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{{Infobox company
| name = Number Nine Visual Technology
| logo = Number Nine Visual Technology logo.svg
|
| image =
| image_caption =
| trading_name = <!-- d/b/a/, doing business as - if different from legal name above -->
| former type =
| type =
| traded_as =
| industry = Computer hardware
| genre = <!-- Only used with media and publishing companies -->
| fate =
| successor =
| foundation = 1982 <!-- City, Country ({{Start date|1982|MM|DD}}) -->
| founder = Andrew Najda and Stan Bialek
| defunct = <!-- {{End date|YYYY|MM|DD}} -->
| location_city =
| location_country =
| locations = <!-- Number of locations, stores, offices, etc. -->
| area_served =
| key_people =
| products = Graphics cards
| production =
| services =
| revenue =
| operating_income =
| net_income =
| aum = <!-- Only used with financial services companies -->
| assets =
| equity =
| owner =
| num_employees =
| parent =
| divisions =
| subsid =
| homepage =
| footnotes =
| intl =
| bodystyle =
}}
'''Number Nine Visual Technology Corporation''' was a manufacturer of video graphics chips and cards from 1982 to 1999.
The name of the company, as well as many of its products (e.g.,
== History ==
Number Nine was founded in 1982 by Andrew Najda and Stan Bialek as Number Nine Computer Corporation.
For five years after Number Nine closed its doors, a former employee kept Number Nine's website up and running, with driver downloads and a forum available for self-help.
▲Number Nine was founded in 1982 by Andrew Najda and Stan Bialek as Number Nine Computer Corporation. The company was renamed Number Nine Visual Technology Corporation in the early 1990s. For most of its existence, Number Nine was based in Lexington, Massachusetts. Number Nine initially made an [[Apple II accelerators|Apple II accelerator]] board, then later moved into the design and manufacture of high-end PC graphics cards in 1983. Number Nine was one of the premier, higher-end graphics card companies into the early 1990s. In the mid to late 1990s, Number Nine began to lose market share to competitors in both the price and performance arenas. Number Nine was slow to respond to the boom in 3D graphics, continuing to emphasize high quality, fast 2D graphics.{{Citation needed|date=May 2013}} On December 20, 1999, Number Nine announced a "letter-of-intent" for [[S3 Graphics|S3 Inc. (later S3 Graphics Co.)]] to buy substantially all assets and intellectual property of Number Nine. By mid 2000, S3 had completed the acquisition of Number Nine's assets and Number Nine had ceased operations. In 2002 two former Number Nine engineers, James Macleod and Francis Bruno, formed [[Silicon Spectrum]], Inc., and licensed Number Nine's graphics technology from S3 to implement in [[Field-programmable gate array|FPGA]] devices.<ref>{{cite web|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/19990117083724/http://www.nine.com/about.html|archivedate=1999-01-17 |url=http://www.nine.com/about.html | title=Number Nine Visual Technology Company History | publisher=Number Nine Visual Technology | year=1999|accessdate=2013-10-15}}</ref><ref>{{ cite web|url=http://computer.yourdictionary.com/number-nine | title=Number Nine - Computer Dictionary Definition | accessdate=Jan 8, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/keyDevelopments?symbol=IPMG.PK | title=Number Nine Visual Technology, Inc. Announces Merger Agreement | publisher=Reuters | date=1999-12-20 | accessdate=2011-01-08}}</ref><ref>{{ cite web|url=http://www.siliconspectrum.com/overview.htm |title=Silicon Spectrum, Inc. - Overview |accessdate=2011-01-08}}</ref>
In 2013, Francis Bruno from Silicon Spectrum tried to fund
▲For five years after Number Nine closed its doors, a former employee kept Number Nine's website up and running, with driver downloads and a forum available for self-help. A volunteer and #9 enthusiast provided regular, impromptu technical support on the forum for the last two and a half years the site was active. Several former employees checked in to help occasionally. The website finally went off the air for good in March 2005 and the ___domain name was taken over by an online gambling company.
▲In 2013 Francis Bruno from Silicon Spectrum tried to fund a [[open-source]] GPU based on a ''#9 Ticket To Ride IV'' derived design. Started on the [[crowdfunding]] platform [[kickstarter.com]] the campaign was unsuccessful as from the demanded $200,000 only $13,000 were gathered.<ref>[http://www.tomshardware.de/gpu-open-source,news-249776.html Eine Open-Source-GPU bei Kickstarter] on tomshardware.de (Oktober 15, 2013)</ref><ref>[http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/725991125/open-source-graphics-processor-gpu Open Source Graphics Processor (GPU)] on [[kickstarter.com]] by Francis Bruno</ref>
== Products ==
{{Technical|date=May 2024}}
The first Number Nine graphics cards were [[Industry Standard Architecture|ISA]] bus, pre-VGA standard cards that had no graphics accelerator chips.
Beginning in the 1990s, Number Nine made [[Accelerated Graphics Port|AGP]] and [[Conventional PCI|PCI]] graphics cards with their own proprietary graphics accelerators (the Imagine line [[Graphics processing unit|GPU]]s).
=== Early pre-VGA video cards ===
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{| class="wikitable"
|-
! #9 Model !! Display Resolution !! Color Palette<ref>{{ cite book |
|-
| Number Nine Graphics System
|-
| Revolution 512x8 || 512×480 || 256 colors selectable from a palette of 16.7
|-
| Revolution 512x32 || 512×480 ||
|-
| Revolution 1024x8 || 1024×768 from 1024×1024 || 256 colors selectable from a palette of 16.7
|-
| Revolution 2048x4<ref>{{cite journal |
|}
The Revolution series were large, full-length cards that ranged in price from $
=== TIGA cards ===
Number Nine graphics cards using Texas Instruments' [[Texas Instruments Graphics Architecture|TIGA]] co-processors were made from about 1986 to 1992. The Texas Instruments TMS-340x0 co-processors were coupled with custom Number Nine-designed application specific chips, which could only handle very primitive graphics functions such as clipping.
▲Number Nine graphics cards using Texas Instruments' [[Texas Instruments Graphics Architecture|TIGA]] co-processors were made from about 1986 to 1992. The Texas Instruments TMS-340x0 co-processors were coupled with custom Number Nine-designed application specific chips, which could only handle very primitive graphics functions such as clipping. Nevertheless, this was a major accomplishment back in the day. With the exception of the GXi Lite, all of the TIGA graphics cards were large, full length cards.
Cards using a TIGA co-processor were (in approximate order of introduction):
Line 89 ⟶ 88:
| Pepper || TMS-34010 || ?? || ISA
|-
| Pepper SGT<ref>{{Cite web |title=Number Nine Pepper SGT |url=https://ardent-tool.com/video/Number_Nine_Pepper_SGT.html |access-date=2022-12-15 |website=Ardent Tool of Capitalism}}</ref>|| TMS-34010 + Intel 82786 ||
|-
| Pepper Pro 1024<ref>{{ cite book|url=
|-
| Pepper Pro 1280<ref>{{Cite web |title=Famous Graphics Chips: Number Nine's Imagine 128 {{!}} IEEE Computer Society |date=13 May 2019 |url=https://www.computer.org/publications/tech-news/chasing-pixels/famous-graphics-chips-number-nines-imagine-128/ |access-date=2022-12-15 |language=en-US}}</ref>|| TMS-34010 || ?? || MCA?, ISA
|-
| Pepper Pro 1600 || TMS-34010 || ?? || MCA?, ISA
|-
| GX || TMS-34010? || ??
|-
| GXi Lite || TMS-34020 ||
|-
| GXi
|-
| GXiTC<ref>{{Cite web |title=retronn.de Hardware Gallery |url=http://retronn.de/imports/hwgal/hw_n9_gxitc_front.html |access-date=2022-12-15 |website=retronn.de}}</ref>|| TMS-34020 ||
|}
The TIGA-based cards were very expensive in their day, ranging in price from $995 to $2495 at introduction.
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The Imagine series [[Graphics processing unit|GPU]]s (also called graphics accelerators) were Number Nine's own in-house designs. The Imagine series went through four generations:
# Imagine 128 (Imagine. Internal codename: "Blackbird").
# Imagine 128-II (Imagine2. Internal codename: "Silver Hammer").
# T2R (marked "Ticket to Ride"; sometimes marked "Imagine-3")
# T2R4 (marked "Ticket to Ride IV").
The Imagine 128 GPU introduced a full 128-bit graphics processor—GPU, internal processor bus, and memory bus were all 128 bits.
The Imagine 128-II added [[Gouraud shading]], 32-bit [[Z-buffering]], double display buffering, and a 256-bit video rendering engine.<ref>Notes on Imagine 128 Series 2 retail box.</ref>
The Ticket to Ride (Imagine-3) supported WRAM and both the AGP and PCI buses, had a 3D floating point setup engine, [[bilinear filtering]] and perspective correction, Gouraud shading, [[alpha blending]], interpolated [[Distance fog|fogging]], [[Specular highlight|specular lighting]], double and triple display buffering, 16-, 24- and 32-bit Z-buffering, [[MPEG-1]] and [[MPEG-2]], and hardware [[mipmap|MIP mapping]].<ref>Notes on Revolution 3D retail box</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ebworld.com/news/articles/may/ticket.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/19970714055944/http://www.ebworld.com/news/articles/may/ticket.html|title=Number Nine Unveils 'Ticket To Ride'|website=ebworld.com|archivedate=July 14, 1997|date=May 15, 1997|accessdate=November 3, 2019}}</ref>
The Ticket to Ride IV included an integrated 250 MHz [[RAMDAC]], support for up to 32 MiB SDRAM, full scene anti-aliasing, per pixel fog, specular, and alpha effects, 10-level detail per pixel MIP mapping, bilinear and [[trilinear filtering]], 8 bits per [[Texel (graphics)|texel]], 8 KB on-chip texture cache, hardware MPEG-1 and MPEG-2, and a full [[IEEE 754]] floating point pipeline 3D rendering setup engine.<ref>Notes on Revolution IV retail box.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/number-nine-launches-ticket-to-ridetm-iv-its-fourth-and-most-powerful-128-bit-3d2dvideo-graphics-chip-77974807.html | title=Number Nine Launches 'Ticket To Ride(TM) IV,' Its Fourth and Most Powerful 128-bit 3D/2D/Video Graphics Chip | publisher=PR Newswire | date=26 May 1998 | accessdate=Jan 13, 2011
Number Nine graphics accelerators were used on the following Number Nine model video cards:
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! #9 Model !! #9 GPU !! Memory !! PC Bus Architecture
|-
| Imagine 128 || Imagine 128 ||
|-
| Imagine 128 Series 2 || Imagine 128-II ||
|-
| Imagine 128 Series 2e || Imagine 128-II ||
|-
| Revolution 3D || T2R ||
|-
| Revolution IV || T2R4 ||
|-
| Revolution IV-FP || T2R4 ||
|}
These 1990s video cards were Number Nine's flagship cards of their day (the Imagine 128 and 128 Series 2 were very expensive).
In addition to a standard analog [[VGA connector]], the Revolution IV-FP (also called the Revolution IV-1600SW) had an [[OpenLDI]] digital interface connector for the [[Silicon Graphics| Silicon Graphics, Inc (SGI)]] 1600SW digital flat panel monitor.
The [[OpenLDI]] interface is neither physically nor electrically compatible with the modern [[DVI-D]] interface.
The 1600SW monitor was far ahead of its time and was eagerly sought long after it was out of production.
=== Number Nine Video Cards using S3 Graphics processors ===
[[File:Vision868.jpg|thumb|GXE 64 (Vision864) 2 MB DRAM]]
[[File:Number Nine Motion 331 video card.jpg|thumb|Motion 331 PCI (S3 Trio64V+)]]
Number Nine had a close business relationship with S3 Graphics throughout the 1990s.
The S3-based video cards were, in approximate order of introduction:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! #9 Model !! S3 GPU !! Memory !! PC Bus Architecture !! Notes
|-
| GXE || 928 ||
|-
| GXE 64 || 864 (Vision864) ||
|-
| GXE 64 Pro || 964 (Vision964) ||
|-
| GXE 64 Trio || 764 (Trio64) ||
|-
| Vision 330 || 764 (Trio64) ||
|-
| Motion 331 || 765 (Trio64V+) ||
|-
| Motion 531 || 868 (Vision868) ||
|-
| Motion 771 || 968 (Vision968) ||
|-
| Reality 332 || 325 (ViRGE) ||
|-
| Reality 772 || 988 (ViRGE VX) ||
|-
| Reality 334 || 357 (ViRGE GX2) ||
|-
| SR9 (SDRAM) || 394 (Savage4 LT, small heatsink on GPU) ||
|-
| SR9 (SDRAM) || 397 (Savage4 Pro, small heatsink on GPU) ||
|-
| SR9 (SGRAM) || 398 (Savage4 Xtreme, small heatsink on GPU) ||
|}
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[[File:Number Nine SR9 SGRAM AGP 16 MB DVI S3 Savage4 Xtreme (86C398).jpg|thumb|SR9 SGRAM 16MB DVI (heatsink removed) with S3 Savage4 Xtreme chip]]
Number Nine's last two graphics cards were the only ones to require heatsinks on the GPU.
* The SR9 was Number Nine's last retail card.
* An OEM-only AGP card using an [[Nvidia]] TNT2-M64 GPU and [
=== PixelFusion joint venture ===
On April 20, 1999, Bankboston Business Credit announced it had provided $15
On August 9, 1999, PixelFusion Ltd. and Number Nine Visual Technology Corp. announced they had entered into a relationship whereby Number Nine would use PixelFusion's FUZION 150 chip to design a very high-end 3D graphics accelerator card for AGP Pro-equipped PCs.
== See also ==
{{Commons category|Number Nine video cards}}▼
* [[List of defunct graphics chips and card companies]]
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== External links ==
* {{web archive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/19990117083724/http://www.nine.com|title=Official website}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:1982 establishments in Massachusetts]]
[[Category:1999 disestablishments in Massachusetts]]
[[Category:American companies established in 1982]]
[[Category:American companies disestablished in 1999]]
[[Category:Computer companies established in 1982]]
[[Category:Computer companies disestablished in 1999]]
[[Category:Defunct companies based in Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Defunct computer companies based in Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Defunct computer companies of the United States]]
[[Category:Defunct computer hardware companies]]
[[Category:Graphics hardware companies]]
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