ATI Technologies X1900 - Radeon XTX 512 MB PCIE Video Card User Manual
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ATI Technologies X1900 - Radeon XTX 512 MB PCIE Video Card User Manual

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Radeon® X1900
Series
User's Guide
P/N 137-40973-10

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Summary of Contents for ATI Technologies X1900 - Radeon XTX 512 MB PCIE Video Card

  • Page 1 Radeon® X1900 Series User’s Guide P/N 137-40973-10...
  • Page 2 ATI hardware, software, or other products and documentation provided herein. ATI Technologies Inc. reserves the right to make changes without further notice to a product or system described herein to improve reliability, function or design. With respect to ATI products which this...
  • Page 3 IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS • Read Instructions - All the safety and operating instructions should be read before the product is operated. • Retain Instructions - The safety and operating instructions should be retained for future reference. • Heed Warnings - All warnings on the product and the operating instructions should be adhered to.

  • Page 5: Table Of Contents

    Table of Contents Introduction ....... 1 Radeon® X1900 Series Features Graphic Features System Requirements External Connectors...
  • Page 6 Other Quick Launch Access Points Catalyst™ Control Center Dashboard Create a Custom View Hotkeys Manager Profiles Manager Preferences Help Information Center Displays Manager Displays Manager Advanced View Display Options Monitor Properties Monitor Attributes Digital Panel Properties Attributes Avivo™ Color HDTV Support Standard Settings Anti-aliasing Set the Anti-Aliasing preference manually...
  • Page 7 Viewing Text on a TV Using a TV as the Only Display Using Games and Applications Connecting to HDTV Using Your ATI HDTV Video Cable CrossFire™ FAQ ......101 Using the Radeon®...
  • Page 8 viii...

  • Page 9: Introduction

    Radeon® X1900 Series Features 1 CHAPTER 1: Introduction Congratulations on the purchase of your ATI Radeon® X1900 Series graphics card. We hope that you will enjoy countless hours of trouble-free computing. Radeon® X1900 Series Features Graphic Features • Native PCI Express® X16 bus support. •...
  • Page 10 2 Radeon® X1900 Series Features • Z Cache optimized for real-time shadow rendering. VideoShader™ • Seamlessly integrates pixel shaders with video in real time. • All format DTV/HDTV decoding. • Adaptive Per-Pixel- De-interlacing and Frame Rate Conversion. 512-bit Ring Bus Memory Controller •...
  • Page 11 Radeon® X1900 Series Features 3 High Dynamic Range (HDR) Rendering • 64-bit floating point HDR supported throughout the pipeline • Includes support for blending and multi-sample anti-aliasing. • High precision 10:10:10:2 integer format support. • Includes support for blending and multi-sample anti-aliasing. •...

  • Page 12: System Requirements

    4 Radeon® X1900 Series Features System Requirements Hardware • Intel® Pentium® 4 or AMD Athlon®. • 512MB of system memory; 1GB or more for best performance. • Optical drive for installation software (CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive). • Specialized PCI Express® 450 watt or greater power supply recommended.

  • Page 13: Before You Begin

    Before You Begin 5 Before You Begin Before you begin installing your new graphics card, please do the following. Record Your Serial and Part Numbers The serial number and 102 part number printed on the graphics card are required for registration. They are located on a sticker on the back of the card.
  • Page 14 6 Before You Begin Restart your system after the drivers have been removed.

  • Page 15: Installing Hardware

    Graphics Card Bus Types 7 CHAPTER 2: Installing Hardware This chapter will guide you through the physical installation of your new Radeon® graphics card. Graphics Card Bus Types There are three possible card bus types. See the illustration below to determine if you have an AGP, PCI, or PCI Express®...
  • Page 16 8 Basic Graphics Card Installation Radeon® graphics cards that require a connection to the computer’s power supply will have a power cable connected to them. Installing the Radeon® graphics card Turn off the computer, monitor, and other peripheral devices. Unplug the computer’s power cord and disconnect all cables from the back of your computer.

  • Page 17: Advanced Installation: Agp

    Advanced Installation: AGP 9 Advanced Installation: AGP There are two types of installation. If your graphics card does not require a separate connection to the computer’s power supply, follow the Basic Install instructions. If your graphics card require a separate connection to the computer’s power supply, follow the Advanced Install instructions for either AGP or PCIe™, as appropriate.
  • Page 18 10 Advanced Installation: AGP Power Cable Connector 4-Pin Power Connection Power Extension Cable: Power Connector to Graphics Card Power Extension Cable: Power Connector to Hard Drive Power Extension Cable: Power Connector to Power Supply Hard Drive Power Connector to Hard Drive Installing the Radeon®...

  • Page 19: Advanced Installation: Pcie

    Advanced Installation: PCIe™ 11 Align your ATI graphics card with the slot and press it in firmly until the card is fully seated. Remove the power cable from the hard drive power connector. Connect the power extension cable to the 4-pin power connection on the graphics card.
  • Page 20 12 Advanced Installation: PCIe™ Graphics Card Installation Radeon® Graphics Card Power Supply 6-pin Power Cable Connector 6-pin Power Connection Power connector to Graphics Card Power connector to Power Supply Installing the Radeon® graphics card Turn off the computer, monitor, and other peripheral devices. Unplug the computer’s power cord and disconnect all cables from the back of your computer.

  • Page 21: Connecting Devices

    Connecting Devices 13 Remove the computer cover. If necessary, consult your computer’s manual for help in removing the cover. WARNING - Remember to discharge your body’s static electricity by touching the power supply or the metal surface of the computer chassis.
  • Page 22 14 Connecting Devices Connector Types Supports an analog CRT monitor. DVI-I Supports a digital monitor. VGA-DVI-I Adapter Supports an analog monitor on a DVI-I connection. S-Video In/Out Supports a TV, VCR, or Camcorder. CATV Supports a TV antenna or cable service. Composite Supports a TV, VCR, or Camcorder.

  • Page 23: Using Multiple Displays

    CHAPTER 3: Using Multiple Displays Connecting Your Monitors Your Radeon® X1900 Series graphics card provides hardware support for two DVI-I monitors a DVI-I monitor and a VGA monitor using the supplied DVI-I-to-VGA adapter. It also provides TV output via an S-Video Out connector.
  • Page 24 Note: If you use multiple monitors, the card Radeon® X1900 Series must be the primary graphics card. Normally, the system BIOS determines which graphics card will be the primary. To connect your monitors Power off your computer and monitors. Plug the monitor cables into their appropriate connectors. Power on your monitors first, and then restart your computer so that Windows®...

  • Page 25: Display Configurations

    Display Configurations 17 Display Configurations Your Radeon® X1900 Series graphics card provides dual display functionality. The following table lists the different ways you can connect displays to your card. Display Connector(s) Comments Configuration Used Single DFP DVI-I connector DFP - digital flat panel display. display DFP Display* + DVI-I connectors...
  • Page 26 18 Display Configurations...

  • Page 27: Installing Software And Drivers

    Installing Drivers and Software in Windows® 19 CHAPTER 4: Installing Software and Drivers This chapter will guide you through the installation of the drivers and software associated with your Radeon® X1900 Series graphics card. Installing Drivers and Software in Windows® You will need to install the Radeon®...

  • Page 28: Monitor Configuration

    20 Monitor Configuration Run the ATISETUP utility. The ATISETUP utility will start automatically when you insert the ATI Installation CD-ROM into your optical drive after the operating system has started. If your CD- ROM auto-run is not enabled or the ATISETUP utility does not start automatically: a) Click the Start button in the task bar.

  • Page 29: Reinstalling Drivers

    Reinstalling Drivers 21 To configure your primary display Navigate to the Control Panel and choose Display, or right-click on the desktop and choose Properties. Choose the Settings tab and select the screen resolution and color depth that best suit your requirements and your monitor’s performance.

  • Page 30: Installing The Catalyst™ Software Suite

    22 Installing the Catalyst™ Software Suite If your CD-ROM auto-run is not enabled and the ATISETUP utility does not start automatically, follow these steps. In the Windows® task bar, click Start. From the Start menu, select Run. Browse to ATISETUP.EXE on the root directory of the ATI Installation CD-ROM.
  • Page 31 Installing the Catalyst™ Software Suite 23 Not all software components are installed using the Express installation. Custom installation allows you to select individual software components for installation.
  • Page 32 24 Installing the Catalyst™ Software Suite...

  • Page 33: Catalyst™ Control Center

    Launching Catalyst™ Control Center 25 CHAPTER 5: Catalyst™ Control Center The Catalyst™ Control Center is a graphical user application providing access to the display features contained within the installed ATI hardware and software. Use the Catalyst™ Control Center to fine-tune your graphics settings, enable or disable connected display devices, and change the orientation of your desktop.

  • Page 34: Other Quick Launch Access Points

    26 Launching Catalyst™ Control Center Other Quick Launch Access Points Launching Catalyst™ Control Center Using the System Tray Right-click the ATI icon in the Windows® System Tray. Select Catalyst™ Control Center from the popup menu. Launching Catalyst™ Control Center Using the Desktop Shortcut When you first installed Catalyst™...
  • Page 35 Launching Catalyst™ Control Center 27 Catalyst™ Control Center Dialog...

  • Page 36: Catalyst™ Control Center Dashboard

    28 Catalyst™ Control Center Dashboard Catalyst™ Control Center: Advanced View Catalyst™ Control Center Dashboard The Catalyst™ Control Center Dashboard is a graphical representation of the display features of the installed ATI hardware and software. Use the Dashboard to fine-tune your graphic settings, enable or disable connected display devices, and change the orientation of your desktop.

  • Page 37: Create A Custom View

    Create a Custom View 29 • Profiles • Preferences • Help Switch Views When in Advanced view, click View button and select either Basic, or Custom View. When in Basic view, select Advanced in the Basic View Welcome page or click the Advanced button in any other page.
  • Page 38 30 Hotkeys Manager Enable Hotkeys feature Open Hotkeys Manager. Select the Enable Hotkeys feature check box. Edit an existing hot key Open Hotkeys Manager. Select an option from the List Hotkeys for drop-down menu. • Optionally, select an aspect from the According to list. Click a hot key to edit.

  • Page 39: Profiles Manager

    Profiles Manager 31 • Click Hotkeys Actions button to sort by action. • Click Hotkeys button to sort by key combination. Clicking the respective button toggles ascending/descending sort order. Apply a hot key • Press and hold down the modifier(s) keys, then press the assigned keyboard key.
  • Page 40 32 Profiles Manager Select the composition, activation, and applications options that you wish to apply to the profile. Click Save. Set the composition of the profile Open the Profiles Manager. Click the Composition tab. Select the options to be included in the profile. •...

  • Page 41: Preferences

    Preferences 33 Enter a name for the profile in the Enter or select a profile name box. Select options for the profile. Click Save. Click the Activate & Close button to apply the saved profile and close the Profiles Manager. •...
  • Page 42 34 Preferences Keep Catalyst™ Control Center Always on Top of all open applications on the desktop Click Preferences button in theAdvanced View of the Dashboard. Click Always on Top. Note: When a check mark appears next to Always on Top the Catalyst™...

  • Page 43: Help

    Help 35 Note: When a check mark appears next to Enable System Tray Menu the Catalyst™ Control Center icon appears in the Windows® System Tray. Change Catalyst™ Control Center language Click Preferences in the Advanced View of the Dashboard. Click Select a Language in the drop-down menu. Choose a language from the list.

  • Page 44: Information Center

    36 Information Center Display help for the aspect or feature you are using Click the Help button in the Advanced View of the Dashboard. Select Help for this Page. • Optionally, click anywhere in the aspect or feature you are using and press the F1 key.
  • Page 45 Information Center 37 • Graphics Software includes information such as installed 2D and 3D driver versions, OpenGL® version, and Catalyst™ Control Center version. • Graphics Hardware includes information about each installed graphics card, such as the installed graphics chipset, device ID, bus type, memory size, and BIOS version.

  • Page 46: Displays Manager

    38 Displays Manager Displays Manager The Displays Manager aspect is the central location for configuring your display devices and arranging your desktop. Use the Displays Manager aspect to quickly change your display setup, arrange your desktop in a multi-monitor environment, and enable TV Out. Those new to the Catalyst™...

  • Page 47: Displays Manager Advanced View

    Displays Manager Advanced View 39 Displays Manager Advanced View Use Display Manager Advanced View to set your desktop resolution, the display refresh rate, and arrange your displays. To change your display configuration requires dragging and/or clicking or right-clicking a display icon Access Displays Manager •...
  • Page 48 40 Displays Manager Advanced View Click Yes to the Enable this display? dialog. Enable Clone Mode If the secondary device is disabled: From the Tree View pane, click Displays Manager. Click and drag the display device icon in Attached displays currently disabled to the empty box to the right of the Main box.
  • Page 49 Displays Manager Advanced View 41 From the Tree View pane, click Displays Manager. Click and drag the display device icon from Additional Displays to the empty box to the right of the Main box. Click Stretch horizontally onto [display device]. If the secondary display is enabled: Right click the display device icon in Desktop 2 when in Extended mode, or Lower in Stretch Vertical mode, or Clone in Clone Mode.
  • Page 50 42 Displays Manager Advanced View Change Color quality From the Tree View pane, click Displays Manager. Select the desired color setting from the Color Quality drop-down menu. Change display refresh rate From the Tree View pane, click Displays Manager. Choose a refresh rate from the Refresh Rate drop-down menu. Note: See your monitor manual for supported refresh rates.

  • Page 51: Display Options

    Display Options 43 Apply your settings Click Apply to save your changes and leave the Catalyst™ Control Center open. Click OK to save your changes and exit the Catalyst™ Control Center. Discard your settings • Click Discard to ignore any unsaved changes and restore the settings that existed when the Catalyst™...
  • Page 52 44 Display Options Catalyst™ Control Center: Display Options Select a refresh rate override Some applications may have a default refresh rate lower than the optimal setting for your monitor. 3D Refresh Rate Override enables you to set the refresh rate for full-screen applications or games utilizing Microsoft® DirectX®...
  • Page 53 Display Options 45 Determine how display devices are detected Use this feature to determine how the Catalyst™ Control Center detects display devices connected to your computer. You can set the Catalyst™ Control Center to automatically detect all connected display devices when it is opened or you can manually detect connected devices when they are required.

  • Page 54: Monitor Properties

    46 Monitor Properties Apply your settings Click Apply to save your changes and leave the Catalyst™ Control Center open. Click OK to save your changes and exit the Catalyst™ Control Center. Discard your settings • Click Discard to ignore any unsaved changes and restore the settings that existed when the Catalyst™...

  • Page 55: Monitor Attributes

    Monitor Attributes 47 Catalyst™ Control Center: Monitor Properties (Sample) Monitor Attributes Monitor Attributes provides information about the attached monitor. You can also enable Extended Display Identification Data. Extended Display Identification Data (EDID) uses the information provided by the attached monitor to determine the limits for the resolution and refresh rate.

  • Page 56: Digital Panel Properties

    48 Digital Panel Properties Apply your settings Click Apply to save your changes and leave the Catalyst™ Control Center open. Click OK to save your changes and exit the Catalyst™ Control Center. Restore default settings Move the mouse to the bottom right-hand corner of the window. Click Defaults.

  • Page 57: Attributes

    Attributes 49 Catalyst™ Control Center: Digital Panel Properties (Sample) Attributes Digital Panel Attributes provides information about the connected digital display. Use DVI Settings and Image Scaling to configure your digital display. Set Image Scaling From the Tree View pane, expand Digital Panel Properties. Click Attributes.
  • Page 58 50 Attributes Note: Use centered timings optimizes the display timing standards used on a high-end digital panel. Enable this feature to stop display flicker. Adjust the DVI Settings From the Tree View pane, expand Digital Panel Properties. Click Attributes. Under DVI Settings, click to enable the desired setting. Note: Reducing DVI frequency on high-resolution displays can resolve either display corruption or the complete absence of any image when a display is set to a high resolution.

  • Page 59: Avivo™ Color

    Avivo™ Color 51 Avivo™ Color Use Avivo™ Color with ATI graphics cards that supports per-display color settings. Independently set the hue, saturation, and color temperature for each attached and enabled display. Set Hue Refers to a specific color within the visible spectrum of light, defined by its dominant wavelength.

  • Page 60: Hdtv Support

    52 HDTV Support Note: Clicking Defaults will restore the defaults for the current view only. Previous settings are not altered and will be saved once you click OK. Discard your settings • Click Discard to ignore any unsaved changes and restore the settings that existed when the Catalyst™...
  • Page 61 HDTV Support 53 Add 1080i mode to the Displays Manager Force button If the Predefined and Custom HDTV Formats list box is empty you can add a format. From the Tree View pane, expand Digital Panel Properties. Click HDTV Support. Click Add 1080i standard format to the Displays Manager.
  • Page 62 54 HDTV Support • A group of four arrow buttons and a large rectangle is overlaid on the screen. Use these arrows to increase or decrease the width and height of the rectangle until the blue background is just visible. •...
  • Page 63 3D 55 Restore default settings Move the mouse to the bottom right-hand corner of the window. Click Defaults. Note: Clicking Defaults will restore the defaults for the current view only. Previous settings are not altered and will be saved once you click OK.

  • Page 64: Standard Settings

    56 Standard Settings Catalyst™ Control Center: Standard Settings Standard Settings The Standard settings page provides access to a universal slider control where you can simultaneously adjust all of the standard 3D settings for any type of 3D application. The slider enables you to adjust for overall system performance, overall 3D image quality, or a balance between the two.

  • Page 65: Anti-Aliasing

    Anti-aliasing 57 Select Use custom settings to place a check mark in the check box. Click and drag the Control slider to the left to select High or Optimal Performance, or to the right to select High or Optimal Quality. Preview your changes •...

  • Page 66: Set The Anti-Aliasing Preference Manually

    58 Set the Anti-Aliasing preference manually Anti-aliasing can be set to favor either an increase in system processing performance or improved image quality: • Setting for performance is best used when the 3D image is animated and smoothness of motion is the most important consideration.

  • Page 67: Adaptive Anti-Aliasing

    Adaptive Anti-aliasing 59 Adjust the Adaptive Anti-Aliasing control slider to the desired setting. Preview your changes • The preview image automatically displays your adjustments. Optionally, double-click 3D Preview for a full-screen view of the adjustments you have made. To exit full-screen Preview, press the Esc key. The Preview can be disabled by clicking the “X”...

  • Page 68: Anisotropic Filtering

    60 Anisotropic Filtering transparencies more realistic, providing exceptional levels of image quality while maintaining performance. Set the level of adaptive anti-aliasing From the Tree View pane, expand 3D. Click Adaptive Anti-Aliasing. Adjust the Adaptive Anti-Aliasing control slider to the desired setting.
  • Page 69 Anisotropic Filtering 61 Set the Anisotropic Filtering to automated preference From the Tree View pane, expand 3D. Click Anisotropic Filtering. Ensure the application override is enabled. To do so, make sure the Let the Application Decide check box is selected. Note: The slider control becomes unavailable.

  • Page 70: Catalyst™ A

    62 Catalyst™ A.I. Restore default settings Move the mouse to the bottom right-hand corner of the window. Click Defaults. Note: Clicking Defaults will restore the defaults for the current view only. Previous settings are not altered and will be saved once you click OK.

  • Page 71: Mipmap Detail Level

    Mipmap Detail Level 63 Optionally, double-click 3D Preview for a full-screen view of the adjustments you have made. To exit full-screen Preview, press the Esc key. The Preview can be disabled by clicking the “X” button in the Preview pane. It can also be paused by clicking the “||” button in the Preview pane. Clicking the pause button again causes the preview to resume.
  • Page 72 64 Mipmap Detail Level • Setting for quality is best used when high surface detail is required, especially if the animated object rotates or moves into the background. Set the Mipmap detail level From the Tree View pane, expand 3D. Click Mipmap Detail Level.

  • Page 73: All Settings

    All Settings 65 Preview your changes • The preview image automatically displays your adjustments. Optionally, double-click 3D Preview for a full-screen view of the adjustments you have made. To exit full-screen Preview, press the Esc key. The Preview can be disabled by clicking the “X” button in the Preview pane.

  • Page 74: Set The Anti-Aliasing Preference Manually

    66 Set the Anti-Aliasing preference manually • Catalyst™ A.I. • Mipmap detail level • Wait for display refresh • SmartShader™ Effects • Adaptive Anti-Aliasing This page is useful when it is not necessary to preview the adjusted settings because the effect is already known or understood. Set the Anti-Aliasing preference manually From the Tree View pane, expand 3D.
  • Page 75 Set the Anti-Aliasing preference manually 67 Set the Anisotropic Filtering to automated preference From the Tree View pane, expand 3D. Click All Settings. Ensure the application override is enabled. To do so, make sure the Let the Application Decide check box is selected. Note: The slider control becomes unavailable.

  • Page 76: Api Specific

    68 API Specific Discard your settings • Click Discard to ignore any unsaved changes and restore the settings that existed when the Catalyst™ Control Center was opened or the last time Apply was used. Discard does not close the Catalyst™ Control Center. Clicking Discard applies to all features of an aspect, not just the feature in the current view.
  • Page 77 API Specific 69 Set Support DXT texture formats for Direct 3D® This option enables support for DirectX® compressed texture formats. DXT requires half the amount of memory to draw the same amount of textures. This frees up memory while achieving high quality graphics. From the Tree View pane, expand 3D.

  • Page 78: Color

    70 Color Select Force 24-bit Z-buffer depth to place a check mark in the check box. Apply your settings Click Apply to save your changes and leave the Catalyst™ Control Center open. Click OK to save your changes and exit the Catalyst™ Control Center.

  • Page 79: Color Desktop

    Color Desktop 71 Catalyst™ Control Center: Color Color Desktop Adjust the overall richness of color by using the Gamma control. To adjust the overall brightness use the Brightness control, and the overall contrast use the Contrast control. Display Color page to configure Desktop From the Tree View pane, click Color.
  • Page 80 72 Color Desktop Click and drag either the Gamma, Brightness, or Contrast to adjust all these settings simultaneously. Revert to last known All Channel settings From the Tree View pane, click Color. Select Desktop in Set color correction for. Select All Channels. Reactivate your color settings Your desktop may retain the color settings when exiting an application or game.
  • Page 81 Color Desktop 73 Note: The preview image automatically displays the adjustment you have made. Set Color Contrast From the Tree View pane, click Color. Click and drag the Control slider to your preferred setting: • To increase the Contrast, move the slider to the right. •...

  • Page 82: Color - Fullscreen 3D

    74 Color - FullScreen 3D Color - FullScreen 3D Adjusting the Gamma control alters the overall richness of color. Adjusting the Brightness control alters the overall brightness. Adjusting the Contrast control alters the overall contrast. • Adjusting the Gamma can be useful for CAD applications that rely heavily on color coding or applications that require realistic color.

  • Page 83: Avivo™ Video For Radeon® Series Starting From 9500

    Avivo™ Video for Radeon® Series starting from 9500 75 Apply your settings Click Apply to save your changes and leave the Catalyst™ Control Center open. Click OK to save your changes and exit the Catalyst™ Control Center. Restore default settings Move the mouse to the bottom right-hand corner of the window.

  • Page 84: Standard Settings

    76 Standard Settings Catalyst™ Control Center: Avivo Video Standard Settings To quickly adjust your video settings choose one of the video presets or use the Video Wizard to configure your display devices. Start the Video Wizard From the Tree View pane, expand Video. Click Standard Settings.

  • Page 85: Adjustments

    Standard Settings 77 Select a preset from the Video Presets menu. Apply your settings Click Apply to save your changes and leave the Catalyst™ Control Center open. Click OK to save your changes and exit the Catalyst™ Control Center. Restore default settings Move the mouse to the bottom right-hand corner of the window.
  • Page 86 78 Standard Settings Click and drag the Gamma control slider to the desired position. Set Contrast Contrast is the difference between the brightest and darkest parts of an image. From the Tree View pane, expand Video. Click Adjustments. Click and drag the Contrast control slider to the desired position. Set Brightness Brightness is the overall intensity, or luminosity of an image.

  • Page 87: Video Overlay Theater Mode

    Standard Settings 79 Restore default settings Move the mouse to the bottom right-hand corner of the window. Click Defaults. Note: Clicking Defaults will restore the defaults for the current view only. Previous settings are not altered and will be saved once you click OK.

  • Page 88: Deinterlacing

    80 Deinterlacing • Optionally, select in Theater Mode (full-screen) if you want the video content to be displayed on both displays. The Secondary display displays the same content as the primary. Set video aspect ratio From the Tree View pane, expand Video. Click Theater Mode.
  • Page 89 Deinterlacing 81 • Auto Detect lets the multimedia driver to select the best deinterlacing scheme for different video sources and sizes. • Bob deinterlacing, when selected, removes every other line of the video image and is recommended for motion video. •...
  • Page 90 82 Deinterlacing All Settings The All Settings page combines all of the principal Video features onto a single page, without any preview window, allowing quick access and adjustment. This page is useful when it is not necessary to preview the adjusted settings because the effect is already known or understood.
  • Page 91 Deinterlacing 83 Click All Settings. Scroll to Video Adjustments. Adjust the Contrast control slider to the desired position. Adjust Saturation Saturation is the measure of amount of color in an image. From the Tree View pane, expand Video. Click All Settings. Scroll to Video Adjustments.
  • Page 92 84 Deinterlacing Scroll to Overlay Display Mode. Under Extended desktop shows overlay: select in Standard Mode if you want the video content to be displayed on the primary display only. • Optionally, select in Theater Mode (full-screen) if you want the video content to be displayed on both displays.

  • Page 93: Vpu Recover

    VPU Recover 85 Restore default settings Move the mouse to the bottom right-hand corner of the window. Click Defaults. Note: Clicking Defaults will restore the defaults for the current view only. Previous settings are not altered and will be saved once you click OK.
  • Page 94 From the Tree View pane, click VPU Recover. Click Prepare an error report if VPU Recover is activated for submission to ATI Technologies. Click Send Error Report button in the error report email.

  • Page 95: Crossfire

    CrossFire™ 87 An email is created containing the error report for submission to ATI Technologies. Note: No personal information is included in the error report. Apply your settings Click Apply to save your changes and leave the Catalyst™ Control Center open. Click OK to save your changes and exit the Catalyst™...
  • Page 96 88 CrossFire™ • An interconnect cable, supplied with the CrossFire™ Series graphics card, connecting the two cards to a single monitor. When CrossFire™ is enabled, any one of the four following display modes are available: • SuperTiling - A graphical load-balancing scheme where CrossFire™...
  • Page 97 CrossFire™ 89 Catalyst™ Control Center: CrossFire™ Enable CrossFire™ From the Tree View pane, click CrossFire™ in Advanced View. Click Enable CrossFire™. When CrossFire™ is successfully enabled all display devices, except the one used by CrossFire™, will be disabled. Note: CrossFire™ Higher Quality anti-aliasing can be adjusted in the Catalyst™...
  • Page 98 90 CrossFire™ Adjust the Adaptive Anti-Aliasing control slider to the desired setting. Set Catalyst™ A.I. settings From the Tree View pane, expand 3D. Click Catalyst™ A.I. If necessary, clear the check mark from Disable Catalyst™ A.I. Click and drag to slider to the desired setting. Apply your settings Click Apply to save your changes and leave the Catalyst™...
  • Page 99 CrossFire™ 91 Connect the DVI-I connector of the interconnect cable to the DVI-I connection on the Slave card. Connect the remaining DVI-I connector of the interconnect cable to your monitor. Note: On graphics cards with two DVI-I connectors, only one DVI-I connector on the Slave card supports Transition Minimized Differential Signaling (TMDS) required by CrossFire™.
  • Page 100 92 CrossFire™ 3D client is active You will not be able to start CrossFire™ if a 3D application, game, or video playback, such as a DVD movie, is running. Close all open 3D applications, games, and movie player applications then enable CrossFire™.
  • Page 101 CrossFire™ 93 Select the composition, activation, and applications options that you wish to apply to the profile. Click Save.
  • Page 102 94 CrossFire™...

  • Page 103: Using Tv Display And Capture Features

    Using TV Out 95 CHAPTER 6: Using TV Display and Capture Features This chapter describes how to use the TV display and video capture features of your Radeon® X1900 Series card. Using TV Out Your Radeon® X1900 Series has TV Out capability. Viewing Your PC’s Display on a TV You can attach your Radeon®...

  • Page 104: Using A Monitor Vs. Using Tv Display

    96 Using TV Out Looking at the back of your PC, locate your S-Video Out. Using an S- Video cable, attach one end of the cable to your graphics card and the other to your TV. Refer to the illustration. Power on your TV first, then your computer.

  • Page 105: Viewing Text On A Tv

    Connecting to HDTV 97 Some single-frequency monitors may not work with TV display enabled. If you experience problems when TV display is enabled, disable TV display to restore your monitor’s display. Viewing Text on a TV A TV is designed primarily to show moving images. The large dot pitch of a TV will yield poor quality static images.
  • Page 106 98 Connecting to HDTV The HDTV Component Video Adapter can be used in place of the standard A/V Output cable to connect to an HDTV or other component input device, using component video cables. You must have a monitor attached to your computer before installing the ATI HDTV.

  • Page 107: Using Your Ati Hdtv Video Cable

    Connecting to HDTV 99 Turn on your computer. Note: Your TV will not display anything until Windows starts. This can take several minutes. Using Your ATI HDTV Video Cable Use the HDTV Video Cable to watch DVD movies and play video games on your High Definition Television.
  • Page 108 100 Connecting to HDTV...

  • Page 109: Crossfire™ Faq

    CHAPTER 7: CrossFire™ FAQ The following are frequently-asked questions about CrossFire™. For the latest information, please consult the CrossFire™ Web site at: ati.com/crossfire What combination of products are required to build a working CrossFire™ system? Three components are required: • a CrossFire™ Edition graphics card that works as the Master graphics card.
  • Page 110 Note: To determine which PCIe™ slot is the primary slot, consult your motherboard manual. Alternately, to determine whether or not a CrossFire™ Edition card is in the correct slot, connect your display directly to the DVI-I connection on the Master graphics card instead of using the CrossFire™...
  • Page 111 To access and enable CrossFire™ in Catalyst™ Control Center, do the following: • Click CrossFire™ in Advanced View. Then, select Enable CrossFire™. When CrossFire™ is successfully enabled, all display devices except the one used by CrossFire™ will be disabled. Multiple monitors/ displays that are disabled when CrossFire™...
  • Page 112 What happens if the CrossFire™ Edition graphics card and the CrossFire™ Ready graphics card have different clock speeds? Both cards will continue to operate at their individual clock speeds; neither card is “stepped down.” The compositing engine on the CrossFire™ Edition card merges the resulting images independent of the clock speed on either graphics card.

  • Page 113: Using The Radeon® X1900 Series With Crossfire

    CrossFire™ Overview 105 CHAPTER 8: Using the Radeon® X1900 Series with CrossFire™ The Radeon® X1900 Series can be used as a Slave graphics card in a CrossFire™ system. For the full system requirements necessary to put together a working CrossFire™ system, see the CrossFire™ FAQ. CrossFire™...

  • Page 114: Supertiling

    106 CrossFire™ Rendering Modes The first three are performance-oriented modes, and Super Anti-aliasing is a quality-oriented mode. Each mode uses a different method for dividing the workload required to render a 3D image across multiple GPUs. Only one mode can be in operation at any given time. The ATI Catalyst™...

  • Page 115: Scissor Mode

    CrossFire™ Rendering Modes 107 Partial Frame Rendered on PCI Express® Master Graphics Card Final Rendered Frame on Display SuperTiling has the advantage of being able to work with practically any 3D application. However, there are a small number of applications where the SuperTiling workload distribution does not provide optimal performance.

  • Page 116: Alternate Frame Rendering (Afr) Mode

    108 CrossFire™ Rendering Modes Although Scissor Mode is generally a less efficient means of splitting the workload than using SuperTiling, there are a few cases where it can be more efficient. It is supported by CrossFire™ in order to maximize compatibility and performance.

  • Page 117: Super Anti-Aliasing Mode

    CrossFire™ Rendering Modes 109 The main limitation of this mode is that it cannot be used in applications where the appearance of the current frame is dependent upon data generated in previous frames, since AFR generates successive frames simultaneously on different GPUs. In these cases, the SuperTiling or Scissor Mode is used instead.
  • Page 118 110 CrossFire™ Rendering Modes PCI Express® Slave Graphics Card Radeon® X1900 Series Master Graphics Card Partial Frame Rendered on PCI Express® Slave Graphics Card Partial Frame Rendered on PCI Express® Master Graphics Card Final Rendered Frame on Display Some types of textures, especially those with transparent portions, can exhibit aliasing that is not removed by MSAA techniques.
  • Page 119 CrossFire™ Rendering Modes 111 pattern that does a better job of anti-aliasing near-horizontal and near- vertical edges, resulting in better overall image quality. Two of the new Super Anti-aliasing modes use a combination of MSAA and SSAA to achieve the ultimate in image quality. They work by not only using different multi-sample locations on each GPU, but also by offsetting the pixel centers slightly.
  • Page 120 112 CrossFire™ Rendering Modes...

  • Page 121: Reference

    Troubleshooting 113 CHAPTER 9: Reference This chapter provides information on troubleshooting, where to get additional accessories, how to register your product, plus warranty and compliance information. Troubleshooting The following troubleshooting tips may help if you experience problems. ATI’s documentation contains helpful installation/configuration tips and other valuable feature information.
  • Page 122 114 Troubleshooting General Troubleshooting Problem Possible Solution No Display • Check that the card is seated properly in its expansion slot. • Ensure that the monitor cable is securely fastened to the card. • Make sure that the monitor and computer are plugged in and receiving power.
  • Page 123 Troubleshooting 115 CrossFire™-Specific Troubleshooting Problem Possible Solution CrossFire™ is In order for CrossFire™ to function the interconnect cable Not Functioning must be correctly connected to both the Master and Slave graphics cards. 1. Connect the DMS-59™ connector of the interconnect cable to the DMS-59™...
  • Page 124 116 Troubleshooting CrossFire™-Specific Troubleshooting Problem Possible Solution “CrossFire™ Is This error is occurred because CrossFire™ did not Currently correctly detect your graphics hardware or their is a Unavailable.” problem with the software. • Check the graphics card are installed correctly. •...

  • Page 125: Product Registration

    Product Registration 117 HDTV/HDTV Adapter Troubleshooting Problem Possible Solution The colors on my • Ensure that the connections between the Component TV display are Video Adapter and your HDTV are correct (Y=Green, incorrect Pb=Blue, Pr=Red). There is no • Your TV will not display anything until Windows starts; display on my TV this may take several minutes.
  • Page 126 If you require further assistance with your product, the following Customer Care options are available: Service Availability Language Access Online 24/7 English, ati.com French, Spanish, ATI TECHNOLOGIES INC. Portuguese, Attention: Customer Care German Mail 1 Commerce Valley Drive East Markham, Ontario Canada L3T 7X6 Telephone 9:00AM - English 1-877-284-1566 (toll-free) US &...

  • Page 127: Getting Additional Accessories

    Getting Additional Accessories 119 • ATI Customer Care is unable to assist with refunds, returns, or exchange specific inquiries. If resolving the problem being experienced is critical to your decision to keep the product, it is your responsibility to ensure that you know and are within the period of time your reseller will allow for refunds, returns or exchange.

  • Page 128: Industry Canada Compliance Statement

    Cet appareil numérique de la Classe B est conforme à la norme NMB-003 du Canada. For further compliance information: ATI Research Inc. 4 Mount Royal Ave. Marlborough, MA 01752-1976 508-303-3900 Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive Compliance This product was manufactured by ATI Technologies Inc.

  • Page 129: Glossary

    CHAPTER 10: Glossary Acronym for “two dimensional,” a term applied to computer graphics that are “flat.” Typical desktop applications such as word processors, spreadsheet programs, or other programs that manipulate print or simple graphics (such as pictures or line art) are generally considered to be operating within a 2D environment, even when they include simple three dimensional elements, such as buttons.
  • Page 130 surfaces, allowing game programmers to include more texture and lighting details without affecting performance. Adaptive Anti-aliasing Adaptive anti-aliasing is a technique that applies a combination of multi- sampling (MSAA) and super-sampling (SSAA) on 3D objects to improve edge smoothness and fine detail. Multi-sampling works best on smoothing the edges of solid polygons, but cannot effectively smooth edges within polygons which are partially transparent.
  • Page 131 a scene, delivering a noticeable increase in 3D detail. This type of graphical operation is only available in Radeon® CrossFire™ graphics cards running Microsoft® Direct 3D® and OpenGL® games or applications. Anisotropic Filtering A technique that preserves the surface details of an object as it recedes into the distance by utilizing and blending together the object’s texture maps.
  • Page 132 optimize the use of a single display within its existing ambient lighting environment, or to better color match two or more adjacent monitors. Back Buffer A type of offscreen memory used to provide smooth video and 2D graphics acceleration. This technique uses two frame buffers, so the process is often referred to as “double-buffering.”...
  • Page 133 Brightness The amount of white or black that is applied to all colors onscreen. By making the screen “brighter” you are adding more white to it. This should not be confused with luminosity, which measures the actual light level emitted from the computer display. Buffer A name referring to portions of on-board video memory.
  • Page 134 Component Video Typically used on DVD players and HDTV systems, component video is a standard Red/Green/Blue (RGB) color signal for televisions. The signal is split and compressed into separate luminance and color values—luminance (“Y”), red minus luminance (R-Y), and blue minus luminance (B-Y). The value for green is not transmitted.
  • Page 135 beams activate separate red, green, and blue values in various strengths in order to produce a colored image. Dashboard The dashboard is the part of the Catalyst™ Control Center used to display a graphical representation of the features available in installed ATI hardware and software.
  • Page 136 Acronym for “Digital Video Interface,” a standard video connection used on many current computer displays. There are three types of DVI connections: DVI-A (analog), DVI-D (digital), and DVI-I (integrated, capable of either analog or digital). It supports high-bandwidth video signals over 160 Hz, so it is most often used for high-resolution displays. EDTV Acronym for “Enhanced Definition Television,”...
  • Page 137 Frames Per Second In terms of 3D graphics, refers to the rate at which the graphic processor can render new screens per second. Higher rates equals better, more naturalistic performance for such things as games set in a 3D environment. Sometimes abbreviated to “fps.”...
  • Page 138 HDTV Acronym for “High Definition Television,” a format that produces much greater picture quality than a standard television, and in a wide-screen format that matches that of a movie theater screen. The two most popular formats are 1080i and 720p, where the number represents how many horizontal scan lines they have, and the following letter represents whether the picture is interlaced, or the product of progressive scanning technology.
  • Page 139 Keyframe Interpolation This feature is also known as “morphing.” In an animation, a start and end point are picked as the key frames. In a 3D rendering, the start point could have a character with a neutral expression, and the end point could have that same character smiling.
  • Page 140 flicker-free. The acronym refers to the National Television Systems Committee, which devised this color video standard in 1953. Offscreen Memory An area of memory used to preload images so that they can be quickly drawn to the screen. Offscreen memory refers to all of the remaining video memory not taken up by the front buffer, which holds the contents of the display screen currently visible.
  • Page 141 card. PCI replaced the older ISA and VESA bus standards, and was itself superseded by the AGP standard for the main graphics card bus. PCI Express® (PCIe™) The successor standard to the PCI and AGP bus standards, with a significantly faster serial communications system, further opening up bandwidth for more communications between such peripherals as graphics cards and the computer’s CPU.
  • Page 142 the display may look three dimensional, but it is really just a 2D grid of pixels designed to appear that way. Resolution The resolution of any display is the number of pixels that can be depicted on screen as specified by the number of horizontal rows against the number of vertical columns.
  • Page 143 SDTV SDTV is an acronym for “Standard Definition Television” that identifies lower resolution systems when compared to High Definition Television (HDTV) systems. SDTV systems use the same 4:3 aspect ratio and 480 scan lines to produce a picture as regular analog television sets, but digital decoding enhanced of the signal, displaying a sharper and crisper picture.
  • Page 144 Super Anti-aliasing A feature that improves image quality by combining the results of full- screen anti-aliasing across two graphics cards in a CrossFire™ configuration. The two graphics cards work on different anti-aliasing patterns within each frame. The results of which are combined by the compositing engine on the CrossFire™...
  • Page 145 object takes on the same texture qualities. For example, if you take a 2D textured surface that looks like cloth and wrap it around a 3D sphere, the sphere will now appear to have a cloth-like surface. Texture Preference Texture Preference is a feature enabling the user to select the texture quality level for the surface of a 3D object.
  • Page 146 VersaVision™ An ATI technology enabling accelerated display rotation and scaling. Any desktop can now be rotated 90 degrees left or right, or even 180 degrees, while maintaining the full feature set of other ATI 2D and 3D technologies, such as SmoothVision™. VersaVision™ works with single or multiple displays.
  • Page 147 capability. It also supports component output support for EDTV displays at 480i (interlaced scanning), 480p (progressive scanning), and for HDTV displays at 720p, and 1080i. VideoShader™ HD A feature that integrates pixel-shading technology with video filtering and processing functions. It accelerates noise removal, de-blocking, adaptive de-interlacing, frame-rate conversion, color-space conversion, and more.
  • Page 149 Index Symbols “CrossFire Is Currently Unavailable” Numerics 102 part number 52, 53, 130, 139 1080i 1080i mode 1080p 123, 130 16:9 (aspect ratio) 3:2 pulldown 55, 56, 58, 70, 74, 103, 106, 107, 109, 115, 116, 121, 130, 3D client is active 57, 59, 61, 63, 64, 65 3D Preview 3D Settings...
  • Page 150 55, 60, 65, 111, 123 Anisotropic Filtering 123, 135 Anisotropic filtering Anisotropic Filtering preference 55, 57, 58, 59, 65, 105, 106, 109, 110, 111, 122, Anti-aliasing 123, 135, 136 Anti-Aliasing preference API-Specific appearance of the Catalyst Control Center 55, 68 Application Programmable Interface (API) Apply a Hotkey Aspect...
  • Page 151 Color Brightness Color component 73, 74 Color Contrast Color correction Color Depth 72, 74 Color Gamma Color quality Color Temperature color temperature Compliance Information compliance information Composite Engine 126, 136, 139 Composite Video 103, 104, 108, 136 Compositing Engine composition of the profile configuration multiple monitors primary monitor...
  • Page 152 Define Custom View Deinterlacing 80, 81, 84, 138 de-interlacing adaptive motion adaptive Delete a Profile Depth Buffer Desktop Area desktop size Detect a newly connected display device Detect Displays Determine how display devices are detected device ID Digital 17, 40, 41, 42, 52, 53, 114 Digital Flat Panel (DFP) Digital flat-panel (DFP) display Digital Panel properties...
  • Page 153 DVI-D 17, 102, 103, 114, 115, 128 DVI-I DXT texture formats Edit an existing Hotkey Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) Enable CrossFire ™ Enable High Quality AF Enable Hotkeys feature Enable VPU Recover 128, 139 Enhanced Definition Television (EDTV) error report Euroconnector Extended Desktop 47, 48, 52, 53 Extended Display Identification Data (EDID)
  • Page 154 Half Life 2 Hardware installing 97, 99 HDTV HDTV Adapter Troubleshooting HDTV Component Video Adapter HDTV Support 5, 21, 25, 29, 35, 118 Help Hide Splash Screen Hide Toolbar Text High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) High Definition Television 17, 40, 41, 46, 48, 52, 53, 54, High Definition Television (HDTV) 117, 129, 130, 135, 139 High-Bandwidth Digital Copy Protection (HDCP)
  • Page 155 44, 69, 127 Microsoft DirectX mipmap Mipmap Detail Level 64, 66, 67 Mipmap detail level 60, 63, 131 Mipmapping Monitor Attributes 4, 102, 105, 115, 122 motherboard motherboard BIOS settings MPEG-2 81, 133 multimedia 38, 130 multi-monitor 59, 109, 110, 111, 122 Multi-Sample Anti-Aliasing (MSAA) 121, 128, 131, 133 NTSC...
  • Page 156 Reactivate your color settings 114, 126, 130, 134, 137, 139 Red Green Blue (RGB) 20, 21, 39, 42, 44, 47, 69, 114, 133 Refresh Rate Refresh Rate Override refresh rate override registration Remote Wonder Remove an HDTV Format Rendering 85, 104, 105 rendering modes 4, 21, 39, 45, 47, 50, 97, 110, 114, 134 Resolution...
  • Page 157 slot zero SmartShader ™ Effects 111, 135 SmoothVision HD Software installing Sort Hotkeys Specular highlight Splash Screen Splinter Cell 128, 135 Standard Definition Television (SDTV) 79, 83, 84 Standard Mode Standard Settings Standard settings Stretch Main Horizontally Stretch Main Vertically 105, 106, 109, 110, 111, 136 Super Anti-aliasing Super Anti-aliasing Mode...
  • Page 158 113, 117 Troubleshooting CrossFire-specific HDTV adapter troubleshooting 38, 40, 41, 42, 43, 45, 96, 97, 117 95, 97 TV display games TV Out Unreal Tournament 2003 Unreal Tournament 2004 UXGA 126, 129, 136 121, 137 Vector Adaptive Deinterlacing VersaVision vertex processing Vertex shader Vertex shader units vertical refresh rate...
  • Page 159 Windows Control Panel Windows Media Settings Windows Media Video Acceleration. Windows System Information 34, 35 Windows System Tray 4, 19, 113 Windows XP Windows XP Professional x64 Edition 36, 75, 76 Wizard Y/C video YCbCr 17, 117, 126, 139 YPbPr YPbPr connector 69, 130, 139 Z-buffer...

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