Gran Turismo 5 : Official Multiscreen Review & Setup Guide : 100+ Images

[goldie_loc]

I hope to get to that point! If it weren't for the fact that GT is the game that got me into gaming on the PSOne, I would have been very discouraged by the issues with the initial setup. Hopefully I can isolate the problem with these borrowed units and then get it working reliably. The few laps I got in reminded me why I love this series so much.

 

[avens]

So, I've been watching this thread for a bit and when they announced GT6 would be on PS3 I decided I'd rebuild my playseat cabinet for 3-screen.
Just got it finished this weekend, haven't had much chance to play with it, but, oh, that lag!

I'm running a 40GB fat, a slim, and a super slim. It kinda seems like the slim is causing my issues, so I'm borrowing a fat & superslim this weekend to test.
From the few lag-free laps I've gotten in, though, it's glorious!

Here are my specs:
3x LG 23EA63V 23" IPS LED panels
120°, 85%

Playseat evolution with G27

Custom cabinet, now on v 3.0:
Sony 5.1 surround via optical
Buttkicker gr-2 installed in a cutout of the seat foam
Cisco gigabit switch
5x coolerguys thermostatically controlled fans in cabinet
Carpeted, blah, blah, blah. I'll post pics eventually, but the lag is killing my enjoyment thus far.

I've tried fat & slim as server, signed into PSN on one, none, and all. Cleared cache, reset connections in XMB, sometimes with success, sometimes not.
The wife is out of town this weekend so I intend to troubleshoot until I either solve it or give up and go PC sim.

I will say for the guy that mentioned above it only rendering interior view on the main display, I noticed that as well, and then a minute or two into the race it'll pop up the interior on side screens as well. YMMV.

(also, writing this on my phone...apologies to the English language)

Is there a buttkicker that works with the PS3? If so, I have missed so much.

Can you post pictures of how you fitted it?

 

[goldie_loc]

I'll post pics tonight, but it goes like this:
Got a gr-2 (the "gamer" one designed to mount to a seatpost). Initially had it mounted to a point on the playseat frame, but it was loud downstairs and not very effective for the player.
So, I took off the mounting bracket and cut a plug out of the seat foam (about the size of 5 small stacked tuna cans), and put the shaker in that cutout.

If you meant WRT signal, I've got the sub out line from my surround receiver going to the gr-2's amp.

 

[goldie_loc]

I'm thrilled to report it seems to be working well now (knock on wood). I set each of the PS3s to a static IP, and have not any lag or in-race hangups.

Here are some pics of the rig.

Started in 2009 with just the seat/G27:

Untitled by adringgold, on Flickr

Built a cabinet for the components a year later, and bought a playseat monitor stand:

Untitled by adringgold, on Flickr

Fast Forward, I rebuilt the cabinet to accommodate 2 more PS3s, 3 more fans, networking components, and a buttkicker:

WP_20130525_005 (1) by adringgold, on Flickr


Untitled by adringgold, on Flickr

I still need to put the trim back on and make some minor adjustments to the displays, but here she sits:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/68523333@N06/9081789374/in/set-72157634201636367/

In this shot, I have the monitors butted up against each other:

WP_20130614_004 by adringgold, on Flickr

But by tucking the outside monitors back slightly behind the center screen, I was able to halve the border frame (black bar between the two) to 2%

Untitled by adringgold, on Flickr

With tonight's flawless multi-screen, the fears I had about unplayable lag are gone, and I can't wait for the upcoming weekend to go marathon on it like I used to on GT1/2, before responsibilities dictated I be an adult.

I will say the Eiger Short Track showed some flaws in my alignment, and also made me slightly nauseous. I could use about a 3" raise of all the displays to really get the alignment right, but the center is fixed because of the stand, so it'll require more custom work.

Anyhow, thanks to all that have contributed to this thread. I only registered yesterday, but I've had this post up in a tab on my phone for at least 2 months now, and it's about the only reason I undertook the project.

 

[Haiej]

Mr Latte, thanks for this guide/thread.

In antecipation for Gran Turismo 6 (PS3) upcoming release in December 2013, I am currently testing my new gaming room, with Triple 93" screens, Triple Full HD 1080p projectors.
- on the left screen, using my old 2007 Epson HC 1080UB 2D Full HD 1080p projector
- on the center screen, using my 2011 Panasonic AE7000 3D/2D Full HD 1080p projector
- on the right screen, using a refurbished Epson HC 6100 2D Full HD 1080p I recently bought

Apparently, PS4 games will run at Full HD 1080p, so these projectors will also be compatible with a PS4 setup.

Here are some sketches from the planning phase

The triple screens are in a half-hexagon shape, Angle of Screen Curvature of 120 degrees, with a Screen Angle value of 69%, just like in the official Support page.
So if the viewer sits in the center of the hexagon, and everything is aligned, it is close to 180° surround display.

Here are some rough videos of PS3 Gran Turismo 5 (footage captured with a shaky Galaxy S3 phone)




Unfortunately, no budget to have/mantain/upgrade 3 identical projectors.
Next year, just for Ultra HD (4K) videos/movies via PS4, by Dec-2014 Jan-2015, I will use one Ultra HD (4K) projector in the center screen, hopefully if their price drops to Under $3,000 USD MSRP by then.

 

[goldie_loc]

Wow, that is some serious dedication!
I just did a writeup that covers my rig and custom button box, but it's afraid of your game room!

http://it-burns.kinja.com/finished-my-3-monitor-racing-game-rig-1309804439

 

[glaver]

Is an internet connection neccessary for this multi-monitor set up? The reason I ask is I had it working at a previous house where the internet connection was super fast. After moving to a place where the internet sucks, the game stops and starts all the time to the point that it really isn't playable.
I understand about setting the IP address of the clients the same as the host, but all of that is within the game setup. What about the network connections for the PS3's themselves? Do I have to enable internet coonection or can it be disabled? If it has to be enabled, are the clients set as "wireless" or "wired" since they are connected via ethernet to the hub?
The only way I can get the side monitors to work is to set all PS3's to wireless connection, then within the game set-up, change the IP address of the clients to match that of the host. BUt this results in an unplayable game as the wireless connection here is so slow. I really hope there is a way to run the multi-moniotor set-up without and internet connection.

 

[BrandonW77]

Should work without Internet as long as you're running everything through the router/hub. I just moved and was running that way for a few days until the Internet got hooked up.

 

[glaver]

Should work without Internet as long as you're running everything through the router/hub. I just moved and was running that way for a few days until the Internet got hooked up.

So if I want to run it without internet, do I disable the internet connection on all three PS3's? If I do that then the server setup in the game doesn't show an IP address.

 

[goldie_loc]

You should be able to just set the PSN to not sign in. I don't ever sign in on the clients and have run the setup when the server wasn't on PSN due to connectivity issues.

 

[BrandonW77]

Yeah, just sign out of PSN. If you actually disable the internet I would think the Ethernet port wouldn't work, which means the client monitors won't get a signal. If you're not plugged into the Internet the game will constantly try to connect and I think that can cause problems. So go to your PSN menu and deselect the auto-login feature, should work fine. If not, I'm not sure what the problem could be.

 

[Laserbeak43]

Hi,
Sorry if this has already been asked, but I've decided to try this out, I've had 3 PS3s for this purpose forever, but never got around to buying the same size monitors.

I have 1 32" tv and 2 24" monitors. the monitors are running at the same resolution as the tv but i think gran turismo is still detecting their size because even though theyre smaller than the tv, the screen position still matches perfectly, displaying only as much as they can.

I'm trying to use cockpit view but it doesn't work. Only the Server(TV) displays the cockpit. All other view modes seem to work fine.

 

[Zero7159]

You should get cockpit view for all premium cars. For whatever reason, sometimes I have the same issue where the server, center screen is the only one showing the cockpit view. The issue is intermittent, however, and so I cannot tell what causes it.

 

[BrandonW77]

I'm trying to use cockpit view but it doesn't work. Only the Server(TV) displays the cockpit. All other view modes seem to work fine.

Sometimes it takes a few (or many) seconds for the client monitors to show the cockpit details. Just wait, eventually everything will pop up and you'll have the interior view on all three monitors. I've had it take 30-60 seconds for the side monitors to start showing all the detail. Usually this happens when you first go out on track, after they load the first time there won't be any delay when you go back on track again.

 

[Laserbeak43]

Thanks guys, can't wait to try it out!!
-update-
Just did a whole lap of Trial Mountain in cockpit view and no luck.

 

[BrandonW77]

That's bizarre, I've never had one fail to load completely. I'm not sure what to suggest. Try going onto the track and then exit the client machines back to the main GT5 menu (leave server machine on the track). Go to the settings and re-initiate multi-minitor mode, see if they load then. I've had this work when the clients failed to load altogether.

 

[Laserbeak43]

My mistake. It turns out to be the cars i were using. An FRS and some arcade mode cars. once i went to GTHome and started finishing up my licenses (i drive way better with the 3 monitor setup ) everythign was good. thanks for the help!

 

[GBO Possum]

Thank you Mr Latte! Fabulous job!!

I've been using a triple screen setup with Forzas 1 through 4 and now that Turn 10 has dropped multi screen with Forza 5, I've abandoned that franchise. I'll keep the Xbox 360s of course, and I should be able to fit three PS3 Slims in the cabinet alongside the 360s.

When GT6 is updated to support multi screen, I can see your guide being very useful!

Thanks again

 

[StLCards]

After almost a year of procrastination I finally got my triple screen up and going right before Christmas. I learned to weld so I could build a stand to hold the 3x 39" screens and the 3x PS3's, but I got tired of the wait to find time to work on it. So I went out and bought a cheap 8' folding table and setup everything on there.



I also was tired of my home built stand. It had served me well over the two years of use, but it was showing its ago, so I shelled out for the VRC1000. And got the Buttkicker for Christmas from my wife. Now racing is not the same, so much better.

I'm thinking up upgrading my Fanatec CSR Elite to the Clubsport base and GT wheel, but just have I have always hated the Forza logo on the wheel, I really don't want the BMW logo either. Anyone heard of options to swap out with something different? I think something more personalized would be better suited. Like maybe Jake from Corvette Racing.



I've always wanted a Corvette, but for now my ZR1 on the 'Ring fix will have to be with GT5:



Thanks for all the info guys, it was invaluable.

 

[GBO Possum]

After almost a year of procrastination I finally got my triple screen up and going right before Christmas. I learned to weld so I could build a stand to hold the 3x 39" screens and the 3x PS3's, but I got tired of the wait to find time to work on it. So I went out and bought a cheap 8' folding table and setup everything on there.

View attachment 105380 View attachment 105383 View attachment 105384

I also was tired of my home built stand. It had served me well over the two years of use, but it was showing its ago, so I shelled out for the VRC1000. And got the Buttkicker for Christmas from my wife. Now racing is not the same, so much better.

I'm thinking up upgrading my Fanatec CSR Elite to the Clubsport base and GT wheel, but just have I have always hated the Forza logo on the wheel, I really don't want the BMW logo either. Anyone heard of options to swap out with something different? I think something more personalized would be better suited. Like maybe Jake from Corvette Racing.

View attachment 105407 View attachment 105408

I've always wanted a Corvette, but for now my ZR1 on the 'Ring fix will have to be with GT5:



Thanks for all the info guys, it was invaluable.

Great video, thanks. Although I wish I could hear the cars (and no music! ).

Looks like GT6 will be triple-screen-capable soon, so my Forza setup will have a 5th life!

 

[StLCards]

Great video, thanks. Although I wish I could hear the cars (and no music! ).

Looks like GT6 will be triple-screen-capable soon, so my Forza setup will have a 5th life!

You are the 3rd person thats asked about audio, I'll get another video made soon and post. I made that one late at night when everyone was asleep.

 

[FatnSlo]

StLCards and goldie_loc, have you done any on-line racing with your triple screen setup? If so, did it work?

 

[BrandonW77]

I did online racing (pretty much exclusively) with triple-screens for nearly 2 years and it worked brilliantly. Made it much easier to go two-wide through a turn cleanly because you could actually see the car beside you. The sense of speed (online and offline) is phenomenal too.

 

[FatnSlo]

Yeah Brandon I PM'd you about your online experiences a few months ago and you told me it worked great for you, but others I PM'd said they had client disconnect problems so I am just wondering what these guy's experiences have been.

 

[BrandonW77]

Oh, ok. I remember that. Every once in a great while I'd have them disconnect but all I had to do was re-initiate client mode and they'd be fine after that. I never had problems so I can't really help with troubleshooting.

 

[GBO Possum]

Oh, ok. I remember that. Every once in a great while I'd have them disconnect but all I had to do was re-initiate client mode and they'd be fine after that. I never had problems so I can't really help with troubleshooting.

@BrandonW77, if you were racing online and a client screen dropped off, would you have to go out of the online session to reconnect the client? (I ask because that was a restriction with the Forza implementations)

 

[BrandonW77]

Nope. Technically the server machine is the only one "online" so if the client dropped connection I just had to navigate back to the options screen on the client and re-initiate client mode. The server machine wouldn't even notice and I wouldn't even have to exit the track, within 15-30 seconds all three monitors would be working again. After the initial setup of getting the field of view and angles dialed in, the whole thing was very very easy to use.

 

[Zero7159]

I have never had disconnect issues with my triple screen GT5 set up while doing online racing. I do occasionally have to change the IP address of the client PS3s to match up with the server. That happens because for some reason the server IP address changes on its own.

 

[GBO Possum]

@BrandonW77 - "very very easy to use", I like that! Thanks!!

 

[BrandonW77]

@BrandonW77 - "very very easy to use", I like that! Thanks!!

It is very easy. You turn on the PS3, start Gran Turismo and after the initial loading screen a little window pops up asking if you want to initiate multi-monitor mode. You click "yes".......and that's it! Once you get on track the screen loads up and you're enjoying virtual driving nirvana. 👍