MSFS Surround Vs. New Multiview: The Best Sim Solution

[@louvilmar9461]

Russ, I don’t want to sound repetitive but you have the ability to explain technical issues with such clarity that is second to none… Cheers!

[@scottmcdonaldAAL211]

Your videos are a treasure and valuable gift to the sim community. I have been continually impressed by your flight expertise as well as your ability to produce educational and informative videos that are top-tier quality. Please accept my gratitude and appreciation for your efforts, along with heartfelt thanks!

[@FredHsu]

Thanks for this great and informative short video on the topic of geometric distortions in the previous subpar solution for the last two years, compared to SU10 multi view.

[@malcolmstreet1]

Excellent decription of the difference between the two modes and the geometry involved in multiview setup.

[@denisbrowm133]

Great work Russ,very technical but so well explained.Thanks for the info.

[@FabioPinzi]

No word to say what a good job you did Russ! I thanks a lot for this scientific approach to a well known problem. Generally speaking, you can view or read posts but rarely treated with such passion. Thanks again

[@maile.247]

Thank you for this explanation! Now I can explain in detail why I experienced motion sickness as I used a 49" curved monitor due to the stretching in games. Came here looking for information on how to properly set up a triple monitor sim rig and got that too. Thanks!

[@MrScott_e]

Russ, we’ll done Sir! I’ve followed your Multi-view setup from 5 yrs ago and also have 3 55” 4k screens. I abandoned the setup when MSFS 2020 came out but have now restored the setup in anticipation of SU10. I do hope Asobo will incorporate the same level of adjustment X-Plane uses so we can really take advantage of Multi-view.

[@aviationodyssey1892]

Thank for sharing the informations. I'm on 3xUHD 60" high contrast monitors with 190 deg HFOV since 2018, I love my XP11 setup, so immersive

[@rbarlow]

Nice setup

[@p01brodland]

Your videos have been a go-to for a while. Thanks for your diligence and passion. I'd love to know more about what your computer specs are (high end/low end)--though we captured a bit of that in this video. Please keep it up your work is highly appreciated.

[@CanadianPonchman]

I'm a new fan. I'm just getting back to my flight sim hobby and I was stumped on the screens. Youve basically answered almost all my questions. Thank you

[@cptairwolf]

Excellent explanation of the differences between the 2 different multi monitor display methods!

[@rbarlow]

Thanks Sir!

[@daveweatherall7523]

Superb video, simple as that. So helpful, thanks Russ from the UK

[@brianchambers5828]

Thanks Russ ... an excellent explanation and a great help to my problem, I only hope that MS/Asobo get the finer points sorted.

[@1OldBuzzard]

It's all your fault Russ. Because of you I had to get Air Manager. Then I had to get a touch screen, then a second one. Because of you I had to make me a Knobster. Now I just got in three TV's that were on sale at a price the Minister of Finance approved of the purchase. That was no easy task because she can be tough. (Not really, she loves me) Now I'm in over my head and watching this video for about the third or fourth time. The other times didn't count since I thought I'd never be able to get three TV's at one time. I've got to build a mounting system to hold all of these things. Thankfully I'm very competent on the wood working side. I did cabinet making for about thirty years. Now I need to learn one last lessen concerning you. I need to quit clicking on your darn videos. LOL Love your content sir and I'll see you on Crunch's Discord.

[@rbarlow]

Bless your wife for her support…. I tell my wife would you rather have me at home in my basement sim or about at a bar with the guys? Of course I have no interest in the bar but she bought it 😀

[@1OldBuzzard]

@@rbarlow I used that one when I flew RC every other day. I don't think she'd buy it again. :D

[@HomesickforAlaska]

Agree 1000% Russ costs me $$$$$ Every time I watch a video. Took exactly the route you did, now I have a DOF P3, Triple screens, Air Manager, Knobsters, Honeycomb's, TPR pedals, Eye Tracker, Butt Kicker, RTX 4090, and a wish list that's still too big 😊 Had to do A LOT of "honey do" chores 😮 I truly don't understand how Russ doesn't have a larger subscriber base. Everyone into flight sims could benefit from his knowledge, experience and presentation manner.

[@ronsflightsimlab9512]

Every good pilot is an engineer at heart... Love your content Russ!

[@Zekos78]

Absolutely great explanation. Thank you very much Russ

[@essbe7158]

Many thanks. I've just discovered your channel as I have just ordered a rig that hopefully will be able to use FS2020 with multiple TVs.

[@rbarlow]

Have fun!

[@seattime4075]

Great Video, I have tried VR, its great, but for a few reasons reasons my eyes get strained after 20 minutes especially when my motion sim is active. With MSFS introducing Multiview decided to bite the bullet and purchase three 50 inch 4K TVs (cannot fit much more in the space I have available) and am really enjoying the experience. It does not of course have the immersion of VR, but everything is super clear from edge to edge and I don't have to be moving my head all the time due to VRs mostly limited FOV and the image is not 'bouncing' like it did in VR with motion. Videos like these really help in understanding the correct setup, which I think is very important to ensure everything looks as it would in the real world.

[@ksp1278]

Well done Russ. You explained these concepts perfectly. I never understood before why really wide field of views distorted. It didn't occur to me that it was rendering it as if it were on a flat screen rather than a curved one. It seems to me that surely there must be a way of just rendering one view and the having some post processing to remove the warping from the image based on the angle you actually have the screens at. Mathematically it should be possible. I am not sure if it technically is.

[@rbarlow]

There is software to map images like FlyElise but it is $$ and cumbersome and MSFS needs all the CPU power it has already without another program.

[@davidwilkinson4969]

@@rbarlow correct Russ. I use three projectors on a 470" curved screen with FlyElise warping software. I can promise you "It is cumbersome"! I would also add words like "convoluted", "counter-intuitive" & "complicated", but for those with the perseverance, the reward is an impressive panorama which should suit FS2020 nicely. I'm really looking forward to it. Thanks for sharing this video.

[@rbarlow]

@@davidwilkinson4969 my friend Chuck has the Malibu sim featured in a video I posted and just built a cylindrical screen with 3 projectors and using FlyElise. The end result is quite immersive but he spent a lot of time getting things dialed in. FlyElise makes a product that does what you suggest called Immersive LCD Pro. fly.elise-ng.net/immersive-lcd-pro/?gclid=CjwKCAjwpKyYBhB7EiwAU2Hn2Q0idDs4RJho5N-bR5Kf9h4i3OjfrQoD1uMo7jJQ9Uz5M7_8q1eH0hoCgMsQAvD_BwE The home version is €150 but if they can do it you’d think Microsobo could add it as a feature. I can live with the current setup in MSFS but need bezel correction and scenery only views ( but with wings cowling and prop disc.

[@ronaldvonfricken9734]

I always look forward to whatever Russ has to share. As always very informative and worthwhile information. Thank you Russ!

[@ChristopherSaunders-zz8vx]

Thanks Russ, for your exceptionally well-explained video - this was exactly what I was looking for! The speed at which you explain and the visual examples and scenarios are fantastic - thanks one again.

[@StevenNovak]

Well done! I wish the center monitor could be vertical to display instrument panel below.

[@MrAlexmaq]

Thank you Russ. You just make my day!

[@JonnyMainframe]

Great video Russ! You know your stuff and it’s awesome that you share your knowledge with the flight sim community.

[@zweitingen]

The weird thing is that part of the instrument panel appears on the angled screen on the right side. I suspect that has to do with the fact that the simulator assumes that the eye position would be in the center of the screen whereas in a two seated cockpit it should be slightly left of center, so preferably the whole instrument panel should be on the center screen and then on your left and right screens you would only have your wings visible. I don’t know if there’s a way to set it up like that but that’d be more realistic and also you could have someone sit on your right and be your copilot. This problem of course does not arise when you have a single seated cockpit e.g. gliders, fighters etc. where the eye position is correctly in the center.

[@rbarlow]

No there is only one eve position that can have the geometrically correct view projected on multiple screens.

[@zweitingen]

@@rbarlowOk, is there any way to solve that problem? On the C172 for example the pilot does not sit on the center axis of the aircraft, but slightly to the left of it. I actually just found out that on a single monitor this can be adjusted by just moving the horizontal camera position so the propeller ends up being in the middle of the screen. So one can easily sit in front of it with a buddy and both sit in front of their respective part of the panel. I assume that doesn’t work on a multi monitor setup though for the reason you mentioned.

[@arrow7212]

Hey Russ, thanks for making this video. It was VERY helpful to understand the fine details of how this all "maths" out. I've been flying VR exclusively for years but found "airline style" IFR to be extremely cumbersome sitting in my pit, trying to look down through the nose hole at the [things]. So I have been mocking up a new pit for flat screen instrument procedure training. I really dislike Track IR so triple screen Multiview is the way. I really appreciate you explanation and again, I thank you for the information. :)

[@vadermike7772]

fabulous video! tons of excellent info .

[@hellbillyjoker4454]

I fly the twin otter alot was wondering if I could add a monitor above my main monitor to capture the overhead console in the otter

[@Daniel-co9ke]

Appreciated the video and the excel spreadsheet. I have a triple 55 inch setup sitting at 50 deg FOV from main display and ~150 deg total FOV. Based on your video explanation I would think I need to set multiview lateral offset to +/- 75 deg and zoom to ~75 but anything other than +/-90 deg results in misalignment. What am I misunderstanding?

[@activex7327]

Thanks for all the work you have put into this.

[@togadriver]

Fantastic job Bruce seriously, great detail, very helpful information. Because of the information you've given me about how to replicate my own Cessna 172 panel with dual G5s and Garmin Navigator, I was able to hone my skills on my simulator and pass my IPC after six years of non-currency. I plan on upgrading to the multi monitor view outside the plane (I'm already using the touchscreens as you use for your instrument panel). When time permits, I'd love to see a video with your impressions of some of the newer video cards and how they might be implemented or, whether or not they're even necessary. Thank you!

[@CessSim]

Great video Russ. Problem for a cockpit builder is the lack of ability to "remove" elements of the aircraft when you already have the shell. Planemaker in XPlane11 is much better suited for this. Let's hope FS2020 mult-monitor support for cockpit builders gets up the curve as it is for XPlane11....

[@rbarlow]

Definitely need this in MSFS

[@gregthegroove]

What do you use as a home cockpit? 737? Or GA? Reason I ask because I use Prosim 737 as my aircraft in MSFS and you just get the scenery in front of you. It removes all cockpit elements.

[@CessSim]

@@gregthegroove A C172 which I need to see wings and cowl / prop without anything else to blend in with my setup. XPlane11 planemaker is great for achieving this...

[@rbarlow]

@@gregthegroove perhaps prosim is making some of the aircraft textures invisible? I don’t think this is part of MSFS but a prosim mod.

[@gregthegroove]

@@rbarlow yea I believe so. Prosim just uses the scenery like when you can choose just scenery in XP11

[@UndeadParrot]

I receive comments all the time about why I'm not using VR. For me, it's about enjoying the physical aspects of what I've built. And I really enjoy building stuff for my cockpit, as much as playing games with it. The multi monitor support will probably be really fun thing with FS2020 (just need time to set everything up again to try it out :D ).

[@pipe608]

can you steup more than 3 screens in just one computer? 3 for monitors and 1 or 2 aditionals for instruments panels

[@StekuVideo]

Finally debunking the myth of "stretching the image at the edges" with surround, which in fact results from placing the side monitors at and angle while in flat projection mode. An indeed multiview is much better than surround allowing angling the side displays. However, while waiting so long for multiple display proper support I switched to VR and I will never go back. I still use massive amounts of buttons and levers to fly in VR without touching the mouse, I even use voice commands with Axis and Ohs to operate the autopilot in the airliners. The hidden benefit of VR for the semi-serious VR cockpit builder - you don't need to care how your buttons and levers look like, because in VR you can't see them. You only need to feel them the tactile way and you are allowed to admire the stereoscopic view not only of the scenery but also of the beautifully recreated cockpits with lights and shadows dancing on them while turning flying at dusk.

[@rbarlow]

Preaching to the choir…❤️ VR

[@Voltomess]

I also have VR however flying 10h in VR from EU to US is not a good idea so I also use 3 monitors. VR for short flights sure but longer flights NO WAY.

[@skyking5133]

I have the ipad version of Air Manager loaded on my ipad and am trying to have it view my Garmin 530 that I loaded from the radios list. When I get the overlay on the ipad the information screen is blank. How do I get the 530 from my monitors to the ipad. I have a direct connection from my computer to the ipad

[@buckrodgers770]

This Is great Russ. I had to lower my expectations because even my 3060 just doesn't like 4k on 3 screens. 1080p I found works best for me.

[@rbarlow]

Yes I think a 4090 might almost handle 3 x 4K … if you have too much money

[@westsideav]

Great video. Thanks. It inspired me to join the beta. And I have to say it works very well. I use 4 30" monitors so I get a bit creative. One is touch screen for AM. I have found that using windowed mode for the screens is really cool, You can spend a bit of time fine tuning by moving the view and the screens around to fit into a cockpit mockup. I use AirManager as well and was very pleased with how it works perfectly in the beta at least initially for me. Lots more testing to come.

[@ramnik.khanna]

@Russ, thanks for the excellent explanation and tips!

[@rotorryder]

Hello, can you use MSFS 2020 with master and slave computers for multiple computers?

[@rbarlow]

I have never tried a two monitor setup but it seems to me that Asobo expected monitors to be added left and right of the existing 0 degree offset monitor. I will experiment since I am not sure but am curious.

[@lewymartain8267]

What settings are used in the nvidia when using multi view in MSFS. thanks

[@garyhinkle4917]

I need help as to where to find info on building a sim cockpit. What computer to buy. Would like to have 180 degree video. This will be for flying twin piston a/c. Any magazine suggestions would be a big help. I'm 70, and comming to the end of my flying due to health and age. Hope to build a near full size cockpit of a 400 series Cessna. Thanks in advance for any help.

[@markgriffin2285]

I like how you have the 3 monitors. My setup would never accommodate something such as that. One monitor will have to definitely suffice!

[@rbarlow]

You might consider VR then since it requires hardly any space. It is extremely immersive and great fun.

[@junesondrab3833]

Can you make a video about how you sealed the top from monitor to monitor? Is there a fabric up to creating a roof feeling?

[@alexandsimba]

The problem with a lot of simmers is that they forget that in the real world, you are looking at a curved image. You have extra space in the real world for your gear because your view in the cockpit is through a curved glass that goes around your cockpit and gear. If you are serious about your sim experience, you should either stick to curved monitors or VR headsets.

[@BorisNebosenko]

Thanks Russ, awesome explanation!

[@eaglethedigger]

Hey Russ. Thanks for this. But: I dont get your explanation about the 135 degreee of view when using three monitors. The natural physical focus eye degree of view is still 45 degrees. So the three monitors should be placed further away. Why do you triple the degree of view to 135 degrees?

[@Fabs6379]

Hi, thank you for your great video and explanations. I was wondering if it was possible to set up a three monitor setup with a large 32:9 wide view monitor in the middle and two standard 16:9 27 inch monitors on either side? Or do all the monitors have to be the same size and aspect ratio?

[@johnbarton588]

How do you show the cockpit over head panel with your 3 monitor configuration. I have seen that you have the cockpit running in air manager. Can you allso show the over head panel with air manager? I am thinking of setting up a multi panel set up. I have tried VR (HP Reverb G2) but always struggle with using my flight sim yoke and throttles in VR. So multi panel might be teh way to go for me. Thanks for your interesting channel.

[@apburner1]

How does a multi-monitor setup with Multiview interact with head tracking and/or eye tracking?

[@rbarlow]

If you try it let me know… I passed on head tracking for VR

[@Aj-vg7fp]

Can you have multiple screen on VR?

[@marcushellberg907]

How much in fps do you loose when using the multiview? When I tried this yesterday I went from 30-35fps with Nvidia surround to unplayable 15fps with multivew om my computer. 12600k+2080ti on 3x 1440. Works fine in DCS and all the simracingtitles like iRacing, ACC etc.

[@anthonyvallillo422]

Great explanation. I have never seen a multi monitor setup that was not angled in. In fact, it would be ridiculous not to angle the side screens. The whole point is to have a wrap around view, not the view you would have up close to a billboard! In the real world we exist inside more or less a sphere, which is why those military sims use the spherical dome for the visual. What we really need is a junior version of that. A spherical screen around 15 feet in diameter with a small multi projection system just above your head. I’ll look for that in a decade or so! VR, of course, falls way short in terms of actual interface with the cockpit controls. Mixed reality might be the answer for that, who knows. But for now, monitors are so cheap that they are the way to go. Now if only I could afford 6!

[@dutchinfinity5991]

With nvidia surround its not able to do the multi view. Anyone has the same issue? Have to do windowed... wich is shite. To be clear racing sims are able to work with the surround nvidia provides and still able to do multiview

[@skippychurch2965]

Question: sim update 10 is out (finally effing triple screen!), but how do you enable dlss?!? It's not showing up for me in the anti aliasing tab. I have a 3080. Can you help??

[@antoniopettini9503]

I have a Samsung odissey G9 49" dual QHD Curve, 5120x1440, 240 Hz. I would like to add a monitor possibly in 4K and no more than 32", Could you give some suggestions and indicate some models. I have nvidia 4090 GPU. Thank you a lot for your help.

[@kurtkaeferboeck5323]

What I never found anywhere. What is with the vertical field of view I think flying correct must be horizontal the same degrees per pixel as the vertical degrees per pixel, otherwise the feeling of movement steering left and right must be in the wrong relationship to the up and down movement I think if the vertical field of view is 45 degrees divided by 1440px vertical = 0,03125 degrees per pixel, so on my ultra-wide monitor 3840 * 0,03125 = 120 degrees. So I have to adjust my physical position for 45 degrees vertical and the zoom for 120 degrees, but i could not find any information about the vertical field of view and if it is constant or not. When i save a position to a new camera with a special zoom level and restart. the position from the camera will be hold, but the new point is situated as 50 % in the main menu and i am able to zoom again till the picture is not useable.

[@rbarlow]

Not sure I follow you completely but the same principles apply both vertically and horizontally. 1) eye centered and perpendicular to the monitor 2) eye positioned where the physical field of view equals the FOV displayed on the monitor. As long as you adhere to rule 1 both horizontally and vertically, the same eyepoint will accomplish rule 2 both horizontally and vertically. This assumes your monitor has square pixels ( same density horizontally and vertically).

[@kurtkaeferboeck5323]

@@rbarlow I see two influencing elements on a realistic flight experience 1) A specific vertical FOV visible on the screen For example 40 degrees requires a very specific horizontal FOV which must correspond to the ratio between the horizontal axis and the vertical axis. In my case 1400px vertically and 3400px horizontally, which with a vertical FOV of 40 degrees according to the following calculation 40 degrees / 1400 = 0.02857 pixels per degree The same thing has to be applied to the horizontal plane. In my case, 3400 pixels by 0.02857 degrees per pixel results in a FOV of 97 degrees. This means that every vertical FOV must have an exactly necessary horizontal FOV and my initial zoom is 1-(1400/3400) = 0.588 . This means that the vertical axis has to be compressed by that zoom factor, i.e. shortened, which is best set in the Camera.cfg for the corresponding aircraft, otherwise the feeling of height and distance to the side or to the front would be wrong, say you see yourself parallel to the runway but are actually still hundreds of feet away which would never allow for a good sight flown landing. 2) Match the FOV shown on screen to my physical FOV. I adapt my distance to the given FOV and not the other way around, which of course doesn't work exactly. If my distance to the monitor exactly reflects the vertical FOV on the screen, then the horizontal one isn't quite right. That means I have to find a middle way Either I change the zoom factor now and get distortions in the route or I change my position so that both horizontal and vertical FOV are just a bit wrong, but to come back to my question In FSX and P3D the vertical FOV was fixed at 35 degrees, but how big is it at MSFS? Is it affected by the zoom factor or is it always the same like it was in FSX and P3D It could be different depending on how many pixels the monitor allows vertically? The best format would be a square monitor

[@Ivan-SKULL-666]

What i dont understand is the performance drop with multi view againt sorround. Being the same resolution i have less than the half of frames than with souround.

[@rbarlow]

While the same total number of pixels may be involved, with multi view your computer has to calculate and render three separate smaller views instead of one larger one. Since each view has its unique geometry it requires additional processing power and reduces FPS. I personally think it is worth the performance lost to get a realistic looking and geometrically accurate wide FOV visual.

[@Ivan-SKULL-666]

@@rbarlow i prefer visual quality than sides views. But its just very disapointing that microsoft doesnt support nvidia suround view like some simracing games do. Auomobilista 2 or ACC have that and no performance lost. Anyway, thanks for ur answer. Great content.

[@rbarlow]

@@Ivan-SKULL-666 just to clarify nVidia surround is just taking the pixels from two or more monitors and combining them into a single flat virtual monitor. Properly configured, MSFS will see that as a single screen. As long as your monitors are side by side and flat ( outside monitors not angled back) you will see an accurate view but most LCD displays look dimmer and have color shift at the wide angles you will view the outer edges. If you do try to rake back the side monitors objects will grow horizontally as the approach the rear edges of the side monitors distorting the sense of speed as they pass by. This poor quality video I did 7 years ago when X-Plane 11 first supported Multiview may help explain.X-Plane 11 Multi View Setup kzbin.info/www/bejne/l2ivl4unpc5gf5o

[@sethtraut]

Is there anyway to have less angle on the side screens? I use 3 across the windshield of my a320 and I would like to use multi view to show an accurate view out the windshield only, any thoughts? Thanks

[@JoshuaDraconis19860725]

What if you have curved monitors? Do you have a way to calculate setting up curved monitors like the spreadsheet you prepared for flat monitors?

[@rbarlow]

Actually the projections shown on the screen are for a flat image so a curved screen would need a cylindrical projection. There is a small error introduced using a curved screen but it is probably too small to notice. The more uniform edge to edge brightness will probable be a good trade off for any small distortion introduced by the curve.

[@LesOReilly]

I thought we had the ability to remove the the cockpit in MSFS now? Was that removed in SU10.. Think it is called cockpit builder ... just renders the "outside" view.. Curious how that looks/feels with your system.. Also not even sure if you can get gauges that way...

[@Don52C]

Thank you Russ, it is a great video. I do however have a problem with my set up. I do not have the room for 55" screens so have three identical 43" 4K TCL screens. When I use your spreadsheet I end up with an 18.739 inch eye distance and a 37.48 inch rear width and I can't make that happen. I have Honeycomb Yoke and Throttle Bank. An android screen with knobster that I use for Air manager and an IPad for Foreflight. When sitting comfortably with my feet on the foot pedals my eye distance is 37". Can you give me some advice on what settings and angles I should use. I can't be the only one with this issue, at least I hope I am not. Secondly I am using a MSI Radeon RX 6800 XT GAMING X TRIO 16G GDDR6 graphics card but am only getting between 20 and 25 fps even after going to medium Global Rendering Quality. On one screen on Ultra I got an average of 60 fps. Can you advise me on this as well?

[@rbarlow]

Just keep reducing the FOV until the eye distance is 37.5…. Looks like 53 degrees FOV for 159 degrees total FOV. If you want more wrap around you need bigger TVs

[@Driver170]

Hey, i’m currently using a 78” screen for my 737 cockpit but looking to add a 50” side view. Will different monitor sizes work?

[@LorenzoDiamond1]

where can i see the 70 zoom relative to 60 fov?

[@rbarlow]

Settings for the cockpit camera

[@desmodromic4586]

Again great video by Russ

[@yanicklegault3772]

Hi, i,m new to flight sim and appreciate your content a lot..i notice that with the triple set up display, when i look at the front screen on your video, the plane dashboard overlap on the screen to the right....wonder why the dash board is not flush on the front monitor as i m sure there s a reason for that...best regards

[@alanbeasy1775]

Does that mean currently it is not possible to select/customise which monitors display the three views? For example, I have my computer set up with the left screen as the main monitor - which is seen as monitor 2 in the display settings. Screen 3 is in the RHS and the front screen is screen 4. I have three other instrument screens (1, 5, & 6). With XPlane, I can just select which screens display which view.

[@rbarlow]

Not in MSFS yet… hopefully coming

[@keithharrison1453]

Nicely explained, Russ, much appreciated. I am still on a tight budget, so have yet to upgrade my GPU. In turn, VR seems even further away. But, on a brighter note, I do happen to have three 27 inch matching 1080P Screens, so this looks worth the effort to put the three screens together. Also, as a former real-world Rotary Wing pilot (many years ago), without VR, the lack of any peripheral vision via one screen, makes the current 3rd Party helicopter implementations within MSFS very frustrating and unrealistic, making it feel more like just a video game. But with two, or three screens, I can see that could work, and provide much better immersion even if it is just 2D and not VR. As I am sure you will know, when flying a helicopter in the real world when at the hover, you just look ahead and pick up movement via your peripheral vision. I think multiple screens could well get much closer to reality, so I think I will give that a go ASAP. I will need a new triple stand, as I threw some of the original single stands away when I created a dual-screen stand set up (with the 3rd used on another machine with its original solo stand). I agree one key aspect for many, is the scope to include a (living) passenger to share the enjoyment with, which cannot realistically be done with VR, but can be achieved via both single and multiple screens. That is a very real factor mitigating against VR. My wife has certainly enjoyed visiting places in MSFS that we used to know, and flying around them in MSFS to take another look. As it happens, she has reduced vision in one eye, so VR would never work for her anyway. Maybe we're getting old and sad, but we've certainly visited all of the places that we have lived and/or knew (in various Countries), and that has been great fun, and will be even better with a GPU upgrade to crank up the detail. We obviously had to land at the front of Buckingham Palace, it would be a shame not to!

[@fps886797d]

Get those monitors hooked up, it's awesome! The stuff in this video isn't as consequential as he makes it sound, for the most part the default settings will suffice for most sim pilots and doesn't require alot of set up time. It will feel like an entirely new game. I've actually put off an upgrade to vr because I was so pleased with the triple set up.

[@keithharrison1453]

@@fps886797d Thanks, have two already side by side anyway, so will give that a go first, and will add the 3rd if my existing GPU can hack it!

[@mughug9616]

@@keithharrison1453 For comparison, I am running 3 x 1080p monitors for a 5760x1080 resolution using an AMD RX 6700 XT video card. Very happy with performance on high or above settings.

[@keithharrison1453]

@@mughug9616 Thanks, that's very good to hear. I am distracted by a few things (short notice surgery, so am having to concentrate on getting ready for that), but will get the 2 or 3 monitors set-up ASAP.

[@mughug9616]

@@keithharrison1453 I actually have Occulus Quest 2 but prefer the triple monitos. Maybe being blind in one eye is part of the reason. With a little tweak, it seem to work really well in many of my other sims, rpgs and mmos. Added bonus is a massive Windows deaktop. You will love it. :)

[@larrykenobi8788]

Great explanation, extremely helpful. I have 2 32" 1440p monitors, and I am simply trying to "Extend" my view onto a secondary monitor which is only angled 20-30 degrees. In the video you imply that I should be able to set the "lateral rotational offset" to something other than +90 or -90 to accomodate other angles. I find this is not the case, any other number results in the images not lining up where the monitors meet at the bezel. Further I find a lot of issues with free look (i am stuck with the virtual cockpit), where the other views don't stay locked to the main view they kind of rotate/roll/shift in ways that cause disorienting alignment/geometries of objects. Nvidia surround doesn't have that problem, but suffers the stretching affect as you mentioned, as well puts a giant monitor bezel in the center of my view since I only have two monitors not three.... Just wondering if you have any thoughts, have spent hours trying to get this to work.

[@lucianosantucci108]

Thanks for great work - one concern- in FOV, you place eye in middle of screens, should it be more left as it would be in an aircraft

[@rbarlow]

Actually the axis of movement is through the center of the screen yet you see the same image on the screen at any eye location only viewed from that angle. If you are off center the visual effect is that you are moving in a crab. This is most noticeable while taxiing or landing on a surface with a straight centerline ahead. Your assertion makes sense. It just doesn’t work. Thanks for your comments.

[@williamwidjaja850]

Dear sir rus, do you think we can simulate this setup In VR ? I meant 3 slanted virtual monitors in quest2 / G2 / Aero

[@dave-j-k]

Excellent video, subbed. My setup is a 60 degree FOV so I need a 67-68% zoom, I set that in the settings page but where do you set the cockpit/keyboard zoom? On my install its the "-" & "=" keys.

[@rbarlow]

To disable it go to the control options settings and select mouse settings. Select cockpit camera and look for the Zoom ( both in and out ) and delete the bindings for each of them to the scroll wheel.

[@dave-j-k]

@@rbarlow Yes I have that done but this is keyboard zoom - do we kill that as well and how can it be 'reset' so it represents the desired zoom setting? I'm also trying to save my final setting under VFR pilot view but when i press the keyboard shortcut it zooms a bit first then save :) Its a bit of a pain at times is FS2020 ;)

[@rbarlow]

@@dave-j-k would this help kzbin.info/www/bejne/m2axo4yant6Xj7M

[@dave-j-k]

@@rbarlow Thanks, thats a very useful video, sadly he does not address actual zoom values and settings, bookmarked anyway ;)

[@dave-j-k]

A little update - when you change the main camera/default zoom from 50% to whatever is needed (67% on my setup) the VFR Pilot View save feature is broken, SU11, it zooms before saving and makes a mess, not been able to find a workaround yet. Thanks for the video again as since adjust my zoom as per your chart, my landings have improved a whole lot :)

[@lst141]

what about using 2 WQHD 49 monitors, have anyone tried?

[@EclecticTastes]

Can this be made to work with curved screen monitors?

[@ramonalvarez286]

Excellent video, thank you very much for your time

[@PipBoykin]

@Russ Barlow What resolution are your 55" monitors?

[@rbarlow]

Mine are older 49” monitors and are 4k but I run them at 1080p to get a good FPS.

[@PascalQNH2992]

Very helpfull video...But how did you manage to seperate the cockpit instruments from the outside view?

[@rbarlow]

Air Manager is the panel used.

[@TheHumanofEarth69]

Hi, what if im using two projectors and a 180 screen? Which one wiuld be the right way?

[@rbarlow]

What is a 180 screen?

[@TheHumanofEarth69]

@@rbarlow 180 degree screen. Forgot to write degree. But yes, i've seen a couple of setups and im thinking about going the projector route.

[@rbarlow]

@@TheHumanofEarth69 okay I see. With two projectors you would need two screens mounted at a 90 degrees to each other… like in the corner of a room. Your eye position should be centered and perpendicular to both screens. Add a second screen in the experimental multiple monitors settings and rotate the main view 90 degrees away from second monitor. The blend between screens will likely be noticeable since it will be directly forward in front of your instrument panel. With three screens you would have a better forward view.

[@Hackanhacker]

wow what good explainations clear an sound informative and interesting

[@gianlucacoloretti931]

thanks a lot Russ, I see you were running xplane, does this configuration works also for the FS2020? I'm also thinking in the future to get a new computer, in this case I can use the old for the panels, how need to be connected and configured the 2 computers, do we need 2 licence for the sim, special sw? thanks a lot ciao gianluca

[@rbarlow]

Most of the video was MSFS. I used a few clips from XP to show the effects of the stretch toward the edges because I didn’t want to set up surround and then switch back to Multiview as my MSFS is all dialed in. Definitely works for MSFS as I showed in my previous video. kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3yZoaGJZatqndU. Currently you can only use the single computer with MSFS as it has no networking built in like XP. You could run Air Manager panels on a networked computer and a pretty low powered one at that. Unfortunately if you want to pop out the nav displays like the G1000 or G530 and others for use in those panels it has to be on the same machine as the sim so you can drag them to the panel monitor. The good news is that most computers with a RTX3070 and above can run the sim on three monitors and two other monitors for the Air Manager panels with pop outs. You may need this kzbin.info/www/bejne/rIvJq2Wnnth9apI A single computer is much simpler and the latest gaming computers can do the job.

[@gianlucacoloretti931]

@@rbarlow thanks a lot Russ, sorry for my second question but i really love your setup and i would like to do exactly the same with 3 tv for the view and 2 for the air manager. But how do you drive all of that, 1 computer with 2 video card?, can you tell the configuration you are using (cpu and video card type). thanks ciao

[@jamestunstell9255]

I am sure that over time more info. will be added by the time 10 shows up?

[@richardsander3936]

Hi Russ, I have three angled 27 in. monitors on a Volair chassis, running X-Plane 11, and now 12. I set up the FOV at 77.5 deg., with the same offset left and right. If seems to work well for me. I’d like to check it against your spreadsheet. Can you please post the link. Now that MSFS has multiview I may give it a try. Thanks for the video Rich

[@ScottOmatic]

There are relatively few flight sims that support splitting out the 3 viewports like this, although it has been popular in sim racing for many years, which is originally why I picked up triple monitors close to a decade ago. I thought an added perk would be to play them in “regular” games, as many claimed to be “Eyefinity” or “Nvidia Surround” supported, only to find out that this was false advertising, as if a game title does not spilt the cameras out to 3 separate viewports, the distortion in your side monitors will be be unusable garbage every time.

[@simpilotlife2624]

Hi Ross, thank you very much for that video. Have couple questions for you. Can you confirm that the 3 monitors are televisions.If it is can you tell me what syncro rate it is. Is it 60 hz or 120 hz ? And finally watching the video we don't see stutters. Did you try Level study jets like pmdg 737 if yes is there stutters or not. Thanks again

[@rbarlow]

Isn't that called a PiMax😀 Seriously, if it is possible but why not a curved screen for each eye with say 150 FOV ? I am afraid the problem is that looking through the lenses not sure how the optics would work. Beyond my expertise. Interesting thought though.

[@paulweston8184]

Wow. This explains why my three monitor setup was stretched out while playing other games. I tilted my side monitors back. I had no idea it was stretched because they expected you to put it flat. Who puts all three monitors flat? Thanks for the info.

[@Tatanka-k8w]

Something I wish I knew before I installed my multimonitor setup. Display port to HDMI cables and adapters will not pass through Variable Refresh Rate (Gsync, Freesync). If you use this cable to connect you graphics card to your tv you will have a fixed refresh rate. The solution is to use a computer monitor with a Display Port connection. I used three 55" Hisense tv's without display port connections, so I only have a fixed refresh rate. You can purchase 48" monitors that have display port connections, you will now have variable refresh rate. There are many problems with Display port to Hdmi cables and adapters. Also make sure to keep the cables as short as possible.

[@billr3624]

Hi Russ, I'm planning on doing some instruction in a home simulator. I'd like to sit abreast the student and have 270 degree FOV for looking back at the runway on a downwind. Could I use three 75 inch TV's 90 degrees to each other with success in xplane and msfs? Thankyou! Great channel BTW

[@rakon8496]

Thanks for your explanation, that helped a lot! As the setup process is repetitious i wish Microsobo could come up with an userfriendly interface that takes away the math and brainwrapping... e.g. a simple setup assistent with questions like how much monitors you have, what angle, size... etc. and gives you a fixed preset with zoom setting. Yet given how much explanations we got for the menu settings overall up to now that doesn't seem likely. Ah, i forgot... thanks to you my framerate dropped again into the high 30's because of the doubled resolution, even with DLSS... yet i prefer a slideshow when it comes with a natural view. 😊Thanks again! 💙

[@elmalloc]

Love the setup!

[@svenwd]

Thanks for another great video.

[@lewymartain8267]

I t would have been a great help to have been shown how to actually set up Multiview Great!

[@lst141]

what about using two WQHD monitors?

[@rbarlow]

Same principals apply. Calculate eye dist based in displayed FOV. You will have a bezel in the middle of your front view. Think of it as setting one as the front monitor and then adding only one side monitor. Mark at Simhanger did a standard HD two monitor setup. Maybe it will help you. kzbin.info/www/bejne/i6G3c6Z5f7qhnZY

[@xuyan2650]

Should VR have a better experience ?

[@mcorrive12]

Hi Russ. Can you share your graphics settings and frame rates with the 5 monitor setup? I'm finding with my Ryzen 5900x, RTX 3080, 32 Gb RAM, and M.2 Hard drive I'm getting 20 FPS on the ground and about 25FPS at 3000' in populated areas on High Graphics settings. Coming in to land in pupulated areas I'm dropping below 20 FPS and stuttering. Sacrificing high/ultra graphics for the realism of a multiview 5 screen setup is killing me, but i can't go back to surround and I can't bring myself to do any less than 5 monitors.

[@davidmckenzie5085]

love your dedication every time i change to a different plane i have to muck around with new settings prop planes work ok soon as i go to a jet i spend half an hour trying to set it up to no advantigei have 3 43 inch same screens any help would be apreciated. thxs

[@rbarlow]

Help…how?

[@jrhur10]

Hi Russ! Great content. I have a question about using mulitview with a motion platform. How important is it to attach the monitors to the platform so it moves with you? It would seem it would work fine with the TV's static and the motion platform moving within it since when you pitch and roll the pic within the screens simulate the movement. If the screens were attached, would it be twice the degree of movement? Thanks in advance for you reply!

[@Buddy308]

I'm in awe, Professor. Your videos often tempt me to wax maudlin, so I'll leave it at that this time. Recently it was pointed out that one needs matte screens in such setups to prevent reflections of each monitor onto the other two. I find that screen surfaces are never included in the specs of monitors or TVs online, making shopping for them difficult. From all your experience in X-P and MFS, have you found "inter-monitor" reflections to be a problem? If so, have you discovered models or brands of monitors or TVs that minimize it?

[@rbarlow]

Actually you don’t notice it much while flying. Look at your cellphone which reflects and you look through the reflection. But if you try to film your screen it immediately become glaringly obvious. Look at rtings.com website as it does include reflection in the reviews. I suggest you buy three TVs from some place like Costco with a 90 day no questions return policy and good prices. Then open one and test it with the sim. If it is not acceptable just return all three. Or if some store will hold two while you try one out that works too. You definitely want matching TVs.

[@Buddy308]

@@rbarlow Good news. Thanks for that advice. You mentioned that it's time to replace your displays. Have you settled on the models that you'll buy when you do?

[@rbarlow]

@@Buddy308 not seriously yet. I have to wait until my wife is out of town for a few days so I can get them into the basement and installed before she returns😁. Seriously I am not quite ready yet but it is on the todo list.