Bill,
The article refers to incompatibilities between the drivers, the test system, and the benchmarking software. S3 was the only manufacturer to participate in the review with drivers so flawed that benchmarks could not be conducted.
As to the perfection of the Stealth 3D:
From: "Daron Myrick" <darlyn1@airmail.net>
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.video
Subject: Diamond 3400XL 3D design flaw warning!!!
Date: 6 Mar 1997 20:14:27 GMT
Organization: INTERNET AMERICA
Lines: 28
Message-ID: <01bc2a6a$d5c097c0$270b42ce@darlyn1>
NNTP-Posting-Host: dal02-05.ppp.iadfw.net
X-Newsreader: Microsoft Internet News 4.70.1160
I've gone through 3 of the newer Diamond 3400XL 3D cards which uses the Virge VX chip. First of all, the 4 meg board is just the 2meg board with a 2 meg add on daughtercard. This is no big deal but for information, posted here. On the other hand, there is a design flaw on these boards and this is after going through three of them from different places.
All of these three cards were seriously bandwidth limited on their outputs, meaning that the video output section of the cards appear to be buffered with a low quality op-amp and/or filtered with improper
capacitors which degrade their output bandwidth. Also, the outputs of these cards are impedance mismatched to the point of bad reflections.
What I mean by bad bandwidth and bad reflections is that even in 800X600X16bit mode, with a refresh rate of 72Hz, the video output is fuzzy, with reflections to the point where text and blocks of graphics have a mirror image off to the right of the original image when using any of these cards.
If I was not using a 5 potted BNC cable and a Nanao F2-17EX monitor, and, all other cards I've used in my system didn't produce perfect, non reflected video, then I would have settled for the bad vide
o quality of these diamond cards, but I knew better.
After giving up on these diamond cards and buying a STB Velocity 3D with 8meg of memory, I was astonished at how a card which used the same chipset but made by another company could produce the best video output I have ever seen on my system. Output was so in focus, non reflected and clear that quality was approaching LCD and Active panels displays in perceived visual clarity.
The Diamond 3400XL 3D card using the Virge VX chip is claimed to be the current 2D speed leader of all standard (I.E. Accelerated VGA/SVGA) PC video cards due to its overclocking to 54.8xMhz speed and optimized drivers. Also, the card is the exact same size and the same look as the Monster 3D card (who's part number is also 3400).
The Monster 3D has very clear video output but uses different hardware. Unfortunately, the Diamond 3400XL 3D card is aweful with video output, which unless fixed, will surely give this card
a bad name since I'm not the only person in line returning this model of card due to poor video output. |
