Video Card Thread (Mostly Gecube x1950xt)

Doesnt your card have 512mb or video ram? Mine only has 256mb... Is that why the clocks are different?

Btw, I only cared about noise when I got the Vantec Tornado case fan... This thing was LOUD! It spun at 5800rpm, had a airflow of 81.5cfm (reading from box) and a huge 52.1 dBAs of noise!

 

Lol, so if i told you the stock fan for the Radeon was 5500rpm, and the same size?

 

By ATi Tool, I hope you mean the Catalyst Control Center, or else where do I find the ATi Tool?
Because I can't find any "settings" in either the Advanced or Basic interface.
Just a whole list of settings and a button with 'Preferences', but that's not for the hardware-settings.

I'm starting to think I don't have the right software, still this is purely from the included disc.
Which also works better than the downloaded software I already got before the card arrived.
Things work better on the disc-software, like the car-demo and the ATi-flag-movie actually showing.
It didn't do that with the downloaded version...

Maybe the disc is the basic software and I have to update with the download?
I know ForceWare, but this isn't going so easily...


PS:
If you don't want noise from your air-cooling, don't buy anything with 'Tornado' in the name then, lol.
It must be a marketing-trick, you think it will cause a fresh tornado, but you get the noise with it .

 

Holy crap, today I though I'd reattach the cooler one more time.
Cleaned it again, applied the AS5 better, another pieces of tape behind it, and some cardboard washers between the rubber ones and the card for more pressure.
And now I finally got it down to 40-45 degrees idle.

Oh yeah, I also noticed when I put it on, it didn't go on straight.
Something might have been in between the cooler and card.
Maybe I had it put on like that before, but I doubt it.
It really seemed to be the problem, but it might also be the added pressure.

Battlefield 2142 works a bit better, still a disappointing 20-30-40 fps with everything at Medium, but no stutters I'm glad.
Then I also ran 3DMark06, I ran the Demo I think it is.
Which also ran smoother, but still a lot of low framerates and it again shut down the PC pretty far into the Demo though.
It was at this part right after where you see soldiers standing in rows, some leader-type walks in between and the soldiers kind of salute.

Anyways, also found there are new drivers out since the 18-19th.
And there are also drivers on the GeCube site, which download should I use actually?
Of course the first choice would be from ATi themselves, but since GeCube kind of exclusively created this whole thing.

And another thing, the instructions about updating drivers on the ATi-website say that after uninstalling the ATi-software, I should also uninstall an entry called DAO.
But I don't see it in the list, I though maybe after restarting, but I doubt it since in their screenshot the ATi-software is still there.

Weird stuff...

 

Well at the moment I'm in ireland using a blackberry to type this. I will be here for the next 9 days, so I won't be able to answer posts as often as I usually do. (Maby sammorris can cover for me?)

@dinc, you have the right software, ATi tool doesn't come with the cd. I downloaded it from their site, just google it.

(There is a beta version out that has a temp monitoring graph built in. I foget what version though... I think it is v26 (or 27) beta.

google is you best friend!

 

I'll do my best lol
As for the shutdowns, did you ever have that issue before you changed to this card? What rating is your power supply? (Sorry if I've already asked) I'm just thinking whether there might be something else in your system that's overheating. One way we can test this is to run AtiTool. Bring up the "3D view" of the furry cube, and let it sit there at normal speed, displaying that. Monitor the temperatures and see if you get a shutdown.

 

Well, I use the latest Everest Ultimate Edition, it can put these blocks with numbers in the tray to monitor the temperatures you want.
With this card it shows GPU temperature and GPU Ambient temperature, which are now both around 46.
The 2 internal HDDs go from slightly under 30 min. to somewhere in the 40's max. , so usually they're around 30 or in the 30's.
And the processor goes from slightly under 40 up to 60 degrees.
Idle is usually around 40 or up to 45, and depending on the application it goes to50 and 60.
I'm forcing it to not go over 60 just for it's performance, even though it would probably be better under 50.

I've never ever had the whole computer just shut down on me, except for maybe those blue-screen-crashes with some games if that wasn't with the previous PC, don't remember.
It seems like with this card it seems to crash when it reaches 70-80 degrees Celsius.
I think it's rather a good thing since it's probably a safety-thing so the card doesn't get damaged I would think.
That previous 6800XT wouldn't do that, I don't even know if it got that hot, but it did show all kinds of glitches and just disturbed graphics etc.
I think that one's just a bit broken or damaged, never really overclocked it much, maybe once a bit too much for just a moment, might have damaged something.

My PSU is the Zalman ZM500-HP, you can see about everything about it here: http://zalman.co.kr/eng/product/view.asp?idx=276&code=015
I bought it especially for this card, also for the most features it has, especially the low-noise and the cooling.

But also because of the connectors, the previous PSU didn't have that 6-pin PCIe-connector.
So I'd have to connect a splitter on the GPU going into two 4-pin Molex-connectors which would make the card need a total of 3 Molex-connectors and I'd be 1 short on the PSU.
So while the previous PSU was too noisy anyways, I thought this would be a perfect upgrade with all it's features.

And I really like it, it's just very neat with the sleeved cables, modular system, heatpipe cooling, etc.
to me it may blow air out a bit harder since it seems very low, but I guess it doesn't need much more to cool the PSU.
But for the exhausting of the hot air in the case it would probably be better.


What a story lol, sorry, just getting details out.

 

That seems like a good enough unit. Just so you know, most Radeon cards of recent years get to 90C in normal games, so yours is cooler and yet unstable, I think perhaps you should replace it.

 

That's weird, you don't think it might be because it's this more unofficial card?

And you mean replace it with a same one?


PS:
Wow, Rainbow Six Vegas is lighter on the card than BF2142.
I mean, it mostly has a higher framerate than BF2142 ususally.
But then it seems more because of the amounts of objects, it's more smaller maps in RSV.
Still it's weird, because it was the other way around with the previous card.
BF2142 was set lower, sure, but I had to put RSV on 640x480 and everything Off or Low to get just 30 fps or something.

Technology...

 

The X1950XT on AGP should perform quite similarly to my X1900XT PCIe, just marginally slower, and on Rainbow Six Vegas I can get that frame rate at 1680x1050, and with all the settings low it's playable at 2560x1600. That low performance isn't right. Replace it with an identical model by submitting an RMA to where you bought it from.

 

Well, I tried to get the ATi Tool.
But via Google I end up at this website: http://www.techpowerup.com/atitool/
And via another Dutch computing-community I also go to that website but then the page with mirrors: http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/436/mirrors.php

If I download it to my Application Drive, it gives some kind of error that I can't download it.
When I download it to my System Drive, AVG will grab it and say it is or contains a Trojan, I will not allow that.
So AVG will heal it, but apparently the whole thing will be deleted then...

 

Go here:
http://dl2.techpowerup.com/dl/Tweaking/ATITool/ATITool_0.26.exe
That file doesn't flag any viruses for me, and I use AVG too.

 

So it's really not right...

Besides that, could it be the rest of my system?
I don't know if I mentioned before, P4 HT 3GHz+, 1.5Gb DDR SDRAM (Dual Channel) and... that's about it.
Maxtor Drives of a couple of years old, but they're maintained and cooled well.


I hope they will take it back, it's like 1-2 weeks after the max. time I could keep it and return it you know.
But I guess I should just say I found out it's not working well, I had to wait for their PSU too.
I think I better call them for it?...

Ahm, should I also remove the light modification, tape and cardboard rings for extra pressure?
I don't know if they will check thoroughly, experts might also find there's different Thermal Paste on it.
But then, they should agree with me for replacing the white gunk there was slapped on it before by some factory-machine right?

 

Lol, it does the same there, WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON LOL .

> Downloader.Zlob.MCQ


Btw, what framerate do you get on RSV?
Unlike before about 30, I get up to 80 in menus now, down to also like 40 sometimes though.
And during playing it's about those same numbers, sometimes down to 20.
Also with most settings on and just some off, where you can actually choose lower or higher it's more at low.
But it's still... not that good, and at 1024x768 that is.

Battlefield 2142 is worse, depending on the map the frames go from 20 to maybe 40.
Those settings are mostly at Medium for almost everything.
Dynamics Low and Geometry and Textures High, which I find quite critical and that it should be possible.

And you know, BF's own fps-counter also has another numbers which I believe shows the time (milliseconds?) between the frames.
Those go up to and sometimes over 30, which I don't think is good, seems like too much stress.
I also think the lowest you can go is 10.

 

Damn, I just tried Need For Speed Underground 2, which was the first game I could play without a stutter with the 6800XT, with settings on full.
But now it dropped under 30fps, which the 6800XT almost didn't even do.
It had yucky jagged lines now too :S .

I couldn't find it in the game's settings, I guess I'll have to set a standard in the CCC?
But only when it works right, or else it will do it for every application, also the one it's too heavy for, which it shouldn't be right?


Please check back on my last 2-3 posts |^| .
And thanx for trying to help out btw.

 

As for the rest of the system , while not cutting edge, it's not too bad.
Your RAM isn't dual channel by the way, if the RAM sticks aren't the same size, you won't get dual channel.

As for the performance, all of it is terrible, I get above 50 at 1280x1024, and that's not even with the shadows on low. BF2142 is also a significantly lighter game by the way. At the same settings where Vegas may give you 20fps, 2142 should give you 70, and NFS2 over 100.

Remove all the modifications you made to the card, and send it back.

 

I have 4 RAM-sticks, each pair is identical with their own slot-color, 2 of 512 and 2 of 256.
It also says so at startup though.

And at first I also noticed RSV was a lot heavier, especially since the CPU's "heat-alarm" went off except in other games.
Now very strangely enough BF2142 seems to perform worse, so the other way around :S .
But like I said, it's probably because of the amounts of objects and maps etc.
And even Need For Speed yeah, at the startup it showed hundreds of frames in Fraps though, but not during cruising.

So also the rest isn't bottlenecking it much...


But I'll contact the store I got it tomorrow, on the phone, it's Sunday so I couldn't do it today.

Just one thing, would it be okay to tell the technical department there what I changed about it?
Or do you think they will be like "Well, then we can't take it back." ?
Cause you know, it's not really the meaning usually that you mess with it.
But on the other side it is normal to improve something, with aftermarket-products that are meant for it for instance, if you can.


And something else technically:
Would it help if I updated my BIOS?
Everest still says it's more than 2 years old (probably from 2004 or something) and I should consider an upgrade.
On the other side they always say, if I don't experience problems I should leave it alone.
Yes, now it's the card, which probably is the problem, but I'm afraid if I update the BIOS, something else might mess up.

What do you think?:
http://www.gigabyte.eu/Support/Moth...&ProductID=1759&ProductName=GA-8IPE1000 Pro-G

 

I'd keep quiet about it, or they probably won't take it back.
Have you tried updating your Motherboard's BIOS?

 

Lol, please read my thoughts about it in the previous post.
And using the link, what should I do?

Like there are 3-4 of those picture-links on the left, I don't know which one to use or if I should even go there.

And would the last version have all the updates that have been released before that one too?

 

I'd google around and check to see if there are any bugs with the latest version, and if not, go with that. It may be wise to get a backup power source, because if the power goes down during a BIOS flash, your motherboard will be wrecked. The latest BIOS will have all the updates.