The maximum clock frequency for the MAX7219CNG is 10MHz.
The MAX7219CNG can be initialized by sending a shutdown command (0x0C) followed by a display-test command (0x0F) and then a scan-limit command (0xB) to set the number of digits.
The No-Op command (0x00) is used to synchronize the data transmission between the microcontroller and the MAX7219CNG. It can be used to insert a delay between commands or to pad out a data transmission.
The brightness of the display can be adjusted by sending a intensity-command (0x0A) with a value between 0 and 15, where 0 is the dimmest and 15 is the brightest.
The Decode-Mode command (0x09) is used to select the type of decoding for the display. It can be set to either Code-B (binary-coded decimal) or No-Decode (direct binary input).