Neha Patil (Editor)

PlayStation technical specifications

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit
PlayStation technical specifications

The PlayStation technical specifications describe the various components of the original PlayStation video game console.

Contents

Central processing unit (CPU)

LSI CoreWare CW33300-based core[1]
  • MIPS R3000A-compatible 32-Bit RISC CPU MIPS R3051 with 5KB L1 cache, running at 33.8688 MHz.
  • The microprocessor was manufactured by LSI Logic Corp. with technology licensed from SGI.
  • Features:
  • 850K-1M Transistors
  • Operating performance: 30 MIPS
  • Bus bandwidth 132 MB/s
  • One arithmetic/logic unit (ALU)
  • One shifter
  • CPU cache RAM:
  • 4 kB instruction Cache
  • 1 kB non-associative SRAM data cache
    • Geometry Transformation Engine (GTE or Cop2)
  • Coprocessor that resides inside the main CPU processor, giving it additional vector math instructions used for 3D graphics, lighting, geometry, polygon and coordinate transformations ‒ GTE performs high speed matrix multiplies.
  • Operating performance: 66 MIPS
  • Polygons per second (rendered in hardware):
  • 90,000 with texture mapping, lighting and Gouraud shading
  • 180,000 with texture mapping
  • 360,000 with flat shading
    • Motion Decoder (MDEC)
  • Also residing within the main CPU, enables full screen, high quality FMV playback and is responsible for decompressing images and video into VRAM.
  • Operating performance: 10 MIPS
  • Documented device mode is to read three RLE-encoded 16×16 macroblocks, run IDCT and assemble a single 16×16 RGB macroblock.
  • Output data may be transferred directly to GPU via DMA.
  • It is possible to overwrite IDCT matrix and some additional parameters, however MDEC internal instruction set was never documented.
  • Features:
  • Compatible with MJPEG and H.261 files
  • Directly connected to CPU bus
    • System Control Coprocessor (Cop0)
  • This unit is part of the CPU. Has 16 32-bit control registers.
  • Modified from the original R3000A cop0 architecture, with the addition of a few registers and functions.
  • Controls memory management through virtual memory technique, system interrupts, exception handling, and breakpoints.

    • Memory

  • 2 MiB main EDO DRAM
  • Additional RAM is integrated with the GPU (including a 1 MiB frame buffer) and SPU (512 KiB), see below for details.
  • Cache RAM for CPU core and CD-ROM. See the relevant sections for details.
  • Flash RAM support through the use of memory cards, see below.
  • BIOS stored on 512 KiB ROM

    • Graphics processing unit (GPU)

    32-bit Sony GPU
  • Handles display of graphics, control of framebuffer, and drawing of polygons and textures
  • Handles 2D graphics processing, in a similar manner to the 3D engine
  • RAM:
  • 1 MB VRAM (later models contained SGRAM) for framebuffer
  • 2 KB texture cache (132MB/sec memory bus bandwidth, 32-Bit wide)
  • 64 bytes FIFO buffer
  • Features:
  • Adjustable frame buffer (1024×512)
  • Emulation of simultaneous backgrounds (to simulate parallax scrolling)
  • Mask Bit
  • Texture Window
  • Dithering
  • Clipping
  • Alpha Blending (4 per-texel Alpha Blending Modes)
  • Fog
  • Framebuffer Effects
  • Transparency Effects
  • Render to Texture
  • Offscreen Rendering
  • Multipass Rendering
  • Flat or Gouraud shading and texture mapping
  • No line restriction
  • Colored light sourcing
  • Resolutions:
  • Progressive: 256×224 to 640×240 pixels
  • Interlaced: 448×256 to 640×480 pixels
  • Colors:
  • Maximum color depth of 16,777,216 colors (24-bit true color)
  • 57,344 (256×224) to 153,600 (640×240) colors on screen
  • Unlimited color lookup tables
  • 32 levels of transparency
  • All calculations are performed to 24 bit accuracy
  • Texture mapping color mode:
  • Mode 4 - 4 bit CLUT (16 Colors)
  • Mode 8 - 8 bit CLUT (256 Colors)
  • Mode 15 - 15 bit direct (32768 Colors)
  • Mode 24 - 24 bit (16,777,216 Colors)
  • Sprite engine
  • 1024×512 framebuffer, 8×8 and 16×16 sprite sizes, bitmap objects
  • Up to 4,000 sprites on screen (at 8×8 sprite size), scaling and rotation
  • 256x256 maximum sprite size
  • Special Sprite Effects:
  • Rotation
  • Scaling up/down
  • Warping
  • Transparency
  • Fading
  • Priority
  • Vertical and horizontal line scroll

    • Sound processing unit (SPU)

    16-Bit Sony SPU
  • Supports ADPCM sources with up to 24 channels
  • Sampling rate of up to 44.1 kHz
  • 512 kB RAM
  • PCM audio source
  • Supports MIDI instruments
  • Digital effects include:
  • Pitch modulation
  • Envelope
  • Looping
  • Digital reverb

    • I/O system and connectivity

    CD-ROM drive
  • (660MB maximum storage capacity, double speed CD-ROM drive)
  • 2×, with a maximum data throughput of 300 kB/s(Double speed), 150 KB/sec. (Normal)
  • XA Mode 2 compliant
  • Audio CD play
  • CD-DA (CD-Digital Audio)
  • 128 kB buffer
    • Two control pads via connectors
  • Expandable with multitap connector
    • Backup flash RAM support
  • Two removable cards
  • Each card has 128 KB flash memory
  • OS support for File Save, Retrieve and Remove
    • Video and audio connectivity
  • AV Multi Out (Composite video, S-Video, RGBS)
  • RCA Composite video and Stereo out (SCPH-100x to 3xxx only)
  • RFU (SCPH-112X) DC Out (SCPH-100x to 3xxx only)
  • S-Video Out (SCPH-1000 only)
    • Serial and parallel ports
  • Serial I/O (used for PlayStation Link Cable SCPH-100x to 900x only)
  • Parallel I/O (N/A) SCPH-100x to 750x only)

    • References

    PlayStation technical specifications Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA