Question Feast of Voodoo graphics cards

[yjfy]

Feast of Voodoo graphics cards
yjfy
On the COMDEX of 6 November 1995,3Dfx Interactive Inc announced Voodoo Graphics, a 3D graphics accelerator specifically designed for 3D entertainment applications.
The first chip, pixelfx, is the primary graphics controller and contains interfaces to the PCI bus and companion texture processing unit, texelfx. The 3Dfx Interactive pixelfx graphics controller is packaged in a 240-pin PQFP. texelfx, the advanced texture processing unit, is packaged in a 208-pin PQFP.
On perspective correct, texture mapped, Z-buffered, filtered, LOD MIP mapped, fogged, alpha blended, SB50-pixel triangles Voodoo Graphics delivers more than 45 megapixels per second fill rate and over 350,000 triangles per second polygon rates on a Pentium 90.
On October 3, 1996, Orchid Technology took the lead in selling Voodoo video card, followed by Diamond Multimedia Systems, Inc. The outstanding 3 D performance of Voodoo graphics card made it occupy 85% of the market in 1997. After more than 20 years, Voodoo graphics cards are still so attractive.
1. 3Dfx
1.1 Obsidian green version Engineering sample
With the original feelings, Voodoo graphics card has gradually become a hot computer hardware collection. Voodoo 5 6000 video card is also a synonym for video card collection. In fact, the earliest voodoo video card is the ultimate goal of video card collectors.

1.1.1 Obsidian SB50-2200 green version Engineering sample
In the early morning of September 2003, eachnet.com (later acquired by eBay) was selling a green voodoo card with special appearance. This was the first time that the green Obsidian sb50-2200 came into the attention of collectors, and it was the only green Obsidian sb50-2200 that came out of e-waste. At that time, I didn't know this card, just scan a picture with a scanner and hang it on my website. It was not until January 18, 2005 that the picture was sent to www.falconfly.de that it was known that it was the earliest voodoo card of 3dfx - Obsidian graphics card.
Obsidian SB50-2200 Engineering sample

The 3dfx logo and characters on the chip of this card are sprayed with silver paint, which is very three-dimensional, different from the later very common white paint.
TMU chip No. 500-0002-01, chip date 9612 weeks.

FBI chip number 500-0001-02, chip date 9609 weeks.

FAB No. 600-0002-04,quite early.FAB No.600-0001-01 is 3Dfx first product "Game Control Interface".FAB No. 600-0002-01/02/03 Version has not appeared, it may be that these versions can not work, and as 3Dfx core secrets have been destroyed.FAB No. 600-0002-04 Version has been basically available before it can be preserved.The beautiful 3Dfx logo laser sticker on the card is easy to think of as a demonstration board Obsidian graphics card,But then there were three video cards like this,Maybe the engineers of 3dfx attach great importance to these early engineering samples (prototypes), and stick the good luck charms on them!

 

[yjfy]

5.9 T&W Obsidian GE

There are many voodoo graphics cards of this board type. I don't know which company designed them. The model of T&W's Obsidian Ge graphics card is interesting. Put on the title of obsidian.

Obsidian GE

 

[yjfy]

5.10 PC Partner 35-8506-00

The design and material of this video card are special.

.END.

 

[Assimilator1]

Wish I still had my Voodoo card , sold it long ago. I still have an 8MB Voodoo 2 though!
You mentioned that the V1 6MB cards are worth collecting, what do they tend to sell for?

 

[yjfy]

Over $100

 

[Assimilator1]

Blimey, quite a bit then! So how much do the uber rare early ESs go for then!?
Forgot to say, thanks for all the photos & info

 

[yjfy]

Rare early es is not for sale unless he gives up all his collections.

 

[Assimilator1]

Kinda hard to value then

 

[yjfy]

G1nX's 3Dfx Obsidian GE is a reference board series for 3Dfx's Voodoo graphics cards. The PCB date is 9723 weeks, and the design completion date is relatively late.

3Dfx Obsidian GE (Reference board)​

 

[Assimilator1]

5.10 PC Partner 35-8506-00

The design and material of this video card are special.

.END.

What's special/different about this card? You didn't say .

 

[Ichinisan]

Marked for later.

I had the dual Voodoo 2 on a single card.

Also had a Diamond Voodoo Banshee

Also a Voodoo3 3000 AGP

 

[PingSpike]

I actually have a canopus pure3d 6mb. I've been playing around with it in my retro pci passthrough build. $100+ makes me consider selling it though. I noticed that the output seems a bit fuzzy so perhaps the ramdac is just getting old or something. But I'm also pushing it through an incorrect aspect ratio lcd monitor.

 

[Assimilator1]

Yea it'll be the non native resolution for the LCD monitor likely causing that.

 

[FaaR]

Wow. What a blast from the past! I love these threads, showing off old computer hardware that I'd forgotten that I've forgotten - except it's still there, down underneath somewhere!

I don't know if I was ever aware though that even the first Voodoo Graphics generation supported dual texelfx chips and SLI. That feels totally new to me now, the way I recall it in my mind I always believed that was new stuff introduced with voodoo2.

So what were the big differences between V1 and V2 hardware? I looked around a bit after seeing this thread, and it seems V1 boards equipped with 12MB RAM and the Amethyst daughtercards were nearly as fast as V2 - at least in some games (which? no idea! lol) V2 had dual texelfx as standard, and...each could do two texels/pixel/clock? While V1 did just 1 texel/clock? *shrug* Not sure how many pixels/clock V2 could render either, my brain doesn't remember such details any longer.

Then again, I was never that big a 3dfx fan - the passthrough design felt very kludgy to me and it also mucked up picture quality. By the time 3dfx moved to an all-in-one design with voodoo3, they were already well in decline.

Seeing these old video board manufacturers that are all gone now, Orchid and Diamond Multimedia and so on... It really gets the nostalgia going. The kiddies growing up today, they don't have any connection to the past heritage of gaming. All they've ever known is what exists right now... Shit, I'm feeling old! lol

 

[Oneto]

This makes me wonder what I ever did with my voodoo cards. Probably stuck in storage somewhere. I need to find them and make a retro box.

 

[john3850]

Thanks to that first 3dfx card I was able to game with my Pentium 75 at 198 with only a onboard 1meg cirrus logic video chip.

 

[aigomorla]

I remember the days when these cards were considered extreme luxury items, sort of like a sound blaster, also very expensive in price.

Now i look at the 2080ti in price and just sigh....

 

[Raduque]

Impressive collection! I only have a Voodoo 2 , a Voodoo Banshee, Voodoo 3 PCI, Voodoo 4 and Voodoo 5.

 

[peonyu]

I had a Voodoo 3 2000 back in the day. It was a nice entry level card at the time but i completely missed the Voodoo1 / Voodoo2 SLI heyday. By the time i was looking for my next video card after the V3, Nvidia had it's Geforce out that was trouncing anything 3dfx could throw at it.

 

[gen3d]

I bought this Orchid Righteous 3D the very first day they were available. It was the first piece of PC hardware that blew me away, and I was forever changed by it. I kept it because of it, and have it hanging on the wall of my garage workbench to remind me of how far we have come. Best $300 I ever spent!