3Dfx Voodoo Graphics
The 3Dfx Voodoo Graphics, launched in 1996, was one of the first [if not the first] dedicated consumer 3D-only graphics card. It required a separate 2D VGA card to connect to.
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Released | 1996 |
| Bus | PCI | |
| Chipset | 3Dfx SST-1 | |
| Core Clock | 50 MHz | |
| Memory | 4 MB or 6 MB EDO RAM (2 x 64-bit) | |
| Ports | 2 x 15-pin DSUB (VGA card input and RGB analogue out) | |
| Part # | - | |
| FCC ID | - | |
| Price | Feb 1997: $299 | |
| See Also | Voodoo 2 |
3Dfx' first 3D accelerator card, the Voodoo Graphics, comprised a DAC (digital-to-analogue converter), a frame buffer processor (FBI), a texture mapping unit (TMU), and 4 MB or 6 MB of EDO RAM. 2 MB of this was used as a frame buffer, and 2 MB for texture storage (4 MB on 6 MB cards). Memory ran at the same as the core - 50 MHz, producing up to 400 Mb/sec bandwidth and pushing 50 megapixels/second. Cards with 6 MB still only ran games at a maximum resolution of 640 x 480 but if they had lots of large textures they ran much smoother than those with just 4 MB.
The design goal behind the original Voodoo Graphics was to provide smooth gameplay at a resolution of 640 x 480 with bilinear-filtered textures. The 2 MB frame buffer was good enough for triple-buffered 640 x 480 x 16-bit colour depth, and with proprietary texture compression (roughly a 3:1 reduction in size), this allowed for many more textures to be stored and reduced bandwidth limitations that would otherwise have been an issue.
A pass-through VGA cable was daisy-chained from the 2D graphics card in your PC to the Voodoo, and the Voodoo was then connected to the monitor. The card (and its device driver) would detect if 3D graphics were to be processed and engage if so, otherwise 2D operations would simply be passed through directly to the monitor.
The Voodoo's colour writes and Z-buffer are limited to 16-bit, but sensitive alpha blending is performed at 24-bit precision. Interestingly, the Voodoo's lowest supported resolution is 512 x 384, so there's no option to run 3D games in 320 x 200. This makes sense, as by 1996 the vast majority of games had switched to running in 640 x 400 or 640 x 480 as a minimum.
At the time, 3Dfx did not manufacture their own cards - they sold their 3D chipset to video card manufacturers for use in their own. The first manufacturer to create a card based on the Voodoo Graphics chipset was Diamond Multimedia, with the launch of the Monster 3D - a 4 MB card. The Canopus Pure3D is unique in that it's a 6 MB card but also has a TV Out, enabling you to run your 3D games from a TV in addition to your monitor!
The SST-1 chipset was produced using a 0.5 micron manufacturing process. Some card manufacturers implemented passive cooling (a heatsink) on top of this chip, but most did not bother.
Here's a list of known producers of Voodoo Graphics cards:
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Most of these came with an amazing game bundle to entice prospective buyers. For example, the Diamond Monster 3D came with Activision's MechWarrior 2 and Hyperblade, Criterion Studio's Scorched Planet (trial version), Eidos Interactive's Tomb Raider (trial version), Interplay's Descent II: Destination Quartzon, VR Soccer '96 and Whiplash; and Ocean's EF2000; plus Microsoft's Game Sampler 2 featuring Hellbender and Monster Truck Madness.
Board Revisions
Click on one of the links above to get more detail on the specific card you are looking at.
Competition
Competition for the 3Dfx Voodoo Graphics arrived a whole year later in 1997 with nVidia's launch of the Riva 128. This performed 10% better in Direct 3D, but slightly worse in OpenGL. On a system with a very powerful CPU and using one of these open APIs, the Riva 128 was about 25% faster than the Voodoo Graphics.
Performance
I have the following performance figures for the Voodoo Graphics card, running 3DMark 99 Max in 800 x 600 x 16-bit colour with triple buffering:
| 3D Marks | 3D CPU Marks | |
| 3dfx Voodoo 1 4 MB, Pentium 133 MHz | 728 | 998 |
| 3dfx Voodoo 1 4 MB (Diamond Monster 3D), Pentium 166 MMX | 824 | 1125 |
| 3dfx Voodoo 1 4 MB (Diamond Monster 3D), Pentium Pro 180 MHz | 1205 | 1820 |
In the Media
PC Magazine, December 1996
Setting it Up
If no current drivers installed:
1) Start Windows 95
2) Copy the Voodoo Graphics Direct3D drivers you extracted to a floppy. (This will make installation easier for a new device.)
3) Power off System and install your Voodoo Graphics 3D Based
Accelerator into a PCI slot. (Users with PCI to PCI bridges, should
install on a primary PCI Slot)
4) Restart Windows 95 after hardware installation.
5) Windows 95 will detect a "PCI Multimedia Device", you need to:
Windows 95 Standard Release users: Select "Use Driver from Mfr" and click OK
Windows 95 OEM SR2 users: Click the Next Button on the
Detection Dialog Box
6) Insert the installation floppy you created in step 2 in the A: drive
and point the driver location to A:\ then click OK
(OEM SR2 users, just click Next)
7) You MAY then be prompted to insert the "DirectX Drivers for Voodoo
Based 3D Accelerator" Disk. Enter A:\ and press OK.
If existing drivers installed or PCI Multimedia Device shown in Device Mgr:
1) Start Windows 95 and open Device Manager (Control Panel, System)
2) Locate the existing reference to the card it will be listed as:
Obsidian Card: Other Devices / PCI Multimedia Device or
Multimedia / Voodoo Based 3D Accelerator
Diamond Monster 3D: Multimedia / Monster 3D
Orchid Righteous 3D: Sound, Video and Game Contrl / Righteous 3D
3) Double Click on the card, then click the driver Tab
4) Click Change Driver and choose Have Disk.
5) Point to the location you extracted the Voodoo Graphics Direct3D
drivers to and click OK.
6) Select Voodoo Graphics Accelerator from the List and click OK. Click OK again to save changes in Device Manager.
7) You MAY then be prompted to insert the "DirectX Drivers for Voodoo
Based 3D Accelerator" Disk. Again, point to the path you extracted
the files to and press OK.
It is recommended to install the correct version of DirectX after you install the card's drivers.
Downloads
Where possible, it is best to use the drivers from your card's manufacturer. Failing that, use the 3Dfx Reference Drivers. The latest official driver version for the 3Dfx Voodoo Graphics is v3.01.
Operation Manual Get in touch if you can provide this missing item! |
Voodoo Windows 9x Drivers 3Dfx Reference Drivers for Windows 95. Direct3D only. |
Voodoo Windows 9x Drivers 3Dfx Reference Drivers for Windows 95. Direct3D only. |
Voodoo Windows 9x Drivers 3Dfx Reference Drivers for DOS, Windows 95/98. DirectX 5 only. |
Voodoo Windows 9x Drivers 3Dfx Reference Drivers for DOS, Windows 95/98. DirectX 5 only. |
Voodoo Windows 9x Drivers 3Dfx Reference Drivers for DOS, Windows 95/98. DirectX 5 only. |
Diamond Monster 3D Drivers For DOS, Windows 95/98. DirectX 3 only. |
Diamond Monster 3D CD-ROM For DOS, Windows 95/98. DirectX 3 only. |
Diamond Monster 3D Drivers For DOS, Windows 95/98. DirectX 5 only. |
Diamond Monster 3D Drivers For DOS, Windows 95/98. DirectX 5. |
Orchid Righteous 3D Drivers For DOS, Windows 95/98. DirectX 5. |
Canopus Pure3D CD-ROM For DOS, Windows 95/98. DirectX 5 only. |
Guillemot Maxi Gamer 3D For DOS, Windows 95/98. DirectX 5 only. |
IceMan Windows 9x (3rd-party) Supports Windows 95/98. |
More Pictures
ColorMax VP-503 (4 MB)
Diamond Monster 3D (4 MB)
Guillemot MaxiGamer 3D (4 MB)
InnoVision Cyber 3DX5000TV (4 MB)
miro HiScore3D (6 MB)
Skywell Magic 3D (4 MB)
