Fifth-Generation Workstation
Graphics Architecture
The NVIDIA Quadro FX
architecture takes
application performance to
new levels by featuring
three parallel vertex
engines, a radically new
line engine, the industrys
first on-chip vertex cache,
and eight fully programmable
pixel pipelines coupled to a
high-speed DDR graphics DRAM
bus. Graphics pipeline
efficiency is magnified by
NVIDIAs next-generation
crossbar memory
architecture, enabling
occlusion-culling, lossless
depth Z-buffer and color
compression.
These elements combine to
achieve unprecedented 3D
primitive performance: 80
million lit and textured
triangles per second, five
times faster line
performance than the NVIDIA
Quadro4 graphics solutions,
and massive fill rate
powered by eight pixel
pipelines. But the true
measure of power is
application performance!Xand
the NVIDIA Quadro FX
architecture delivers more
than double the performance
vs. the previous generation.
In addition, all NVIDIA
products utilize the NVIDIA
Unified Driver Architecture
(UDA), which is continually
optimized for performance,
quality, and support
throughout the life of every
NVIDIA Quadro product. This
continual improvement has
delivered performance
enhancements of up to 100%
within nine months after
product launch.
Third-Generation Vertex and
Pixel Programmability
The design cycle is a long,
iterative process from
concept, to modeling, and
final production. This final
production can require hours
of offline CPU rendering.
The programmability of the
NVIDIA Quadro® FX
architecture empowers the
industrys leading OpenGL®
and Direct® workstation
applications to now make the
production rendering process
an integral part of
real-time design. This
reduces design cycles,
increases productivity, and
accelerates time-to-market.
Leading this change in
workstation application
functionality are the major
CAD and DCC application
vendors, including:
SolidWorks, Alias|Wavefront,
Discreet, Softimage, and
more. End users can take
full advantage of the
programmable NVIDIA Quadro
FX architecture by enabling
sophisticated real-time
shaders to simulate a
virtually unlimited range of
physical characteristics,
such as lighting effects (fresnel
effects, chromatic
dispersion, reflection,
refraction, BRDF models*,
etc.) and even physical
surface properties (such as
casting effects, porosity,
molded surfaces, etc.).
For example, car models
can be modified on-the-fly
to change their clear coat
and metallic reflective
paint properties; the sheen
of a characters skin can be
adjusted through a dynamic
range from oily to dry by
interactively adjusting a
few sliders; or objects can
be programmed to dynamically
self shadow. Real-time
shaders allow these effects
to be combined and modified
interactively-impossible
with simple 2D static
texture maps.
Full 128-bit Precision
Graphics Pipeline
Sophisticated real-time
effects typically involve
multiple mathematical
operations that demand high
precision to maintain image
quality. The NVIDIA Quadro®
FX features 128-bit IEEE
floating-point precision,
making available millions of
colors in a broad dynamic
range. This results in the
highest level of accuracy
and the ultimate in visual
quality.
High subpixel precision is
another major contributor to
image quality, addressing
visual anomalies that cause
models to "sparkle" or
"crack." The NVIDIA Quadro
FX virtually eliminates this
problem by providing 12 bits
of sub-pixel precision!Xfour
times higher precision than
the nearest competitive
product.
Precision continues to be
a critical factor when
rendering high quality
antialiased images-for both
line and full-scene
antialiasing (FSAA). The
NVIDIA Quadro FX
architecture accelerates
antialiased points and lines
in hardware, and supports up
to 16X FSAA. And unlike
other competitive hardware,
NVIDIA Quadro FX products
drive FSAA up to a
phenomenal 3840x2400
resolution. |