When It Works, Intel Core i5 2500K Graphics On Linux Are Fast!

[danwexler]

Any success with Ubuntu 11.04 alpha 2?

I tried to install both the 32-bit and 64-bit versions and both had trouble with the H67 + i5-2500K graphics. I wasn't able to get a working display in either case. I either got garbage noise or a frozen screen at the boot prompt. This is using the MSI H67MA-E45 mobo and my 30" 2560x1600 LCD.

I'm keen to see if the i5-2500K can support my 25x16 display (I don't really care about perf). I realize that integrated chips don't normally play well at that res, but technical indications are that Sandy Bridge *should* be able to work at that res. For example, it comes with a dual-link DVI, which is required primarily for 25x16 displays. I also tested with a 1280x1024 basic LCD with no success.

For now, I have the system working using one of my older NVIDIA cards, but I'd prefer to use the integrated solution, if only because leaving half the chip idle is morally reprehensible.

I'd be curious to hear if anyone has had success with the latest Ubuntu 11.04 alpha 2 on an H67+i5-2500K setup.

[jbarnes]

I tried to install both the 32-bit and 64-bit versions and both had trouble with the H67 + i5-2500K graphics. I wasn't able to get a working display in either case. I either got garbage noise or a frozen screen at the boot prompt. This is using the MSI H67MA-E45 mobo and my 30" 2560x1600 LCD.

We can definitely drive that res (I'm using a Dell 30" at 25x16 and a Dell 24" at 19x12 in an extended desktop config right now), but most integrated gfx boards I've seen only come with single link DVI (don't be fooled by the DVI-D moniker, that just means 'digital' as opposed to DVI-I which has analog wires as well). So you generally need DisplayPort to drive 25x16 resolutions on an Intel integrated gfx board.

That said, you'll also need recent kernel and X/Mesa drivers. With Ubuntu you can use the xorg edgers repo (just apt-add-repository ppa:xorg-edgers/ppa; apt-get update; apt-get dist-upgrade) to get the latest drivers, and then use the kernel of the day repo to get a recent kernel.

[danwexler]

Great to hear confirmation that we can support 25x16 (and larger)!

Are you saying that the H67 only has DVI-Digital, and it does not support dual-link DVI? I've got the old-school Dell 30", and it doesn't have display port, but it does have dual-link DVI, and the cable definitely fits into my MSI mobo, and, normally dual-link cables won't fit in a non-dual-link DVI plug. The MSI mobo only has HDMI and DVI-D, and no DisplayPort, unfortunately. How can I verify if the DVI-D is dual-link or not?

Thanks for the apt-get tips, but are you suggesting that I need to use more recent kernels and Mesa drivers even with Ubuntu 11.04 alpha? I thought that version was supposed to have all the right bits for SB graphics without any modifications? I assume your suggesting that I use 10.10 and upgrade the kernel and mesa drivers (as suggested in this article)? I can try that next, but I'd prefer a simpler out-of-the-box install with 11.04 alpha 2, even if it is alpha.

[jbarnes]

Great to hear confirmation that we can support 25x16 (and larger)!

Are you saying that the H67 only has DVI-Digital, and it does not support dual-link DVI? I've got the old-school Dell 30", and it doesn't have display port, but it does have dual-link DVI, and the cable definitely fits into my MSI mobo, and, normally dual-link cables won't fit in a non-dual-link DVI plug. The MSI mobo only has HDMI and DVI-D, and no DisplayPort, unfortunately. How can I verify if the DVI-D is dual-link or not?

Use xrandr to see the available resolutions. If you only see up to 19x12, then you're probably only running a single link...

Thanks for the apt-get tips, but are you suggesting that I need to use more recent kernels and Mesa drivers even with Ubuntu 11.04 alpha? I thought that version was supposed to have all the right bits for SB graphics without any modifications? I assume your suggesting that I use 10.10 and upgrade the kernel and mesa drivers (as suggested in this article)? I can try that next, but I'd prefer a simpler out-of-the-box install with 11.04 alpha 2, even if it is alpha.

Yeah, even for 11.04 you need newer bits (at least I think? I don't remember what kernel and Mesa version they have).

[Aleve Sicofante]

Use really distinct colours for graphs

May I suggest you use really distinct colours for your graphs? It's simply impossible to tell one line from another on them (which makes them useless) and you haven't even come close to the limits of any imaginable palette.

[Michael]

May I suggest you use really distinct colours for your graphs? It's simply impossible to tell one line from another on them (which makes them useless) and you haven't even come close to the limits of any imaginable palette.

Trying to write a color palette generator, but due to not being too much into color knowledge, so far the colors aren't working so well. Anyone is free to help.

[FunkyRider]

HSV->RGB conversion

You can start looking at this

http://www.alvyray.com/Papers/hsv2rgb.htm

Basically what you do is pick reasonable S and V values and divide the color Hue to the number of lines you want and loop through them, then you convert each HSV value you sampled to RGB and you have a set of vivid colors with equal brightness and saturations.

[FunkyRider]

Also I think the border background of this forum page is too bright. Might try darker grey because it's currently a big whitely white screen and hurts the eye.

[V!NCENT]

Also I think the border background of this forum page is too bright. Might try darker grey because it's currently a big whitely white screen and hurts the eye.

I second this.

I also want to give some advise about the colars; use the FreeDesktop.org color scheme for desktops 'standard'. You know; those standard colors for apps.

[zoomblab]

If you are after Intel's new integrated graphics, not only do you need to be using a modern distribution for now, but also you need to be building your own driver (or obtaining the packages from a repository) so that you are on at least the Linux 2.6.37 kernel, Mesa 7.10, and xf86-video-intel 2.14.0.

Enduser linux driver update process FAIL