The experience that has been gaining a lot of ground in the gaming industry is the use of the video walls. This is the systematic assortment of relatively small screens to form one large screen, offering a widely impressive user experience through larger and more visible images as well as awesome in-depth gaming encounters.
Video walls are a major innovation in the entertainment experience as compared to single monitors utilized on their own. There are several types of video wall systems with different calibrations such as the Clarity Matrix-G3 LCD Video-Wall System, which combines ultra-narrow bezel LCDs and a direct view LED video wall.
Building a video wall by yourself or by someone not particularly skilled to perform such task is quite possible, but it is most advisable to seek professional help in executing efficiently and effectively. Building a video wall, like every other project, needs a step by step process.
Planning
Planning is a key step in every project, and its success depends following plans step by step. Planning will include making a budget and determining the location and adequate space required for the video wall. For a better experience, your video wall needs to be built in a location with a limited amount of lighting, which reduces the amount of viewing interference. The amount of space available will determine the kinds of screens that need to be installed, but using larger screens is better for the available space than merging several small screens, limiting the bezel interference.
Purchasing the gear
Resolution is a key aspect to consider while determining the kind of hardware to purchase. Viewing distance is also an important factor to consider. Viewing distance will greatly influence the experience of the gamer, so going for a better screen resolution is the ideal factor to compensate for a viewing distance that will influence the gaming experience negatively. The screens should also be of equal sizes to ensure uniform image distribution as well as ensuring a uniform video wall. Refresh rates between 120Hz and 144Hz are typically ideal. The screen’s ability to respond quickly is also a very important factor to consider. Video games are highly sensitive to screen latency. Screens without the right amount of response time will produce a glitchy gaming experience. The screen response time should be less than 2 milliseconds or 1 millisecond for the better.
All these will be pointless without state-of-the-art multiple video sound cards for quality frame rates of 60pfs and a resolution of 1080 pixels.
Setting up the wall
Since the setup is comprised of screens initially configured for single use, the calibration and configuration of a video wall must be done with many precise modifications. If not properly done, it might result in the damaging of the mount or improper alignment, even with a miss of just millimeters. When the screens are properly mounted, it is now time to connect the necessary wiring, usually VGA, HDMI, or DVI. Some monitors only support HDMI while some support all three. So, the connection should be done relatively.
The connection method
Several connection methods are employed when it comes to building a video wall for gaming. These methods are described as follows:
- Daisy-chain: like its name, the principle behind this technique is a serial connection is made across all monitors starting from one primary monitor with one connection type, usually HDMI. The rest of the monitor connections are then based on the individual positions of each monitor. Usually tiles will appear on the monitors with each monitor highlighting its corresponding tile.
- Graphic boards: in this method, a graphic board comprising of multiple graphics cards with each connected to a specific screen. Some graphic boards can support up to 12 graphics cards. This method is mostly used by professional gamers and the graphics cards mostly used are AMD and NVidia cards.
Software configuration
Configuring your video wall software is usually the final step in building a video wall for gaming. First is configuring the desktop, and if a Windows machine is in use, it can be done by going to the on-sign TV windows application, this will guide you via the proper setup procedures.
The advantages of having a video wall for your gaming are enormous when it comes to improving your gaming and entertainment experience. The resolution is better and higher than that of a single monitor. This means the wall has a much larger display with a great amount of detail. The outcome is also powerful processing and superior brightness. Most video walls built from a professional standpoint are highly reliable, 24/7 and require very minimal maintenance.
About the Author
Mia Clarke is part of the content and community team at Userful.com, experts in all things video wall and display solutions. When Mia is not spreading the word about video walls she is often found discovering the great outdoors, walking or cycling.
