Color and Multiple Graphics cards

[Louis Maddalena]

Hey guys,

I do have question I desperately need help with. I want to use color on my main computer so I don't have to transfer files back and forth to my laptop, The problem is that since I used it last I added a graphics card, but color can not run on systems with more then one graphics card and pulling the card every time I want to boot color doesn't make sense to me. Is there a way, terminal, software, or widget that would allow me to turn off the extra card so color can boot?

Louis

[Shaun Roemich]

I'm flummoxed by the non support of multiple video cards with the FCS suite. I was getting ready to spec a new edit Mac Pro when I stumbled across the non-compatibility. I was hoping desperately to have 3 or 4 monitors running off two video cards (I like bins, does it show?)

Hopefully Apple rectifies this issue SOON.

Good luck with the workaround.

[Louis Maddalena]

The studio works very nicely with multiple graphics cards, I have 2 and a Blackmagic card. The only software application that can't work with multiple cards is Color, and honestly I couldn't tell you why but its starting to get very annoying.

[Shaun Roemich]

Thanks, Louis. My reading on Apple's site had led me to believe (obviously in error) that FCS in GENERAL didn't like multiple cards. This makes me VERY happy as I get ready to spec my next machine.

I'm looking to use one card mirrored (for my timeline) so I can view it up close and personal as well as displaying it as an auxiliary input on my soon to be purchased 40" client viewer LCD panel and using the other card to drive an extended desktop where bins and Canvas and Viewer windows will live.

[Giuseppe Pugliese]

on this topic, I too am wanting to put another video card into my macpro, but I am worried about spending some big bucks, just to get it to work right with final cut... is there any particular video card that works great, but isn't in the $600 range? Does anyone know why ONLY color doesn't support the second card?

And also... calibrating multiple screens with a spider.. has anyone done it, that could give a few pointers?

[Andrew Kimery]

Matrox offers external boxes that will drive 2 or 3 monitors from a single GFX card output.
How many monitors you can have, and and what res, depends on your current GFX card, but it might be less of headache than putting another card in your Mac.

http://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/products/gxm/


-A

[Dino Leone]

Originally Posted by Giuseppe Pugliese

Does anyone know why ONLY color doesn't support the second card?

Probably because the entire app is a huge hack? Don't know honestly, but just from looking at the interface, I get the impression Color hasn't been born as a native-observe-all-mac-programming-guidelines-app. I seem to remember that Apple only recently bought this from another company.

Originally Posted by Giuseppe Pugliese

And also... calibrating multiple screens with a spider.. has anyone done it, that could give a few pointers?

Yes, I've done that using spyder 3 pro on a G5 with 2 Apple cinema displays. Very easy to do. You basically pop the spyder to the sceen and let it do its thing. Very easy.

Best,
Dino