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3dfx Voodoo3 3500 TV AGP

by Bubba "Masterfung" Wolford

 

What is in the Package?

Unique to the 3500 TV is the I/O pod which houses the Audio inputs, Composite Video inputs along with a S-Video input. The custom I/O connector connects to the custom I/O connector on the back of the Voodoo3 3500 TV. The I/O cable is split to allow your SVGA connector to attach to the custom I/O assembly.

The Pod has quite a long cable to allow you to move it wherever you want on your desk. However, the cable is pretty stiff and thus the I/O pod is not very stable on my desk. It keeps moving around and has trouble lying flat. I have resorted to laying a small weight on the cable, forcing it to lay still.

As I was attempting to attach my coaxial cable to the Voodoo3 3500, I could not figure out which connector my cable should plug into! The I/O plate had no labels so I was forced to resort to the nifty quick reference manual which was included in the box. It displayed in detail which connector was for TV and which was for my FM tuner.

After installing all the software and attaching my coaxial cable to my V3 3500 TV, I was ready to do some channel surfing!

The picture was outstanding! Due to the release of the new drivers for the 3500 TV, the picture was clear and animated. Using the software VCR feature, you can record TV programs, S-Video output or Composite video output.

Even as I type this, I am watching Wings on the Discovery channel. Those Boeing F-15's never looked so good!!

Overclocking

Upon receiving my V3 3500, I installed it in my dual processor server and proceeded to install powerstrip, an excellent overclocking program. Using registered powerstrip, I increased the clock speed of my V3 3500 TV to 195MHz and left it running 3DMark 99 MAX demo mode to make sure it was stable. My computer room in my house is quite cold due to a ceiling fan (always running on high) and that the temperature in the house is kept locked at 72 degrees F.

Click to continue

 

F4

My server, however, still generates a lot of heat due to two processors, a 7200 RPM HD and a heated Voodoo 3 card. There is some cooling in place (both CPU's have a large heatsink and dual fans along with a separate case fan) but heat is still a problem.

I set 3DMark 99 MAX to run a looping demo and when I came back from lunch, my computer was locked up. Suspecting the video card, I rebooted and reduced the clock rate down to 192MHz and ran the same demo. It seemed to run fine at 192MHz so I left it there. I am sure with more cooling on the card I could get the Voodoo3 3500 to 200MHz and probably beyond but then we are getting pretty extreme.

Benchmarks

I stuck to running Falcon 4.0 and 3DMark 99 MAX as my benchmark programs. Since Papa Doc was kind enough to make a benchmark a while back, I used his benchmark to test my dual processor machine running on one processor and then tested it in Windows 2000 under both processors. I used my Pentium III 450 as a reference machine. It has a Voodoo3 3000.

These were my setups for Falcon 4.0:

  • 800x600 resolution
  • All sliders to the right with all options on
  • Vehicle magnification on 1
  • Running GLIDE on all Falcon 4.0 tests (D3D scored between 2-3 FPS slower in each test)
  • Each card at default clock speed (183MHz for V3500 TV and 166MHz for V3 3000)
  • All processors set to default CPU speed
  • Falcon 4.0 version 1.07
  • Vsync disabled

Go to Part III

 

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