your laptop screen. So, if you can find a way of connecting your peripherals and monitor to a docking station with Thunderbolt, or use the monitor directly into the laptop, you’ll be all set.

If you want to know more about why playing with an external monitor will boost your performance, watch this video.

What Are the Pros and Cons of Docking Stations When Gaming?

There are a number of advantages and disadvantages to playing games with a docking station. Let’s go over all of them, so you can more easily decide whether or not it’s worth it for you.

Cons

• Price: Docking stations are by no means cheap, and you’ll have to splash out anywhere between $50-$200 depending on the features. Docking stations with Thunderbolt are more expensive and usually cost between $100 to $200, and if you want more features, such as additional hard drive bays, it’ll probably cost you $200+.

• Performance: Possible performance issues when gaming can’t be ignored, whether that be FPS drops or latency issues because of the dock.

• Other alternatives: Gaming laptops oftentimes have enough ports for setting peripherals and additional monitors, so it might be more worthwhile getting a gaming laptop instead of shelling out money for a regular laptop plus a docking station.

Pros

• Connectivity: Provides additional ports for peripherals, monitors, and more. This is, clearly, the main benefit of a docking station.

• Simplicity: Connecting everything to a docking station will organize all of your cables into one place, and you don’t have to connect and disconnect them to your laptop every time you want to use them. Simply connect your laptop to the docking station, and you’re set.

• Organization: Having all of your cables and peripherals in one place can be very beneficial for keeping things tidy and nice. A docking station accomplishes this for you.

Are Docking Stations Better Than USB Hubs?

There are discussions online about whether you should get a USB hub or a docking station, which is somewhat confusing because they do two different things. Let’s go over the differences between them.

USB hubs aren’t meant to be an all-in-one solution for laptop users, but they are used to expand the number of USB slots in a device. Of course, you can still use a USB hub to connect your peripherals if that’s what you’re looking for.

Docking stations, on the other hand, are all-in-one solutions for people who want increased connectivity to their laptops (and some other devices). You can connect a lot of other things than units that connect with USB.

They are comparable, however, because you can accomplish the same things with either device depending on what you want to do, and USB hubs are significantly cheaper than docking stations.

Let’s compare prices for a second. As I said earlier, you can buy a docking station for about $50-$200 dollars. A basic USB hub with 4-5 ports, however, will cost you as little as $10.

Of course, there are more expensive USB hubs as well, but if you only need expansion ports for your peripherals, you might as well go with a USB hub.

Spec-wise, docking stations are more powerful than USB hubs, but USB hubs are more portable. In short, what matters are your needs.

Instead of settling with a limited amount of USB ports, you can instead buy a USB hub that can connect a bunch of devices in a hub, which is then connected to one USB port in your computer.

However, users also wonder if USB hubs can affect performance negatively if you connect devices to them. In this article, I’ll go over if this is true, and if so, what scenarios you should be aware of.

Yes, a USB hub can reduce your PC performance depending on how many devices you have connected to it, and if it’s powered or not. If you plug devices that require a lot of voltage in a passive USB hub, they might not even work properly depending on the device. Also, if you have too many devices connected to a USB hub, this can affect the performance of the connected unit negatively.

Let’s go through the details of this matter. In this article, I’ll guide you through when USB hubs are a good idea, the potential performance issues related to them, and a lot more.

Do USB Hubs Reduce PC Performance?

As I mentioned previously, what’s most important regarding USB hubs is that you plug in the right devices to the right type of USB hub. For example, if you want to connect a printer or something through a USB hub, you have to use a powered USB hub.

This is because the printer requires a lot of voltage, and it will have massive performance issues or not work at all if you plug it in with a passive USB hub.

Every electrical device needs power. If you connect a device that requires a considerable amount of voltage to a USB hub that doesn’t provide any additional power, the device gets powered only by the passive USB hub that draws from your computer.

This will in turn cause performance issues in your device, and possibly in your computer. In contrast, you won’t need a powered USB hub if you want to connect peripherals such as keyboards, mice, or flash drives to your USB hub.

If you connect the right device to the right USB hub, however, tests that users have done show that the performance loss is negligible and you probably won’t be able to tell the difference between plugging a device directly into your PC’s USB port.

In the end, it all comes down to matching the right USB hub with the right devices.

Do USB Hubs Add Latency?

When you use a USB hub, your device is connected by extension, and this has led users to wonder whether or not USB hubs can add latency (or “lag”) to your connected devices.

Latency is, of course, the time it takes between an input and the execution of the input. So, do USB hubs add any latency to connected devices?

The answer is: they can. If you have a bunch of devices connected to a USB hub, there might be some latency. This also depends on the speed and quality of the port.

While there might be some latency, it is so slight that you probably won’t be able to tell any difference, especially if you’re using later USB versions. Quite frankly, you probably won’t notice the difference even if you’re using USB 1.0.

Personally, I have a wireless mouse connected to a USB hub, and I can’t notice any input lag whatsoever. It might be there, but the delay is negligible.

When Should You Use a USB Hub?

Let’s go over when you would use a USB hub, and what type of USB hub you would use for what situations. In general, USB hubs are used when you don’t have enough USB ports in your computer to connect all the devices you want to connect directly to your computer.

As I discussed previously, there are two types of USB hubs: the passive USB hub, and the powered USB hub. The powered USB hub uses a main socket to provide extra voltage while the passive USB hub doesn’t use any additional power.

Powered USB Hub

You would need a powered USB hub when connecting devices that need extra voltage to run properly. Fairly simple, right? So, for example, hard drives, cameras, fans, and so forth.

Of course, powered USB hubs can make use of every USB-connected device, so why wouldn’t you always want to use one? Well, for one, they’re more expensive. You can easily find regular passive USB hubs for about $10, but powered USB hubs can cost up to $50 or more.

Also, if you’re low on power sockets, you might want to use a passive USB hub, as the powered ones have to be connected to a socket to receive power.

Passive USB Hub

The passive USB hub’s greatest drawback is the lack of power, clearly. There are a limited number of devices you can connect to it successfully. These include peripherals such as a mouse and keyboard, flash drives, some printers, and so forth.

It’s also worth mentioning that the passive USB hub can have a rough time powering a lot of devices at once, depending on the devices.

The benefits of using a passive USB hub include pricing, first of all. You can get a good passive USB hub for $10 or so. Passive USB hubs are also oftentimes portable, which is really nice if you like to travel light. They also don’t require a power socket.

Are There Better Alternatives To USB Hubs?

A problem many users have had with USB hubs over the years is that they stop working fairly quickly. Of course, this doesn’t go for all or even most USB hubs, but some do. This begs the question: are there better alternatives to USB hubs?

First of all, it all depends on what you plan on doing with the alternative solution. For example, do you want to transfer data, connect peripherals, or do other things? There aren’t any alternatives if you don’t have enough USB ports on your computer, that’s why the USB hub is there.

If you do have some extra ports on your computer, however, you can consider using wireless devices (either RF devices or Bluetooth), and in that way, you don’t have to deal with extra cables and devices lying around.

Does USB Cable Length Impact Performance?

Yes. At least if they get long enough. For example, having a 7-8 feet (~2 meters) USB cable is fine, but when you get up to 10 feet, you’ll start having interference issues which will then impact the performance of the connected device negatively.

It also depends on what type of USB cable you have. For example, earlier versions of USB can be longer (up to 16 feet!) without having performance issues.

You could solve this, however, by using two shorter cables with a power unit between them. A powered USB hub would be one way to do this.

In short: without using any extra power supply or more than one cable, too long of a cable will impact the performance of a connected device. A USB 3.0 cable shouldn’t be longer than 10 feet and has a max acceptable length of 16 feet.

Eventually, laptop batteries drain faster and you end up with your laptop constantly connected to a power cable, which isn’t ideal. So, can you upgrade a laptop battery?

Yes, it’s possible to upgrade a laptop battery. Most laptops’ batteries get less useful over time, and if you want to replace such a battery, get a new battery of the same version as your old one. You might be able, depending on your laptop, to upgrade your laptop battery to a more powerful one. Keep in mind, however, that this can void your laptop’s warranty.

There are a bunch of factors to be taken into account when looking to upgrade a laptop battery. In this article, I’ll be going over all the facts that you need to know before upgrading or replacing a laptop battery.

Can You Upgrade a Laptop Battery?

First, consider if you want to upgrade your laptop battery or switch out an old battery for a new one because there’s a difference. Upgrading your laptop battery means getting a more capable one.

If you do this, you might void your laptop warranty or have a disproportionate lump sticking out where the battery is inserted, since more powerful batteries may be a lot bigger.

However, switching out a battery is very doable and even recommended if you have an old laptop battery. First of all, you want to check your battery’s health. On Windows 11, do this by clicking the battery icon in the lower right of the Windows menu.

After doing this, you will enter a Power & Battery menu that allows you to check if there are irregularities when charging your battery. If you spot big fluctuations in battery levels, for example, you should consider getting a new battery for your laptop.

In summary, you can absolutely replace your laptop battery with a new one if it’s getting old and less useful. You might be able to upgrade your laptop battery to a more powerful one depending on your laptop specs.

Can You Replace a Laptop Battery With a More Powerful One? (mAh)

It’s certainly possible to replace your laptop battery with a more powerful battery. The purpose of this, of course, would be to have your laptop last longer before it runs out of power and dies.

The first thing that you need to consider is that more powerful batteries require more space. They are simply just bigger than their less powerful counterparts. So, make sure that the battery actually fits into your laptop before buying one.

Even if the battery does fit, you might end up with a lump sticking out at the bottom of your laptop at all times, which surely isn’t for everyone. Do your research beforehand: look up batteries that are good fits for your laptop.

A good way to determine this can be to simply remove the battery from your laptop and inspect it. Check what model the battery is, what type (nickel-cadmium, lithium-ion, and so forth), and last but not least, the voltage and charging current.

Check that any prospective battery that you’ve scoped out has matching voltages as your old laptop battery. Getting a battery that has significantly more voltage than your old one and then charging it can damage the computer, destroy the charging circuit of the computer, and be an outright fire hazard.

Battery capacity is measured in mAh. The more mAh a battery has, the longer it will last because its capacity is bigger. It will, however, take a longer time to fully charge.

A higher mAh is what you should look for if you want to really upgrade the laptop battery. Laptop batteries don’t supply more power to the laptop just because the battery has a higher mAh. It supplies as much power as the laptop needs. It’s the voltage that you need to really look out for.

How Do You Upgrade a Laptop Battery?

As I mentioned before, you first need to find out the specs of your current laptop battery. Do this by either physically inspecting your battery, or using Batteries Plus to find out online.

You need to remove the bottom part of the laptop to reveal the battery of your laptop. With some laptops, you can simply click it out, but most laptops have screwed bottom housings, and you’ll have to unscrew that using a suitable screwdriver.

Before you start unscrewing the bottom of your laptop, remember to shut off and disconnect your laptop from its charger. It’s also recommended to have the laptop lie on a towel or something to avoid damage to the screen.

Make sure that you are very careful when removing the battery. Check out a video guide if you want to. Some batteries are more difficult to switch out than others and all under-the-hood configurations look different depending on what laptop you own.

What Will Go Lost If You Replace Your Laptop Battery?

Some users have reported that they have lost data on their computers after replacing their laptop batteries. While this normally isn’t the case, what should you be aware of before switching out your old battery?

First of all, make sure you do backups of important files. If something were to happen to your data, you’ll still have it stored. I prefer to store my backup data on an external hard drive, but using some sort of cloud storage service works just fine.

The only sort of data that will disappear when you switch battery is the temporary memory cached by your RAM, but that happens all the time when you switch off your computer anyway. Just turn off your laptop before taking out your battery, and you should be fine.

The data stored on your computer doesn’t require power to store itself, that’s why you can turn off your computer and still have your files there when you turn it on again.

Is It Better To Replace or Upgrade the Battery or Buy a New Laptop?

A lot of users are wondering if it’s worth their time and money getting a new battery when they can buy a new laptop. Of course, this depends on your budget, needs, and current laptop.

For example, if you have a really good laptop that cost you a bunch of money, odds are that you should fix the battery of that thing. Laptop batteries usually go for around $100, while new premium laptops can cost you $1000 or more.

If you have an old laptop, you might want to get a new laptop. Chances are that it’s really slow and it might not even work that much longer anyways.

There are more questions to consider here, as well. For example, are there missing features on your old laptop that a new one could solve? If so, take the chance and get a new laptop. It might not be worth shelling out $100 on something that is missing a bunch of good features.

As you can tell, whether you should buy a new laptop or buy a new battery really depends on your situation. I have a good laptop, and I’ve switched its battery. In my experience, good laptops are still useful when their batteries aren’t.

How Long Should a Laptop Battery Last?

The laptops that are popular on the market today typically outlast their batteries by a good margin, so most people will want to change batteries and some point since the laptop is still useful.

How long a laptop battery lasts depends on a few things. First of all, how much do you use your laptop? If you use it a lot, you charge it more, and therefore the battery will last a shorter amount of time.

Typically, batteries last around 3-4 years, which is around a thousand charges. As I said, however, the variance here can be big. Some people use their laptops every day, all day, and for them, a thousand charges aren’t that much.

Moreover, how long your battery lasts depends on what type of battery you have for your laptop. Old laptops have batteries made from nickel-cadmium or nickel-metal-hydride, and those batteries break down a lot faster than modern lithium-ion batteries.

If you play a lot of games on your laptop, chances are that the battery won’t last as long. When playing games, the laptop will get hotter than usual, making the battery drain faster, which means that you have to charge it more often.

What Shortens the Life of a Laptop Battery?

Playing games will, as I mentioned, shorten the lifespan of your laptop battery. The heat will cause extra strain to be put on your laptop’s components and also place more load on your battery.

Playing games isn’t the only thing that heats your laptop, however. Poor ventilation can also make a laptop overheated, so make sure that the air vents aren’t blocked, and clear out any dust or dirt that’s in the computer from time to time.

Some people believe that “overcharging” your laptop can shorten its lifespan. While that was true for older laptops, it isn’t true for laptops with lithium-ion batteries, as these batteries can’t be overcharged. However, if your laptop uses an older battery, don’t overcharge the computer.

The primary thing that you can do to actively improve the lifespan of your battery is to not charge it to 100%. Charging your laptop to around 90% instead of 100% has been shown to give laptops hundreds of extra recharges before the battery dies.

However, a lot of users have noticed that their second monitor goes completely black while playing on their primary monitor. This somewhat defeats the purpose of having a second monitor for a lot of people.

There are multiple things you can do to fix this issue. First of all, do a clean reinstall of your GPU drivers, and don’t use the Windows device manager for this. Secondly, make sure that you update Windows to its latest version. There are more things you can do to solve this issue, but these two are arguably the most important.

There are more potential solutions for this issue. Before reading on, make sure that power is connected to your monitor and make sure that all of the cables are securely connected. Keep reading to find out more solutions to this issue.

1. Manually Select the Monitor Source

While almost all monitors automatically detect the type of video source that is connected to a monitor, some monitors simply don’t. That’s why you have to make sure that the correct source is selected.

Most monitors will allow you to do this through a button on the bottom of the screen. Most monitors use HDMI or DP these days. Select the proper source output for your screen, then see if your monitor is working.

In some rare cases, you’ll even have to do this after starting a game. When the screen goes black, see if you can manually select its source and see if it starts working.

2. Update Your GPU Drivers

Arguably the most important thing of all is to make sure that you have up-to-date GPU drivers. The drivers are what allow your graphics card to communicate with your operating system, and if you have outdated or faulty drivers, this can cause a large range of issues.

You should always have up-to-date GPU drivers. I strongly recommend downloading your GPU drivers from the GPU manufacturer’s website rather than doing this through the device manager in Windows.

If you update or reinstall drivers through Windows, the only thing that is deleted is the address to the driver files, but links and other file extension associations are still there. Instead, you should reinstall drivers through DDU, which will clean up all traces of previous drivers for you.

If you want to follow the proper method of downloading and installing new GPU drivers, follow the steps below.

• First, download DDU here

• If you have an AMD GPU, go here. If you have an Nvidia GPU, go here.

• For AMD GPUs, search for your specific GPU in the dropdown box on the website, then download the driver for your operating system and put it on the desktop

• For Nvidia GPUs, select your product series and product in the dropdown lists, then click on Search

• Click download and then put the driver file on your desktop

From here, you can either run the driver file you have downloaded and install it to see if it works immediately, or uninstall your previous drivers with DDU first. I personally recommend using DDU for this to make sure that there aren’t any existing interferences with previous drivers.

If you want to learn how to use DDU to uninstall drivers, follow the steps below.

• First, you need to disconnect the internet. If you have an ethernet cable, pull it out. This is to prevent your computer from automatically installing new drivers when you’ve uninstalled your old ones

• Press the Windows key + R at the same time, then type msconfig and hit Enter

• Under Boot options in msconfig, select Safe Mode

• Restart your computer

• Run DDU as an administrator (right-click it and select Run as administrator)

• Close the pop-up window in DDU

• Select your device type and device on the right-hand side

• On the left side of the window, select Clean and restart

• When the PC has restarted, run the driver file on your desktop

• To delete the safe mode boot, simply repeat the process of going into msconfig and unchecking the safe boot box

3. Configure the Nvidia Control Panel

You might be required to manually set up your two monitor setup using the Nvidia control panel. This has been shown to help users solve their black screen issues.

Of course, this requires you to have the Nvidia control panel installed. To check this, right-click your desktop and see if there’s an NVIDIA Control Panel option.

If you for some reason don’t have the Nvidia control panel installed, reinstall your drivers first, as the control panel comes with all new driver installations.

After going into the control panel, look to the left side of the screen. Under Display, look for Set up multiple displays and click that option. Here, make sure that both of your screens are connected to your dedicated graphics card as opposed to the internal one.

4. Match Cables

Sometimes when you use two monitors, you simply use the cables that are available at home. This can cause issues depending on the cables you have connected.

For example, if you’re using an HDMI 2.0 for your primary 144Hz+ monitor and an HDMI 1.0 for your secondary monitor, the secondary monitor might not work.

That’s why I recommend using the same cable for both screens. Borrow one or use one from another device to see if that fixes your issue first. If it does, you can buy a new HDMI 2.0.

In my experience, DP cables work fine with both HDMI 1 and 2 but it can’t hurt to try out different cables if that’s what you’re using for one of your monitors.

While you’re tinkering with cables, check for any type of damage to them and make sure that they’re properly seated in their slots.

5. Change the Scaling to Full Screen

The Nvidia control panel has a lot of options available to configure your monitors. Monitor scaling options in the Nvidia control panel are handy to change the display scaling on your monitor.

There are two different options to choose from, Full-screen and Aspect ratio. Many users have found that changing the scaling option from aspect ratio to full-screen has solved the issue with their second monitors.

Sometimes, games fail to recognize the aspect ratio of the second screen while you’re in-game, and as a result, the second screen goes black. If this is why it’s happening to you, you can solve it easily by changing the scaling mode to full-screen instead.

Follow the steps below to do this.

• Right-click your desktop and select NVIDIA Control Panel

• After this, go into Adjust desktop size and position under Display

• Change it to Full-screen if Aspect ratio is enabled

• Click Apply at the bottom-right of the window

6. Update Windows

Windows updates include everything from operating system improvements to bug and compatibility fixes. If your second screen isn’t working, you should make sure that you have Windows updated to the latest version.

There’s certainly a possibility that you have a Windows version that has a bug in it, that makes your second screen go black when gaming.

Therefore, you should update your Windows OS to the latest version. Luckily, this is very easy to do. Simply follow the steps below.

• Press the Windows button + I

• Head to Update & Security

• At the top of the new window, click on Check for updates

• If there are any updates available, follow the steps and download the new Windows patch

7. Manually Reset the Monitor

A lot of monitors have options that allow you to factory reset them. This may allow you to clear any settings that make your monitor go black.

It’s hard to say exactly where you have to click to factory reset your monitor since all monitors have different options for it. Check your user’s manual or the monitor manufacturer’s website to find out how to go about it.

8. Don’t User the Power Saver Mode

Power saver mode is a useful option in Windows to save power. However, having this option turned on can give you some performance issues when playing games, especially when having two screens.

Your GPU needs to render more pixels on your screens, causing it to have to work more. If it can’t handle this, your second monitor might shut down to prevent further issues.

If you have the power saver mode enabled and your second screen is going black, you should turn it off to fix this.

• Press the Windows button + X

• Head into Power Options

• Click Additional power settings

• Select another profile than Power saver