DOS Days

Diamond Stealth 3D 2000 Pro / 2000XL Pro

The Stealth 3D-2000 Pro arrived less than a year after the first Stealth 3D 2000, switching out the original S3 ViRGE 2D/3D graphics accelerator chip for the ViRGE/DX. It ran both core and memory clocks at 72 MHz and came with an integrated 170 MHz RAMDAC.

Released March 1997
Bus PCI
Chipset S3 ViRGE/DX (86C375)
Standards Hercules, CGA, EGA, VGA
Memory 2 MB or 4 MB EDO DRAM (64-bit)
Ports 15-pin DSUB (video out)
26-pin VGA Feature connector
RAMDAC 170 MHz
Part # 23030228-204 (2 MB w/TV)
23030228-404 (4 MB w/TV)
23030229-401 (4 MB no TV)
23030231-204 (2 MB no TV)
23030231-404 (4 MB no TV)
FCC ID  
Price Mar 1997: $199.95 (MSRP)
See Also Diamond Stealth 3D 2000, Diamond Stealth 3D 3000

The Diamond Stealth 3D 2000 Pro was based on this ViRGE/DX chipset. It supported screen resolutions up to 1600 x 1200 in 256 colours non-interlaced (NI), 1280 x 1024 in 16-bit colour depths (interlaced), and 1024 x 768 in 24-bit colour depths (interlaced).

The S3 ViRGE/DX began shipping in March 1997 alongside its SGRAM-based brother, the ViRGE/GX. Both chipsets were otherwise identical aside from the type of video RAM they used. With a faster RAMDAC over the original ViRGE chip, supported refresh rates were higher.

The Diamond Stealth 3D-2000 Pro came with either 2 MB of memory (upgradeable to 4 MB), or 4 MB of memory from the factory.

Key features:

  • 64-bit 2D/3D graphics engine
  • Integrated 170 MHz RAMDAC and clock synthesize
  • S3 Streams Processor technology
  • ViRGE/DX accelerator supports EDO DRAM memory
  • Improved S3d Graphics Engine Performance
    • High performance 2D acceleration
    • Flat and Gouraud shading for 3D
    • High quality 3D texture mapping
    • Perspective correction with a parallel processing perspective engine
    • Bi-linear and tri-linear texture filtering using S3’s new SmartFilter technology
    • MIP-Mapping
    • Depth cueing, fogging, alpha blending
    • Video texture mapping
    • Z-buffering
  • Improved S3 Streams Processor Features
    • Supports on-the-fly stretching and blending of primary RGB stream and RGB or YUV (video) secondary stream
    • Each stream can have different color depths
    • High-quality video playback with horizontal and vertical interpolatio
    • Support for Indeo, Cinepak, and software and hardware-accelerated MPEG-1 video
    • Brightness, hue, saturation controls

 

Board Revisions

I have no information on board revisions for the Stealth 3D 2000 Pro.

 

Competition

1997 continued to be tough for S3 and graphics cards manufacturers in general who were trying to keep up with the push into ever-faster 3D graphics technology. 3dfx Voodoo2 arrived this year, and nVidia launched the Riva 128, running on the AGP 2x bus. ATI rivalled this with an update to their earlier Rage II, the 3D Rage II+DVD and Rage Pro chipsets.

 

In the Media


An advert for the 2000 Pro, May 1997

" S3 Powers Diamond Multimedia’s Fastest DRAM Media Accelerator; New Stealth 3D 2000 Pro ships with S3’s ViRGE/DX
Santa Clara, CA–March 11, 1997–S3 Inc. (Santa Clara, Ca) announced its ViRGE/DX accelerator is shipping this month on Diamond Multimedia's Stealth 3D 2000 Pro. This announcement marks the first add-in card shipment of the ViRGE/DX multimedia accelerator which provides a 3X increase(2) in 3D performance, leading-edge 2D acceleration, and full 30 frames per second video capability. The DRAM-based ViRGE/DX is designed to deliver the next level of acceleration required by advanced gaming and emerging business desktop applications. Populated with 4 Mbytes of EDO DRAM, the Stealth 3D 2000 Pro provides advanced 3D rendering, smooth, full-screen digital video playback, and fast 2D graphics acceleration to meet the needs of today's general business, computer entertainment, and Internet multimedia audiences. Combining Diamond Multimedia's driver technology with S3's ViRGE/DX accelerator, the Stealth 3D 2000 Pro delivers nearly 20 percent more 2D performance than its nearest competitor, scoring more than 70 million WinMarks(4). The Stealth 3D 2000 Pro is available this month through select retailers and distributors and to OEM system manufacturers. The retail version, The Stealth 3D 2000XL Pro, features a robust software bundle, including business and game applications, and offers “TV out” for viewing PC graphics on a television set. The estimated retail price for the Stealth 3D 2000XL Pro is $199.95.
"     Diamond Press Room, 12th March 1997


"Diamond Multimedia Systems' Stealth 3D 2000XL ($129.95 list), Stealth 3D 2000XL Pro ($149.95 list), and Stealth 3D 3000XL ($199.95 list) are well suited for a range of 2-D business and home applications, but like boards based on S3's ViRGE chip, their 3-D performance falls short. While the Stealth boards are ideal for many corporate or SOHO applications, those seeking ultimate 3-D excitement should look elsewhere.

An Editors' Choice in our roundup seven months ago ("3-D for free," December 3, 1996), the Stealth 3D 2000XL is based on the first-generation ViRGE chip and is targeted at the cost-conscious home or business user. The board provides an 85-Hz refresh rate at 1,024-by-768 resolution in true-color mode (16.7 million colors), which should prove adequate for use on 15- or 17-inch monitors.

The Stealth 2000XL Pro uses the new S3 ViRGE DX chip. The board offers x and y video interpolation as well as TV output, enabling both game play and presentations on large-screen televisions. It's the best Diamond board for video-intensive tasks. Enhanced interpolation, built into the ViRGE DX chip, resulted in noticeabily smooth video playback.

At the high end is the Stealth 3D 3000XL, based on the ViRGE VX chip and designed for demanding, large-screen graphics applications such as image editing and desktop publishing. An 80-Hz maximum refresh rate at 1,600-by-1,200 resolution in high-color mode (65,000 colors) is more than adequate for 17- to 21-inch monitors.

All three boards ship with Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia. The home-oriented 2000XL includes two games, Descent II: Destination Quartzon and Destruction Derby. The 2000XL Pro includes MGI's PhotoSuite SE image editor, SEGA Rally Championship Racing, and Microsoft's Game Sampler 2. The 3000XL includes Descent II: Destination Quartzon, Asymetrix's 3D F/X, a 3D graphics creation program; and Digital Video Producer (DVP), a digital video editor."     
PC Magazine, 24 June 1997

 

 

Setting it Up

The Diamond Stealth 3D 2000 Pro does not have any hardware configuration required (they are PCI Plug 'n Play).


Downloads

Operation Manual
1997

The original User Manual for the Diamond Stealth 3D 2000 Pro from Diamond Multimedia

Original Utility Disk
(missing)

Get in touch if you can provide this missing item!

Driver Pack
v4.02.012 - v4.03.00.2102

A selection of Diamond Stealth 3D 2000 drivers, including InControl Tools 95.
Includes Windows 3.x Windows 95, Windows NT and OS/2 drivers.

Windows 95 Drivers
v4.10.01.0069, 26th Nov 1997

Diamond Stealth 3D 2000 driver, including InControl Tools 95.
This driver archive includes S3 Live Video drivers. The setup for these drivers will be launched after the Diamond Display Driver installation. You may be asked to locate SETUP.EXE when installing. Simply click Continue to install the S3 Live Video drivers.

Windows NT 3.51 Driver
v1.10, 22nd Aug 1996

Get in touch if you can provide this missing item!

Windows NT 4.0 Driver
v2.15, 23rd Oct 1997

This driver adds hardware OpenGL support. 

Windows 3.1 Driver
v1.01, 25th Jul 1996

DOS Utilities
-

S3 provided utilities, including S3REFRSH.EXE (used to set the refresh rate when running DOS application) and S3VBE311.ZIP (used to load VESA 2.0 mode support)

Video BIOS
v1.01

Get in touch if you can provide this missing item!

Video BIOS
v2.02

Get in touch if you can provide this missing item!

Video BIOS
v3.04

Get in touch if you can provide this missing item!
  

 

More Pictures


A Diamond Stealth 3D 2000 Pro (4 MB with TV-out)