This card is so mythic it's still alive decades later. I already ran Linux in 1998, playing Unreal with Wine with a Voodoo 1 and 233 MMX @ 290 MHz :) Unreal is supposed to run better, with the usual tweaks like PCI_READ.
@@miregoji2959 I'm sure I know what's the difference. My point is that you can't recreate on a FPGA the exact same circuits like on a real Voodoo chip - you have do some emulation.
@@roberto88958 In addition to an imperfect emulation of the graphic effects specific to the analog signals of a CRT, agree with you 3dfx original will always be better than in FPGA, we lose graphic effects in Descent for example, that we cannot have on a Geforce 1 to 4xxx ... The best is to use the latest 3dfx cards by dedicating certain tasks to the gpu's, the advantage of the 3dfx multigpu in its time (which has its limits to basic 2D and 3D). I think it would be time to develop new 3D game cards with multi gpu's, in order to dedicate certain tasks, but for that it is necessary that the development of the games is in function to take advantage of them, compared to our current powerful single gpu, but whose architecture makes drops fps. Which was not the case for some arcade games of the time, which cannot be emulated identically, at least in their fluidity. We also see on N64 games, which the new Mister is not able to emulate everything, I also think that it loses some graphic effects like the reflection in mario kart (to be confirmed during development). But for 3dfx cards with its multi gpu's it is even more complicated, it is also the case for the emulation of the Neo Geo AES and its 2 68000 processors (fpga not ready). These old hardwares are also better suited for low resolution.
@@O_mores I mean, it's a digital signal, so technically it should look the same on any capture card or display (ignoring scaling methods). 😉 Cool video, btw.
@@THU31 Yes, it's digital but it not compressed. "The higher the resolution, color depth and frame rate, the more bits need to be transmitted until the maximum bandwidth is reached. Then, the only way to transmit more bits is to add more lanes to the cable or compress the signal." At 640x480 I think these tiny adapters are doing great... but try to capture a full HD resolution at 120FPS and things will get ugly. That's why some capture cards are very expensive.
Making new 3DFX Voodoo cards is so funny to me but I like it, legendary silicon. I remember that ad, it still makes me laugh. 90s edgy advertising was something else.
You underestimate the use of 90s hardware in modern day. Most common in industrial and machining situations. A lot of machines still run on 90s tech. The mechanical parts were meant to last 40-50+ years while the computers controlling those machines die out much earlier
@@reecebower9934 Well, there are developing countries and fully developed countries like Japan or S. Korea. I think many software/hardware solutions achieved this status in the 90's. After some point the need to change a working platform is just marketing... :)
Nice video! I'll investigate the HDMI capture card compatibility issue and post an updated bitstream. I tested with around 5 different HDMI monitor models and an Elgato 4k60 Pro MK2 capture card, all worked fine. Btw, the 2x TMU card is actually a 12MB card, just like the 12MB Voodoo2 cards. The FPGA doesn't convert analog to digital, it is connected directly to the FBI->RAMDAC digital bus, and generates HDMI from that. It's digital to digital only.
Those cheapo HDMI capture devices are a godsend these days. Lower latency than an original Elgato for way less and with better output. And as you’ve seen they’ll take almost any input and spit out an image. You can even use them on iPads to turn them into portable monitors!
I still have it on my PC, but also on my phone. Check it out if have Android: play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.stainlessgames.carmageddon&hl=en
The Voodoo 1 with 2 TMUs and 8 mb should have a performance in between the standard 1 TMU Voodoo 1 and the Voodoo Banshee. In Quake 2 640x480 it should get around 40 fps.
With a faster CPU there will be more FPS, but on a Pentium 200MMX with a Voodoo 1 with 2 TMUs we get 40FPS in Quake 1 and 25FPS in Quake II. A Voodoo Banshee operates at 100Mhz/1600MB memory bandwidth vs 50Mhz/800MB, it's way better than a Voodoo 1. Actually Voodoo Banshee was slightly better than a Voodoo 2 in games that didn't use multi texturing.
6:19 does this scanline cutscene problems from your HDMI port or from your capture card?? I never found this a thin line cutscene even with nGlide mod or even GOG version for RE1.
RE1 will switch back to 2D card to show the cut scenes. I know for sure since I didn't use a VGA pass through cable. The S3 Virge DX card that I used is outputting some analog garbage, more visible on certain resolutions and refresh rate.
Windows 2000 and Windows XP received a High Definition Audio (HDA) patch to support newer audio hardware standards that were not initially compatible with these operating systems. This update, known as Microsoft Universal Audio Architecture (UAA) High Definition Audio Class Driver, was released to enable support for HD audio devices, which were becoming the industry standard at the time. Patch Number: KB888111 Purpose: Adds support for high-definition audio (HDA) in Windows XP and Windows 2000, allowing the operating systems to work with newer audio hardware that used HD Audio instead of AC'97 audio codecs. Release Context: The patch was especially important for systems with integrated audio on motherboards that required HD Audio functionality. This patch is typically required before installing certain HD audio drivers from manufacturers like Realtek or Intel on these older operating systems.
If you did this with a Banshee could you just bypass the DAC altogether and pipe it direct to the HDMI transmitter inputs? Or was the DAC embedded in a chip?
Actually this is the way it was done - the FPGA chip steals signal from the FBI chip. Analog to digital was my assumption..., but Daniel from sdz-mods.com made it all clear here in the comments section.
actually, its great for capturing as decent VGA capture devices are expensive, but what I noticed it that when I plug in my Voodoo into my 28" Asus I get a clean picture as well. I see it only a matter of the scaling, if the hdmi chip has an integrated scaler to use verious scaling methods then I can really see the benefits of these custom cards. Otherwise, just use a decent vga monitor on a regular voodoo.
I agree, the HDMI is more like a gimmick, unless if you have only one big gaming monitor with DP/HDMI ports. In this scenario it's better to get HDMI signal from your Voodoo rather than using a VGA to HDMI converter. I have two such converters and they are rather bad: one is outputting some analog garbage, and the other one has better image quality but is getting very hot.
@@O_mores it's not a gimmick, the HDMI signal from the card on an LCD screen is just perfect, with no loss whatsoever. Many LCD monitors have crap VGA input, and even the good ones aren't perfect, and they can never be. VGA signal was intended for CRTs, not LCDs. It doesn't carry any resolution information, it's just an analogue waveform, there will always be some "guesswork" and quality lost when displaying it on an LCD panel.
Well, some bad business moves and competition killed 3dfx. First 3dfx wanted a business model like Apple - to produce and sell their own hardware. For this they acquired STB and and they made their own cards by late 1998. By doing this many Taiwanese producers like MSI, Asus, Gainward etc. sold more nVidia cards instead, this diminished 3dfx market share and they were eventually bought by nVidia.
512x384 it's not a standard HDMI resolution.(every resolution has a predefined ID code) Even if the card is sending signal - the HDMI receiver (monitor or capture card) in most cases won't be able to handle it. Daniel from sdz-mods.com told me that 512x384 might work with some capture devices that are more tolerant... I guess the solution is to convert on the fly 512x384 to 640x480 using the FPGA logic.
According to HWiNFO the chip is produced by MacroSilicon Technology with the following Hardware ID: USB\VID_534D&PID_2109 | When searching the hardware ID this shows up on google: www.magewell.com/static/tech-specs/USB_Capture/USBCaptureHDMIGen2EN.pdf
Yes, CRT adds a "beautify" filter... I was planning to show some CRT footage from my Samsung 755DFX 17 inch flat screen (the one on the thumbnail) but the built in VGA cable is broken and everything is yellowish now. For a while it worked correctly if I wiggled the cable... Not anymore.
Well, PCI-E Voodoo 2 is doable. Right now, you can use a PCI-E to PCI adapter and a Voodoo 2 will work on any modern configuration. In the same time is not practical with Voodoo 1... simply because V1 cards don't like high speed CPUs. After 1Ghz they will output some garbage on the screen and that's it. Even under 1Ghz there are some problems with 133Mhz FSB.
More surprised the fpga wasn't just pulling the still digital from before it reaches the DAC on the voodoo cards to work with. Granted, More annoyed and surprised that someone hasn't tried to emulate a Voodoo on a raspberry pi or fpga by now.
Not sure if I understand your comment, the FPGA taps into the digital bus between the FBI and the RAMDAC. If you were to remove the RAMDAC, assuming the FBI/TMUs would still be clocked, the HDMI output would function.
@@sdz-mods The description made it sound like the FPGA was taking the resulting analog video signal that would have gone out via the output VGA connector, presumably to a CRT monitor. _Most_ console HDMI mods usually try to intercept or tap into the digital signal _before_ it reaches the DAC so that it can have the cleanest, unfiltered source to work from and yield the bespoke output quality a modder implementing such would be trying for.
Grabbing analog signal was my assumption, I mean I would have done it this way since I'm more familiar with analog to digital conversion... I didn't ask Daniel (from sdz-mods) how the HDMI part was implemented.
There's no logical reason to do it that way. It's more likely to be a digital to digital converter - probably for creature comforts like better upscaling.
Which one? :) adjective: dense; comparative adjective: denser; superlative adjective: densest 1. closely compacted in substance. "as the storm cleared, a dense fog came down" 2. informal (of a person) stupid. "Am I being dense? I don't quite understand"
This card is so mythic it's still alive decades later.
I already ran Linux in 1998, playing Unreal with Wine with a Voodoo 1 and 233 MMX @ 290 MHz :)
Unreal is supposed to run better, with the usual tweaks like PCI_READ.
NICE. Would love to see a voodoo implemented on a FPGA sometime soon.
I don't this is possible with an FPGA chip, the result would be a "soft Voodoo" anyway.
@@roberto88958 In this case, I'd prefer that versus "no Voodoo" at all.
You don't seem to understand the difference between hardware and software.
@@miregoji2959 I'm sure I know what's the difference. My point is that you can't recreate on a FPGA the exact same circuits like on a real Voodoo chip - you have do some emulation.
@@roberto88958 In addition to an imperfect emulation of the graphic effects specific to the analog signals of a CRT, agree with you 3dfx original will always be better than in FPGA, we lose graphic effects in Descent for example, that we cannot have on a Geforce 1 to 4xxx ... The best is to use the latest 3dfx cards by dedicating certain tasks to the gpu's, the advantage of the 3dfx multigpu in its time (which has its limits to basic 2D and 3D).
I think it would be time to develop new 3D game cards with multi gpu's, in order to dedicate certain tasks, but for that it is necessary that the development of the games is in function to take advantage of them, compared to our current powerful single gpu, but whose architecture makes drops fps. Which was not the case for some arcade games of the time, which cannot be emulated identically, at least in their fluidity.
We also see on N64 games, which the new Mister is not able to emulate everything, I also think that it loses some graphic effects like the reflection in mario kart (to be confirmed during development). But for 3dfx cards with its multi gpu's it is even more complicated, it is also the case for the emulation of the Neo Geo AES and its 2 68000 processors (fpga not ready). These old hardwares are also better suited for low resolution.
HDMI output looks cleeeaaan
@@PixelPipes Yes, it is, especially considering what a cheap HDMI capture card was used...
You smoke poles, get out of there yankee punk
Pixel pipes is gay, get rid of him. He smokes poles
@@O_mores I mean, it's a digital signal, so technically it should look the same on any capture card or display (ignoring scaling methods). 😉
Cool video, btw.
@@THU31 Yes, it's digital but it not compressed. "The higher the resolution, color depth and frame rate, the more bits need to be transmitted until the maximum bandwidth is reached. Then, the only way to transmit more bits is to add more lanes to the cable or compress the signal." At 640x480 I think these tiny adapters are doing great... but try to capture a full HD resolution at 120FPS and things will get ugly. That's why some capture cards are very expensive.
Making new 3DFX Voodoo cards is so funny to me but I like it, legendary silicon.
I remember that ad, it still makes me laugh. 90s edgy advertising was something else.
You underestimate the use of 90s hardware in modern day. Most common in industrial and machining situations. A lot of machines still run on 90s tech. The mechanical parts were meant to last 40-50+ years while the computers controlling those machines die out much earlier
@@reecebower9934 Well, there are developing countries and fully developed countries like Japan or S. Korea. I think many software/hardware solutions achieved this status in the 90's. After some point the need to change a working platform is just marketing... :)
@@O_mores Japan just this year got rid of the use of floppy disks 😂😂😂
@@O_mores a "fully developed country" doesn't actually exist. It's equivalent to a utopia.
@@O_mores all the fancy bullet train systems ran off... yup! You guessed it. Floppy Disks! Among many other systems.
Nice video!
I'll investigate the HDMI capture card compatibility issue and post an updated bitstream.
I tested with around 5 different HDMI monitor models and an Elgato 4k60 Pro MK2 capture card, all worked fine.
Btw, the 2x TMU card is actually a 12MB card, just like the 12MB Voodoo2 cards.
The FPGA doesn't convert analog to digital, it is connected directly to the FBI->RAMDAC digital bus, and generates HDMI from that. It's digital to digital only.
i miss 3dfx
Too bad nVidia is not releasing a special Voodoo card since they own the brand.
These ads are gold
Yes, they are... I have one more to show, so I guess I'll make another 3dfx video. :)
This video made me happy
You missed one of the most fun games that was only either software or 3Dfx, Carmageddon.
"Carma" was one of my favorite games but it looks I don't have the "NO CD" version for the 3dfx executable. If you have it, please send me a link.
Also, Starsiege: Tribes.
Those cheapo HDMI capture devices are a godsend these days. Lower latency than an original Elgato for way less and with better output. And as you’ve seen they’ll take almost any input and spit out an image.
You can even use them on iPads to turn them into portable monitors!
Yes, indeed! These cheapo adapters are way better than expected, I have to dig in to check what hardware/chip is used.
I liked to have Carmageddon on my PC with Voodoo 2, then I got a Voodoo 5500 Agp. I still have them.
I still have it on my PC, but also on my phone. Check it out if have Android: play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.stainlessgames.carmageddon&hl=en
The Voodoo 1 with 2 TMUs and 8 mb should have a performance in between the standard 1 TMU Voodoo 1 and the Voodoo Banshee. In Quake 2 640x480 it should get around 40 fps.
With a faster CPU there will be more FPS, but on a Pentium 200MMX with a Voodoo 1 with 2 TMUs we get 40FPS in Quake 1 and 25FPS in Quake II. A Voodoo Banshee operates at 100Mhz/1600MB memory bandwidth vs 50Mhz/800MB, it's way better than a Voodoo 1. Actually Voodoo Banshee was slightly better than a Voodoo 2 in games that didn't use multi texturing.
Wow AMAZING!
So, 2x2 box filter is applied when outputting data to RAMDAC instead doing it at analog stage?
I believe so. However Daniel from sdz-mods : www.youtube.com/@sdz-mods is more qualified when it comes to 3dfx Voodoo technical details.
6:19 does this scanline cutscene problems from your HDMI port or from your capture card??
I never found this a thin line cutscene even with nGlide mod or even GOG version for RE1.
RE1 will switch back to 2D card to show the cut scenes. I know for sure since I didn't use a VGA pass through cable. The S3 Virge DX card that I used is outputting some analog garbage, more visible on certain resolutions and refresh rate.
The glory days of PC gaming
Thank you
Good stuff
I think there will be one more 3dfx Voodoo before I return the cards.
6:08 Did you user original vanilla disc or buy from GOG???
Original .ISO + Daemon Tools. To run DT in Windows 95 you need to install the USB supplement and IE 4+.
Are you used Xilinx ise or vivado to program Spartan 7 ?
You should ask Daniel from sdz-mods >> www.youtube.com/@sdz-mods
@@O_mores Thank you so much. Oh really cool. He have lot of fpga projects. 🤝
@@sumuduranathungahey! I used Vivado for this project.
Dat commercial tho...
what is HDA audio patch?
Windows 2000 and Windows XP received a High Definition Audio (HDA) patch to support newer audio hardware standards that were not initially compatible with these operating systems. This update, known as Microsoft Universal Audio Architecture (UAA) High Definition Audio Class Driver, was released to enable support for HD audio devices, which were becoming the industry standard at the time.
Patch Number: KB888111
Purpose: Adds support for high-definition audio (HDA) in Windows XP and Windows 2000, allowing the operating systems to work with newer audio hardware that used HD Audio instead of AC'97 audio codecs.
Release Context: The patch was especially important for systems with integrated audio on motherboards that required HD Audio functionality.
This patch is typically required before installing certain HD audio drivers from manufacturers like Realtek or Intel on these older operating systems.
@O_mores for nvedia
@O_mores for nvedia
@O_mores If I use hda audio patch will it enable nvedia hdmi hd audio
If you did this with a Banshee could you just bypass the DAC altogether and pipe it direct to the HDMI transmitter inputs? Or was the DAC embedded in a chip?
Actually this is the way it was done - the FPGA chip steals signal from the FBI chip. Analog to digital was my assumption..., but Daniel from sdz-mods.com made it all clear here in the comments section.
actually, its great for capturing as decent VGA capture devices are expensive,
but what I noticed it that when I plug in my Voodoo into my 28" Asus I get a clean picture as well.
I see it only a matter of the scaling, if the hdmi chip has an integrated scaler to use verious scaling methods then I can really see the benefits of these custom cards.
Otherwise, just use a decent vga monitor on a regular voodoo.
I agree, the HDMI is more like a gimmick, unless if you have only one big gaming monitor with DP/HDMI ports. In this scenario it's better to get HDMI signal from your Voodoo rather than using a VGA to HDMI converter. I have two such converters and they are rather bad: one is outputting some analog garbage, and the other one has better image quality but is getting very hot.
@@O_mores it's not a gimmick, the HDMI signal from the card on an LCD screen is just perfect, with no loss whatsoever. Many LCD monitors have crap VGA input, and even the good ones aren't perfect, and they can never be. VGA signal was intended for CRTs, not LCDs. It doesn't carry any resolution information, it's just an analogue waveform, there will always be some "guesswork" and quality lost when displaying it on an LCD panel.
What do happened on 3DFX why do they stop?
Well, some bad business moves and competition killed 3dfx. First 3dfx wanted a business model like Apple - to produce and sell their own hardware. For this they acquired STB and and they made their own cards by late 1998. By doing this many Taiwanese producers like MSI, Asus, Gainward etc. sold more nVidia cards instead, this diminished 3dfx market share and they were eventually bought by nVidia.
Does it support 512x384? Common resolution used back then for higher frame rate. Might have made Unreal and Half Life more playable
512x384 it's not a standard HDMI resolution.(every resolution has a predefined ID code) Even if the card is sending signal - the HDMI receiver (monitor or capture card) in most cases won't be able to handle it. Daniel from sdz-mods.com told me that 512x384 might work with some capture devices that are more tolerant... I guess the solution is to convert on the fly 512x384 to 640x480 using the FPGA logic.
@@O_mores 1024x768 with pixel doubling would make more sense and be more authentic.
@@thedopplereffect00 Yes, indeed. This is how my Epiphan capture card deals with resolutions like 320x240, 400x300, 512x384.
The captured video here is ruined by compression artifacts and chroma subsampling. Capture card is probably doing MJPEG
Yes, and depending on the Chip there is a HW audio bug according to Marcan.
Still, for that price its a no brainer.
According to HWiNFO the chip is produced by MacroSilicon Technology with the following Hardware ID: USB\VID_534D&PID_2109 | When searching the hardware ID this shows up on google: www.magewell.com/static/tech-specs/USB_Capture/USBCaptureHDMIGen2EN.pdf
CRT only!
Modern screen type - not true! 😉
Yes, CRT adds a "beautify" filter... I was planning to show some CRT footage from my Samsung 755DFX 17 inch flat screen (the one on the thumbnail) but the built in VGA cable is broken and everything is yellowish now. For a while it worked correctly if I wiggled the cable... Not anymore.
2024.. newest GPU.. a old voodoo4400 with HDMI....... windows98users losing there mind
Hit kill on Re1 lol
2:37 we used to be a proper country
I watched that part a couple of time and I still don't get it... :)
next step: PCI-E Voodoo 1 and 2
Well, PCI-E Voodoo 2 is doable. Right now, you can use a PCI-E to PCI adapter and a Voodoo 2 will work on any modern configuration. In the same time is not practical with Voodoo 1... simply because V1 cards don't like high speed CPUs. After 1Ghz they will output some garbage on the screen and that's it. Even under 1Ghz there are some problems with 133Mhz FSB.
More surprised the fpga wasn't just pulling the still digital from before it reaches the DAC on the voodoo cards to work with.
Granted, More annoyed and surprised that someone hasn't tried to emulate a Voodoo on a raspberry pi or fpga by now.
Not sure if I understand your comment, the FPGA taps into the digital bus between the FBI and the RAMDAC. If you were to remove the RAMDAC, assuming the FBI/TMUs would still be clocked, the HDMI output would function.
@@sdz-mods The description made it sound like the FPGA was taking the resulting analog video signal that would have gone out via the output VGA connector, presumably to a CRT monitor.
_Most_ console HDMI mods usually try to intercept or tap into the digital signal _before_ it reaches the DAC so that it can have the cleanest, unfiltered source to work from and yield the bespoke output quality a modder implementing such would be trying for.
Grabbing analog signal was my assumption, I mean I would have done it this way since I'm more familiar with analog to digital conversion... I didn't ask Daniel (from sdz-mods) how the HDMI part was implemented.
There's no logical reason to do it that way. It's more likely to be a digital to digital converter - probably for creature comforts like better upscaling.
Dense video card !
Which one? :)
adjective: dense; comparative adjective: denser; superlative adjective: densest
1. closely compacted in substance.
"as the storm cleared, a dense fog came down"
2. informal (of a person) stupid.
"Am I being dense? I don't quite understand"
Maybe there will be a chance, this graphics card kingdom needs to be destroyed
3dfx was acquired and terminated by nVidia in late 2000 so it was indeed destroyed...