Pinnacle Liquid Edition Graphics Cards
What type of graphics card should I use with Liquid Edition version 6?
The recommended specifications for a Liquid Edition version 6 graphics card are:
Software Only (Standard Definition Editing) DirectX 9 Compliant Graphics Card Graphics RAM Graphics Bus DirectX Driver Version Minimum No 64 AGP 4X 9.0c Recommended Yes 128 or more AGP 4X or more/PCIe 9.0c
To check your DirectX driver version from the RUN command on the Windows start menu enter dxdiag and click OK) Examples of graphic cards that meet the recommended specification: ATI Radeon 9600 or higher or NVIDIA Geforce FX5700 or higher.
Software Only (High Definition Editing - HDV) DirectX 9 Compliant Graphics Card Graphics RAM Graphics Bus DirectX Driver Version Minimum Yes 128 AGP 8X 9.0c Recommended Yes 256 AGP 8X or PCIe 9.0c
For 1080i HDV work, we require a PCIe graphics card with 256MB RAM.
Liquid Edition Pro (USB2-based) DirectX 9 Compliant Graphics Card Graphics RAM Graphics Bus DirectX Driver Version Minimum Yes 64 AGP 4X 9.0c Recommended Yes 128 or more AGP 8X/PCIe 9.0c
A DirectX9 compliant graphics card is required for use the with the Liquid Edition PRO USB2 breakout box.
Pinnacle Liquid Edition Technical FAQ

October 2004 Page 1 of 2

NOTE: If you are using a non-DirectX 9 compliant graphics card (example: ATI Radeon 8500), your real-time output will revert to a degraded performance mode (single stream output) when used in combination with the new Liquid Edition PRO breakout box. Examples of graphics cards that meet the specification: ATI Radeon 9800 or higher or NVIDIA GeForce FX 5950 Ultra or higher.

Tested Graphics Cards

The following cards have been tested with Liquid Edition version 6.
Graphics Card ATI Fire GL V3100 ATI X700XT ATI Radeon 9800 Pro ATI Edition Pro (Radeon 8500) ATI Radeon 9800XT nVidia Quadro FX4000 ATI Radeon 9700 PRO nVidia FX5700 nVidia Quadro FX 1300 ATI Radeon 9600 SE ATI Radeon 9600 Pro nVidia GeForce 5700 LE nVidia GeForce 5950 Ultra nVidia Quadro FX3400 RAM 256MB 256MB 128MB 64MB 256MB 256MB 128MB 128MB 128MB 128MB 256MB 256MB 256MB 256MB DirectX 9 Support Y Y Y N Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Bus PCIe PCIe AGP 8X AGP 4X AGP 8X AGP 8X AGP 8X AGP 8X PCIe AGP 8X AGP 8X AGP 8X AGP 8X PCIe
Can I use my old Liquid Edition Pro with the new Liquid Edition version 6 software? Yes. The old Liquid Edition Pro graphics card and breakout box, based on the ATI Radeon 8500, is supported with version 6. You should get similar real-time performance as you did in Liquid Edition version 5.5.
Can I use my old Liquid Edition Pro graphics card (ATI Radeon 8500) with the new Liquid Edition Pro USB2 breakout box? This configuration is not recommended. To work with the new Liquid Edition Pro breakout box you need a graphics card that is DirectX 9 compliant. The old LE Pro graphics card (ATI Radeon 8500) is not DirectX 9 compliant. The ATI Radeon 8500 would provide a single stream output through the new LE Pro breakout box. A patch will be made available to support this configuration on the Liquid Edition support site (http://www.pinnaclesys.com). We strongly encourage you to upgrade to a DirectX 9 compliant card.
Pinnacle Liquid Edition Technical FAQ October 2004 Page 2 of 2

Pinnacle Liquid Edition PRO USB2
Does the Liquid Edition PRO breakout box work with USB1? No. The Liquid Edition PRO breakout box requires USB2.
I have just installed the Liquid Edition PRO breakout box and I am having trouble previewing video. How can I tell if this is a problem with the USB2 controller? Here are some basic troubleshooting tips for checking your USB2 bandwidth. Preview & Capture Check for monitor preview working with the maximum resolution selected (720x576 for PAL or 720x486 for NTSC Please make sure you are working with a non-HD sequence) If preview works, capture to an AVI file in DV format. In case of limited USB2 controller bandwidth typically no fluid and/or full-size video is visible in preview. Playback Playback a reference DV AVI file to analog output with connected video monitor (this would use maximum size 720x576 for PAL or 720x486 for NTSC for output) In case of limited USB2 controller bandwidth typically only a stripe like 1/3 size is visible on the monitor (remaining part is rendered black) If you are seeing black flashes during playback, you should update your systems BIOS.
I have installed the Liquid Edition PRO according to the Install Manual and the breakout box is not recognized by the system? The install guide for Liquid Edition Pro USB 2.0 should work for most all customers. In some cases the device may not install properly if plugged in before the install of Liquid Edition 6. In every case the install of the drivers was correctly completed when you install the Liquid Edition 6 software first then plug in the Liquid Edition 6 Pro USB 2 device. If other issues are seen with the install please check the USB 2 controller compatibility list for a compatible USB 2 controller.
Pinnacle Liquid Edition PRO USB2 Technical FAQ
November 18, 2004 Page 1 of 5
Does Liquid Edition PRO work with every USB2 system? No. A limited number of USB2 controllers do not support the bandwidth required to output video to the Liquid Edition PRO breakout box. Below is a list of certified USB2 controllers:
USB2 Vendor Adaptec AUA-3100B PCI Card Dell Notebook Dell Onboard Intel Intel NEC NVIDIA NVIDIA NVIDIA SIS SIS SIS Onboard SIS Onboard Toshiba Onboard VIA Adaptec AUA-5100 PCI Card ALI USB 2 PCI Card Cardbus Adaptec NEC Onboard PCI Card SIS Onboard Sony USB2 Controller Chip 720101GJ Intel 82801DB/DBM Intel 82801DB/DBM FW82801ER FW82801DB NEC D720101AGM nForce2 nForce2 MCP nForce2 MCP SiS962L SiS963L SIS7001 SIS7002 Intel 82801DB/DBM VIA Rev.5 (VT8237) and (VT8235) NEC D720100AGM Ali M5273 A1 NEC (B1) NEC D720100A Via VT 6202 SIS7001 VIA Rev.5
Typhoon PCI Card VIA VIA Onboard Fully compatible Not fully compatible or incompatible
Ali M5273 A1 VIA Rev.5 VIA VT6202
How can I tell which USB2 controller is on my system? From your Windows desktop: Right-click on My Computer Select Manage From the Computer Management Dialog box: Select Device Manager Information about the devices installed in your system appears in the right hand pane of the dialog. Scroll down to Universal Serial Bus Controllers Click on the + to expand your view.
Pinnacle Liquid Edition PRO USB2 Technical FAQ November 18, 2004 Page 2 of 5
You will see something looking like this:
What do I do if my onboard USB2 controller is listed as incompatible? We recommend that you purchase the Adaptec AUA-3100B PCI card. It is also sold as the Adaptec USB2connect 3100LP. Click here for more information.

Is there a Cardbus solution certified for Liquid Edition PRO? At the present moment there is no certified third party Cardbus solution for laptops. However, many of the certified USB2 controllers are found on a wide range of laptops.
Are there other troubleshooting techniques I can try if I am using a certified USB controller and still having preview problems? Yes. We recommend that you check the following: 1. Newest chipset driver for your motherboard 2. Newest system BIOS 3. Proper BIOS settings for your graphics card NOTE: Windows XP SP2 needs an AGP aperture setting of 64 MB in the BIOS. However, for ATI 8500 (Edition Pro) an AGP aperture of 32MB is valid. Please also check that your AGP Mode is set to match the capabilities of your graphics card. 4. Latest driver for your graphics card 5. In some cases installing the updated manufactures driver for the USB 2 controller card can cause negative performance. In these cases please install the Windows XP default driver.
November 18, 2004 Page 3 of 5
Will having other USB2 devices connected to my system affect the performance of Liquid Edition PRO? Yes. Having additional high-bandwidth USB2 devices like hard disks connected to your system may compromise the bandwidth to Liquid Edition PRO.
When I am previewing to my monitor with Liquid Edition PRO, I am getting fewer layers in real-time then when I am not previewing to the monitor. Is this normal? This is normal. Typically systems will output one less layer than their maximum with the Liquid Edition PRO. Systems capable of playing back 6 layers of real-time with no preview option selected would play back 5 streams in real-time when using Liquid Edition output.
Do I need a specific graphics card to work with the new Liquid Edition PRO breakout box? Yes. A DirectX 9 compatible graphics card is required for multi-stream real-time previews. The following DirectX 9 graphics cards have been tested with Liquid Edition version 6.
Graphics Card ATI Fire GL V3100 ATI X700XT ATI Radeon 9800 Pro ATI Radeon 9800XT nVidia Quadro FX4000 ATI Radeon 9700 PRO nVidia FX5700 nVidia Quadro FX 1300 ATI Radeon 9600 SE ATI Radeon 9600 Pro nVidia GeForce 5700 LE nVidia GeForce 5950 Ultra nVidia Quadro FX3400 RAM 256MB 256MB 128MB 256MB 256MB 128MB 128MB 128MB 128MB 256MB 256MB 256MB 256MB DirectX 9 Support Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Bus PCIe PCIe AGP 8X AGP 8X AGP 8X AGP 8X AGP 8X PCIe AGP 8X AGP 8X AGP 8X AGP 8X PCIe

When I am working with Liquid Edition PRO and I have captured video from a DV camera attached to the Liquid Edition PRO 1394 port, when I switch to analog preview my camera is no longer available in Liquid Edition. Why? The 1394 port on the Liquid Edition Pro USB 2.0 Breakout box will lose connectivity with any 1394 device that is connected to it when analog output is enabled. This port is there for a capture and output only connection. It is not enabled when other inputs or outputs are enabled. The same goes for the analog ports too. If 1394 is enabled the analog outputs are not enabled at the same time. You can connect your camera to another 1394 port on your system and then use 1394 with the analog.
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Can I use my old Liquid Edition PRO graphics card (ATI Radeon 8500) with the new Liquid Edition PRO USB2 breakout box? This configuration is not recommended. To work with the new Liquid Edition PRO breakout box you need a graphics card that is DirectX 9 compliant. The old Liquid Edition PRO graphics card (ATI Radeon 8500) is not DirectX 9 compliant. The old graphics card should provide a single stream output through the new Liquid Edition PRO breakout box. A patch will be made available to support this configuration on the Liquid Edition support site (http://www.pinnaclesys.com). We strongly encourage you to upgrade to a DirectX 9 compliant card.
November 18, 2004 Page 5 of 5