
W9971CF
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When displayed on an interlaced TV, VGA data as well as PC games are often unusable due to the
flicker effect caused by an interlaced monitor. The W9971CF uses a 3-line flicker filtering technique
to provide the best flicker-free TV quality. The vertical underscan scaling is also implemented to
allow 640x480 resolution modes to fit NTSC displays and 800x600 modes to fit PAL displays.
Gamma Correction
In most TV systems, CRT displays have an inherent nonlinear relationship between signal voltage
and light intensity. Linear digital RGB data (normally, the graphics data) need gamma correction to
compensate for the nonlinear CRT characteristics. The linear RGB data is gamma corrected to
obtain a voltage that can be applied to the TV monitor.
Flicker Filter
Without filtering, one contrast VGA line may be encoded into one field of the TV video. This will
cause flicker at 30 Hz with NTSC and 25 Hz with PAL. The W9971CF incorporates an advanced
flicker-free filter to eliminate such problems by providing three filter modes: High Filter (3-line),
Medium Filter (2-line), and No Filter.
TV Auto-detect
In order for the CPU to determine the presence of a TV monitor, the W9971CF includes circuitry to
detect a loaded or unloaded TV output connection. This information can be used to detect the
existence and the type of TV connector used.
Graphics on VGA and Video on TV
The W9971CF can display the same image (including graphics and video) on both a VGA monitor
and a TV. It can also display different images, i.e. graphics on VGA and video on TV. This is
controlled by the TV Video Select bit of the TV Encoder register.
Vertical Scaling
The W9971CF is able to correct vertical overscan via hardware scaling. This allows 640x480
resolution modes to fit onto NTSC displays and 800x600 modes to fit onto PAL displays. This is
done by using a 6-bit DDA which is controlled by the TV Underscan Scaling Control register.