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At SIGGRAPH 98 in Orlando on July 20, 1998, 3Dlabs announced the Oxygen RPM 2/64, a professional AGP graphics accelerator built around two parallel processors and 64 MB of unified SDRAM. The company listed the card at $1,499 and described an optional Oxygen RPM x2 module that would raise the design to four processors and 128 MB. These were launch-announcement specifications and projections, not independent tests or proof of final shipping dates.
What 3Dlabs announced at SIGGRAPH 98
3Dlabs, Inc. of San Jose presented Oxygen RPM at SIGGRAPH 98, Booth 1265, in Orlando, Florida. EDN’s report, published July 23, 1998, identifies the initial product as the Oxygen RPM 2/64: an AGP accelerator aimed at professional OpenGL workstations rather than consumer gaming PCs.
The announcement positioned Oxygen RPM for animators, CAD users, engineers and designers working with applications such as SoftImage|3D, Pro/ENGINEER, Maya, Unigraphics, 3D Studio MAX, SolidWorks, LightWave 3D, SDRC I-DEAS and Nichimen Graphics’ N-World. The complete contemporary report is available from EDN.
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Oxygen RPM 2/64: the base architecture
| Feature | Announced detail |
|---|---|
| Bus | AGP |
| Graphics processors | Two parallel processors |
| Memory | 64 MB unified SDRAM |
| Maximum stated display mode | 1,600 × 1,200 true color |
| Display hardware | Dual RAMDACs; support for two monitors from one AGP slot |
| Base list price | $1,499 |
| Operating-system target | Windows NT |
| Graphics API | OpenGL Installable Client Driver |
The rendering and texture-mapping engine came from Dynamic Pictures, which 3Dlabs had recently acquired. Rather than treating the board as a single fixed pipeline, 3Dlabs described a modular design in which additional graphics processors and memory could be added later.
Why unified memory mattered
The 64 MB was described as a unified framebuffer. In practical terms, the same pool could be allocated among the color framebuffer, Z-buffer, textures, screen resolution and color depth instead of being permanently split into separate, narrowly defined regions. That flexibility could suit workloads with very different texture or depth-buffer requirements, but it did not remove the total-capacity limit: the base card still had 64 MB available.
OpenGL and PowerThreads
3Dlabs planned optimized Windows NT drivers, a full OpenGL Installable Client Driver and its PowerThreads technology. PowerThreads was intended to improve geometry and lighting throughput on multiprocessor systems, including situations in which an application itself was single-threaded. The announcement describes the intended benefit, not a guarantee of uniform scaling; actual results would have depended on the driver, application, CPU configuration and operating-system behavior.
The Oxygen RPM x2 upgrade path
The proposed Oxygen RPM x2 expansion card would add two graphics processors and increase memory to 128 MB. The resulting configuration would therefore contain four processors and twice the base memory without replacing the original board.
| Configuration | Processors | Memory | Announced list price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oxygen RPM 2/64 | 2 | 64 MB unified SDRAM | $1,499 |
| Oxygen RPM x2 module | Adds 2 | Adds capacity to 128 MB total | $1,199 |
| Expanded system | 4 total | 128 MB total | $2,698 arithmetic sum |
The $2,698 figure is simply the sum of the two announced list prices. It is not a documented bundle price or installed workstation cost; the announcement does not establish system integration, software, reseller discounts or labor charges.
The module made Oxygen RPM unusually interesting as an upgrade strategy. It also cost roughly four-fifths as much as the base card, so the technical ability to scale did not automatically make the upgrade economical for every workstation buyer.
Display and workstation features
3Dlabs listed true-color resolutions up to 1,600 × 1,200, full stereo display in a window and dual RAMDACs. One card could drive two monitors, producing an announced virtual desktop of 3,200 × 1,200 true color. In 1998, that was a workstation-visualization feature: users could keep a model, timeline, tool palettes or engineering views visible across two displays without installing a second graphics card.
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Modern connector standards and operating-system multi-monitor behavior should not be read back into this description. The announcement establishes dual-output capability and the stated desktop dimensions, but not the physical connectors, monitor limits beyond that configuration or later driver behavior.
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Announcement-era claims for the planned four-processor configuration:
- 120 million bilinear-filtered pixels per second
- 60 million trilinear mip-mapped pixels per second
- A Viewperf CDRS-03 score above 120
Bilinear and trilinear figures describe different texture-filtering workloads and should not be combined into one generic fill-rate number. Viewperf CDRS-03 was a period workstation benchmark, not an equivalent to modern GPU shader throughput or TFLOPS.
Rank #4
- Quad HDMI Multi-Monitor Mastery: Unleash unparalleled productivity with four independent HDMI ports. Simultaneously drive four separate displays from a single card, creating an immersive workstation for trading, programming, digital signage, or multi-tasking without the need for multiple adapters or extra cards.
- Robust 4GB DDR3 Memory for Multi-Screen Workloads: Equipped with substantial 4GB of DDR3 video memory, this card is optimized to handle the increased graphical demands of running multiple screens. It ensures smooth performance across various applications, from extensive spreadsheets to web browsing and multimedia playback on all displays.
- Seamless Setup & Instant Productivity Boost: Experience true plug-and-play installation. Designed for simplicity, it allows you to effortlessly create a sophisticated multi-monitor array right out of the box. It's the ultimate and most cost-effective solution to dramatically expand your screen real estate and workflow efficiency.
- Standard-Profile Design with Active Cooling: Built on a reliable, standard-profile form factor, this card ensures broad compatibility with most standard desktop PC cases.( Not suitable for SFF case)
- Optimized Power Efficiency for Easy Upgrades: Engineered with optimized power consumption, this card draws all necessary power directly from the PCIe slot, eliminating the need for external power connectors. This makes it a safe, simple, and energy-efficient upgrade for nearly any standard desktop system.
These numbers were projections attributed to 3Dlabs in the announcement. The available report contains no independent review, laboratory methodology or shipping-board measurement, so they should be cited as vendor claims rather than verified results.
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The named applications reveal the intended market more clearly than the raw pixel figures. Maya, SoftImage|3D, 3D Studio MAX and LightWave 3D represented digital-content and animation work; Pro/ENGINEER, Unigraphics, SolidWorks and SDRC I-DEAS represented mechanical design and engineering; N-World addressed another professional 3D workflow.
For those users, a graphics board’s value depended on stable OpenGL implementation, correct depth and transparency handling, stereo support, texture performance and predictable interaction with large models. 3Dlabs said the card would ship with a new Control Panel for tuning configuration to the selected application. “Qualified” or “expected to ship with” should be understood as vendor support plans, not independent certification of every listed program at launch.
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- CineFX Engine
- Multi-Display Option
- Digital Vibrance Control (DVC)
- Multi-Buffering (Double/Triple/Quad)
- MPEG2 Decoding Acceleration
Planned availability and compatibility limits
- The AGP card and Oxygen RPM x2 module were expected through value-added resellers in Q3 1998.
- A PCI version was planned for Q4 1998.
- Windows NT was the named operating system.
- The source does not confirm that either release arrived on schedule, that the PCI model shipped, or that the expansion module was broadly available.
The AGP-first strategy reflects a transition in professional graphics. AGP was becoming important for new workstations, while PCI remained necessary for existing systems that lacked an AGP slot. The announcement gives the intended sequence, not a confirmed retail history.
How to interpret Oxygen RPM historically
Oxygen RPM combined several ambitious ideas for 1998: parallel graphics processors, a memory pool that could be rebalanced by workload, multithreaded OpenGL driver technology, stereo and dual-monitor output, and a proposed processor-and-memory upgrade. Its professional focus separated it from consumer 3D accelerators whose specifications were usually framed around games and single-display use.
The evidence supports calling it an ambitious announced workstation architecture, not declaring a commercial success or assigning it benchmark leadership. The surviving contemporary report documents what 3Dlabs presented at SIGGRAPH and what it expected to deliver. It does not establish final production revisions, street pricing, independent performance, sales volume, reliability or long-term market impact.
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