ATI Technologies Radeon 9800 Series User manual

RADEON
™
9800 SERIES
User’s Guide
P/N 137-40462-10
Copyright © 2003, ATI Technologies Inc. All rights reserved.
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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
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i
Disclaimer
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document, ATI Technologies Inc. assumes no liability with respect to
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software, or other products and documentation provided herein.
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ii
Table of Contents
Disclaimer...................................................................................................... i
Product Notice......................................................................................... i
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
ATI Options Tab........................................................................................ 13
ATI Overlay Tab ....................................................................................... 15
Video Overlay ...................................................................................... 15
Clone Mode Settings ............................................................................ 16
Direct 3D Control Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Main and Custom Settings........................................................................ 18
Direct 3D Compatibility Settings ............................................................. 21
OpenGL Control Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Main and Custom Settings........................................................................ 22
OpenGL Compatibility Settings............................................................... 25
SMARTGART™ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Set AGP Settings .................................................................................. 26
Fast Write ............................................................................................. 26
Retest All.............................................................................................. 27
Using TV Out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

iii
View your PC’s display on a TV .............................................................. 28
Connecting to a TV or a VCR .................................................................. 29
Starting Windows® with TV Display Enabled .................................... 30
To Enable/Disable The TV Display.......................................................... 31
Using and Adjusting TV Out................................................................ 31
How TV Display Cannot Be Used ....................................................... 31
Using a Monitor vs. Using the TV Display.......................................... 32
Reducing Edge Distortion ......................................................................... 34
Changing Display Configurations ........................................................ 35
Using Games and Applications ............................................................ 35
NSTC/PAL Support for RADEON 9800 Series...................................... 36

1
Introduction
The RADEON™ 9800 Series graphics accelerator
delivers ground breaking 3D graphics performance.
• Powered by the RADEON 9800 Series Visual
Processing Unit (VPU).
• Second generation to Support Microsoft®DirectX®
9.0.
• 256-bit DDR memory interface.
• Support for AGP 8X specification.
• Second generation 8-pixel pipeline architecture.
• Support Direct 3D®and OpenGL applications.
• Cinematic experience for 3D gaming
• High resolution in 3D up to 2048x1536.
• Digital flat panel support.
• Supports TV-Out to connect your PC to your TV or
VCR.

2
Features At A Glance
The RADEON 9800 Series includes:
• CINEMATIC RENDERING:
With its highly programmable shader engines, the
RADEON 9800 Series of visual processors are
designed to bring the most detailed worlds to life with
cinema-quality lighting, textures, and effects.
• MAXIMUM 3D PERFORMACE:
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.
• PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES OF DIGITAL
REALISM:
Experience the smoothest, sharpest, and clearest 3D
image quality imaginable. Combining
SMOOTHVISION™ 2.1 and SMARTSHADER™2.1,
the RADEON 9800 Series enables 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 section CATALYST 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 Direct 3D Control Panel on page 18, and
OpenGL Control Panel on page 22.

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 9800 Series 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

6
Display Configurations
Your RADEON 9800 Series 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