Serial Digital Video Out

Serial Agenda Video Out (SDVO) is a proprietary Intel technology alien with their 9xx-series of motherboard chipsets.

SDVO makes it accessible to use a 16-lane PCI accurate aperture to add added video signalling interfaces such as VGA and DVI adviser outputs, SDTV and HDTV television outputs, or TV tuner inputs to a arrangement lath absolute an chip Intel 9xx-series cartoon processor.

SDVO adaptor cards are abnormally appointed as ADD2 (advanced agenda display, additional generation) or the added feature-rich MEC (media amplification card). MEC is sometimes appointed as ADD2+ in Intel documents.

Intel generally refers to SDVO as Serial DVO to analyze it from added forms of agenda video out associated with above-mentioned artefact generations, such as the AGP accomplishing of DVO and earlier AGP-style ADD amplification cards which are not SDVO compatible.

Proprietary status

Intel's non-standard addendum of the PCI accurate interface is accountable to a apparent appliance Mapping SDVO functions from PCI accurate interface (United States Appliance 20050172037) filed on 12 December 2003.
According to the Intel apparent application, the PCI Accurate accepted lacks a "mechanism to accomplish use of a agenda affectation codec application the PCI Accurate connector." This limitation is attributed to PCI Accurate defining alone a fixed-frequency interface with cogent packet encoding overheads, admitting "digital displays charge to accept capricious clocking and alteration ante and charge actual little aerial for the alteration of video data".
The apparent relates a "presence detect" apparatus to ascertain SDVO-type amplification cards and accredit a pin-remapping of the PCI Accurate atrium to back SDVO signals.
As of January 2007, Intel has not about accurate an absorbed to advance SDVO as an industry standard, admitting its abeyant account to any PCI accurate belvedere with an Integrated Graphics Processor (IGP), or the agreeableness from the customer angle that SDVO adaptor cards be accordant and advisedly changeable a part of all such systems.
Instead, Intel is actively announcement the development of SDVO drivers beyond the ample ambit of operating systems which run on the Intel 9xx platform. In particular, Intel has accustomed the website intellinuxgraphics.org to advance a absolutely accessible sourced drivers acknowledging all video technologies embodied in their 9xx-series platform.
The aftereffect is that SDVO cards are accordant with a attenuated ambit of Intel-only accouterments platforms, but a ample ambit of software environments aural that platform.

Applications

SDVO encoders can be chip into the motherboard or placed on a PCI accurate card, acceptance video connectors to be added or exchanged at low cost. SDVO adaptor cards can be advised for the afterward purposes (from Intel ADD2 quoted verbatim):

Bifold DVI: bifold absolute DVI displays

TV-out (Composite): primary or accessory TV-out affectation (standard analogue in PAL or NTSC formats)

HDTV-Out: primary or accessory HDTV display

VGA-Out: drive additional RGB absolute display

DVI: primary or accessory DVI display

LVDS: LVDS interface for chip collapsed panel

ADD and MEC form factors

SDVO adaptor cards are appointed as ADD (advanced agenda display) or MEC (media amplification card) or the agnate ADD2+.

Older ADD cards were AGP-based and did not accommodate a accepted interface, assuming difficulties for disciplinarian development. The additional bearing ADD2 cards are PCI accurate and apply a accepted interface. There are, however, two audible flavours of ADD2 cards: ADD2-N (normal) and ADD2-R (reverse). "Normal cards use the aboriginal channels on the PCI-E adapter while About-face cards use the endure channels." The ADD2-N cards are appear to plan after fuss beneath Linux with Intel chipsets alignment from the 915 through to the 965.

A altered antecedent claims that ADD2-N are for ATX form-factor systems while ADD2-R is for BTX form-factor systems. However, some BTX systems crave ADD2-N (e.g. HP dc5700), so you will accept to argue your arrangement documentation.

According to Reseller Advocate (RAM magazine) a Media Amplification Agenda (MEC) is "an x16 PCIe agenda with an SDVO silicon bore for VGA, DVI, S-Video, composite, or basic achievement accumulated with an x1 PCIe analog TV tuner" alien as a "945G belvedere add-on descended from the old ADD and ADD2 cards."

The appliance agenda for the 945G describes the SDVO agenda interface as acute a abounding x16 PCI-E slot.

Intel chipsets supporting SDVO

Intel documents SDVO as existing within the chipsets integrating an Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA 900 through 3000 families).

GMA X3000

The Intel G965 alternation chipsets apparatus the GMA X3000 cartoon controller, the customer engine of the Intel Cartoon Media Accelerator 3000 family. From the Intel Desktop lath DG965RY Technical Product Specification, area 1.5.1.4 "Advanced Digital Affectation (ADD2/ADD2+) Agenda Support":

The GMCH routes two multiplexed SDVO ports that are anniversary able of active up to a 200 MHz pixel alarm to the PCI Express x16 connector. The SDVO ports can be commutual for a bifold approach agreement to abutment up to a 400 MHz pixel clock. If an ADD2/ADD2+ agenda is detected, the Intel GMA X3000 cartoon ambassador is enabled and the PCI Express x16 adapter is configured for SDVO mode. SDVO approach enables the SDVO ports to be accessed by the ADD2/ADD2+ card. An ADD2/ADD2+ agenda can either be configured to abutment accompanying affectation with the primary VGA affectation or can be configured to abutment bifold absolute affectation as an continued desktop agreement with altered blush base and resolutions.

This chipset allows the ADD2/MEC architecture to abutment TV-out (composite video), TMDS for DVI 1.0, LVDS, individual accessory operating in dual-channel mode, VGA output, HDTV output, HDMI/UDI abutment (when acclimated with the HD Audio Link).