ATI Technologies X850 - Radeon Xt Platinum Edition 256 Mb Agp User manual

ATI
RADEON® X850 Series
User’s Guide
P/N 137-40814-10

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Copyright © 2004, ATI Technologies Inc. All rights reserved.
ATI and 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
trademarksoftheir respectiveowners.Features,performanceand specificationsaresubjecttochange
without notice. Product may not be exactly as shown in diagrams.
Reproductionofthismanual,orpartsthereof,in anyform,withouttheexpresswrittenpermissionofATI
Technologies Inc. is strictly prohibited.
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,
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herein.
ATI Technologies Inc. reserves the right to make changes without further notice toa 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 Notices
Dolby* Laboratories, Inc.
Manufactured under license from Dolby Laboratories. Confidential Unpublished Works.
© 1992-1997 Dolby Laboratories,Inc. All rights reserved.
Macrovision
Apparatus Claims of U.S. Patent Nos. 4,631,603, 4,577,216, 4,819,098, and 4,907,093 licensed for
limited viewing uses only.
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Documentation Updates
ATI is constantly improving its product and associated documentation. To maximize the value of your
ATI product, you should ensure that you have the latest documentation. ATI’s documentation contains
helpful installation/configuration tips and other valuable feature information.

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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.
•Compatibility - This option card is for use only with IBM AT or
compatible UL Listed personal computers that have Installation
Instructions detailing user installation of card cage accessories.
•Grounding - For continued protection against risk of electric shock
and fire, this accessory should be installed only in products equipped
with a three-wire grounding plug, a plug having a third (grounding)
pin. This plug will only fit into a grounding-type power outlet. This is a
safety feature. If you are unable to insert the plug into the outlet,
contact your electrician to replace the obsolete outlet. Do not defeat
the safety purpose of the grounding-type plug.
•Secure Attachment
- All card securement pins shall be completely
tightened as to provide continuous bonding between the option card
and the PC chassis.
•Outdoor Antenna Grounding - Since an outdoor antenna or cable
system is connected to the product, be sure that the antenna or cable
system is grounded so as to provide some protection against voltage
surges and built-up static charges. Article 810 of the National
Electrical Code, ANSI/NFPA 70, provides information with regard to
proper grounding of the mast and supporting structure, grounding of
the lead-in wire to the antenna discharge unit, size of grounding
conductors, location of antenna-discharge unit, connection of
grounding electrodes, and requirements for the grounding electrode.
•Lightning - For added protection for this product during a lightning
storm, or when it is left unattended and unused for long periods of
time, unplug it from the wall outlet, and disconnect the antenna or
cable system. This will prevent damage to the product due to
lightning and power-line surges.
•Power Lines - An outside antenna system should not be located in
the vicinity of overhead power lines or other light or power circuits, or
where it can fall into such power lines or circuits.
•Antenna Installation - When installing an outside antenna system,
extreme care should be taken to keep from touching such power lines
or circuits, as contact with them may be fatal.
•Note to CATV System Installer - This reminder is provided to call
the CATV systems installer’s attention to Section 820-40 of the NEC,
which provides guidelines for proper grounding and, in particular,
specifies that the cable ground shall be connected to the grounding
system of the building, as close to the point of cable entry as
practical.

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1
Table of Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
System Requirements 1
External Connectors. 1
Using Multiple Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Connecting Your Monitors 3
Display Configurations 4
CATALYST™ Control Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Launching CATALYST™Control Center 7
Launching CATALYST™ Control Center Using the Start Menu 7
Other Quick Launch Access Points 8
Displays Manager 9
3D Settings 10
Video 10
Display Options 10
Color 11
VPU Recover 11
Monitor Properties 12
Component Video Properties 12
TV Properties 12
Digital Panel 13
Hotkeys Manager 13
OVERDRIVE™ 3 13
Profiles Manager 14
Preferences 14
Help 15
15
Using TV Display and Capture Features. . . . . . . 17
Using TV Out 17
Viewing Your PC’s Display on a TV 17
Connecting to a TV or VCR 17
Using a Monitor vs. Using TV Display 19
Viewing Text on a TV 19
Using TV Display Alone 19
Using Games and Applications 19
Connecting to HDTV 20

2
Using Your ATI HDTV Video Cable 21
Capturing Video 21
Connecting your media device for video capture 22
Setting the Windows® Volume Control 23
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Uninstalling Old Graphics Card Software 25
Windows® New Hardware Found 25
Installing the CATALYST™ Software Suite 26
Solution Selector 27
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

1
CHAPTER 1:
Introduction
System Requirements
External Connectors.
• 2 DVI-I outputs.
• S-Video output.
Hardware • Intel® Pentium® 4/III; Celeron II™.
• 128 MB of system memory; 256 MB or more for best
performance.
• Motherboard with free PCI Express™ slot and correct
PCIe chipset driver. Note: The RADEON® X850
Series requires a free expansion slot next to the PCI
Express™ slot.
• CD-ROM drive (for installation software).
• PCI Express™ compatible system with a specialized
12v graphics card power connector. 350 watt or
greater power supply recommended. Consult your
computer system manual to ensure the power supply
is designed to accommodate a high-end graphics card
with a peak dissipation above 75 watts.
Operating
System • Windows® XP (Home or Pro)
• Windows® 2000
Monitor • High-resolution MultiSync or multi-frequency monitors
or any other type of VGA monitor.
• Digital flat-panel (DFP) displays or digital CRT display.

2

3
CHAPTER 2:
Using Multiple Displays
Connecting Your Monitors
Your RADEON® X850 Series provides hardware support for two DVI-I
monitor or two VGA monitors using the supplied DVI-I-to-VGA adapter.
It also provides TV output via a S-Video Out or Composite Out connector.
Connections and Adapters for the RADEON® X850 Series Card
X
DVI Monitor Connector.
Y
VGA Monitor 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

4 Display Configurations
Note: If you use multiple monitors, the RADEON® X850 Series
card must be the primary graphics card. Normally, the system BIOS
determines which graphics card will be the primary.
To connect your monitors
1 Power off your computer and monitors.
2 Plug the monitor cables into their appropriate connectors.
3 Power on your monitors first, and then restart your computer so that
Windows® can detect the new hardware settings.
4 When the New Hardware Found Wizard appears, at the appropriate
prompt insert the ATI Installation CD to load the drivers for your
RADEON® X850 Series card.
Display Configurations
Your RADEON® X850 Series graphics card provides dual display
functionality and TV Out. The following table lists the different ways you
can connect displays to your card.
Z
DVI-I-to-VGA Adapter.
[
DVI-I Backplate Connection. To connect a flat panel, plug the
monitors DVI-I connector into the DVI-I connection.
Display
Configuration Connector(s) Used Comments
Single DFP
display DVI-I connector DFP - digital flat panel display.
Single CRT
display DVI-I connector with DVI-I-to-VGA
adapter
CRT- cathode ray tube analog
display.
Single TV S-Video Out The S-Video out can also support a
composite connection via the S-
Video-to-Composite adapter.
Single HDTV
display S-Video Out to HDTV (YPrPb)
cable
HDTV - High Definition Television
Connections and Adapters for the RADEON® X850 Series Card

Display Configurations 5
DFP display +
TV DVI-I connector + S-Video out
CRT display +
TV DVI-I-to-VGA adapter + S-Video
Out
UNSUPPORTED CONFIGURATION
if the CRT display is attached to the
DVI-I connector via the DVI-I-to-VGA
adapter.
CRT display +
HDTV DVI-I-to-VGA adapter + S-Video
Out to HDTV
(YPrPb) cable
DFP display +
HDTV DVI-I connector + S-Video Out to
HDTV (YPrPb)
cable
CRT display +
DFP display DVI-I-to-VGA adapter + DVI-I
connector
CRT display +
CRT display DVI-I-to-VGA adapter + DVI-I-to-
VGA adapter
The DVI-I connector can support a
CRT display using the DVI-I-to-VGA
adapter
DFP display +
DFP display +
TV
DVI-I connector +
DVI-I connector +
S-Video Out
The TV display will “clone” the image
of one of the other two displays
DFP display +
DFP display +
HDTV
DVI-I connector +
DVI-I connector +
S-Video Out to
HDTV (YPrPb)
cable
CRT display +
DFP display +
HDTV
DVI-I-to-VGA
adapter + DVI-I
connector + S-
VideoOut toHDTV
(YPrPb) cable
CRT display +
CRT display +
TV
DVI-I-to-VGA
adapter + DVI-I-to-
VGA adapter + S-
Video Out
UNSUPPORTED CONFIGURATION
Display
Configuration Connector(s) Used Comments

6 Display Configurations
CRT display +
CRT display +
HDTV
DVI-I-to-VGA
adapter + DVI-I-to-
VGA adapter + S-
VideoOut toHDTV
(YPrPb) cable
UNSUPPORTED CONFIGURATION
Display
Configuration Connector(s) Used Comments

Launching CATALYST™Control Center 7
CHAPTER 3:
CATALYST™ Control Center
The CATALYST™ Control Center is a graphical representation of the
display features of the installed ATI hardware and software. Use the
CATALYST™ Control Center to fine-tune your graphic settings, enable or
disable connected display devices, and change the orientation of your
desktop. Many of the features show you a preview of the changes before
they are applied.
The CATALYST™ Control Center offers you two views of the software:
Standard view is a simplified view that includes wizards to get the
inexperience user up and running. The Advance view allows the advanced
user to access and configure the complete feature set of the software.
The CATALYST™ Control Center can be customized for easy access to
the features you use most.
Use the CATALYST™ Control Center to access a comprehensive online
help system, or connect to the ATI Web site.
Launching CATALYST™Control Center
CATALYST™ Control Center can be launched from one of the following
access points:
• Windows Start Menu
• Windows System Tray
• Predefined Hotkeys
• Desktop Shortcuts
• Via an ATI MMC Application
Launching CATALYST™ Control Center Using the
Start Menu
From the windows task bar, click the Start button:
• For Windows XP, point to All Programs>ATI Control
Environment>CATALYST™ Control Center.
• For Windows 2000, point to Programs>ATI Control
Environment>CATALYST™ Control Center.

8 Launching CATALYST™Control Center
Other Quick Launch Access Points
To launch CATALYST™ Control Center from MMC
You can also access the CATALYST™ Control Center while an ATI multi-
media application, like TV Player, is running. Simply click the
CATALYST™ Control Center icon in the multi-media application’s
control panel, if available.
Launching CATALYST™ Control Center Using Hot Keys
You can press a predefined key (like F7) or combination of keys (like
Ctrl+A). You can define your hot key by using the Hot Key Manager.
Launching CATALYST™ Control Center Using the Desktop
Shortcut
When you first installed CATALYST™ Control Center the setup wizard
provided you with the option of placing a shortcut on the desktop. If you
selected this option, simply double-click the CATALYST™ Control Center
desktop shortcut.
Launching CATALYST™ Control Center Using the System Tray
Right-click the ATI icon in the Windows® System Tray and select
CATALYST™ Control Center from the popup menu.

Displays Manager 9
Displays Manager
The Displays Manager is the central location for configuring your display
devices and arranging your desktop. Use the Displays Manager to quickly
change your display setup, arrange your desktop in a multi-monitor
environment, and enable TV Out.
Displays Manager appears in both Standard and Advanced views. Use the
Standard View wizard to help you configure your display preferences.
Advanced View is for more experienced users who prefer to manually
configure their desktop settings.
Standard View

10 3D Settings
3D Settings
Use 3D settings to adjust features found in 3D applications, such as
graphic-design, CAD programs and games.
3D Settings is available in the simplified standard view and advanced view.
Use standard view to adjust the overall performance and quality of your
graphic application. Use the advanced view to individually configure the
following settings:
• Standard Settings
• Anti-aliasing
• Anisotropic Filtering
• Texture Preference
• CATALYST™ A.I.
• Mipmap Detail Level
• TRUFORM™
• SMARTSHADER™
• API-specific
Video
Use the Video aspect to use preconfigured profiles that best match your
viewing environment. Switch to the Advanced view to manually adjust
video overlay and choose a preferred viewing mode, such as Widescreen or
Fullscreen modes.
To access the Video aspect:
• Select Video in the CATALYST™ Control Center Standard or
Advanced view.
Display Options
Display Options gives you additional control to optimize performance of
OpenGL® and Direct 3D® applications.
Advanced View

Color 11
Use 3D Refresh Rate Override to set a refresh rate of your choice when a
full-screen application or game has a default refresh rate that is lower than
optimal.
Choose one of the Display Detection Options to prevent screen flicker
when detecting a display.
If you are using an older TV or one that has non-standard inputs that may
not be automatically detected, use Force TV Detection. Such a TV, once
detected, will appear in the Display Manager aspect and can be configured
as required. However, some features that rely on automatic detection, such
as extended desktop, will not be supported.
To access Display Options:
• Select Display Options in the CATALYST™ Control Center
Advanced view.
Color
Use the Color aspect to adjust the color settings for your desktop and full-
screen games. The Preview effects area shows your changes to gamma,
brightness, and contrast in real time.
To access the Color aspect:
• Select Color in the CATALYST™ Control Center advanced view.
VPU Recover
VPU Recover is a tool capable of detecting the rare situation when the
graphics processor is no longer able to respond to display driver
commands. When this occurs, VPU Recover attempts to reset the graphics
processor so that you are able to continue using your computer without
interruption or loss of data.
To access VPU Recover
• Select VPU Recover in the CATALYST™ Control Center
Advanced view.

12 Monitor Properties
Monitor Properties
Use the Monitor Properties page to configure your Display Data Channel
(DDC) monitor’s attributes, to information about the connected monitor,
and adjust the output display’s position and size.
To access Monitor Properties
• Select Monitor Properties in the CATALYST™ Control Center
advanced view.
Component Video Properties
The component video aspect of the CATALYST™ Control Center adds
further support for your ATI HDTV Component Video Adapter.
Component Video Properties is made up of:
•Formats
• Adjustments
• Advanced
To access Component Video Properties
• Select Component Video Properties in the CATALYST™ Control
Center advanced view.
TV Properties
If your graphics card has support for TV Out use the TV Properties to
configure your TV settings.
The TV Properties is comprised of three features:
• Image Quality
• Screen Adjustment
•Format
Use Image Quality to adjust the contrast, saturation, and flicker of your
screen.
Use Screen Adjustment to set the video mode, enableoverscan, and change
the position and size of the screen.
Use the Format feature to determine how your graphics cardestablishes the
TV signal format.

Digital Panel 13
To access TV Properties
• Select TV Properties in the CATALYST™ Control Center advanced
view.
Digital Panel
Use the Digital Panel properties to configure the DVI settings and Image
Scaling to improve image quality without impacting performance.
To access Digital Panel
• Select Digital Panel in the CATALYST™ Control Center advanced
view.
Hotkeys Manager
The Hotkeys Manager allows you to create shortcut key combinations to
quickly perform tasks such as changing a graphics setting or opening an
application. A hot key is a combination of one or more modifier keys, such
as Ctrl, Alt, or Shift, and any letter from the alphabet.
To access Hotkeys Manager
• Click the Hotkeys button in the CATALYST™ Control Center.
OVERDRIVE™ 3
Use OVERDRIVE™ 3 to maximize the performance of the visual
processing unit (VPU) on your graphics card. An on-chip thermal sensor
constantly monitors the temperature of the VPU allowing the maximum
clock speed to be maintained while avoiding overheating. If the VPU gets
too hot, OVERDRIVE™ 3 will automatically decrease the clock speed
until a safetemperature is reached. OVERDRIVE™ 3 will never reduce the
graphics processor speed below the default clock speed.

14 Profiles Manager
Use the Automated clock configuration utility to obtain the ATI
recommended OVERDRIVE™ 3 speeds for the graphics processor clock
and video memory clock. Alternatively, manually set these speeds to meet
your specific requirements. Finally, OVERDRIVE™ 3 can be configured
to run when the computer is booted or only when running 3D applications.
To access OVERDRIVE™ 3
• Select OVERDRIVE™ 3 in the CATALYST™ Control Center
advanced view.
Profiles Manager
Use profiles to create customized environments for your desktop, video,
and 3D applications. Define and save your own personal video settings that
can be quickly activated manually, through a hot key, or by file association.
Note: A profile applies to a specific graphics card. If there is more
than one graphics card installed in your computer, you need to select
the appropriate card before creating, loading, or activating a profile.
To access the Profiles Manager
• Click the Profiles button in the CATALYST™ Control Center.
Preferences
Use the Preferences page to restore factory defaults, change skins, or
enable\disable the System Tray icon.
The CATALYST™ Control Center Preferences page contains the
following options:
• Hide Tooltips
•AlwaysonTop
• Enable System Tray menu
• Restore factory defaults
• Show Toolbar Text
L
If your computer cannot restart after setting a higher clock speed,
press and hold the SHIFT key during system start-up until you hear
three beeps. Once your computer has full booted, disable Enable
new clock settings at logon.