[comp.sys.amiga] That MAC II Monitor

rminnich@udel.UUCP (10/28/87)

Just got a look at a MAC II. Nice box. I do not like it as much 
as my amiga but there are individual things i like a lot better, one
of which is the monitor. Can anyone explain:
1) What is the refresh rate (i.e. did they get that nice display 
   with 60 hz.?)
2) is it a long persistence monitor?
3) I am told it is a Sony- what model is it most like?(i.e. KV1311,etc.)
Thanks,
ron
-- 
ron (rminnich@udel.edu)

farren@gethen.UUCP (10/30/87)

In article <642@louie.udel.EDU> rminnich@udel.EDU (Ron Minnich) writes:
>Just got a look at a MAC II. Nice box. I do not like it as much 
>as my amiga but there are individual things i like a lot better, one
>of which is the monitor. Can anyone explain:
>1) What is the refresh rate (i.e. did they get that nice display 
>   with 60 hz.?)

The refresh rate may or may not be 60 Hz, but the horizontal frequency
is certainly not 15KHz, the NTSC value.  Probably about twice that,
30 KHz or so.  This figure, rather than the refresh rate, is what 
determines how much a monitor can display on one frame - interlace
mode on the Amiga splits a screen up into two frames, which introduces
interlacing and all of its flicker problems.

>2) is it a long persistence monitor?

No, it doesn't need to be.  See above.

>3) I am told it is a Sony- what model is it most like?(i.e. KV1311,etc.)

It is a Sony, but I don't know what model.  I do know that it has been
tweaked considerably in order to work perfectly with the existing Apple
video card, which is why it looks so nice.  Similar tweaking could 
probably be done with a similar monitor to get similar results on the
Amiga, especially with a scan converter card to get rid of interlacing.


-- 
----------------
Michael J. Farren      "... if the church put in half the time on covetousness
unisoft!gethen!farren   that it does on lust, this would be a better world ..."
gethen!farren@lll-winken.arpa             Garrison Keillor, "Lake Wobegon Days"

fnf@mcdsun.UUCP (Fred Fish) (10/31/87)

In article <267@gethen.UUCP> farren@gethen.UUCP (Michael J. Farren) writes:
>In article <642@louie.udel.EDU> rminnich@udel.EDU (Ron Minnich) writes:
>>Just got a look at a MAC II. Nice box. I do not like it as much 
>>as my amiga but there are individual things i like a lot better, one
>>of which is the monitor. Can anyone explain:
>>1) What is the refresh rate (i.e. did they get that nice display 
>>   with 60 hz.?)
>
>The refresh rate may or may not be 60 Hz, but the horizontal frequency
>is certainly not 15KHz, the NTSC value.  Probably about twice that,
>30 KHz or so.  This figure, rather than the refresh rate, is what 
>determines how much a monitor can display on one frame - interlace
>mode on the Amiga splits a screen up into two frames, which introduces
>interlacing and all of its flicker problems.

From the Appendix of the AppleColor RGB Monitor manual:

Picture tube:		13-inch viewable diagonal
			.25 mm aperture grille pitch Trinitron CRT

Input Signals:		Red, green, and blue video signals using
			RS-343 standard.  Composit sync., negative
			going TTL

User controls:		Power switch (back panel)
			Degauss switch (back panel)
			Brightness, with detent reference (right side)
			Contrast (right side)
			V-twist misconvergence adjustment (back panel)
			H-stat misconvergence adjustment (back panel)

Scanning Frequencies:	35.000 Khz  horizonal
			66.7 Hz vertical

Video bandwidth:	+/- 1.0db to 23 MHz

Resolution:		640 horizonal pixels by 480 vertical lines

Active video display:	Adjusted at the factory to produce an active
			video area of 235 mm horizontal by 176 mm
			vertical.  The remainder of the screen is used
			for the dark border around the display.

Weight:			34 lbs including video cable and power cord

Power requirement:	160 watts maximum

Input voltage:		50-60Hz, 85-270 Vrms, self-configuring

Operating temp:		10 deg C to 35 deg C (50-95 deg F)

Operating Humidity:	90 % maximum, non-condensing

Operating Altitude:	10,000 feet maximum   (!!! -Fred)

Warm-up time:		20 minutes to meet all specifications.

Input signal Jack:	DA-15 style connector
			1  Red video return
			2  Red video
			3  Composite TTL sync
			4  Composite sync return
			5  Green video
			6  Green video return
			7  (not used)
			8  (not used)
			9  Blue video
			10 (not used)
			11 (not used)
			12 (not used)
			13 Blue video return
			14 (not used)
			15 (not used)
		     Shell Shield ground

-- 
# Fred Fish    hao!noao!mcdsun!fnf    (602) 438-3614
# Motorola Computer Division, 2900 S. Diablo Way, Tempe, Az 85282  USA

cheeser@dasys1.UUCP (Les Kay) (11/03/87)

Someone was asking about the Mac II monitor, was it long persistance, 60 cycles,
etc., the answer is:

No, it is not long persistance.
It either uses 60 cycle or faster, I forget.
Its bandwidth is 37mh.
It is most like the Sony MultiSync monitor, only higher preformance.

-- 
===============================================================================
Jonathan Bing, Master (cheeser)			...ihnp4!hoptoad!dasys1!cheeser
"Pereant, iniquit, qui ante nos nostra dixerunt!"                          also
"Non illegitimus carborundum!"        crash!pnet01!pro-sol!pro-carolina!cheeser

cheeser@dasys1.UUCP (Les Kay) (11/03/87)

In an earlier article, I posted the Mac II color  monitor had a hor. band
width of 37 mh, I meant, of course, Kh. . . .

-- 
===============================================================================
Jonathan Bing, Master (cheeser)			...ihnp4!hoptoad!dasys1!cheeser
"Pereant, iniquit, qui ante nos nostra dixerunt!"                          also
"Non illegitimus carborundum!"        crash!pnet01!pro-sol!pro-carolina!cheeser

braun@thumperbellcore.com (David A. Braun) (11/04/87)

In article <> cheeser@dasys1.UUCP (Les Kay) writes:
>
>In an earlier article, I posted the Mac II color  monitor had a hor. band
>width of 37 mh, I meant, of course, Kh. . . .
>

You really did mean 37 Mh!  37 Kh would give you a horizontal resolution of
something less than 1!

dave

cmcmanis@pepper.UUCP (11/06/87)

In article <866@thumperbellcore.com> braun@thumper.UUCP (David A. Braun) writes:
>In article <> cheeser@dasys1.UUCP (Les Kay) writes:
>>In an earlier article, I posted the Mac II color  monitor had a hor. band
>>width of 37 mh, I meant, of course, Kh. . . .
>You really did mean 37 Mh!  37 Kh would give you a horizontal resolution of
>something less than 1!

Actually none of this makes sense, but I think I may know what Les was
trying to say. He was most likely referring to the parameter known
as 'Hor

wtm@neoucom.UUCP (Bill Mayhew) (11/08/87)

According to an engineering rep at Sony, the Mac I monitory is
exactly the same thing as a CPD 1302, except for the color of the
cabinet.  Sony can supply a Mac II cable, if you have a CPD 1302.

I'm not sure I toatlly believe the Sony rep, as there has been such
a long delay in the introdution of the Mac II color Monitor.

I got the Mac press kit from a friend at Apple.  Here is the spec
sheet:

Picture tube:
13 inch viewable diagonal
.25 mm aperature grille pitch
Trinitron (tm) CRT

Resolution:
640 dots horizontally by
480 dots vertically

Active display area:
235 millimeters horizontal by
176 millimeters vertical
(remainder of display
is used for border)

Input siganls:
Red, gree, and blue video
signals using RS-343 standard
synchronization,
negative going TTL

Video bandwidth:
23 MHz			<---- please note

Scan rates:
35.0 kilohertz horizontal
66.7 hertz vertical

Controls:
Right side:
-Brightness, with detent
reference
-Contrast
Back panel
-Power switch
-Degauss switch
-Vertical misconvergence		<---- nice touch!
adjustment

Electrical
requirements:
Line voltage 85 to 270 volts AC
Frequency 47 to 63 Hz
Nominal power 90 watts

Environmental
Requirements:
Operating temperature
50 to 104 degrees F (10 to 40 degrees C)
Relative humidity:
90% maximum
Maximum altitude:
10,000 feet (3,048 m)

Fuse protection:
The monitor contains internal
power line fuse protection.  This
fuse should be replace with
the same type by a qualified
service technician

Warm-up time
20 minutes to meet all		<---- guess waiting for Kick
specifications			      Start isn't so bad :-)

Size and weight:
height:  11 in.  (281mm)
width:  13.5 in.  (344 mm)
depth:  15.2 in.  (385 mm)
weight 34 lbs.  (15.5 kg)

Apple part # M0401, includes video cable, power cable,
Owner's Guide, and Limited Warranty Statement.

papa@uscacsc.UUCP (Marco Papa) (11/09/87)

From the description it looks that the MAc color monitor is indeed manufactured
by SONY, but it is not the same as the SNY CPD-1302.  Differences I found from
the technical description of the CPD-1302:

* Multiscan:
  Horizontal Sync: 15.75-34 KHz
  Verticel Sync: 50-100 Hz

* Bandwidth: 25 MHz

* Dot Resolution: 900H x 560V

-- Marco

cmcmanis@pepper.UUCP (11/10/87)

[Another in the Chuck's Video tutorial series ... ]

In article <749@neoucom.UUCP> wtm@neoucom.UUCP (Bill Mayhew) writes:

Thanks Bill for posting the specs, here are some formulae one can 
use to determine the maximum resolution this monitor is capable of
and the required parameters of the appropriate display interface.

Note that it is the *computer* that determines the display resolution
not the monitor. 

>Picture tube:
>13 inch viewable diagonal
>.25 mm aperature grille pitch
>Trinitron (tm) CRT

>Active display area:
>235 millimeters horizontal by
>176 millimeters vertical
>(remainder of display
>is used for border)

These numbers give the physical limits to displaying pixels on the tube.
Because the tube is not *really* a continuous surface, rather it is a
bunch of phosphor dots that are excited by the electron gun(s). So dividing
out the numbers horizontally, you can put on this tube with a .25 mm dot 
pitch (.25 mm between dot 'centers') 235 mm of active disply/.25 mm between
pixels  = 940 pixels per line. Vertically, you can divide 176 mm vertical
active area by .25 mm dot pitch and come up is 704 lines. Unfortunately,
it is not a perfect world so you will not see this sort of actual resolution
out of this tube. The tube is driven by a bunch of electronics that control
the electron guns inside, and the fastest they can respond is given by this
next specification : 

>Video bandwidth:
>23 MHz			<---- please note

If you looked at a picture that consisted of white and black dots you might
not normally associate this with a frequency, but if you looked at the input
to the electron gun that caused this pattern to be displayed on an 
oscilloscope you would see a 'square' wave. This is due to the relationship
between voltage on the electron gun and the brightness of the spot it just
hit on the screen. So changes in intensity on the screen are really just
a time varying waveform to the electron gun. And the above specification
says that this wave form cannot exceed 23 MHz. If it does, then the electron
gun cannot respond fast enough and rather than black and white dots you only
get grey dots. Now we can combine this value with the next one to find out
what the maximum number of pixels the *electronics* can display.

>Scan rates:
>35.0 kilohertz horizontal

This means the beam sweeps across the screen 35,000 times a second. Since
we know from the above that the fastest the pixels can change is 23 million
times a second the most you could put on a line before the beam moves on
to the next line is 23,000,000 / 35,000 = 657.14 pixels. However, since
the beam doesn't jump immediately to the next line, you have to allow some
time for it to mave back to the beginning of the next scan line. This time
varies on different monitors and is usually supplied in the extended 
specifications as Horizontal Retrace Time. Most monitors I've worked with
have a retrace time in the range of 4 to 6 uS (micro seconds). The time
the beam spends one line is 1 / 35,000 or about 286 uS. Using the worst
case of 6 uS retrace time means 280 uS would be available for displaying
pixels, and the ratio (280/286) = (657.14/x) yields 643.35 pixels that 
can be displayed. 

>66.7 hertz vertical

This is also sometimes called the 'frame' rate since it is also the number
of times per second that the entire 'frame' is displayed. Using this 
information we can calculate how many times the beam will trace out a 
line before the beam gets dragged back to the top of the display. Simply,
(35,000 lines/second) / (66.7 frames/second) = 524.73 lines/frame. Again
time has to be allowed for the beam to go from the bottom of the screen
to the top which is usually specified as the Vertical Retrace Time. Since
we don't have it here we have to pick 'reasonable' values pretty much out
of the air. Due to the way monitors are built this number is often related
to the horizontal retrace time. However because of the increased distance
the beam has to travel it is a couple of orders of magnitude larger.
So a monitor with a horizontal retrace time of 6 uS might have a vertical
retrace time of 600 uS (.6 mille second) For now we will assume this number
is a good estimate and calculate from there. Again, since the frame rate
is 66.7 Hz, the time spent in one frame is 1/66.7 = .0149 second and 
subracting off the vertical retrace time gives us (.0149-0.0006) = .0143.
Using the ratio technique again (.0143/.0149) = (524/x), x = 503. Or
a maximum of 503 lines.

>Resolution:
>640 dots horizontally by
>480 dots vertically

So given that the monitor *can* display 643 X 503 pixels the designers 
of the Mac Display hardware *chose* to display 640 X 480 pixels. When
deciding how many pixels to display other factors besides the monitor's
capability come into play. Factors such as memory use, and the monitor's
aspect ratio. 640 X 480 is a 4:3 aspect ratio which is the same aspect 
ratio of the tube, thus the pixels displayed are 'square' when the 
monitor controls are adjusted properly.

So now when you look at the spec sheet for a monitor you can calculate
for yourself what the maximum resolution that the monitor is likely to
display. Since you can adjust the number of rows and columns displayed
on your Amiga, if you know the specs for your monitor you can adjust the
Amiga to display the largest possible display on it. Note however that 
the horizontal scan rate and frame rate are fixed at 15,750 Hz and 60 Hz
respectively.

--Chuck McManis
uucp: {anywhere}!sun!cmcmanis   BIX: cmcmanis  ARPAnet: cmcmanis@sun.com
These opinions are my own and no one elses, but you knew that didn't you.