A GUIDE TO USING 

ATI RADEONTM GRAPHICS BOARDS FOR HTPCs

Updated 21 January 2002

Background

ATI Technologies Inc.  is one of the largest manufactures of video graphics cards for PCs.  In 2000 they introduced a product line based on their new Radeon graphics processor chip.  ATI followed up their initial Radeon offering with second Radeon video cards in mid-2001.  They offer conventional graphics cards with just a VGA monitor output connection as well as versions with video input and output connectors and their popular series of All-in-Wonder (AWI) cards with onboard TV tuners plus video input and output connectors.  Some models also support a addition output for digital displays using a DVI interface.  A number of PC manufactures (e.g., IBM, Gateway, etc.)  are including Radeon graphics cards with certain of their PCs. Many people considering using a PC as part of a Home Theater system are drawn to ATI's claims that the Radeon based cards offer the best quality DVD playback available.  This web page is focused on advising HTPC builders on the pluses and minus of using Radeon graphics cards in their HTPC and providing advice on how to overcome some of the limitations of the ATI supplied software. 

There are several series of cards offered based on the Radeon Graphics Processor Unit (GPU).  Of the first generation ATI Radeon products there are currently 6 different cards available.

ATI has now released a 2nd generation of Radeon graphic cards.  

An updated version of the ATI DVD Player and the ATI Multi-Media Center (MMC) software has been released for the 2nd generation cards and for use with Windows XP.  The ATI DVD player is based on the Cinemaster DVD player software.  The current ATI DVD Player and ATI MMC software varies depending on which card and which version of Windows you are using.  As of January 2002 the current versions are:

Current versions of the Radeon drivers can be download from ATI by clicking here.  All of the Radeon models listed above except the Radeon LE are part of ATI's regular retail product line.  The Radeon LE is only an OEM product and is not part of the ATI retail product line.  The LE model appears to no longer be available.  Most of the other ATI models are available both in retail versions and also at lower cost in OEM versions.  The ATI lowest cost retail first generation model is the Radeon VE series.  However, the Radeon VE has reduced capabilities as compared to the other Radeon models and HTPC builders are well advised to not use the Radeon VE as it has both lower graphics performance and less flexibility for setting custom resolutions (as frequently needed for home theater PC setups).  

With the induction of the 2nd generation Radeon graphics cards there are now a wide range of both first generation and second generation cards available.  A popular discount source for ATI cards is newegg.com.  They are currently offering a OEM version of the Radeon 7000 for about $45 or a first generation Radeon 32MB DDR for less than $60.    

The following information and recommendations apply only to the ATI AWI, DDR and LE versions of the first generation Radeon graphics cards and version 4.1 of the ATI DVD Player software.  The setup for the Radeon 7000 and 8000 series cards may be different and the new generation of the DVD Player software may not require the same manual tweaks to the Windows Registry as required with version 4.1.

HTPC users have found the Radeon hardware to be very well suited for DVD playback and other HTPC applications, such as serving as a line multiplier.  However, the ATI windows drivers for the Radeon and the supplied ATI DVD player software (version 4.1) have serious limitations that must be addressed by any HTPC builder/owner.  The following sections separately address:

(1)  the installation, setup and configuration of the Radeon graphics card and the associated Windows drivers; and

(2) the setup and use of the ATI DVD Player software

You should first complete the installation, setup and configuration of the Radeon graphic card before proceeding with the installation and setup of the ATI DVD Player software.

 

Installation and Setup of the ATI RadeonTM Graphics Card

Before beginning the installation of your new ATI Radeon card you will need to get on the web and click this link to visit the ATI web site where you can select the ATI Graphics board you will be using, then select to download the drivers and finally which operating system your HTPC is using.  If you have purchased the LE version then use the same drivers as for the Radeon 32MB DDR board.  Download the driver to your hard drive, or onto a CD-R.  You will also need to update your HTPC with the latest version of Microsoft's DirectX.  You should install latest version of Microsoft DirectX (currently 8.1) that is either provided on the ATI Radeon driver CD-ROM or downloaded from the Microsoft web site.  

If you are upgrading your existing Windows 98/ME/2000/XP based HTPC, before you shut down your PC go to: My Computer>>Control Panel>>System>>Device Manager>>Display Adapters  and then high-light the name of your currently installed AGP adapter then click on remove.  Next shut down your PC and get ready install you new ATI Radeon card.

The mechanical installation of a Radeon Graphics card in your HTPC is the same as for other graphics cards using the AGP (Advanced Graphic Port) socket.  Follow this link to ZDnet for general advice on the installing a AGP graphics card.

After completing the mechanical installation of the Radeon card, power up you PC and follow the Windows driver installation process provided with your ATI graphics card except you will be using the updated Windows driver you downloaded by the ATI web site.  You will then need to install the latest version DirectX software you have downloaded from Microsoft.

Latest Official/Certified Drivers for All Radeon Cards are available for download from the ATI web site by clicking here.

You should download the drivers that apply to your version of Windows you specific Radeo card.  You should also download and print out any Release Notes and Driver Notes that are listed on the ATI download page. You should read these notes before installing the new drivers. The following is provided as a generic process for installing the Windows drivers for your Radeon graphics card.

If upgrading from an earlier Windows driver for your Radeon simply download the updated driver then run the installation program you have downloaded. For example, if you have downloaded the file: WME_RADEON_4_13_7075.exe onto your hard drive then:

If you re have installed a new Radeon graphics card, you should have already downloaded the latest Windows drivers from the ATI web site and stored these drivers on your hard drive before having installed the Radeon graphics card. When booting up for the first time after installing the Radeon graphics card, Windows will detect the new hardware and may prompt you to located the drivers. For now skip or cancel the installation of the new drivers and let Windows continue to boot up with the default basic VGA driver. After the PC boots up run the Radeon Windows driver installation program that you previously downloaded using the steps described above.

Configuring Windows for the ATI RadeonTM Graphics Card

The default setting that ATI has build into their Windows installation program for the Radeon graphics cards is suitable for a typical PC configuration, but does not provide the flexibility to support the needs of a Home Theater PC. ATI has elected to not provide the user access to the full capabilities of the Radeon hardware. However, the user can gain access to these additional features of the Radeon hardware by editing the Windows registry entries made by the ATI installation program.

One critical shortcoming the Radeon graphics cards has been their lack of support for custom display timings (e.g., refresh rates) resolutions (T&Rs). Before we discuss how to overcome this limitation of the Radeon graphics cards, some background on why a HTPC needs the increased flexibility to support custom values for display timings and resolutions. HTPC applications require support for other than standard PC display resolutions and refresh rates in order to achieve optimum, and in some case even usable, video output to your TV monitor/projector. As an example, the native resolution recorded on DVD’s is 720 pixels horizontal by 480 pixels vertical. The nearest standard display resolution in the world of PCs is 640 X 480. Using this PC standard VGA resolution for displaying DVD video would result in a need to scale the video in the horizontal direction (essentially discard some pixels). This will degrade the video image to some degree. To further complicate matters DVD’s also support an anamorphic widescreen mode where the 720 X 480 resolution is provided on the DVD but the displayed aspect ratio is changed to 16 X 9 (i.e., on a widescreen TV monitor/projector). In order to maintain a square shape for each pixel the HTPC would ideally scale the output account for the 16 X 9 ratio of the image. For example, if the vertical resolution were to be displayed at 480 lines then a horizontal resolution of 856 pixels would be suitable. The resulting 856 X 480 resolution is far removed from and standard values used for conventional PC applications. Certain types of TV monitors/projectors used for home theaters provide great flexibility at supporting a very wide range of resolutions and refresh rates. In particular many data and graphics grade CRT based front projectors offer such capabilities. Such display devices can benefit from having the HTPC scale the resolution upward to take full advantage of the capabilities of their display. For example, a resolution of 1280 X 720 works well with many front projectors when displaying widescreen movies. Again this is not a standard PC display resolution value. At the other extreme some types of TV monitors/projectors support only a single display resolution and refresh rate. For example, many consumer HDTV monitors/projectors offer HDTV component or RGB inputs will only accept a vertical refresh rate and a horizontal scan rate that corresponds to a 1080i HDTV signal. Constraining a HDTV set to a single set of scanning rates simplifies the design and keeps the cost of the product down. A HTPC connected to such a TV monitor/projector will need to support the exact resolutions and scanning rates that it requires In the general sense an ideal HTPC should be able to support all of the types of TV monitors/projectors and output the video images in the optimum format for that specific device. For the individual building a HTPC you will need to know the capabilities and requirements of you specific TV monitor/projector. The goal of this article is to allow you the flexibility to configure your Radeon equipped HTPC to provide the flexibility to support any type of TV monitor/projector that you select. Two alternatives are described below. First it is possible to modify the Windows registry to allow certain additional resolutions and refresh rates to be accessable when using the ATI supplied drivers. The second, and far more powerful alternative is to use PowerStrip v3.0 software which allows you to define the specific resolutions and refresh timings that are optimum to your specific TV monitor/projector.

Unlocking Additional Display Resolutions by Windows Registry Modifications

The Radeon hardware and the ATI Windows driver are capable of supporting an extensive combination of display resolutions and refresh rates. However, the ATI installation software for the Radeon blocks out quite a number of these resolutions and refresh rates. As a result when you click on monitor settings many of the rates supported by the Radeon hardware/driver to do appear, nor can be selected, by the user. The additional resolutions supported by the Radeon hardware/driver can be unblocked by editing the Windows registry.

Note that the additional display resolutions cannot be accessed if you are still using an early version of the ATI Windows drivers. Therefore, download (from the link provided above) and install the latest version of the Windows drivers before attempting the following procedure. Also, be warned that you must be very careful when manually editing the Windows registry as it is possible to yield Windows unusable. If you have no experience with editing the Windows registry you would be well advised to seek the advise of someone who has experience with this. Click this link to download a general guide to working with the Windows registry. You should backup your HTPC’s Windows registry before making any changes (with Windows 98 and Windows Me you can do this from Start>>Accessories>>System Tools>>System Information>>Tools>>Registry Checker). A utility program is provided by Microsoft with Windows for editing the registry. This utility program (ie., regedit.exe) is installed as part of your normal Windows installation and it can be found in the C:/Windows folder on your PC. You can run this program by selecting: Start>>Run>>Browse -- then locate and highlight the file regedit.exe and select Open.

In addition to the standard set of resolutions and refresh rates that are installed by the ATI installation program, the Radeon hardware and the more recent ATI Windows drivers are capable supporting the following additional settings:

704x480 @ 60 Hz
720x400 @ 70, 75, 85, 160, 200 Hz
720x480 @ 59.94, 60, 72, 75, 85, 90, 100 Hz
720x576 @ 59.94, 60, 75, 100 Hz
848x480 @ 60, 75, 88 Hz
856x480 @ 60 Hz
864x480 @ 60, 75 Hz
960x720 @ 60 Hz
1024x600 @ 60 Hz
1072x600 @ 60 Hz
1280x720 @ 59.94, 60, 75, 85 Hz
1280x768 @ 56, 60, 75, 85 Hz
1280x800 @ 60, 85, 100, 160, 200 Hz
1280x960 @ 60, 70, 72, 75, 85, 100, 120, 160, 200 Hz
1360x768 @ 62 Hz
1400x1050 @ 60 Hz
1536x864 @ 60, 85, 100, 120, 160 Hz
1600x900 @ 60, 75, 85, 100, 120, 160 Hz
1600x1000 @ 60, 75, 85, 100, 120, 160 Hz
1600x1024 @ 76 Hz
1600x1280 @ 86.52 Hz
1856x1392 @ 60, 72, 75, 90, 100 Hz
2048x1152 @ 60, 75, 85, 100 Hz
2048x1280 @ 60, 70, 75, 85, 90, 100 Hz

WARNING: Before attempting to edit the Windows registry to enable any of these additional resolutions and refresh rates you will need to know which of these your TV monitor/projector can support. You should not attempt to enable or use a resolution/refresh rate combination not supported by your TV monitor/projector as this could cause damage.

To edit the Windows registry, run the regedit.exe program then go to the section listed below (note the difference for Windows 98/Me/XP vs. Windows 2000:

For Windows 98, Windows ME or Windows XP:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\ATI Technologies\Driver

For Windows 2000:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\ati2mtxx\DeviceN

 

You should find one or more numbered (4 digits such as 0000 or 0001) sub-folders. Locate within one of these numbered sub-folders another sub-folder labeled \DAL. Within the DAL folder will be the key titled:

DALNonStandardModesBCD

The format of value associated with this key is a number of entries that enable any the non-standard display resolution/refresh modes listed above. The data is formatted as follows

HH HH VV VV CC CC RR RR

where:


HH HH represents horizontal resolution
VV VV represents vertical resolution
CC CC represents color depth (use 00 00 to enable all standard color depths)
RR RR represents vertical refresh rate (use 00 00 to enble all std. refresh rates)

For example, to enable 1920 X 1080 resolution for all color depths and at a vertical refresh rate of 70Hz: you will need to create a new value for DALNonStandardModesBCD of:

19 20 10 80 00 00 00 70.

As a second example to enable 1280 X 720 resolution at 16-bit color depth and at a vertical refresh rate of 60 Hz you would create a new value of:

12 80 07 20 00 16 00 60

Any new resolution and refresh rate you enable by changes made to the Windows registry will not take effect until you exit regedit.exe and then reboot your PC. The new resolution should then be available under display settings. However, some Radeon users have reported that even with the changes to the Windows registry the additional resolutions are not available. At his point it is not clear why this seems to work for some PC and Windows configurations and not others.

Using PowerStipTM Version 3.1 for Display Control

Click this link for our brief overview on the use of PowerStrip version 3.1 to create custom refresh timing and display resolutions. The following sections discuss the use of PowerStrip v3.1 for three different categories of TV monitors/projectors.  While the Radeon drivers limits the specific resolutions that PowerStrip v3.1 can successfully set, PowerStrip v3.1 does provide extra flexibility to tweak the refresh rates and other timing values.

Using PowerStripTM Version 3.1 with a Fixed Scan Rate HDTV

If you are using a typical consumer HDTV direct view CRT monitor or a HDTV rear projector in your home theater, then it is most likely only capable of supporting a single fixed vertical and horizontal scanning rates via it HDTV component or RGB input. This corresponds to the scanning rate for the 1080i HDTV format. Many HDTV sets are designed to only work with a HDTV set top receiver box that converts all TV video formats to 1080i (or in some cases to 540p for non-HDTV program sources). Both 1080i and 540p use a vertical sync. rate of 60 Hz and a horizontal scanning frequency of approximately 34 KHz (actually closer to 33.75 KHz). With such as HDTV monitor/projector you will need to keep both the vertical and horizontal scan rates very close to these values for all resolutions you allow your HTPC to output to your HDTV monitor/projector. The following information is provided to allow you to set up several custom resolutions that conform these constraints on scanning rates while providing significant flexibility to select the resolutions best suited to your particular monitor/projector and to the type of video sources you are using.

[The following Custom Resolution information provided by Wayne Harrelson]

PowerStrip Version 3.1 stores all of the custom resolutions you define in the file: pstrip.ini. You can use Windows Explorer to locate this file and then use Notepad to edit it’s contents. Copy the timing strings listed below into the pstrip.ini file under "custom resolutions". If you find no "custom resolution" header in the pstrip.ini file, simply add a pre-defined resolution first, and the header will be created for you. Then, run PowerStrip and click on: Display Profiles>>Configure>>Advanced timings>>Custom Resolutions>>User Defined. Next highlight the custom resolution you desire and then click on "ADD". Powerstrip will tell you if the display driver has accepted the new resolution (may require your PC to restart in order to determine if the new resolution can be accepted). If the new resolution is accepted, and after your PC has restarted, you can switch to the new resolution from PowerStrip’s "Display profiles" pop-up menu. Exit to the advanced timings screen and adjust as needed. Different HDTV sets may require slightly different timing settings to correctly size and center the image. Common first time tweaks include positioning and adjusting the horizontal scan rate. Remember to use your new custom timing and resolution, make sure PowerStrip v3 is active in the system tray.


640x480p (HDTV, ATI)=640,133,80,107,480,28,1,54,32250,336
856x484p (HDTV, ATI)=856,98,72,94,484,26,1,52,37575,336
960x540p (HDTV, ATI)=960,20,40,92,540,7,1,15,37350,336
800x600i (HDTV, ATI)=800,293,56,315,600,232,1,292,49050,344
1024x768i (HDTV, ATI)=1024,181,56,203,768,148,1,208,49050,344
1152x864i (HDTV, ATI)=1152,199,112,209,864,92,1,168,56025,9
1280x960i (HDTV, ATI)=1280,135,112,145,960,44,1,120,56025,344
1600x924i (HDTV, ATI)=1600,174,64,266,924,76,1,128,70650,344
1706x960i (HDTV, ATI, 16x9 Fullscreen)=1706,168,56,270,960,52,31,82,73800,9
1920x1080i (HDTV, ATI)=1920,68,56,156,1080,22,1,22,73800,344


Notes:


1. The interlaced resolutions work for the video overlay and the desktop, but not for games at this time. Hopefully a fix will happen in the future.

2. 856x484p is a 540p based timing to help reduce overscan. No virtual desktop, no side scrolling enabled

3. 1706x960i is a perfect 16x9 fullscreen window for anamorphic DVDs with very little overscan. Great for running the ATI DVD player (or any software DVD player) in fullscreen mode.

4. As always, test these timings on your PC monitor first, then try connecting to your HDTV.

Using PowerStrip Version 3.1 with a Multi-Scan Rate HDTV

Virtually all data and graphics grade CRT-based front projectors will support a very wide range of timing and resolution settings. When using your Radeon equipped HTPC with such a video projector PowerStrip v3 provides a means to truly optimize the HTPC’s video output to the characteristics of the projector. Because of the wildly varying range of scanning capabilities and resolutions supported by such projectors there cannot be one set of timings and resolutions that are ideal in all cases. To set up PowerStrip v3 for use with such a multi-scan projector you will first need to enter the maximum scanning rates and resolutions of your projector under the PowerStrip Options>>Monitor information panel. You will then need to select and/or define the resolutions you want to use with you projector. From the PowerStrip v3 pop-up menu select: : Display Profiles>>Configure>>Advanced timings>>Custom Resolutions options>>User Defined. There you will find a number of predefined resolutions that are useful for this application. You can also create user-defined resolutions that are optimized for your specific monitor/projector and the type of source material you plan on providing via your HTPC. All of the predefined progressive scan resolutions use a vertical refresh rate of 60 Hz. However, for the playback of DVD’s a better choice would be 72 Hz. The higher refresh rate is desirable because film-based source material (ie., movies) are actually recorded on DVDs at 24 frames per second. As a result the ideal vertical refresh rate to display such DVDs is to use an exact multiple of 24 Hz. The value of 72 Hz is normally high enough to eliminate any noticeable flicker in the picture. You can create a set of suitable resolutions with a 72 Hz vertical refresh rate by starting with the predefined setting and simply increasing the vertical refresh rate to 72 Hz. You should attempt to keep the vertical refresh rate between 69.9 Hz and 70.0 Hz. in this case. Assuming your particular projector will support a vertical refresh rate of 72 Hz as well as the resulting horizontal refresh rate, I would suggest you create user defined resolutions optimized for the widescreen display of anamorphic (i.e., widescreen) DVDs at 72 Hz for the following cases:

The 1920 X 1080p @ 72Hz setting would be most useful for high-end CRT projectors using 8 or 9 inch projection tubes and supporting the required horizontal scanning rate. The two lower resolutions would be applicable to any CRT projectors using 7 inch or larger projection tubes and supporting the required horizontal scanning rates. Never attempt to select a combination of settings that produces a horizontal scanning rate that exceeds what your TV monitor/projector is specified to support as damage to the unit could result.

 

Using PowerStripTM Version 3.1 with a Fixed Resolution Monitors or Projectors

This category of monitors and projectors includes any video display device that has a fixed number of vertical and horizontal pixels. This currently includes all flat panel Plasma displays, and projectors using LCD, DLP or DILA technology. With such displays the optimum video output from you HTPC will normally be to exactly match the vertical and horizontal resolutions with the characteristics of your particular monitor/projector. Some such fixed resolution monitors/projectors will accept a range of scanning rates and you will want to use PowerStrip v3 to create custom settings whose timing are optimized to the source material and for the characteristics of the display. PowerStrip v3 includes several predefined custom timing and resolutions intended for use with fixed resolution monitor/projectors. Currently these include:

DILA – 1360 x 1024p @ 72 Hz

DILA – 1360 x 768p @ 72 Hz

DILA – 1360 x 580p @ 72 Hz

Plasma – 1280 x 768p @ 56 Hz

LCD – 1280 x 720p @ 60 Hz (widescreen)

LCD – 1368 x 668p @ 60 Hz (widescreen)

LCD – 1184 x 666p @ 60 Hz (widescreen)

DLP Projectors

Projection TVs using Texas Instrument’s DLP technology come in several resolutions. At the heart of all DLP projectors is a Digital Micro-mirror Device (DMD). Currently the DLP front projectors from the various manufactures support one of the following native resolutions:

All of the DLP HDTV one-piece rear projectors from Hitachi, Panasonic and Mitsubishi use the new widescreen DMD chips that offer 1280 x 720 native resolution.  Also several new front projectors from companies such as Sharp are also using the 1280 x 720 resolution DMD chip for their top-of-the-line DLP projector.

Virtually all DLP projectors sold for home theater use will scale various standard computer and at least some DTV standard input signal formats (e.g., VGA, SVGA, 480p, 720p, etc.) to the projectors native resolution for display. Rather than relying on the projector to do this scaling superior results are usually obtained by have the HTPC output the video in the projector’s native resolution (or a value close to it). PowerStrip v3.1 can be used to define the custom resolution that works best with your particular projector. Virtually all LCD projectors can accept a 60 Hz vertical refresh rate. When using a higher refresh rate you may need to make adjustments to the LCD projector’s tracking or phase control.

D-ILA Projectors

All Direct-Drive Image Light Amplifier (D-ILA) projectors are manufactured by JVC. Currently JVC offers front and rear projection TV using D-ILA devices that support the following native resolutions:

Virtually all D-ILA projectors sold for home theater use will scale various standard computer and at least some DTV standard input signal formats (e.g., VGA, SVGA, 480p, 720p, etc.) to the projectors native resolution for display. Rather than relying on the projector to do this scaling superior results are usually obtained by have the HTPC output the video in the projector’s native resolution (or a value close to it). PowerStrip v3 can be used to define the custom resolution that works best with your particular projector.

When creating custom resolution and refresh rates with a D-ILA it may be necessary to adjust the projector’s tracking and phase. Click on this link for a discussion on this topic on the AVS Forum.

Dilard make as software package ($350) specifically for use with JVC D-ILA projectors for optimizing the HTPC's output for the projector's fixed resolution.

LCD Projectors

LCD technology have dominated the market for portable presentation projectors. However, DLP projectors have begun to gain a considerable market position over the past couple of years. LCD projectors first entered the home theater market nearly a decade ago thanks to Sharp. More recently most manufacturers of presentation projectors for the business market have also given some consideration to the home market as well. Some manufactures have also introduced one-piece LCD rear projectors aimed specifically for the home market. The large number of manufactures, any discussion on LCD projectors would be less than comprehensive. As a generalization, most current LCD projectors are based on one of the common computer display resolutions. Specifically:

However, Sony is the first manufacturer to market a widescreen LCD projector aimed at the home theater market. This Sony LCD projector has a native resolution of:

Virtually all LCD projectors sold for home theater use will scale various standard computer and at least some DTV standard input signal formats (e.g., VGA, SVGA, 480p, 720p, etc.) to the projectors native resolution for display. Rather than relying on the projector to do this scaling, superior results are usually obtained by have the HTPC output the video in the projector’s native resolution (or a value close to it). PowerStrip v3 can be used to define the custom resolution that works best with your particular projector. Virtually all LCD projectors can accept a 60 Hz vertical refresh rate. When using a higher refresh rate you may need to make adjustments to the LCD projector’s tracking or phase control.

Use of YXY Software for Aspect Ratio Control

Another useful addition to the HTPC’s of many home theater owners is the utility software called YXY. This software is available as a free download by clicking here. This link also provides a description of the capabilities of YXY. If your TV monitor/projector has built-in capabilities for controlling the image centering and aspect ratio for multiple types of video sources, then you may not have a need for YXY. However, many HDTV monitors/projectors lack the flexibility to deal with all of the various types of video formats possible with your HTPC without the help of YXY.  Note however, that the standard version of YXY will not work correctly with the ATI DVD Player.  A version modified specifically for use with the Radeon and ATI DVD Player is available at:   ftp.theatertek.com

 

ATI DVD PLAYER

The following information specifically applies to Version 4.1 of ATI DVD Player Software

Version 4.1 of the ATI DVD Player 

(Note:  Version 5 must be used with Windows XP)

Portions of the following material for the setup and use of the ATI DVD Player has been provided by members of the AV Science Forum (especially Wayne Harrelson)

HTPC owners that purchase an ATI RadeonTM graphics card will receive on the ATI CD-ROM a copy of the ATI DVD Player. The ATI DVD Player is actually a CineMaster DVD Player produced by Ravisent with a few ATI customizations. As described below the customizations that ATI has made are generally to block user access to a number of the features that are supported by the standard CineMaster product. It appears that ATI perception of the user of their DVD Player is limited to someone that wants to watch a DVD on the PC’s 17 inch monitor. As a result of this ATI prospective, the out of the box ATI DVD Player configuration is not suitable for use as part of a home theater application. However, by using additional utility software and making several tweaks to the Windows registry it is possible to restore the essential functions that ATI has omitted. With these modifications the ATI DVD Player is capable of playing DVDs with high quality video images. However, neither the ATI DVD Player nor the underlying CineMaster support the output of DTS encoded audio. Many home theater owners may find this shortcoming of great significance while it may not matter to others (i.e, those without a DTS capable A/V receiver).

Before, you attempt to install and configure the ATI DVD Player on your PC you will need to download and install:

You should have already installed the latest Windows drivers for you Radeon graphics card and DirectX before beginning the installation of the ATI DVD Player.

You will need the ATI Installation CD-ROM containing the ATI DVD player software in order to install the updated version you have downloaded from the ATI web site. During the installation of the updated version you will be prompted to enter a code number from the ATI Installation CD-ROM (see photo below). The number you will need to enter is a 12-digit number of the format: 180-xxxxxx-xxx.   The first 3-digits on your particular ATI CD-ROM will probably not be 180, but in most cases you will need to enter 180 followed by the remaining 9-digits from your ATI CD-ROM.  On some recent Installation CDs from ATI the first 3-digits you will need to enter is 181 instead of 180.  Place the ATI Installation CD in your CD or DVD drive and after the CD auto-loads exit the ATI installation program then click on My Computer.  If the number listed for the CD starts with 181 then use the 181 value instead of 180.

After installing the ATI DVD Player you will need to install the copy of DVD Genie that you downloaded. DVD Genie is an essential companion to the ATI DVD Player and will allow you to access many of the features of the CineMaster software that ATI has attempted block the user from accessing. Once the DVD Genie software is installed it will act as a front-end for the DVD Player and you will only run the ATI DVD Player by using the DVD Genie applications.  DVD Genie has what amounts to an online manual.  You can access this by clicking on the "Online Help" button on the bottom of the main DVD Genie menu.

Once all of the above software has successfully be installed on your PC you will need to enter a number of items into the configuration menus provided by DVD Genie. Therefore click on the DVD Genie desktop icon to run the program and click on the tab for CineMaster. Next enter the settings to match those shown on the following picture. However, be certain to read the notes below this picture since a few setting may need to be different depending on your specific HTPC configuration.

CineMaster Main Menu

Note 1: If you are using your HTCP to playback DVDs to your TV monitor/projector at a vertical refresh rate of 60 Hz (as required by most consumer rear projectors), then check the box for "3:2 Pulldown Reconstruction".  However, if you are using a multiscan TV monitor/projector and are planning to display DVDs using a 72 Hz vertical refresh rate (that is ideal for displaying movies), then do not check the box labeled "3:2 Pulldown Reconstruction".

Note 2: Some users find that under the DVD Genie "DeInterlacing" option the selection of "Adaptive Deinterlacing" produces better results as compared to "Forced Weave" shown on the menu above.  This is especially true for video sourced DVDs, but some users find that adaptive deinterlacing works better even for film sourced DVDs.  You can also turn adaptive deinterlacing on and off using the check box found under the Windows:  

 My Computer>>Control Panel>>ATI Multimedia Center

Next click on the "More Options" button and enter the settings to match those shown on the following picture. However, be certain to read the notes below this picture since a few setting may need to be different depending on your specific HTPC configuration.

CineMaster More Options Menu

Note 1:  If you have an surround audio system capable of wide dynamic ranges (i.e., capable of playing very loud) and your neighbors don't complain too much, then you may want to set "Sound Compression Range" to normal (uncompressed) for the highest fidelity audio playback.

Note 2: You will need to enter the appropriate selection from pull-down menu in for "AC3 SP/DIF Out Mode". This entry selects the type of sound card that is installed in your PC that support the digital output that will be used to pass the Dolby Digital data on to you audio receiver. The picture above shows choice #4 having been selected. The set of choices offered include:

01 for Aureal Vortex 1 (8820 chipset) and ESS chipset sound cards

02 for Ensoniq and certain Creative SBLive sound cards

03 for Aureal Vortex 2 (8830 chipset) and Diamond Monster sound cards

04 for Yamaha 724 DX-XG, Cirrus/Crystal, certain Creative SBLive, and Trio sound cards

05 for ATI Rage Theater

 

Next you will need to click the tab labeled ATI/G400 and then click the Apply button to enter your settings for using the ATI/CineMaster DVD Player.

 

Next re-start you HTPC for the changes to take effect.  

After your HTPC reboots there is one key additions tweak required to the Windows registry to fully configure your ATI DVD Player for use with your HTPC and a widecreen TV monitor/projector.  The ATI DVD Player will not correctly play widescreen anamophic DVD's in a widescreen mode as is essential to getting the best video performance if you have a widescreen capable TV monitor/projector.  If your TV monitor/project has a standard 3x4 display and lacks the ability to vertically squeeze a widescreen DVD image for display, then this modification of the Windows registry is not necessary for your case.  

Be warned that you must be very careful when manually editing the Windows registry as it is possible to yield Windows unusable. If you have no experience with editing the Windows registry you would be well advised to seek the advise of someone who has experience with this. Click this link to download a general guide to working with the Windows registry. You should backup your HTPC’s Windows registry before making any changes (with Windows 98 and Windows Me you can do this from Start>>Accessories>>System Tools>>System Information>>Tools>>Registry Checker). A utility program is provided by Microsoft with Windows for editing the registry. This utility program (ie., regedit.exe) is installed as part of your normal Windows installation and it can be found in the C:/Windows folder on your PC. You can run this program by selecting: Start>>Run>>Browse -- then locate and highlight the file regedit.exe and select Open.  

Locate the following folder in the Windows registry:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\ATI Technologies\Multimedia\Features\DVD 

You will now need to create the following new entry in this folder: WideScreenDisplay=1

This will lock anamorphic titles to 16x9 aspect ratio. 4x3 DVDs are also in their correct aspect ratio.  After this addition has been made find the following two folder and verify that DVD Genie has created entries for the 3:2 Pulldown Reconstruction.  The value at the end of each of these entries should be "1" if you checked the box in DVD Genie for 3:2 Pulldown Reconstruction and "0" if you left the box unchecked.  If necessary, you can manually enter or correct the entries at the following two locations:

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Ravisent\Software Cinemaster\2.0\DevDB 

            VIDEODECODER.PULLDOWNRECONSTRUCTION=1

 

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Ravisent\Software Cinemaster\2.0\VideoDecoder 

            PullDownReconstruction=1  

 

Another problem with the ATI DVD player is that if you enable the control panel for adjusting the display settings (brightness, contrast, color (gamma), etc.) the setting will not stay where you set them (i.e., they revert to a default setting the next time you start the program).  The only way to work around this is disable the video controls and to manually set the display values in the Window registry.  Note that you are satisfied with the default setting and/or if you projector/monitor provide adequate control adjust for a satisfactory video image, then you don't need to bother with these changes to the registry.  To disable display the ATI DVD Player's video controls tab (under DVD Setup) you will need to use Regedit to create a new entry in the following folder:

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ATI Technologies\Multimedia\Features\DVD

To create the new entry in the above folder select Edit then "New DWORD Value".  Then enter:

        HideVideoPage

The default value of 0x0000000 Hex (or 0 binary) will enable the Video tab on the DVD Setup menu therefore after your have created this new entry you must use the Edit and Modify function to change the value to 1 (binary).

Now that you have disabled the Video tab you can modify the following registry entries for all of the display settings.  Use Regedit to edit and modify the following entries to the suggested values (select decimal when entering the new values).  You can later edit the Windows Registry again to change these values as you find necessary for your particular projector/monitor.  (Note that ATI factory default settings are listed below just in case you want to return your Registry settings to these values)  The following display settings are listed under the registry key (shown below as their decimal values):  

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\ATI Technologies\Multimedia\Features\DVD

        Brightness=6250         (note: ATI default is 5000)
        Contrast=8000            (note: ATI default is 10000)
        Gamma=1                  (note: ATI default is 1)
        Hue=0                        (note: ATI default is 0)
        Saturation=10400        (note: ATI default is 10000)

Exit Regedit.exe and from the Windows desktop open:  

My Computer>>Control Panel>>System>>Device Manger and click on CD-ROM.  Highlight the listing for your PC's DVD-ROM drive and click Properties then click on the Settings tab.  On the setting panel check the box for DMA the click the button for OK.  You may get a warning message that the device may not support DMA, which you should be able to ignore since virtually all DVD-ROM drives do support DMA mode.  When you close Device Manager you will be prompted that you will need to restart you PC for the new settings to take effect.  Go ahead and click OK and let your PC restart.

After your HTPC has rebooted, run DVD Genie by clicking on the desktop icon.  Go the Tab for ATI/G400 and click the Run button.  This should launch the ATI DVD Player.  On the ATI DVD Player controls click on the icon that looks like a box with a check mark inside and this will open the ATI DVD Player setup screen.  Click the Audio tab and verify that the SP/DIF digital audio output box is checked.  You can go through each of the other setup panels by clicking on the Tabs and verify that the appropriate setting are there.  Check that desired display mode is set for your type of TV Monitor/Projector (widescreen for letterbox).

If you have a widescreen TV (with a 16x9 display) the above setting should play anamorphic widescreen DVDs correctly on your TV.  When you play standard 3x4 format DVDs there will be back vertical bars on the right and left sides of the screen with the 3x4 image in the center.  DVDs that only support a letterbox mode for widescreen (i.e., not anamorphic squeezed) then when using DVD Genie to launch the ATI DVD Player, click the Zoom tab and zoom into to fill your display screen. 

Insert a DVD movie, cross you fingers and sit back and enjoy, else try to figure out what went wrong.

 

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