DisplayTechnology_whitepaper on Radeon HD 7700 - 7900

8/9/2019 DisplayTechnology_whitepaper on Radeon HD 7700 - 7900

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White Paper | AMD RADEONHD 7900

AMD RADEONHD 7800

AMD RADEONHD 7700

SERIES GRAPHICS DISPLAY TECHNOLOGIES

Table of Contents

April, 2012

INTRODUCTION 2

Discrete Digital Multi-Point Audio 2

Multi-display Technologies 2

Stereoscopic 3D 2

Wide Color Gamut 2

DISCRETE DIGITAL MULTI-POINT AUDIO 3

Overview 3

DDMA Applications 4

AMD Display Library SDK 5

DISPLAYPORT1.2 6

DisplayPort1.2 Overview 6

High Bit-rate 2 7

Stereoscopic 3D on AMD RadeonGraphics 7

Multi-Stream Transport 8

Maximum AMD Eyefinity Technology Resolution 11

High Bit-rate Audio 12

AMD HD3D TECHNOLOGY 12

AMD HD3D Technology Overview 12

Frame Sequential Displays 13

HDMIStereo 3D Packed Frame 14

DisplayPortMSA Misc1 Bits 15

4K X 2K 16

Overview 16

COLOR ACCURACY 17

Overview 17

SUMMARY 19


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AMD RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series Display Technology 2

INTRODUCTION

Display devices have always been an integral part of the PC experience.

Whether it is in the form of a desktop monitor, a notebooks embedded

panel, or the touch screen of a PC tablet, display devices play a vital role in

defining the users visual experience.

The new display technologies integrated exclusively in the AMD Radeon

HD 7700-7900 Series are designed to deliver new and unique experiences

with impressive performance in these different technologies:

Discrete Digital Multi-Point Audio

> As the display industry moves toward digital interfaces that support

audio, such as HDMIand DisplayPort, more PC monitors now have the ability to output audio

through built-in speakers or a stereo jack for external speakers. AMDs new Discrete Digital Multi-

Point (DDM) Audio technology takes advantage of this trend and enables new uses cases thatwere not previously possible.

Multi-display Technologies

> DisplayPort1.2, a new display interface, boasts features such as tremendous bandwidth and

daisy-chaining capabilities. Combined, these features complement the AMD Eyefinity technology

multi-display technology very well.1

Stereoscopic 3D

> RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs are the first graphics cards in the market to support

3GHz HDMIbandwidth to enable a smoother and more responsive Stereoscopic 3D gaming

experience.2This whitepaper will explain how this feature, exclusive to the RadeonHD 7700-7900

Series, enables the PC to deliver a high-performance stereoscopic 3D gaming experience.

Wide Color Gamut

> Monitors and notebooks with wide color gamut panels, once reserved for the professional market,

have become more prominent with several products shipping in the market. While these types

of LCD panels display a wider range of colors, there are drawbacks and challenges which will

be explained in this whitepaper, as well as the color gamut remapping technology integrated in

RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs.

This whitepaper provides an overview of the display technologies integrated into the display engine of

RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series graphics.3These capabilities and technologies, when combined with

cutting edge display devices, enable The Ultimate Visual Experience.


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DISCRETE DIGITAL MULTI-POINT AUDIO

Overview

Todays PC monitors increasingly support HDMIand DisplayPortinputs. Typically, these PC monitors

have the ability to decode and convert a digital audio stream from the HDMI(or DisplayPort) input and

transmit the sound through its embedded speakers or a stereo jack for external speakers. In addition,end users today have the option of connecting their PCs to HDTVs, which support audio through HDMI.

With this in mind, AMD looked for ways to enable new and unique use cases for end-users using

multiple displays with audio capability. This gave birth to a new feature introduced by the RadeonHD

7700-7900 Series GPUs: Discrete Digital Multi-Point Audio (DDMA).

DDMA enables RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs with the ability to output multiple and independent

audio streams simultaneously through digital interfaces that support audio, such as DisplayPortand

HDMI. Each audio stream can be multi-channel (up to 8 channels). Previous generation GPUs only

output one audio stream at a time, even if multiple DisplayPortor HDMIoutputs were connected to

displays with audio support (as shown inFigure 1):

Figure 1: Current GPUs only support one audio stream at a time

The RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs are the worlds first GPUs to output more than one

independent multi-channel audio stream simultaneously (seeFigure 2). In fact, up to six audio

streams are supported by the RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs.

Figure 2: RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs can simultaneously output

multiple independent digital audio streams


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Transmitting multiple audio streams can be achieved through multiple DisplayPortoutputs, and can

be combined with one HDMIoutput. For graphics cards with limited display output connectors, DDMA

can be fully realized with DisplayPort1.2-enabled equipment, such as a multi-stream transport hub or

daisy-chainable monitors.

DDMA Applications

There are numerous use cases that DDMA enables, the most prominent of which is multi-display video

conferencing. DDMA technology enhances a multi-display video conferencing experience by adding

a directional audio element when used with multiple audio-capable displays. As illustrated inFigure

2, an application can utilize DDMA technology to assign each persons video and audio stream to an

individual display and the speakers connected to it. As expected, only that persons voice can be

heard from the displays speaker. In addition, the application is no longer required to mix all of the audio

streams into one. This significantly enhances the experience.

DDMA technology also enables audio that follows the window of

the video playback application. Through AMDs ADL SDK, a video

playback application can map the audio stream to the end-point

associated with the display that its window is currently locatedin. While the audio from the video content seamlessly follows

the window of the video, all the system sounds can still be heard

through the systems default audio end-point.

Audio

Figure 3: A single PC equipped with an RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPU can drive multiple

displays in the home with different content

Another DDMA application caters to end-users with multiple

displays in their homes, which is becoming very common today given the low prices of HDTVs.

With DDMA, one PC equipped with an RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPU can act as a media

hub or server and drive all the displays with independent video and audio content


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Application developers can innovate in this area and provide unique solutions for end-users to control

their media server wherever they are located. As an example, there are applications today that allow

users to interact with and control the media server application using smartphones or tablets that

communicate through their wireless network. DDMA technology is a cost-effective solution to support

multi-room entertainment.

Todays PC gamers typically like to multi-task while they are playing their favorite games. Whether they

are waiting for their opponents in turn-based RPGs, or waiting for a long game cut-scene to end, gamers

like the ability to watch and listen to different video and audio content. With DDMA, they can do just that:

keep themselves in the game with video on another display featuring audio that does not interfere with

the audio in the players headset.

AMD Display Library SDK

The AMD Display Library (ADL) SDK is available to developers who want to take advantage of DDMA.

This SDK gives developers the ability to map independent audio streams to specific audio-end points

and enable new and unique use cases, including those described in this document. For more details,

please visit :http://developer.amd.com/sdks/Pages/default.aspx.

Figure 4: Multi-tasking with DDMA

Figure 5: AMD Display Library

SDK is available for developers

to enable support for DDMA


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DISPLAYPORT1.2

DisplayPort1.2 Overview

In 2006, PC manufacturers (including AMD) collaborated in designing the next generation PC display

interface, which would eventually be known as DisplayPort. DisplayPortwas designed to replace DVI

and VGA by offering features that are beneficial to both system integrators and end users. It was also

designed to be flexible and easily extensible for new features that the market will require in the future.

The first generation of DisplayPortprovided 10.8 Gbps of raw bandwidth, which no other display

interface can match. DisplayPortalso supported very long non-active cables, optional latch designs

for connectors, and audio support. In addition, DisplayPortsupports spread spectrum clocking, which

can dramatically reduce EMI. Finally, Source devices such as GPUs can also operate in dual-mode

(otherwise known as DP++); this is valuable because it allows the same connector to transport TMDS

signals to support DVI and HDMIoutputs using inexpensive level-shifting adapters.

The data link rates of DisplayPort1.1a are fixed at either 1.62 Gbps per lane or 2.7 Gbps per lane,

irrespective of the timing of the attached display device. This design only requires a single referenceclock source to drive as many DisplayPortstreams as there are display pipelines in the GPU.

In contrast, DVI and HDMIboth require a dedicated clock source per display timing. This unique

DisplayPortfeature allows for the most efficient multi-display design and complements the

AMD Eyefinity . Please refer to the AMD Eyefinity Brief for more information.

All the features of DisplayPort1.1a proved that it was the superior PC d isplay interface. To further

enhance the DisplayPortinterface, the same group of companies collaborated once more to define the

next version of DisplayPort, which paved the way to DisplayPort1.2.

In 2010, the DisplayPort1.2 specification was ratified by VESA. This new revision of the standard adds

support for new and exciting features including high bit-rate audio, even higher link bandwidth, andmulti-streaming capabilities.

The RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series is AMDs second generation of GPUs that are DisplayPort1.2

certified. Table 1is a simplified comparison of display interface capabilities integrated into the Radeon

HD 7700-7900 Series GPUs:

Table 1: Display interface capabilities of the RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs

DisplayPort1.2 DisplayPort1.1a SL-DVI DL-DVI HDMI

Bandwidth 21.6 Gbps 10.8 Gbps 4.95 Gbps 9.9 Gbps 9.0 Gbps

Video Data Rate 17.28 Gbps 8.64 Gbps 3.96 Gbps 7.92 Gbps 7.2 Gbps

Maximum Resolution Support@ 60Hz 24bpp

>2560x2048 2560x2048 1900x1200 2560x1600 >1920x1200

Audio Support Yes Yes No No Yes

Embedded Application Support Yes Yes No No No

In-band Stereo 3D signaling Yes Yes No No Yes

Multi-stream support Yes No No No No


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High Bit-rate 2

DisplayPort1.2 supports up to twice the bandwidth of DisplayPort1.1a. High Bit-rate 2 (HBR2) provides

up to 5.4 Gbps/lane of bandwidth, or up to 21.6 Gbps in a full four lane configuration. This lends itself very

well to many applications that require ultra-high bandwidth.

Chart 1illustrates the wide range of display timings (resolution, refresh rate, and color depth) supportedby various digital display interfaces.

As illustrated in Chart 1, DisplayPort1.2 can easily support a multitude of display timings combining

high resolutions, high refresh rates and high color depth. No other PC display interface can match this

capability today.

Stereoscopic 3D on AMD RadeonGraphics

Frame sequential 3D displays present one view at a time (left or right eye) to the user and require the

use of liquid crystal shutter glasses. According to Stereo 3D enthusiasts, at least 60fps (or 60Hz) per eye

is required for these types of displays to have a pleasant 3D experience. This means that the minimum

total refresh rate required is 120Hz. DisplayPort1.2 provides ample bandwidth to drive frame sequential

3D displays at 120Hz with support for resolutions up to 2560x1600.

Chart 1: Comparison of video data rate versus resolution at different refresh rates and color depths


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AMD ZeroCore Power Technology 8

Multi-Stream Transport

Leveraging the micro-packet architecture of DisplayPort, DisplayPort1.2 adds the capability to

address and drive several display devices through one DisplayPortconnector. This feature has often

been referred to as daisy-chaining or addressable displays.

Multi-stream transport, or MST for short, can be leveraged using two types of system design.Figure 6

illustrates how MST can be used with daisy-chainable monitors. Each of the monitors in the daisy-chain

configuration, with the exception of the last monitor in the chain, must have a DisplayPortreceiver and

a transmitter. Once the monitor extracts the video and audio stream addressed to it, it will then transmit

the rest of the video and audio streams addressed to the other monitors down the chain.

Figure 7illustrates the alternate method of using MST to drive multiple displays through the use of

MST Hub or Splitter devices. The hub device receives a DisplayPort1.2 MST signal from the source

device and splits up and routes the video streams independently to each display device. Using this

type of configuration also allows the use of non DisplayPort1.2 monitors. To support non DisplayPort

outputs, such as VGA, DVI or HDMI, the MST hub has to actively convert the DisplayPortsignal to the

other types of display interface signals. Active adapters that convert from DisplayPort1.1a to legacy

interfaces such as VGA or DVI/HDMIexist today.

Figure 6: Daisy-chaining monitors

Figure 7: Using MST Hub or splitter


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AMD ZeroCore Power Technology 9

The number of display devices, and also the timings that each display device can be driven at, will

depend on the available bandwidth. Table 2lists the multi-display configurations possible with HBR

and HBR2 bandwidth:

In 2009, AMD first announced the Eyefinity Multi-display feature. This

differentiating feature has been well received by reviewers and end-

users alike. While the appeal is mainly for ultra-wide screen and high

resolution gaming, this feature also caters to those looking to increase

their productivity through multi-monitor configurations. The RadeonHD

7700-7900 Series will be the second generation of GPUs that extend the

capabilities of AMD Eyefinity technology with DisplayPort1.2 MST.

Using daisy-chainable displays or MST hubs significantly extends the

number of display configurations possible with a reference board design

that has at least one DisplayPort1.2 connector. For example, with the

ATI RadeonHD 5000 Series GPUs, six-display configurations are only

possible using six DisplayPort1.1a connectors as shown inFigure 8. This

was realized with the acclaimed ATI RadeonHD 5890 Eyefinity6Edition

graphics card.

HBR HBR2

1366x768 @ 60Hz, 24bpp Up to 5 Up to 64

1600x900 @ 60Hz, 24bpp Up to 3 Up to 62

1920x1080 @ 60Hz, 24bpp Up to 2 Up to 4

2560x1440 @ 60Hz, 24bpp 1 Up to 2

Table 2: Display configurations supported by HBR1 and HBR2

Figure 8: ATI RadeonHD 5890 Eyefinity6 Edition driving six displays with six mini-DP connectors


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As an example of how to combine MST and AMD Eyefinity , considerFigure 9. Using an MST hub, which

is expected to be available in the second half of 2012, even the AMD RadeonHD 7900 reference board

can drive up to six displays using only two DisplayPortconnectors. This provides an upgrade path for

end-users who have three monitors today, but may want to upgrade to five or six monitors in the future.

Aside from multi-output hubs, AMD expects less expensive DisplayPort1.2 MST dongles in the market,

which support up to two display outputs.Figure 10illustrates how you can support up to six displays

using two of these dongles combined with the DVI or HDMIdisplay outputs on the graphics card.

Figure 9: Using MST Hub to drive six displays

Figure 10: Using MST dongles and legacy outputs on graphics card to drive six displays


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Maximum AMD Eyefinity Technology Resolution

The ATI RadeonHD 5000 series GPUs supported a maximum AMD Eyefinity technology

resolution of 8192 pixels wide by 8192 pixels high. The AMD RadeonHD 6000 and 7000

Series GPUs removes this limitation and supports a maximum AMD Eyefinity technology

resolution of 16384x16384 pixels, which enables new usage scenarios.Figure 11shows

one example of an AMD Eyefinity technology configuration which is not supported with

previous generation GPUs.

There are other possible configurations supported by the RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series

GPUs combined with DisplayPort1.2 MST monitors, hubs and dongles. Please note that to

take advantage of this feature, Windows7 Aero glass must be disabled. In addition, only

DirectX11 games allow resolutions above 8192x8192 pixels.

Figure 11: AMD Eyefinity technology

configuration that exceeds 8192x8192

limitation but supported by AMD Radeon

HD 6000 & 7000 Series GPUs


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High Bit-rate Audio

RadeonGPUs have supported pass-through audio through HDMIsince the ATI RadeonHD 2000

series GPUs, without external audio cabling. In 2009, AMD released the ATI RadeonHD 4700, 4600

and 4500 and 4300 series GPUs which were the first GPUs in the market to support audio through

DisplayPort. Today, there are several DisplayPort-enabled monitors in the market that can take

advantage of this feature, all of which have the option of attaching external speakers or a sound bar to

the monitor.

Although DisplayPort1.1a supports audio, the specification does not have provision to support high

bit-rate compressed audio formats, such as those found in Blu-ray movies. DisplayPort1.2 adds this

capability and the RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series will be the second generation GPUs in the market to

support High bit-rate audio through DisplayPort. Table 3lists the high bit-rate audio formats found in

premium content, now supported through DisplayPort1.2:

This capability is attractive to HTPC enthusiasts who want the latest in audio technologies in the market.

AMD HD3D TECHNOLOGY

AMD HD3D TECHNOLOGY Overview

Stereoscopic 3D is a technique that creates the illusion of depth using a stereo image pair. Each image

represents the scene as viewed by the left or the right eye. The illusion of depth is achieved when the

display device (along with the passive polarized and active glasses in most 3D systems) is able to

present the left image only to the left eye and the right image to the right eye. To fully understand how

AMD HD3D technology can deliver stunning 3D images, it is helpful to first examine the Stereoscopic 3D

gaming pipeline.

The majority of DirectXgames available in the market do not support stereo 3D natively. This means

that the stereo image pair must be generated external to the game engine. This can be achieved with

third party stereo 3D conversion software, such as Dynamic Digital Depths TriDef gaming driver.

The stereo 3D conversion software intercepts DirectXcalls from the game. Using these calls, the stereo

3D conversion software generates the stereo image pair, or the Left and Right eye view. For certain types

of 3D displays, the stereo 3D conversion software blends the two views together to form a single frame

using a format that the display supports (e.g. Row interleave, checkerboard, side-by-side, etc). Once

the frame is in the correct format, the stereo 3D conversion software sends the frame to the GPU, which

will then be sent to the 3D display device.

DTS-HD Master Audio Dolby TrueHD PCM 7.1ch

Bitrate Up to 24 Mbps Up to 18Mbps Up to 36 Mbps

Bits/Sample 24 bits/sample 24 bits/sample 24 bits/sample

Sampling Rate Up to 192 kHz Up to 192 kHz Up to 192 kHz

Channels Up to 8 Up to 8 Up to 8

Table 3: Compressed and uncompressed audio formats supported through DisplayPort1.2


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Figure 12: Stereo 3D conversion software architecture

Frame Sequential Displays

Frame sequential 3D displays (also known as page flipped displays) require special treatment. The

stereo 3D conversion software typically must output in frame sequential format to support frame

sequential 3D displays, and does not need to convert the frames into any of the formats illustrated in

Figure 12. However, the stereo 3D conversion software requires a new API known as AMDs quad buffer.

AMDs quad buffer API provides the infrastructure for stereo 3D conversion software to support frame

sequential 3D displays by creating a double-height buffer using the existing front & back buffer in

DirectX. After the stereo 3D conversion software stores the left and right images in the quad buffer,

they are then fetched by the display engine which ensures that the frames remain in ordered sequence

throughout the pipeline. Before the frames are transmitted, the display engine formats the output to

provide frame polarity information to the display device. Two standardized methods of conveying frame

polarity information are supported by the RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs. These will be described

in the next section.

Figure 13: Stereo 3D conversion software

architecture using AMDs quad buffer


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For more information regarding AMDs quad buffer API, please visit:

http://developer.amd.com/sdks/QuadBufferSDK/Pages/default.aspx

HDMIStereo 3D Packed Frame

The HDMI1.4a specification provides a method to support Stereo 3D display

devices. This specification provides a mechanism for the source device, in

this case the GPU, to convey frame polarity information, while maintaining full

resolution. The majority of stereo 3D TVs released in the market since 2009 support

the HDMI1.4a specification. Today, monitors support stereo 3D through HDMI.

Similar to AMDs quad buffer described in the preceding section, every stereo

image pair is assembled into a standard format known as a packed frame. The GPU

creates a buffer that is twice the height of the resolution of the frame, with active

space in between. As per the specification, the top half of the packed frame is

reserved for the left eye view, while the bottom is reserved for the right eye view.

After both frames are packed into one double-height frame, the GPU will then send

it over the HDMIlink as a packed frame. Once the TV receives this packed frame,

it is then unpacked and typically presented to the viewer in a frame sequential or

page flipped manner. Since the polarity of each frame is known, the display can

reliably control the emitter to send the correct signal to the shutter glasses.

The RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs are the first in the world to support all of

these packed frame 3D modes:

> New - 1920x1080 @ 60Hz/Eye ( 120Hz total )

> 1920x1080 @ 24Hz/Eye ( 48Hz total )

> 1280x720 @ 60Hz/Eye ( 120Hz total )

> 1280x720 @ 50Hz/Eye ( 100Hz total )

The first mode listed above (1920x1080 @ 60Hz/Eye) is very critical to gamers who want to play games

in stereo 3D. With the 3GHz HDMIspeed supported by the RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs,

higher frame rates (up to 60Hz/Eye) at Full HD resolution can now be transmitted to the display device

resulting in smooth and responsive game-play. Another feature enabled by 3GHz HDMIspeed is

support for 4kx2k resolutions, which will be discussed later.


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DisplayPortMSA Misc1 Bits

The DisplayPortstandard specifies a method in which the source device can send frame polarity

information through the DisplayPortmain link. This method is often referred to as the MSA method.

MSA (Main stream attribute) is a secondary packet sent by the GPU to the display device, which is

transmitted during the vertical blanking interval. This table shows how the GPU sets the MISC1 bits for

left and right images.

Due to the high bandwidth requirement of Stereo 3D as well as the MSA method for signaling, monitor

vendors are designing their next generation Stereo 3D monitors to support DisplayPort

. In fact,Samsung has released multiple stereo 3D monitors in 2011 that support this method of signaling through

DisplayPort(Samsung A700, A750 and A950 series). The RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series are the

second generation GPUs that are ready to support these monitors. This method is also applicable to

embedded DisplayPortto support embedded stereo 3D panels for notebook and All-in-one platforms.

The RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs also support stereo 3D video playback. The stereo 3D video

pipeline is similar to the gaming pipeline, where a third party application is required to convert 2D content

to 3D, or to decode native Stereo 3D content. These applications also convert the format of the frame,

depending on the type of 3D display device attached to the PC.

MSA MISC1 Bits

Bit 1 Bit 1

No Stereo Video 0 0

Video Frame is Right 0 1

Reserved 1 0

Video Frame is Left 1 1

Figure 14: Stereo 3D Video pipeline

The RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs support the following features:

> UVD accelerated MVC Decode for Blu-ray 3D movies

> Windowed mode playback of Blu-ray 3D movies through HDMIand DisplayPort

> Clone mode 3D movie playback

For more information, please refer to the AMD Video Technologies technical whitepaper.


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4K X 2K

Overview

Ultra-high resolution displays have existed for years but

were targeted for professional applications. However,

4Kx2K TVs have started to appear in many tradeshows

and demonstration events. In the future, AMD envisions

TVs and monitors supporting significantly higher

resolutions, well above WQXGA (2560x1600). There are

various resolutions for 4Kx2K displays, with different

aspect ratios. Table 4lists some examples:

Current 4Kx2K displays require multiple display interface inputs. For example, to support 3840x2400

@ 60Hz, four single-link DVI inputs, or two dual-link DVI inputs are required. These displays can be

supported by most AMD GPUs, assuming the right combination of display outputs is supported.

Next generation 4Kx2K displays ( including TVs, monitors and projectors ) will only require a single cable

and a single display interface input. The RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs are the first that are

capable of supporting next generation 4Kx2K displays through a single DisplayPortor HDMIcable.

4Kx2K Resolution Aspect Ratio

4096x2304 16:9

4096x2160 19:10

3840x2400 16:10

3840x2160 16:9

Table 4: List of 4Kx2K resolutions

Display Interface Resolution Refresh Rate

DisplayPort1.1a ( HBR1 ) 4096x2304 30Hz

DisplayPort1.2 ( HBR2 ) 4096x2304 60Hz5

HDMI( @ 3Ghz ) 4096x2160 24Hz

DL-DVI 3840x2400 30Hz


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COLOR ACCURACY

Overview

A displays color gamut refers to the range of colors that it can represent. The most

common method of illustrating a display devices color gamut is by using a gamut

diagram, similar toFigure 15. The supported color gamut of the display is represented

as the area bounded usually by a triangle - in this case labeled sRGB. The majority of

display devices in the past had the capability to fully display the sRGB color gamut.

(Note: This is usually advertised as 72% NTSC). In addition, the majority of content

are captured in sRGB color gamut, including pictures and videos. Even the Microsoft

Windowsdesktop is rendered in sRGB color gamut.

Today, there are LCD monitors in the market that can display a color gamut greater than

sRGB. Some monitors can cover 80% NTSC, while professional monitors can cover

Adobe RGB (92% NTSC) or more. The problem arises when the end user views sRGB

content on wide color gamut monitors without color correction - the colors become

distorted and over saturated in most cases. This problem can be addressed by a

process called color correction or color gamut remapping.

While the uncorrected image may seem more vivid, some of the colors look unnatural - especially flesh

tone colors. One can imagine the problem this would cause in professional graphics applications where

color accuracy is paramount. Even for mainstream consumers, uncorrected color images could lead

to frustration for those who print photos at home, or those who view and purchase items through the

internet.

Previous generation GPUs, for example the ATI RadeonHD 5000 Series, had the capability to perform

gamut remapping. However, the capability is limited, in that the color gamut remapping or color

correction is performed in non-linear space (i.e. gamma space). This limits the precision and accuracy of

the color gamut remapping process.

Figure 15: Color gamut diagram for sRGB

Figure 16: Difference between corrected and

uncorrected image6


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The RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs remove this limitation by performing the color gamut

remapping in linear space, as illustrated inFigure 17:

Adding the de-gamma step in the display engine and an advanced gamut remapping algorithm ensure

high precision color gamut remapping throughout the pipeline, resulting in excellent color reproduction

even on wide gamut panels. In addition, since the color gamut remapping process is performed by the

display engine hardware and not through software, it will not incur any CPU or shader performance

penalty and can be applied to full screen and windowed applications.

AMD plans to publish an API that can take advantage of this new hardware capability, along with SDK

documentation. These will soon be available for application developers athttp://developer.amd.com.

Figure 17: Comparison of color gamut remapping hardware

Previous Generation GPUs

AMD RadeonHD

6000 & 7900 Series


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SUBSTANTIATION

1 AMD Eyenity works with games that support non-standard aspect ratios, which is required for panning across multiple displays. To enable more than two displays, additional panels with native DisplayPort

connectors, and/or DisplayPort

compliant active adapters to convert your monitors native input to your cards DisplayPort

or Mini-DisplayPort

connector(s), are required. AMD Eyenity can support up to 6 displaysusing a single enabled AMD Radeongraphics card with Windows Vista or Windows 7 operating systems the number of displays may vary by board design and you should conrm exact specications with the

applicable manufacturer before purchase. SLS (Single Large Surface) functionality requires an identical display resolution on all congured displays.

2 AMD HD3D is a technology designed to enable stereoscopic 3D support in games, movies and/or photos. Requires 3D stereo drivers, glasses, and display. Not all features may be supported on all components or

systems check with your component or system manufacturer for specic model capabilities and supported technologies. A list of supported stereoscopic 3D hardware is available at http://www.amd.com/HD3D.

3 The GCN Architecture and its associated features (PCI Express3.0, AMD ZeroCore Power technology, DDM Audio, HDMI(with 4K and 3GHz) and 28nm production) are exclusive to the AMD Radeon HD 7900,

HD 7800 and HD 7700 Series GPUs.

4 HBR2 bandwidth can support more than six displays with this specic timing, but the AMD RadeonHD 7900 Series GPUs support up to a maximum of six independent displays.

5 Driving a resolution of 4096x2304 @ 60Hz requires a monitor that supports DisplayPort1.2 HBR2. This type of monitor will be driven by the GPU as two 2Kx2K monitors (side-by-side) using the DisplayPort 1.2

Multi-Stream Transport protocol over one DisplayPortcable.6 Simulated saturation to show the difference between color corrected and uncorrected image on wide gamut panels.

2012 Advanced Micro Devices Inc. All rights reserved. AMD, the AMD Arrow logo, ATI, the ATI logo, Radeon, and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.

HDMI is a trademark of HDMI Licensing, LLC. Other names are used for informational purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners. PID# 51883A

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SUMMARY

AMD is a recognized industry leader in display technologies, providing innovation through introduction

of new technologies and display interfaces in our products. The RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs

marks the introduction of these innovative display technologies:

> First GPU to support multiple independent audio streams

> First GPU to support 3GHz HDMIspeed for uncompromised Stereo 3D gaming performance

In addition, the RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series GPUs continue to support these advanced features:

> DisplayPort1.2 Multi-Streaming & HBR2

> Stereo 3D through both DisplayPortand HDMI

> Enhanced color gamut remapping for wide color gamut displays

With AMD Radeonand the introduction of Discrete Digital Multi-Point Audio (DDMA), RadeonHD 7700-

7900 Series GPUs enable new and interesting multi-display applications. Combined with support for

DisplayPort1.2, high performance stereo 3D gaming through HDMI, and improved AMD Eyefinity, the

RadeonHD 7700-7900 Series is positioned as the GPUs of choice for gaming, HTPC and multimedia

enthusiasts.

DisplayTechnology_whitepaper on Radeon HD 7700 - 7900

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