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Knowledge Base v0.25

IBM/IDTech "Bertha" 9MP Displays (Type 9503) - wiki
Model breakdown
Internal photographs
Dual-link DVI adapters
Panel native refresh rates & overclocking
Modes discovered via EDID
Tested custom & overclocked input modes
Tested hardware configurations
Test mode gallery

[WIP/todo]
Attempt to dump EDID data for other factory reserved codes
LFH60 pinout / Dual-link DVI adapter wiring diagram
Documentation of Windows-based USB control software
Hardware-based EDID override methods
Adaptation/testing of Linux EDID guide with tile descriptors for DisplayPort-MST (ext) for Mac OS 
Documentation of panel overclocking procedure
Documentation of overclocked panel testing
Testing legacy modes with an Extron scaler for analog sources
Add comprehensive list of rebadged models



Model breakdown: [top]

All models consist of a 22" 3840 x 2400 dual domain IPS LCD panel backlit by twelve wide color gamut? CCFLs. Atypically, these panels feature a buffered scaler onboard, programmed to integer double, triple, quadruple, or quintuple many standard XGA resolutions up to 1920 wide or 1200 high, and retime an abnormally wide range of 9 Hz - 95Hz vertical refresh to the fixed* 41 Hz or 48 Hz panel driver. All models feature four DVI inputs in the form of two LFH-60 female ports on the back of the display. 

Early prototypes (T220; 9503-DG0) required four links genlocked, each 960 x 2400 @ 41 Hz stripes for full operation. The power supplies for the scaler and panel driver were not integrated internally, and two external AC adapter bricks were required as a result.

First production (T221; 9503-DG1) did not change the driving modes from above until a firmware update added 1920 x 1200 @ 41Hz tiles. The two power supplies are now integrated to require only one AC adapter. Shipped with Matrox G200 MMS (twin LFH-60 cables.)

Alternate configuration (T221; 9503-DG3; also B2) was functionally identical to the 9503-DG1 but shipped with one LFH-60 twin single-link DVI adapter with USB instead of the Matrox card. This model was originally on sale alongside the 9503-DG1 and remained the less expensive option after release of the 9503-DG5. 

Revised models (T221; 9503-DG5; also B5) provided EDID flash modes which ran the panel driver at 48Hz, and also provisioned for each pair of two DVI links to be rewired into a single dual-link DVI connector via external converter box (later, vendors replicated the functionality using resistors on adapter PCBs, and even spliced in-line between a dual-link DVI cable and LFH60 cable.) These models do not require genlocked inputs and can be used to display multiple computers or video cards simultaneously in any modes which can logically fit together. Full quality can be achieved via four 960 x 2400 @ 48Hz stripes, four 1920 x 1200 @ 48Hz tiles, two 1920 x 2400 @ 48Hz dual-link stripes, one 2624 x 2400 @ 48Hz dual-link stripe and one 1216 x 2400 @ 48Hz stripe (3 links total,) or three single-link 1280 x 2400 @ 48Hz stripes (not documented.) 41Hz panel drive modes with EDIDs for 9503-DG0 legacy support were also available on these models.

Japanese market (T221; 9503-DGM) is thought to be a 41Hz-locked panel (similar to 9503-DG3) with a scaler matching all the other features of the 9503-DG5.

Japanese market (T221; 9503-DGP) is reported to be functionally identical to 9503-DG5.

In my testing, two examples of 9503-DGM were able to flash EDID mode 022 without reporting error. Further testing with a 240fps camera revealed the 9503-DGM and 9503-DGP present frames precisely and evenly at 48Hz when runing EDID mode 022. This seems to indicate no functional difference between 9503-DGM and 9503-DGP, but more testing at full bandwidth is needed to verify, More data and test impressions below the photos.



Internal photographs: [top]

Picture
Input/Scaler Board (9503-DGP) 55P4303 / Monitor I/F Card
Picture
Control Board (9503-DGP) 008A101 / F8991CR-Control
Picture
Internal Cabling (9503-DGP)
Picture
Panel (9503-DGP) 07N0512 / F8991-Y Card / BP1918A / 07N0571 / F8991CR-X
Picture
Inverter Board (9503-DGP) HPC-1455A / 220PWT031-C / 07N0563
Picture
Backlight Assembly (9503-DGP) 07N0560
Picture
OSD Button Board (9503-DGP) A2-SW-CARD / 07N2226 / HY6909-02 / AT25268(2)



Dual-link DVI adapters:[top]

IBM originally sold an external conversion box (07N2230; 13M3200) which performed the same function as the below adapters.
Picture
Aftermarket DVI-D DL adapter by grimm.jp (ext) for driving two DVI links in a single LFH60 connector on the 9503-DG5. 9503-DGM, and 9503-DGP input scalers - Ver.2.1
Picture
Aftermarket DVI-D DL adapter by grimm.jp (ext) for driving two DVI links in a single LFH60 connector on the 9503-DG5. 9503-DGM, and 9503-DGP input scalers - Ver.2.2



Panel native refresh rates & overclocking: [top]

Documentation on refresh rates is slightly vague, but must be considered precisely since some versions of panel driver do not change refresh based on input*; the frames are retimed to avoid tearing, but may be dropped or doubled to compensate for mismatched sync.

Panels equivalent to 9503-DG3 and older are apparently locked at
41 Hz in every mode.
Documentation states "
41-48 Hz" for the 9503-DG5, *though this syntax is vague about if exactly 41 Hz and 48 Hz can be chosen via EDID mode, or if the panel driver can choose any appropriate timing from that range on-the-fly based on input.

*Using a 240fps camera to examine several examples of 9503-DGP and 9503-DGM, it appears the panels will directly sync to any refresh rate within a band of about
38.234 Hz on the low end (38.231 sometimes syncs but not always) and about 48.761 Hz on the high end (48.772 often syncs but occasionnally skips a frame, not in a regular pattern.)
Forum contributor cirthix@gmail.com once described (ext) and popularized a method for modifying the panel to drive a different range of
49.6 Hz to 63.0 Hz, allowing 3840 x 2400 to display at 31 Hz over one dual-link connection with even presentation, and also noting two dual-link signals will present evenly up to 55 Hz but begin to desync above 56 Hz. It has been mentioned that 9503-DGP panels are more likely to remain stable up to 60 Hz, but I have not yet performed an overclock to test this.

Observation; stock 9503-DGP/9503-DGM, EDID mode 002: [When the panel is directly synchronized the scaler's secondary retiming buffer seems to be bypassed, reducing the frame propogation time. To be directly driven by more than one input, precise synchronization of the separate signals is optimal (genlock) but two independently synchronized signals can be used if their tolerances are tight enough. The signals may still occasionally fall out of sync, which causes the panel to momentarily black out as the scaler loads the timing buffer with new frames. This also occurs when driving the panel at the very top edge of its sync range. Riding the very bottom edge will not black out the panel, but instead will suddenly start hold/doubling every fourth frame (48 Hz sync) in between periods of perfect 38.2 Hz panel sync. Despite a relatively wide sync range, it appears all modes which are retimed by the second buffer drive the panel within a relatively tight band of its mode default 41 Hz or 48 Hz. The scaler will double every fourth frame at low 38 Hz, at 37 Hz it will double an alternating pattern of every fourth frame and every third frame, and at 36 Hz will double every third frame. This translates to more even 17.2 Hz presentation when running EDID 029 (41 Hz) than when running EDID 022 (48 Hz.) When running modes faster than 38.76 Hz, the scaler will begin dropping frames about once per second, then about twice per second, etc.]

The OSD only displays timing information for the A scaler, primary signal. On older panels which require genlock, this therefore indicates the refresh for all other signals too. On 9503-DG5, 9503-DGM, 9503-DGP the other signals may be much faster or slower and still display smoothly, but no function exists on the OSD to read out their timings. Though only integer values are shown, the OSD's rouding point is verified precisely between .49 and .50.

[IBM documentation]

40.9 Hz for 41 Hz mode 
20.1 Hz for "half" 41 Hz mode
12.7 Hz for "third" 41 Hz mode

48.0 Hz for 48 Hz mode
25.0 Hz alternate "half" 48 Hz mode
24.0 Hz for "half" 48 Hz mode
12.1 Hz for "quarter" 48 Hz mode

13-85 Hz (V) 31-118 kHz (H) 165 MHz (Maximum per link)



Modes discovered via EDID: [top]

 ~ The following modes were collected via SwitchResX (ext) from a 9503-DGP (manufactured week 6, 2006) by flashing each EDID code listed as valid for 9503-DG5 in the manual. Additionally, one of my examples shipped set to undocumented code 030, which also seems to work on other 9503-DGP displays. This is listed among others in IBM's July 2002 recvision of EDID settings documentation (PDF) with the designation 'Reserved. Do not use.' Naturally, I'll probably also try the others to see if valid EDID data exists.

[EDID mode] Gamma [R(x,y) G(x,y) B(x,y) W(x,y)] Range V(Hz) H(kHz) Maximum Total(MHz)
Refresh rate (Resolution - Front Porch, Sync, Back Porch [H±] Front Porch, Sync, Back Porch [V±] Horizontal rate / Total rate) interface

[002] 2.20 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.312,0.330)] (9-95 Hz) (22-105 kHz) (330 MHz)
47.959 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 20 [V-] 58.894 kHz / 122.50 MHz) single-link
47.979 Hz (1920 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 10, 43 [V-] 117.788 kHz / 245.00 MHz) dual-link
23.975 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 19 [V-] 58.188 kHz / 232.75 MHz) dual-link

[003] 2.20 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.312,0.330)] (9-95 Hz) (22-105 kHz) (330 MHz)
47.959 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 20 [V-] 58.894 kHz / 122.50 MHz) single-link
49.995 Hz (1920 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 10, 45 [V-] 122.837 kHz / 255.50 MHz) dual-link
24.995 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 20 [V-] 60.688 kHz / 242.75 MHz) dual-link

[006] 2.20 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.312,0.330)] (n/a) (n/a) (n/a)
47.959 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 20 [V-] 58.894 kHz / 122.50 MHz) single-link
47.990 Hz (2624 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 10, 43 [V-[ 117.816 kHz / 328.00 MHz) dual-link
47.990 Hz (1216 x 2400 - 48, 32, 96 [H+] 2, 10, 43 [V-] 117.816 kHz / 164.00 MHz) single-link
12.091 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 6 [V-] 29.188 kHz / 116.75 MHz) single-link

[021] 2.20 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.312,0.330)] (n/a) (n/a) (n/a)
40.948 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 16 [V-] 50.120 kHz / 104.25 MHz) single-link
40.934 Hz (960 x 2400 - 8, 32, 56 [H+] 2, 2, 20 [V+] 99.223 kHz / 104.78 MHz) single-link
19.927 Hz (1920 x 2400 - 16, 32, 72 [H+] 3, 10, 10 [V-] 48.284 kHz / 98.50 MHz) single-link
12.091 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 6 [V-] 29.188 kHz / 116.75 MHz) single-link

[022] 2.20 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.312,0.330)] (n/a) (n/a) (n/a)
47.959 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 20 [V-] 58.894 kHz / 122.50 MHz) single-link
47.997 Hz (960 x 2400 - 8, 32, 56 [H+] 2, 2, 20 [V+] 116.345 kHz / 122.86 MHz) single-link
23.923 Hz (1920 x 2400 - 16, 32, 72 [H+] 3, 10, 10 [V-] 57.966 kHz / 118.25 MHz) single-link
12.091 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 6 [V-] 29.188 kHz / 116.75 MHz) single-link

[029] 2.20 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.312,0.330)] (9-95 Hz) (22-105 kHz) (170 MHz)
40.931 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 104, 200, 304 [H-] 1, 3, 25 [V+] 50.305 kHz / 127.17 MHz) single-link
20.099 Hz (1920 x 2400 - 104, 200, 304 [H-] 1, 3, 24 [V+] 48.801 kHz / 123.37 MHz) single-link
12.709 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 104, 384, 488 [H-] 1, 3, 14 [V+] 30.731 kHz / 148.00 MHz) single-link

[030] 1.80 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.346,0.357)] (9-95 Hz) (22-105 kHz) (170 MHz)
40.931 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 104, 200, 304 [H-] 1, 3, 25 [V+] 50.305 kHz / 127.17 MHz) single-link
20.099 Hz (1920 x 2400 - 104, 200, 304 [H-] 1, 3, 24 [V+] 48.801 kHz / 123.37 MHz) single-link
12.993 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 8, 104, 144 [H+] 1, 2, 21 [V+] 31.494 kHz / 129.00 MHz) single-link

[036] 2.20 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.312,0.330)] (9-95 Hz) (22-105 kHz) (170 MHz)
47.959 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 6 [V-] 58.894 kHz / 122.50 MHz) single-link
23.969 Hz (1920 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 10, 15 [V-] 58.173 kHz / 121.00 MHz) single-link
12.091 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 6 [V-] 29.188 kHz / 116.75 MHz) single-link

[037] 2.20 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.312,0.330)] (9-95 Hz) (22-105 kHz) (170 MHz)
47.959 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 20 [V-] 58.894 kHz / 122.50 MHz) single-link
24.999 Hz (1920 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 10, 16 [V-] 60.697 kHz / 126.25 MHz) single-link
12.091 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 6 [V-] 29.188 kHz / 116.75 MHz) single-link

[044] 2.20 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.312,0.330)] (9-95 Hz) (22-105 kHz) (170 MHz)
40.948 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 48, 32, 80 [H-] 2, 6, 16 [V+] 50.120 kHz / 104.25 MHz) single-link

[045[ 2.20 [R(0.638,0.342) G(0.290,0.609) B(0.146,0.083) W(0.312,0.330)] (9-95 Hz) (22-105 kHz) (170 MHz)
47.959 Hz (1920 x 1200 - 48, 32, 80 [H+] 2, 6, 20 [V-] 58.894 kHz / 122.50 MHz) single-link

In addition to the above listed, every EDID mode also presents established timings for the following resolutions to maintain compatibility (additional data cross-referenced from the manual):

640 x 400 @ 70.0 Hz / 31.5 kHz / 25.2 MHz
640 x 480 @ 59.9 Hz / 31.5 kHz / 25.2 MHz
640 x 480 @ 72.8 Hz / 37.9 kHz / 31.5 MHz
640 x 480 @ 75.0 Hz / 37.5 kHz / 31.5 MHz
800 x 600 @ 56.3 Hz / 35.2 kHz / 36.0 MHz
800 x 600 @ 60.3 Hz / 37.9 kHz / 40.0 MHz
800 x 600 @ 72.2 Hz / 48.1 kHz / 50.0 MHz
800 x 600 @ 75.0 Hz / 46.9 kHz / 49.5 MHz
960 x 1200 @ 55.7 Hz / 67.3 kHz / 71.0 MHz*
1024 x 768 @ 60.0 Hz / 48.4 kHz / 65.0 MHz
1024 x 768 @ 70.1 Hz / 56.5 kHz / 75.0 MHz
1024 x 768 @ 75.0 Hz / 60.0 kHz / 78.8 MHz
1280 x 1024 @ 75.0 Hz / 80.0 kHz / 135.0 MHz
1920 x 1200 @ 40.9 Hz / 50.0 kHz / 127.2 MHz
1920 x 1200 @ 48.0 Hz / 59.2 kHz / 151.6 MHz

*This mode is referred to as 'Stripe VGA' and is used for backward compatibility with the 9503-DG1 modes.


Finally, the following five standard timings are available on each EDID mode; the sixth is only available on 002, 003, and 006:
640 x 480 @ 85.0 Hz / 43.3 kHz / 36.0 MHz
800 x 600 @ 85.1 Hz / 53.7 kHz / 56.3 MHz
1024 x 768 @ 85.0 Hz / 68.7 kHz / 94.5 MHz
1280 x 1024 @ 60.0 Hz / 64.0 kHz / 108.0 MHz
1600 x 1200 @ 60.0 Hz / 75.0 kHz / 162.0 MHz
1920 x 1200 @ 60.0 Hz / 74.1 kHz / 154.1 MHz



Tested custom & overclocked input modes: [top]

165 MHz is typically considered the maximum bandwidth of a single DVI link, though some of the T221's factory EDIDs above specify 170 MHz as the maximum bandwidth per link. Dual-link DVI is conventionally specified at 330 MHz, though some active DP to DVI-DL adapters are limited to 300 MHz. HDMI v1.0-1.2a also use 165 MHz single-link DVI for its image signal, initially sending additional feature data only during blanking. HDMI 1.3 increased the TDMS link bandwidth to 340 MHz in 2006, still using only one [DVI] link.

This report (ext) of 172.56 MHz single-link modes using Delock 62603 active DisplayPort to single-link DVI adapters lead me to purchase a couple. They're based on the Parade PS171 chipset and one of a handful which suppport 4Kx2K, 1080p 3D/120, or 4K30 for HDMI 1.3+ displays with DVI ports (Dell U2711, U3011, Philips 288p6, etc.) PS171 is compliant with HDMI 1.4b but limited to 300 MHz.

In my testing with these, T221s clock differently in various modes. They struggle to run over 170 MHz at 1920 x 2400 but remain stable up to 176.64 MHz at 1280 x 2400. Middling resolutions produce middling results: 1920 x 2160 can sync up to about 170.93 MHz and 1728 x 2400 will reach about 172.18 MHz. After determining these semi-precise limits using the 62603s, I found the StarTech MDP2VGDVHDW I had on-hand could keep up with each of them perfectly (I can't easily find which chipset it uses.) I'll recheck some of the tolerances on the StarTech to be sure, but it's likely these are the true limits of the T221's input scaler.

[165.00 MHz] 17.206 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 48, 32, 64 [H] 2, 3, 2 [V] 41.416 kHz / 165.00 MHz) single-link
[330.00 MHz]
34.413 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 48, 32, 64 [H] 2, 3, 2 [V] 82.831 kHz / 330.00 MHz) dual-link

[170.00 MHz]
34.252 Hz (1920 x 2400 - 48, 32, 62 [H] 2, 3, 2 [V] 82.444 kHz / 170.00 MHz) single-link; one-half

[165.00 MHz]
48.139 Hz (1280 x 2400 - 48, 32, 64 [H] 2, 3, 2 [V] 115.871 kHz / 165.00 MHz) single-link; one-third*
[170.00 MHz]
49.668 Hz (1280 x 2400 - 48, 32, 62 [H] 2, 3, 2 [V] 119.550 kHz / 170.00 MHz) single-link; one-third*
[176.64 MHz]
51.608 Hz (1280 x 2400 - 48, 32, 62 [H] 2, 3, 2 [V] 124.219 kHz / 176.64 MHz) single-link; one-third*

*three single-links each 1280 x 2400 can be used to natively drive the 9503-DG5, 9503-DGM, 9503-DGP models [not officially documented.] A Matrox TripleHead2Go Digital SE [programmed for 3*1280x1024] running custom resolutions beyond 3840x1201 will be treated by the T221 scaler as a three stripe configuration, as 2624 x 2400 + 1216 x 2400 works in EDID mode 006. (Resolutions 3840 x 1200 and below will be shown in tile mode, which is not so useful here.) The TripleHead2Go Digital SE itself can split DisplayPort signals at least up to 452.16 MHz total image bandwidth and works with even tighter blanking intervals than the T221's scaler. The box will even pass stable output with vertical intervals of 1, 1, 1, but each of the T221's three logical stripes will smoothly crawl about an inch horizontally once every ten seconds or so. Using 1, 2, 1 avoids this. The T221 syncs with this box well above the point the image becomes distorted. 48 Hz at over 460 MHz is still stable on the T221 but the color is severely distorted; this may be due to the HDMI to DisplayPort adapter I'm testing with.

[358.20 MHz] 37.419 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 48, 32, 62 [H] 1, 2, 1 [V] 89.955 kHz / 358.20 MHz) TripleHead2Go Digital SE > 3x DVI-SL
[452.16 MHz] 47.234 Hz (3840 x 2400 - 48, 32, 62 [H] 1, 2, 1 [V] 113.551 kHz / 452.16 MHz) HDMI active DP > TripleHead2Go Digital SE > 3x DVI-SL

I tried connecting a Matrox TripleHead2Go DP edition and found it not as capable as the Digital SE version, though still useful. The device itself lights up on any valid sync up to 360 MHz and will drive over 170 MHz per link via DP++ passive DVI adapters or active 300 MHz DVI-SL adapters. The blanking intervals are very strict compared to the Digital SE boxes, which will sync with any sync intervals I'd expect the T221 to when directly connected with DVI-DL or DVI-SL. The T221 will only sync with this box in its 2 x 1920x1200 modes with horizontal intervals of 64, 64, 192 and vertical 3, 10, 22 (I have had success with 3, 10, 2 as a start, but I've not yet found other horizontal schemes that work.) This sets the limit back slightly from the Digital SE's shortest intervals, 48, 32, 62; 1, 2, 1. The Matrox box lights green on other intervals, but the T221 flashes out of sync range. Another thing I've found is that programming the EDID mode via Matrox PowerDesk doesn't restrict other schemes from being sent and interpreted properly. Setting 3 x 1280x1024 presents a new blanking interval set for 3840 x 1024: 16, 16, 104; 1, 7, 34. I have not yet had success stretching three tile mode vertically, though two tile mode stretches to any other desired resolution with the specified blanking intervals, up to 3840 x 2400. When selecting the 3x resolution the 3 link scheme is engeged. Switching back to any custom two-link resolution changes the scheme back to two links (1 and 3.) The fastest stable two-link singnal I've found the T221 syncs with is about 345 MHz, though colors begin to distort somewhat heavily at the top end. Some distortion is present even at 330 MHz, but everything looks accurate at 300 MHz. It's not something that's easy to notice at first: at 330 Mhz a few green dots when the screen is mostly black- but at 345 MHz it's quite obtrusive.

Unfortunately active DP to dual-link DVI converters do work in twin-link modes on the TripleHead2Go DP Edition but are even less stable near maximum link speed. 3840 x 1200 @ 60 Hz works fine, but the T221 loses sync frequently with most modes near or above 300 MHz. Static images can be mostly stable but movement causes resyncs between the two sides. 3840 x 2160 @ 30 Hz is the fastest motion-stable mode I've found so far, around 271 MHz.


Logical driving modes (41 Hz):
(single) Single DVI link (165.00 MHz x1)
3840 x 2400 @ 17.206 Hz (full panel; max bandwidth)
3840 x 2160 @ 19.112 Hz (full width; 16:9; max bandwidth)
3840 x 2008 @ 20.5 Hz (1:2 drive; full width; max bandwidth)
3200 x 2400 @ 20.5 Hz (1:2 drive; full height; 4:3; max bandwidth)
3488 x 2180 @ 20.5 Hz (1:2 drive; 16:10; max bandwidth)
3840 x 1504 @ 27.333 Hz (2:3 drive; full width; max bandwidth)
2352 x 2400 @ 27.333 Hz (2:3 drive; full height; max bandwidth)
3024 x 1890 @ 27.333 Hz (2:3 drive; 16:10; max bandwidth)
1920 x 1200 @ 41 Hz (full speed; full panel)
3840 x 1002 @ 41 Hz (full speed; full width; max bandwidth)
1520 x 2400 @ 41 Hz (full speed; full height; max bandwidth)
2448 x 1530 @ 41 Hz (full speed; 16:10; max bandwidth)
2560 x 1600 @ 37.972 Hz (16:10; max bandwidth)
2880 x 1800 @ 30 Hz (16:10; max bandwidth)
3168 x 1980 @ 25 Hz (16:10; max bandwidth)

(dual) Single DVI link (165.00 MHz x2)
1920 x 2400 @ 33.212 Hz + 1920 x 2400 @ 33.212 Hz (full panel; max bandwidth)
1520 x 2400 @ 41 Hz + 1520 x 2400 @ 41 Hz (full speed; full height; max bandwidth)

(single) Dual DVI link (330.00 MHz x1)
3840 x 2400 @ 34.413 Hz (full panel; max bandwidth)

Logical driving modes (48 Hz):
(single) Single DVI link (165.00 MHz x1)
3840 x 2400 @ 16 Hz (1:3 drive; full panel)
3840 x 1712 @ 24 Hz (1:2 drive; full width cinematic; max bandwidth)
2712 x 2400 @ 24 Hz (1:2 drive; full height cinematic; max bandwidth)
3232 x 2020 @ 24 Hz (1:2 drive; 16:10 cinematic; max bandwidth)
3840 x 1286 @ 32 Hz (2:3 drive; full width; max bandwidth)
1984 x 2400 @ 32 Hz (2:3 drive; full height; max bandwidth)
2608 x 1630 @ 32 Hz (2:3 drive; 16:10; max bandwidth)
1920 x 1200 @ 48 Hz (full speed; cinematic; full panel)
3840 x 854 @ 48 Hz (full speed; full width cinematic; max bandwidth)
1280 x 2400 @ 48 Hz 
(full speed; full height cinematic; max bandwidth)
2256 x 1410 @ 48 Hz (full speed; 16:10 cinematic; max bandwidth)
2304 x 1440 @ 46.58 Hz (16:10; max bandwidth)
2560 x 1600 @ 32 Hz (2:3 drive; 16:10)


(dual) Single DVI link (165.00 MHz x2)
1920 x 2400 @ 24 Hz + 1920 x 2400 @ 24 Hz (1:2 drive; cinematic; full panel)
1920 x 2400 @ 32 Hz + 1920 x 2400 @ 32 Hz (2:3 drive; full panel)
1280 x 2400 @ 48 Hz + 1280 x 2400 @ 48 Hz (full speed; full height cinematic; max bandwidth)

(single) Dual DVI link (330.00 MHz x1)
3840 x 2400 @ 24 Hz (full panel; cinematic; 1:2 drive)
3840 x 2400 @ 32 Hz (full panel; 2:3 drive)
3216 x 2010 @ 48 Hz (full speed; cinematic; 16:10)

Dual DVI link + Single DVI link (330.00 MHz x1 + 165.00 MHz x1)
2624 x 2400 @ 48 Hz + 1216 x 2400 @ 48 Hz (full panel; cinematic; full speed)

(dual) Dual DVI link (330.00 MHz x2)
1920 x 2400 @ 48 Hz + 1920 x 2400 @ 48 Hz (full panel; cinematic; full speed)

(triple) Single DVI link (165.00 MHz x3)

1280 x 2400 @ 48 Hz + 1280 x 2400 @ 48 Hz + 1280 x 2400 @ 48 Hz (full panel; cinematic; full speed)

(quad) Single DVI link (165.00 MHz x4)
1920 x 1200 @ 48 Hz + 1920 x 1200 @ 48 Hz + 1920 x 1200 @ 48 Hz + 1920 x 1200 @ 48 Hz (full panel; cinematic; full speed)
960 x 2400 @ 48 Hz + 960 x 2400 @ 48 Hz + 960 x 2400 @ 48 Hz + 960 x 2400 @ 48 Hz (full panel; cinematic; full speed)



Tested hardware configurations: [top]

  • Titanium PowerBook G4 (1 GHz; ATI Mobility Radeon 9000 64 MB) single-link DVI-I port supports any listed digital resolution up to 165.000 MHz (3840 x 2400 @ 17.206 Hz max.)
  • Power Mac G4 FW800 (1.42 GHz; ATI Radeon 9000 Pro 64 MB ADC) single-link DVI-I port supports digital resolutions up to 164.990 MHz, excluding some full speed stripe resolutions (1280 x 2400 @ 48 Hz, 1520 x 2400 @ 41 Hz; 960 x 2400 works @41 Hz but not @48 Hz.) (3840 x 2400 @ 17.205 Hz max.)
  • Power Mac G4 FW800 (1.42 GHz; ATI Radeon 9800 Pro Mac 256 MB) single-link DVI-I digital display driver will drive any listed resolution up to 164.990 MHz, though software only updates most screen elements in the "first" 2656 x 2400 pixels, from left to right, many textures becoming temporarily corrupt after passing through the 'dead' zone. Cursor and main redraws affect entire screen normally, and Mac OS is unaware of any issues displaying 3840 x 2400 pixels at up to Millions of colors. As such, all desirable single link resolutions for this card can be achieved at over 24 Hz, and using configurations with two or more logical desktops will nullify this limitation anyways. Video exhibiting symptom is embedded at the bottom of this page.
  • Power Mac G4 FW800 (1.42 GHz; ATI Radeon FireGL X3-256 MB flashed with X850 ROM) single-link DVI-I port supports any listed digital resolution up to 164.990 MHz. When both DVI ports are used in single-link to drive two identical 1920 x 2400 stripes, an error will prevent 'Detect Displays' from finishing when DisplayConfigX is installed on the T221's display. The issue does not occur when different resolutions/refreshes are chosen or DisplayConfigX is uninstalled (24 Hz or 25 Hz max without a custom EDID module.) Dual link DVI is not yet tested.
  • PowerBook G4 17" DLSD (1.67 GHz; ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 128 MB) dual-link DVI-I digital display driver will drive any listed resolution up to 330.000 MHz, though software only updates most screen elements in the "first" 2656 x 2400 pixels, from left to right, many textures becoming temporarily corrupt after passing through the 'dead' zone. Cursor and main redraws affect entire screen normally, and Mac OS is unaware of any issues displaying 3840 x 2400 pixels at up to Millions of colors. As such, all desirable single cable resolutions for this machine can be achieved at over 48 Hz (including DG5 EDID mode 006 primary 2624 x 2400,) and using configurations with two or more logical desktops will nullify this limitation anyways. Video exhibiting symptom is embedded at the bottom of this page.
  • MacBook Pro 17" Early 2008 (2.5 GHz; nVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT 512 MB) supports any listed resolutions up to 330.000 MHz (3840 x 2400 @ 34.413 Hz max.) When using a Matrox TripleHead2Go Digital Edition [DVI] (2*1920x1200), 3840 x 1200 seems to be the only supported mode, but will accept lower refresh modes such as 47.95 Hz or 48 Hz. When using a Gefen dual-link DVI to miniDP adapter and a Matrox DualHead2Go Digital ME (2*1920x1200), 3840 x 1712 @ 48 Hz and 3840 x 2224 @ 37 Hz with tight timings will sometimes produce an image, but not a stable one. Using DH2G's preferred blanking intervals and reducing the framerate to 32 Hz or 24 Hz stabilizes the image at 3840 x 2224. To attain a stable 48 Hz the height must be dropped to 3840 x 1600 (3840 x 1608 @ 47.959 Hz seems to also work) which is still tall enough for some cinematic media.
  • Mac Pro 12-core Mid 2009 (3.46 GHz; nVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11264 MB) paired with Accell B087B-002B (DP to dual-link DVI) will support any resolution up to 330.00 MHz (3840 x 2400 @ 34.413 Hz max) and will easily drive 2 x 1920 x 2400 @ 48 Hz when two are used simultaneously. When paired with a Matrox TripleHead2Go Digital SE (3*1280x1024) using three single link DVI connections (both A, primary B) any resolution up to 358.20 MHz is supported (3840 x 2400 @ 37.419 Hz max.) It is also possible to drive 3840 x 1864 @ 48 Hz in this configuration. When using the TripleHead2Go through an active 4K HDMI adapter, image remains stable up to about 452 MHz (3840 x 2400 @ 47.234 Hz) before the image begins to distort. It is not presently clear if this is the limit of the TripleHead2Go or the HDMI adapter (which the system reads as 600 MHz capable.) The T221 still displays a unified stable image on the correct refresh well above 452 MHz despite the distortion, so the signal is likely degrading before the DVI split. 3840 x 2364 @ 47.951 Hz is also possible in this configuration. Running two Matrox DualHead2Go Digital (ME, SE, TripleHead2Go Digital SE; 2x1920x1200) at precisely the same 3840 x 2400 @ 48 Hz (or any within range) will usually directly sync to the panel perfectly for long durations. A primary / B primary should be plugged into the 'top' Matrox and A secondary / B secondary should be plugged into the 'bottom' for 3840 x 2400.
    Upgrading from 10.12.6 to 10.13.6 resolved the following issue: [When using two Matrox DualHead2Go Digital (SE, ME, or TripleHead2Go Digital SE configured for 2*1920x1200) the Mac Pro will crash on its initial 'detect displays' unless at least one of the Matrox devices is unplugged while starting, then readded one at a time. This can be alleviated by driving one with an active HDMI to DisplayPort adapter ('4K support' branding helps distinguish models which will work.)]
  • MacBook Pro 15" Mid 2012 (2.7 GHz; nVIDIA GeForce GT 650M 1024 MB; non-retina) using Apple's A1306 miniDP to DVI-DL active adapter supports any listed resolutions up to 330.00 MHz (3840 x 2400 @ 34.413 Hz max.) Using a Matrox TripleHead2Go Digital SE (3*1280x1024) using three single link DVI connections (both A, primary B) any resolution up to 358.20 MHz is supported (3840 x 2400 @ 37.372 Hz max.) It is also possible to drive 3840 x 1864 @ 48 Hz in this configuration.
  • MacBook Pro 15" Mid 2015 (2.2 GHz; Intel Iris Pro 5200 1536 MB; shared) using Apple's A1306 miniDP to DVI-DL active adapter supports listed resolutions up to 3840 x 2320 @ 31.83 Hz or 3712 x 2400 @ 31.79 Hz as the Iris Pro seems capped at 300.00 MHz when using this adapter. When using a Matrox DualHead2Go Digital ME (2*1920x1200), 330.00 MHz resolutions up to 3840 x 2224 @ 37.127 Hz can be used to drive A scaler's primary and secondary SL connectors. Smaller full-height resolutions (2712 x 2400, 3200 x 2400) do not work. When paired with Matrox TripleHead2Go Digital SE (3*1280x1024), 365.00 MHz resolutions up to 3840 x 2320 can be driven over one DisplayPort cable via three single links (both A, primary B; 3840 x 2320 @ 39.371 Hz max.) It is also possible to drive 3840 x 1900 @ 48 Hz in this configuration. Using two Delock 62603 or StarTech MDP2VGDVHDW active mDP to single-link DVI adapters, modes exceeding 170 MHz per link are possible. 2 x 1280 x 2400 @ 51.608 Hz is stable at 176.64 MHz, for instance, 2 x 1728 x 2400 @ 38.253 Hz is stable at 172.18 Mhz and 2 x 1920 x 2160 @ 38.253 Hz is stable at 170.93 MHz; both fast enough to directly drive the panel. It is possible to use these in the same modes connected via active HDMI to DP adapter (may need 4K HDMI audio stripper or similar to unlock full bandwidth mode EDIDs.) Unfortunately it is a limitation of the 2015 MacBook Pro that only two external displays can be active simultaneously, either both mDP or one mDP + HDMI.



Test mode gallery: [top]


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2009 Mac Pro with 1080 Ti - One active HDMI 4K to DP + One Matrox TripleHead2Go Digital SE (47.234 Hz) & Two Matrox DualHead2Go Digital SE (48 Hz) [DVI-SL x 7]
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2015 MacBook Pro with Iris Pro - Two Delock 62603 active mDP to DVI-SL (23.976 Hz) [DVI-SL x 2]
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2015 MacBook Pro with Iris Pro - Two Delock 62603 active mDP to DVI-SL (34.252 Hz) [DVI-SL x 2]
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2015 MacBook Pro with Iris Pro - Two Delock 62603 active mDP to DVI-SL (51.608 Hz) [DVI-SL x 2]
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2008 MacBook Pro with 8600M GT (32 Hz) & 2002 PowerBook G4 with Mobility 9000 (16 Hz) [DVI-DL x 1 + DVI-SL x 1]
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2015 MacBook Pro with Iris Pro - One Apple active mDP to DVI-DL (32 Hz) [DVI-DL x 1]
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2015 MacBook Pro with Iris Pro - One Apple active mDP to DVI-DL + One Apple passive mDP to DVI-SL (48 Hz) [DVI-DL x 1 + DVI-SL x 1]

2005 PowerBook G4 with Mobility 9700 - Graphical issue persists on desktops wider than 2656 in any DVI-SL or DVI-DL configuration.

Queries/input: info@jeremywork.com