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ATI Radeon XFree86 settings

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Getting the full set of modelines up to the maximum of both the card and my monitor was a bit of a pain, so I'm glad to be to drop 'em here ;-). The settings here were tested with the ATI Radeon 9200SE (actually, a clone: an Asus A9200SE) with a Viewsonic G90F+ 19" monitor.

Use either the old or the new radeon framebuffer device (fbdev) drivers in the standard Linux Kernel source release. The settings here were built and tested using Linux Kernel 2.6.5 and XFree86 Version 4.1.0.1 / X Window System.

If you want/need the acceleration code to run games, as at Kernel 2.6.5, these features aren't covered in the kernel source drivers. The driver's acceleration exists but function mainly to speed up 2D work. Look around ATI's website for their proprietory Linux driver and follow their install procedures. (Personally, I don't run enough stuff on Linux that needs 3D games acceleration to warrant the effort and hassle of installing third party drivers.)

/etc/X11/XF86Config-4 Device Declarations

Section "Device"
        Identifier      "ATI Radeon 9200SE"
        Driver          "fbdev"
        Option           "NoAccel" "false"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
        Identifier      "Viewsonic G90F+"
        HorizSync       30-97
        VertRefresh     50-180
EndSection

/etc/X11/XF86Config-4 Mode Lines

Modeline "1920x1440" 246.61 1920 2064 2272 2624 1440 1441 1443 1493 +hsync +vsync
Modeline "1920x1200" 246.59 1920 2064 2272 2624 1200 1201 1203 1253 +hsync +vsync
Modeline "1920x1080" 172.80 1920 2040 2248 2576 1080 1081 1084 1118 -hsync -vsync
Modeline "1600x1200" 162.00 1600 1664 1856 2160 1200 1201 1204 1250 +hsync +vsync
Modeline "1400x1050" 122.00 1400 1488 1640 1880 1050 1052 1064 1082 +hsync +vsync
Modeline "1280x1024" 108.00 1280 1328 1440 1688 1024 1025 1028 1066 +hsync +vsync
# Modeline "1024x768" 44.90 1024 1032 1208 1264 768 768 776 817 interlace +hsync +vsync # Works. Over-range for my monitor but okay with TV-Out.
Modeline "800x600" 36.00 800 824 896 1024 600 601 603 625 +hsync +vsync
Modeline "640x480" 25.20 640 656 752 800 480 490 492 525 -hsync -vsync

/etc/fb.modes Mode Lines

mode "1920x1440-63"
    # D: 246.670 MHz, H: 94.005 kHz, V: 62.964 Hz
    geometry 1920 1440 1920 1440 16
    timings 4054 352 144 50 1 208 2
    hsync high
    vsync high
    accel true
    rgba 5/11,6/5,5/0,0/0
endmode
mode "1920x1200-75"
    # D: 246.609 MHz, H: 93.982 kHz, V: 75.006 Hz
    geometry 1920 1200 1920 1440 16
    timings 4055 352 144 50 1 208 2
    hsync high
    vsync high
    accel true
    rgba 5/11,6/5,5/0,0/0
endmode
mode "1920x1080-60"
    # D: 172.801 MHz, H: 67.081 kHz, V: 60.001 Hz
    geometry 1920 1080 1920 1440 16
    timings 5787 328 120 34 1 208 3
    accel true
    rgba 5/11,6/5,5/0,0/0
endmode
mode "1600x1200-60"
    # D: 162.022 MHz, H: 75.010 kHz, V: 60.008 Hz
    geometry 1600 1200 1920 1440 16
    timings 6172 304 64 46 1 192 3
    hsync high
    vsync high
    accel true
    rgba 5/11,6/5,5/0,0/0
endmode
mode "1400x1050-60"
    # D: 122.011 MHz, H: 64.899 kHz, V: 59.981 Hz
    geometry 1400 1050 1920 1440 16
    timings 8196 240 88 18 2 152 12
    hsync high
    vsync high
    accel true
    rgba 5/11,6/5,5/0,0/0
endmode
mode "1280x1024-60"
    # D: 108.003 MHz, H: 63.983 kHz, V: 60.021 Hz
    geometry 1280 1024 1920 1440 16
    timings 9259 248 48 38 1 112 3
    hsync high
    vsync high
    accel true
    rgba 5/11,6/5,5/0,0/0
endmode
# mode "1024x768-60"
#   Untested. Sorry.
# endmode
mode "800x600-56"
    # D: 36.001 MHz, H: 35.157 kHz, V: 56.252 Hz
    geometry 800 600 1920 1440 16
    timings 27777 128 24 22 1 72 2
    hsync high
    vsync high
    accel true
    rgba 5/11,6/5,5/0,0/0
endmode
mode "640x480-60"
    # D: 25.200 MHz, H: 31.500 kHz, V: 60.001 Hz
    geometry 640 480 1920 1440 16
    timings 39682 48 16 33 10 96 2
    accel true
    rgba 5/11,6/5,5/0,0/0
endmode

Using TV-Out

I've just been mucking around with the Radeon 9200SE under X11 seeing whether its TV-Out is a goer. Short answer: yes! Allowing X11 to set video modes higher than 1024x768 before that mode, screws it. Using the the fbdev driver screws it. Using only the standard 1024x786, 800x600 and 640x480 modelines above in your X config under the Vesa driver, fine. Don't remove the Modeline definitions, just modify the Modes definition so you're only calling the limited subset you need.)

Essentially, the hardware appears to have its modelines built in, which allows it to translate 1024x768 etc down to a PAL capable resolution. The downside is the hardware's a wee bit smart for its own good. Unlike the AITech PSC1106 and compatibles, which treat pixels on a 1 to 1 basis, this means you can't tweak your custom Modelines to cover the entire PAL TV screen (the PSC1106 would at least let you do that vertically if not horizontally, allowing resolutions like 640x535).

All up, with the Radeon you get a workable result on the TV for relatively little fuss but with black bands that you can't remove. This would look a bit worse on a widescreen PAL telly. That's nice enough for casual use, but, you wouldn't be able to abuse it to generate graphics for the TV media. (Not that this was in my plans.)

The Xorg X Server

An alternate to all the above, by far your best option (if your Linux distribution allows/offers it), would be to migrate from XFree86 to Xorg. It will detect your various Modelines automatically and is frankly superior to XFree86 in nearly all respects. Use the Xorg documentation to auto configure, and you'll be set.

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