We report a self-starting prismless femtosecond Ti:sapphire ring laser whose repetition rate has been gradually increased from 1 to 2.12 GHz. A broadband spectrum extending from 650 to 1040 nm, in which 17% of the intracavity power is generated in a single-pass through the crystal, is preserved in spite of the reduction in peak power. An average power of 0.95 W was obtained for 7.5 W of pump power, with very stable operation verified over 22 hours. Pulses from this laser have been fully characterized in spectral phase, and then compressed to 5.9 femtoseconds using multiphoton intrapulse interference phase scan (MIIPS). © 2008 Optical Society of America.