========================== Release Notes - Windows NT ========================== Quantum3D Obsidian2 S/X Series Release 5C AUGUST 1998 Copyright 1997-1998 Quantum3D, Inc. All Rights Reserved. ===================================================================== Quantum3D, Inc. 2520 Mission College Blvd, Suite 202 Santa Clara, California, 95054-1215 Voice: (408) 919-9999 Fax: (408) 919-9980 Web Site: http://www.quantum3d.com Technical Support: support@quantum3d.com ===================================================================== This release includes drivers and utilities for the Obsidian2 S/X Consumer Series of Graphics Accelerators with Windows NT 4.0. with Service Pack 3. CONTENTS ======== I. Minimum System Requirements II. Base Drivers Feature Notes III. Before You Begin IV. Installation Procedures V. Obsidian2 S/X Series A. Windows NT 4.0 B. Notes on the Obsidian2 X-Series VI. Testing the Obsidian2 VII. Software Utilities VIII. Removing the Obsidian2 Drivers IX. Frequently Asked Questions I. Minimum System Requirements =============================== - PCI 2.1 compliant system (AGP compliant for S-12 AGPTV) - Pentium(R) class or faster processor - 16MB of system memory - Available PCI expansion slot (ATX form factor recommended) (Available AGP expansion slot for S-12 AGPTV) - Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 3 (or later) - Windows desktop (VGA) display adapter - VGA compatible monitor II. Base Driver Feature Notes =============================== The Quantum3D Obsidian2 drivers included with this release are based on Glide 2.53. - The Obsidian2 S-Series can operate at these video timings: Resolution Refresh Rate 512 x 384 72,75,85,120 Hz 640 x 400 70,75,85,120 Hz 640 x 480 60,75,85,120 Hz 800 x 600 60,75,85,120 Hz 960 x 720 60,75,85 Hz (DUAL S-12 PCITV ONLY) 1024 x 768 60,75,85 Hz (DUAL S-12 PCITV ONLY) - The Obsidian2 X-Series can operate at these video timings: Resolution Refresh Rate 512 x 384 72,75,85 Hz 640 x 400 70,75,85 Hz 640 x 480 60,75,85 Hz 800 x 600 60,75,85 Hz 960 x 720 60,75,85 Hz (Glide only) 1024 x 768 60,75,85 Hz - Obsidian2's TV Output capabilities operate only when Voodoo2 Graphics is running and at these video timings: Resolution Refresh Rate Format Scan Option 640 x 480 60 Hz NTSC Overscan and Underscan 640 x 480 50 Hz PAL Overscan and Underscan 800 x 600 60 Hz NTSC Underscan 800 x 600 50 Hz PAL Overscan and Underscan III. Before You Begin ===================== Whether you are installing the Obsidian2 for the first time or upgrading existing drivers for the Obsidian2, follow the procedure below before you begin the driver installation. 1. From the Start menu select Settings then Control Panel. 2. Double-click on Add/Remove Programs, and select the Install/Uninstall tab. 3. Scroll through the list and select any existing drivers for 3Dfx based products, including ones from Quantum3D. 4. Click on the Add/Remove button. When the Uninstall is complete, shut down the computer. 5. Remove any other 3Dfx adapters from the system. Follow the hardware installation procedure in the Obsidian2 Installation Guide for your appropriate Obsidian2 adapter. IV. Installation Procedures =========================== NOTE: A minimum system requirement for the Obsidian2 with Windows NT 4.0 is Service Pack 3. If you have not upgraded your Windows NT 4.0 operating system to Service Pack 3, you must do so before installing the Obsidian2 accelerator. V. OBSIDIAN2 S/X Series ======================== A. Windows NT 4.0 ----------------- Follow the procedure below to install the drivers and utilities for the Obsidian2 S/X Series. 1. Start Windows NT. 2. Log onto the computer with an account that has local Administrator privileges (this is required for updating the system registry). 3. Insert the Obsidian2 Installation CD into the CD-ROM drive. 4. From the START menu, select Programs and then Windows NT Explorer. 5. Click on CD-ROM drive in the All Folders panel. 6. Double click on the WINNT directory in the Contents panel. 7. Right mouse click on OBSIDIAN.INF in the Contents panel and select Install. Windows NT will copy the Obsidian2 device drivers to your hard drive. 8. You will then be prompted to restart the computer. Click on the Yes button. B. Notes on the Obsidian2 X-Series --------------------------------- - You may decrease the chance of operation issues by verifying that you have the latest system BIOS for your motherboard from the motherboard manufacturer. VI. Testing the Obsidian2 ========================= To verify that your Obsidian2 is operating properly, launch the Glide Test applets from the Obsidian2 tab in the Display Properties. 1. From the Start menu select Settings and then Control Panel. 2. Double click on the Display icon. The Display Properties will appear. Click on the Obsidian2 tab. 3. In the Glide section of the Obsidian2 tab, click on the Test button. The Glide test applet should appear on the screen at the default settings. NOTE: Direct3D is not supported under Windows NT 4.0 If the Glide applet does not appear on the screen, refer to Section 3: General Troubleshooting of the Obsidian2 Installation Guide, the Online Help or the Frequently Asked Questions section of the Driver Release Notes for additional assistance. VII. Software Utilities ======================= During the Obsidian2 driver installation, a number of diagnostic utilities are installed under the following folder: C:\Program Files\Q3D\Obsidian.2C\WinNT This section describes the software utilities for the Obsidian2. GDETECT.EXE This utility runs from Windows and lists the PCI devices in the computer and what memory resources are used by each device. GMOJO.EXE This utility runs from Windows and displays the Obsidian adapter information such as virtual base address, Vendor ID, chip revisions and more. In this information the Pixelfx2 and Texelfx2 chips are referred to as the FBI (Frame Buffer Interface) and TMU (Texture Mapping Unit) respectively. VIII. Removing the Obsidian2 Drivers ==================================== 1. From the Start menu, select Settings, then Control Panel. 2. Double-click on Add/Remove Programs, select the Install/Uninstall tab. 3. Scroll through the list and select the Quantum3D Obsidian2 drivers. 4. Click on the Add/Remove button. 5. Shutdown the computer. Remove the Obsidian adapter from the computer. 6. When Windows is restarted, the last portion of the removal is done automatically. XI. Frequently Asked Questions ============================== Q: When installing the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Card in a system that has had a different 3Dfx Voodoo or Voodoo 2 card (Diamond Monster, Creative Labs, Canopus, Orchid, ETC.) the previous card is always detected. How do I get the Obsidian2 card to be installed correctly? A: You must uninstall ALL drivers and files associated with the previous card. Please contact the manufacture of your previous card to uninstall all drivers and files associated with that card. You may also try the uninstall procedure above to remove any miscellaneous drivers that may be causing a problem. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: When attempting to run an application, boot the computer, or launch the Display Properties sheet, the error message "Mutual Exclusion Error Prohibits This" come up? A: There are various reasons this message may come up. 1. The card was not shut down properly, and is still active. Turn your computer off, and then back on to resolve this error. 2. The drivers from a previous 3Dfx Voodoo or Voodoo 2 card were not properly removed. Please follow this procedure to remove our drivers and any previous drivers. 3. Your system BIOS is not properly interpreting the PCI-to-PCI bridge chip on the Obsidian2 X-series of cards. Please contact your motherboard manufacture to get the latest BIOS. 4. There is another video card in your system, based on the 3Dfx Voodoo chip set that is causing a conflict. There can only be one card based on this chip set. Please remove the other card. 5. Your card is not working properly. Return the card for a replacement. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: When attempting to run an application, why does an error message "Expected VXD version V1.4 got V1.1 or V1.2" appear? A: The drivers for the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Card may have been overwritten, are the incorrect version or have been corrupted. Please use the uninstall procedure above to remove any miscellaneous drivers that may be causing a problem. Then reinstall our drivers. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: I have the ViewSonic P810 or P815 Monitor, when I test your Obsidian2 3D Graphics Card with my application OR your test application I get a blank screen. A: This is a known problem with the ViewSonic monitor. You will need to return the monitor for repair. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: I have the Obsidian2 S-12 AGPTV (with the ATX bracket) card, and it will not fit into my ATX case. The TV card on the S-12 will hit my CPU, or, does not have a hole in the case. What can I do? A: The Obsidian2 S-12 AGPTV card was designed to fit into the latest ATX 2.0 standard cases and system boards. The ATX case / system board you are using is 1.0 compliant. To solve this problem you will need to call Quantum3D Customer Support (408- 919-9999) to order the appropriate ATX Case bracket. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: I do not get my Windows Desktop to display on my TV when I have the 3D TV settings enabled on the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Cards. How do I get the TV to display. A: The TV will only be active when there is a 3D application or game, and only for 640x480 or 800x600 resolution. You will NOT get any 2D pass through on the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Cards. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Are the Quantum3D Obsidian2 3D Graphics Cards compatible with the 3Dfx Voodoo Rush cards? A: None of the Quantum3D Obsidian2 3D Graphics Cards are compatible with the 3Dfx Voodoo Rush chip set. This is due to a limitation on the 3Dfx chip sets only. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Why is the Quantum3D Obsidian2 3D Graphics Card listed twice in the Device Manager tab of the System Properties dialog? A: The Obsidian2 X-16, X-24 and 200SB are all single slot solution that contains two PCI devices connected to the PCI bus via a PCI bridge chip. The two listings represent each device incorporated on the Obsidian2 SBSLI (Single Board Scan Line Interleave) cards. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Can I over clock the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Cards? A: We include a Display Property Sheet setting to change the base clock speed. Please be aware that modifications to the clock setting may impact the reliability of the card, and may shorten the card life. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Can the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Card be used as a single, stand- alone video card? A: No, all Quantum3D Obsidian2 3D Graphics Cards are 3D ONLY video cards. They do not have any 2D capabilities. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Can the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Card work with Cyrix or AMD CPU's? A: Yes. We have tested the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Cards with all major brands of CPU's -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Where can I find game updates or patches to utilize the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Cards? A: Look on the following web-sites; http://www.3dfx.com - http://www.quantum3d.com - http://www.download.com OR check the web-site of the game manufacturer. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Need for Speed II SE from Electronic Arts fails to come up in 3Dfx mode. A: There is a known issue with the Need for Speed II SE detection process. Please copy the NFS2SEA.EXE file from the ROOT directory of its CD-ROM into the Need for Speed directory on your hard drive. Setup a new shortcut to this file to run Need for Speed II SE in 3Dfx mode. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: I loaded Electronic Arts NBA 98, FIFA 98, or other 3D enhanced games, but, the game will only come up on the 2D card. I cannot find a way to configure the game for the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Card. A: Edit your shortcut icon, by right clicking on the shortcut icon and selecting properties. Click on the Shortcut TAB, and add the text "3DFX" without the quotes to the Target run line. The game will now appear in 3Dfx mode. If this does not work, then you will need to contact Electronic Arts Technical Support for more assistance. Their website is http://www.ea.com/index_usa.html -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Why is the Override Application setting option in the Display Properties dialog checked and not available (grayed out)? A: In order to maintain backward compatibility, environment variables set manually (via AUTOEXEC.BAT) will take precedence over Obsidian2 configuration options. Therefore, if you have set environment variables manually, the corresponding configuration option will not be available. Removing these environment variables and restarting the computer will restore the previously unavailable configuration options. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: When TV output is enabled, why are the options for resolution restricted to 640 x 480 or 800 x 600 at 60 HZ refresh rate for NTSC or 50 Hz refresh rate for PAL TV output? A: Enabling TV output restricts the resolution and refresh rate options, in order to display the image correctly on a TV monitor. All Obsidian2 3D Graphics Cards support these two resolutions only and only have support for 3D output. None of the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Cards have support for 2D TV output. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Why do some applications have a corrupted display when the Wait for Vertical Retrace option in the Display Properties dialog is not checked? A: Disabling Wait for Vertical Retrace may increase the performance of some applications because the hardware is not waiting for V- sync to the display monitor. However, this may cause tearing of images in the application. For benchmarking purposes it is recommended that you disable Wait for Vertical Retrace for maximum performance. NOTE: for Ziff-Davis 3D WinBench you must have Wait for Vertical Retrace ON. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Will my 2D/3D graphics card work with the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Card? A: The Obsidian2 3D Graphics Card operates transparently with any existing 2D/3D graphics. Because of the Pass Through technology implemented with the Obsidian2 line of card, your existing VGA adapter will function for any 2D graphics. When 3D graphics are needed, the Obsidian2 3D Graphics Card will take over. There is only ONE 2D/3D graphics technology that the Obsidian2 line of 3D Graphics Cards will have a problem with. This is the 3Dfx Voodoo RUSH chip set. The problem is inherent to the design of the two chips, and can NOT be corrected.