Quad Mount Installation
Ok, so eBay is great for these sorts of things. Please do not spend more than $100 on a monitor mount. If you do, you are getting ripped off. Search around on the auctions, I used “quad lcd mount” and found some “Buy it Now” items. I think I paid about $90 for the quad mount. There are also many others out there, 6 LCD mounts, 8 LCD mounts, etc… There are also “Stands” that you can use, but these are generally more expensive. If you get a clamp mount, like I did, make sure your desk is sturdy enough to hold on to it. I found mine at a yardsale for $20 a couple of years back.
Lets get too it!
It’s pretty simple to do this. Simply place the pole on the back side of your desk, and clamp it in as tight as possible.
First, you are going to need to take off all the monitor stands. Also, while you do this, identify the mount screws on the back.
Here’s my Dell monitor, which was very easy.
Here’s the LG monitor:
Now, lets attach the first dual arm to these mount positions on the backs of the monitors. Just unscree and screw in. Once I got to the second monitor, I started to work on the floor again.
Ok, now the monitors are ready to be attached to the pole. I suggest keeping these folded like above, so you can still hold the monitors up, while they are tightened. I actuall had to use my own Hex wrench, although they provide one. Otherwise, I’d keep hitting the wall.
As for the top set of arms, I actually installed this first, then mounted the monitor while it was already up. You can rotate these mounts any which way you need too and tighten them at any of the elbows.
The two Acer monitors I had were real easy to mount, easily accessible screws and everything was ready to go. Here is a picture of the Acer’s on top.
So, now I come across another problem.
Problem #3: I have all this open space underneath my Acer monitors… so I consider this …
BUT, I realize that my Mount’s now can swivel and rotate! So, this is not what I do! Instead, I simply rotate my Acer monitors upside down. lol, I did consider using the saw though.
Alright, so now we have 4 monitors hooked up and 2 more to go!
Pivot & Swivel Stands
Ok, now to go out and purchase brand new Stands that Pivot, Swivel, and can be Height adjusted, you will find yourself paying $100+ for universal stands unless you can find your manufacturer stands which probably go for $100+ also. Again, I like to save money where possible so, I head to eBay. The first thing I see are “Universal” stands which are being sold falsely advertised!
You have to be very careful to be sure that the mounts for the monitors are not OEM and have screws that fit your monitor. For 19 inch and lower screens, you want to have mount screws exactly 75mm apart. For 20 inch and higher screens, you typically want exactly 100mm. The mount above should be exactly precise, so I didn’t mention it. But when it comes to stands, companies like to make this hard on the consumer, so that we have to purchase their stands. Well, I won’t have any of that!
So, I went out on eBay again and purchased the cheapest thing I could find. What you need to remember is to find items that can pivot, swivel, and height can be adjusted. I found two Dell OEM stands with all these features for $5 each and shipping. Now, I did not make sure the screw mounts would work, I knew that they wouldn’t and I am trying to save some money. But, you do want to be sure that the plate size is large enough to fit your mounting. In my case the Dell plate could be retrofitted for either of the two types of mountings.
So, I got the stands in, they are really nice! I mean, very nice! So, I look at the mounting and sure enough, it is not precise, as expected. So, I grab my battery operated drill and a 5/32 inch steel drill-bit… (can you tell I’m a hands-on-guy?)
So, first take off the back cover, just remove the 4 screws on the outside, and the 4 on the inside pivot.
Screw in the 4 inside screws so the place is fastened back on. Now, if you are using a Dell OEM stand, you’ll need a couple of mm additional. Also, the original screw holes are not large enough, so you have to re-drill through these to get the screws to fit inside. Remember: You can always just buy the Universal stands for $100+ a pop!
That’s all I did, the stand plate modification allows me to use the upper two holes as the monitor mounts, so I hung the monitor in a portrait format and adjusted the height specifically to fit the existing mounted monitors.
Alright, All good to go!
Next Step – Step 5. Setup Screen Positions
Step 1. Upgrading Your Power Supply
Step 2. Installing Your Graphics Adapter
Step 3. USB to DVI/VGA Adapters
Step 4. Mounting Your Monitors
Step 5. Setup Screen Positions