ELSA ERAZOR X User manual

ELSA ERAZORTM X
ELSA ERAZORTM X²
Manual

© 1999 ELSA AG, Aachen (Germany)
While the information in this manual has been compiled with great care, it may not be deemed an assur-
ance of product characteristics. ELSA shall be liable only to the degree specified in the terms of sale
and delivery.
The reproduction and distribution of the documentation and software supplied with this product and the
use of its contents is subject to written authorization from ELSA.
ELSA is DIN EN ISO 9001 certified. The accredited TÜV CERT certification authority has confirmed ELSA
conformity to the worldwide ISO 9001 standard in certificate number 09 100 5069, issued on June 15,
1998.
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 right
owners. Use of this copyright protection technology must be authorized by Macrovision Corporation, and
is intended for home and other limited viewing uses only unless otherwise authorized by Macrovision
Corporation. Reverse engineering or disassembly is prohibited.
Trademarks
Windows®, Windows NT®and Microsoft®are registered trademarks of Microsoft, Corp.
All other names mentioned may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. The
ELSA logo is a registered trademark of ELSA AG.
Subject to change without notice. No liability for technical errors or omissions.
Aachen, November 1999
21638/1199
ELSA AG
Sonnenweg 11
52070 Aachen
Germany
ELSA, Inc.
1630 Zanker Road
San Jose, CA 95112
USA

Preface
Thank you for placing your trust in this ELSA product.
In chosing the
ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X² , you have selected a graphics board which
is just as well suited to professional users as to ambitious players. The graphics proces-
sor on the board ensures high-speed generation of on-screen graphics making this board
ideal for advanced CAD and visualization applications as well as for fast animation.
ELSA products are subject to the highest of standards in production and quality control
which are the foundation for consistently high product quality.
This manual provides all the information you will need to get the best out of your ELSA
graphics board. For instance, which resolution is best for which monitor, or how is the
board upgraded? The accompanying ELSA utility programs are described, and you will
find detailed information about 3D acceleration.
ELSA products are subject to continual further development. It is therefore possible that
the information printed in this manual is not current in all respects.
In the README files on the ERAZOR X CD can always be found current information about
updates.
If you have further questions or need additional help, you can rely on our online services
which are available to ELSA customers. Look for information on the ELSA's website.
In very urgent cases the ELSA Hotline can be reached under the following number:
1-800-272-ELSA (3572)
or from outside the USA:
[phone]
or in the United Kingdom:
[phone]

Before you read on...
The installation of the ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X²hardware and software drivers is
described in full in the Installation Guide which accompanies this manual. You should
refer to that document before attempting to install your board, and before reading this

ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X²
V
Contents
Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1
ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X² highlights ........................................................... 1
Video-out................................................................................................................. 1
What's in the box? .................................................................................................. 2
What hardware do I need? ..................................................................................... 2
CE conformity and FCC radiation standard............................................................. 2
After installing the drivers ........................................................................................... 5
Software installation from the CD.......................................................................... 5
The right settings.................................................................................................... 5
What are your options?...................................................................................... 6
What makes sense?........................................................................................... 6
Changing the resolution.......................................................................................... 7
Windows 95 and Windows 98........................................................................... 7
Windows NT 4.0 ................................................................................................ 9
Useful stuff and more .................................................................................................. 11
The Multimedia Player.......................................................................................... 11
Fine-tuning for performance freaks ...................................................................... 12
ELSA ChipGuard.................................................................................................... 13
Overclocking.......................................................................................................... 13
ELSAinfo................................................................................................................ 14
Video out with the
ELSA ERAZOR X².................................................................... 14
Connecting to the Video Outputs..................................................................... 14
Settings under Windows 9x............................................................................. 15
All about graphics ....................................................................................................... 17
3D graphics representation................................................................................... 17
The 3D pipeline ................................................................................................ 17
3D interfaces......................................................................................................... 19
What APIs are available?................................................................................. 20
Direct 3D .......................................................................................................... 20
OpenGL............................................................................................................. 21
Color palettes, TrueColor and gray scales............................................................ 21
VGA .................................................................................................................. 21
DirectColor ....................................................................................................... 22
VESA DDC (Display Data Channel) ....................................................................... 22
DDC2B .............................................................................................................. 23
DDC2AB............................................................................................................ 23
Technical data ............................................................................................................. 25

ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X²
VI
Characteristics of the graphics board .................................................................. 25
ELSA graphics board addresses ........................................................................... 25
Ports on the graphics board ................................................................................. 26
The VGA D-shell socket .................................................................................. 26
The S-Video connector .................................................................................... 26
Appendix .......................................................................................................................27
Declarations of conformity .................................................................................. 27
Warranty conditions ............................................................................................. 28
Glossary ........................................................................................................................ 31
Index .............................................................................................................................. 35

Introduction
ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X²
1
Introduction
“Reading the manual is a waste of time.”A prejudice you are proving to be wrong right
now by reading this manual. And rightly so. In this case, it is really worth the effort.
Because the
ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X² has some smart features that are only
described here in the manual.
So only those who read the manual will truly be taken with this card. We'll make it as
short and easy as we can–promise.
ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X²
highlights
쮿The latest 3D graphics technology with the NVIDIA GeForce 256 processor
쮿High-definition 3D—the latest games using DirectX7 use up to 4 times more poly-
gons at full speed!
쮿Witness nearly true-life player skins and objects!
쮿High-definition picture—high performance with up to 1900 x 1440 pixels, over
16 million colors and refresh rates of 200Hz provide an astounding picture—ideal
for 19" to 24" monitors
쮿32-MB graphics memory give you scope for image processing and huge textures
쮿ELSA SmartRefresh and ELSA SmartResolution provide optimal monitor settings
쮿Supports the 3D shutter glasses,
ELSA 3D REVELATOR
쮿Product support via Internet WWW site
쮿Six-years warranty
쮿This board complies with the CE and FCC regulations
Video-out
쮿Play games on the big TV screen
쮿Record games and applications to VCR
쮿Edit video directly on the TV
쮿High quality output with 10bit DAC and flicker filter

Introduction
ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X²
2
What's in the box?
You will notice if your graphics board is missing. But you need to check that the box con-
tained all of the following:
쮿Graphics board
쮿Installation Guide
쮿Manual
쮿CD-ROM with installation and driver software and utilities
쮿CD-ROM with Direct3D demo programs
쮿CD-ROM with 3D games
쮿Only with video-equipped graphics boards:
Video adapter cable from S-Video (Hosiden) to Composite (Cinch)
If any part is missing please contact your dealer. ELSA reserves the right to vary the prod-
ucts supplied without prior notice.
What hardware do I need?
쮿Computer: Minimum requirements are a Celeron 300, Pentium II 300 or AMD K6
300 processor.
쮿Bus: The
ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X² is available as an AGP version. Your com-
puter must have an AGP bus.
쮿Monitor: The
ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X² works with the standard IBM VGA
compatible horizontal scan frequency of 31.5 kHz while booting and in DOS opera-
tion.
CE conformity and FCC radiation standard
CE
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits of the European
Council Directive on the approximation of the laws of the member states relating to elec-
tromagnetic compatibility (89/336/EEC) according to EN 55022 class B.
FCC
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital
device pursuant to Part 15 of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Rules.

Introduction
ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X²
3
CE and FCC
These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against radio frequency inter-
ference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate
radio frequency energy. It may interfere with to radio communications if not installed and
used in accordance with the instructions. However, there is no guarantee that interfer-
ence will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause interference
to radio or television reception (this can be determined by turning this equipment off and
on), the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the follow-
ing measures:
쮿Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
쮿Increase the distance between this equipment and the receiver.
쮿Connect the equipment to an outlet on a circuit other than that to which the receiver
is connected.
쮿Consult your dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician.
쮿Caution: To comply with the limits for an FCC Class B computing device, always use
a shielded signal cable.
Caution to the user: The Federal Communications Commission warns the user that chan-
ges or modifications to the unit not expressly approved by the party responsible for com-
pliance could void the user's authority to operate the equipment.

Introduction
ELSA ERAZOR X and ERAZOR X²
4