GFX9000/Video9000


GFX9000 (original label)	GFX9000 (modern label)

What is GFX9000?

GFX9000 is a cartridge for the MSX computers and it has a V9990 Video Display Processor as heart. The V9990 is based on the never released V9978 VDP, which was supposed to be in the MSX3. Instead, the MSX turboR was released with a V9958. After the failed project, the compatibility features were stripped off the IC and the result is the V9990, see also the MSX turbo R section. So, in 1994 Sunrise decided to make this cartridge with the new VDP in it. It has a seperate video-(RGB)-output connector. Henrik Gilvad even wrote a special BASIC for it, called PowerBASIC (for MSX turbo R). It enables you to use the capacities of the GFX9000 in your own BASIC programs. An alternative is G-BASIC, written by Koen van Hartingsveldt, which also supports Video9000 (see below) and runs on MSX2 and higher.

GFX9000 is delivered with the following software:

Paint9000: 512×212 P2 mode with 16 colours (from a 32768 palette)
GFXAGE: 256×212 P1 mode.
PowerBasic and XBASIC (GFX9000 version) for MSX turbo R
PICVIEW: displays BMP and GIF files
I guess nowadays it is delivered with all the software on the Sunrise for MSX GFX9000 download page.

What resolutions, colours and other specs does it have?
(Stefan Boer, Sunrise, Marcel Delorme, me)

The V9990 supports the following resolutions:

mode	resolution	remark
P1	256×212(424)	dualplane patternmode (2 independent planes)
P2	512×212(424)	patternmode
B0	192×240(480)	undocumented overscan mode (no borders)
B1	256×212(424)
B2	384×240(480)	overscan (no borders)
B3	512×212(424)
B4	768×240(480)	overscan (no borders)
B5	640×400
B6	640×480	needs a 25.2MHz oscillator
B7	1024×212(424)	undocumented mode

Resolutions between brackets () are in interlacing mode. Note that overscan modes have 50 lines extra for non-interlace and 100 lines extra for interlace modes when they are used in PAL 50Hz mode. So, in 50Hz, the B4 mode can be 768×290 (non-interlaced) or 768×580 (interlaced).

These resolutions can be combined with the palette systems below, so a lot of different types of screen modes are possible. Systems using 8 or 16 bits per pixel are not possible for B4..B6, P1 and P2 only work with 4 bits per pixel.

bits/pixel	colours	system
16	32768	simultaneously (TrueColour)
8	64	out of a palette of 32768
	256	like SCREEN 8 (fixed palette)
	19268	like SCREEN 12 (YJK)
	19268	YUV
4	16	out of a palette of 32768
2	4	out of a palette of 32768

The modes with 19268 colours are optimized to display digitized pictures with a minimum of memory and no remarkable loss of picture-information (JPG and PCD use similar methods).

Other features of the V9990/GFX9000:

512kB VRAM (4 times as much as on the standard MSX2, so 4 times as much pages!)
A lot faster than V9938/58
Dualplane mode P1: two planes that can scroll independently, with 4 palettes of 16 colours out of 32768 per plane
125 sprites in P-modes, with upto 16 sprites per horizontal line. Any 16×16 block can be used as sprites, with the use of all colours out of one of the four palettes of 16 colours out of 32768
More interrupt-types
Easier programming
Posibility to use larger `image size´ than `display size´
Interlacing is done by just doubling the picture-size, not by splitting odd-lines and even-lines to different pages, but just the uppper and lower half of the screen
Good priority-support for sprites

More info can be read in the following texts and pages:

For a complete overview, check the V9990 E-VDP-III Application manual.
Old article: V9990 The videochip of the future by Stefan Boer (most info for this FAQ-section was taken from it, but Stefan's text was based on the manual above)
Old article: V9990 evaluation board. The first impression by Henrik Gilvad
V9990 Programmer's Manual on MSX Banzai!

What is supported by PowerBASIC?

I don't know if it's changed, but from Stefan's article, I cite the following:
Screenmodes supported in PowerBASIC:

screen	remark
0	64 column textmode
1	will be 32 column textmode
2	P1 mode (256×212 dualplane patternmode)
3	P2 mode (512×212 patternmode)
4	identical to SCREEN 2
5..12	identical to MSX2/2+ except the sprites, only 2 sprites in one colour are possible (this is the cursor-sprites of the B-modes...)

Further, PowerBASIC supports the following BASIC commands for the GFX9000: BLOAD,S, BSAVE,S, CIRCLE, COLOR, COPY, DRAW, KEY ON/OFF, LINE, LOCATE, PAINT, POINT, PRESET, PSET, PRINT, PRINT USING, PRINT#, PUT SPRITE, SCREEN, SET ADJUST, SET PAGE, SET SCROLL, VDP, VPEEK, VPOKE and WIDTH.

What software is made for GFX9000?

Here is a list of most of the software that has been released or is being made for GFX9000:

PowerBASIC
G-BASIC
Paint9000: a drawing program for the P2 mode, with screen 7-support
PicView: a picture-viewer for BMP and GIF files
All these utilities and more can be found on The (old!) Sunrise GFX9000 download page
X-TAZY, a shootem up game for GFX9000/Moonsound/Turbo-R/Harddisk... Unfortunately it was never finished
A bomberman clone for GFX9000, called `Battlebomber', made by the Bitboyz
A utility called Put9000, by Erik Maas
WiOS, Windows OS for GFX9000. Never completely finished.
Some software by Marcel Delorme, get it on his homepage, including Magic, a MoonBlaster Wave replayer that runs on GFX9000, while you can continue working on the normal VDP
Some small demos (XOR, car race)
Golden Power Disc 12
The Hi-Spec demo by Patriek Lesparre
Team Bomba Underwater Demo
Team Bomba's Blox (under development)
Team Bomba's GFX9K lib, use this to develop GFX9000 software more easily!

What is the Video9000?

Video9000

The Video9000 is an add-on board for the GFX9000, that allows you to digitize/superimpose on MSX2/2+/Turbo-R in the high-resolution of the GFX9000 video-modes. It is developed by Koen van Hartingsveldt of Sunrise.

As said, Video9000 is an add-on board for the GFX9000. So if you want to order it, you'll have to send your GFX9000 to Sunrise, where they will solder the board on the GFX9000. The new card (including Video9000) will then be placed into a new box that includes the connectors and colour/contrast regulators. This new cartridge has to be connected to the MSX via a primary slot then.

What can I do with a Video9000?
(Club Hnostar/Sunrise)

With this digitizer you can grab pictures from a video in 32768 colours, superimpose parts of it with animations and titles upon video images, mix your own creations with these video images, etc. Furthermore you can switch from the MSX2/2+/turboR screen to the GFX9000 screeen and viceversa just by one simple command. Besides, you can save directly (without graphic conversion programs) your images in several formats (now Koen is working in more image formats), like: BMP, the known PC format, PIC or VGF (that can be showed with any Graphics 9000). And all this in several resolutions (all in 32768 colours): 512x424 interlaced, 384x290 overscan, etc. The Video9000 board includes a lot of connectors (inputs and outputs). It is possible to digitize images from a RGB source (for example, a MSX computer or a VCR with RGB output), CVBS (from a VCR, videocamera, computer, ...) and S-VHS (from some videocameras). The output is RGB.

What are the Video9000's main features?
(Sunrise/Club Hnostar)

Real time frame digitization
Superimposition of graphical images
Maximum resolution of 512×424 pixels
Support for 32768 colours (at the same time)
Support for overscan modes (no borders!)
CVBS, S-VHS and RGB inputs available
RGB Video-out connector (SUB-D)
Colour and intensity controls
Internal RGB-switch

For more information, check out the following PDF files:

Where can I buy this wonderful hardware?

You can buy this hardware from Sunrise. See also the Moonsound section.

Back to the FAQ's index!