ATI Technologies 9800XT - 100-505076 FireGL 256MB DDR SDRAM AGP 8x Graphics... User manual

RADEON
™
9800XT
User’s Guide
P/N 137-40594-10
Copyright © 2004, ATI Technologies Inc. All rights reserved.
ATI and all ATI product and product feature names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks
of ATI Technologies Inc. All other company and/or product names are trademarks and/or
registered trademarks of their respective owners. Features, performance and specifications are
subject to change without notice. Product may not be exactly as shown in the diagrams.
Reproduction of this manual, or parts thereof, in any form, without the express written
permission of ATI Technologies Inc. is strictly prohibited.

ii
Disclaimer
While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this
document, ATI Technologies Inc. assumes no liability with respect to
the operation or use of ATI hardware, software or other products and
documentation described herein, for any act or omission of ATI
concerning such products or this documentation, for any interruption
of service, loss or interruption of business, loss of anticipatory profits,
or for punitive, incidental or consequential damages in connection
with the furnishing, performance, or use of the 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
document relates, ATI disclaims all express or implied warranties
regarding such products, including but not limited to, the implied
warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and
non-infringement.
Product Notice
MACROVISION
A. Apparatus Claims of U.S. Patent Nos. 4,631,603, 4,577,216,
4,819,098, and 4,907,093 licensed for limited viewing users only.
B. In the printed collateral material that accompanies the Product, the
following notice must be printed in an appropriate place in such
materials:
This product incorporates copyright protection technology that is
protected by method claims of certain U.S. patents and other
intellectual property rights owned by Macrovision Corporation and
other rights owners. Use of this copyright protection technology must
be authorized by Macrovision Corporation, and is intended for home
and other limited viewing uses unless otherwise authorized by
Macrovision Corporation. Reverse engineering or disassembly is
prohibited.

iii
Table of Contents
Disclaimer..................................................................................................... ii
Product Notice........................................................................................ ii
Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Features At A Glance .................................................................................. 2
ATI’s CATALYST™ Software Suite ........................................................ 3
Multiple Displays and 3D Gaming Experience...................................... 3
Direct 3D and OpenGL .......................................................................... 3
HYDRAVISION™ ................................................................................ 4
Multiple Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Connecting Your Monitor(s) ...................................................................... 5
Display Configurations................................................................................ 6
CATALYST Software Suite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
ATI Displays Tab......................................................................................... 7
Enabling/Disabling Secondary Displays ................................................ 8
Enabling Extended Desktop Mode......................................................... 8
Dynamic Display Reassignment ............................................................ 8
Virtually Repositioning Your Displays .................................................. 9
Ratiometric Expansion ......................................................................... 10
ATI Color Tab ........................................................................................... 11
Color Hotkeys Settings......................................................................... 14
ATI Options Tab........................................................................................ 15
ATI Overlay Tab ....................................................................................... 17
Video Overlay ...................................................................................... 17
Clone Mode Settings ............................................................................ 19
3D® Control Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Direct 3D and OpenGL Settings............................................................... 20
SMARTSHADER EFFECTS ................................................................... 23
Direct 3D® Compatibility Settings .......................................................... 24
OpenGL® Compatibility Settings............................................................ 25
Using TV Out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
View your PC’s display on a TV .............................................................. 27
Connecting to a TV or a VCR .................................................................. 28
Starting Windows® with TV Display Enabled .................................... 29
To Enable/Disable The TV Display.......................................................... 30
Using and Adjusting TV Out................................................................ 30
How TV Display Cannot Be Used ....................................................... 30

iv
Using a Monitor vs. Using the TV Display.......................................... 31
Reducing Edge Distortion ......................................................................... 33
Changing Display Configurations............................................................ 34
Using Games and Applications................................................................. 34
NTSC/PAL Support for RADEON 9800XT ........................................... 35
VPU Recover .............................................................................................. 36
OVERDRIVE™. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
SMARTGART™ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Set AGP Settings .................................................................................. 38
Fast Write ............................................................................................. 38
Retest All.............................................................................................. 39

1
Introduction
The RADEON™ 9800XT graphics accelerator delivers
unsurpassed 3D graphics performance.
• Powered by the RADEON 9800XT Visual Processing
Unit (VPU).
• Third generation to support the latest Microsoft®
DirectX®9.0 and OpenGL features.
• Cinematic experience with a new level of quality and
consistency.
• Third generation 8-pixel pipeline architecture.
• Supports for AGP 8X specification.
• 256-bit DDR memory interface.
• Support Direct 3D®and OpenGL®applications.
• High resolution in 3D up to 2048x1536.
• Flat panel support.
• Supports TV-Out to connect your PC to your TV or
VCR.

2
Features At A Glance
The RADEON 9800XT includes:
• CINEMATIC RENDERING:
With its highly programmable cinematic shader
engines, the RADEON 9800XT visual processors are
designed to bring the most detailed worlds to life with
motion picture effects.
• UNSURPASSED 3D PERFORMANCE:
Eight parallel rendering pipelines, 256-bit memory
interface, blazing fast clock speeds, and AGP 8X
support come together to deliver incredible
performance at the highest resolutions and detail
settings for the most demanding next generation 3D
titles, scenes and environments.
• Virtual Perfection:
Experience unparalleled 3D visual realism. Combining
SMOOTHVISION™ 2.1 and SMARTSHADER™
2.1, the RADEON 9800XT enables smooth, sharp,
hyper-realistic interactive imagery.
• QUALITY VIDEO PLAYBACK:
Revolutionary VIDEOSHADER™ and
FULLSTREAM™ technologies provide the cleanest
video playback available on a PC.
• FLEXIBLE DISPLAY CONFIGURATIONS:
Enhance your work environment with multiple
displays, TV-output support, and high resolutions.

3
ATI’s CATALYST™ Software Suite
Multiple Displays and 3D Gaming Experience
ATI’s CATALYST Software Suite provides multiple
display functionality, and the advanced graphic features,
such as SMARTSHADER 2.1, for the ultimate 3D
gaming experience. For help installing the CATALYST
Software Suite, refer to the Getting Started Guide.
The CATALYST Software Suite installs the ATI display
tabs. These tabs are accessed through the Windows®
Display Control Panel, through the Advanced... button
located on the Settings tab. For a detailed explanation of
each ATI tab, refer to the sectionCATALYST Software
Suite on page 7.
Direct 3D and OpenGL
The CATALYST Software Suite also supports the latest
versions of Direct 3D and OpenGL. Many new 3D game
titles, and the latest versions of older titles, will virtually
come to life as they utilize their advanced Direct 3D or
OpenGL features. Gamers can fine-tune these settings
for the ultimate experience in 3D image quality or 3D
gaming performance.
ATI’s Direct 3D and OpenGL tabs are available through
the Windows®Display Control Panel, through the
Advanced... button located on the Settings tab.
For a detailed explanation of the Direct 3D and OpenGL
tabs, refer to 3D® Control Panel on page 20, and
OpenGL® Control Panel on page 29.

4
HYDRAVISION™
In addition to the multiple display functionality available
with ATI’s CATALYST Software Suite, you can also
use HYDRAVISION for advanced multi-monitor
management. For more information on
HYDRAVISION, please refer to the HYDRAVISION
User’s Guide PDF located on your ATI Installation CD.

5
Multiple Displays
Connecting Your Monitor(s)
Your RADEON 9800XT provides hardware support for
one DVI-I monitor or two VGA monitors using the
supplied DVI-I-to-VGA adapter. A TV can also be used
to expand your desktop by using the S-Video out.
Plug the monitor cable into your card (if you are
running multiple monitors, connect their cables to the
appropriate connectors), then turn on the PC and
monitor(s).
To connect a flat panel directly to your card, use the
DVI-I connector. To connect a VGA monitor to the DVI-
I connector, plug the supplied DVI-I-to-VGA adapter
into the DVI-I connector, then plug your monitor cable
into the adapter, as shown below.
When you use multiple monitors with your card, one
monitor will always be Primary. Any additional
monitor(s) will be designated as Secondary.
DVI-I-TO-VGA
ADAPTER
DVI-I
CONNECTOR
VGA
CONNECTOR
FROM
MONITOR
STANDARD VGA
MONITOR CONNECTOR
S-VIDEO OUT
VGA
CONNECTOR
FROM
MONITOR

6
Display Configurations
Your RADEON 9800XT graphics accelerator card
provides dual display functionality and TV Out. The
following table lists the different ways you can connect
displays to your card.
Display
Configuration Connector(s) Used Comments
One CRT
display
VGA connector OR DVI-
I connector with DVI-I-
to-VGA adapter
CRT- cathode ray tube
analog display
One DFP
display DVI-I connector DFP - digital flat panel display
One TV S-Video out
The S-Video out can also
support a composite
connection via the S-Video-
to-Composite adapter
CRT display +
TV
VGA connector +
S-Video out
Unsupported configuration if
the CRT display is attached
to the DVI-I connector via the
DVI-I-to-VGA adapter
DFP display +
TV
DVI-I connector +
S-Video out
CRT display +
DFP display
VGA connector + DVI-I
connector
CRT display +
CRT display
VGA connector + DVI-I
connector with DVI-I-to-
VGA adapter
The DVI-I connector can
support a CRT display using
the DVI-I-to-VGA adapter
CRT display +
DFP display +
TV
VGA connector + DVI-I
connector + S-Video out
The TV display will “clone”
the image of one of the other
two displays.
CRT display +
CRT display +
TV
UNSUPPORTED
CONFIGURATION

7
CATALYST Software
Suite
The following section provides an explanation of each
ATI tab added to the Display Properties after installing
the Catalyst Software Suite.
ATI Displays Tab
The ATI Displays tab provides multiple monitor
features. Here you can enable/disable display devices
and swap the assignment of Primary and Secondary
displays.
Features presented in the following pages may
not be supported in all operating systems
and/or may appear differently.
i

8
Enabling/Disabling Secondary Displays
1Access the Windows®Control Panel. Double-click
Display.
2Click the Settings tab and then the Advanced... button.
3Click the ATI Displays tab.
4Click the enable/disable button for the display
device you want to enable/disable.
5Click OK or Apply to save the changes.
Enabling Extended Desktop Mode
1Access the Windows®Control Panel. Double-click
Display.
2Click the Settings tab.
3Click the monitor icon for the display onto which you
want to extend your desktop.
4Click Ye s to enable the selected display.
5Checkmark the Extend my Windows desktop onto
this monitor check box (Windows®may automatically
place it there).
6Click OK or Apply to save the changes.
Dynamic Display Reassignment
You can change the assignment of your Primary and
Secondary display on the fly, without rebooting.
However, before you can change the assignment of the
Primary display, at least one Secondary display must
be enabled, and Extended Desktop mode must be
enabled.

9
To enable a Secondary display see Enabling/Disabling
Secondary Displays on page 8.
To enable Extended Desktop Mode see Enabling
Extended Desktop Mode on page 8.
1Access the Windows®Control Panel. Double-click
Display.
2Click the Settings tab and then the Advanced... button.
3Click the ATI Displays tab.
The ATI Displays tab shows you the display(s) that are
active. The Primary display has the button depressed.
To change the display assignment, click the Primary
display’s button or click the button of the other
display device.
In Windows®2000 clicking the button will reassign
the Primary and Secondary monitors. Clicking the
button creates a clone or mirror image of the Primary
display onto the Secondary display. Clicking the
button extends your desktop to a Secondary display
located to the right of the Primary display. Clicking the
button extends your desktop to a Secondary display
located below the Primary display.
4Click OK or Apply to save the changes.
Virtually Repositioning Your Displays
1On the Settings tab, click and drag the appropriate
monitor icon to the desired position. For example, the
secondary display can be dragged to the left of the
primary display, allowing it to be virtually on the left,
as shown.

10
2Click OK or Apply to save the changes.
Ratiometric Expansion
Your RADEON 9800XT offers ratiometric expansion
(or digital panel scaling as it is commonly known). This
expands a low resolution image to fill a higher resolution
panel. However, ratiometric expansion is only available
on the Primary display. Therefore, if a flat panel display
(FPD) is set as Secondary, the Extended Desktop mode
is disabled and the resolution is less than the FPD’s
native resolution. This causes the FPD to default to
center mode.

11
ATI Color Tab
The ATI Color Properties page allows you to
configure Gamma, Brightness, and Contrast color
settings for both your desktop and full screen 3D
environments. You can also save settings to a color
Profile for easy recall later. In addition, you can
assign unique hotkey combinations that allow you to
adjust Gamma, Brightness, and Contrast color
settings within your full screen 3D applications.
To create a new profile, simply adjust the sliders to
the desired settings, type in a profile name, and click
Save. You can easily create and manage multiple
color profiles, both for your desktop and full screen
3D environments.
To restore the settings for a Desktop profile, simply
select the profile name from the drop-down list box,
and click Apply or OK.
To restore the settings for a Full Screen 3D profile,
select the profile name from the drop-down list box,
then start your 3D application in full screen mode.
Depending on the 3D application, you may need to
load your selected profile using assigned hotkeys,
once your 3D application is running (refer to the
Notes).
To assign hotkeys for adjusting the color settings
within your full screen 3D applications, select the
Full Screen 3D radio button, then click the Hotkeys
button to access the Hotkeys dialog.
NOTE: Some 3D applications load their own Color
settings when they first start, not the Color page
settings. You can change the color settings once the
3D application is running, using the assigned
hotkeys. The easiest way is to select a Full Screen 3D
profile name from the drop-down list box and click
OK, start your 3D application in full screen mode,
then load the selected profile using the hotkeys
assigned to the “Load Current Profile” action (on the
Hotkeys dialog). This will change the settings within
your 3D application environment.

12
NOTE: Some 3D applications can switch easily
between full screen mode and windowed mode, and
do not load their own Color settings. In windowed
mode, you can make slider adjustments or select a
different profile, then switch back to full screen
mode to see the effect immediately.
NOTE: When assigning hotkeys, you need to be
especially careful that the assigned keys do not
conflict with a 3D application's function keys, or
hotkeys assigned by other applications. The ATI
Color page only checks for duplicates within the
Color page itself (you can only assign one hotkey
combination per action).
Desktop radio
button
Select Desktop to configure your desktop color
settings.
Full Screen 3D
radio button
Select Full Screen 3D to configure the color settings for
your 3D application. Note that the configured settings
will only be apparent within a full screen 3D application
environment.
Profiles for: Indicates whether the profile in current use is for your
Desktop or a Full Screen 3D environment.
ATI Color Tab for Full Screen 3DATI Color Tab for the Desktop

13
Profiles drop-
down list
Lists all of the Desktop or Full Screen 3D profiles that
you have saved. Selecting a profile from the list loads
those custom color settings for either your Desktop or
your full screen 3D application (depending on the state
of the radio buttons). To create a new profile, simply
type in a name and click Save.
Save button
Saves your current color settings to a Desktop or Full
Screen 3D profile, using the name you specified in the
list box. To restore these settings later, simply select the
Profile name from the list and click Apply or OK.
Delete button Deletes the profile that is selected in the Profiles list
box.
All Colors
checkbox
All Colors adjusts the Gamma, Brightness or Contrast
for Red, Green, and Blue simultaneously. Note that any
individual color settings made are lost if All Colors is
selected, and the color settings revert back to the
previous All Colors settings.
Red Green
Blue radio
buttons
Adjusts the Gamma, Brightness or Contrast only for
the selected color component (Red, Green, or Blue).
Note that any individual color settings made are lost if
you select All Colors again.
Gamma slider
Increases or decreases the gamma correction of your
Desktop or full screen 3D application. Changing the
gamma alters the curvature of the color curve.
Brightness
slider
Increases or decreases the color brightness of your
Desktop or full screen 3D application. Changing the
brightness adjusts the vertical position of the color
curve.
Contrast
slider
Increases or decreases the color contrast of your
Desktop or full screen 3D application. Changing the
contrast adjusts the slope of the color curve.
Reset buttons Restores the individual slider setting to its default value,
then click Apply or OK.
Color preview
box
The color image indicates visually how the Gamma,
Brightness and Contrast sliders affect the final color
settings of your display device. In Desktop mode,
clicking on this with your mouse pointer will change the
image.

14
Color Hotkeys Settings
Hotkeys
button
Opens the Color Hotkeys Settings dialog. There you
can assign hotkeys for adjusting your color settings
within a full screen 3D application environment. To
activate this button, you must select the Full Screen 3D
radio button.
Defaults
button
Restores all of the color settings to the default values,
then click Apply or OK.
Modifier key
Modifier key can be any combination of Alt, Ctrl, or
Shift. Note that the Shift key will be used in conjunction
with either the Ctrl or the Alt key.
Hotkey
Hotkey can be any key listed. To avoid conflicts, be
aware of any hotkeys or keyboard controls that may
already be assigned to your applications and 3D games.
Hotkey action
Specify an action that the assigned hotkeys will control
within a full screen 3D application environment. You can
only assign one hotkey combination to each action.
Assigned
hotkeys
Lists the assigned hotkeys, and which action each
hotkey combination controls.

15
ATI Options Tab
The ATI Options tab provides detailed driver
information and access to the card’s specifications. You
can also enable or disable the ATI taskbar icon.
Add button Adds a hotkey combination to the assigned list.
Remove
button Removes a hotkey combination from the assigned list.
Disable
hotkeys
checkbox
Disables all hotkeys. To disable a single hotkey
combination, remove it from the assigned list.

16
ATI Options Tab
Version Information
Shows the Catalyst version number, 2D
version number and the driver build
information.
Details button
Gives access to the Details tab which lists the
card’s hardware details and driver
information.
Reactivate all
warning messages
Reactivates any disabled graphics warning
messages.
Enable ATI taskbar
icon application
Enables/disables the ATI taskbar
applications and removes the ATI icon from
your system tray.
Show ATI icon on
taskbar
Removes/replaces the ATI icon from the
system tray without disabling the ATI icon
applications.
Disable quick
resolution feature
Quick resolution feature is accessible by left-
clicking the ATI icon in the system tray.
Checking this option disables this feature.
Reduce DVI
frequency on high-
resolution
Resolves display corruption or no image at
high resolutions (for example 1280x1024
@75Hz) using a digital DVI display. (This
setting has no effect when using a DVI-to-
VGA adapter.)
Alternate DVI
operational mode
Use this option if you are experiencing
display corruption on your DVI flat panel.